[...she doesn't want to go back to their cabins, either. she's trying to think of some way to make this last a little longer (suggest another movie that they won't pay attention to, perhaps?), wondering if he would want the same thing, if he would even agree to—
and then he speaks up.
her cheeks flush faintly, and she can't help but smile. he isn't ready for this to be over yet, either.]
I did. [i decided just now that she did.] ...would you like to read a little more, together?
[ he was hoping, anticipating..... and there’s a feeling of him being just a little pleased, when flayn says so. yin yu exhales, and nods, up and down. ]
I’d like that very much. [ ..... not that he wants to really.... move from where he’s settled so warm and close to flayn but that’s fine, he’ll still - ] I can fetch it.
[...she doesn't really want him to move either but she supposes, if they're going to read, one of them will have to. it doesn't really stop her from pouting, but she gestures vaguely in the general direction of the book.]
[ okay. right. yin yu ends up staying there for a second too long, lingering, before he finally absolves with himself to get up. as he starts to move, yin yu blinks, and pauses, as he notices flayn still clinging to him, almost pouting.
....it puts an embarrassed smile on his face, and yin yu ducks his head to look away from her to hide it. they're--this is something. ] ...Flayn.
[ you gotta.
you gotta let him get up.
(how absolutely novel to think, that someone would want his presence so much they wouldn't want him to leave. it blows yin yu away, every time, and she'll feel the warm, squirming way his feelings curl up at it, amazed and quietly in love.) ]
[ it absolutely takes him an extra second to move after that because he really doesn't want to now.
....right. okay. well! yin yu bows his head and gets up quickly, practically unfolding from where he's settled, and hurries over to fetch the book from flayn's things. he finds it quickly, and, as requested, comes right back.
getting comfortable again with flayn - or, rather, allowing himself to do so - is going to be a different challenge entirely for him, considering he's still more flustered than is necessary and also awkward, but! yin yu sits back where he was before, book in hand. ]
...Is this a comfortable enough way for you to sit...? [ and he has to stop himself from saying "my lady", again, which means he just sort of trails off at the end. help him please he's struggling. ]
she kind of wants to sit in his lap, actually, so that she can lean back against him and his arms can be around her while they hold the book directly in front of themselves to read it. but that seems a little forward to suggest, even for her.
[ he might die of embarrassment, but he sure wouldn't say no! so there's that.
yin yu nods, a little flustered, as he settles back in to where he was before, leaning back against the couch. there's a beat, like he's still trying to decide what to do, before he just ... lifts his arm so she can scoot in a little closer again, if she'd like.
it's subtle, and his ears are red, but if she wants to tuck back close into his side again, that... that would be nice. ]
it would, perhaps, be more appropriate for her to hesitate at least a little before she scoots in close to his side - but she doesn't. she likes the feeling of being close to him, of sharing her warmth with him, and, well...
it's just the two of them here, isn't it? it shouldn't matter to anyone else what is or isn't proper, here. that's for them to decide.
[ if she hesitated he probably would have pulled back immediately, so it's a good thing she didn't! the immediacy of flayn zooming in next to him surprises yin yu a little, but slowly, he lets his arm back down as she gets comfortable, so it falls back around her, too.
embarrassing, but, nice. it takes him a little shifting to get comfortable - his limbs are all very long - but once he's settled, he'll offer flayn the novel. ] ...like this, you'll have to hold it, if you don't mind.
[ he can either hold onto her or...the book... yin yu would do either but this is pretty nice. she may be able to feel a little bit of his hesitance and embarrassment--throw him a bone here. ]
I can. [ a pause, and then, a little sheepishly, yin yu admits; ] ...Last time, I did not read so much as listened to you.
[ while he could tell you the basic plot of the story they had read, even the observant yin yu had forgotten a few details. more than once, he'd found himself soothed by the sound of her voice, but moreso, by the way she just seemed to enjoy the story with her whole being. the way it just seemed to enchant her was a lot more than the story itself. ]
[...that's sort of flattering? it's really flattering, actually. flayn smiles to herself, and looks down at the book. right. right, she's on the page they were at, which sentence was it...]
Um - I shall begin, then. If you are ready to listen...?
anyway. they read! it's comfortable, to stay cuddled up to yin yu's side as they make their way through the story. so comfortable, in fact, that later on, as they go, flayn can't help but feel a little sleepy. it isn't really easy for her to sleep, ever, but with yin yu here...
oh, she doesn't want to sleep, though. she wants to stay up with him and remember as much about all of this as she can.
so, stubbornly, she keeps going, even as she mispronounces some of the words from the book. oops.]
