Harry's POV
Brin actually fell asleep with her arms still loosely wrapped around me. I think I had nodded off too for a moment, because the next time I opened my eyes, the lighting had shifted. The little peaks of light from the earlier sunset had completely faded away, only leaving the whimsy lamp beside us to brighten our surroundings. Even after waking up, I couldn't will myself to immediately get up. It was so peaceful and quiet, and she was so warm.
I wasn't sure how long I stayed put. It didn't even bother me that my arm had grown completely numb from the weight of her head resting so comfortably on it. I could feel her shallow breaths against my neck as she continued to snooze. I could even feel how clammy my body had grown since the last time we were awake together. I wasn't sure if it was the excess body heat for those hours, or if it had something to do with how my heart had yet to stop beating harder than it normally did.
We had slept in the same bed before, but never like this. It was purely on accident, yet it felt like it was somehow meant to be on purpose. I was meant to have her sleeping heavily on my shoulder as she exhaled breaths against me. I was meant to notice how her bare skin felt against my own. And if it wasn't meant to be this way, how else could it have been meant?
I grew even hotter as my thoughts continued to grow. The more and more I laid there, staring at the ceiling with my senses on high alert, the more the awareness was getting to me. The awareness of her body and the awareness of my body with hers.
I figured out why my heart was pounding so hard now. Which also meant, it was time for me to get up before I allowed those thoughts to progress even further.
Reluctantly, I untucked her arms from my torso, folding them softly into her own body. The quilt rested comfortably underneath her chin, and for a moment I thought I had woken her up as she twitched from the movements. I breathed a sigh of relief when that moment was just her nestling herself tighter into the blanket, falling deeper into sleep.
I would have stared at her sleeping peacefully for longer until I remembered that we never actually checked the manual that we were supposed to read before we accidentally fell asleep. That and I had just realized how hard I had gotten while I was laying there.
Whoops.
I supposed those thoughts were stronger than I originally thought.
"Shit," I mumbled to myself as I prodded my way down the rickety steps. I moved as quickly as I could allow myself without making too much noise. Every little thump of my foot against the old wood made my head shoot back behind me, careful to make sure she hadn't woken up.
That was an awkward conversation I didn't want to have. I didn't have time to question it myself too deeply either. It wasn't like it was the first time. I found it often happened when I thought too long about how close she was to me, even when I was still half asleep.
Sometimes even just imagining her touch being there was enough to do it.
Maybe that was why I was sometimes too harsh with her. I didn't want to give in to it, it was just a feeling that could be brushed off later—just like every other time. It always passed and everything was fine afterwards. I just couldn't let that moment linger in my head. If I gave in, it could ruin everything. That was where naivety bred.
And I was not naive.
So that was why I had to ignore those urges. Ignore how I wanted to touch her more. Ignore how I wanted to be the one who led the touch. I so strongly wanted to be in control of where things would lead, but I refused.
And I would continue to refuse it until I couldn't anymore.
My eyes had adjusted more from the sleepiness and lack of lighting once I reached the bottom, the upstairs lamp not providing much help at all anymore. I could still make out the silhouettes of the furniture, and it was enough to keep me from toppling everything over—something that would have surely woken her up if those creaky steps didn't.
My eyes crinkled to try and scan the area for wherever this manual was. I had no idea what it looked like or what could even be inside of it. I couldn't figure out if that was terrifying or not. I was even starting to second guess everything. What if we just pretended to blend in—we could just dart in and out of everyone and look for Alayna that way. There would be no need to go through those meetings or whatever the hell else they were going to want us to do. We didn't have to follow their rules. Not if we didn't want to.
But, I knew that wasn't how Brin was going to see it. She wanted to do it the right way, and I knew it was because her sister's life was on the line. If we made one wrong move, it could ruin everything—if just to get us kicked out of this place.
So that meant I had to do it the right way, too.
Or at least close enough to the right way as to not fuck things up.
I could do it.
Gwen said it was on the coffee table, but considering all that was on top was the radio, that proved a lie. I was growing increasingly annoyed. I was tired and didn't want to think about how, according to that same radio's clock, I only had about two more hours of sleep left before we had to get ready for that apparent meeting.
