Anne and Dan’s wedding goes down like Eddie knows Anne deserves; pretty much perfect – if you don’t count Dan’s asshole drunken uncle laying into one of the ushers for accidently showing him the wrong seat. But for once, Eddie is there to make sure Anne’s life goes smoothly – which she knows she more than owes her best friend for always doing the same for her (or trying to, anyway – Eddie knows how difficult she can be, in general.) Even when Dan’s uncle tries to get rude to her, Eddie manages to quickly put him in his place... even after Dan’s uncle switches his attitude to flirty and tells her that he likes a bossy “girl” (yikes.) And even when Eddie can feel her other half threatening to pour out of her and make himself known to the asshole, she manages to keep that from happening at the same time. And all without the bride and groom even knowing.
But besides that, yeah, everything goes accordingly and a couple of Anne’s friends even try to make Eddie feel more included in their girl talk. Eddie goes along with it, of course, even if she not so secretly (to Anne, anyway) thinks all of her other friends are kind of stuck up.
‘They’re beyond stuck up. And boring... And if Uncle Too-Many-Hands touches you again, you won’t be stopping me, Eddie. I will be tearing his hands off and stuffing one down his throat, and I’ll let you figure out where I’ll be stuffing the other.’ Venom tells her as she finds the bar, orders a brandy and finally takes a moment for herself.
Eddie just about holds in a laugh at his sulky words, hides her grin by taking a sip of her brandy.
‘Not sulking. Don’t like him. He’s... leechy.’ Venom tells her as she finds a vacant spot down the other end of the bar – people are still slowly trickling into the hall, the bride and groom having yet to arrive.
“Agreed.” Eddie says, takes another few sips – she promised Anne that Venom wouldn’t let her get drunk until at least half of the guests leave. The music is already playing, DJ on the stage before the acoustic band arrives for the new married couple’s first dance, and Eddie can’t help watching in envy at the couples already forming on the open dance floor.
‘We can dance forever, Eddie. Just you and I. Don’t need anybody else.’
“That sounds...” Eddie thinks about it, ends up smiling as she says, “Pretty romantic, actually.” Her smile widens when she feels his glee.
‘Am getting better, aren’t I?’ Venom asks, sounds rather proud when she chuckles quietly. ‘Am watching all the romantic movies I can find at night, Eddie. Last night, I watched “The Notebook,” “Love Actually,” “Desperado,” and “Weekend At Bernie’s: 2.”’
Eddie chuckles, takes another sip, quickly flags down the bartender for two more before replying to her other half. “OK, I’ll give you ‘Desperado’ – ‘cause both Antonio Banderas and Selma Hayek are the hottest couple ever –“
Venom’s groan of delight cuts her off. ‘Ugh. SO hot.’
Eddie smirks, then, asks, “But ‘Weekend At Bernie’s?’”
‘Oh, no, I just love that movie, and wanted to watch it again.’ Venom feels that lovely giddy feeling every time she gives him that pretty laugh of hers. ‘You could dance with Patty again?’ He asks rather timidly, still feels her watching the couples.
Eddie knows where he’s going with this, and while she would love to – “I’m not really comfortable with leadin’ him on, V. I know you think it’s just a dance, but if you like someone in that way – which we both know he does with me – it means a whole lot more. No matter how small, and no matter how much you tell yourself it doesn’t. You always end up hurtin’ anyway. And I’ll only end up bein’ the cause of his hurt. I don’t want that. We’re finally friends. Besides, you do remember how much he didn’t like or trust me when we first met him, right?”
Venom grumbles, but he thinks about everything she tells him, and knows he understands enough when he tries to think if it was he who was in Patrick’s situation. ‘We could go to one of the balconies later tonight. There’s loads in this place. We could have our dance there, Eddie. I will hear if someone comes before they see me.’
He sounds so optimistic, so hopeful, yet, Eddie still feels the guilt in herself at his words. “I shouldn’t have to keep you hidden, V. Wish you could stand beside me right now...”
Venom feels the misery underneath that glum tone, yet, he is still happy just to be with her, no matter where she goes – learned rather quickly that he didn’t need the stupid wind blowing in his non existent hair, not when he can run himself all over her (inside and outside), pretty much whenever they want. Still, he can never lie to her as he tells her, ‘Maybe won’t have to hide forever... or maybe I will. But doesn’t matter to me, Eddie. As long as we are together, I don’t care about much else. It is enough for me, my love. Promise.’
Eddie sighs, melts, like she always does whenever he’s being more sweet and less sarcastic. “OK.” She nods, smiles as she tells him, “We’ll have that dance... but later, when everybody starts leavin’, and I’m no longer on stupid Maid Of Honour Duty.”
