Not So Happily Ever After

Moonglow

Ben woke up still curled up with Carlos. The two were spooning with Ben's face buried in Carlos's neck. He doesn't quite remember falling asleep but it is the middle of the night now and Ben is feeling wide awake. Jay still hasn't come back to his dorm, assuming he is just staying in Ben's dorm with Gil. Ben nuzzles his face against Carlos's neck placing more kisses along it squeezing Carlos tight to him. For the first time since leaving the Isle something feels right. Being here with Carlos feels right. Ben smiles, allowing himself to feel in the dark of the room, the only source of light the moonglow from the window. Looking across the boy in his arm's face it is practically angelic before he starts to stir and wake from Ben's affections. He rolls over to face Ben snuggling up into him more. Ben can't help but chuckle at this rousing Carlos completely. His rich brown eyes peak open and he looks up at Ben surprised to see him smiling and chuckling. "What's so funny?" Carlos asks rubbing his beautiful doe eyes and Ben rubs his back.

"Just this... us? This entire time I've been nothing but mean and intimidating to you but here you are cuddled up with me." Ben chuckles some more making Carlos smile. His laugh is quite cute actually though he would never say that, Ben doesn't seem like the type to take well to being referred to as cute. Carlos can't help but chuckle himself a little bit and this seems to draw back Ben's attention.

"I like hearing you laughing." Ben sounds almost confused by this, obviously still coming to terms with his attractions to Carlos to some degree. It is one thing to crave the physical attractions of skin to skin, lips to lips, and body to body. It is another, however, to enjoy the small things that individualize us. The things that build out a relationship in the end. Carlos seems to understand this immediately, more familiar with the finer points of love and attraction.

"I like hearing you laugh too Ben... So I know you said you had a crush on me and then... we made out pretty heavily," His cheeks dusted a soft pink even in the pale moonglow from the window, "I have a crush on you too... but did you want to be together?" Carlos asked with concern, he didn't know how things worked on the Isle entirely and Ben seemed amused by this question.

"I marked you as mine Carlos." This seeming to be a satisfactory answer but only made Carlos more confused. Yeah, he left quite a few hickeys and love bites but that's normal for making out, right? Carlos felt like he was missing something and apparently his confused expression seems to ask the question before the words can even leave his lips. "On the Isle," Ben speaks tenderly running fingers over the marks he left on Carlos, "When you start a relationship with someone that you don't want to share. You mark them. It's a sign to everyone that you are taken... The mark fades but in real relationships, you remark them regularly... I'm guessing you don't do that here?" Ben's voice so soft and the idea of him leaving more marks making his skin buzz from the soft touch.

"We don't really share much around here... so when you get into a relationship it is sort of announced to friends and then it is just accepted that you are taken until stated otherwise." Carlos informs him and Ben scrunches up his nose a bit. He seems confused by this. Relationships without marking?

"Does this mean I can't mark you?" Ben almost sounds hurt and Carlos quickly shakes his head.

"Of course you can make me Ben," The rosiness back in his cheeks, "It just doesn't quite have the same purpose as it does here. I mean it will definitely show people that I'm with someone." Carlos attempts to soothe; it seems to work. Ben relaxes leaving in to leave another smaller, gentler mark on Carlos's neck. He bites his lip at the pleasure, the feeling of his lips, teeth, and tongue on his neck. "Can I mark you?" Carlos manages breathlessly. Ben looks down at him intensely and nods. He exposes his neck to Carlos who leans in and peppers kisses along his neck before going right for the collarbone and doing what Ben did to him in the same spot. Ben couldn't help the low moan that escaped and it was like music to Carlos's ears. He doesn't stop there. He keeps going finding more skin on his neck to leave marked and bitten. He works his way up to his jaw with just kisses and slides to his lips pressing Ben into a kiss. Not to be dominated Ben pushes Carlos down onto the Ben kissing him, dominant but still gentle enough. The kiss is broken before long and Carlos feels like a mess beneath Ben. His body is aching for more than simple kisses, but his heart is telling him to slow down. Ben doesn't seem to be pushing him in that direction anyway, he doesn't seem ready to go there yet anyway but from the heat that is poking into his thigh, Carlos can tell his body wants it too. He shudders at the thought and Ben seems amused rolling off of him enough that the heat poking him is gone. A long-held breath finally escapes, and he realizes he wasn't breathing that whole time. His lungs ache and Ben laughs again in the quiet of the night.

"Do I still intimidate you?" Ben askes thoroughly amused, and Carlos shook his head a bit not sure what to say to explain what he was just feeling.

"You're just so breathtaking I forgot to breathe," Carlos replies and for the first time since the kitchen that one-night Ben blushes himself. The red hue glowing almost ethereal in the moonlight. Carlos meant what he said and again found Ben's handsome visage completely breathtaking. At this rate he was bound to start feeling lightheaded, so he forced himself to breathe. Ben felt vulnerable yet safe with Carlos, he wasn't judging him for showing emotion much like Audrey but it was different. This warmth in his chest that he never felt before made it all so much more comforting. Carlos looked at the clock and sighed. "We should try to sleep some more unless you intend to spend all night marking me." Carlos joked but the glint in Ben's eyes at that told him he wasn't joking. He leaned in pulled the collar of Carlos's shirt down for fresh skin and placed it between his lips, teeth, and tongue playing with it as he left a fresh mark from the suction. He lets go and meets Carlos's wide blown brown eyes and smirks so devilishly handsome that a shrill thrum of electricity jolts through his body directly to places he wouldn't mention.

"Don't tempt me, little pup." Ben teases and Carlos feels himself swooning. The adorable nickname for now ignored, Carlos hides his face into Ben's chest clinging to him. He takes this as a cue to sleep and holds Carlos to him settling in for the rest of the night. It takes a little while but the comfort of being together lulls them peacefully back to sleep.