My worries didn't last long when I spotted a worn notebook sat on the blank kitchen countertop. At first it blended in, but once I got closer I saw that it was an actual object and not a figment of my imagination. It was a leather bound notebook that looked like it had seen better days. I could see small tears coming from the edges due to previously torn pages. I picked it up in my hands, holding it closer to my eyes so I could focus more.
In big, black letters written in Sharpie, it read:
My eyebrows crinkled at the sight. Was this what I was supposed to be looking for? It could have so easily been mistaken for some lost journal. Hell, it could have been our odd new neighbor, Gwen's. She seemed to be ditzy enough to mistake a couple books every now and then. I mean, apparently she couldn't even remember where exactly she had put it to begin with. It even had some of the same stickers as her door sign had. That had to have been her doing. Just from the small interaction we had together, it seemed like something she would have been guilty of.
I flipped through the pages quickly, scanning my eyes over everything. There was a small section for an assortment of topics. Rules of living in the community, rules of living in the Bergamot building itself, individual responsibilities, when meetings were, where to get food and other necessities, how to use temporary and permanent badges (although, they seemed pretty useless considering Gwen didn't ask once to look at them before she let us through), and in an even tinier section, it had a brief introduction to what this place was. I only skimmed through everything besides the introduction. It had to have some kind of answer to the millions of questions I had about this place.
The Awakening, it said, is to allow freedom and community mix. We are free because we are community. We are community because we are free. That has and always will be our model. To not work for everyone means to not work for anyone. We have survived this long together because of this and we will continue to prosper together—raise our families here and allow their families to raise their own, too. With structure, determination, and obedience, we will live on together. Without The Edmund or The Awakening, we are incapable of being awake nor free. May our eyes see all.
A shiver ran down my spine. It wasn't necessarily just the words that were in it, it was also the lack of. Maybe that was why the stickers were decorated on the cover—to make it seem friendly and inviting. Like we wouldn't need to question its contents. If anything, all it did was raise more questions than I had before.
Obedience? Obedience to who? To what?
From the skimming that I did do, it was all very brief and up in the air. It was almost like it was specifically vague enough as to force us to engage in the meetings. Like they wanted us to be lost and confused so we would have no other choice but to attend. Anytime it was getting close to specifics, it would refer to the Edmund for further help.
"Be sure to attend the morning meetings every day at 8:00 A.M., sharp," is what it said at the end of each section. From the paragraphs it did contain, I was at least able to gather more information than what we had originally. At least that was what I kept telling myself anyway.
While it didn't list out how to leave or retrieve your belongings, presumably because it didn't seem like many people ever dreamed to leave a place so secure, it did make sure to highlight the safety measures in place, which included cameras outside, armed guards, surrounding fortresses, and stationed guards on the top of the buildings and bordered walls. I wasn't sure how it was supposed to exactly make people feel like anything but prisoners, though. Maybe these people understood something that I just didn't.
What else I learned was that there were a multitude of living sections. The creators of this manual were careful not to say they were assigned by rankings, but it seemed obvious when I flipped to the page that included a map. It was hand-drawn, but replicated what we saw earlier today almost perfectly. It even had areas that we hadn't even had a chance to see yet.
The larger sections of housing were practically surrounded by the gardens rather than the merchant tables. The size of the building itself gave it away that each building was not created equal. The farming yards seemed to even act as a segregating tool to keep the peasantries away from such a place.
The Marigold versus The Iris and The Bergamot.
I rolled my eyes with a small scoff.
Even after an apocalypse, things never really changed, did they?
Everything just looked so much smaller when fit into a singular page. It was all I could think about as I glared intently at the dots of buildings and pathways before me.
From what I gathered, we at least weren't in the lowest level of housing. We weren't in the best though, either. But, that was fine with me. The place seemed stable enough to not crash down. As long as we didn't jump too hard off the bed anyway. So how unsafe could it actually be?
Anything seemed better than being stuck in a car, honestly. Especially at night.
The map was still held tightly in my grasp as I blindly walked towards the couch. I felt a free hand along the table, looking for the lantern that I swore I had seen before we took that brief nap.
My eyes squinted against the dark room, finally glaring straight at the object I was on the hunt for. With a simple flick, a bulb of light began to flicker with a buzz. It was just bright enough for me to trace my fingers along the stretch of the map that spread along the yellowed paper.
