Falling

Who: Leija and Thom
Where: Phone then Leija's house
When: Er, most of the afternoon and into the evening? (Sorry >.<)
Warning: NSFW

Leija had called him for long enough last night to confirm that she was okay and that things were - well, Thom got the impression that things weren't great, but she'd begged tiredness and he didn't push it, letting her go with a promise that he'd call her the next day. He didn't mention Isaac once, she didn't need his problems or worries, after all. He'd gone to bed for another night of not-really-sleeping and almost called her again first-thing, but made himself put it off. She was tired, she didn't need him on her back about things. He made himself wait, adding a few hours on just to show himself that he could do that, finally allowing himself to dial her number in the early afternoon.

After coming back from the hospital and seeing Caleb, Leija had flopped onto her bed and fallen into a brief nap. Even though it had gone okay, and she felt good about bringing him things to occupy his mind, she was tired. Hardly sleeping would do that to a person. The phone startled her awake, however, and she grabbed for it in a fumbly sort of way. "'Lo?" she asked, and cleared her throat.

Thom frowned slightly, glancing up at the clock on the wall. "Did I wake you?" he asked, sounding slightly confused. He hadn't expected her to be sleeping. He lay back on his bed, crossing his feet at the ankles, resting against the headboard.

Ah, it was Thom. She wasn't surprised, but pleased as always. Leija smiled into the phone and shifted her position around a little bit. "Mm, I was just cat-napping," she said, coming awake more, but still staying snuggled down. She had intended to call him afterwards, but he'd beaten her to it apparently. "How're you?"

He actually had to consider the question before he answered it. How was he? Things with Isaac were better than they threatened to be - totally thanks to his mother, who was getting an extra-special dinner tomorrow night by way of thanks - but they were still a little weird and whilst the rational part of Thom knew that was only to be expected, that didn't mean he had to like it. "Yeah, better, I think," he admitted. "You okay?"

Honestly? No. She almost said it, for a variety of reasons. Not least of which was that she wasn't sure if her not being okay made a lot of sense. Or would, to someone else. She definitely wasn't as bad off as she could be, she knew that. But on the other hand, she already felt bad enough for keeping anything from him at all. "Not really-super good, but I'll live," she settled on as an answer. Then added, "I'm really sorry all this overshadowed your thing with Isaac. Do you want to talk about it at all?" Because she did feel bad about that.

"Don't apologise," Thom told her without pause. "It's okay." If anything, when it came to what had happened, he was more bothered by the fact that she'd not felt she come to him about what was happening than the fact that he'd chosen to help her with her problems rather than dwelling on his own.

Leija waited for a beat. "That's not really a yes or no," she pointed out gently, smiling a touch on her side of the line. "I whine at you more than enough, c'mon. You feel better? Did you get to talk to him?" She pulled a pillow under her chest to prop herself up more comfortably, settling down to listen. Because she loved his voice, and she didn't want to end up as the self-absorbed drama-queen girlfriend. And maybe she could help.

Thom had to smile a little at that, because he was aware that he hadn't answered the question in the slightest. "Kinda, I guess - he went and talked to my mom first," he admitted, his tone betraying a little bit of disbelief at that. "But she kinda put him straight on a few things, I guess. Anyway, it's - it's not as bad as I'd been thinking it was gonna be, so I guess I'll live too," he told her, giving her that. She could push for more if she felt up for it, but he refused to offload on her just because - he'd done enough of that with Isaac yesterday and all if left him with was a shed-load of guilt for pouring problems on his best friend who was doubtlessly having a hard time enough as it was dealing with everything.

All the 'I guess'es and his tone kind of clued her in that not everything was super-peachy still. Being that she was who she was, and she cared about him meant that of course she was going to push for more. It felt like this might be a rare thing, after all, his needing support on something. She could be wrong, but she definitely wanted to be there when it was happening. "But you still don't feel good about it?" she asked, as a lead-in for him to talk more.

Thom shrugged, even though she couldn't see it, and slid down the bed a little, shifting pillows with his shoulders, trying to get comfortable. "I just think I could have handled everything a whole lot better. And if this whole thing hasn't imploded, then it's not my doing. Like it's despite of me, not because of me. If that makes any sense at all. All I seem to do is make the whole thing worse," he admitted, because from where he was standing, it really felt like that.

Leija frowned on her end of the phone. She of course hadn't been privy to any of the actual conversations, but that didn't ring right to her. Thom always made things ten thousand times better for her, never worse. "Well," she said in a musing and gentle tone. "It's a really hard thing, trying to talk to someone else about that kind of stuff. I mean, I was completely terrified telling you about me, and it wasn't like you were completely in the dark, you know? And if he didn't know anything at all ... I dunno if there's any good way to talk about it. Especially with your ... additional problem. I don't think there's any formula to making it easier or more acceptable on the listener, and I'm sure you did the best you could at the time."

Thom laughed a little. "You make it sound like I have some weird disease," He told her, sounding amused. But it was obvious they both knew what she was talking about. "You didn't know I wouldn't be completely in the dark when you started out though, did you? And it wasn't just the telling - though that went really badly. It's like yesterday... He'd talked to my mom and come down from the whole 'thinking I was totally insane' platform and I... I'm not good at this shit. Really I'm not. I mess it up every time." Except with you.

"I didn't know, and I nearly gave you a heart attack instead of actually rationally explaining that I had wings of fire," she said wryly, and with a faint smirk. "So you're not the only one who sucks at it." She paused, because she had to wonder exactly how many times he'd been put in the position of cluing someone in to the supernatural. It couldn't have been that many. "What shit do you mean?" she asked. "Just talking about things in general?" Because he really hadn't ever struck her as being not good at that. Since they'd stopped stuttering at each other, at least.

"Well, explaining things, and, yeah, generally as well - I'm not very good at the whole 'talking' thing. Known for it, in fact. Which you'll find out once school's back in session, probably. The number of people I can actually talk with is fairly small. Which probably sounds dumb to you, because you're like the top of that list," he admitted, wryly. Would it sound stupid to say that it's different with you? Probably, he decided and so didn't. But it was, though he hadn't figured out why yet. "But... like Isaac and I got talking and I was telling him what I could about, well me and the other stuff. Mom had told him that there were things I could tell him and I was trying to fill him in on why - the curse and everything. And I - well, I let myself get sidetracked, I guess."

Leija felt her cheeks darken pleasantly as he said she was on top of the list. Since like ... he had a best friend and a mom and had lived here for forever. Stupid, perhaps, but it made her feel special. She continued to listen, though, nodding a bit even though he couldn't see her. Her silence was expectant. But then he didn't immediately go on, so she prompted, "Sidetracked in which direction?"

Thom sighed slightly and pushed his hair back off his face and out of his eyes with one hand. "Well... I was explaining about how my family's involved with supernatural stuff," he said, hesitantly, slowing as he always did when he was treading near to talking about anything to do with the curse, picking his words with a shade more caution. "And I was telling him that it would affect the rest of my life, affect what I could and couldn't do. And then I mentioned that it meant that eventually I'd have to leave the band. And he... took it in his stride. Like, really, really well. And I let that piss me off - like he didn't care or something. I let myself get distracted from the point. And then I let it become about me. About my life and my future and the effect it would have on me. Instead of what should have been, what was important - which was the fact that Isaac's only just found out about all of this and he needs me not to be dumping all my shit on top of everything else he has to deal with right now."

"Oh sweetie," she said in a truly sympathetic tone. Granted, she didn't know exactly what his ... stuff entailed, but she did know that he had a duty to perform, just like she did. An inescapable duty. It hadn't ever come up in practice, but she'd had innumerable conversations in her mind with imaginary future potential boyfriends and husbands and children even, trying to explain why she had to do the things she had to do. He couldn't even get into the 'why', which sucked. Hard. "Listen, I haven't known you very long, relatively speaking, but ... I like to think I know you pretty well. And from what I know, you don't let yourself do that enough," she said, trying to be cautious about it. "Let it become about you. This time the timing was bad, maybe, but ... you can't be expected to be self-sacrificing twenty-four-seven, sweetheart. Even just earlier, you wanted to talk about me and my shit first. Maybe it just speaks to the fact that you've got things you need to let out and you're not. And you guys are such good friends that maybe he knows that, you know?"

"Maybe," he admitted. "But - there's a time and a place, right? And that was neither. And as for earlier - you've had a lot on sweet. I wanted to make sure you were okay. The way you, last night - I know you were tired, but..." he trailed off.

