I was terrified. I was strapped to a wheel, my stomach was becoming a twisted mess, and the raging fire demon coming closer with every step had me petrified.
"Please! I swear it was just a joke!"
"Shut up! You aren't allowed to even joke about kissing anyone, especially Star. You got that, Diaz?"
My body trembled as Tom forcefully ceased the wheel's spinning by grabbing the neck line of my hoodie. "I forbid you to have any kind of romantic relation with anyone!"
I blinked, masking my fear with my growing confusion, "W-what?"
His grip on my jacket tightened as his hands ignited and yanked me forward, hurting my shoulders from the pressure and awkward angle. I winced when he brought up his free hand to my jaw, tightly taking hold and digging his claws into my flesh. "Do you understand me, Diaz? No one. Absolutely no one!"
Wanting this pain to stop before he can actually draw blood and make it worse, I do my best to nod as salty tears begin to burn my eyes. Luckily I don't think Tom noticed when he finally released his hold on me, dropping me back into my limp position against the wheel.
"Don't you dare forget it."
I held back a sniffle, knowing it would draw attention to my struggle to detain my tears. It was just a joke.
"Pl-lease Tom." I beg. "Please let me go, this hurts."
My heart sinks when he scoffs. "Consider it punishment."
A heavy sigh slips past my lips as I let my head hang limply on my shoulders. Air becomes trapped within my lungs when I feel the warm water finally begin to cascade down my face, luckily my unruly bangs are on my side for once and help to hide my eyes.
"Please Tom...." A dose of butterflies infiltrated my stomach when he growled, his body refusing to cool down. He looked like he was ready to turn me into nothing but a pile of ash, but I have to know. Why did he say 'anyone'? "Why can't I be with anyone? I can understand Star, you love her, but-"
"I don't."
I bit my tongue at his interruption. His statement having no context. "You don't what?" My tears began to make my face itch.
"I don't love Star. Not anymore..."
I had a feeling I would regret this but...I'm already strapped to a wheel. Oh well. "What changed your mind?" I asked, pressing the side of my face to my shoulder in an attempt to wipe away some of the salty water, burning my skin and eyes. Once my eyes were closed, I felt a warm hand lay against the other side of my face. Instantly I opened my eyes and lifted my head.
"I went too far, didn't I?" Tom muttered as he used his thumb to push away the tears from my other eye. A sad look in his three eyes and only a few inches away from having our noses touch. I look away without giving a definitive answer, but not without noticing that my expression failed to give him any confidence. He sighed; reaching up to unlatch my arms, then my legs and finally my midsection, grabbing hold of my waist to lower me back to the ground without incident.
He placed his hands on either side of my face, trying to get me to look at him. While he succeeded in getting my face turned towards him, I kept my still slightly puffy, red, irritated eyes on anything but him.
"Marco, please," he sighed once more. "I didn't mean to hurt you. It's just-" He froze, choking on his words once I gave him my full attention.
"Just what?"
I could practically see the gears turning in his head, scrounging for the perfect answer as he bit his lip so hard it began to bleed ever so slightly.
"I-Ugh! Why is this so hard?" He screamed; releasing his hold on my face to roughly grip and pull on his hair, scrunching up his nose out of frustration.
His actions caused me to back myself up against the wall in fear that he might explode again. Literally.
"T-Tom! Please, j-just calm down a-an' talk to me!" I quivered, realizing that if at any point I decided that I wanted to run, the option was no longer available.
Tom now had a tight hold on both my wrist and pinned to either side of my head. My eyes widened when I noticed the calm, cool look on Tom's face, his eyes still sad but there was something foreign that I didn't quite recognize. "T-Tom?"
"Just shut up already, Diaz." He whispered as he closed all but the eye on his forehead and gently pressing his lips to mine.
I never imagined the guy I thought to hate me would ever commit such a tender action towards me, yet alone a passionate one. Nor did I ever believe that the result of his gesture would put me in a daze. The feeling of his warm soft lips touching my skin made me weak in the knees and bend to his whim instantly. Even if I wanted to, I don't think I would ever be capable to breaking this incredible spell he's placed over me.
In a matter of seconds he's got me relaxing into his touch and returning his generosity, closing my eyes and allowing him full access when his tongue brushes against my lips. It feels like hours before he releases my lips so I can breath. The cold air making me wish he hadn't.
"Can that suffice for words?"
I blushed and covered my mouth with my hands wide eyed, all my senses coming back to me at once. I slip down to the ground. "T-Tom..." I muttered through my hands.
His eyes widen and falls to his knees to be level with me, instantly placing his hands on my shoulders and looking me up an down frantically. "I-I'm sorry! Did I hurt you again?"
I shake my head, forcing my shaking body to calm itself. "T-that..." I started, noticing how his ears perked, trying to hear my muffled words through my hands. "that was my first kiss..."
His expression was blank for a moment and his jaw slack. His normally pale purple face had turned a dark pink across his cheeks. "I just..." Waiting for him to fully conform his words I noticed the corner of his lips began to twitch into a nervous smile, tangling his fingers back into his hair once more but not tugging at it nearly as harshly as he had before. "...your first...I just...oh damn..." An awkward chuckle quietly slipped out of his throat.
"uh...T-Tom?" I lowered my hands from my mouth to my chest and bringing my knees against them. "Are...Are you-"
"Did you like it?"
My face instantly began to heat up, his intense stare boring into my eyes while his hands came up to clasp mine. "W-Wah-"
"The kiss, did you like it?"
He was eager. He wanted an answer that I didn't have. I gently returned the hold he had on my hands by locking our fingers together, staring at them as if somehow they could tell me what to say.