"What is that?" I heard a mumbled voice behind me.
I immediately jumped in my seat, dropping the journal onto the floor with a thud. My breath subtly leveled once I saw the familiar half-asleep figure behind me. She rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand with a confused scrunch of her brows.
I flicked my attention back to the floor where the book now laid open beneath my feet.
"It's uh—I found the manual," I continued awkwardly as I brought it back to my lap. I kept my eyes lowered as I tried my best to ignore the way that my heart was still pounding in my chest. "Did I wake you up?" Was I also that focused on this thing that she could have scared me that much just now? Or was it something else?
She shrugged her shoulders lazily. "Not sure, just kinda woke up I think."
I continued to curse myself in my head as I tried to pinpoint how I could have woken her up. I still wasn't completely over the thoughts I had less than fifteen minutes ago. This was exactly what I didn't want to happen, but now there was no getting out of it.
A soft hum breathed out from her lips and I could hear the floor creak beneath her steps as she walked back the way she had apparently came—although I was completely unaware just moments ago. My erratic heart rate slowly dissipated as the realization became that she was no longer behind me, watching my every move.
It started back up when I felt her sink her body into the couch right beside me instead of going back to bed. The warmth of her legs rose the heat in my own as they rested against mine.
"What's it say?" She asked in that still sleepy tone of voice.
Her head tilted to the side as she attempted to peer closer, but all it did was make me twitch in discomfort. I didn't know why. Was it the awareness of how close she had been recently since we had gotten here? Maybe the fact we finally felt safe in terms of Crawlers? Our guards finally semi down? Or was it the fact that she seemed completely unaffected and that was what bothered me so much?
Why wasn't she reacting the same way? How did she not notice?
"Harry?" Her eyes turned away from the papers and now directly into my own eyes. Mine flickered in her direction as I cleared my throat. I swore she would have been able to read my mind if she stared any longer.
"I only skimmed it—It's really confusing..." I trailed off as I carefully flipped through the pages, letting them fan against our faces. "But it didn't really answer anything I wanted it to. It did say something about responsibilities we'll have when we live here. Like a job, I think?" I shrugged my shoulders, still looking purposely away from her.
My eye caught a small glance of her skin against mine. It lacked of purpose, the touch, but that was the issue. How desperately did I want to guide that touch to its rightful purpose.
What am I doing right now? Get yourself the fuck together, Harry.
"Harry?" This time she sounded genuinely worried. "Are you feeling okay?" She had leaned slightly away as she observed my demeanor. She didn't look or sound like she had just been sleeping anymore. She sounded awake—alert. She was surveying me again. Reading between the lines of my facial expressions and body movements.
I clenched my jaw, angry at the fact I was giving myself away so easily.
"Yeah, yeah. Just...in my head, I guess." I instinctively flinched at my choice of words. That was the best I could come up with? Just in my head, I guess?
"About what? This place or...?" She trailed off in question, waiting for my response.
I let out a pent up breath. "Something like that, I'm not really sure." I hoped that was solid enough of an answer for her.
"Hm," she hummed to herself.
I needed to change the subject fast before she thought of a different follow up question that I couldn't get out of. I could tell she was trying to think of something, too.
"I found this map," I quickly spoke up and flipped through the pages. "It shows where we can get more supplies, where the meetings are, and job sites I'm guessing is what this part means. At least that's what I'm guessing for these places over here with the school and library and stuff. I'm not sure exactly what qualifies each person for each job, like if they've been trained. Maybe that was their job before everything. I don't know. Like I said, I only briefly looked at it. I probably should actually read it, but..."
It felt like I was just talking to talk. Like a babble. I was babbling.
She giggled and it made my blood boil. I didn't say anything funny to make her do that. She did it because it was obvious I was nervous for some reason now. That made it very clear.
I hated that with everything in me.
"Find anything else interesting?" I felt her lean over my shoulder, so gently that I could smell her. The scent tickled against my nose and it almost felt painful. I felt my knuckles crack as my fists clenched tightly at my side. I twitched in my seat again, trying my best to conceal whatever was happening to me right now.
