getting_better

... I never said that.

[If anything, she's rather weak to his teasing.]

[ 'I'm glad then.' he thinks before quietly leaning in to give her a kiss on the cheek. At this point, his apprehension to relationships had burst in some places. Perhaps if he were back home things wouldn't have ended up the way they have but, then again, what does he know.

It's like what Chevalier always told him, 'love works in mysterious ways'. Though he always said that before they went to go try and pick up girls so the meaning was a bit lost in translation. ]

[In many ways, Shiho can empathize with those feelings. Of trust, and companionship, of being deeply in a relationship and wanting it to work. She feels her heart thrill a little when he leans in to brush that chaste kiss to her cheek and she blushes.

This is their first kiss now that they'd decided to be honest with each other and more than anything... she wants to answer his honesty. She squeezes his hand then leans close, pressing a soft kiss to his cheek in return then takes it a step further with a kiss to his forehead.]

Edited 2020-05-15 02:55 (UTC)

[ The kiss makes him feel warm and brings a wide smile to his face. These feelings were familiar in a way but alien at the same time. It'd been so long since he felt this way or felt anything for another person, if he could be honest he though that side of him had died so to feel it now is more than just pleasant. It made him hopeful.

He leaned in and kissed her lips gently, no lust or heat, just the simple desire to show how she makes him feel so much. They were just at the starting point now and bound to experience more, feel so much more, and the thought makes him anxious and excited. He almost feels normal again. ]

[The one biggest and most important distinction of their current kisses and what draws Shiho to them and to him is that they are making a conscious choice. Not influenced by the moons and not just because it feels good to kiss. Because they want to.

That is enough to have her giggling as he leans in to kiss her on the lips. The expression in her eyes is soft, her heart luminously warm. She gives his hand a squeeze and steals a quick, affectionate kiss of her own.]

[ He joins in the giggling as Bishop cups her face, stroking her cheek with his thumb before parting their lips and lingers just inches away from her face. There was no whining need to keep their lips locked, no painful incomplete feeling as he pulled away, just beauty and radiance of the moment with her. ]

Shiho...

[ He whispered. He had nothing to say, he just wanted to say her name, feel it roll of his tongue. It's funny how the little things suddenly hold so much meaning and can have such a sway on him. ]

[There's no urgency to the way they part, just a sense of completion, of something right, something that is here to stay.

And she loves the way he says her name, the syllables so sweet that she can't help but smile.]

I'm here. [The tip of her nose nuzzles against his as she parts her lips to try it out too:]

...Bishop. [Laughing in pure joy, she presses her forehead to his and repeats it, softer, warmer.]

Bishop.

I'm here.

[ He closed his eyes from comfort and could almost feel himself drift away. It was a bit bittersweet when she said his name, and it shouldn't have mattered but... ]

Could you do me one small favor?

[ There was a bit of fear, there always is, but he wanted this. Needed this. ]

When it's just the two of us...can you call me by my original name?

[ He open his eyes and meet hers, unaware he held his breath now. ]

Could you call me "Sam"?

Of course.

[She felt that touch of fear and she wanted nothing more than to soothe it so she patiently waits for him to put his request into words and when he looks at her she smiles.]

Sam. [It suits him, she thinks and if he needs it, she's happy to call him by that name as much as she needs to.]

[ He took in a large breath of air as her voice and his name reverberated through him. The emotion he fells after being called that after so long is strange. He couldn't quite describe it or even pin if it was just one emotion or a multitude of emotions merging together.

Regardless of whatever it is he didn't dislike it, at least not when it comes from Shiho. His smiles returns while his eyes softened and he just stared into her eyes for a moment before giving in to the effect they had on him, leaning in once more and kissing her.]

[His emotions are a lot to take in at once, but she's happy to let them wash over her regardless, to let him find his path and come to her with a smile. She likes the way he looks into her eyes, his gaze softly drawing her in until there's barely a breath of space between them.

Until he leans in further and he's kissing her once more. With a shivery sigh she kisses him right back, reciprocating the motion and sliding one hand to his cheek, her thumb stroking gently along his skin.]

[ He smiled into the simple but mesmerizing kiss making it harder to pull away and so tempting to continue. But he knows better than to rush, to be carried away by temptation, there'll be other times when giving in would be appropriate. ]

It's so hard to resist kissing you.

[ He says briefly between two kisses. ]

Hm... you say that like it's a problem. [Also it's not like he's resisting very much and that has her trying her best not to giggle again, leaning in to nuzzle the tip of her nose against his before she steals a kiss of her own.]

...Although, I did promise Kaoru-chan I was going to be back eventually.

Mmmm...eventually.

[ If he could, he would just keep her here but given the mentioned lousiness of his apartment even he honestly doesn't want to stay here. The name she mentioned though does ring a bell, but it couldn't be the same girl with the weird pickup line.

...

Nah it couldn't be. 'Kaoru' isn't exactly a rare name and there's a fair amount of Japanese people here as far as he can tell. It's probably just a coincidence. ]

Can I walk you back?

[ Also stealing another kiss. ]

[Shiho wouldn't mind being kept here since while the apartment is bare, it's also very clean and she likes that. But if she did stay too long then Kaoru might worry.

Right now though, she's returning that kiss with a soft hum.]

When I want to go, you can. [But for now she's clearly in no hurry.]

[ He nods before resting his forehead against hers and then holding her hand tightly, enjoying the momentary silence and calm he's feeling. ]

Have you always had this power?

[ The moment allows him some clearer thought, curiosity bubbling to the surface. Her power was intriguing as it was frightening. ]

I've encountered others in my world with the same ability, but it always seemed to vary though the method is the same.

