AURELIA
and my hands aren't clean
maybe they never will be
maybe they never will be
And at the end of it, the fire finally blinks out, those stretching flames no longer bolstered by wild, untamed, swirling emotions and thoughts.
Milo's hands found her face, too, where he gently pushed away the strands and enveloped his fingers in her hair. She let him guide them both into a more comfortable position. Simultaneously, she pulled the blankets up to cover them; the air around them was cold in the absence of fire, and the blankets were much more inviting, where they could huddle under their shared heat.
Her cheek found the relaxed lines of his shoulder, resting there. She tilted her face so she could eye the angles of his again, at the glowing darkness of his heavy eyes, at the grin that builds across his appetizing mouth, at the criss-crossing strands of his own hair.
"'m sure it can," she teased quietly, mocking his accent with a grin of her own. She pecked a kiss to his shoulder and withdrew her fingers from his face to let her hand lay on his chest. There was foreshadowing of absence in her touch, though, as her hand hovered for a moment, hesitated.
Her smile faded. Green eyes moved toward the distant sky, where large green palm leaves silhouetted the horizon and bright stars blinked above them. For a moment, she thought she might stay up. Let Milo fall asleep so she could take her silent leave, so she might not have to deal with the personal consequences of this act (hers just as much as his). Now that her emotions were no longer in a state of euphoric need, her pushing, distancing instincts seemed to come creeping back in.
As she looked back up at Milo's face, she remembered the words they'd said to each other. If they were strangers before, there was no going back to that - especially not now. And no running. She dismissed the idea of leaving entirely and pulled herself to him. Nestled, her body found a comfortable position against and around his. Sleep would follow soon after.
****
Aurelia woke up first, tangled in the blankets and untangled from Milo, having readjusted in their sleep. And she would absolutely use this to her advantage. The sun was hardly even up, a mere beam of orange light, and she could not believe how little sleep she'd gotten. Probably attribute that to sleeping on sand...
Milo had drank a considerable amount more alcohol than her - which was going to work in her favor. Unless, of course, that meant he forgot everything that happened - which would mean trouble for him. Trouble being spelled like 'A S S - K I C K I N G' in this case. Forget a night like that? Well, you'll remember something.
In any case, Aurelia was counting on him not having a shitty memory. She got dressed and, promptly, disappeared (okay, she just went to the Ark) - but not before she brought the blankets back up to more fully cover Milo.
When she returned, it was a little past dawn and she had a burlap sack with her this time - and in it was a ton of fruit. Like, way too much. But she had no idea what kind Milo liked... so she grabbed one of every kind she could get her hands on. Where she got it? Uh.. don't mention it to Jack - or Saiden. She earned it. Probably.
The morning was still early and semi-dark but, the beach glowed softly with sunlight; a splash of warmth to melt away the cold of the night. Aurelia was sitting on the edge of the blankets, a fresh canteen of water and the bag of fruit beside her, staring out at the sea thoughtfully. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail. The only other difference now was that she seemed much less stressed out about what had been bothering her.
For now, she would ride that wave - even if her mind seemed to always go to those things that were out of her reach. Her gaze and her thoughts, slowly but surely, ended up back on Milo, or his bulk, anyway. He was very well-hidden in his bundle of blankets. Smirking, she laid back and stretched across to him, gentle hands searching until she found his sleeping face.
"Hey," her voice was soft and quiet and she pressed a kiss to the side of his head. And then suddenly she was quite serious, "I'm gonna dunk you in the ocean if you don't wake up soon."
Milo's hands found her face, too, where he gently pushed away the strands and enveloped his fingers in her hair. She let him guide them both into a more comfortable position. Simultaneously, she pulled the blankets up to cover them; the air around them was cold in the absence of fire, and the blankets were much more inviting, where they could huddle under their shared heat.
Her cheek found the relaxed lines of his shoulder, resting there. She tilted her face so she could eye the angles of his again, at the glowing darkness of his heavy eyes, at the grin that builds across his appetizing mouth, at the criss-crossing strands of his own hair.
"'m sure it can," she teased quietly, mocking his accent with a grin of her own. She pecked a kiss to his shoulder and withdrew her fingers from his face to let her hand lay on his chest. There was foreshadowing of absence in her touch, though, as her hand hovered for a moment, hesitated.
Her smile faded. Green eyes moved toward the distant sky, where large green palm leaves silhouetted the horizon and bright stars blinked above them. For a moment, she thought she might stay up. Let Milo fall asleep so she could take her silent leave, so she might not have to deal with the personal consequences of this act (hers just as much as his). Now that her emotions were no longer in a state of euphoric need, her pushing, distancing instincts seemed to come creeping back in.
As she looked back up at Milo's face, she remembered the words they'd said to each other. If they were strangers before, there was no going back to that - especially not now. And no running. She dismissed the idea of leaving entirely and pulled herself to him. Nestled, her body found a comfortable position against and around his. Sleep would follow soon after.
****
Aurelia woke up first, tangled in the blankets and untangled from Milo, having readjusted in their sleep. And she would absolutely use this to her advantage. The sun was hardly even up, a mere beam of orange light, and she could not believe how little sleep she'd gotten. Probably attribute that to sleeping on sand...
Milo had drank a considerable amount more alcohol than her - which was going to work in her favor. Unless, of course, that meant he forgot everything that happened - which would mean trouble for him. Trouble being spelled like 'A S S - K I C K I N G' in this case. Forget a night like that? Well, you'll remember something.
In any case, Aurelia was counting on him not having a shitty memory. She got dressed and, promptly, disappeared (okay, she just went to the Ark) - but not before she brought the blankets back up to more fully cover Milo.
When she returned, it was a little past dawn and she had a burlap sack with her this time - and in it was a ton of fruit. Like, way too much. But she had no idea what kind Milo liked... so she grabbed one of every kind she could get her hands on. Where she got it? Uh.. don't mention it to Jack - or Saiden. She earned it. Probably.
The morning was still early and semi-dark but, the beach glowed softly with sunlight; a splash of warmth to melt away the cold of the night. Aurelia was sitting on the edge of the blankets, a fresh canteen of water and the bag of fruit beside her, staring out at the sea thoughtfully. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail. The only other difference now was that she seemed much less stressed out about what had been bothering her.
For now, she would ride that wave - even if her mind seemed to always go to those things that were out of her reach. Her gaze and her thoughts, slowly but surely, ended up back on Milo, or his bulk, anyway. He was very well-hidden in his bundle of blankets. Smirking, she laid back and stretched across to him, gentle hands searching until she found his sleeping face.
"Hey," her voice was soft and quiet and she pressed a kiss to the side of his head. And then suddenly she was quite serious, "I'm gonna dunk you in the ocean if you don't wake up soon."
but they can still carry you home
when you're ready to sleep
when you're ready to sleep
