It can’t wait.

She was so close today. The feeling of her fingers in his hair and over his body. They’re lingering on him. He’s dying for release.

The door to his apartment slams shut and he kicks off his shoes. He doesn’t even bother taking off his necktie as he drops onto the couch, unzipping, remembering the shape of her hips as she fell back into him weeks ago.

Thandi.

He’s so stupidly in love with her. Every little touch sends him spiraling. They flirt. They play. She calls him darling, makes him food.

His guilt freezes him midstroke. Is he a pet to her?

Thandi…

He wouldn’t mind. Not at all. If he could live with just what she gave him now, he’d still be happy. Especially when she pets him. Oh, he loves that. She’ll be teasing him and her hands touch his chest, his back, his stomach. 

He wishes, just once, her hands would venture lower. 

Thandi!

His hips rise and he gasps at the feeling of near-release. Just a little more.

Remember how soft she is, how kind, how doting. Remember that gentle way she smiles when he’s down. Her fingers in his hair. Tangling. Grabbing. Her voice. What sorts of noises would she make?

It doesn’t matter as long as it’s his name coming from her. She’d say it and kiss him with everything she’s got. Does she think of him? Does she remember that fall, his hands on her waist, holding her to him for that short moment? Does she think about touching his hair, kissing him?

I love you, Thandi!

Charlie catches his breath and slumps. Of course he does. Of course he loves her. There’s no world where he isn’t hopelessly in love with Thandi, he’s sure of it.

As Thandi approaches the door to Charlie’s room, she can hear the bed… squeaking, if she leans close to the door. It’s hard to hear exactly what is going on… but…

“Th… Thandi…” He’s calling for her?

“Charlie? Are you alright?!” She knocks on the door urgently, her heart pounding. Her dear student! He sounds so distressed! What if he’s wandered upon a dangerous magical plant and didn’t know of the effects! “Charlie! I’m coming in!” She bursts through the door and gasps at the sight. 

Charlie is clutching at his blankets, yanked up in a rush of activity, but it’s all wrong! He’s sitting on it and so he’s pulled the blanket up from the bottom. “AH! Uh! T-T-Thandi!? Aah. What’s! Up!? Haha!!” His face is flushed, sweat beading on his brow as he tries to smile at her.

“Oh! Oh, Charlie, what’s happened?!” She hurries to him and presses her hands to his red cheeks. He must be ill! In pain! “Are you feeling sick, Darling? What can I do? Ah! I know. Th-The medic! Don’t try to change my mind. Even doctors get sick! And who cares for them?! Can you stand? No! I’ll go get them!”

He had started to relax when her hands met his cheeks but Charlie’s eyes widen with sheer panic. He grabs her wrists with both hands, the blanket falling to his waist. His vest is unbuttoned… and his shirt. She can see him breathing hard as he leans forward. “No! Nonono. I’m not sick. I’m not. Don’t get anyone else. I’m okay. I promise. I am. Fine.”

She looks at his hands on her wrists and… he’s not wearing his gloves either. He always wears them. Has he ever touched her without them? Her eyes return to his and she nods once. “Alright… I won’t call for a doctor. But… if you let me close the door? Will you… tell me what’s wrong? I’ve never heard you like that before.”

“Ah.” It’s a high squeak, and his eyes flick behind her before he hurriedly yanks his shirt closed. “You can. Close. The door. But… Um. I. You might be. Aah… it… um. The. Haha. Uh. You might be… un. Comfortable. Uncomfortable. With. The. Situation. I mean, it’s, ah, you’re. An. Unmarried woman. In here. With. Me…”

Thandi waves it off as she pulls away from him to go shut the door. “We aren’t in Istres, Charlie. We don’t need a chaperone. And don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone.” She turns back to him and winks. “It’ll be our little secret!” She approaches him again and brushes his bangs back. They’re growing longer every day that he’s here! “Now. Tell me what’s wrong. Please. I want to help.”

His hands relax slightly as she touches him, and he lets out a shaky breath. “Um. Thandi. I. So. You know… I used to be. Um. A… asexual. I thought. I was. But. I’m, haha. I’m. Not. Do you. Do you understand what I’m getting at? I’m a… a-a-attracted. To you. So. I… Need… Relief. Sometimes?” He stares at her, brows wrinkling slightly with worry. He’s clutching the blankets in his lap, even, and… is he… scared?

