#eonien

          it isn’t like she hasn’t seen him before.  even before they ended up here in his bed.  she’s examined him,  patched him up,  run stress tests—  she knows what he looks like beneath cashmere and kevlar.  but this is different.  there’s nothing clinical about the way her eyes run over exposed skin now.  the way her fingers run along neck and shoulders,  that little tilt of her head when her gaze settles on a scar or a tattoo.  it’s like she’s trying to commit it all to memory,  understand it.  it makes emil smile and he lifts a hand to brush a thumb over her forehead,  then lets his fingers rake through her hair  “  what’s going on up here?  ”  

stale  expression  comes  to  meet  her  angered  one.   she’s  seething  with  a  rage  he  hasn’t  seen  before  and,  for  a  moment,  max  wonders  if  he  pushed  her  too  far.   but  tree  should  know  he’s  joking,  right?   he’s  always  joking.   however,  he  won’t  be  surprised  if  he  is  catching  her  on  an  off  day.   “  that  a  threat  or  a  promise?  ”   hands  curl  into  loose  fists  and  knuckles  rest  at  hips.   a  casually,  yet  confident  stance  for  someone  who  may  be  seconds  away  from  catching  a  mean  right - hook  to  the  jaw.   “  come  on,  sassafras  ---  put  ‘em  up.   hit  me.  ”

   SWORE    TO    HERSELF    that    this    would    be    a    one    time    ordeal,    one    night    would    she    let    herself    be    swept    off    her    feet    by    his    charm    &    yet    for    the    third    morning    this    week    she    had    woken    in    his    arms.    can’t    let    it    continue,    her    mind    screaming    for    her    to    run    even    if    her    heart    begged    her    to    give    it    a    chance.    he’s    dangerous,    addictive    in    this    way    that    she    could    see    herself    down    the    road    relying    on    (    she    couldn’t    do    this    again,    let    herself    want    something    more    than    she    could    have    ).    hoodie    is    barely    pulled    over    her    shoulders    when    she    hears    the    soft    rumble    of    his    voice    still    laced    with    sleep    (    it’s    cute,    she    thinks,    another    thing    she    could    get    used    to    ),    but    a    swift    escape    now    impossible    &    she    wasn’t    sure    her    heart    could    weather    the    storm    of    disappointment.    ❝            yeah,    it’s    just    a    work    thing.            ❞    wincing    slightly    at    her    poor    delivery    of    a    lie    she    didn’t    even    want    to    tell    before    bending    to    press    a    short    kiss    to    the    corner    of    his    mouth    (    the    implication    of    goodbye    sealed    as    their    lips    touched    )    ❝            i’ll,    um    --    i’ll    call    you.            ❞    she’s    fallen    for    the    good    guy    before,    taken    a    vow    at    an    altar    for    a    forever    that    had    only    lasted    a    mere    twelve    hours.    jay    isn’t    alex,    she    knows    this,    but    he    doesn’t    deserve    to    be    weighed    down    by    the    baggage    that    he    had    left    her    with,    no    one    did.

“i’m okay,  i promise.”     hands reaches up to lithely take her own and gingerly pull away from his face.     the longer she stares it,  the more she’s gonna know that it’s not just from falling down in a skatepark.     she’s a mother;  she can tell everything.     ben takes this moment to wind around her and push towards the kitchen,  desperate to overturn the topic to something else other than his face.      “what’s for dinner?    i’m starving.”

@eonien​​  ╱   ❝  i’ve never shot a gun before.  ❞  nor has she ever been in a position to believe she may need one  ---  even her months out on the road so far,  even in the worst situations,  a gun was never where her mind went.   had she ever even been this close  --  ever held one in her hand?  it feels so strange to debate it now in her mind,  her head shaking slowly to herself.  ❝  when did you learn to shoot one?  ❞

❛      no ?     ❜     staggering for clarification ,    the words echoes after her own  ,    a ripple of perplexity .     ❛     but i   can help ...     why wouldn’t you want that ?     ❜ 

  @eonien  [  selectively accepting.  ]    ––––––––   maddie  &  owen.