Hot and Cold

The Morning After

Ivan woke up to the scent of something maple-y. He sleepily opened his eyes to see Madeline curled against his chest; not only making him feel smug, but also very happy. The Canadian was dressed in his shirt and her underwear, which were showing since the shirt was hiked up to about her midsection, signifying that she had tossed and turned a little, but Ivan had pulled her back into his warm and strong embrace each time. Ivan yawned, rubbing the groginess from his tired eyes, and leaned forward while gently pulling Madeline close. For a moment, he studied her facial features; finally, he realized how beautiful she truly was. Madeline sighed softly in her sleep and shifted so that she was curled against Ivan's chest once again. He smiled and drew her face up to his again, this time softly pressing his lips to hers once more. Madeline's sleepy eyes fluttered open at the unexpected gesture, then widened as she realized that Ivan was kissing her again. This time she quickly pulled away, placing a hand to her cheek - which was tinged a bright pink. Ivan narrowed his eyes with a possessive growl, thinking that she didn't like his kisses after all, and reached out to pull her into an embrace, such as the once they'd slept in. Her heart was fluttering a mile a minute again, and she still didn't know what to think of it. Ivan's vice-like grip made pulling away not an option at the moment, so again she gingerly relaxed into his arms.

"Vanya, Maddie! Breakfast is ready -- ah.. uhm.." Dmitri had given a quick knock on Ivan's bedroom door and opened it, only to see him and Madeline cuddling with each other -- although it was obvious that Ivan was quite dominant in the action. The sight of the two made him feel a sort of pang in his chest, and it only worsened when Ivan's icy glare swept over him, along with Madeline's sort of helpless, 'what do I do' gaze also flitted over to him. Dmitri cleared his throat. "Ivan, you know what Francis said. I hope you weren't in bed with her the whole night." He said while having a cross look - which was quite rare for him. He was only three years older than Ivan, but he was practically the head of the house since their parents had died. At 20, he was now legally allowed to take care of Nikolai and Ivan. However, the Russian kept his cold glare on his brother. "You know what? I actually was, da." was his terse reply. He swept the covers off of him, therefore releasing Madeline from his grip, but also showing to Dmitri that she was dressed in Ivan's shirt and her underwear, which, of course, were prominently showing. Flustered and embarrassed, Madeline pulled the hem back down and scooted over so that she was sitting on the edge of Ivan's bed, cheeks still stained a dark pink. Dmitri had flushed at the sight of her like that, but angrily glanced over to Ivan, grayish blue eyes tinged with annoyance, hurt, and even a bit of anger. "You know you weren't supposed to do that.. and why the hell is she dressed like that?" His voice raised at the end, but Ivan still stood there; arms crossed and looking as if he dared Dmitri to yell at him. In reality, the thought should have frightened him -- his older brother never yelled; he barely even raised his voice -- but he didn't look that way. ".. Fine. Whatever. Breakfast is ready." Dmitri practically spat at Ivan, then angrily headed back downstairs.

"U-um.. I-I.. " Madeline squeaked out at a retreating Dmitri's back since she'd been too in shock by his hostile attitude to say much of anything else. He didn't turn around.

The two had finally gotten dressed; Ivan in his room, and Madeline in the bathroom again. With a quiet sigh, she tugged Ivan's black sunflower shirt off, and went to put on her bra. When she had clipped it into place and was reaching for her skirt Francis had packed -- short and showy, as of to be expected. It wasn't that bad, compared to what he normally liked to try and get her to wear, actually -- she started as the door opened. Ivan was standing there unabashedly at first, taking in what he saw with a light blush coming to his face. "U-uh.." He could only stare for a few moments at the startled Canadian's nearly bare body, but quickly came to. "I-I just needed my brush, da!" He blurted out, taking a step into the bathroom to reach behind her on the counter and grabbed his hairbrush. Ivan then retreated, shutting the door behind him, and leaving an absolutely mortified Madeline behind. She blinked, muttering fluently French phrases under her breath as she quickly tugged her skirt, then shirt on. Straightening up, she let out a shaky sigh and leaned against the wall while staring into the mirror for a minute or so, then opened the door to the bathroom and quietly walked out.

Ivan ran a hand through his hair with a heavy exhale and a glance to the now shut door of his bathroom. Had he really just.. Another flush made its way onto his face as did a grin. Dmitri would murder him for sure if he found out. Another glance to the door. He couldn't deny wanting her so badly, but had to reprimand himself for the way he had reacted; quickly and with a little hesitation last night, but with none as he kissed her this morning.. for him, at least. Still, he wondered if she really didn't like him, or if she was just flustered and confused over the whole ordeal. Ivan looked back at the door as it opened, revealing Madeline in a cute, light purple skirt and a creamy colored, low-cut shirt. Francis's choice of outfit pleased him. He offered a sheepish smile over to Madeline and gestured for her to follow him as he exited the room and went downstairs. She did, but looked frightened at the sight of a brooding Dmitri at the table as she went over to sit down. Ivan only furthered his look of displeasure by walking over to her and pulling the seat out for her. She sat down, quietly murmuring a thank you. Ivan took the seat next to her and started eating. Madeline glanced over to him once during the meal, noticing that his hair didn't look brushed at all.

Dmitri had cleaned up breakfast, and had also refused Madeline's futile attempts to help. He and Ivan had practically glared at each other from across the table the while time, which made her quite uncomfortable. When Ivan had led her away from the table, he leaned over and whispered when his brother's back was turned that he would make it up to her later today.

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Whaaat, part eight so quickly?

Don't worry, there will be sort of a part two to this! ^^

Love you guys, and thanks for reading!

~Canako