Well that was better than 'hell no, you're a million miles off-base'. Though he was trying to change the subject again, whether or not he realized it. "It just ... anything having to do with --" god, she even hated to say the word, "-- suicide brings up a lot of bad stuff for me, is all," she said quietly. "With my mom and everything. It's just ... one of those things, so I'll be fine. Promise. Doesn't mean I can't be here for you too."

"Leija... I didn't know. That he..." Thom's voice softened - he may have been trying to change the subject but his attention was definitely diverted now. "Is that what happened?" he asked her.

Crap. She'd kind of shot herself in the foot there. With the trying to focus on him. "Yeah," she answered, equally softly. "Well, he tried. I didn't get a lot of details, really, but he tried in a way that looks like he got dropped in a blender. Once he can go, they're going to keep him in the psychiatric ward for a couple of weeks." And those were the barest facts, which were far easier to talk about than how she felt about it all. "But don't you dare feel guilty for talking to me about your stuff, Thom," she added, only slightly stern. "Don't think I won't go over there to glare at you."

Thom smiled at that. "That a promise?" he asked her, lapsing into flirting, because damnit, he needed that from time to time. "Because I think I could go in for a glare or two... If it's from you, of course," he added. He was willing to be she looked damn cute when she was glaring. Something to do with that hair of her's.

Leija chuckled quietly. "It's supposed to be a threat, but apparently you aren't intimidated by my mad glaring skills," she deadpanned, more than happy to lapse into flirting. It meant he felt better, at least, and that was something. "So I guess it qualifies as a promise. You have to at least act remorseful, though. Just for a minute."

"I thought I'd save that up for next time I saw you - I figure some proper remorse, with the right facial expressions thrown in - could get me some serious hugs. Maybe even a kiss or two. Gotta be worth something, right?" he teased - because he wasn't against going with the flirting either. When you considered all of the options, it definitely seemed to come out on top. "But, okay - I promise I won't feel guilty about talking to me about my stuff - but only on the condition you talk to me about yours as well," he told her, turning slightly more serious.

"I'm a sucker, so it'd probably be worth more than that," she said. Then realized what she'd said and would've cracked herself up if he hadn't said something that deserved a real answer. As it was she just blushed and rolled her eyes at herself. Hello, third grade. "Okay, we've got a deal, then," she agreed. "Stuff will be shared and not guilted over, and there will be hugs and kisses."

"And more than that...?" Thom added, with an air of amusement, because, yes, his brain was in third grade as well - and yes, he remembered the other day and had really enjoyed it, thank you very much. "Because, y'know - I can be very remorseful, if you want me to be..." Okay, he was grinning now.

Damn, he caught it! Leija had to giggle, and it was painfully girlish, but there it was. "Oh I bet you could, if you really put your mind to it," she mused in a humming sort of way. So it made her feel good and nicely flushed that he apparently liked it, so what? There was nothing wrong with that. Right? Yes. Er, no. Nothing wrong.

Score! He made her giggle - he was definitely grinning now. Massive achievement that, especially today and he shifted down a little further, lying on the bed now, his hair rucked up against the pillow as he grinned at the ceiling and into the handset of his phone. Finally something in the world made sense. "So, in other news, I got a cell phone - I figured I needed one and so now you have no excuse about not keeping your end of the bargain," he said, sounding a lot more relaxed now.

"Oh yeah?" she asked rhetorically, fluffing up her pillow a little bit herself. She tugged her blanket up and over her head so that she was in a nice dark cave, just her and Thom's voice. A cave that smelled pleasantly like dryer sheets. "Good, you'll have to give me the number. I'm sure Daddy's going to be getting me one soon. So we can text dirty words to each other and stuff." Leija grinned. "And y'know, that whole calling thing."

"Oh well, y'know - calling is nothing compared to the ability to text dirty words to each other," Thom laughed. "But yeah - and I'm calling you on it right now, in fact - so if you have caller ID, you already have my number," he told her. He paused. "What are you doing? Your voice just changed," he asked, frowning a little, curious.

"Oh, pfft, I didn't even look," she said. Then paused as well. What was she doing? ... oh! "I just cocooned in blankets is all," she answered with a little smile. His new phone had awesome reception if he could pick up the difference. "You're in bed with me again," Leija added, tone a touch softer.

"You just sounded a little muffled for a moment," he explained as he shifted onto his side, bringing a pillow down to hold. Yeah, he was a sap that that was his natural reaction to her telling him that. "But I don't have a problem being in bed with you," he added, thinking that sometimes it seemed he spent most of his time there. Which was quite a change, all things considered. Especially since at the beginning of the summer, Isaac had been taunting him about being a monk, the way he behaved.

Leija was aware that it would just take a drive -- well okay, a shower first -- across town to really put them in the same bed, but this was nice too. She heard a bit of rustling and guessed that he was probably in bed too. That seemed to be the way of things with them. Which she really wasn't ever going to complain about. "Have I told you lately that I really like this?" she asked in a murmur. From her voice, it was obvious that she was smiling. "Being with you."

"Not in the last 24 hours, no," Thom told her, matching his voice to hers. Of course 'lately' was a relative term, since in real terms they hadn't known each other all that long. "Do you?" he asked, though he already knew the answer, of course.

She looked through the fabric of the blanket at the light cut into hundreds of thousands of tiny squares and smiled. Her mind made a vague correlation to the small pinpricks of light and all the people in the world, and how lucky was she that she'd found one that seemed terribly compatible with her? Even with Everything. But that was far too dorky and complicated to try and say. "I do," she answered softly. "Very much."

"Me too," he told her. "Sorry for waking you," he added, though he didn't sound very apologetic. Possibly just comfortable as he mentally pictured her curled up beneath her blankets and he hugged the pillow a little tighter, after all, he had been there with her yesterday. That had been nice - and they'd both actually gotten some sleep as well.

"You're totally unforgiven," she said, her smile very easy to hear in her voice. "I'm so mad at you for waking me up so I get to talk to you, I can't even stand it. I'll have to come up with some suitable punishment, this just can't go on, Thom." Leija scratched lightly at the blanket in front of her face with a fingernail.

He laughed lightly, then coughed, making as if he was covering it up. "I am the very picture of contrition," he said, seriously. "And completely at your mercy," he added, unable to hold on to the serious tone as amusement crept back in - and somehow, the thought of being totally at her mercy was kind of appealling.

She grinned, but tried to school her face so it didn't sound terribly like she was. "Mmm, good," she mused, putting a touch of Haughty into it. "That's where you belong. So, aside from glaring -- the threat of which didn't seem to intimidate you in the least -- what do you think would teach you a lesson?" This was what she needed, even more than sleeping. Levity and affection and all that. She was starting to feel worlds better, even if it was possibly temporary.

"Hmmmmm," Thom mused, as if giving that serious thought. "Let's see... Well, we never actually proved that I was immune to glaring - so, maybe we should start with that. You'd have to be in my presence for the full effect, of course. And I think I should be made to pay for my sins - be at your beck and call, maybe take you out somewhere... Whatever you want, really," he suggested.

"And just what are you implying?" she asked, knowing full well what. She just wanted him to say it, that was all, because she would probably never get tired of hearing 'I want to see you'. Like, ever. So she just grinned and waited and made him work for it a little.

"Implying?" Thom asked, amused. "I'm not 'implying' anything - I'm saying that you should let me take you out. Wherever you want. Lady's choice. See, I'd say that maybe we both need it, but since this is penance for me, I'm going to totally make like I expect nothing from it myself," he teased, getting up off the bed and wandering over to his wardrobe to look through it, just in case she wanted to go out tonight.

"Oh see, you're missing the point now, I give the orders around here," she said. She pushed the blanket down and rolled over to stand up herself. Since they were apparently going out and everything. "It is penance for you, 'cause you've in trouble. And people in trouble don't get to be bossy. But since you're inspired me in that direction, I think you should take me out. Toooooo ... um ... eat and maybe rent a movie or somesuch date-type thing. I'm not really up on what's popular to do with you youngun's nowadays." Hrm, clothes ...

"Yes ma'am - see me not suggesting anything," Thom said, making a show of backing right up. The blue shirt, he decided, shrugging out of his t-shirt. He sniffed it lightly and threw the shirt down on the bed as he decided that he definitely needed a shower before he saw her. "Tell you what - me and my wallet will head over to yours and then we'll do whatever you want. And I won't say a word - well, unless you tell me too," he teased.