Venom chuckles, taunts her with, ‘I’m telling Annie you called it stupid.’
Eddie scoffs at his smug tone, gulps down the last of her first glass. “Y’know, V, sometimes I don’t believe you love me.”
It’s Venom’s turn to scoff then, sound buzzing through their mind. ‘Can prove it. Can show you again...’ He trails off for a moment, small tendril seeping out of her left thigh and slowly wrapping around it. ‘If you want?’ He adds, practically purrs the words out, is maddeningly gleeful and prideful when her heart skips several times. Though, to her credit, she doesn’t freeze, doesn’t show any signs to the outside world.
Eddie feels the tip of his tendril tugging gently at the elastic waistband of her panties, resists the urge to slap his hand away – when really, all she wants to do is let him slip underneath.
‘Not quite consent enough, Eddie...’ Venom’s words are serious, though, his tone is completely teasing and amused.
Eddie ignores her skin prickling with heat, ignores the throb between her legs, tries to ignore his tendril still playing with the edge of her panties. Instead, she grits her teeth and quietly, but firmly tells him, “No. I’m not into public sex. So stop. Now.”
‘Just semi-public sex, then.’ Venom chuckles, tells her, ‘Can see you trying to hide the thoughts, Eddie. Getting better at hiding it, but still, can see flashes of them now.’ His tendril slips away from her panties, though, not without a quick cheeky squeeze of her left ass cheek, and enjoys her barely audible gasp before he finally seeps back into her skin altogether.
Eddie lets out a small breath of relief, glares when she hears those annoyingly knee weakening laughing rumbles in her mind. “What happened to you bein’ a gentleman, you inky ass little bitch?”
Venom tries not to sound so much like he’s dying – going without touching her for so long – instead, tells her, ‘You make it a challenge, Eddie. Can’t help myself.’ He teases, but he still really means his words.
Eddie scoffs quietly around another few gulps of her second brandy, picks up her third (yet to be guzzled down) when the bar starts to crowd a little more, moves herself over to one of the empty two seater tables.
‘Will bend you over the balcony and fuck you later, Eddie. Am still hungry. That stupid pompous wedding meal was ridiculous. Where was the rest of it? SO pretentious!’
Eddie almost chokes on her mouthful, the brandy burning her throat more than it damn well should. “That is NOT what I was think –“
‘Oh, please.’ Venom chuckles, sounds utterly giddy as he tells her, ‘Don’t even need to imagine it, Eddie. Can feel your desires.’
Eddie lets out a defeated huff.
Venom lets go of the teasing for a moment, instead, purrs out his words in their mind again, a clear promise to her... and because he already knows she wants it – and fuck, he really wants it, too. ‘We will dance on the balcony, Eddie... and after that, I will take you from behind, while we watch the last of guests leaving...’
Eddie gulps down the rest of her second brandy. “I really fuckin’ hate you right now.” Because she knows he feels the desperate throbbing between her thighs. And thank fuck she’s already sitting down, because her knees already feel like jelly.
Venom bites down another chuckle, instead, tells her, ‘Can’t wait, either, Eddie. You always feel so good, my love. Look SO good in this dress – almost same colour as your pretty pink flesh. Can’t wait to tear it off of you tonight.’ He ends with a deep rumbling growl of approval.
Eddie somehow ignores his (sexy) husky and rather possessive tone, finds herself chuckling instead. “Yeah, sorry, babe, Anne strictly forbade me from ruinin’ this dress. She WILL murder us.”
Venom lets out a displeased scoff, then, with a serious tone, asks her, ‘Well, then, can we buy another pretty dress for me to tear it off of you instead?’
Eddie chuckles again. “I know you think I’m made of money now, but that’s not technically how it works, V.”
Venom scoffs again, mutters, ‘Can still afford it. Doesn’t have to be expensive, obviously. Gonna to tear it off of you anyway, remember? Ohhh! Can we buy a corset? Oh, imagine how your magnificent rack would look, Eddie.’
Eddie puffs out a chuckle, shakes her head as she starts on her third glass. “Do I look like a doll you can dress up? What is even happenin’ right now?” She chuckles again, shakes her head again, takes a sip again.
‘No... I just... I like to... admire what is mine...’ Venom scoffs when he feels her amusement, snootily snips out, ‘Like YOU don’t do the same to ME. That’s right, Eddie, I know all about how muscles aren’t really a kink for you, but for some weird reason big arm muscles still are.’