“Relief? Oh, my darling. I had no idea that… well. I. I didn’t know you felt that way and then… to learn it causes you such distress! Oh, what can I do? There must be something! Wh-How do you find relief? Is it— ahh… some sort of exercise? Breathing? Ahh… hmm…” She rubs her chin as she thinks. Whenever she thinks of relieving oneself it’s to use the toilet and… this is certainly not the loo.

Charlie’s worry only grows. He’s growing frantic. “I. You don’t need to. Truly. It’s. It’s just. Me. Um. I. I just. I just… I. Um. Gods, how do I explain…” He rubs his neck, massaging it as his eyes drift away. He mumbles low as he thinks, his shirt falling open again. There’s… movement. Under the blanket. But he doesn’t notice. “It’s… a. Natural… human… urge… sort of… like… sort of… I mean… you know. Just. Making. Um…”

The thing moves again and she raises a brow. “Rev! Are you hiding?” She leans down to giggle at the lump under the covers. “Come on out, silly. It’s just me! Were you helping Charlie feel better?” And then she reaches out and pets the edge of his beak. Charlie groans and she gasps, sitting up again to look at him as she holds a little tighter to his familiar. Where is his body? His beak seems longer and thicker than usual. And Charlie is only growing more upset! His head falls back and he calls her name in… in that same labored voice from before! It sends a thrill through her for some reason. She continues petting Rev nervously. “Charlie? Are you alright?!”

He lets out a long, shaky breath, reaching to grab her wrist and still her hand. “Rev can’t help me with this. He’s out. Giving me privacy. Thandi. Please. If. If you keep stroking me like that. I. I’m going to… I’m going to cum. You. You’re rubbing my… ah. My. My… my c… fucksake. My. P… that’s my dick.” 

Thandi blinks at him and then down to what she had assumed was Rev’s beak and head and neck and… gods. He’s large! Her hand flies away. “I am so sorry! I! I didn’t mean to—! Have—! Have I made it worse?!” But… he said something about… cum? From what she knows about reproduction and… sex… that’s a good thing, isn’t it? It means… he feels good? He’s so red as he averts his eyes. Did he… like it? She stares down at the lump under the blanket and she gulps. “Or was it… helping?”

“It… depends…” Charlie’s eyes flick to hers and away, and he tugs the blanket a touch to try to cover up again. His blush has spread down to his bare chest, and she could almost swear he’s grown warmer. “I. I mean. You’re… All I think about. Of. Of course… it helps. It’s. The. The best. But. It’s. You know. You’ve. You don’t want that. So. I. I try to keep… all of this. Away from you. I can’t… I can’t do it unless I’m thinking about you. So. I. Um. I… this makes me. Want. More. And I can’t put you through that.”

“But why not? Charlie…” Her hand brushes against his cock again, through the blankets. “I’m supposed to take care of you. And… you’re the only one I would take care of this way.” She runs two fingers up and down his length, watching his eyelids droop as pleasure starts to build in him. At least… that’s what it looks like. “I want to make you feel good, Charlie. I don’t know anything about this so you’ll have to teach me but… I hope you’ll trust me. And… tell me what you imagine…?”

“O-oh, fuck, Thandi. I. You… Mmn…!” He’s leaning back, breathing hard. “I… You… thank you. It. It means more to me… than anything. That… You would… engage. With. Me… sexually. Exclusively…” He lets out another heavy breath, and now she knows for sure that what she’s doing is exciting for him. He’s twitching under her hand! So lively… 

Charlie opens his shirt, letting her see his scarred chest, the still-red wounds from past fights. He grasps her other hand, pausing to make sure she’s okay with it before pressing her hand to the center of his chest. She can feel his heart racing beneath her palm, and he stares into her eyes with… a half-lidded, wanting expression. Like he’s trying to keep still. 

“I. Imagine us together. You… on top. So… I…”

Thandi nods carefully and continues gently touching his chest with one hand and stroking his cock with the other. “So you…?” Her hand on his chest lowers to his stomach and the hand on his cock… she wraps it around him! The blanket is still between them but once she figures out a good grip, she reaches for the hem of the blanket. “So you can… look… up? At me?” She tilts her head before her eyes wander down and follow the blanket. 

He hardly springs up much from the sheer weight of his cock. Thandi’s jaw drops at the sight of him. Of a real, fully erect cock. The shape… the color… gods, even the scent! And when her hand resumes that grip? She gasps at the sweet, soft texture. She adores this. Adores him!