"That's better," she said with a grin. "I knew you could do this. That sounds good. I'll unlock the back porch door, I really need a shower if we're going anywhere, so just come on in. Daddy's not here, he's trying to get his office organized on campus. I'll try not to be a girl and take too long." She tossed a couple of possible selections, idly musing on what he would do if she just came down in a towel. Ah, fun times.

"I gotta shower first anyhow," he told her, unbuckling his jeans and letting them fall to the floor as he stepped out of them, hooking them towards the washing basket with his foot. Score! They flew in - he had a knack for that. "So I'll be a while, plus mom has the car - of course." He rolled his eyes.

And now she was wondering what he'd say if she offered to let him come over and take a shower with her, but Leija managed to resist the urge. She just wrinkled her nose at herself in the mirror and rolled her eyes. "Okay. I am carless too, so I feel your pain. I'll be here whenever you get here."

"We'll be walking then - unless you choose me and my wallet to call you a cab, of course," Thom told her, adding a pair of pants and some fresh underwear to the pile on the bed. He was feeling a lot better about everything right about now. Nothing like the idea of a date to make most of life's problems fade into the background, after all.

"I'll have to think on it," she said, even sticking her nose up in the air for effect. She padded to the bathroom, stripping as she went. That was the awesome thing about having the house to one's self. Well, one of them, anyway. "I just might be too awesome to walk anywhere. Or you could carry me, I suppose. You seem to have a good strong back."

"Wellll, you are only a little thing," Thom pointed out. "So I wouldn't actually have to be that strong - course, it'd ruin my reputation, being seen around town being used as transport for a girl..." Not that he sounded like he minded, but he thought he should point that out.

Leija grinned and made a scoffing sort of sound. "There's nothing better to be transport for," she stated, sounding sure about that. She took the phone away from her ear for a moment to strip her t-shirt off. Then cranked on the water in the tub. "And I am not little! It's diminutive and petite and adorable, thank you."

Thom raised an eyebrow as he heard the sound of water running. "Okay, so you're running a bath as we speak?" he asked, unable to stop himself - or the mental images which that thought threw up. He smiled - because they were nice mental images. "And yes, petite and adorable - definitely adorable. But I have to point out that petite is just little in a foreign language..."

"I'm letting it warm up before I get in the shower," she said. A wicked little grin stole over her face and simply would not leave. "It'll help me get off the phone faster, because otherwise we'll just stand around and talk to each other all night. Unleesssss ... you want to come join me." She winced in an amused sort of way and stifled a giggle. Yeah, she was definitely still in third grade. "But of course, if you're going to keep being mouthy ..."

There was going to be a reply - Thom had one all worked out and everything. And then she suggested that he come over and shower with her - at which point his brain shortwired and he just about managed a 'guhhuhh' sound - which wasn't exactly the most eloquent thing he'd ever said. He couldn't even cover for it.

That cracked her right the hell up. So much for being playfully seductive. Leija put a hand over her mouth and had a terribly amused snickerfit that was half-embarrassed too. "Sorry," she said when she could breathe again. "You okay sweetie? Didn't mean to break you. Go take your shower and come over and we'll go out." She made a kissy sound into the phone and hung it up, before she started giggling again.

And then she'd hung up. He wondered if she actually knew how close he'd been to scrambling for a 'yes' and diving over there as fast as he could go. Course, that was in his head - because him, a shower, and Leija would lead to badness. In the form of goodness, possibly, but eventual badness and right now he hated being him. Especially now that he had a flirty, suggestive and above all incredibly sexy girlfriend. Yeah, his life really wasn't getting even in the slightest bit simpler. With a sigh, he hung up the phone and headed for the bathroom to take a shower. Possibly a very cold one.

Leija cut him some slack as he arrived and they went out. She didn't tease him too bad. Despite having to take a cab the entire time -- which she really tried to help pay for, and was met with Looks from Thom's direction -- it ended up being nice and a lot of fun and just what she needed. He was good for that, it seemed. And from all appearances, he had a good time too, so she counted it as all excellent. The sun hadn't been down very far by the time the cab pulled back up in front of Leija's house; they'd gotten a relatively early start, as far as dates went. The redhead peered out the window and noted that her dad's car was still gone. "Want to come in?" she asked, looking back over at her most awesome boyfriend.

Thom felt world's better - he even felt like maybe the fact he hadn't been sleeping properly lately have gone away some. And they'd laughed and had fun - and he wasn't as concerned about the fact that she was stressed as he had been, because he'd been able to help with that, or so he thought. The date had come to a natural 'end' - as much as they'd left town and got a cab back to her place. And when she asked the question, he had no problem at all with it, being that he wasn't ready to leave her. In fact, he'd been tempted as she asked, to answer her just by scooting across and kissing her -except the cabbie was there and he felt all self-conscious about that. So, instead, he just gave her a smile. "Sure," he said, leaning forward to pay the fare before they got out.

She smiled back and got on out to walk up to the porch. She was aware that it could mean trouble for her, having him there -- and likely keeping him there a while, as she wasn't really ready for this evening to be over anytime soon -- while her dad was gone, but Leija'd gotten pretty confident in her ability to sneak him around. They'd been doing fine with it so far, after all. She waited for Thom and unlocked the door for them, slipping out of her shoes on the inside and letting out a sigh. "I'm glad I don't bother with really super-cute shoes much for you," she said conversationally. "They're more torture than they're worth."

Thom looked down at her shoes - noticing them for the first time that evening. "I'm meant to notice your shoes?" he asked, completely clueless. That was news to him if he was as he shut the door behind them and pulled her towards him. "The most I think I notice is how much taller or not you are in them," he said, before he bent in and kissed her, absently noticing that, yes, she was shorter now she'd taken her shoes off.

She let out a little giggle as she was pulled, and was about to protest and pout that he was supposed to notice and absorb every tiny detail about her, but then she was being kissed and she forgot what she was going to say. Leija kissed him back and didn't even mind that he'd kind of called her short again. She loosely wrapped her arms around his neck and made a soft little murring sound.

He turned her round as he kissed her, pushing her up against the wall, just managing to miss everything that was in the way - somehow that wasn't exactly in his main attention focus. He just hoped her dad wasn't home. Surely she would have said if her dad was going to be home. Right? Right? Maybe not. Reluctantly, he pulled away and looked at her, half listening for sounds that someone else was home. "Your dad?" he asked, he voice low.

Oh ... god. With the being bodily moved and the wall and wow. Her stomach erupted instantly into wonderful butterflies. "Not here," she said a bit breathlessly, eyes cracking once more to look back at him. She thought that was what he was asking, at least. Leija scraped her teeth over her bottom lip briefly. "Probably won't be for a while." Which she was suddenly very very grateful for.

Thom smiled, catching his bottom lip momentarily between his teeth before he let it go. "Good," he said, leaning in and kissing her once more. Because parents were overrated - really, he was still amazed that he'd managed to sleep half the day away with her yesterday, but then again, maybe her dad was cool with all of this - it seemed maybe he was, because Leija didn't seem all that fussed and he was spending a lot of time here with her. And between here and the hospital, much of that time was in her bed.

She was fully aware that she would likely get a lecture and some stern looks if her father knew about this, but witness how she couldn't bring herself to care in the least. Certainly not when he looked meltingly hot when he did that little lip bite and smiled at her like that. For all Leija cared, the rest of the world could fuck off and go to hell. Her arms tightened around him and she kissed him back eagerly, very much liking this whole being between him and the wall thing.

Thom deepened the kiss, pressing her back into the wall, really quite enjoying the pressure and intensity being able to do that brought - especially since she didn't seem to be complaining in the least. He held her against him, one hand in the small of her back, the other reaching to bury itself in her hair. He had to wonder how long 'a while' was - hopefully quite a long time, because he was in no hurry to leave and right now, he wasn't in the mood to play 'the polite boyfriend' either. He'd do it, if it had to be done, of course, but he'd prefer not to have to.

Leija wondered if he had any clue at all just how quickly he could turn her into putty. Despite all the teasing about her having the upper hand they'd been doing, all he had to do was that and she was all his for anything at all. It would've been unnerving if she didn't enjoy it so damn much. A small sound came out of the back of her throat that she wasn't even aware she made as she parted her lips for him and nipped at his bottom lip. Instinctively, her hips pressed forward against him more firmly.

