Inheritance

Part 2. Chapter 28: Sleepless

Because Taylor had slept so much during the day, she found that she was sleepless at night. She opened her eyes after tossing and turning and remembered that Them had fallen asleep next to her at her request. Her rosy eyes met his sleeping face dazedly.

She brushed her fingertips against his cheek nervously.

Her own cheeks felt hot as she thought about his previous kisses and how badly she would like one now.

She brought her face inches closer to his. She enjoyed his even breathing which was gently brushing her face.

I don't know why I'm so scared to let you kiss me when I kissed Pollyanna so fearlessly earlier... Taylor thought to herself.

Deep down, she knew that her heart was beating just as quickly and nervously as Pollyanna's was during that kiss Taylor had practically foisted upon the warrior-maiden earlier. At first, she had done it to play a game with Pollyanna who wasn't pining after her nearly as much as she liked—but then, it made her angry how much Pollyanna didn't want her, and the kiss turned angry, too.

It was a dark and cruel kiss.

She pushed down her regrets of making the old woman so uncomfortable. She's probably been through enough...

She wasn't sure whether the thought was hers or Eory's, but it terrified her to think that Eory could have such control over her when he was supposed to be pushed down and away.

She brought her lips closer to Them's with ragged breaths.

Terrified tears that she could not help sprang to her eyes.

She took a deep breath and shoved her face towards his, but stopped herself when she was an inch away from it. She ended up flipping on her side away from him with a deep-set frown.

You want him to kiss you. Just tell him. The man suggested.

Taylor closed her eyes and hugged her stomach because it was nice to be hugged by someone—even if it was herself.

She turned on her back and her mind drifted off to a kiss she had already shared with Them, because it was preferable than thinking about one that she wanted but was too scared to have.

Her mind returned her to that empty field—to when she had enticed Them with not only a kiss, but the possibility of leaving the dream plains upon which he was marooned.

She heard Them counting to ten with his eyes closed while she dashed through the grassy field with a high-pitched giggle.

"One, two, three..." Them murmured with his back facing her.

As she ran, she changed the dream environment from that of a grassy, open field to that of a heavily forested area and then climbed up a tree. He'll never find me! She thought to herself with an excited smile.

"Ten! I'll find you, beautiful!" Them finished counting and called out to her.

Taylor grabbed another branch above her and hefted herself up on it. She brushed her hair out of her face and looked down at the forest beneath her—steadying herself by keeping a hand on the trunk of the tree.

She could hear Them whistling from far away—her muscles tensed in response to his slow and plodding approach.

Seconds past, and the whistling was getting closer along with the footsteps.

Peering down from above, Taylor could begin to see the waif slowly coming into view.

She blushed as an errant thought ran through her head, his hair looks soft like a pillow.

Them continued plodding and stopped right under her tree.

She bit back a fearful gasp.

"I wonder where she might be?" Them wondered aloud as he spun around in a tight circle.

"Might she be... Up in this tree!" Them stood on his tip-toes and grabbed Taylor's braid which was draping down from the branch she was sitting on.

Taylor yelped and quickly hopped down from the tree—shifting the dreamscape so she landed on a soft pile of flowers—and then she continued to dash away from Them who called after her, "I found you! You have to tell me how to get out now!"

"Not until you kiss me!" Taylor reminded him.

Them chased her and chased her, and on his tiny legs, it wasn't easy to catch up. Eventually, however, Taylor began to slow her pace on purpose, and he caught up.

He was nearly keeping pace with her, and it allowed him to tackle her—they both fell, crumpling to the ground as a result.

He ended up with his strong arms on either side of her torso—staring down at her mischievous face.

Them returned her mischievous look with a questioning frown.

Taylor found her hands to be nervous as she hung her arms around his neck. "Well, go on! You caught me!"

Them rolled his eyes with a bright smile and leaned in with a kiss to shut her up.

He gave her a long and light kiss.

Taylor kept her eyes open and subsequently realized it was odd to keep her eyes open when Them had his closed.

She also realized it felt incredibly good to be kissed—so good that she felt the need to bring her legs up toward her torso. She also realized she wanted him to be closer, and so she dragged him down on top of her and shoved her own lips deeper onto his as opposed to keeping them neutral as she had before.

She continued to enjoy Them's kiss until she eventually felt incredibly nervous and struggled beneath him.

Them pushed himself to a sitting position when he felt her suddenly struggling, and then demanded, "now tell me the way out, you miscreant."

Taylor felt dirty and elated at the same time; confused, happy, and like she should hide the fact that she had enjoyed being kissed for some reason.

Taylor sat up and pressed a palm against her reeling head. "Um, it's..."

Them's determined, impatient face turned from angry to compassionate. "Are you okay...?"

"I'm fine! If you're in such a hurry to be going, then I'll tell you the way out!" Taylor snapped.

"Well, I would like to come back." Them assured her.

He looked her up and down with eyes that made her blush. "I'm not sure I want to live a life where I never get to see you again..."

Taylor turned her chin up and crossed her arms with a snooty snort. "I don't care if I never see you again! Now, the way out is to simply to pinch yourself and to concentrate your magic in your eyes. After that, you merely have to imagine yourself wherever you are in the real world, and you'll be back in your own body again."

"I truly do want to see you again, though..." Them said, scratching his chin. "When will you be around? Let's set a time!"

A warm breeze blew through the area as Taylor lowered her eyes. "I'll be around any time..."

Them was silent for a moment and wondered exactly what she meant, but he shrugged and asked, "how about a hug before I go?"

Taylor gave a half-hearted in response.

Them encircled her in his arms and she let out a little gasp as she looked over his shoulder.

She hadn't been hugged in so long.

She sniffled and returned his embrace.

After that, he pinched himself with his eyes closed and disappeared after a long moment.

Taylor was alone after that again.

She at once delighted at the calming of her heart after the stress of meeting someone, and wrung her hands at how lonely she was again.

Taylor came back to reality and hauled herself out of bed after dozing off in that sleepless memory. She creaked the door open to hear someone's sniffling nearby.

I wonder who it is? She thought to herself as she stepped out.