“Thandi…!” His hips buck. He squeezes his eyes shut for a moment, gasping with… pleasure! “P… please excuse me.” He reaches out, hand resting on the back of her neck to gently pull her closer to him as he leans forward.

The kiss they share is sweet. Small. Charlie kisses her a dozen times all at once, eyes fluttering shut as he keeps on. Breathing deep. Quivering with excitement under her hands. He doesn’t stop kissing her for what feels like an eternity of different small, affectionate kisses, pecks, and presses. His lips are so soft, and yet so… firm. It feels good.

“I. I love you. I need you to know that. That’s. Why I want… to be able to see you. Hold you. M… make. Love. To you.”

“You… You mean it? Truly?” She stares at him a moment before tears come to her eyes. “Oh. Oh, Charlie…” She kisses him deeply, gripping him a touch tighter and he makes that lovely little sound. When she pulls back a hair, it’s to whisper, “Me, too. I love you. I’ve never felt anything like this before. And. I’m so glad to have met you.” She kisses him more insistently this time, hoping that he can feel it. Not just from how she holds him. But from how… she just wants to make him feel more loved than ever. When they separate, she whispers, “Lie back, Darling. I want to make your dreams come true.”

Charlie’s eyes widen, and he bites his lip as he nods. He reaches out to touch her cheek before shifting to lay back as she asked. She can feel his pulse through his cock, the throb of his arousal as he watches her with curious excitement. “You don’t need to go so far, I— hmnng…!“

The shift of Thandi’s fingers on his cock has made his hips rise monumentally. Charlie grasps at the sheets as she strokes him again. “I!! I’m fairly! Sensitive!! So— aah…!” Every movement of her hand makes him excited! Makes him feel good! All of it, all of this… is because he loves her so dearly. He wants her so much.

She watches his face as she experiments with different holds, different strokes, dozens of ways to touch and caress him and make his voice come out more and more. Heat builds within her as she plays, a sort of… clench begins within her and she bites her lip now as a small whine escapes her. “Charlie… Is this helping? You’re… You’re growing more distressed and red by the minute.” She looks down at his cock and it throbs as a bead of a white liquid forms at the tip. “Oh! This! I! I know this!” She runs her thumb over it and her brows jump at the heat of it against her skin. “My… It’s… sticky.” She giggles and runs her thumb down his length, streaking his pre down his cock. “I think that means that I’m doing well, right?”

“It does.” Charlie’s voice is breathless, and his hips jerk as her hand returns to his tip. “T-Thandi. Gods. Come. Come here. A touch. Closer. I… I want to touch you as well.”

As Thandi shifts closer, Charlie reaches out to place his hand on her thigh. He’s stroking her now, trailing shy lines across them before his hand lingers on her inner thigh. His hand is warm, extremely so, and it creeps under her dress as he palms her cunt.

His eyes meet hers as he rubs her up and down, experimenting. A finger…! She feels a finger dip into her sweet slick, looking for some way to pleasure her….! Her breath catches as her eyes flutter closed and… he finds a sweet… wonderful spot just at the cleft of her cunt. She gasps as his finger gently strokes her and he takes the opportunity to kiss her again, sweet and lovingly. Her heart is overflowing with joy as he continues. He’s so careful. So gently. So… perfect. “How…” she whispers before her breath catches again. “How did you…? That… Ch… Charlie…”

Her hand on his cock is slowing and soon just rests against him. She can’t think of anything but this. It’s… It’s entrancing. Hypnotic. And she can feel herself growing wetter with every simple touch.

“Straddle me, please,” Charlie murmurs. “And lean down so I might be able to kiss you better.” His hand leaves her, focusing on helping her move now. He isn’t looking anything like what she must. He’s beautiful, and she… “Gods… my Thandi. I love you. You’re gorgeous.” He’s whispering as she wriggles over him. Charlie’s hands rest on her thighs again as he pushes her dress up higher and higher, until it’s bunched at her waist and every touch is a line of fire.

She grips the hem of her dress and bites her lip nervously before finally pulling it up and off, tossing it onto the floor and baring herself for him. She takes a shaky breath and sets her hands on his chest, below the still healing line. She marvels at the hair that still grows… undisturbed. “You… You, too.” Her cheeks are burning nearly as much as her cunt as she follows the line of hair down to his groin. She gulps and takes another shuddering breath. “You’re… You’re… incredible. And… ah…” She can feel her brain sizzling as she squeaks out, “You’ve gotten stronger. Y-Your… I… Ah. I can… Y… Your chest! It’s… ahhh…” She looks away, embarrassed. If she told him that she had noticed his chest during the obstacle course? He’d… He’d hate her!

