Open Your Eyes | Book 2

14: Silver and Gold

Art: Paint Sketch by bronart

My whole body was cool to the touch as if the silver moon above was made of ice, her breath grazing over my skin and tightening every string that made up my senses. The silver light had practically forced me out of my already limited amount of sleep and guided me up to the rooftop of our apartment to meditate. It was only divine intervention that could have pulled me from those warm covers and Zuko's warmer embrace.

It seemed useless to meditate at all. My thoughts were far elsewhere. The events of the night before still swirled in my mind and hitched my breath when I thought about it too hard.

My mind kept returning to the latest part of the night when Zuko and I laid in each other's arms, both of us on the cusp of sleep. We had forgotten all about the rest of the world. All that mattered was our even breath and Zuko's heartbeat under my ear.

That was until Zuko suddenly tensed up. I opened my eyes to see he was staring at the half-open window with panic in his eyes. A curse flew out of his lips and he started to sit up off the bed. "Uncle will be home soon!"

I groaned and wrapped my arms around his shoulders before he could stand up. His exposed back against my chest felt sublime. "He'll think we're asleep. It's fine."

"He already hasn't said anything about us sharing a bed," his tone had a cautionary edge.

"Yes, so it won't be weird now."

He gave me a very pointed look. "We aren't wearing clothes."

"You sleep shirtless. Why can't I?"

He rolled his eyes and started moving away again. "You're ridiculous."

Just as he was about to stand, I yanked him back down onto the bed, rolling on top of him. "You love it." I brought my lips to his.

He ate up the first gentle kiss but when I repositioned my legs to straddle his hips and returned for a second, he released a muted moan into my mouth. "Again?" He pulled away enough to give me an incredulous look. "What kind of monster have I created?"

"It's night time and tomorrow is a full moon." I leaned down, dragging my teeth over his good ear. "I have energy."

A shiver rippled through his body. I took this as permission to continue and began to pepper kisses down his jaw. He moved his head to give me better access.

I made it to the end of his chin when he spoke again, "How do you know it's a full moon tomorrow?"

I pulled away just enough to examine the quizzical quirk of his brow. He glanced around to the window, the cover hanging low and blocking out any sight of the moon although it's silver beams managed to slide into the room still.

I let out a humming sound and sat up. He stirred under my movement but my attention was now elsewhere.