Raven's Song

Not Alone

I walked down the hall in a towel toward the room Tylor and I had set up in. A worker had taken my clothes to wash and dry before she put extra clothes in the room for me to change into. I dried my hair with a second towel as I walked barefoot.

The house was gorgeous. The inside walls were wood with large exposed wooden beams on the ceilings. From the upstairs balcony, brown leather furniture was situated around a fireplace with a TV above it in the living room. Behind the living room was the large kitchen with a long table lined with benches on either side. The bathroom I had used was almost as big as my bedroom with the nicest shower I'd ever used.

I pushed open the bedroom door and paused. Tylor stood with his back to me and his phone to his ear, a towel draped around his waist as water dripped from his hair. I shut the door quietly behind me, but he still turned. He held up a finger as he spoke to whoever was on the other line.

I went over to the bed and picked up the pile of clothing that was for me as he finished his conversation and tossed his phone onto the dresser.

"I was just giving my dad a heads up that we were here," Tylor said as he walked towards me. I tried not to let my eyes stray from his face, but it was hard. "We don't need him coming here thinking it's empty."

I set down the pile of clothes and turned towards him. "Are you okay? I've managed to turn today from being about Tessa to being about me without thinking about you."

"I have had time to process and heal. Everything that is happening to you is new," he said. "And you didn't turn it from Tessa to you. The two of you are kind of connected. What happened to her is what is trying to be prevented from happening to you." He must have seen the horror on my face because he quickly backtracked. "Not the being killed part. Just people trying to hurt you."

I stepped towards him. "I think you should stop mentioning it because you're only going to make it worse. Let's figure it out for Tessa's sake, okay? She deserves peace."

"Yeah," Tylor said with a sigh, "she really does."

"I want to take charge like you suggested," I said after a moment.

He arched an eyebrow. "Oh?"

I nodded. "I don't want to talk about anything sad until later. My life has been consumed with doing things to keep other people from being sad. Now it's my turn."

I wrapped my arms around his neck and stretched to meet his lips. He kissed me softly. Tentatively. Afraid to hurt me. I pushed myself closer to him, pulling his head firmly against mine, trying to tell him that he wasn't going to break me. I had been broken and put the pieces back together without any help. With him I was safe.

His hands slid to my waist and pulled me tightly against him before one slipped down to my leg. He slid his hand up the back of my thigh, pushing the towel up as his tongue darted into my mouth. I sighed softly against his lips, lacing my fingers in his hair.

He undid the towel around me in one swift motion before he gently pushed me back onto the bed, never breaking contact with me. My fingers fumbled with his towel before I got it off him and tossed it onto the floor.

Tylor lowered his body against mine. His hands roamed my body. I closed my eyes, taking one of his hands in mine and lacing my fingers through his. His lips slipped down my neck, moving lower. I held onto him tightly as he moved back towards my lips. I opened my eyes and looked into his dark eyes.

He held my gaze before he moved his hips and everything melted away.

x.x.x

One of Tylor's arms was nestled under my neck as I played with his fingers. His free arm was looped behind his head. His eyes were half closed. I watched the rain hit the window. It had been dark all day, but it was starting to get even darker.