Robert's girl - inactive temporarily

After spending four years in a relationship in which affection was withheld from her as a form of punishment, there was one thing that Evanna was sure of: she hated being toyed with. 

Robert had made it clear from the beginning that he wasn’t looking for anything long term and had wanted to keep things between him and Evanna casual. She was okay with that at first; the man had thousands of groupies at his disposal, ready to fulfill his every desire. Why would he want to be tied down to one woman? 

But Evanna did not like being used for pleasure and discarded. Every time she went to bed with him, she could feel a piece of her soul leaving her and being attached to him. 

She was speeding towards inevitable heartbreak, and she knew it. 

She eventually decided to break things off before it ended in tears and yelling like things had ended with Geoffrey.  

The contrast between the two of them was like day and night. When Evanna thought back on her relationship with her ex, she was filled with memories of coldness and paranoia - as if she were walking on eggshells that would someday cause him to explode on her again. But with Robert, he was like a bright ray of sunshine that warmed her from the years of being frozen to the bone. Being wrapped in his arms made her feel safe and loved. 

The idea of walking away from that feeling made her feel like an iron fist was clenching at her heart. The coldness was threatening to take her over again… 

Evanna was setting up her camera in the photographer’s pit several hours before the concert. Hyper-focusing on her job used to help her stay distracted from her personal life problems, but after falling into Robert’s arms - into his bed, multiple times over the past four months - she felt like this was only making her problems worse.  

Still, the quietness of the empty venue gave her a chance to try and clear her thoughts. 

That was, until she felt a familiar warmth as a pair of hands planted themselves on her hips. She mentally groaned, turning around to find her face against Robert’s chest. She had to tilt her head back to look into his face to find him grinning down at her.  

“Shouldn’t you be backstage warming up?” she asked him while taking a step back to free herself from his intoxicating spell. 

Robert let out a quiet chuckle. “I’ll be fine, darlin’. I’d rather be warmin’ you up.” He snaked one arm around her waist, pulling her up against him. She gasped, her hands flattening against his chest. He was wearing a button-down black shirt, and she could feel his warmth practically searing her through the fabric.  

“I have to work, Robert…”  

“Not for the next couple of hours,” he said while leaning in to give her neck and ear a playful nip. She could hear the rational part of her brain screaming at her, reminding her of her decision to stop giving her body to him if they were not in a serious relationship. But she couldn’t help herself. It felt so good. He felt so good, just with his kisses alone. 

“I thought you said you didn’t want anything serious…” 

“That doesn’t mean we can’t still enjoy each other,” he said, an infuriatingly smug smirk playing across his beautiful face. 

He led her to the side of the stage, propping her up on the platform and peppering kisses along her jaw and neck. She let out a heavy sigh, feeling tempted to just let him kiss her worries away.  

But she couldn’t. Not knowing that it would eventually lead to her eventual heartache. 

She placed both hands on his chest and pushed him away. He gave her a confused expression. 

“Robert… I can’t do this…” 

He took a strand of her auburn hair and twirled it between his fingers. “Did I do something wrong?” He asked the question in such a gentle manner, she almost felt guilty for pushing him away. He had let her know from the beginning what the nature of their relationship would be. It wasn’t as if he had led her on to believe he wanted anything more than sex.  

It’s your own fault for developing feelings, she told herself. 

“No… it’s not you… I just… don’t want to continue having sex if there’s nothing else there,” she explained, unable to look him in the face as she kept her head down. 

She could feel Robert soften, even as she wasn’t looking at his expression. “Did I not make you feel good?” 

She furrowed her brow in bemusement. Is that really what he thought? That he hadn’t satisfied her? 

“What? Of course you did. It was… the best sex I ever had…” She felt her cheeks burn as she admitted that to him. She could feel his hand gently stroke her chin to bring her eyes up to meet his. She didn’t want to tell him the real reason: that he had made her feel too good, and that every time he entered her, she felt a piece of her soul leave her and cling to him. 

He placed a hand on her cheek, and she couldn’t stop herself from melting at his touch. He was so warm. 