I knew what was happening though. I wasn't stupid. Each breath against my shoulder caused an extra pulsation beneath my uncomfortably tight pants at the moment. I had never been so thankful for such poor lighting, hoping and praying that she didn't catch a glimpse of what she was doing to me without even trying. Also thankful for the book in my lap to create that extra layer.
Her hand reached up abruptly, brushing her fingers against the page, ever so closely to my own. My fingers twitched out of instinct, watching them as closely as I ever had. My pupils honed in on the veins in my hand protruding as her much softer hand guided around the map. A nerve was twitching in my own. I wondered if she could see it too. I had even stopped trying to steady my breathing. She had to be doing this on purpose, but the last thing I wanted to do was look at her for confirmation.
That would have sent me over the edge right there on the couch.
It was unbearable not to focus on her nail trailing along the paper which left the softest of noises. All I could imagine was that same finger trailing against my chest, leaving marks down my stomach as she scratched desperately against me. Across the lining of my underwear. Going further...and...further...and...
Shit.
"You're sweating," she said plainly but with a slight curl to her lips. Her fingers didn't move from basically touching my own. It only made me glance at the darkened spots my fingertips had left against the page. I felt heat rise to my cheeks.
She knew. She had to know. And now she was teasing me.
"What's making you so nervous?" Her voice was in a low whisper, purposely trailing her words out so they tickled against my neck.
My eyes squeezed close as I fought against the feeling of what was happening. I didn't want to, but I had to. She couldn't have that control over me. I couldn't let it happen. I wasn't used to Brin acting like this. It was so much easier to ignore when she was shy, timid even.
My ability to ignore it was gone.
"Harr—." Her voice cut off just as quickly as my hand wrapped around her wrist. My chest heaved heavy breaths, my eyes now directly on her face. She didn't fight against my hold of her, if anything she seemed to relax more into it. The expression on her face read something so soft, yet so eager. It was a cocktail of emotions, but each one expressing the desire for me to keep going in their own way.
"Don't," was all I could choke out through my clenched teeth.
I hated that she was doing this to me. I was livid. No one had control over me. No one.
"Harry, please."
No one had control over me.
Except her.
And God did I want her. All of her.
Within less than a second I had moved her on top of my body by her wrist that was still tightly in my grasp, while my other hand grabbed ahold of her waist to pull her in. Her thighs pressed roughly into mine as she let out a squeal from the sudden change. Through hooded eyes, I looked back at her with my full attention.
The most devilish of grins stared back at me. It would have made the devil himself whimper at the sight. The dimple flashed at me like a caution, but I was never good at listening to warnings.
The back of my hand pressed into her back, forcing her to collide closer into me. The book had flown to some unknown place, but I was glad it was anywhere but where it was before. Without it, I felt her.
I felt the neediness in her movements. She was fighting it. I knew by the subtle rocking of her hips against my cock that she wanted more.
Where did this hunger from either of us come from? Mine had been lingering, sure. But I didn't realize how strong that urge was until I was now face to face with it.
The soft moans in the back of her throat sparked a nerve in me, and before I knew it, I had flipped her over on the couch. My lips crashed into hers as our chests pressed together. Her tongue lapped against my bottom lip, pulling at it with her teeth. It felt animalistic.
I let her do what she wished. My mouth was all hers for as long as she would allow it tonight.
My hips rocked roughly into her legs, sending another whine out of her mouth. I bit against my lip to prevent my own from slipping out. In my head all I could think about was that same whine shaping into my name.
I needed to hear it.
"Say my name," I roughed out, breaking free to look at her. Heat had risen to her cheeks, her lips apart with a strained look on her face. It only made me want to sink into her more. Feel every part of her.
"Harry—"
My head sunk down, my cock feeling so tight that it felt like it was going to burst before I even took my pants off. She had said my name many times before, but not like this. Not like she was saying it now.
"Tell me what you want." My words were strained, desperate for this to continue. I wanted to soak it all in. I wanted to hear every syllable out of her beautiful mouth. I wanted my name to slip out from her lips just like I wanted my dick to do the same.
"Inside me..." She bit against her lip, squirming underneath me. "I want you inside me, Harry."
