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Vash was reluctant to open his eyes, but he could feel that sleep was not going to bless him again before the morning came.
Thankfully, when he pulled his heavy lids open, gentle sunlight had already started to poke through the holes in the blinds, spotting the opposite wall.
He yawned wide, shoving a knuckle into his eye to remove the sand. Stretching out of his sleep, Vash was careful not to disturb Meryl, her breaths still rising and falling heavily. The smile that formed on his face was sweet and wholly involuntary. He gazed at her bare back, so clean and smooth, unlike his own marred skin. Desperately, he wished to touch her, run his hands down her body again, but she looked so peaceful as she slept. He decided it was best to let her rest.
Glancing over the sleeping woman, Vash spotted her digital clock on the bedside table.
7:14
He let out a small, disappointed sigh. It was earlier than he liked to get up, but he would have to make do. Meryl, on the other hand, would consider this sleeping in.
Vash smiled at the thought of her scrambling out of bed, panicked that she had slept for fifteen extra minutes. He would assure her it was fine, that she needed the extra sleep, but Meryl wouldn't have it; she'd just tell him there were far too many things to get done, and she couldn't waste that time with unnecessary sleep.
Glancing back at Meryl, his eyes were drawn once again to her back, the temptation proving too much.
Careful as he moved, Vash laid his warm palm on her shoulder, using his hand as a frame to gingerly trace down the lines of her body. Finally, he landed at his favorite spot: the small of her waist. Meryl was so tiny he could almost wrap one of his large hands completely around her body (and he had certainly tried). His hand curved over the satisfying dip, gently squeezing the soft flesh before pulling himself closer. Pressing a simple kiss to the nape of her neck, her dark hair tickled his nose as he did. Meryl stirred slightly, taking in that first deep breath of waking. Vash smiled against her skin, moving his thumb to run over the small dimple at the base of her spine.
"Vash?" she murmured, still almost fully asleep.
He hummed a confirming response, brushing his lips along her shoulder. Vash felt her chest rise and fall beneath his hand, releasing a sigh.
" Vash ."
The way she breathed his name nearly made Vash scoop her into his arms again, ready to ravish her and take full advantage of her soft, luscious skin. But he restrained himself, instead sliding his hand to lay on her bare belly and pull her flat against his chest.
"Morning, Mer," he whispered into her hair.
Meryl hummed what he probably thought was ‘good morning’, but she was still so influenced by sleep it was unintelligible.
Chuckling into her hair, Vash gave a final kiss to the crown of her head and reluctantly pulled away, allowing her to take advantage of those final precious moments of rest.
He had certainly taken away much of her precious sleep last night.
Rolling out of bed, Vash began gathering his scattered clothes from around the room: a black mock neck dropped at the door and a solid pair of black jeans crumpled at the foot of the bed. He slid into the pant legs and fiddled with his belt buckle, but his fingers faltered. Transporting him to the night before, his mind was filled with the memory of her thin fingers tracing delicately down the lines of his bare abdomen, tracing sensitive scars and eventually hooking into his waistband to draw him close.
Vash swallowed hard, the heat rising on his neck.
As soon as he had his shirt back on, he heard a faint knock, likely coming from Meryl’s front door. He ran his hands through his hair, a quick solution for his crazy bed head.
Who was here this early? And on a Saturday ?
Acting as if the knock had woken her from the dead, Vash heard Meryl gasp from behind him. Turning to see, Meryl was sitting straight up, eyes wide and hands clutching the sheets to her bare chest. It amused Vash to see her trying to maintain some modesty.
"What time is it?" she asked, her voice panicked.
Taking another look at the clock, Vash read aloud, "Um, seven twenty-one?”
Meryl cursed and tumbled out of bed, dragging her covers along with her.
He chuckled, “Meryl, what are you-” and then he heard the familiar squeak of the front door and a variety of voices enter the house.
“Ma’am?”
“Where is she?”
“I don’t know, normally Meryl is up at this time.”
“Is it okay for us to be here?”