“We don’t have to have sex if you don’t want to,” he said while leaning in to murmur in her ear. Even as he spoke these words, his voice was low and seductive, and she could feel the heat pooling between her legs. 

Despite her insistence that she distance herself from him, she felt an emptiness in her heart as he finally had to pull away to get ready for the concert. She turned her attention back to her camera as the venue started to crowd. 

Back when Evanna’s relationship with Geoffrey had been mentally and emotionally draining her due to his constant emotional abuse, music had been a balm for her soul, healing her and wrapping her in an embrace that seemed to soothe every bit of hurt that he had caused her. 

Now, it would have had that same effect on her if Robert had not been on vocals.  

His voice had a way of seducing everyone in the crowd, of captivating the most unwitting spectator. Before, while Led Zeppelin’s music had felt like an embrace and comfort against the pain that Geoffrey was causing her, now it felt like an embrace but in a different way. It felt like he was making love to her all over again but with his voice. She knew that the same moans and shrieks that he made on stage were the same noises he made while she rode his cock. 

As did probably half the girls who were watching him backstage right now, she thought to herself bitterly. 

One of the roadies beckoned her to come backstage to get closer shots of the band. Evanna followed him.  

Evanna focused on getting closer shots of each individual member, zooming her lens in to capture their faces. She saved Robert for last, though she felt tempted to skip him all together. 

She let the music carry her away, her attention switching between Jonesy’s basslines to one of Jimmy’s guitar solos to some wildly aggressive drum solo that Bonzo was doing.  

Jimmy was in the middle of one of his ten-minute guitar solos during Dazed and Confused when one of the groupies were passing around a joint. Evanna stared at the long stick, thinking about how it was a very bad idea before taking a drag out of it. Perhaps it was due to her lack of experience with taking drugs, but she was pretty sure this was very strong weed. 

Someone had brought out a couple of sofas from the dressing rooms to the side of the stage and Evanna soon found herself sitting next to Robert and several other girls. The joint was passed to Robert, and he took a drag, seeming to be a lot more seasoned than she was when it came to marijuana. 

The thoughts she had earlier of distancing herself from Robert completely vanished as she stared at him through her marijuana-induced haze. His golden hair seemed to dance all around him like the rays of the Sun. His face was so beautiful, she thought. He was a Sun God whom she wanted to worship and bow at his feet like he had done with her so many times before in bed. 

She clung to his arm and leaned her head against his shoulder possessively. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders before bringing her lips up to meet his. They kissed passionately, and she was seemingly oblivious to the groupies giving her envious looks. 

Robert eventually had to pull away to go back on stage after Jimmy’s guitar solo was over. He was obviously buzzed from the joint but sang beautifully regardless.  

Everyone and everything were so beautiful, Evanna realized. The colors and stage lights were coming to life before her very eyes. Robert transformed into a deity as bright and as beautiful as the Sun. Jimmy transformed into his dark, Moon-like counterpart. Jonesy and Bonzo’s rhythm section ingrained itself into her very blood, causing the music to pulse through her veins. 

Evanna knew that she had to take as many pictures as possible while the colors were this beautiful. She circled the stage, snapping as many pictures as possible. She grinned, thinking to herself ‘this is my best work yet!’ 

Robert excitedly announced John Bonham as the percussionist before Jimmy and Jonesy started out the riff of Moby Dick. He quickly rushed over to Evanna, taking her by the arm and leading her to his dressing room. Every thought of staying to get pictures of Bonzo, as well as staying away from Robert to protect her own heart, was out the window. She didn’t protest as Robert led her away to his dressing room, lost in a kiss as their hands were exploring everywhere. 

By the time they reached his dressing room, they wasted no time. She quickly got rid of her jeans before sitting up on the counter. Robert unbuttoned his tight bell bottoms before pulling them down to his knees. He gripped her hips before pulling her against him. He kissed her as he slid himself into her. 