An exasperated "fuck," fell from my lips as I threw off my pants quicker than I ever had in my life. My shirt had long since been gone, unaware when I had taken it off in the first place.
She reached towards her own, wiggling to throw it off herself, but I grabbed her wrist before she had the chance. With her wrist firmly in my grasp, I raised them above her head, holding them together with one hand.
I watched her expression as she impatiently waited for more. I liked the way she squirmed underneath me, full of want. Full of need. For me.
The painfully hardened bulge underneath my underwear slowly lowered down to her much thinner pants. I didn't take my eyes off of her as I painstakingly dragged myself against her center. A moan of my own escaped, but soon mixed in with hers just the same.
I was going to make her beg for it.
My free hand trailed along the fabric of her shirt slowly, stopping at the hem as the tips of my fingers danced against her newly exposed torso. I could feel her uneven breaths rise as I continued to trail the fabric upwards, sure to tickle against her skin. Her stomach was discovered first and I carefully watched it rise and fall as she became more and more unclothed underneath me. I released my grip on her wrist momentarily as to allow it to slip over her head, leaving her with just her bra.
It was black. Nothing special or crazy. But that was just the fabric, of which I didn't care all that much for. If anything, all it was was a hindrance at the moment. An obstacle in my path, and it needed to be treated as such.
I didn't have the patience to unhook the clasps that I knew were behind her, so I slid it off as if it was the shirt she just previously had on. It was on and then off within a blink of an eye, leaving her completely bare before me. My eyes did circles around her, from her face, down to her neck, then to her breasts.
My hands immediately lowered down to them, first enwrapping them gently, but then applying pressure. Her lip slid between her teeth as she watched my hands rub around her body, feeling every inch of her skin, as if each spot required the warmth of my touch in order to survive. Her nipples instinctively hardened as my fingers trailed over them, squeezing them softly through my journey of her body.
My hands continued to venture further, breaking away from her eye contact to connect our mouths again. This felt so much more desperate this time. She bit hungrily at my bottom lip, tugging and pulling, but I pulled back just the same. My hand that was once cupping her chest broke free, quickly moving in the opposite direction between us.
Her tongue trailed along mine, desperate for as much contact as she could get. I felt my palms growing more sweaty by the moment. All I could do was envision what was coming. What I had wanted for so long, but refused to accept.
"Keep going. Please," she whimpered out when my fingers stopped moving right above her pants.
I smiled against her mouth, feeling our lips brush against eachother as she continued to choke out whimpers in between her breaths. She was clinging on for sanity's sake and I loved it. Finally I felt in control again.
I was in control again.
"Someone's being a needy little girl, aren't they?" I spoke into her mouth, declining her lips the access to connect with mine again just yet.
Before she could reply, my fingers connected with the buttons of her pants. They were undone before a second thought could occur, and I wasn't going to pause again this time.
Teasing her was teasing myself, and it was too much.
Her panties had a trim of lace that scratched against my fingers as I continued to trace along her skin. I wanted to tease her more, but it was growing near impossible to wait any longer. I was just as desperate as she was, ready to unravel just the same.
The pads of my fingers brushed against the polyester of her underwear and I felt my heart hitch when the wetness that soaked her fabric was felt. It resulted in another "fuck," from my already slacked mouth. I knew what she wanted, but I didn't know it was to this extent.
Fuck.
"Touch me, Harry. Please." She was so full of desperation, it was sickening in the best way. Her words weren't an act based on the moisture that still sprinkled against my touch. I rubbed along the wet spot of her underwear, ravaging in the feeling. It hardly left anything to the imagination. She might as well had nothing on given the wreckage she had caused the bottoms.
No, the wreckage I had caused.
It still wasn't enough at the same time. I didn't want the fabric between us anymore. My pointer finger guided her panties to the side, soaking me further in the process, as my middle finger slid in so easily, feeling against her walls immediately. A singular pump of my curled finger was all she needed for a string of curses to burst out of her. That was my sign to slide in my pointer finger, maximizing the pleasure just that much more for her.
Her head shot in my direction when my fingers abruptly left her, before I had even picked up much rhythm. I had pulled them out in front of her face. Her wetness glistened against the dim lighting from the lamp beside us. Her pleasure was more than abundantly clear as it stared us directly in the face.
