One Step Ahead part I | Sirius Black

Chapter 70

Gwen conquered her fear. She faced her ocean of pain.

Sirius was still working on his.

His dreams that night were horrible, souring the beautiful day they'd had. Guilt ate him alive, guilt over his brother. Guilt over ruining time spent with Gwen.

He dreamt of his mother throwing cursed objects at him, dreamt of the first time his father used the cruciatus curse. How much it hurt. Other curses he didn't recognize, one with purple flames that slashed his skin until he wept. His mother only sneered. He dreamt about comforting his brother when they were young, telling him that everything was fine.

They were his ocean, drowning him.

Gwen was his air.

When he finally wakes in the morning he's surprised to feel warmth against his side. He blinks his eyes open, groaning quietly at the tension in his muscles as he turns. What he sees melts away all lingering shadows from his mind.

Her pearly hair is slightly damp and she smells like flowers. Jasmine. He remembers. He reaches up and twirls one of the strands around his finger. She has a magazine in her hands, but her eyes are on him. Her voice is warm, teasing, as she says,

"There you are."

Sirius smiles slightly at her words, the ache in his body fading when she lays a gentle hand on his arm. She smooths her palm up to his shoulder, giving him a soft squeeze before saying bluntly,

"Last night was bad."

Sirius nods once, voice hoarse as he responds, "Last night was bad." His smile grows a little as he continues, "But this morning is good."

Gwen laughs when he snakes his arm around her waist and corrects, "This afternoon."

Sirius' brows raise and he peers out the window. The sun was high in the sky. When he looks back at Gwen she says simply, "I didn't want to wake you."

He feels a surge of affection. Not affection. Love. He bites his tongue to keep from spouting off. She'd made sure she was here when he woke up, even though he knew she probably had things she'd like to be doing. It meant everything. Her nonchalance was welcome, simple after the tumultuous night he'd had.

Gwen grins at his soft eyes and brushes back some of his black hair, saying, "Well, I hope you're excited."

Sirius' brows furrow, his smile still permanent as she bends down and pecks his lips.

"The boys will be here any time now."

Sirius' face lights up, earning another bubbly laugh from the Veela. He grins and tugs her underneath him, smothering her face in sloppy, wet kisses as she says flatly,

"I didn't realize I'd asked for slobber all over my face."

Sirius smirks and catches her smart mouth in a kiss, tugging aggressively on her lower lip until she whines the way that makes his heart soar. Gwen's hands run up the smooth skin of his back, relief filling her. He was okay. The nightmares were terrible to watch. He wouldn't wake, just mumble and groan in his sleep, limbs stiff. He'd been hot and then cold and then reaching out for her mindlessly. So when he finally rested, she let him be. She carried on with her normal chores, popping in every few minutes to make sure he wasn't waking up. She had to be there when he did.

She moans quietly when his lips leave hers and slide to her throat, sucking on her already bruised skin. Yesterdays love bite burns deliciously when he nips at it, and Gwen breathes, "I'm not going to shag you."

She says it like she's trying to convince herself more than him. The way he chuckles makes her realize that he can tell too. She slaps his chest and groans as he licks a stripe up her skin, "Sirius! I have something on the stove!"

He smirks at her hitched breathing and higher sounding voice. She was turned on. He grins against her skin, biting and tugging to leave behind a brand new hickey. He moans at the taste of her, mumbling, "Just leave it. Stay right here."

Her throaty laugh makes him dizzy. She finally pushes him back enough and sighs exasperatedly. Sirius loves that he can rile her up. Get a reaction. He'd been trying to do it for years. Though if he'd known all he had to do was snog her...he might have let go of pranking her long ago.

"Are you done yet?" Her voice is bored, eyes narrowed. Sirius shakes his head and her heart flutters at the boyish smile on his lips. She wriggles in his grasp, trying to escape and finally giving up and flopping back into the mattress.

Sirius barks out a laugh and presses a kiss to her cheek as she scowls, gently tickling her sides as he grumbles, "No more sad stuff, Ninnie. Just snogging and lots of sex."

Gwen blinks at him, pale gaze blank as she says flatly, "Good to know thats what I'm here for. Sex."

Sirius' blood freezes and his eyes widen. He quickly backtracks, stuttering, "N-no that's not—I don't mean—you're s-so much more than—"

He stops abruptly when he sees the corners of her lips twitching. The evil minx. His jaw drops and he nearly shouts, "Fucking hell, Inferi! Don't scare me like that!"

Gwen erupts with laughter, clutching her sides as she laughs at his terrified face. Her laughter only increases when he tickles her sides, Sirius' scowl turning to a smile far more easily than he'd like to admit.

"Stop!" She cries, tears leaking from her eyes as she giggles. "I'm sorry! I won't do it again!"

Sirius finally shows mercy and lets up his tickling, shaking his head at her with mock disappointment. Faster than he can react, she slips out from under him and jeers,

"You should've seen your face, Black. You looked even more scared than when you asked me to be your bloody girlfriend!"

Sirius grunts, "That's it. Get back here, you bloody git!"

Gwen dodges his reaching hands just in time and tears down the hallway, laughing hard as he thunders down the stairs after her.