Evanna threw her head back and moaned in sheer ecstasy as she felt that sharp sting of him stretching her. The world around her seemed to swim as she clenched around him as he slowly started thrusting. Her hands clutched at his shoulders to steady herself as their pace quickly sped into their familiar erotic dance. They moved in sync with one another, their moans and grunts loud and unapologetic. 

“Evanna…” Gods, she loved the way he moaned her name, as he tasted each syllable on his tongue. She panted and buried her hands into his hair as she pulled him closer to her, pressing her forehead against him as his thrusts became deeper and quicker. Being this close to him felt like she was making love to the Sun itself. His heat and radiance felt like it was searing her skin, and his golden hair was making a curtain around them both, wrapping her in the golden rays of the Sun while she was being ravished by it at the same time. 

She felt a sharp stinging in her clit as he thrust into her deeper, causing her to clench hard around him. 

“Fuck, Robert, don’t stop…!” she whined as her back arched against the mirror on the wall.  

She could feel a low growl in his chest as he unbuttoned her blouse while keeping the pace of his thrusts. He seemed visibly annoyed by the black lace brassiere that was creating a barrier between his mouth and her breasts. She could feel him fumble around for the clasp and push the thin lace away to tease her nipple with his teeth and tongue.  

She moaned louder, winding her hands through his hair, trying to keep the Sun on her for as long as possible, not caring that she would end up badly burned afterwards. The rush she felt from him being inside her was worth the price she would eventually pay. Because like the Sun, she knew he could never fully be hers, she realized with an ache in her heart. 

She moaned in time with each of his thrusts. Bonzo only had a few minutes left of his drum solo, so they would have to make things quick. As his thrusts became deeper and more deliberate, he took her nipples into his mouth, sucking and tugging on them with his teeth, turning them into taut points.  

“Robert, I’m getting close-“ 

He shushed her, kissing her softly before holding her hips more firmly against his so that he could thrust into her so deep, the tip of his cock brushed against her cervix. 

She cried out as she held onto him tightly, which only pulled him deeper into her. She could feel his balls tighten against her, the sound of their skin slapping against each other filling the room. She quietly prayed that no one would walk in on them, though even if they did, she knew that neither of them would be able to bring themselves to stop. 

Robert’s face buried into her neck as his pace became faster, causing her to clench around him again. She felt his breath against her neck as he murmured something that sounded like “unghh, come with me…” 

She panted as her hands convulsed in his hair, her face contorting with pleasure as her back arched. They both climaxed together - two orgasms that were so powerful, it was as if the Sun had exhausted itself as the explosion engulfed her, heat searing her skin, melting away her resolve until her soul lay naked before him as they both rode out the waves of pleasure. 

His name as well as a string of curses came rolling off her tongue as she clung to him in the aftermath. 

She had never come undone so easily with anyone else. Not even her ex. Fuck, she couldn’t even remember that guy’s name in this moment. 

Robert’s face was still buried in her neck, his teeth sinking into her neck when he came inside her. But she had been so caught up in the throes of her own orgasm, she hardly felt the pain. 

When they finally stopped moving, she was panting heavily, trying to catch her breath. He was still inside her, as if she was too warm and comfortable to ever want to leave. Bonzo could be heard reaching the end of his drum solo, so they only had a few more minutes. 

He whimpered something into her now bruised neck: “I love you.” 

Evanna flinched, thinking that she must have misheard him. 

“What did you say?” The haze of the joint she smoked earlier was wearing off, and she was no longer having psychedelic visions. The aftermath of their encounter was still in full effect, however. 

Robert raised his head to look at her, resembling a confused lion cub. His face was pale, as if just realizing that he said that out loud. 

He pulled out of her suddenly, leaving her with an empty and cold feeling.  

“I’m sorry, Evie, I didn’t mean…” 

Evanna’s brow furrowed. He never called her by her nickname. He had always used her full name, as if he couldn’t bear to be parted with even a syllable of it.  

She reached for him, but he pulled away, tucking himself back into his trousers and zipping them back up. 

“Robert, please-“ She didn’t know how to finish that plea. Please don’t leave her? She had known from the beginning that he had never promised her anything.  

She reached for him, but he pulled away, unable to meet her eyes. She felt her heart break in her chest. 

