Vessel X Reader/OC (Sleep token)

Chapter 8

I sit up, covered in sweat, and screaming. Oh, my god. That was so real.

I look around, and sure enough, the fire had burnt out.

I take a few deep breaths, and calm down. Jesus Christ. That was nasty.

"Bad dream?"

Once again, terrified, I scream.

My scream is quickly followed by a sinister, low chuckle, and my eyes adjust, eventually, showing Vessel is sitting a metre or so beside me.

He lights another match, and sets fire to some fresh branches.

I watch him carefully, both not sure what to say, and thanks to my dream, absolutely paranoid. He reaches into his pocket, and I instinctively kick him in the chest.

He falls back slightly, and grunts in pain.
Suddenly, he grins.
"That really was a bad dream, huh?"

Out of his pocket, he pulls out a long, torn piece of fabric, and rolls up my leggings. With the water in my bag, he washes the wound. It wasn't too bad. A small laceration. No big deal.
Carefully, he wraps the fabric around the wound, and ties it, just to stop the bleeding.

"Thanks." I mumble, and he nods.

"What time is it?" I ask him, and he looks outside at the moon.

"We've got a couple hours until dawn. Do you want some more rest?"

I shrug.
"Are we... Not going to talk?"

"About you wandering off? The last look you gave me told me exactly what you were going to do. You told me you were going to leave."

"But how did you know where I went?" I ask him.

"I had some help with that one. Are you feeling up to the walk back to camp in the morning?" He asks. It seems he wants to avoid the subject of me trying to get away. Fine by me.

"Fine. You're not angry?" I ask.

"I'm not ecstatic that I walked for hours, but you told me, loud and clear, that I could not trust you. You didn't lie to me. As angry as I was at the time, I appreciated your honesty. It would be nice for you to enjoy your time with us, and stay put, but if you insist on playing cat and mouse, then I'm happy to play your games, Iris. I have to warn you, though, I won't lose."

There is just something about the way he talks that's making the likelihood of me jumping on his bones skyrocket.

I place my hand on his chest, remove his mask, and gently kiss him. In the tranquility of this little cave, I actually have a moment to take everything in. How warm he is, and how safe I feel. He wraps his arms around me, and pulls me into his lap.

Being daring, I push his jacket off, leaving his torso completely bare, and I gently run my hand along his biceps. Okay, wow. I kiss him again, slightly more roughly, and he reciprocates for a few seconds, before gently pulling away.

"Why can't I tell if you want me, or if you want me dead?" He asks me, staring straight into my eyes.

"Can't it be both?" I respond, and kiss his neck, biting at it playfully. I hear him laughing under his breath.

I lean in for another kiss, but he stops me. I raise an eyebrow at him, confused.

"Get some more rest. We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow." He says, quietly and reluctantly, I nod, and lie down beside the fire. Miraculously, I drift off until dawn, and me and Vessel make the trip back to the camp in the morning - almost in silence the whole way.

We split off, as I head to my tent, but he stops in his tracks.
"Iris." He says, and I turn to look at him.

"Mhm?"

He nods for me to follow him.
I follow him into his tent, and he takes his jacket off, before nodding at the bed, signalling for me to join him.

I decide to strip to my underwear and I lie beside him. He notices I'm a little tense, and a little self conscious, so he pulls me closer and I rest my head on his chest.