Hotaru
i'm still here but all is lost
Their similarities are their downfalls, because neither is the type to be so vulnerable or honest so soon. Both trying to conceal things while still taking a chance that - at least on Hotaru's behalf - feels more serious than their flirtatious natures would normally dictate. It's like dancing on a tightrope, and Alys' voice in her head is the only reason she doesn't pull away. Well...maybe not the only reason. But given the scars she carries from the number of times she has been burned, it's difficult to trust that he won't snub out his flames on her skin in the exact same way. Again he steals any response straight from her lungs. Hotaru has encountered countless smooth-talking men in her life, but none quite so romantic in their forwardness. It makes something old and empty in her chest ache until she can only follow in the wake of his hands, tilting her face up towards his. If he is looking for permission he will find it - intertwined with the raw, vulnerable expression she wears.
Hotaru has been kissed a thousand times, and yet the first time with someone new never ceases to remind her why poets and authors endlessly attempt to find the right words to describe it. It's lightning in a bottle, even with how tender and reserved he holds himself. Eyes having closed without noticing, Ru leans onto her toes to better reach him, gently pulling him closer with a hand at the nape of his neck. Not tentative as he had been, but slow. Lingering. Exploring. A quiet conversation with no words.