“I need to go back out…” he whispered while keeping his eyes averted to the ground. 

“Robert, please don’t feel sorry… I… I lo-“ 

“Don’t,” he cut her off, this time meeting her eyes even though it pained him to do so. “Don’t say anything you’ll end up regretting.” 

She shook her head and took a step closer to him. “I don’t regret you.” 

He gave her a pained look before slowly raising his hand as if he wanted to stroke her cheek but pulled his hand away at the last moment. 

“Do you regret me?” she asked softly. 

He didn’t hesitate. “No.” 

“Did you mean what you said?” 

Robert opened his mouth but then closed it, a pained look in his eyes as his mouth formed in a tight line. “Look, I’m not… built for relationships, okay? It will just end like it did with-“ He cut himself off and looked away from her. 

Jimmy and Jonesy were back out on stage now, performing the end of the song. Robert turned to leave. 

Evanna grabbed his hand. “Robert, I-“ 

“Evie, I have to get back onstage.” 

“Why are you calling me that!?” 

His brow furrowed in confusion. “Everyone calls you that.” 

“I know, but you never do! You…” She tried to fight back the tears that were threatening to come forth. Everything she had known was going to eventually happen was happening. “Why are you acting like this…?” 

Robert took a deep breath. “Look, maybe you were right about us needing to stop sleeping with each other.” 

“Funny how you say that after you just finished fucking me!” 

One of the roadies pounded on the door. “Plant! They need you back onstage!” 

Robert turned to face Evanna, her eyes glistening with tears. “I’m sorry. I just… I didn’t think…” He couldn’t finish his sentence without confessing to feelings that he obviously did not want to have. “I need to get back…” 

He turned and left the dressing room, leaving Evanna in there with her disheveled clothes and hair. Hot tears spilled down her cheeks despite her attempt to fight them. Her heart ached in her chest as she adjusted her clothes back to their original state. She couldn’t stop herself from feeling this way, from having her heart be drawn to the man who she knew deep down could never give her what she truly wanted. 

After spending four years in a relationship in which affection was withheld from her as a form of punishment, there was one thing that Evanna was sure of: she hated being toyed with. 

Robert had made it clear from the beginning that he wasn’t looking for anything long term and had wanted to keep things between him and Evanna casual. She was okay with that at first; the man had thousands of groupies at his disposal, ready to fulfill his every desire. Why would he want to be tied down to one woman? 

But Evanna did not like being used for pleasure and discarded. Every time she went to bed with him, she could feel a piece of her soul leaving her and being attached to him. 

She was speeding towards inevitable heartbreak, and she knew it. 

She eventually decided to break things off before it ended in tears and yelling like things had ended with Geoffrey.  

The contrast between the two of them was like day and night. When Evanna thought back on her relationship with her ex, she was filled with memories of coldness and paranoia - as if she were walking on eggshells that would someday cause him to explode on her again. But with Robert, he was like a bright ray of sunshine that warmed her from the years of being frozen to the bone. Being wrapped in his arms made her feel safe and loved. 

The idea of walking away from that feeling made her feel like an iron fist was clenching at her heart. The coldness was threatening to take her over again… 

Evanna was setting up her camera in the photographer’s pit several hours before the concert. Hyper-focusing on her job used to help her stay distracted from her personal life problems, but after falling into Robert’s arms - into his bed, multiple times over the past four months - she felt like this was only making her problems worse.  

Still, the quietness of the empty venue gave her a chance to try and clear her thoughts. 

That was, until she felt a familiar warmth as a pair of hands planted themselves on her hips. She mentally groaned, turning around to find her face against Robert’s chest. She had to tilt her head back to look into his face to find him grinning down at her.  

“Shouldn’t you be backstage warming up?” she asked him while taking a step back to free herself from his intoxicating spell. 

Robert let out a quiet chuckle. “I’ll be fine, darlin’. I’d rather be warmin’ you up.” He snaked one arm around her waist, pulling her up against him. She gasped, her hands flattening against his chest. He was wearing a button-down black shirt, and she could feel his warmth practically searing her through the fabric.  

