[ She's happy, she realizes vaguely, that he finds the closeness helpful and doesn't want her to pull away. And it's easy to tell herself that that comes from the fact that any separation between the two of them would be chased by freezing cold that on her own she has no way of dealing with. But there's at least a small part of her tooโ a big part, if she allows herself to be even slightly honestโ that doesn't want to separate from him either, not because of the cold, but becauseโ
Well, the why of it doesn't matter. What matters is that this is nice.
There's still a warm coil in her stomach, a want to press forward, but now that she understands the truth of what this would be for him, it's as if a cold wall of ice has been slammed between them. Not against her, but by her. It's weird, but there's a part of her that feels protective somehow, even though realistically she has no right.
Still, her fingers stay on his face, gently brushing over the skin.
(And later she'll wonder why it wasn't easier to back away.) ]
A reason or two, hm? [ There's a hint of playful to her smile. ] I'm sure I can think of something.
no subject
Well, the why of it doesn't matter. What matters is that this is nice.
There's still a warm coil in her stomach, a want to press forward, but now that she understands the truth of what this would be for him, it's as if a cold wall of ice has been slammed between them. Not against her, but by her. It's weird, but there's a part of her that feels protective somehow, even though realistically she has no right.
Still, her fingers stay on his face, gently brushing over the skin.
(And later she'll wonder why it wasn't easier to back away.) ]
A reason or two, hm? [ There's a hint of playful to her smile. ] I'm sure I can think of something.