Disguised In Stardust ✔

Chapter Sixteen

Just as I began to walk out there, in just a towel, and fetch Faelin for myself, the bubbling "transition feeling" came back to me. This reality was absolutely terrible. They were going to experiment on another Faelin and I wasn't there to help.

For some reason, I felt a pang of guilt strike my heart. Why hadn't I approached him in this reality? What drove me to neglect such an obviously helpless person?

I shook my head, which didn't help the disorientation that swam under my lids. I clutched my head and leaned against the wall, hoping for some kind of purchase to fix the dizziness.

My sense of hearing clouded for a moment before a familiar voice slipped through my ears. That voice was my solace, as I was way too dizzy, and confused, and utterly distraught to think properly. I opened my eyes to my living room, no monsters or meteor storms, no ash or dust or cobwebs. This time, everything was intact, and the same feeling of home washed over me.

I was home, and someone else was there with me. It took me a second focus to realize that the person was not talking, but groaning. I craned my neck to my right, to find-

"Faelin?" I called warily. The crumpled figure looked up at me, his pink curls bouncing. A low, guttural groan of pain crawled up his throat. He scowled for a moment there, then seemed to notice who I was. He instantly softened.

"It hurts, Dain." he sighed, looking up to me with a certain twinkle in his eye that I hadn't seen before. He gripped his ankle tightly with a small tattered rag in his palm, those silver eyes now tied to it. He removed the rag for me to see, revealing a thin gash slicing above his right ankle bone. He winced, applying more pressure to it while his blood just dirtied the cloth more.

"Oh shit," I started to panic, "okay okay, I'll go um.. get some rubbing alcohol, uh, cotton balls, and gauze." I scrambled up and rushed to the bathroom, retrieving what I needed and headed back to where Faelin sat on the living room floor.

I took a cotton ball from the bag and applied some rubbing alcohol to it, dabbing the wound gently. He yelped and scampered away, and I followed. I continued to cleanse the injury and I couldn’t help but stop whenever I heard him hiss in pain.

"What happened to you?" I asked him, pressing and taping a large gauze pad to the open gash. I smoothed it over with my thumb.

"I... Men in white.. They cut into me." he started with a snivel, "I woke up in the museum. You weren't there... Where were you?" His voice caught audibly and he went silent.

Hesitantly, I looked up to find his eyes sparkling with tears. Those watery orbs of platinum sought for an explanation. I simply shook my head and craned my head down, our eyes breaking contact.

“Are you okay?” I finally breathed again. Our slowing breaths were whispers in the still silence of the house. When I went to stand up, he tugged me back down and wrapped his arms around my neck.

Once his chest was flush to mine, and once his head was buried into my shoulder comfortably, my mind went haywire. He was warm; it felt like I was being dipped in a hot tub on a winter night to let the stress ooze out. I returned the hug as soon as his warmth mixed with mine. His heartbeat pressed against me, letting itself calm to a slow pulse.

"I hate being coddled.." he sighed against my neck.

Today was exhausting; I hadn’t gotten any sleep recently and I knew I was on the verge of collapsing soon. I subconsciously trailed my hands under his shirt and rubbed along his coarse, alien skin. I began rubbing my palms against his bare shoulder blades, smoothing the roots of his wings under my fingertips.

I blinked out of my daze when he shivered against me, letting a patch of shuddering breath escape those lips. He pulled back and gave me a pitiful look, one that made me feel like I was playing unfair.

“Stop that.” he said, so I removed my hands from his back and watched him curl at the loss. He squirmed awkwardly, looking down between us, to where his legs overlapped mine. He whined. “Never mind... Keep going.” he whispered the last part under his breath.

My heart could barely comprehend this new atmosphere. I was internally jumping with both glee and anxiety. He squeezed me tighter with a bashful look painted on his pink face.

So I slid my hands back under his shirt and brought the cloth up and over his head. The alien made a sound I’d never heard from him before, like a mewl. He watched me carefully as I set his top aside. My hands slipped across the back of his neck, around his wings, and eventually resting on the dip of his lower back. My other hand fiddled with the sides of his wings, which were intricately wound with veins and rough to the touch.

“W-Wait,” he gasped, but it was too late. I was already stroking his wings with one hand while the other found refuge on his hip. He tried to close his legs but my waist was in the way. His nervous yet willing expression sent chills up my back. He clung to me and I had to chuckle in relief. I was glad he liked it; that much was calming.

Before I could continue my slow teasing to the wreck above me, a knock at the door startled the both of us.

His voice was weak. “I’ll-..I’ll get it.” he began to crawl off of me. I only had to brush his wrist to make him sit back on my lap.

“What if it’s Seth?” I whispered, pausing once my hands were on his. That sheepish gaze met all but mine, flicking to where we came in contact to the window. The pads of my fingers were pressing against his white marking.

“Then let’s move,” he stood from my lap, leaving my legs cold. He pulled me up and dragged me to the bedroom with a pace I could barely meet. I shut the door behind us quietly and let myself grip his wrist. He turned to look at me and I smiled. His unknowing face was the cutest.

I took a step forward but he backed up to keep the space even. Due to our linked hands, he pulled me forward and we both toppled onto the bed. I used my free arm to trap him underneath me. I felt a blush rise to my cheeks.

“Woah-- Wait, um.. We can’t do that. My-My father wouldn’t allow it. If I were to go back home no longer a virgin, I'll be ostracized. I need to be the untouched prince they... want me to be.” Ashamed, he muttered between little pants. I could tell he’d heard that lecture at least a thousand times...

I gasped, finally connecting the dots. “Oh, you thought we were going to..?” He blushed and nodded nervously. I covered my scalding face with an equally burning hand. “Ah.. Don't worry. I don’t think either of us are ready for that.” I admitted, scratching the back of my neck as he leaned up to snuggle against me. I sighed at the feel of his warmth. It never failed to put my mind at rest.

I slid my hand down to his and intertwined our fingers. “Is there an.. us?” He looked down to our joined hands and quickly looked away. His brow pinched and he nibbled his lip again.

“Oh, I really wish we could.” I replied. I felt my own face heat up at how he looked at me with a kind of hope in his eyes. "But we can't. Your mate is destined to find you. You can't just go off with someone else." My face and ears were burning up by now. He used his other hand to reach up and stroke the side of my face. His palm was cool against my hot skin.

He shook his head quietly.

The Faerie leaned forward, hesitated, then resolved to pressing his forehead against mine in a spit of anxiety. Instead of pulling back, I met him halfway and connected our lips tenderly. My heart skipped a beat, and my hand squeezed his.

Holding him just felt right.

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