“I have to work, Robert…”  

“Not for the next couple of hours,” he said while leaning in to give her neck and ear a playful nip. She could hear the rational part of her brain screaming at her, reminding her of her decision to stop giving her body to him if they were not in a serious relationship. But she couldn’t help herself. It felt so good. He felt so good, just with his kisses alone. 

“I thought you said you didn’t want anything serious…” 

“That doesn’t mean we can’t still enjoy each other,” he said, an infuriatingly smug smirk playing across his beautiful face. 

He led her to the side of the stage, propping her up on the platform and peppering kisses along her jaw and neck. She let out a heavy sigh, feeling tempted to just let him kiss her worries away.  

But she couldn’t. Not knowing that it would eventually lead to her eventual heartache. 

She placed both hands on his chest and pushed him away. He gave her a confused expression. 

“Robert… I can’t do this…” 

He took a strand of her auburn hair and twirled it between his fingers. “Did I do something wrong?” He asked the question in such a gentle manner, she almost felt guilty for pushing him away. He had let her know from the beginning what the nature of their relationship would be. It wasn’t as if he had led her on to believe he wanted anything more than sex.  

It’s your own fault for developing feelings, she told herself. 

“No… it’s not you… I just… don’t want to continue having sex if there’s nothing else there,” she explained, unable to look him in the face as she kept her head down. 

She could feel Robert soften, even as she wasn’t looking at his expression. “Did I not make you feel good?” 

She furrowed her brow in bemusement. Is that really what he thought? That he hadn’t satisfied her? 

“What? Of course you did. It was… the best sex I ever had…” She felt her cheeks burn as she admitted that to him. She could feel his hand gently stroke her chin to bring her eyes up to meet his. She didn’t want to tell him the real reason: that he had made her feel too good, and that every time he entered her, she felt a piece of her soul leave her and cling to him. 

He placed a hand on her cheek, and she couldn’t stop herself from melting at his touch. He was so warm. 

“We don’t have to have sex if you don’t want to,” he said while leaning in to murmur in her ear. Even as he spoke these words, his voice was low and seductive, and she could feel the heat pooling between her legs. 

Despite her insistence that she distance herself from him, she felt an emptiness in her heart as he finally had to pull away to get ready for the concert. She turned her attention back to her camera as the venue started to crowd. 

Back when Evanna’s relationship with Geoffrey had been mentally and emotionally draining her due to his constant emotional abuse, music had been a balm for her soul, healing her and wrapping her in an embrace that seemed to soothe every bit of hurt that he had caused her. 

Now, it would have had that same effect on her if Robert had not been on vocals.  

His voice had a way of seducing everyone in the crowd, of captivating the most unwitting spectator. Before, while Led Zeppelin’s music had felt like an embrace and comfort against the pain that Geoffrey was causing her, now it felt like an embrace but in a different way. It felt like he was making love to her all over again but with his voice. She knew that the same moans and shrieks that he made on stage were the same noises he made while she rode his cock. 

As did probably half the girls who were watching him backstage right now, she thought to herself bitterly. 

One of the roadies beckoned her to come backstage to get closer shots of the band. Evanna followed him.  

Evanna focused on getting closer shots of each individual member, zooming her lens in to capture their faces. She saved Robert for last, though she felt tempted to skip him all together. 

She let the music carry her away, her attention switching between Jonesy’s basslines to one of Jimmy’s guitar solos to some wildly aggressive drum solo that Bonzo was doing.  

Jimmy was in the middle of one of his ten-minute guitar solos during Dazed and Confused when one of the groupies were passing around a joint. Evanna stared at the long stick, thinking about how it was a very bad idea before taking a drag out of it. Perhaps it was due to her lack of experience with taking drugs, but she was pretty sure this was very strong weed. 

Someone had brought out a couple of sofas from the dressing rooms to the side of the stage and Evanna soon found herself sitting next to Robert and several other girls. The joint was passed to Robert, and he took a drag, seeming to be a lot more seasoned than she was when it came to marijuana. 