His tongue swiped in between her lips as she parted them, and he groaned, softly, both in response to that and to her pressing against him, which was good on a whole other level and he ground back, hips to hips, his eyes drifting closed as if suddenly felt a whole lot warmer in the room for some reason.

Was she ready to sleep with him? She had to wonder, even if it was a dim and distant thought. Leija felt like it might be heading in that direction, but did absolutely nothing to stop it, because most of her was answering with a resounding 'yes'. Especially with him grinding against her that way. Her fingers moved to bury themselves in the hair at the back of his neck and she dug her nails in just a bit.

He pulled back to take a breath and looked down at her, his eyes dark - darker than normal, even, his eyelids heavy. She looked flushed beneath him and he couldn't help but think that it was a damn good look on her, against her pale skin and that hair, a lock of which he reached to brush back off her face. He wasn't sure where to take it from here - standing in her hallway as they were, even if they were alone in the house.

She took the opportunity to breathe a bit herself, eyes opening to meet his. She was sorely tempted just to push him away from her, grab his wrist, and drag him upstairs to her bedroom. It wasn't like they hadn't ever been there before, or alone in a house, or even hadn't ever fooled around. Still, for some reason she was nervous this time. Maybe it was the feeling that her willpower wasn't what it probably needed to be tonight. "Wanna go upstairs?" she breathed, putting it in his court.

Hell yes! Okay, too enthusiastic, he decided, though his expression betrayed him even though when he did speak, it was a lot calmer than that. "Sure," he told her, kissing her once more, though much more lightly this time, taking her hand as he did so and leading her upstairs - by now he knew where her room was, after all.

Oh thank god. Leija gave a breathy little laugh that she couldn't really explain and followed along where she was led. Mixed in with her butterflies was a sort of relieved anticipation. Because it was Thom and whatever was about to happen or not happen or whatever was going to be great. That was just how it worked. She kicked the door to her room shut once they were through it.

It was one of those things - a couple of weeks ago and he would have been terrified and nervous beyond imagining to actually be here. A couple of weeks ago he would have equated being in a girl's room - especially a girl he was interested in - to what he was and his mind would have been so obsessed with the possible badness resulting from that that he wouldn't have been able to concentrate on who he was and that he actually was possessed of freedom of choice and self-control. Not, he almost felt comfortable here. He would have said relaxed, except he had Leija before him and there was only so much 'relaxed' a guy could be when a girl like that was - he would have said that she was in his arms, except she wasn't and he stepped forward to remedy that. Which did nothing for the 'relaxed' part, but damn it felt good.

She was perfectly fine with that, arms slipping around his shoulders as she pushed herself up onto her toes to kiss him again. It was a bit slower and softer this time, but no less heated. Her heart was still close to racing. Having a male in her room had been an utterly foreign concept a mere month ago. Even the scant number of guy-friends she'd ever had stopped coming into her room after puberty. But for her part, she was perfectly content having Thom there. It was private and quiet and it felt like he belonged there. She started to back toward the bed very slowly, pulling him along with her.

He didn't take much encouraging and went with her willingly, backing her up, then lowering her down to lie her on the covers, lying next to her, half covering her body with his, not even breaking the kiss for a moment. It felt natural doing that and he was secure in his limits, he'd proven to himself lately that he had them and could stick to them and that had given him the confidence to go with this, confidence he hadn't had when he'd started dating the girl below him. But the more he came to care for her, the more he felt he could keep to them, because of what it would mean for both of them if he didn't.

Leija was more than accommodating, settling back comfortably. It felt right and secure half-under him; she trusted him completely, and had managed to stop fretting over spoiling his opinion of her. They had something. It may have sounded corny, but they really did, and she found herself surprisingly unafraid of it. As well as all of it's delicious trappings, like this. One hand slid back into the back of his hair again while the other lightly trailed her nails up the exposed skin on his arm.

He slipped a hand underneath her top, touching the skin of her back and moving upwards with confidence, rucking her top as he went. There was no pause now, not like there had been previously and he found it hard to believe that he'd ever been worried about being with her like this, as if there was something to be nervous about.

She was coming to find out that she absolutely loved it when he was pro-active like that. Leija wasn't sure if that made her kind of slutty somewhere or not, and she wasn't concerned with thinking about it in the moment. She just tingled all over when he touched her, and she kissed him a bit more firmly for it, leaning into him closer to give him room on her back.

Thom broke off the kiss and pulled back slightly, enough to look at her as he rested his weight more on his side for a moment, giving her the chance to say something, before he pushed up more at her top, making to take it off for her.

There wasn't a thing in the world she wanted to say outside of a general sense of 'yes please', so Leija just took in a few deep breaths as he pulled back. She moved around enough to help him get the shirt off in the least awkward way possible. Maybe she should start wearing only button-downs on dates.

Thom pulled her top off over her head, tossing it onto the bed before looking back to her. He cupped a bra clad in a satiny bra in his palm, leaning in to kiss her once more, shifting position a little, pulling them properly onto the bed now. He deepened the kiss as he slid his hand round to her back, fumbling with the clasp of her bra. He was slowly getting better at this, but really, he still needed two hands to manage it.

After a second of feeling him not get it, Leija uttered a small muffled laugh into his mouth and twisted her more-free arm around behind herself to pop the clasp. So button-down shirts with no bras. It wasn't like she really needed them anyway. There was more squirming to get that out of the way, and she was moving into kiss him again, her own fingers finding the bottom of his shirt and tugging up a bit.

"Hey, those things are difficult," Thom murmured against her lips, trying to sound put out, but ending up more amused as he eased the scrap of satin down her arms and off, abandoning it somewhere in the direction of her top. Girls - had to be complicated. He lifted his arms then, pulling back so that she could undress him as well.

She giggled softly and had to agree. They seemed to be designed specifically to trip guys up. Or so it seemed. She pulled his own shirt up and over his head, turning it inside out in the process, and tossed it over the side of the bed to join her own clothes. Leija moved in closer again as soon as she could, enjoying the feeling of his bare chest against her's. One hand lightly ghosted down the length of his back, fingers running over what was left of the scabs on his still-healing scratches.

He tensed for a moment as she ran a hand down his back, expecting pain that didn't come - his back had been getting steadily better over the past few days, but he still had to get used to it. "Sorry," he told her, breaking the kiss and looking a little chagrined. "They're getting better though," he assured her, running a hand down her side.

"S'okay," she murmured back, flashing him a little smile. She found a spot more toward his ribs that was unmarred and settled her hand there. The thought occurred to her that even though she hated he'd gotten hurt, she kind of hoped at least some of them scarred. Not that he needed to be any sexier, but still. Not that she was going to tell him that. Leija took up kissing him again, nipping gently at his bottom lip.

He lowered his head, breaking the kiss to nip gently at her neck, sucking a little as well as his hand reached her waist and then the band of her jeans and he ran his fingers round to the front, lingering over the button, his thumb ticking up to stroke her flat stomach lovingly.

She let out a breath that wasn't at all steady, eyes rolling closed again as she moved her head more out of his way. There went that pleasant little flutter of nerves in her stomach again. But if it was going to happen, this felt like the perfect way for it to. Her other set of fingers curled in his hair.

Thom popped the button, then lowered the zipper of her jeans, pushing them down over her ass and down her legs with both hands. He sat up, his eyes drifting down over her now nearly naked form as he knelt to ease them off over her feet. She really was a sight to behold, truly beautiful and he just stopped to appreciate that for a moment, before he leant back in to kiss her once again, slowly and softly this time.

Leija sank her teeth into her bottom lip and looked back at what she could see of him while he took her in. He really was formed wonderfully, and she lightly traced the line of muscle in his arm as he came back in to kiss her. There were still too many clothes in the way, in her opinion, and she slid her other hand down over his side to slip her fingers under the waistband of his pants at the button.

He felt her hand at his waist and moved, angling himself to give her access, because he was also of a mind that there were too many clothes still around - for him, anyhow. His jeans had been feeling rather too tight for a while now - and seeing her, lying there, all pale skinned beauty against the covers of the bed had done nothing to help with that - or everything to help, depending on the way you looked at it. He took a moment to finish kissing her, before leaning back, looking first at her hand, then across and into her eyes.

She angled a little smile at him. There was something to be said for the impassioned rush to get clothing off, but this sort of pace was good too. Very much good. Keeping up the eye contact so she could watch his expression, she took her time about unbuttoning his jeans, pressing against his erection with the heel of her hand a bit. Then she undid the button and pulled the zipper down. Lip caught in her teeth again, she shifted a bit so she could pull them down.