“She said it was alright to come in when we got here, plus Milly knows the code.”
Vash’s jaw dropped as Meryl stared back with wide eyes.
“The…the staff from The Journal is meeting here this morning,” she said sheepishly, and Vash watched the flush rise in her cheeks.
Snapping his mouth shut, Vash sucked his lips into his mouth while trying to determine a plan for sneaking out. It was one thing to escape without Meryl’s roommates seeing, but the entire university journal staff? He liked hanging out with them–they were entertaining–but they were certainly the nosiest people Vash had ever associated with. Plus, Meryl hadn’t quite told their friends what was going on between her and Vash, and if Milly was to find out…the entire campus would know before the end of the week.
“It’ll be fine, this is fine,” Meryl tried to convince herself. She was starting to pace while wrapping herself up tighter in the sheets she had gathered. Vash could see she was spiraling, and when that happened, Meryl got stuck in a loop with no end in sight.
Vash tried to provide a solution, “Meryl, I’ll just sneak out the window-”
“No, I don’t want you to hurt yourself.”
“Meryl, your room is on the ground level.”
“Still!”
He laughed and tried to approach her, but she reached him first, planting a solid hand on his chest. Vash looked down in surprise at her solid connection, then back up at her still blushing cheeks.
“Just-just sit while I try and think,” Meryl pushed him backwards and around the bed, shoving him down onto the mattress to sit and wait patiently.
Well, Vash tried to wait patiently, but he was becoming increasingly more distracted by her nervous mannerisms. Clutching her blanket to her chest, Meryl ran a hand through her short hair, mussing her adorable bed head even further. Her bottom lip was subject to her teeth, anxiously turning the skin raw and pink. Vash felt his breath quicken as he watched her intently.
Then a knock came at the door and Meryl squeaked.
“Ma’am? Are you up?” Milly called from the other side.
Meryl’s fearful eyes screamed Help me! at him, and Vash just smiled back. Gently wrapping his hands around her waist, he pulled her in close.
“Just get dressed and go out there. I can wait in here until you’re done,” he said in a low voice, careful not to let Milly hear.
“Are you sure? I wouldn’t be surprised if it took a while, we’re going over the outline for the next issue,” her voice was filled with concern for him, but Vash couldn’t have felt more comfortable.
“I’ll be fine, Mer. I have nothing going on today,” then he smiled mischievously up at her, “I’ll be waiting here when you get back.”
Reemphasizing her blush, Meryl’s eyes widened as she bit her lip at the prospect. He desperately wished she would stop doing that, especially when she didn’t have any clothes on.
“Okay,” she said softly.
“Hello? Meryl?” Milly knocked once again.
The sound spooked Meryl, and he felt goosebumps roll over where his hands touched her bare skin. Focusing her eyes on him and filling her body with determination, she whispered, “I gotta go,” then cupped his cheek and planted a solid kiss on his lips.
Vash’s eyes widened, tightening his simple hold of her waist while smiling into the kiss. Unfortunately, it was over far too soon, as Meryl had pulled away to start getting dressed, his hands falling limp into his lap.
The kiss was simple–he had received countless like it–but every time it put him in a dream-like state. Meryl’s soft lips pressed to his in such a gentle manner made his face burn and his heart beg for more; pleading for the opportunity to do it every morning.
Blinking out of his daydreaming, Vash spotted a fully dressed Meryl as she came back into his field of vision. She smiled nervously at him, “You really will be okay in here?” her voice was still soft in case anyone was listening at the door.
He nodded, unable to get any words out, and Meryl blessed him one more time with a gentle kiss on his forehead before spinning around and slipping out of her bedroom door.
Flopping back onto the bed, Vash covered his blushing cheeks with his prosthetic arm. How could one small woman debilitate him so fully? He exhaled heavily, trying in vain to dissipate his desire. Wishing he hadn’t let her go, Vash imagined kissing her senseless on the bed, enjoying his Saturday in a way that he would prefer.
But he would wait. He could wait an eternity for her.