“I… hadn’t realized that you were looking, dearest.” Charlie reaches up to bring her closer, kissing her softly. Thandi can feel his cock twitch against her backside, a reminder of what he wants so desperately. “I have. I want to be able to lift you. Carry you. Such things… reserved for the partner…” He gently guides her until his cock presses to her entrance. It makes them both gasp, and Charlie’s grip on her tightens as she feels a pulse against her.

It’s exciting! She’s doing this. He said he could only do it with her. And he is so close to penetrating her…! His cock is pressed significantly to her, one roll of the hips away from being one. “Darling,” she murmurs, “I’ve… I’ve always been… ah. C-Curious. About the act. About the act with… you is still… new. About as new as your curiosity with it perhaps but… ah. P… Please be gentle with me? I’ve… I’ve never done anything like this and… I’m… ah. I’m nervous. I don’t… I don’t really enjoy pain.” She winces and shakes her head. “I mean! I! I want you to feel good. Relieved! But! Ahh… I… May… You may not want to see… me… ah. H… Hurting? Unless. You… like that?” She’s blushing profusely and quickly shuts herself up by kissing him. She shouldn’t have mentioned it. He’s not as lively as he was a moment ago! Bring it back! Bring it back! 

She read once about… kissing and… tongues…? So she tentatively licks his lips, squeaking at the lovely sensation. They’re soft and they taste so good! What else does he taste like? Now… it’s all she can think about! His hands drift from her hips to her cheeks, stilling her. 

“Of course I don’t want you to hurt. We’re taking this slow. Even if I don’t end up inside you, this is more than I ever hoped for. If you hurt, we go back a step.” He’s sounding so firm for once. Resolute. He lets his hands drift now to her chest, fondling her breasts as he smirks at her. “Besides. We can play other ways. No need to simply… make do. Come here. I’m going to kiss you again.”

And with that… it’s him licking her. When they open their mouths and let one another in, the pleasure is entirely unexpected. Smooth. Heavy. One taste and Charlie can’t seem to get enough as they lick and suck and press… he’s moaning into her mouth, hands making her rock slightly against him, so his tip runs up and down her cunt. And her hands aren’t idle. They wander up and along his sides, to his chest again, carefully passing over his sewn shut wound, until she’s running her fingers through his hair.

He’s so… soft. Gods. She can’t stop! Each strand is like silk and she just wants to hold him forever! She doesn’t even realize until he groans against her that… she’s rocking against him herself. His hands grip her rear and he squeezes, making her squeak again as she pulls back to look in his face. “Charlie… You… You taste good. Is this… what you would picture when…? I mean! H-How often have you… done this? Exactly?”

“…y… ah… mmmn…” He laughs awkwardly, looking away. Her bracelet, a quiet observer that has been blooming and dropping petals as they romanced one another, squeezes. “A lot. I. Didn’t keep count. It’s. Been. Maybe. At least… once… a… d… day. Just about.” He lets out a shaky laugh, smiling up at her. “Sorry. Ever… ever since we brought up… children, I just. I couldn’t stop. Picturing. Making them. With you. I want… with you. To… have. Children.”

Her brows rise and the very idea of… a family. A family that loves her. A husband that adores her. Children that want to learn and play and read with them both? It’s… It’s like a fantasy given life. “You… do?” She bites her lip and… she knows that she can’t right now. Her potion, while taking care of her nightmares also works to protect her from any… accidents. “I… I want. Children. I mean. S-Someday. Right now… we’re… in the middle of a sort of… c… crisis. But.” She presses her palm to his cheek. “I want that, too, Charlie.” She leans down and presses her forehead to his. “When all of this is over… I’m going to beg Vitani to let me stay. To hell with magic training and… everything else. This.” She pulls back and adjusts her hips to press her cunt back and to him. “This is what I want.” She slowly pushes back and his cock begins spreading her open, separating her lips and… it’s a tad funny. It’s like… when they kissed? His tongue slipping into her mouth and now… gods. This is… much better. She shudders as his tip dips into her and slows herself to catch her breath, preparing for him.

It makes him press his head back into the pillow, grasping her tightly as his back arches slightly. “Gods. Fuck, Thandi. You’re. Hmmn. Hot. Warm? Just. Perfect. I’m not even… really in yet…” He, too, takes a deep breath to try and steady himself. “I’m… I’m glad. I’ll be there with you. To fight. And. I’ll be there… always. Just. Mmn…” Charlie catches her lips again, hips rising slightly to try to feel more of her. 