Thom gasped as she pressed against him, dropping his head slightly, his hair falling into his eyes as he did so and he looked at her through a combination of heavy lids and thick, straight brown hair, his mouth slightly open, his eyes dark with want as he lifted his hips up off the bed so she could pull down his jeans. Somehow, watching her undress him had to be one of the sexiest things around - especially when she was already mostly naked.

Once the jeans were out of the way -- which he did look good in, but better out of -- Leija leaned in to nip and nuzzle at the side of his neck. She couldn't help herself, that look on his face and the hair in the eyes was simply too hot. Her hand ran lightly up the inside of his thigh, slipping just slightly under his boxers. She adored making him breathe funny, and thought that he should be doing more of it.

She wasn't disappointed - with the combination of her nuzzling, nipping and feeling, he was quickly losing the ability to remain upright, balanced as he was on his knee and arm - an odd position that he wasn't sure how he ended up in. Oh yeah, part of undressing each other. He breathed a quiet laugh, little more than an appreciative kind of noise, before he rolled backwards onto the bed, taking her with him, so she was over him for once - and the moment that he got onto his back, he realised that this position was great, if for no other reason than the view it gave him.

Leija was fine with the shift. He could've put them on the floor or upsidedown somewhere and she wouldn't have cared. She propped herself up on one elbow at his side, leg moving to slide softly over his as her eyes moved over him. He was still not naked enough, she decided, and moved again to sit up more and drag his boxers down over his hips with both hands.

He had a flash of what could only really be described as excitement as he realised that he was naked, fully naked in an empty house, with his girlfriend, who was only clad in a pair of panties herself, in her bed - and she not only didn't appear to have any problem with this at all, but she was actively encouraging him. As she rid herself of his boxers, he pulled her back down to him, kissing her fiercely.

There were no problems on her end. Still some nerves, as evidenced by the eruption of stomach-butterflies when he kissed her like that, but there was more excitement than badness. Leija responded in kind, heart beating hard. Because she was aching for some kind of contact and it felt more than natural to do, she moved a leg over his hips and pushed with her elbow, moving to straddle him. A soft whimper came out of the back of her throat as her weight settled, with nothing but fabric between them.

Thom lay back as she moved, his hands reflexively going to her waist to steady her as she sat astride him and he drank in the view of her above him, Oh yeah, he liked this position alright. He smiled a little as he trailed one hand down from her waist, over her stomach and down across the material of her panties, feeling the warmth of both of them as he slipped between her legs, one finger disappearing beneath the material to touch her.

She sighed something that would've sounded like his name if it had more articulation to it. One hand moved out to brace on his chest, as that touch made her feel a little more than light headed. Her hips tilted a bit so he had more room while her other set of fingers moved to circle around him. It would be so easy just to move some cotton to one side and resettle her position on top of him and how close it was was arousing in and of itself.

Thom was also aware of that and though he knew that he couldn't go there, the idea that he could, the idea that maybe - and them being so close, it was hellishly arousing and gave that extra edge to her touch as he curled a finger round and up into her, his eyes fixed on her face, watching for her every reaction, his own breathing harsh and unsteady now.

Remembering that there had to be moisture involved, Leija let go of him long enough to lick her palm thoroughly before taking hold of him again. She gave an involuntary little shudder around his finger and bit into her lower lip again. Leija stroked him firmly, the possibility of her dad coming home and the rest of the world in general completely forgotten. Her attention could be nowhere but him, and she watched his own expression in kind from under heavy-lidded eyes.

He pushed her panties totally to one side now, wanting better access for his hand as he added another finger to the first, moving a little faster, pressing a little deeper. He closed his eyes, imagining that it was more, that he wasn't who he was and it could be more - he'd give anything for that right now, he wanted her so damn much.

The impulsive part of her wanted to just do it. She had a grip on him, after all, and could probably push his wrist out of the way easy enough, but that probably was slutty, boyfriend or no. Still, as good as his fingers felt -- which was unbelievably good -- she wanted more of him. Leija leaned forward, chest brushing lightly against his and put her head down next to his. Or as close as she could get with their arms in the way. "Do you want to?" she breathed toward his ear, and even that was unsteady.

He stilled, completely stilled as her words came through and he opened his eyes, staring at the ceiling. Oh God, oh God she wants to and yes YES, but... He licked his lips and took a breath, wondering how the hell he was going to tackle this one and not ruin things. Since he seemed to be doing spectacularly well at that and bad things came in threes. "Yes," he told her. "Yes - but, we... can't."

Leija pulled back a bit to look at him questioningly, her own hand stilling where it was. They couldn't? Because she certainly felt capable at the moment, and more than ready on a few different levels and the house was empty and it wouldn't be anything for her to get completely naked and he was naked and hard in her hand and oh so sexy, and ...

He felt like he was suddenly under the spotlight and swallowed. And this is the point where you wish you'd brought this up before, he reminded himself. "I, erm - there's kinda something else that goes with the whole curse thing," he said, awkwardly, withdrawing his hand. Because, really, he couldn't have this conversation like that.

She looked blank and slightly confused. Because, from recent events ... well ... everything seemed to work. She didn't have a whole lot of experience, of course, but ... still. But in the bedroom without clothes and with their hands on each other wasn't a place or time to bring up the curse unless he meant it, and he'd said he wanted to -- which made her feel incredible, in a way she was now totally ignoring because there was talk of not-doing it going on. It was a little hard to drag her head out of the haze of Want. "You can't?" she asked, 'cause she had no other idea how to get clarification.

"Er, no - well, I guess, yes? Well - I can. We can, but... You probably don't want to. With me." Words, Thomas - sentences. They're good things. "See, the family thing - the curse runs in the family. But so does..." He looked up towards the ceiling, blushing faintly. "We, er - tend to be, well, incredibly fertile." His eyes batted back. Not able to quite meet her eyes, he settled on her hairline. "Like impossibly, stupidly so. So we could, but..." Consequences - they were a bitch.

Oh. Oohh. The whole ... potential after-effect. Babies. Which, despite any extra tendencies on his part, was something she should've thought of. She certainly didn't have any protection in her room, and she wasn't on anything, so ... god, why did her dad have to be right? Quasi-right, because Thom wasn't forging ahead anyway. Which was good. Leija nibbled on her bottom lip, looking directly at him even though he wasn't at her. She felt bad that he seemed to be embarrassed about it. "Okay," she murmured, leaning in a bit to kiss softly along his jawline. "But what we've done already is okay, right?"

She got a bonafide Stare at that, bug eyed, opened mouthed, the whole works as he struggled to answer that question. In the end, he decided not to, instead sitting himself up, grasping her round the waist as he kissed her thoroughly, pulling her hard against him, channelling all of his frustrations and wants into that one kiss and hoping that she'd get the message from it. Because this so far was so beyond merely 'okay' that there were no words.

Well! Leija took that as an enthusiastic yes, and probably would've giggled if her mouth weren't suddenly very occupied. The new revelation about him was set off to one side to think more thoroughly about later. Apparently he was just trying to look out for them both, after all, and she couldn't fault him that in the least. What it might mean later wasn't important at the moment, because they were still together in her bed and he was naked and she was nearly and she still wanted all of him that he could give her. She kissed him back hungrily, arms wrapping around his shoulders as she ground against him a little bit, unable to help herself.

He rolled her, turning them both on the bed, lying her down as he did so and pinning her to the bed with his hips. Only when he had her settled did her break the kiss. "Leija," he said with the seriousness that he was so good at. "I want you and if I wasn't me, then you would have been getting an unreserved 'yes' right now. But I am me and as much as there's part of me that would surge ahead anyway, we can't and I know you're with me on that. And if any of the rest of this wasn't okay? We would have been having this conversation before now." As if to punctuate that, he leaned in to kiss her collarbone, then lower to the curve of her breast as his hips flexed him against her. "So, believe me when I say that I am so very, very okay with everything so far. And everything else we can do that's not going to mess with our futures."

Even though the pressure of him between her legs was inherently distracting, Leija was listening. In a very heavy-lidded way, but still listening. She threaded both hands into his hair and urged him back up so she could press a few lip-clinging kisses to him. "If you weren't you, I wouldn't have wanted it in the first place," she murmured against his mouth. "Curse and duty and all ..." Because I'm pretty sure I'm falling in love with you hard, was the bit she left off of that, kissing him again instead.

