'Get back here, Emerald.'
'Let go of me- OW! Stop it!'
'Say it, Emerald. Say it and I might let go.'
'I love you! Please! Just stop!'
'There now. Was that so hard?'
"Rainbow!"
Marc's eyes shot open, making him wonder when he even closed them, but seeing Nathaniel in front of him helps him to remember what happened. They were working on another page for their comic when they got a little sidetracked. It happens. Their knees touched, he couldn't stop looking into Nathaniel's eye, then he held his hand. It was all just so sudden and out of nowhere, they kissed.
Marc had his arms wrapped around Nathaniel's neck while the other ran his hands up and down his back. It was nice, comforting... But then Nathaniel tried something different. His hands moved up close to his head, and he began messing around with his hair. Marc normally doesn't mind when people touch his hair, especially Nathaniel, but this time? He felt like screaming.
It started off as Nathaniel gently combing through his black strands with his fingers, but then Marc felt a small tug... And then another. And another, and then he just screamed. He pushed Nathaniel away and called him a name he absolutely loathed and hoped to never think about again.
Nathaniel rushed over to the writer and slowly reached for his hands. "Rainbow, it's okay. I'm not him. Come on, look at me."
"Please don't do that," he whispered. "Not again. Stop it!"
Nathaniel went to wipe away his tears and felt his heart about to break when Marc flinched. "Marc, Rainbow, what did he do to you?"
The writer allowed Nathaniel to hold him in his arms and savored the warmth he felt. 'He's not him. He's not him. He's not him.' "... Sometimes, Lucien- whenever I did something he didn't like- would pull on my hair. Usually, if I didn't say 'I love you' back or if I thought about leaving him. Th-there were times when he got a little too rough, and he'd end up pulling out some strands."
"Oh my God," Nathaniel shuddered. "Rainbow, I am so sorry. I-if I knew, I-I wouldn't have-"
"It's fine," he assured. "Just... Please don't do that again, Nath. At least not now."
Nathaniel wiped some of his tears away. "Of course. Rainbow, you know you can tell me if anything I do reminds you of him, right?" The writer nodded. "And I will stop when I hear that it makes you uncomfortable, I promise."
Marc had managed to muster up the faintest smile. "Thank you."
In response, Nathaniel leaned in to give him a kiss. "Love you," he smiled.
"Love you, too."
