The Next Generation | 18+

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟓𝟔.

Noelle

My life lately was... hectic, to say the least.

I hadn't been home since the showdown between my father and I on Thanksgiving. I hadn't spoken to him either. The moment that he figured out that I was gone, he immediately began blowing up my phone with call after call, and text after text, demanding that I return home.

I ignored them all.

My mother on the other hand, I had spoken to her every chance that I got. I called her every morning when I woke up, and every night before I went to sleep. A part of me felt bad for leaving her alone with him, I could only imagine the torment that she was going through while having to deal with his drama queen bitch sized tantrums. The other half knew that she was giving him the same amount of hell that I was, possibly even more.

Not possibly. Definitely.

I sighed and turned on my side. Marc's arm was draped across my waist and his chest was pressed against my back, well now my shoulder. It was unusual for him to be up before me. He liked to be the first one up just in case he didn't have his hearing aids in and could be up to help me if I needed it. Not that I needed it anymore, I was now able to navigate my way around his room without his guidance anymore.

Today, he slept in longer than usual. My poor baby. They had been training overtime lately and it made me wonder if there were any new developments regarding who was behind the attack on the diner. I could tell that he didn't want to drag me any further into his family business than I already was, but I couldn't lie and say that I wasn't curious. Who wouldn't be curious?

I turned over on my side to face him, reaching out, I brushed my hands out to feel his face. My fingertips brushed against the flesh of his cheeks, feeling the prickly stubble of his facial hair against the tips of my fingers. I slowly drift them a little lower, feeling his lips. Soft and full. I travel them upward, feeling the tip of his nose and brushed them over his cheeks again.

His breathing pattern changed and I knew that he was awake.

Despite already knowing, I was surprised when I felt his hands on my waist, pulling me onto his lap to straddle him. I gasped, my palms landing on his chest as he sat up, pressing his chest against mine as he pecked my lips. My fingers travel to his ears, not feeling his hearing devices yet.

He pulls away for a moment and I feel the bed shift underneath his weight. When he comes back in for another kiss, I repeat my actions and feel his ears, now feeling the devices in them.

" Good morning," I mumble against his lips.

"Mmm," he hums, the sound raspy. " It is indeed a good morning when I get to wake up to the prettiest creature to walk this planet."

I smiled and cupped his face in my hands. I squeeze his cheeks and swoop down, pecking his lips repeatedly. "I'm glad that I get to wake up like this lately," I confess.