The thoughts she had earlier of distancing herself from Robert completely vanished as she stared at him through her marijuana-induced haze. His golden hair seemed to dance all around him like the rays of the Sun. His face was so beautiful, she thought. He was a Sun God whom she wanted to worship and bow at his feet like he had done with her so many times before in bed. 

She clung to his arm and leaned her head against his shoulder possessively. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders before bringing her lips up to meet his. They kissed passionately, and she was seemingly oblivious to the groupies giving her envious looks. 

Robert eventually had to pull away to go back on stage after Jimmy’s guitar solo was over. He was obviously buzzed from the joint but sang beautifully regardless.  

Everyone and everything were so beautiful, Evanna realized. The colors and stage lights were coming to life before her very eyes. Robert transformed into a deity as bright and as beautiful as the Sun. Jimmy transformed into his dark, Moon-like counterpart. Jonesy and Bonzo’s rhythm section ingrained itself into her very blood, causing the music to pulse through her veins. 

Evanna knew that she had to take as many pictures as possible while the colors were this beautiful. She circled the stage, snapping as many pictures as possible. She grinned, thinking to herself ‘this is my best work yet!’ 

Robert excitedly announced John Bonham as the percussionist before Jimmy and Jonesy started out the riff of Moby Dick. He quickly rushed over to Evanna, taking her by the arm and leading her to his dressing room. Every thought of staying to get pictures of Bonzo, as well as staying away from Robert to protect her own heart, was out the window. She didn’t protest as Robert led her away to his dressing room, lost in a kiss as their hands were exploring everywhere. 

By the time they reached his dressing room, they wasted no time. She quickly got rid of her jeans before sitting up on the counter. Robert unbuttoned his tight bell bottoms before pulling them down to his knees. He gripped her hips before pulling her against him. He kissed her as he slid himself into her. 

Evanna threw her head back and moaned in sheer ecstasy as she felt that sharp sting of him stretching her. The world around her seemed to swim as she clenched around him as he slowly started thrusting. Her hands clutched at his shoulders to steady herself as their pace quickly sped into their familiar erotic dance. They moved in sync with one another, their moans and grunts loud and unapologetic. 

“Evanna…” Gods, she loved the way he moaned her name, as he tasted each syllable on his tongue. She panted and buried her hands into his hair as she pulled him closer to her, pressing her forehead against him as his thrusts became deeper and quicker. Being this close to him felt like she was making love to the Sun itself. His heat and radiance felt like it was searing her skin, and his golden hair was making a curtain around them both, wrapping her in the golden rays of the Sun while she was being ravished by it at the same time. 

She felt a sharp stinging in her clit as he thrust into her deeper, causing her to clench hard around him. 

“Fuck, Robert, don’t stop…!” she whined as her back arched against the mirror on the wall.  

She could feel a low growl in his chest as he unbuttoned her blouse while keeping the pace of his thrusts. He seemed visibly annoyed by the black lace brassiere that was creating a barrier between his mouth and her breasts. She could feel him fumble around for the clasp and push the thin lace away to tease her nipple with his teeth and tongue.  

She moaned louder, winding her hands through his hair, trying to keep the Sun on her for as long as possible, not caring that she would end up badly burned afterwards. The rush she felt from him being inside her was worth the price she would eventually pay. Because like the Sun, she knew he could never fully be hers, she realized with an ache in her heart. 

She moaned in time with each of his thrusts. Bonzo only had a few minutes left of his drum solo, so they would have to make things quick. As his thrusts became deeper and more deliberate, he took her nipples into his mouth, sucking and tugging on them with his teeth, turning them into taut points.  

“Robert, I’m getting close-“ 

He shushed her, kissing her softly before holding her hips more firmly against his so that he could thrust into her so deep, the tip of his cock brushed against her cervix. 

She cried out as she held onto him tightly, which only pulled him deeper into her. She could feel his balls tighten against her, the sound of their skin slapping against each other filling the room. She quietly prayed that no one would walk in on them, though even if they did, she knew that neither of them would be able to bring themselves to stop. 