[ Invade targets mind and see what you get, sometimes it wasn't helpful and mostly just a hint or a vague idea of the desired outcome. ]

[Shiho doesn't mind the curiosity but... the fact that her power may be frightening to him has her drawing back a little. Sure, she does like him... but this wasn't a compromise she could make.]

...I've always had it. I was born with it.

You're really... scared of my powers?

[ Since birth. That amazes him that someone could have that power but then the next six words caught him by surprise. A twinge of anxiousness pinched at him but he settles it with a breath and a pause. ]

I'm, well, to some degree in certain respects. I'm afraid of any power to be honest, even my own.

[ Especially his own. ]

I had to be. My world is at war, and I'm a soldier. Was.

[ Memories flashed in his mind, a time in trenches amidst a fight with comrades at his side, then fast forward to before Lunatia came about and he was fighting again but alone and in the dark against enemies he couldn't see. ]

I've been fighting for almost my entire my life, and I have to fight alone in my world now. Be wary of every shadow, every person, every word they speak, every action they do, every creature small and large, cause I never knew what they could do or intend to do. It helps keep me on my toes and stay alive.

[ 'Alone' was the theme of the memories that were in his head. Travelling even in a group, he was by himself. Sitting in a camp, chatting with others, he ate by himself. And in combat, he was always pitted against impossible odds. ]

But I know it's not the same here. It's nothing personal it's...[ He shrugs with a sad smile. ]...Old habits.

[Shiho kind of regrets asking. She can understand being afraid of her own powers, of being terrified of hurting people with what she is even if she's never, ever made the step to being afraid of other's powers. Shiho knows how much it hurts when someone is frightened.

Besides, she's always been scarier than all of them.]

I'm... sorry. I'm sorry that you had to be afraid of your powers. [That his life had to be so difficult before meeting her.]

I've always... been afraid of my own powers too so when you were scared.... I think I overreacted. I'm used to people being afraid of me and... not trusting me because psychometers.... [She takes a deep breath and squeezes his hand.] ...They think psychometers cheat with their powers, that they use it to find out everyone's secrets, that they're creepy. I was worried you thought that I was creepy, that you couldn't... trust me.

[ Discrimination because of her powers? The thought makes him a little angry but then he puts it next to how she's had them since birth and the revelation makes his eyes widen in shock.

'Has that been going on since she was a child? Since she can read minds, does that mean she knows what people thought of her?' He tasted something bitter.

He knows a little of what it was like, but he was a loner as a child because of how he acted and not because of what he was. It's wrong to make someone feel like that. It was wrong for him to be afraid of her.

He let go of her hand after a pause but also leaned in, arms wrapping around Shiho and pulling her into a tight embrace. ]

I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been afraid. I know I said it's a habit but, that's no excuse.

[ He needs to do better to make this work. God he wants this to work. ]

And for what it's worth, I'm not afraid anymore and I've never thought of you as creepy.

[At five years old, she thought she was a monster. Her parents' lives were forever changed because she'd been born the way she was and at five years old she was convinced her presence was not something that brought them joy. It brought them love, but it also brought them worry, anxiety and guilt and it had taken her years to be honest towards them.

And adults that weren't her parents had been terrified of her. So in response to it she had acted out. If she was going to be hated for what she was, then what was the point of being a good child, she had thought.

There's some of that in her expression when he lets go and she's not a precog and not prepared at all for him to pull her into a warm hug, holding her tight. She won't cry, she tells herself but her eyes feel hot and her shoulders slump as she buries her head against his chest.

She wants this to work and the fact that their thoughts mirror each other has her clutching on tight.]

...It wasn't all bad when I was a kid. My parents love me... and I had Kaoru-chan and Aoi-chan. It's normal to be afraid of me. But...

[She raises her head and it's clear there are tears.]

...But I'm glad you never thought I was creepy. I want.... I want this to work too. I want to be with you. I want to smile with you and talk things out, to... to have this for both of us.

[ Her response made him feel relieved. The fact she read his mind and his intent so clearly conveyed made him happy because half the time, he can't understand his own emotions. Save whenever something upset him, those are the ones he's most familiar with and always so clear cut. ]

"Us". [He says with a big smile as he wipes the tears from her eyes. ] I like that. I like it alot.

[ He embraces her again and kisses her brow. He never thought he'd ever get something like this, something that can be exciting, troubling, motivating, and happy all at the same time. He always thought it'd just be bullets, blood, and carnage until the end of days but now, now he's hoping the end never comes.

'I wish I could bottle this moment and keep it with me all the time' he thinks as he squeezes a bit tighter while the feeling in his chest grows brighter. ]

[It's so very reassuring that her powers could help him, even a little bit and that has her tearing up again so thank goodness he's wiping her tears away.

She likes the sound of "us" too. She likes the way he smiles at her, the tender way he touches her and she presses herself into his embrace, eyes closing as he kisses her forehead. Shiho had always hoped she could have something like this. Something supportive, gentle, accepting. The very opposite of what he thinks his end might have been, what her end might also have been on a certain timeline.

Her hands move to wrap around him, pressed to his back as she holds on tighter.]

I'm not going anywhere. We'll have more moments like these. Exactly like this. I'm here.

[ If his smile got any bigger his face may be stuck like that for a few days. Good thing people know him to always be smiling, though he wonders if he can pull of the 'I'm just in a good mood' for that amount of time. ]

Yeah...

[ The little voice of reason in his head was quiet for good while now, but now it reared it's ugly head. ]

Although maybe not exactly like this. Hopefully in the next few months, I'd have a nicer apartment.

[That earns him a little giggle, her hand soothing against his back.]

A nicer apartment isn't necessary, you know.

[But she does appreciate the effort and though her smile is still a little watery she leans in for a gentle, affectionate kiss.]

There, my donation to your apartment fund.

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