Tempest // Sebastian Sallow

Chapter 56*

CW: Sexual content

Three days it took for Sebastian to be briefed and shipped off to Northern Ireland. It took three more for him to convince his new superior he needed Rosie there too, that she'd be crucial to getting to the bottom of the problem that had been plaguing the curse-breakers for months.

"You're insane, you know that?" Rosie said with a groan, tossing her bag to the corner of her very small and very cramped hotel room they had managed to secure for her.

Very last minute.

Which meant she got a tiny single room.

Not like Sebastian's. Which from what Rosie had seen in his many messages now that he'd learned to send photos to her, was quite a bit more extravagant with a large queen sized bed.

"I could have stayed home and let you do this and look after our own apartment in our own queen sized bed. But no. You got me dragged here to still be away from you and in this tiny, uncomfy bed." She huffed, bouncing up and down on the bed she'd just sat on grumpily, as if she were trying to prove a point to Sebastian.

"You can stay in mine, the bed is big enough." Sebastian suggested.

"We are here for work, Sebastian. We're colleagues here. In fact, I don't think you should have followed me in here at all!"

"Oh, come on," Sebastian said with a dismissive wave of his hand, "What they don't know won't hurt them. It's not like they're going to burst into my room during the night and check."

"They might."

Sebastian frowned, "Fine, enjoy your cramped single bed. It will be like being at Hogwarts again!"

"Oh, shut up, Sebastian..." Rosie groaned.

She kicked off her shoes and threw herself back onto the lumpy and frankly very thin and gross pillow, gesturing for Sebastian to leave her alone now.

"Not even a hello or goodbye kiss? A thank you Sebastian for getting me into the most important case so I can be with my boyfriend?"

"I didn't want to be here, Sebastian. You're the one with the abandonment issues."

Sebastian's cocky and humorous facade faded and he simply stared at her, brown eyes no longer appearing happy to see her, but sad and void of his normally playful energy.

"No, no. I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that, Sebastian." Rosie said, attempting to backpedal, realising that she may have fucked up.

Truthfully, Sebastian did have some problems with dealing with abandonment. That much was evident to Rosie. The way he'd clung to her like glue when they first met, how he was itching and desperate to know everything about her and how he struggled so deeply when she briefly left him after their break-up.

Sebastian had suffered a lot of loss and pain. So of course, she didn't blame him for wanting her close, especially when he was so far from what used to be his home and his life, all for Rosie.

She tried to place a hand on his shoulder, but he shrugged it off quickly.

"I'm sorry, Seba–"

"No. You're right. I do. I suppose it's why I followed you here so blindly because everyone else has left me. My parents, Anne... all I have is you and I'm sorry if I push you too far or seem clingy. I promise I'll stop and I'll ask them to send you back home tomorrow."

"No!, No, don't... just... I'll stay. Okay? I'm sorry I said what I did. I didn't really mean it and I understand why you are the way that you are but I don't want you to change. I love you for you and if you weren't a little clingy and just a little pathetic, I wouldn't love you the same way."