un_gloved | (no subject)

(no subject)

Rogue had been good at pool before she got to the island. Now she was a master. She cracked the racked balls with one deft shot and sunk two. She gave a low, pleased whistle and moved around the table to set up her next one. The jukebox was playing an Emmylou Harris song. She'd finally gotten it to play real country.

"J'ai fait tout, j'ai fait tout. Ce que j'ai pu. J'ai fait tout, j'ai fait tout ce que j'ai pu.'

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Ned got the message and pulled back to, giving her her space, starting to relax his hand and draw it away from hers.

He let out a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding and was surprised by how shaky it was.

She caught the hand back, lacing their fingers together, and drew her legs up onto the couch and tucked them under her.

"How's your book?"

"It's pretty good," he said, swiping his thumb across her knuckles. "'bout some Revolution some place I've never heard of, and it went a whole lot better than ours, but, yeah, it's pretty interestin'. Not as interestin' as watchin' you, of course."

He grinned.

"More interestin' when I'm actually playin' someone," she said with a fleeting glance at the pool table, smiling, pleased by the compliment. She casually leaned her temple against his shoulder.

"If their revolution went better'n yours, yours must've not done that well," she said. "What happened?"

"We lost," said Ned, softly, his cheek resting against the top of her head. "We were set up. All of us. At Treaclemine Road. But, for a little bit, it was beautiful."

"Set up?" she repeated, frowning a little, watching his thumb against her skin.

"We weren't ever gonna win," said Ned, quietly, and shrugged. "S'okay...A...friend told me that the reason they're called revolutions is they're always coming around again."

"It's a good point," she said, ten tipped her face up, to watch his expression.

"But I'm still sorry 'bout that."

For a moment, Ned's expression was closed and far-away, and then he looked down at her and smiled.

"Thanks," he murmured and bent his head to touch the end of his nose to hers.

"I wish it had worked," she near-whispered, lashes fluttering a little. Her heart had definitely sped up. She meant it. Rogue hadn't ever been all that politically minded, but it just made him look so sad.

"So do I," he said, taking a deep breath and brushing his lips against hers before pulling back, swallowing hard.

Her breath left her in a quiet rush, and she leaned her head up to kiss him softly, eyes slipping closed.

Ned made a soft sound, trying not to press to hard, deepen the kiss too much.

Baby steps.

Rogue parted her lips against the press of his mouth, lifting her free hand to cup the side of his face, gasping very, very quietly.

Ned's fingers brushed her shoulder, the tip of his tongue brushing her bottom lip.

Her shoulder arced against the touch and she tilted her face a little, to fit their faces better, tentatively meeting the tip of his tongue with her own, pressing closer.

Ned's fingertips traced over her collarbone as he leant into her a little bit, murmuring softly into the kiss.

"Mnh," she returned quietly, breath catching, sliding her fingers along his jaw and back over his neck. Kissing Wesley was a lovely, diffuse kind of experience, that left her flushed and smiling. Being kissed by Ned Coates made her feel like her heart was going to burst in her cheat. She could feel her pulse everywhere, just about, and was completely oblivious to the rest of the room.

The corner of Ned's mouth lifted in a smile against her lips as he hooked his fingers over the collar of her shirt, to stop his hand moving, to keep him centered.

Every time he kissed her, he felt like he was spinning out of control.

It wasn't an entirely unpleasant feeling.

She sighed quietly, stifling a more substantial sort of noise, resting her forehead against his, nuzzling the tips of their noses together again.

With Rogue too close to him to see clearly, his eyes blurring out of focus, Ned smiled and closed his eyes.

"Mmph."

She smiled widely, biting her lower lip to keep it from spreading and failing completely.

"Hi," she said quietly.

"Hey," said Ned, his thumb brushing the hollow of her throat. "Remind me. What's my name again?"

She laughed softly, swallowing, flustered by the touch of his thumb. Her eyes were closed when she kissed him again, fleetingly.

"Ned..."

"Ned." He nods, his thumb still moving against her throat. "Yeah. That sounds about right."