He stutters in his breathing as she pushes back a touch more. His cock glides a touch further, and she feels so incredibly full already. How do others fit these in them? Is this how it’s going to feel every time? Charlie’s cock twitches, shifting inside of  her and it feels! Good!

“Thandi. You’re. Ahh… You’re doing. So good. Take it. Slooh…”

She’s trying but gods, she wants more. “Charlie,” she breathes, “You–! You’re so–!” She bites her lip and grips the sheets on either side of him, not wanting to hurt him. He’s still tender. She gasps as he fills her a little more. “You’re big, Charlie! I! What if… What if I can’t…! Fit…! All of you?!” Her back arches as he hits a spot just inside her cunt and she rocks back, still somehow taking more of him. “Feels! So good!” And her cunt tightens around him, clinging tightly to his cock as he presses even deeper, taking his time. It’s like a beautiful, slow torture. The loveliest she’s ever felt! And yet there’s this tension building within her. She needs… “I. I understand now… why you… do this so… often? I’m… I need–! Something! I! I can feel it–! It’s like… a snake! Coiled so tightly inside of me! Am… Is that… right? Or?! Charlie!”

“Mmn! I. I don’t know what it feels like. For you.” His hips begin rocking slightly, his hands helping her to rock with him. He drifts in and out of her, filling and leaving her wanting. It makes his breath catch, and with every slow roll back onto his cock, he slips further and further in until she’s fully seated on him. Charlie’s fingers grip her tightly. “You. Feel. Good. I. Fuck. I. Thandi. Before it happens. I… mmn.” He wriggles slightly as she shifts back to see where they’re joined, and it feels so heavenly. He’s kissing something deep inside and every shift makes him throb. “Before I end up. Coming inside you. I need. To know. If you even want me to. Because at this rate. I will. More than. Once.”

Thandi nods. “Yes. Yes! It’s! It’s alright. My. My potion will keep me from. From–!” He’s rocking his hips already, bucking up and into her, holding her tightly as he really, truly just… fucks her! She’s crying out, moaning and squeaking at every instance and while she wants to fall forward, that spot that he’s hitting… if she were to… She eases her hips back as he continues and rests her hands on his thighs while he fucks up into her. This angle! It’s! “Ch-Charlie! Charlie! I’m–!”

Her heart is racing, her body is tightening and focusing solely on this moment. This feeling! This beautiful, incredible sensation of him. She gasps as all the tension in her body snaps and her head falls back as the most intense pleasure of her life shoots through her. It surprises her, making her squeal with delight and it’s soon followed by an intense heat filling her. Her lover is groaning as he pushes his hips up to try and fill her as much as he can! She shudders as his hips settle back on the bed and she falls over him, resting her head on his chest. 

“Charlie… That… That was… incredible. Is that… Is that how you feel after…?”

His arms wrap around her as he catches his breath. “This feels. Much. Better.” He rocks his hips experimentally, slipping in and out again. The feeling! Afterwards?! It’s so much…! More… “I’m not done.”

What?

Charlie shifts again, both in her and under her, rolling them both over so he’s on top. His cock doesn’t leave her, no, but rather…! He’s grinding hard into her, letting out shuddering breaths as she feels his cock pulse again. Charlie leans closer, resting his weight on his forearms as he kisses her. Those chestnut strands tickle her face as he rocks his hips again. “Thandi. I. Mmmn. Hold onto me. Under my shirt… there’s a good girl.” She can feel how hot he is, can feel… unusual lines under her fingertips. 

The thoughts are chased away by a thrust that shakes her whole body. She gasps and clings tighter to him, biting her lip as he fucks harder than he had over her. She whines and squeaks and squeals like some sort of animal as he pounds into her. “Charlie… Charlie…! More! Don’t–! Don’t stop!” Her back arches as he kisses that lovely spot inside of her over and over! What is that? How does he know what to do?! Oh. Right. Doctor. He knows all about the body. And he’s made good use of his education.