"I make you this wet this quick, huh?" I felt the grin creep up against my lips without even trying as she nodded her head. I couldn't fight the fact that seeing her like this wasn't the most enjoyable thing I had ever witnessed. She was putty in my hands. And I was putty in hers—she just didn't know it.
But of course I knew I caused this state of her. I knew from the way her eyes met mine that all she wanted was me to feel inside her. She wanted my cock to pump everything in her as she rode her own high against mine. She wanted my mouth on her body, touching every part that I could get my hands on.
But I wanted to hear her say it.
"Y-yes. Fuck, Harry!" Her words sounded slurred. She even sounded angry, angry that I wasn't moving fast enough for her. That I was dragging it out on purpose. I pumped them back into her and quicker this time, sliding another finger in.
I made sure to watch her eyes roll backwards as my thumb grazed over her clit with the same hand that was pumping in and out of her. The second she felt that, her eyes flew open and her head fell back. That look alone almost did me in. Her legs were twitching on either side of me with each pump of my fingers. The electrical pulses were flowing through her so hard that it was as if I could feel them alongside her.
I lowered my face into her neck, lapping a long stripe from the bottom of her neck to behind her ear. I could feel her fast heartbeat against my tongue as I continued to lap against her skin, sucking softly.
"Can't wait to see what that pretty face looks like when it's my cock inside you instead," I moaned into her neck, biting a little harder than before. A harsh whine left her mouth, but the push her body made into mine told me she was just getting started too.
My fingers curled inside as my thumb continued to do circles over her throbbing clit. It was so swollen, it looked ready to burst just as much as I did. She looked so close to unraveling from the panting of her breaths, but it wasn't time. Not yet.
I yanked her underwear off in one quick motion, leaving her completely bare within moments. My mouth watered at the sight while I struggled to get my own underwear off as quick as I wanted them off. My dick was throbbing as it hovered directly above her, desperately wanting to feel her wrap herself against every inch of me.
I could only imagine how tight she was going to be.
Fuck.
"Stop. Teasing," she breathlessly mumbled out.
A sly smile spread across my face.
"Teasing?" I slipped out inches from her face. "I would never."
My cock brushed against her still soaked center, and I had to bite against my lip to keep my noises to a minimum. Brin, on the other hand, was whispering a long and faded "fuck" from the single touch.
I took that as my cue to keep doing just that.
My hand reached in between us, positioning myself to slide my cock against her clit as I rocked back and forth between her lips. Her wetness quickly soaked against myself, allowing me to rock against her just that much easier. The tip of my cock felt so sensitive each time it tread dangerously close to the entrance I was trying so hard to avoid right then. It took everything not to just let it slip in, it could have been done so so easily.
My head had fallen between my shoulders as her back arched, pushing her even closer into me.
I added pressure until I couldn't wait any longer. If I kept holding out, I would be done before it even started. I couldn't let that happen.
"Harry, let me feel you. Please." Her hips rocked harshly against me, almost causing me to falter immediately.
"Tell me how bad you want it," I spoke lowly in response, my cock still gliding small lengths against her.
"So fucking bad, Harry. Please. I want you." She grabbed at my waist desperately, in an attempt to pull me even closer.
And as much as I loved hearing her sweet innocent mouth say these things to me, I couldn't wait any longer either.
One small movement and I slid myself in. From every inch that I pushed in deeper, I felt the muscles in my arms struggle to keep my body afloat. My nerves twitched with the feeling, and didn't stop especially when I thrusted out and back in, harder this time.
A slur of curses morphed into one as we both settled into the new feeling we just gave each other.
Her grip against my hips grew tighter, and I could feel her physically tighten against my length with each thrust. At first they were slow, methodical. But the structure of my thrusts became much more erratic and heavy with each one. She was so wet, I was worried I would get lost in it. Her grip on me was too tight for that to be a possibility though. I wasn't going anywhere and neither was she.
"Goddammit Brin," I huffed out frantically.
I could feel my end coming soon. My dick felt so tight and swollen as it pumped vigorously into her, sending electric pulses through every nerve ending in my body. It was a build up that I was sure to lose against. There was no fighting against it and I didn't want to fight it either. I wanted to feel it in its entirety. On loop if I could.
