Sick Child - MarkoxOC

Part 12: Try a little tenderness

A/N: content warnings for discussions of domestic violence.

The next evening, Sofie's eyes spring open naturally. She looks at the clock. 7:30pm. Perfect. She climbs out of bed while Marko sleepily rolls over, grumbling lightly about having to be awake. He begrudgingly slips into his jeans and sighs, looking around for a t-shirt to wear.

"Your tank top is clean," she says. "It's in the dryer."

He smiles up at her.

"You take such good care of me."

"Well, if I didn't, you'd live like an animal."

He laughs and pads to the dryer, shirtless, his jeans hanging low on his hips. When he returns, he's pulling the shirt over his head and shrugging on his jacket.

"I'm taking Laddie back to the hotel."

She sighs.

"Marko... it's -"

"It'll be fine. I've already talked to Dwayne."

She quirks an eyebrow.

"You and I have been the only ones here. How could you possibly talk to Dwayne?"

He grins and taps his temple with his fingers. Sofie lets out a soft chuckle and shakes her head. Of course.

"I guess there's a learning curve," she mumbles.

Marko's arms snake around her waist and he brushes his lips against her earlobe.

"I have an eternity to teach you."

If he were anyone else, those words would have caused a deep sense of anxiety to begin to bubble in the pit of her stomach. Instead, she leans into him and sighs contentedly. Her chest swells, and she pulls back to gaze into his bright blue eyes. Marko stares back longingly. There's something trapped behind his eyes that Sofie isn't quite sure she wants to ask about. He seems content just to gaze at her, his hand reaching up to gently cup her cheek. She takes a deep breath (out of habit) and stares back, meeting the intensity of his gaze. Her stomach flutters - not in a bad way, just different. Wherever she goes; no matter how far apart they are, she'll always be bound to him. It's an implicit understanding that now lives in her bones. She's his. This feels like the perfect moment to tell her that she loves him, but what she feels is more than that. The feeling is almost overwhelming. Her chest tightens and a lump forms in her throat, like she might cry, but... it also doesn't feel like that. It's deeper than that. There's no overwhelming cascade of tears that cause her face to crumple. These new emotions are strange and almost impossible to navigate. They feel older and more complex than anything she felt when she was still human. All she knows is that here and now, he's the only thing in the world that she needs. Sofie clears her throat and bites her lip. He senses her discomfort, but his expression doesn't change.

"You think too loud," he whispers, his smile growing wider.

"What do you mean?"

"I can hear everything up there."

Adrenaline hits her like a freight train. All of it? Did he hear all of it?

"Oh..."

He kisses her - soft, slow, and full of longing. His teeth worry her bottom lip and she moans softly. It almost feels like he's trying to pull the words "I love you" from her mouth, maybe so he doesn't have to be the first to say them. Marko's mouth moves to her jawline and his lips part. He lets out a small, soft sound, and then settles for nipping at her skin. She can feel something emanating from him. Like wants to say it, but it's not time yet - for either of them. Sofie pulls away and brushes his cheek with the back of her hand.