I sighed, not coming up with anything that might give him any reassurance when I realized I never even considered liking boys. "Is...is it wrong to say I thought my first would be with a girl?" I kept my head down out of fear that I might look up and see him heart broken.
To my surprise, a faint chuckle reaches my ears. I look up to see he's confidently wearing a tender smile. He slipped one of his hands out of my grasp to bring it up to my cheek, gently cupping it and allowing me to press against it.
"I'd be surprised if you didn't." He smiled, rubbing his thumb near the corner of my eye in a comforting gesture. "I know you were interested in that blonde girl basically you whole life."
"Jackie."
"Right, right, point being. Did you like it? It doesn't upset you that I took your first kiss does it?"
"I..." I sighed, looking away. "No...it doesn't upset me, just...just confuses me. I always thought you hated me because Star an I are such good friends and you liked her."
"Views change, Marco. Star's happy where she's at, and I'm grateful that we never got back together." He grabs hold of my face once more, making sure that I'm paying attention. "I couldn't hate you even if I tried. And I have. Trust me I've tried hating you, but..." He released my face, one hand dropping back to my own and the other brushing against my cheek and into my hair. "After I saw your heart get broken, even after all you've done for her. Marco, I want to love you unlike anyone ever could, and have you love me as well. Even if I have to wait, or settle for simply being friends. I want to be by your side should you ever get hurt like that again."
My eyes widened and I knew my face must be as red as my jacket right now. He just confessed to me. The guy I thought to despise my very existence, just poured his his heart out to me and basically asked my permission to date. I could feel my eyes beginning to burn once more. Never in my life has anyone ever been so tender to me. I never imagined my heart could feel this way.
"Tom. I-"
"B-before you answer! Um...C-Can I um..." He began blushing once more, fidgeting with the strings on my hoodie, the nervousness clear as day in his eyes. I smiled to myself, deciding there that before he could ruin the moment, I leaned forward and connected our lips for the second time today.
I felt him tense up, slightly gripping my hand tighter before relaxing and returning my gesture. His tongue brushed past my lip, urging me to open them and let him in. I considered teasing him but then decided against it, on account that he's been so gentle and kind aside from the whole interrogation thing. The second I part my lips, his tongue dove into my mouth and tangled itself with my own.
His fingers released themselves from mine when I moved my arms up to latch together around his neck. His lingering hands coaxing a quiet moan to slip past my lips before I can stop myself. He chuckles, slipping his hands lower past my hips to pull me onto his lap and dropping his lips to my neck, kissing and nibbling at my collar bone.
"Ah, T-Tom...I, ah~"
"Does it feel good, Bunny?"
I felt my face heat up at the pet name, and not trusting my voice I offered a simple nod. From my placement on his lap I could feel that he was enjoying himself and would eventually want to go farther.
I'm not ready.
"T-Tom I-"
"I know, Bunny." He whispers, gently kissing me once more as he gets to his feet. Keeping a tight hold on me when he noticed how I tensed up as he started to carry me to the couch upstairs. He smiles as he sat me down, tenderly guiding his fingers through my hair. "I won't do anything you don't want me to."
"I'm sorry."
"Don't be, I know better than to expect you to dive into this immediately."
I began to find it hard to believe that this is the same Tom that just had me strapped to a spinning wheel, tossing flames at me and screaming about how I can't get close to anyone. This one is much more kind, gentle, and doting than I could ever imagine. It made me smile to myself, my expression earning me a warm peck on my cheek before Tom rose to his feet once more.
I blushed as I watched him walk into the kitchen, listing off an array of drinks he had to offer me. Settling on water, I waited patiently where he placed me.
He came back quickly, ice cold water in one hand and a bottle of beer in the other.
"I didn't know you drank."
He shrugged, "I don't often, but I basically just gave myself a mini-heart attack when I kissed you." with a slight chuckle he handed me the glass and sat down next to me. "So I figured, 'why not?'."
I felt my heart sink when he mentioned how he felt about the situation, on top of the fact that I technically didn't give him a real answer. I rubbed my thumbs up and down the sides of my glass, staring at the ice cubes that were floating in the water.
"Hey, you okay?" Tom muttered, gently placing a hand on the back of my neck, his index and middle finger applying a bit of pressure at the base of my hair line in an attempt to relieve any of the stress I was feeling. I hadn't even noticed the small moan that had slipped past my lips until he huffed in amusement. "How is it even possible for you to be this adorable?"
I blushed, and pulled my hood up to hide my face. "I'm not adorable!"
He chuckled, taking a sip of his beer. "Would you prefer sexy?"
I nearly choke when he says that, the idea that someone actually thinks of me in such a way makes my stomach churn. "P-Please don't say that."
"Why? You are."
"You...You said you wouldn't do anything."
"And I won't, but that doesn't mean I can't tell you what I think about you, does it?"
"It...It's j-just embarrassing is all..."
He smiled, placing his arm over my shoulders and pulling me against him. I reached across him to place my cup down on the side table and lean into his chest.
"Tom."
"Hm?"
"I um...never gave you a real answer..."
"It's fine." He drops his hand from my shoulder to my waist. "I think this counts as an answer." He smiles, pressing his lips to my forehead.
I shake my head. "I...I wanna make it clear though." I sat up so I could look him in the eyes. "I'm...um...I'm not sure how fast I'm willing to go with this...I don't even know if I really can even return your feelings the way you want but...I...I wanna try. D-Dating, I mean." I blushed, feeling my voice slip farther from my grasp with each word all the while, Tom simply smiled, keeping his hand placed on my waist and waiting for me to return to my position cuddled up against his chest.
"That's all I ask, Bunny. That's all I ask."