Carved in Her Bones

Rhian- present

The drive back to school felt like it passed in seconds. As he walked me up to my first class, he leaned in for a quick kiss, soft but intense enough to leave me breathless. Watching him drive away, I felt the ache of missing him settle in almost instantly. Last night had been perfect—waking up next to him, feeling his warmth close to mine, playing the piano again... it all felt strangely natural, as if I'd known him for a lifetime.

In class, I tried to focus, but my mind was elsewhere, drifting back to him. I checked my phone obsessively, almost willing him to text me. Oliwia messaged me during math, but I felt too distracted to reply. My thoughts kept circling back to him, leaving me both exhilarated and on edge.

By the time I headed back to my dorm, I was exhausted, hungry, and craving something comforting, like ramen and eggs. But when I checked my fridge, I realized I was out of eggs. Glancing at my bank balance, I figured I could swing a few basics, so I walked down to the nearby convenience store to pick some up.

That's when I saw his message.

—Rhian, have dinner with me tonight. I'll cook.—

The tension in my shoulders immediately melted away, and I smiled, picturing him in his kitchen. But then reality hit me—tests this week, and I had a mountain of studying to do.

—Can't, tests coming up. I need to study.—

His reply was immediate.

—Bring the books. You can study at my place—I'll help.—

My heart sped up, but I tried to keep my cool.

—Okay. What's your address? I'll take an Uber.—

—No need. I'm outside your dorm.—

I looked up, and there he was, leaning against his car, waiting for me. He caught my eye and broke into a full grin, striding towards me with an energy that seemed to pull me in. He didn't give me time to respond. Instead, he cupped the back of my neck, drew me close, and kissed me—hungry and unrestrained, as if he'd been holding back all day. My lips parted, welcoming his tongue, and his other hand slipped around my waist, pressing me closer to him. I felt him against me, solid and urgent, and without thinking, my hand brushed him, drawing a low, primal groan from his throat.

When he pulled back, his gaze softened, and he wrapped me in a hug, his arms wrapping around me in a way that felt as intimate as that kiss had been. I sank into him, breathing in his scent—a mix of something fresh, slightly musky, and something else that was purely him. Being here, wrapped in his arms, melted away the anxiety of my entire day. He felt right, as if he'd been the missing piece I hadn't known I needed.

"I missed you," he murmured against my hair, his voice a gentle rumble. I didn't even need to say it back; I could feel it in the way he held me close, in the way he seemed to breathe me in.

And with that, my world felt complete, at least for now.

When we arrived at his house, I announced that I wanted to get the studying out of the way. Since he had said he'd help, he absolutely had to. Honestly, I didn't really need help—I just wanted to see if he was book-smart, to get a glimpse into that side of him. He didn't hesitate as he led me to his library, which was just as tastefully organized and intimidating as the rest of his apartment.

"Sit," he said, his voice carrying a subtle command that made it impossible not to obey. I had two exams coming up: Mathematical Analysis tomorrow and Circuit Theory the day after.

"What do you want to start with, Circuit Theory or Mathematical Analysis?" I asked, waving my textbooks in his face.

"Circuit Theory's easier," he replied without missing a beat. "Let's get that out of the way first."

"You took Circuit Theory?"

"Yeah, same school. Probably the same professor, too."

I raised an eyebrow. "What did you study?"

"Electrical Engineering. My master's is in Machine Learning, though." His casual answer somehow made him even more impressive.

I watched him return to his laptop, claiming he'd answer emails while I worked. As I started on the first few questions about power balance and heat dissipation, I couldn't help but notice the way he glanced over at me every so often. His focus was split—one eye on his emails, the other on me.

The early problems were straightforward, but as soon as I hit the three-phase section, I started to slow down. I'd always found three-phase electricity to be a hurdle. Reluctantly, I looked up at him.

"Would you mind explaining three-phase electricity? I get most of it, but I always stumble with solving these types of problems."

Without a word, he motioned for me to come over. As he slid his chair back, he gestured for me to sit on his lap. I hesitated only for a second before settling onto him, acutely aware of his warmth, of his breath so close to my ear. The proximity was intoxicatingly intimate, and I was hyper-aware of how his arm casually circled my waist, holding me steady.

"Alright, think of it this way," he began, his voice a low, smooth whisper against my ear. "Three-phase power is a three-wire AC circuit, where each phase's AC signal is 120 degrees apart. In balanced systems, one neutral wire and three-phase wires complete the circuit."

I was mesmerized by the way he explained it, breaking down the complex concepts with clarity, as though each word was calibrated to sink in perfectly. He moved on to the problem—a balanced Y-Delta connection—showing me how to convert complex numbers into angles, then solve as I would in single-phase, taking the angles into account. His approach was methodical, patient. He let me work through it, watching my hands as they followed his instructions.

And though I was intensely aware of him beneath me—of how he was clearly as affected by our proximity as I was—he didn't rush me or get distracted. He was fully present, focused on making sure I understood. When I finally completed the problem, I felt triumphant, as if I'd conquered something bigger than a Circuit Theory question.

I jumped off his lap, feigning nonchalance as I announced, "Tonight, I'm cooking."

A slow smile spread across his face, and he nodded, leading me to the kitchen without a word. It felt like an unspoken challenge, a game we were both playing, both daring the other to see how far we could take this connection.