To Learn To Fall (Sequel to the Other Side)

Chapter Four

He pushed my back against the soft cushion of the couch, lips not breaking contact with mine for even the slightest second. If anything, they grew hungrier, wilder. I slid my arms around the back of his neck, pulling him closer to me. My eyes fell shut in the pure euphoria of the moment.

If I could just stay with him like this forever, I would be the happiest person in the world.

I whined gently, and his mouth fell away from mine and moved to the skin on my neck right underneath my head. "Alex," I moaned, losing myself and my self-control.

He hummed contentedly into my skin as he kissed and sucked and worked at my neck. I pictured a smile on his lips, blissful and perhaps even a little teasing. His hands fell away from my face and moved slowly up my shirt, fingernails curling into my skin. I tried not to shiver at the feeling, but it felt just so... right. Meant to be.

I moaned again, unable to form words this time as his lips touched the base of my neck right between it and the shoulder.

It then occurred to me that this was going to leave a mark, but I was way too caught up in the moment to care.

Without warning however, I felt a little tugging at the back of my mind. I panicked at first, but I opened my eyes and leaned my head back so I could see what was behind us.

I screamed.

Alexander grinned and slid away from me. "I didn't know I had that kind of affe—"

"What the fuck, James?!" I demanded.

He cleared his throat and continued in a more embarrassed tone than I had ever heard from him before. "I thought I said no sex."

The grin crashed away from Alexander's face. I'd like to imagine that he normally would have jumped away from me, but he seemed to be frozen. "Okay, umm, this is totally not what it looks like. I was just, uhh, showing Thomas a tradition that we do on Earth like, all the time."

I sighed and pushed gently on his chest, the magic of the moment being blown away in the wind as easily as a leaf in an autumn storm. He slid off of me and stared at the couch.

"It's okay, Alex. I kinda already told him everything."

"What?" he asked, looking up at me. "I thought we both agreed we wouldn't be telling anyone. That included James." 

I opened my mouth to argue, but let it fall shut. He wouldn't understand what I was going to say anyway.

Alexander must have mistaken my silence and quickly exclaimed an apology and kissed my lips.

"I'm standing right here, you know," James said patiently.

Alexander sprang away from me, remembering himself. He smiled bashfully and lowered his eyes. "Sorry," he murmured again, though whether it was to James, me, or even himself, I wasn't sure.

"Yes. Well," James began, putting on his boring over-the-top royal assistant tone. He crossed over to the couch as I sat up and moved closer to Alexander, who placed a comforting arm around my body.

Damn, was he good at this.

James sat down where I had been seconds before, looking somewhat embarrassed at what he had walked in on. "I was looking for you two anyway. I just didn't expect to find you... like that."

"We weren't going to go... that far," I hissed defensively. Alexander snorted and rubbed my arm gently with his that he had draped around my shoulder.

"Yes. It certainly didn't look like it was going to go that far."

Arguing with him was like arguing with a pigeon. It just couldn't be done without losing some sanity along the way.

"Okay, well," James began, still seeming quite bashful, which was rare for him. His focus turned to Alex, nodding his head. "Alexander, please don't get me wrong. I hold you in a high regard and I think of you as a wonderful person."

"Thank you, but I'm sensing a 'however' here."

"I was just getting to that. You have made Thomas incredibly happy recently, even when the two of you were... not pursuing a relationship."

"Oh just get to it already," I hissed, folding my arms. Alexander kissed my forehead again, and I was finding it incredibly hard to focus when he did that.

James glared at me. "As I was saying, you make Thomas incredibly happy. But that comes the power of making him incredibly upset. And I want you to know that if you hurt him in anyway, I will kill you."

He could have been joking, he could have been entirely serious. It was impossible to tell, especially when he coupled it afterwards with a smile that could either be joking or a warning.

If it disturbed Alexander as much as it disturbed me, he didn't show it. "Ahh," he said, and when I looked up at him, he was grinning. "I get it."

"We'll be having a more in depth talk later."

"I'm going to kill you with my bare hands," I hissed at James.

Alexander laughed and rubbed at my skin, his touch so light and impossibly gentle. I wanted to let myself fall into him completely, but I shook my head and moved away from him.

"Well, you two have fun with whatever you're going to get up to," I said as I walked over to where I had discarded my sword sheath and outer coat. "I'm going to go see if Lafayette wants to spar." I pulled on my coat as quickly as possible and pulled the sword out of its sheath without even thinking.

A gasp of pain left my lips, but it was drowned out by the clatter of the steel sword against the floor.

"Thomas?" Alexander asked immediately, standing up. "What's wrong?"

I stared at where my skin had made contact with the sword and inwardly cursed myself for my carelessness. It was carved into my skin like a burn.

"Nothing. I picked up the sword wrong and cut my palm. That's all," I returned, forcing the words out in as halfhearted a tone as I could manage.

"Let me see," Alex said, holding out his hand. I shook my head and tucked it away in the folds of my jacket.

"I'll be alright."

"Thomas—" he began.

"I'm alright. Really. I promise. I'll live. It's okay."

James didn't look so convinced and Alexander looked worried, but I smiled easily, something that you get used to faking after a while.

"I'll be back. See you guys later."

I turned and left, hoping that I had hid the pain  that was shooting through my arm well enough.