He eagerly returned the kisses, because there was and probably would always be that insecure part of him that was sure that no girl would ever stay around when they knew what he was. And time and again he'd faced moments where he was sure that was the last he'd see of her and time and again she was still here, wanting him. And to hear her say that she wanted him for him something he'd never thought he'd actually hear.

It was a strange sort of relief, in a way, having that line laid down. Yes, she wanted it, to make love to him -- which was flagged as 'corny' in her head, but it really couldn't be anything else -- but it was still a Big Thing, and now that it wasn't happening, all of the nerves were gone. What was left was arousal and a deep-seated desire to share what pleasure they could with him. She squeezed his hips with her legs and arched her back a bit to press tightly against him.

He held her, a hand going to her hip and slipping underneath as he pulled her leg up over his hip before sliding his hand up to her ass and under her panties as he kissed her, then moved down to her neck and across her shoulder.

Leija's head tilted a bit to the side to give him room and she let out a sigh, eyes slipping closed. Everywhere his hand and lips moved left warm tingles in their wake. She bit her lip and tried to remember to breathe and just basked in it.

Thom nuzzled at her neck and her skin, feeling her warmth, adoration and worship in his touch, fully appreciative of her and everything he had with her. Somehow he managed not to fuck things up every time with her - and more than that he seemed to be able to do what appeared to be the right thing with her, say the right things. Somehow everything just worked and although he didn't have the words to say any of that, he wanted to try and show her that as he kissed his way over her breasts, taking his time, not missing an inch of skin, lingering over some areas.

Everything felt so wonderful and still so new, and a part of her mind that was still slightly coherent wanted to marvel over the idea that she'd found someone she cared for a great deal that wanted to touch her this way. Who wasn't just reacting to opportunity and hormones. She arched her back into the kisses and his hand on her ass at the same time, feeling like she wanted contact everywhere at once. She wrapped her leg more tightly around him.

He took his time over it, not even giving a thought to how long they may or may not have until her dad came home. At the moment, that didn't really matter, all that mattered was them, here, now. He ran his free hand lightly up her side as he shifted down a little, kissing his way across her flat stomach, nuzzling for a moment at her bellybutton, but going down further, until he felt the material of her panties brush against his chin. He ticked his eyes up to her face, not moving from his position as he brought his free hand down, slipping a finger just under the band of her panties.

She drew in a short sharp breath as she realized where he was going, and opened her eyes to look down at him. She'd always thought she would be nervous the first time for ... that. And reluctant, like maybe it wouldn't be enjoyable for the other person. But there had been so much slow-burn build up, all that she felt was want. She threaded her fingers into his hair and brushed it back and out of the way so she could see his eyes. Leija shifted just a touch, hooking her thumb into the band of her panties and slipping them down some. Her gaze was almost pleading; she wanted them off.

Thom was slightly nervous as he slipped her panties down her legs, sliding them down with both hands, before stroking his palms back up the length of her legs, pushing her thighs open a little as he went, settling himself properly down between them. He ignored the butterflies though, he wanted to do this as he returned to where he'd been before, kissing her lower stomach before going down, taking his time as he stroked her inner thigh with his fingers, kissing down before he dipped further and tasted her for the first time.

Leija had known he was going to do that, it was the obvious goal. What she hadn't known was how incredibly good it was going to feel. Even just the sensation of breath before he made actual contact sent a rash of goosebumps racing up her body. But then there was his tongue, and holy god. Her breath caught in a sharp gasp and she even instinctively shifted back and away for a split second. Not that she wanted him to stop at all. Ever.

He lifted his head to look at her, questioningly as she shifted back. Had he done something wrong? He had no idea and he needed that reassurance before he went any further.

Oops. "S'okay," she murmured, eyes still closed. She reached to where she knew his head was to brush her fingers over his cheek. "I just ... didn't expect it to feel that good," she added with a soft barely-there laugh. Please don't stop. Please god don't stop now.

Good - good was good. Great in fact and he returned to what he'd been doing, more confident this time. He slip a hand under her back, resting on the top of her ass, lifting her up slightly and holding her in place as he tried to make it as good for her as he could, marvelling at her sweetness, which he hadn't completely expected.

If regular sex -- or anything else in the universe, for that matter -- felt any better than this? Even just a tiny little bit? She wasn't sure she'd be able to take it. So maybe that was a good thing. It didn't take her long at all to get a bit more vocal; her breathing turned into unsteady pants with moans and whimpers attached to the ends of them. Both hands fisted in the comforter at her sides so they wouldn't in his hair.

And then there were the sounds. Oh god, the ability to get a girl to make sounds like that, which seemed to hotwire straight to his groin. They were such a turn on, plus a total thrill to be able to do that, encouraging him to redouble his efforts, wondering absently if he could make her scream. Maybe that should be his goal - and right now, it sounded like a damn good one to him.

Leija didn't have enough brain left to think about anything solidly. She was completely owned by the feelings he was creating in her, the overwhelming, trembling pleasure. And then he was doing more and getting the hang of it and doing it better and he was going to kill her, she felt completely sure of it. But it would be the best death ever. Her noises escalated in pitch and volume as her hips pushed into it by instinct. She was so close to that molten heat exploding.

He smiled into her as she got louder. Oh yeah, this was a buzz alright and he repeated what he'd just done that got that reaction, honing in on where he obviously needed to be, because yeah, he definitely seemed to be doing something right here.

Doing something right didn't even begin to cover it. Not that she would be able to tell him that in so many words. Instead, she sounded like she as hyperventilating for a handful of seconds before every muscle locked up tight and her climax crashed over her. Leija did indeed let out a short scream that she barely even heard, and dissolved into a mess of squirms and twitches and ohmygodsogood.

He carried her over her climax before lifting his head, a grin plastered across his face as he looked down at her, unable to repress a surge of 'I did that' triumph and pride as he watched her looking very much like a glowing, helpless pile of mush.

That was precisely what she felt like. She melted back into the mattress, legs falling off to the side as soon as he wasn't there to support them. Leija felt like her bed had never been so comfortable, and she wouldn't be able to move again for three thousand years. Her eyes cracked open to look at him and there was a sublime little smile that took up residence on her face.

He crawled back up the bed towards her and lay down at her side, his head on the pillow next to hers as he lay an arm across her stomach and just looked at her, thinking she'd never looked so beautiful - something he seemed to be thinking on a regular basis lately, but then she kept beating the limit, every time. But for now he was just happy to lie there and stare at her.

After a moment of reminding her muscles that they did indeed work, she rolled up onto her side to press against him, arm slipping around his ribs. She lazily curled her fingertips against an unmarred portion of his back and moved in to kiss him. He deserved like, a shrine and a whole cult of buxom female worshippers -- who could worship but not touch, 'cause he was her's -- and cookies and all kinds of good things. Leija could taste herself on his lips and didn't mind in the least. She was aware of the solid warmth of his arousal still against her hip, and that they weren't done yet.

He hooked her to him and deepened the kiss, thinking that, right now, this would be the moment that he wished that he didn't come from a line of protectors. Along with all those other times that he wished that, but now especially, because he could have just lifted her up and on to him and... Stop it, Thom, don't torture yourself! he told himself firmly, even as his hips twitched reflectively and he felt that familiar ache of need.

As she lacked a shrine or worshippers or even cookies at the moment, Leija decided she'd just have to pay him back with alternative methods. She lingered in the kiss for another short while, then pulled back to start making her way down his body with little kisses and licks. If he hadn't already had to wait so long, she might've taken more time with it, but she didn't think he needed anymore warming up. Settling in a good spot, and without touching with her hands yet, she briefly nuzzled at his groin before running her tongue up his length.

He couldn't stop the thought of 'ohthankyougod' as she started to move down his body with purpose and he didn't even try and stop the gasp as she touched him - because he could still feel the warm glow and rush he'd felt at hearing the noises she'd been making and it made him really, really not want to ever try and keep quiet for this kind of thing ever again. "Oh god, Leija," he muttered, pushing his hips up a little, wanting her so badly.

Hearing that was probably the hottest thing ever, and she felt a pleasant little prickle of excitement again. She wanted to make him feel as good as he'd made her feel, if at all possible. Resettling where she could glance up his body at his face, and in turn where he could see what she was doing, she guided him fully into her mouth and started to work on him.

He looked down as she repositioned herself, noting that she'd moved so that he could see and he wondered if she'd done that deliberately, if he wanted him to watch her. He didn't know and there was no way in hell he'd be able to ask her, but just the thought that maybe she did was such a major turn on for him, on top of what she was actually doing to him right now. He propped himself up a little on on elbow, reaching down with his free hand to brush her hair back out of her face, because, yes, he wanted to watch her and he wanted her to know he was watching her.