Robert’s face buried into her neck as his pace became faster, causing her to clench around him again. She felt his breath against her neck as he murmured something that sounded like “unghh, come with me…” 

She panted as her hands convulsed in his hair, her face contorting with pleasure as her back arched. They both climaxed together - two orgasms that were so powerful, it was as if the Sun had exhausted itself as the explosion engulfed her, heat searing her skin, melting away her resolve until her soul lay naked before him as they both rode out the waves of pleasure. 

His name as well as a string of curses came rolling off her tongue as she clung to him in the aftermath. 

She had never come undone so easily with anyone else. Not even her ex. Fuck, she couldn’t even remember that guy’s name in this moment. 

Robert’s face was still buried in her neck, his teeth sinking into her neck when he came inside her. But she had been so caught up in the throes of her own orgasm, she hardly felt the pain. 

When they finally stopped moving, she was panting heavily, trying to catch her breath. He was still inside her, as if she was too warm and comfortable to ever want to leave. Bonzo could be heard reaching the end of his drum solo, so they only had a few more minutes. 

He whimpered something into her now bruised neck: “I love you.” 

Evanna flinched, thinking that she must have misheard him. 

“What did you say?” The haze of the joint she smoked earlier was wearing off, and she was no longer having psychedelic visions. The aftermath of their encounter was still in full effect, however. 

Robert raised his head to look at her, resembling a confused lion cub. His face was pale, as if just realizing that he said that out loud. 

He pulled out of her suddenly, leaving her with an empty and cold feeling.  

“I’m sorry, Evie, I didn’t mean…” 

Evanna’s brow furrowed. He never called her by her nickname. He had always used her full name, as if he couldn’t bear to be parted with even a syllable of it.  

She reached for him, but he pulled away, tucking himself back into his trousers and zipping them back up. 

“Robert, please-“ She didn’t know how to finish that plea. Please don’t leave her? She had known from the beginning that he had never promised her anything.  

She reached for him, but he pulled away, unable to meet her eyes. She felt her heart break in her chest. 

“I need to go back out…” he whispered while keeping his eyes averted to the ground. 

“Robert, please don’t feel sorry… I… I lo-“ 

“Don’t,” he cut her off, this time meeting her eyes even though it pained him to do so. “Don’t say anything you’ll end up regretting.” 

She shook her head and took a step closer to him. “I don’t regret you.” 

He gave her a pained look before slowly raising his hand as if he wanted to stroke her cheek but pulled his hand away at the last moment. 

“Do you regret me?” she asked softly. 

He didn’t hesitate. “No.” 

“Did you mean what you said?” 

Robert opened his mouth but then closed it, a pained look in his eyes as his mouth formed in a tight line. “Look, I’m not… built for relationships, okay? It will just end like it did with-“ He cut himself off and looked away from her. 

Jimmy and Jonesy were back out on stage now, performing the end of the song. Robert turned to leave. 

Evanna grabbed his hand. “Robert, I-“ 

“Evie, I have to get back onstage.” 

“Why are you calling me that!?” 

His brow furrowed in confusion. “Everyone calls you that.” 

“I know, but you never do! You…” She tried to fight back the tears that were threatening to come forth. Everything she had known was going to eventually happen was happening. “Why are you acting like this…?” 

Robert took a deep breath. “Look, maybe you were right about us needing to stop sleeping with each other.” 

“Funny how you say that after you just finished fucking me!” 

One of the roadies pounded on the door. “Plant! They need you back onstage!” 

Robert turned to face Evanna, her eyes glistening with tears. “I’m sorry. I just… I didn’t think…” He couldn’t finish his sentence without confessing to feelings that he obviously did not want to have. “I need to get back…” 

He turned and left the dressing room, leaving Evanna in there with her disheveled clothes and hair. Hot tears spilled down her cheeks despite her attempt to fight them. Her heart ached in her chest as she adjusted her clothes back to their original state. She couldn’t stop herself from feeling this way, from having her heart be drawn to the man who she knew deep down could never give her what she truly wanted.