Dominic remained his brooding version of himself for a long time.
Of course, he tried to hide it and act like everything was alright, but I knew better. For the first week I pretended I didn't see anything, but finally, my thin thread of patience snapped and asked. And, of course, he told me nothing was going on.
I knew he lied. I also knew it was probably the first time he ever lied to me. But I didn't say anything more.
Until the day I saw his hands.
We were sitting on his bed, - I still refused to sit my ass on their couch - watching a movie on his laptop when he reached out to take one of my hands in his. Instinctively, I looked down at our intertwined fingers and froze.
Dominic's knuckles were bruised, in some places even torn open. I could see it even in the dim light coming from the laptop screen, and I didn't want to know how they looked in the full light. All I knew that they weren't like that the day before. Right now they looked painful. Just like they looked after the feral night at the club.
The night he beat the shit out of that guy.
"Dom." I said calmly, still staring at his hands.
"Hm?" He didn't take his eyes off of the screen.
"What is it?"
Dominic tore his eyes away from the screen and looked at me. When I didn't raise my head, he followed my gaze resting on his palms. I knew the moment he got what I meant because he hissed in a breath and tried to snatch them away. I didn't let him, clamping my other hand over his. Both of us knew he could have easily broken my hold, but he didn't do it. Slowly, he raised his chin and I lifted my eyes to meet his gaze.
"You promised me something." I said quietly, squeezing his fingers lightly.
"Abi, it's not -"
"You promised me something." I repeated, my voice breaking in its coolness.
I took a deep breath, trying to keep my emotions on hold. I was seconds from exploding - I just didn't know whether once I did, it was going to be with tears or anger. Dominic must have sensed it, because he freed his hands and brought them up to cup both sides of my face. I tried to move away, but he didn't let me, forcing me to hold his gaze. He didn't pause the movie, so the sounds of some fight still sounded from the laptop, but they were so distant to me that they could as well be taking place somewhere in Panama. Everything apart from the ugly feeling of anger mixed with betrayal faded away.
"It was just a few hits." He began, pleading with me to believe him with his eyes. "We were in a bar and some guy advanced on Max. I had to help him out."
"It doesn't seem like just a few hits to me." I reasoned, lifting his hands.
He closed his eyes and exhaled, turning his head to the side. He looked exasperated and my heart ached for him, wanted to believe him. But my mind screamed for it to shut up and for me to get the hell out of there.
"I know I broke the promise." He whispered, pressing his forehead to mine. "And I know how much it meant to you. But I swear I had to. I didn't have much of a choice."
I tried - really tried - to look at it through his eyes. If Sierra needed help, I would probably do the same. Hell, I have done the same with Borah. I didn't even think, I just acted. And since Dominic wasn't much less reckless than I was, then I supposed it could have looked the same...
Taking a deep breath, I brought his bruised hands up and pressed them to my lips.
"Okay." I whispered, my lips brushing the injured skin of his knuckles.
"Okay?" He asked, confusion lacing his voice.
I nodded, causing my mouth to slide against his hands.
"Okay. I believe you okay."
He was so surprised that he lifted his forehead off of mine and stared at me in shock.
"Really?"
Dropping his hands, I also lifted my head and met his wide eyes. I nodded, just once.
"And you forgive me?" The hope in his voice almost broke my heart.
Strangely, I could argue with him over everything all the time and feel no regret, but right now it was different. The very moment felt like something infinitely more, like something serious. It made my eyes burn and my heart ache.
Maybe I was starting to understand this whole relationship thing. That his battles were mine. That my struggles became his. That every stumble in each other's life seemed like our own.
And that no matter what the other one thought, neither of us was perfect.
"There is nothing to forgive."
Seeing the confusion flashing in his eyes, I gave him a slight smile.
"You did what you had to do."
His Adam's apple bobbed when he gulped.
"And I know we..." I took a breath. "We will make mistakes. And contrary to what you might think, I don't consider it one. Just... Try to not let it happen again, okay?"
I knew I probably sounded like one of those sweet, obsessive girlfriends, but I didn't really care. I may not be the calmest person known to the mankind, but I wasn't a fan of senseless physical violence. I didn't have any tragic back-story with abusing parents or bullies at school, I just didn't like it. And the thought of someone I cared for being connected with it... Like I said, I didn't like it.
Dominic was silent for so long I was afraid I was going to have to repeat my monolog. He looked at me and so many emotions flashed in his eyes in one moment - remorse, shame, wonder, regret. I didn't even think feeling so many emotions at once could be possible. I had the sudden urge to hide from his intense gaze but didn't let myself, knowing this little staring contest helped both of us.
"Thank you." He finally whispered, touching his nose to mine.
I nodded. I didn't tell him there was nothing to thank for, though. Forgiving people was never my strong side, so understanding the situation took a lot for me. And even though I wasn't blaming him, it didn't mean that I was happy with what he did, either.
Dominic slowly brought his lips to mine. I let him, opening myself to him and spreading my hands across his cheeks. The kiss was slow, soft and heartbreakingly tender. All of the emotions I've seen in his eyes just a moment ago - I could feel them in the way his thumb moved over my neck, in every gentle swipe of his lips. His hot breath danced along the skin of my neck, cheeks, and collarbone as he lowered me to the bed. I probably should have panicked when I found myself on my back, with Dominic hovering over me, but I was too far gone to care. During the short time we've been together, we kissed quite a lot, but it never went as far as now. Come to think of it, apart from that one night when I was drunk out of my mind, we've never been alone in a bedroom. When we weren't at school, we spent most of our time with our friends, stealing every little moment there was to steal. Lately, Dominic had less time during the evening due to his job as a mechanic - I got to know about it just a few days ago and still wasn't sure why I haven't paid any attention to his career life, - so every time we could spend together became more and more precious. Tonight was one of the rare days when he didn't have to disappear, so we could spend it doing... what we were doing.
Dominic trailed little kisses over my neck, up to my jaw and cheek. Each was softer than the previous one and by the time he reached my lips once more, I wanted to weep because of his gentleness. He didn't try to take it any further, though. None item of our clothing disappeared and the kisses remained as careful as they were at the beginning. Still, it was one of the most intimate moments we've ever shared, a little while of vulnerability when both of us mise in one. A silent conversation between the two of us, meant to replace everything we didn't know how to speak out loud.
And every second of it had me ensnared in his web a little more. Made me understand him a little more.
And, worse of all, gave me the hope I so much feared.
***
A/N: Holy meatballs, 1k views! (screw the fact of just 8 votes and 0 comments, I really don't know how to get you people to tell me if you liked it or not). I just wanted to thank you and say that English Accent is slowly coming to an end. I'm expecting about 10 more chapters, which is not much. But I'm going to give you more feeeeels so stay tuned! Besos!