Scars to Your Beautiful (New)

Morning After

I woke up to a warm weight lying against me. I opened my eyes and smiled at the sleeping figure in my arms; her arm wrapped loosely around my waist and her leg thrown haphazardly across mine. I lightly hugged her and leaned down to kiss the top of her head. She shifted slightly, her arm tightening around my waist as she exhaled softly against my neck, making me shiver before relaxing again.

I thought back to last night and everything that had happened. It all felt surreal, something my dying mind conjured to give me peace as my parents' words became prophetic. Instead of being found, nursed back to health, and accepted by a warrior clan, I had died alone in the middle of the woods, and no one would miss or mourn me.

If this was a dream, I hoped it was one that I would never wake from.

But the warmth that surrounded me, the weight of the beautiful woman against me, and the sounds of a village still asleep reminded me that I wasn't dreaming. That this was my reality. One that I hadn't dared hope for. I had been rescued, saved from dying, and accepted by the villagers of Tondc. And not just accepted but adopted because they wanted me and not because of what I could do. It left me awestruck.

Shifting my thoughts outward, away from my doubt and fears, I looked out from my spot on the bed, and I glanced around the unfamiliar room. The room was the entirety of the cabin that Indra had given me. My home. It was strange to think I had a place to call home. A house that was mine and mine alone.

It was sparse but far larger than my family's quarters back on the Ark. There was only the bed, a table, chairs, and a wardrobe. There was a fireplace against the far wall opposite the bed, and only the embers of the banked fire glowed within the darkened room. Lastly, a door led to a full-sized bathroom that included indoor plumbing; the water came from a cistern attached to the hut.

I felt Ava's breathing change and looked down as she smiled at me. She lifted herself slightly and languidly kissed me. I hummed against her lips; my hand traveled down her side until it rested above the swell of her hip. The kiss deepened, and she slid until she was straddling me.

My hands loosely gripped her hips as she slightly leaned away, and I looked at her in wonder. Ava's attention yesterday had been unexpected but welcomed. The looks she had given me throughout the night, the smile gracing her lips when I'd catch her looking, the lingering touches that felt like fire whenever she passed me. It had set something in me alight, and I was powerless to deny her when Ava had whispered in my ear invitingly.

Last night was indeed a night that I would never forget but waking to find her still with me was something else. The words to describe what I was currently feeling were lost as I gazed up at her.

Ava's smile only widened before she was leaning down and kissing me again. I moaned into the kiss, feeling our breasts pushed against each other, and her tongue slipped into my mouth. The sensations sent a jolt of pleasure down my body and pooled in my core. My grip tightened around her hips, slightly pulling and causing delicious friction between us. I could feel myself growing wet from the sensations alone.

Ava pulled away, making me whine, the smile still tugging on her lips, "My, aren't we easy to please."

I felt heat rise in my chest to my ears, suddenly ashamed, and looked away, stammering, "I, um...."

"Rook," Ava softly intoned, gently using a finger to turn my head, but I still refused to meet her eyes. "What is it, niron?"

My heart stuttered at the endearing word. No one had ever called me that. A lover. Nor had I ever done anything remotely close to what we had done last night. The realization made me feel even more ashamed, and I felt tears prick at the corner of my eyes. I furiously blinked to keep them at bay, but I must've failed when I felt a light touch wipe one away.