"I'm gonna come, Harry. Come with me," she pleaded. Tears were in her eyes. She was holding on, practically gasping to let go. Her hand had attached to her clit, and I watched as she pleasured herself while my cock slid in and out.
One last thrust and I felt her high with mine, her walls pulsating against my length as I pulled in and out. My hands dug into her thighs as I continued pressing further and further into her. I wouldn't be shocked if I left bruises in the places of my fingers at that rate. That was the last thing at the forefront of my mind though.
"Holy fuck," I shot out, my jaw about to snap at the hinges from how slacked it was.
Brin was panting between her moans, letting them sing out like a song made just for me to hear. Her fingers desperately searched for something to cling onto as she rode her high, completely consumed by the euphoric feeling spreading through her body as did mine.
"Fuuuuuck..." she breathlessly echoed out as her movements began to slow with mine until it was completely done.
I sat up, my back completely slumped against the back of the couch as my chest rose and fell in a quick pace. My mind felt fuzzy, my fingers tingling. I swore I even felt light headed from the crash of what just happened. It happened so quickly, yet felt like it lasted for hours, even though I knew it would've been impossible to actually have lasted that long.
It was silent now besides both of our heavy breaths filling the room. The little lantern had been kicked onto the floor during the midst of everything at some point. It beamed its stray light on the other side of the small room, ready to be remembered of its existence again. I didn't have the energy to get up and grab it yet though. I had rather stayed slumped over on this couch completely naked, caked with a mixture of both of our sweat than move an inch yet.
"Good morning to you, too," she laughed in an exasperated breath.
I laughed similarly with my eyes still closed, my hand resting against my chest. I could still smell her on me.
"Something like that," I chipped in sarcastically.
She chuckled one more time before I heard her rummage, presumably for her clothes on the floor.
"Might need a new pair of underwear now, though," I said through my still shut eyes. I didn't have to physically see her to know that she glared right back at me when I said it. When I felt my shirt thrown at my face the next moment, that only confirmed my suspicions.
I opened my eyes, revealing her already halfway dressed with a broad smile on her face. She was doing her best to conceal it away from me, but I still noticed it regardless.
"How about let's focus on getting ready for our busy day, hm?" Brin said through her fought-against-smile.
"Whatever you say," I replied, slipping my head through my shirt. "We have plenty of time for more of that anyway."
Her face turned bright red.
The morning air was a lot harsher than I expected. My sweater fared well enough to not be miserable, but I could still feel the goosebumps spread along my arms and legs. It didn't help the soreness of my muscles from our previous adventures just over an
hour ago.
It was a beautiful morning, though. The sun was just waking up, exposing a complete difference in weather compared to the downpour we had experienced coming in. There wasn't a single cloud in the sky. It was as if the rain before had never existed to begin with.
Brin walked quickly beside me with her arms tucked into her jacket. Her hands were buried in her pockets as neither of us considered bringing a pair of gloves.
The ones I had had holes in them anyway, so I wasn't all that bothered. Like I said, it was just nice to have a change of scenery. At least it was nice as long as I didn't think too hard about why we were here anyway.
"There's a lot of people," Brin commented as her eyes darted to multiple groups of people heading in the same direction as us. Everyone looked happy, laughing in assorted chatter amongst others. Some walked alone, but even they looked content.
"Yeah," I agreed mindlessly, watching everyone pass us from each side.
We could see The Edmund coming closer as we continued to mindlessly walk down the path, still shielded above by the overhead cover. Some individuals walked outside of it, basking in the sunlight that shone down. I considered following in their footsteps, but was too focused on everything else to seriously follow through with the idea.
I brought the manual with us. I wasn't really sure why I did, but I did. Brin was actually the one who suggested it first, saying I could potentially write anything important down in the back of it. All I had was a half-used, partially bent, pen that was in the bottom of one of my bags.
It seemed to calm her nerves when I agreed, so that was reason enough for me. It might have proven to be useful afterall, too. Didn't hurt to try.
"Over there," Brin broke in, extending a pointed finger to the left.
I shot my head in the direction, seeing the courtyard much fuller than we had seen last night. It wasn't an uncomfortable amount of people, probably about 150 or so gathered with about 50 more piling in with us.
