Accidental Soulmate (H2O) [VeeMark]

16 [fin]

Disclaimer; I'm not a psychologist so take whatever's written in this chapter (and in this story overall) with a grain of salt. Also, there's an explicit scene in the middle to second part of this chapter, just FYI if that kind of stuff isn't your cup of tea.

Happy reading! ✨

In which Mark finds his peace.
~~~

Mark groans as the piercing sound of a phone call cuts through the wisps of his dream, meshing badly with the dull pounding inside his head, which only grows bigger when he manages to open his bleary eyes to the bright light, lashes fluttering, one hand already reaching out in the vague direction of the noisy device. The covers slip away from his upper body as he turns sideways but the smooth fabric tightens around him and something holds him back from moving any further across the bed. He glances down and his eyes catch immediately on a pair of tanned arms looped securely around his waist, one long-fingered hand cupped possessively over his jutting hipbone, right across the loopy stretch of his soulmark. While consciousness bleeds into his mind as he stares perplexed at this sight, Mark also realizes that there's a pair of long legs tangled with his own under the covers. Unsurprisingly, his skin is hot and sticky where the other body is pressed tightly against him — his upper back glued to a broad chest.

It's Vee. Mark knows it. He remembers.

Warm puffs of air hit against his nape while the senior snores softly, completely unbothered by the shrill sound of Mark's ringtone as it picks up again. He does however mumble something incomprehensible in reaction to Mark's disruptive movement and squeezes closer. The silk bed sheets rustle softly, pillows shifting, as Vee curls around Mark protectively, nuzzling his face against the dip between his shoulder blades.

Loose strands of disheveled hair skim against Mark's skin and he bites down on his lower lip to fight back the wide smile that's on the verge of bursting across his face. Such unguarded affection towards him, even while the senior is still asleep, sparks a million of butterflies into flight inside of Mark, like a pulsing aurora across a dark sky, filling his hollow chest with a tingling sensation.

He lets the call die out as he lies still, with his cheeks flushed and arms tucked up against his chest, Mark lets Vee cradle him in a smoldering embrace like he's something precious, like he's meant to be loved, letting this moment seep deep into his bones. Mark doesn't particularly know what to do with this larger than life feeling that swells inside of him. He glances down almost shyly, trying to move as little as possible and stares in pure wonder at their intertwined bodies half-covered by the sheets, before hesitantly detaching one hand and letting it rest on top of Vee's.

In a way, this moment is reminiscent of the morning after their drunken one-night stand, yet it's so very different. So many things have happened since then — so many emotions experienced.

Mark pries Vee's fingers apart carefully to make room for his own in between them, interlacing their hands and just holds Vee close while he still can, as if Vee might suddenly change his mind once he wakes up.

However, the senior merely snuffles in his sleep and presses closer against him.

Mark is still in mild shock over everything that's happened yesterday and the day before that and the day before that one, backtracking all the way to the moment he accidentally bumped into Vee by the poolside. It's like he's been fumbling inside a nightmare all this time and is only now able to see the actual reality beyond the veil of fear and bitter tears. It's like coming up to the surface for much needed air after holding his breath under water for too long. His head feels lighter, reeling a little from the sudden high. It's as if the yellow sunlight, bright and saturated where it spills through the wide-open balcony doors — bathing the bed in soft hues of shimmering gold — is pouring straight into his heart, filling him with pure bliss.