Thandi pulls him into a kiss again as she strokes along the uneven lines on his back. She can barely think straight with the intense rhythm he’s set. He buries his face into the crook of her neck, breathing hard as he clings to her. “Thandi,” he moans, right in her ear. This sounds far more distressed than the way he called her into his room. And he keeps murmuring her name as he presses to her, hips moving at a pace that she hadn’t thought possible inside of her. It feels so good…

His lips meet her neck, kissing her as he thrusts away. And then there’s a sharpness. He’s biting her, as if he himself is an animal! And he moans around the spot he’s latched onto, fast thrusts becoming  firm, strong ones. Begging her body for the pleasure she had earlier. The tension snaps once more, and Thandi can’t help but dig her nails in as her legs close around his hips. Charlie is moaning and groaning and gasping as he tries to thrust with every spasm. She’s so hot inside, it feels like she’s gotten overfilled, like she’s spilling over onto his bed and making a beautiful mess of them both!

“Thandi. Thandi. Fuck. Aaah… yes, yes, yes, I love you… you’re mine. Mine.”

There’s a different sort of heat that spreads through her now. A warm satisfaction that she’s never known before. She breathes deeply and strokes his back, trying to soothe the lines she’d carved with her nails as she whispers, “Yours… I’m yours, Charlie. Only… ever… yours…”

And in that moment, she meant it. She knew it was true. She knew that beyond anything in her life, no matter what would ever get in her way, that she would have him. And he would have her. And they would make it through it all. They kiss once more, sealing their promise. Their fate. Their family.

“Fuck, Thandi…!” Charlie breathes, quiet so not to draw attention to his tent. His toes curl, his back arches, and he releases a splatter across his bared belly. He bites his lip to stifle a moan, exhaling loudly instead. A few more pumps, Thandi’s ring pressed firmly to his cock, assures him that he is finally done. He feels lips on his petals, though, and his body threatens to—

“Charlie?” Thandi has ducked into his tent and her eyes grow wide as she sees him in…! Such an indecent pose! Shirt open, cock in hand, stomach covered in his own cum! She freezes there, hand squeezing over her bracelet. She gapes.

“S-Sorry, I…!”

“Does it hurt?”

He blinks at her. Her face is red, and her eyes can’t pull away, but… she shows none of the disgust he expected. Especially from masturbating to thoughts of her. He grabs a rag, wiping himself down. “No, it doesn’t,” he says quietly. He tucks himself away. “I’m sorry you had to see… that…”

Thandi bites her lip, now moving to sit beside him. “You… still… want that with me, don’t you?”

“Y-yes, dearest. I do.” He avoids her eyes, feels her squeezing on her bracelet.

“And you.. still… love me? Even when I can’t?”

“Of course. I would be an absolute moron not to love you as much as I do!”

“May I…?”

Thandi raises her hand, laying it upon his chest gently. Where his cum was only moments ago. She leans her head against him, running her fingers down to the hair under his belly button. Her hand runs back up, learning the feeling of his skin. Thandi lets out a small sigh as she wraps her arms around his middle. It makes Charlie laugh.

“Thandi, dearest, what are you doing?”

“You seem lonely.” She nuzzles the dip in his chest. Smiles. 

“I was. But I’m home now.” 

Thandi squeezes him tightly. “Welcome home, honey. Love.”

“Honeylove? That’s a new one. I do like it.”

“You!!”

“Me what? I’m sorry to say, Thandi, if you call me a scoundrel, recall I lived with some dignity. I’m your scoundrel.” He wraps his arms around her, relishing feeling her against his bare skin. It’s lovely. She is warm and soft, and he finds his embarrassment melting away. She accepts this part of him, the part he has trouble with accepting for himself. 

Her giggles and nuzzles make him feel alive. “My scoundrel. I like that. I like it a lot.”

“Good. You’re… stuck with me.”

“That’s what I was coming to ask you about, actually. I… If we can’t… even kiss… I want to at least…” Charlie shifts so he could see her face, but she holds tight. They both know she’s blushing. “Find some other way to be close with you. I… want to sleep with you.”

“Heh.”

“Charlie! Not like that!” Thandi loosens her grip as she giggles, slapping his chest lightly. It’s almost more of a caress and he gets to see her blush grow even further.

“Thandi, you’re cute!” He tips them both over, hugging her to him. She nuzzles his chest, wriggling as he opens his shirt to wrap around her. It sends her in another fit of giggles and he squeezes her. If only he could kiss her. Soon. Soon. 

Her hot breath evens against his skin and she curls into him, silent now. He holds her as she does her best to… wrap her head around it. Sometimes it takes time for her to process. And she hadn’t prepared for what she saw. What she’s seeing. What she’s doing. So he holds her and wishes he could kiss her problems away.