Eddie knows he’s trying to pull her in to share his embarrassment, but she only ends up scoffing and airing out, “Most of the guys at the gym with ridiculously perfect abs are usually always douchebags – you know; I have to keep you from eatin’ one of ‘em, at least twice every fortnight – and most of the guys with big arms I meet are usually real hard-workin’ guys, who don’t even go to a gym. And meh, you’re right. I don’t know WHAT it is about muscly arms... like, even women with slightly muscly arms turns me on. Maybe it’s ‘cause they’re the type of people who DON’T skip out on leg day. Gimme a soft or a round belly with strong limbs over all that other bullshit ANY day of the week.”
‘I wouldn’t mind finding a woman to have a threesome with... or even just watching you would be VERY–ahem.’ Venom starts out thinking out loud, gets quickly lost in his thoughts, and also just as quickly forgets he’s NOT just thinking to himself. He grunts when he feels her amusement, feels her devilish little grin. ‘Shut up.’
Eddie chuckles, takes another sip before telling him, “Typical male. I knew I felt you curiously peeking out every time I bring up the lezbo porn.”
‘Males having sex with males is fine, too, I just...’
Eddie hears his hesitation, FEELS his misery. “Did I say somethin’ wrong, V?”
‘No, Eddie. Promise. Not you. Never you.’ Venom immediately tells her, needs her to know that, at least, lets her feel it through their bond for herself.
“OK.” Eddie clears her throat, places the glass down onto the table and gives him her full attention. “What’s wrong, love?”
‘It is not an appropriate conversation while you are celebrating your best friend’s wedding, Eddie. Don’t want to ruin your day. Don’t want Annie to be mad at us.’ Venom tells her, voice calm and composed, though, slightly more nervous as he quietly adds, ‘Don’t want to upset you, Eddie. And can’t change the past. Both know that.’
Eddie knows Venom is as good with words as she is, and whether or not that’s because he actually really did learn it all from her (which she highly doubts, he’s far too insightful for his own good sometimes), she KNOWS, just by what he’s telling her alone now, she KNOWS because they really are more alike than she knew.
‘Told you, Eddie, we are both broken... but still not beyond repair.’
“I’m sorry, V, baby...” Eddie croaks out – needs another drink now... or ten... or fifty.
Venom lets out those affectionate rumblings, both in their mind and quietly enough for only her to hear over the music, for her to FEEL his fondness of her, his love for her. ‘I’m not sorry, Eddie. Everything that has ever happened to me, it has all led me here, to you.’
Their sweet – albeit rather morbid – moment is suddenly interrupted, and Eddie almost startles – having been lost in the moment with her other half – when hands are being placed on their shoulders.
“Hey, there, pretty girl. Good to see you again.”
Venom almost forgets not to deafen his love with his snarling. ‘Eddie! He’s touching us again! Get him off, or I will –‘
‘V, chill, you’re gonna gimme a headache, babe. Just lemme handle it.’ Eddie tells him as she – smoothly – twists herself out of his grabby hands, slowly rises from her seat to face him with the best smile she can muster up.
‘Fine... Prick.’
Eddie scoffs at him in their mind.
‘OBVIOUSLY not you... idiot.’
‘Do you wanna forget the balcony thing and just go home?’
‘NO!! I’m sorry! You’re not an idiot!’
Eddie bites back a smirk as she speaks to the drunken middle aged mess of a man (poor Dan.) “Enjoyin’ yourself?”
‘Excellent tone, Eddie. You almost sound like you give a shit, but in that normal small talk polite way.’ Venom chirps, sounds awfully proud... and awfully like he’s trying to kiss her ass. Venom scoffs at her smug thoughts, his own tone now low and threatening as he tells her, ‘Will do much more to that pretty apple shaped rump of yours than kiss it, Eddie...’
‘V, dealin’ with Mr. Slime Ball here. SO not the time.’
Venom huffs, but otherwise keeps quiet. For now.
Mr. Slime Ball grins back at her, in what, she’s sure, he thinks is probably a charming smile. “Definitely enjoying myself a lot more now. Watchya doing sitting all alone, baby girl?”
Eddie doesn’t know how she doesn’t visibly shiver outright in disgust.
Venom lets out low rumbling snarls in their mind, barely audible, even to her.
“How about we get another drink and go find ourselves a private balcony, huh? That dress looks fucking delicious on you, girl.”
Venom watches as Eddie smoothly slips out of the way when Mr. Slime Ball tries to lay his hands over her waist before calmly telling her, ‘I’m going to bite his head off, Eddie. I will give you 30 seconds to get away from him before that happens.’