Leija smiled internally as he rearranged to get a better view. She'd always heard that guys were visual creatures, and it made her feel unspeakably sexy to know he was watching her do this. So she kind of made a show of it, pulling back a bit and looking up to meet his eyes while she just used her tongue for a moment. She realized in an unfocused way that she was totally enjoying herself with it, and decided she was good with that.

He let out a shuddery breath as she started to show off, his eyes dark under heavy lips, his mouth thick and agape, all higher brain function totally absent as he watch her, mesmerised by what she was doing and the feelings it was producing. But he was also very aware that what she was doing could also fall under the category of 'teasing' and he whimpered slightly, pushing upwards, wanting everything she could give him right now.

She gave it to him, taking him into her mouth again and sucking in earnest. She didn't feel the least bit repentant for teasing, but she knew he was probably dying by now. She would be. So she gave him what he wanted, ears attuned to every breath and sound.

She didn't have to be exactly carefully attuned as Thom didn't even attempt to hold back, his early moans and sighs quickly turning to a litany of louder moans and half-babbled words as he reached both hands up behind his head and dug them into the sides of the pillows, because it was that or wrapping them round the back of her head to urge her on. He could feel himself building, the run up to this had him primed and ready and begging for realise already.

It was nothing but encouraging. And re-arousing, in all honesty. Something about making him sound like he wasn't in the least bit in control of himself anymore because of her was hot. Leija drank it all in and tried to think of other things she could do. She wrapped her fingers around him below her mouth, to stroke at the same time.

"Oh god, yes, like that," he breathed, rolling his head back and looking unfocused towards the ceiling. Because that? Was just the best thing ever and she had to not stop doing that. Ever. Evereverever.

That gave her a surge of something akin to glee, and she kept it up. Moved her mouth and hand on him faster, even, and squeezed harder. Since it seemed to be having a more-than-good effect.

He was almost there, he could feel himself tightening and his litany of words became well and truly unintelligible, interspersed with moans and the odd grunt as he fought not to buck his hips up into her mouth, wanting to drive deeper, but forcing himself not to. For the first time, he didn't try and warn her before he came, since it had made no difference any other time and he was too lost in the feelings for it even to occur to him as he erupted, calling out something that could have been her name, but might have just been a line of syllables and noises, since he'd long lost the art of proper articulation.

Leija heard what was supposed to be her name in there, and loved it. As she felt him go, she mostly stopped moving, but didn't back away immediately. She'd been expecting it, and was glad she had, because it felt a lot more powerful than the last time. She swallowed reflexively, decided that she really didn't mind that taste at all, and let him go once all the twitches and jerks seemed to be over. She sat back on her heels and looked down at him with the same big stupid grin he'd had on earlier.

He'd let himself fall back onto the bed at some point, around the time he'd had to give up on watching her, and as he came down, he let go of his death grip on the pillows and looked up at her, his thick, long brown hair spread messily behind him. After a moment or two, he reached up, grabbing her arm and yanking her down to him, breaking into a matching grin before he kissed her, laughing a little. Because the world, suddenly, was a wonderful place. And here, with them both naked in her bed, this was the centre of it all.

She let out a little giggling squeak that was silenced by his kiss. Not that she minded being pulled down where she wanted to be anywhere. She settled and draped comfortably on him, threading her fingers into his hair. She knew, way back in a stupidly practical part of her brain, that they'd have to get cleaned up and dressed soon. Far too soon for her liking. Leija wanted nothing more than to be able to pad downstairs to get some ice cream maybe, then cuddle up naked to him and eventually just go to sleep. "I could stay here forever," she murmured against his lips.

Thom curled his head into her hand, pulling her against him lazily. "Mmmm, yeah, me too - 'night," he said, sleepily, his tone one of complete contentment. He knew, of course, that that wasn't actually an option, that they've have to get up eventually and that her dad would be home at some point, but it was good to pretend for a while that it might be.

She giggled, heavy-lidded eyes drinking in his face. It was wonderful to see him like that, open and at peace and relaxed. "Just like a man," she said, wrinkling her nose up cutely. Leija leaned in just a touch to nuzzle at his cheek lovingly.

He cracked open an eyelid and gave her a lazy grin. "Well, that's what I am. You might have noticed," he teased.

"Oh are you?" she teased back, sounding mildly surprised. She arched an eyebrow. "I hadn't been paying attention. Well that changes things, doesn't it?" She went back to giving his jaw tiny kisses, because she liked to. And he smelled delicious.

"Does it?" he asked, raising an eyebrow and angling his head slightly so she could keep doing that. He decided he liked it, it made him feel all pampered and maybe a little bit loved, if that wasn't too much. He told himself it was fine to feel that way and settled in to just enjoy it.

"Mmm, it does," she murmured, keeping it up. Because nuzzling him was almost just as good as being nuzzled herself. She was all full of warm squishy feelings, and that L-word cropped back up in the back of her throat. "I'll have to completely change my tactics, I wish you'd told me sooner. This is terribly inconvenient."

"You're changing your tactics?" Thom asked, faking shock and concern. He pulled a pout, all big brown eyes and floppy hair really adding to the overall effect. "But I like your tactics. Hell, they've worked so far." He leaned in an brushed a kiss across her lips. "Cos you have me well and truly wrapped round your finger," he breathed. And then he realised that that was true, that he'd never felt like this about someone before. Except on the heels of that came his mother's warning about duty and responsibility and he tensed for a moment.

The amused little smirk faded off of her face as she felt him tense. She looked at his face closely. "What?" she asked softly. Her hand moved from his chest up to brush some of the hair out of his eyes. There wasn't supposed to be any tension here, it wasn't allowed. "What's wrong?"

He looked down, away from her face, wondering how he could put it into words. He realised pretty quickly that he couldn't - there was no way of telling her that he felt like he was falling for her and he was afraid of what would happen if this continued and he wanted to put her first, when he knew he couldn't. That there was some other brat of a girl who had to be more important and always would be, even though there were times when he thought Kaysen would happily never speak to him or would gladly have him ignore her for all eternity. He wasn't sure if he should even try to explain, except what was the alternative? He could lie, but he was sure she'd see right through that and he didn't want to ruin this moment. Because this moment was - being here like this was important to him, it meant so much more than he could say. And he had to say something. "I've never felt about anyone the way I feel about you, Leija," he said, eventually.

Her pulse had picked up as she waited for him to answer. He wasn't looking at her. That was bad. It was bad and it made her nervous and terribly afraid. Was this the part when the other shoe came down? What he actually did say made her stomach clench hard. The words themselves were wonderful, and she agreed. She'd never felt like this about anyone else either. It was the 'but' that her mind tacked on. 'I've never felt this way, but ... sorry kid, this can't go on.' Of course that made zero rational sense, but since when were deep-rooted fears rational? All her extremities felt cold. "If you're breaking up with me right now, I will hurt you," she said, voice quiet and low and not at all joking.

That made him look up at her. "No! I'm not..." Was he? There was part of him that wondered for that split second if maybe he should, if duty and sacrifice wouldn't be easier if he didn't have something, someone he couldn't bear to give up. Except then he recalled what she'd said, about how he shouldn't be self-sacrificing 24-7 and the main part of him chased that little bit away. "Leija, that - no, I'm not breaking up with you," he told her, leaning in to kiss her, because that felt necessary right now.

She gave him a kiss, though it was a short one. Her throat was starting to ache a little bit, which was probably completely ridiculous and she was overreacting, but hey look at how knowing that did nothing to stop it. Leija pulled back again to look at him. "Then why do you kind of look like somebody ran over your puppy when you say that you've never felt like this before?" she wanted to know, and hated the way it sounded kind of plaintive. "Because I feel the same way, I lo-- think I'm--" She cut herself off and closed her eyes to take a breath. "I've never felt this way either."

Oh god, but he could finish those off for her, he could guess what she'd been going to say. He took a breath. "Because I'm falling for you and I'm... nothing's changed and I still can't always be there for you and I want to be. I want to be everything I can and I can't be." And I just realised, really realised that one day I'm going to have to make that choice and it's going to tear me apart, no matter which way I choose and I've only just appreciated that. "Because I have a duty and it's..." He couldn't say it, he couldn't come out and actually say that it was becoming harder to face the fact that he'd have to chose that over her.

