#stevenwifav

HELP ?????

         they both need to get out of here.  layla has no intentions of abandoning steven to harrow and his followers, especially with the marc situation being as complicated as it is right now. this time she really is the strong one, like she’s always tried so hard to present herself as - she’s damn well going to  live up  to it. she reaches to grab his wrist before he can do anything impulsive.   ❝ i’m not going anywhere without you, ❞   she insists. that’s not how she operates.   ❝ come on. come on, steven! ❞

                𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬 𝐮𝐩 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐡𝐞’𝐬 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐧 𝐮𝐩 𝐢𝐧 𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧’𝐬 𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞. it’s not that she didn’t find comfort in it , in him  — in fact, it was a rarity for lara find comfort in anyone’s company of late. but somehow she’s managed to carve out a part of herself out, where steven and everything about him had perfectly fit in. she is comfortable but it’s not what she needs. when he tells her how he struggles to sleep, how he’s afraid to wake up and wander, lara doesn’t hesitate to offer to keep watch ,  to help him ,  to keep his demons at bay. but not even night terrors and insomnia can keep exhaustion from bleeding in and taking over, so discomfort it is.  a blanket and a book on the cold ground across from his bed, feet away from his crescentic sand barrier. and as far away as possible from any windows      ❝  steven. i’m supposed to watch over you. ❞   she protests, and doesn’t disclose why she rejects his offer, as the chill runs down her spine when london’s stormy night bellows outside and against the roof. she doesn’t tell him storms make the night terrors worse , or that it was easier to reach for his letter opener from where she sat.  ❝  you’ve been so tired lately , that’s why i’m here. it’s not that bad ,  i’ve got the blanket . ❞  lara lamely holds up the corner of the blanket ,  even as she says it she realizes how feeble it is and somehow, she realizes, she can never bring herself to say no to steven.     ❝ alright ... i’ll come to bed. ❞     lara picks herself up off the ground, careful while stepping over the sand so not to disturb it, knees first as she climbs into the bed and settles next to him with her back to the headboard, legs crossed underneath her, the book and the blanket still tightly clutched close.       ❝   will you you try to sleep now ? please ? don’t worry, i’ll be here the whole time. ❞

she doesn’t break around people.  she goes out of her way not to, and the only exception for a long time was marc. steven hasn’t been the person she could do that around; she just didn’t know him well enough. she wanted to be the woman he thought she was  ( the one he’d  gazed at  in the desert )  so she packed it all in and screamed when she thought she was alone. things are different now. layla is becoming comfortable with steven. she lets the defenses crumble and he notices, because of course he does. he tips her chin up almost like he’s double checking he’s right to think she’s crying, and there’s alarm in his eyes.   ❝ i’m sorry, ❞   she says, though she’s not sure why.   ❝ i guess it’s just been... there’s been a lot, hasn’t there? ❞

they still haven’t talked about their first kiss.  layla thinks they probably should, but she’s not going to bring that up now. he’s incredibly brave to do this a second time and she’s glad. she’s much more comfortable this time. she’s not searching for the same spark she has with marc; she’s letting the spark she has with steven wash over her. it’s different, but it’s familiar too, and she surrenders to it without hesitation. melts against his lips, really, her hands coming to curl in the lapels of his jacket.  she doesn’t want it to end.  but eventually, they both need to breathe. she doesn’t let go, keeps him close to her.   ❝ ... that was good. ❞

@stevenwifav​​

i think you just made it sexy in here with your arrival 🔥

                       ❛     okay,    ❜    he snapped,     a definitive tone in his voice endeavouring to silence the incessant yapping in his head.       ❛    go back to sleep,    @stevenwifav​.     ❜      this was,    if nothing else,     definitely steven’s payback.     and in a way,    did marc not deserve the constant interruptions,     steven’s interference and meddling in his business when he himself crowbarred himself into the man’s life not so long ago?     soon,    he promised,    though he could hear the sound of his own voice waning amid the newfound brutality with which steven fought him.     soon there will come a time when you will have dealt with me for the last time.     ❛     you don’t know how to handle these things under pressure and i need to focus.    just give me an hour.     ❜