The Raven Cycle Oneshots

Summer's Beginning at the Barns pt. 2

The friends found themselves back in the house some time later. As the hour grew late, Blue, the one with an ounce of sense, said, "Well, I suppose we should get some sleep. We don't need any sleep-deprived drivers." She got up from the couch, stretching.

"Dude, I just drank, like, three monsters. You expect me to sleep?" Henry said.

"You crash easily on caffeine," Gansey pointed out. "I think you'll be fine."

Henry was about to protest, but Ronan interjected. "There's three other rooms, although Matthew's isn't necessarily habitable. I can-"

"It's okay," said Blue quickly. "Gansey and I don't mind sharing a room."

Henry snickered. Adam just shrugged. "I don't blame you two. After not being able to kiss each other for months, I'd see why you'd want to spend as much time together as possible."

Gansey's cheeks flushed pink. He rubbed the back of his neck and quickly stood up. "Uh, well, if no one minds-"

"For fuck's sake, Gansey," Ronan said. "We know you're dating, right? I do not care what you do as long as you're safe and don't trash the place."

Gansey just looked more flustered. "And consensual," Henry added from his chair.

"Cheng's a wise one," said Ronan. "My parents' room has a bathroom, otherwise there's one the rest of you can use."

"Thanks, Lynch," said Gansey. He took Blue's hand and the two of them ascended the stairs.

"So, Cheng-" Ronan abruptly stopped as Adam put a finger over his lips. Henry was slumped in his chair, snoring. Ronan grabbed a blanket from the couch and tossed it over him. He followed Adam into the kitchen, shutting the light off behind them.

The moon cast a beam of pale light through the window over the sink. Adam paused in the middle of the kitchen, suspended in the eerie light. He looked ethereal, like something you'd find in Cabeswater. But Ronan couldn't see the boy from Cabeswater anymore. Adam was becoming someone else—and not in a bad way. He was blooming into the psychic, the scholar, the young man he truly was—all the best parts of his past self. Cabeswater had brought them closer together, and while Cabeswater wasn't truly Cabeswater anymore, Adam still carried the spirit of those trees.

Ronan crossed the floor to Adam, smoothly and gently. He cupped Adam's face with his hand and ran his thumb below his eye, over his prominent cheekbone.

"It seems like Blue and Gansey are more publicly affectionate than ever, huh?" said Adam with a small smile. "Remember when they thought holding hands was scandalous?"

"Tell me about it," said Ronan, voice low. "It's like they're making up for all that time apart." He smirked, brushed his nose against Adam's.

"Good thing we're not like that." Adam hooked his arms around Ronan's waist and pulled him closer.

"Oh yeah." Ronan whispered in Adam's hearing ear. "Thank god for that." He pressed a kiss against the ear he had just whispered in, leaning in so Adam was pressed against the wall. He trailed his mouth down from Adam's ear, planting kisses along his neck. Adam bunched Ronan's shirt in his fists.

"Ronan," Adam let out in a gravelly voice. "Ronan, let's continue this in our bedroom."

Ronan loved the way Adam said his name, the way he said our bedroom.

Reluctantly, Ronan broke away. Adam took Ronan's hand in his and led him up the creaky stairs. They barely made it through the threshold before Adam had torn off his own shirt and was in the process of tugging off Ronan's.

Ronan laughed with uncontained joy, kicking the door shut with his foot. "You sure are eager, Parrish." He tugged his tank top off the rest of the way, discarding it on the floor.

Adam ran his hands along Ronan's chest, tasting his body with his fingertips. "Are you complaining about it?"

"Of course not." Ronan smirked, backing Adam up until they fell onto the mattress, a tangle of limbs. They kissed messily, passionately, tongue against tongue, tongue against teeth, lips meeting teeth. Ronan's hands tangled in Adam's hair, while Adam's hands cupped the back of Ronan's neck. They tumbled over each other, hands flashing against hot, bare skin, until there were no more layers between them. They were one; the beginning of one boy indistinguishable from the end of the other.

Lips sore, breaths panting, the two lovers fell away from each other, each lying on their side, facing the other. Ronan closed his eyes, a true, pure smile spreading across his face. He welcomed Adam's gentle touch as he traced Ronan's face. His finger ran over Ronan's high, prominent brow, his straight nose, the dip above his mouth, the soft skin of his lips. Ronan parted his lips at the touch of Adam's fingers. He ran his tongue over Adam's fine-boned fingers, each prominent knuckle. A magician's hands.

Ronan opened his eyes. He ran a hand through Adam's hair, gently traced his thin eyelids, his soft lashes. Adam closed his eyes and leaned into Ronan's touch. His smile reflected how Ronan felt.

"My god," Ronan breathed. "How are you real?"

Adam chuckled. A few months ago Ronan doubted Adam would've been able to accept a compliment with ease. "You may be a dreamer," Adam responded. "But are you sure you're not a dream yourself?" He opened his eyes, his gaze half-lidded.

Heat crawled across Ronan's cheeks and he couldn't believe, after all that had just happened, that one flirtatious comment was what made him blush.

"You're an asshole," Ronan said affectionately, and nuzzled the side of his face into the crook of Adam's collar bone.

They held each other, as their breathing slowed and the moon rose into the sky, and stayed wrapped in each other's embrace until morning.