I wasn't sure what time it was exactly, we just had to guess how long it would take to get to where we were going. We left with about twenty minutes to spare before eight, so I assumed the meeting would be starting any moment now.
Just about everyone's chins were raised to the top of the building, some shielding their eyes against the bright sky as they all waited. My eyes followed their line of sight, now noticing the balcony stacked just below the top level. It had a singular pedestal with a microphone attached.
My brows crinkled into my forehead as I attempted to gaze closer at the setup. I couldn't tell much else from it, it was angled too high to see anything beyond it. Regardless, we filed our way to the back of the line and waited like everyone else, craning our necks just the same.
A loud trumpet noise made Brin and I jump at the same time as it boomed through speakers that were invisible from our spot in the crowd. After the sudden jolt of noise, a more melodic tone followed after with the trumpet now much more subtly in the background.
No one seemed phase by it according to my observations around us, so I supposed this was what was going to be our new normal too.
"Welcome and good morning to all!" A deep voice bellowed out of the same speakers, fading the music out.
A tall man emerged from behind the double doors that led onto the balcony. He wore a wide grin with a plain white shirt and black slacks. His black eyeglasses were hard to miss against his muted, pale tone. If he didn't look so happy, I would have guessed he was sickly.
"Hope everyone is doing well on this beautiful morning. I do want to take a special moment to welcome our newcomers as of yesterday evening and overnight." He paused to clasp his hands together, the sound reverberating in the speakers. "Please help me in welcoming Jamie Cochran, Harry Styles, Brinley Meia, and Lawrence Michaels."
Brin and I stood there motionless. I could tell this guy was scanning faces in the crowd, waiting for any of us to identify ourselves. The last thing I wanted was an extra pair of eyes on me, so I didn't give that satisfaction.
He seemed to get distracted by, I assumed, one of the other names that were called. It must have been the girl, as she seemed much more enthusiastic about being identified than we did. She waved her hand loosely towards the speaker above.
"Welcome back, Jamie! I see you couldn't stay away for long," he chuckled internally for a moment before switching back to whatever rested atop his podium. We could even hear the shuffling of papers.
"I hope you all settle in nicely and become less shy!" He joked sarcastically, looking out into the crowd one last time before changing the subject. "But let's get things going, shall we?" The audience was silent, uninterested in answering his rhetorical questions.
"Our school teacher, Miss Brittney will be out again today as she's still not feeling well. She does want to extend her gratitude towards everyone for their patience, and especially out towards Miss Susie who has been so gracious to take her spot awhile." A page flipped over. "Our crops have been doing lovely according to our farming collector, Richard. Flowers are also blooming earlier than expected—what a lovely treat for us all!"
I had almost forgotten about the coldness of the air around, I was too busy focused on what was going on. Were these meetings just like a news report for the day? That couldn't be so bad, right? But why was everyone looking so stoic now when they were just laughing amongst eachother minutes ago?
"Speaking of which, for our newcomers, after this meeting you will enter these doors below to be assigned your job duties. I won't bore you with the details here." He laughed like he just finished a punchline of some sort.
I felt Brin's eyes dart to the side of my face, meeting her gaze for just a moment. It felt like a silent conversation, even with the mere seconds it took, so much was said.
He seemed to go on about the weather forecast, saying we should expect for more snow in the upcoming week and how to prepare. I had zoned out once he started to explain. Everything around me seemed much more interesting than before.
Everything was more lit up, allowing everything to seem more alive now. The mud had started to dry, the dew on the grass glistened against the sunlight, and even some birds dropped in as they poked their beaks into the Earth for breakfast.
I had no idea what we were getting ourselves into.
"Any questions before we conclude?" He sat his hands onto the podium, moving his head from side to side, awaiting for anything said.
Just as he nodded his head, ready to wave his hand in the air as a farewell, a voice broke through the silence.
"I need to find my sister, Alayna. Is she here? She's only thirteen!" Her voice shook while her fingers trembled, unsure if due to the cold or nerves.
I grew nervous myself. Everything somehow got quieter than before, I swore even the birds stopped chirping.
"You may get with our keeper at the library to access our records. I will see you guys bright and early tomorrow! Farewell." And with that, he disappeared behind the doors.