The Sweetest Sting

2

I wanted to read this over five more times like I usually do, but I decided to just post it. If it's missing words or has worse punctuation than normal, that's why. I chose actually putting it out there over perfection. PROGRESS? PROGRESS!

**

Rora woke to a scorching chest pressed to her cheek and a heartbeat thudding in her ear. She breathed in the spicy remainder of cologne and smiled, slowly opening her eyes to look at Lewie. She wasn't surprised to see him. Of course it was him. No one else in the world was as warm. Even standing beside him, the man was a furnace.

But the rest of her awareness came in slower, peeling layers. Outside. Morning light. Aching mind. Stinging. Raw.

The Stick or Twist.

Bitterness flooded her mouth and she sat up groaning. Couldn't her arsehole brain have waited a minute to remind her of that?

It took her a few seconds to gather herself, but she focused on the carefully constructed blocks of ice around her heart. She would not let this pain get any closer to the tenderest part of her. After a moment, she released a breath and looked at her friend. He was lying against a pillow, one arm beneath his head. His blonde hair was a mess, flopping this way and that and the usually neat and trimmed facial scruff was longer and darker. He looked... really good, actually. Sleepy morning eyes and all.

"Hi," he said softly.

"Hi," she creaked out, before a yawn overcame her. "Can I sleep more?"

He shrugged. "Probably not. I think everyone else is starting to wake up."

Well, that wouldn't do. She groaned and threw herself onto his chest anyway, forcing all the air from his lungs. He grunted as she made happy, comfy sounds and dug her face into him.

"Alright," he said, chuckling. "Make yourself comfortable."

"Mmhmm."

"I've got to tell you something important though," he said.

She looked up at him. "What?"

"Your eye bogies are intense."

She snorted and rubbed at them. "So are yours. Also, you farted in your sleep."

"I absolutely did not."

"You can't know that." She smiled into his warmth.

"And yet I do."

"How?" she asked.

He flicked her nose gently. "Because I have firm control of my gasses at all times."

Her laugh bellowed, likely startling the birds from the trees.

"Oh!" A voice she didn't recognize called out. "Look at you two!" Ah, now there was no mistaking the Aussie in those words. Flo stood there in a tiny bikini, grinning so wide, you could almost see her back teeth.

"Morning," Lewie said. There was a strange tension in his voice. He gave Flo a firm head shake as if he was responding to words she hadn't said.

Rora sat up. "Something wrong?"

"No," he said.

Flo blinked prettily. "Nothing. It's just nice to see friends reunited."

There was no hint of anything but sincere happiness in Flo's words and Rora found herself relaxing and smiling at the new girl. "It's nice to be reunited." She patted Lewie's chest. "I missed my mate."

"I'd better queue up for the shower," he said curtly. He slid out of the bed, his muscled back and legs stiff. "Flo, care to chat?"

Flo nodded, her cheerful expression giving way to worry. "Oh, sure."