It was 'falling for you' that stuck out the most initially. She of course had known that, in a way, but it was still a little startling to hear. Thom was falling for her. Like, in love falling. For her. And she really should be listening to the rest of it. Leija made herself focus. She propped herself up on one elbow and looked down at him, eyes pained. "Baby, I know that," she said quietly, using the pet name without thinking twice about it. "And I know it's not your choice. Just like the reason I can't always be there for you isn't mine." She stroked her fingers through his hair a bit. "I should be a good thing in your life, not another burden," she murmured, almost to herself.

"You are a good thing," he told her, jumping on that immediately, taking her by the tops of her arms and bodily lifting her into his lap. Because dammit, she needed to be there. He settled himself back so he was sitting up against her pillows, holding her. "You are a good thing. I just - I don't want to hurt you." In that moment, he abandoned any thoughts of telling her the other side, of trying to tackle his fears that he might be tempted to one day choose her and face what that would mean for him. Because that would mean that she was a burden and he neither wanted to face the reality of what that would mean, or make her think that he thought of her that way.

Leija let herself be moved, settling in against him. She wanted to be held, that was for sure. And he was warm and solid and inviting and Thom and god yes, she was falling for him. She tucked her face in against his neck, so he wouldn't see the way her face felt a bit pouty. "I know you won't do it on purpose," she said quietly. She wasn't naive enough to think that it would never happen, that she'd never be jealous of his time or attention or whatever it was he eventually couldn't give her. After a beat she lifted her head again so she could look him in the eyes. "I know it hasn't been long, but you've ... you've given me so much, Thom. I can comfortably say that you've changed my life. I never thought that I'd find anybody I could trust, much less anybody who would understand and accept and be okay with what you're okay with. I think ... I've never had these feelings before, but I think I love you. Or I'm getting there, and it's not just because of what you give me, either, it's you. You're smart and solid and dependable and funny and we have a good time but we can talk too, and you care and I'm stupidly attracted to you and I want to keep being with you and if that means being hurt sometimes, I can completely deal with that and I'll get over it, because the pros outweigh the cons here by like billions." She stopped and blinked at herself. Wow, that was one hell of a ramble.

He kissed her then - because it was a ramble and because there was no replying to that. She loved him - or at least she thought maybe she did and that was enough for Thom. And he wasn't sure whether he could return the sentiment yet and he wasn't the type of person to just parrot something like that back without really being sure he meant it. When, if, when he told her he loved her - because he was fairly sure that if they carried on like this, the way things were going he would do - he'd mean it, really mean it. Until then, he had kisses.

Kisses were acceptable. Leija kissed him back. For quite a while. Her cheeks were burning while she did it, part of her psyche extremely uncomfortable with the vulnerability of admitting strong feelings for someone in the first place, but she was ignoring the warning bells. Because it was Thom, and she did trust him. Probably more than was strictly good for her, but there it was.

Eventually he pulled back, out of the kiss and looked at her. "Come over for dinner on Monday night?" he asked her. He would have suggested the next night, but that was Sunday and he wasn't ready for Sunday yet. "Meet my mom? I know she wants to meet you."

The conversation switch threw her way off for a second. She blinked at him, and the absurdity of thinking that his mom wanted to meet her when she was sitting naked in the woman's son's lap -- who was also naked -- made her want to laugh. She probably would've, if the prospect of meeting his mother wasn't terrifying. "Okay," she said quietly, and dredged up a little smile for him.

"Good," he said, taking her at face value on that. He held her to him for a moment, resting his head on her shoulder, before he made himself pull back a little. "When will your dad be home?" he asked her. Because cool dad or not, he doubted the guy would be overly impressed to find them naked in bed together.

"I don't know," she answered, glancing over at the digital clock on the nightstand. It still wasn't late-late, but late enough that she thought he'd be packing it in soon and headed home, if he wasn't already. "We should probably get dressed, though," she said, looking at Thom again. Definitely unenthused about that prospect.

Thom kissed her once again. "But I like you naked. You should be naked more often," he murmured into her lips. But she was right and he knew it and so he let her go, waiting for her to get off him so he could get up.

There went that warm glow in her belly again. It was nice. "Mmm, I think I can work on that," she said, giving him one more smooch before she slid off of his lap and stood up to start trying to sort out who's clothes was who's. It had gotten kind of dark in the room in the meantime.

He joined her in the whole 'thrown clothing' mess of getting dressed, pulling on his boxers and throwing her panties in her direction with a whole lot more cool and less nerves than would have been the case just last week. He pulled on his jeans, before walking up behind her and encircling her waist, pulling him back into him. "So, you gonna talk to me at school, or do you have your eye on the in-crowd? Should I expect you to snub me in the halls?" he joked, kissing her neck.

She's gotten most of the way dressed, but stopped and tilted her head for him. Because kisses and cuddling was much more awesome than putting clothes back on. She grinned a little. "Yes, prepare yourself. I don't want you to tell anyone we're together, either, you might hurt my chances with the entirety of the football team," she joked back, voice laden with sarcasm. Leija giggled and reached around behind them to pinch his butt as best she could.

Thom spun her round, a look of pseudo-shock on his face. "Oh no, that won't do - the entirety of the football team is one thing, but you want to keep me a secret? No - nononononono," he told her, putting a hand under her chin and lifting it a little. "See, cos I was thinking I was gonna have to introduce you to all my friends. Which, y'know, not take me very long because I don't have all that many actual friends, but still..."

"Oh so I can have the whole football team as long as you get to tell people I'm your girlfriend?" she asked, grinning at him and wrapping her arms around his shoulders. She wrinkled her nose at him, then rose up on tiptoe to give him a kiss. "I'm gonna be so stuck to your side, you'll get sick of me," she informed him decisively.

"Yeah, well - you haven't seen our football team yet," Thom told her with a laugh, leaning in and kissing her back. "You might find that it's actually torture and you don't want to. And I'm not gonna get sick of you - you might have noticed, but I'm kinda attached to you."

She laughed too. "Touche," she said. "The wrestling team, then. Mmm, spandex." She giggled and pulled away to put her shirt back on. "So how long can you stay? We could put a movie in or something."

"Hey - my best friend is on the wrestling team. I veto that one along with the baseball team, basketball team - and yeah, stay away from the chess club as well. You wanted the football team, I'll give you that one," he said, stepping closer. "Course, I might pout and complain a bit - and there's always the fact that fangirls and groupies are notoriously single-minded and I think that maybe you'd just about qualify you be their leader by now. Even if the band's on hiatus while Isaac's hands heal..."

"But I can't officially pick a team sight-unseen," she pouted, turning it on him full force. "But okay, no team that Isaac's on, 'cause that's just gross. ... Actually, I'm not sure if I can retain my groupie-queen title without wanting all four of you, can I? Isn't there some rule about like ... spreading the lust around?" She sounded quizzical, then grabbed his hand and started for the bedroom door. She was thirsty.

Thom grabbed his t-shirt as she pulled him out of the room - because, okay, he had his jeans on but if daddy-dearest was gonna come home, he'd prefer to be fully clothed. "Well, either you pick a team sight unseen, or you just get me and me alone," Thom smirked as she pulled him down stairs. "And okay, you're not groupie-queen. You can have the title of Lead Singer's Girlfriend, but I think that ground comes with being an almighty bitch."

"I can handle almighty bitch," she said, glancing over her shoulder to grin at him. "Okay, so I just get you and you just get me, because if any of the groupie slut-hobags lay a single finger on you, I'll feed them their teeth." And damn, did it ever feel good to say that, for some reason. She bounced down the stairs happily, headed for the kitchen with him in tow.

Thom entered the kitchen with the widest grin on his face - because the idea of Leija having a go at some random girl who showed interest? Yeah, that was hot. Not that they had that many groupie slut-hobags following them and Thom managed to deal with the odd girl who decided to hang around himself. But still... He'd love to see Leija be all possessive.

She had no doubt that it would come up sometime. Quiet and reserved or not, she was aware that Thom was smokin' hot. And in a band, no less, which just added to his hotitude. Leija knew herself well enough to know that she would not deal with that quietly. Hell, she'd had an internal twitch just hearing that Caleb had had other female visitors. ... which she was not thinking about right now. But that was okay. She poured them something to drink, flashed him a smile, and led the way into the living room to top of the most awesome of nights with relaxed hang-outage and bullshitting. All was right with the world. Sort of. Right enough.