[ it's not as much the reading itself that's making yin yu sleepy. it's been a long day, but every day in camp is particularly long. rather, flayn being sleepy and exuding that outwards is starting to lull yin yu into towards sleeping, too. he knows from earlier in the week, how difficult sleep can be to find for flayn, and the fear that it gives her, so to feel her relaxing warm and comfortable against him is soothing, too. yin yu takes a deep breath as he would on his own, to try and help her stay calm and comfortable, but - he finds little tension in his own body, either.
relaxing is hard for him, and always has been.
he ends up leaning forward a bit, cheek nestling against the top of her head, and lets the mispronounced words go by; she'll feel the warm, ensconcing feeling of yin yu's fondness, quiet, but a little overwhelming all the same. it's more than fondness, though. he -
it's something he hasn't really felt, ever. an intense and true something, that's hard to describe. watching this wonder of a person trust him with one of her fears - and watching her stumble sleepily, cutely, over words, still desperately trying to stay awake a little longer to spend time with yin yu of all people - is what gives him the tiny, bright realization - i love her.
meditation is a key part of cultivation - of being cognizant of all of your feelings, recognizing them, letting them pass by. it's a few lines down the page further that yin yu finally reaches forward to gently place the bookmark they were using before in the center of the book, so his hand brushes hers. ]
[ there's...arguably more than enough space to sleep; he doesn't want to disturb flayn now that she's so close to slumber. gently, quietly, he'll try to close the book.
and when yin yu speaks, his voice is just soft enough to not disturb the gentle peace they've created, his usual gentle timbre even softer than usual, just a little hesitant. ] ...do you want to stay?
[ stay here. stay with him. he'll walk her back to her cabin if he has to, but if flayn, who fears sleep, is comfortable enough to rest, then by the gods, he'll stay here with her all night. ]
[that warm, relaxed feeling is echoed back to him. she bites back a yawn as he places the bookmark and eases the book shut, and unconsciously, she leans into him. that feeling that is more than fondness - love - echoes back to him, too.
flayn isn't sure when it started.
but she does know that, right now, there is nowhere else she would rather be than here with him. she doesn't want to be walked back to her cabin. she doesn't want to split up for the night.
she wants to stay here, warm and relaxed and loving him, and keep this moment close to her heart for as long as she possibly can.]
...would that be alright?
[she asks that, because she's concerned - would it be comfortable for him, to sleep here? she knows she's comfortable, because yin yu makes a rather good pillow, but. his comfort is important, too.
...she sounds really sleepy, though. and she makes no move to get up.]
[ in acting as a general scout for hua cheng, yin yu has slept in plenty of strange places. his bed in paradise manor is humble, and the bunk beds here are...frankly a little too small for him. curling up here with flayn puts pretty much every place he's slept right out of the water, in comparison.
he takes a moment to fetch one of the throw pillows that's laying around and move it behind his head, his other hand coming to rest gently in flayn's back so he doesn't disturb her too much. ] Mn. [ the noise is agreeing, quiet, and he as he makes the final adjustments, he wriggles down a little so he's laying down properly and flayn can keep just using him as a pillow if she wants, reaching up to pull the blanket up and over flayn's shoulders, even tucking her in a little because he's considerate like that.
yin yu tries to do all of this as carefully as possible, so not to jostle flayn as he slowly settles back, folding his other arm behind his head to act enough as a pillow for himself. it's all yin yu really needs.
and having flayn here is - it's more comfort than he could ask for. ] Rest well, my... [ mmn. his arm settles a little warmer around her, and even if he doesn't sleep right away, it will be a restful night. ] Flayn.
that, more than anything, puts her at ease. she can close her eyes, right now, and drift off to sleep, because when she opens them again, he won't be gone. he'll be here, as promised. yin yu is a man who keeps his promises, and if he swears to her that she won't be alone, then she knows she will not be.
it's been a long while since she's been able to truly believe that.
she doesn't seem at all bothered by his moving around, but that's likely because he's considerate and careful not to jostle her. with a yawn, she curls up at his side, one arm coming around his waist to hold onto him -
he can feel everything she's feeling. affection, peace, trust, love. but just letting him feel it doesn't necessarily feel like enough. she wants to put words to it, so there can't be any doubt.
[ it's probably a good thing that flayn is asleep just seconds later, because that surprises yin yu so much at first, he pauses.
it shouldn't. it should feel obvious. it's felt obvious all evening, as they were stuck sharing their emotions - but he wasn't able to put a name to it, not really. or rather, any obliviousness towards it was willful. even though it was right there in front of him, it's just...
even now, yin yu wonders how could someone like flayn could love him. what has he possibly done to earn this - this warmth, this affection, this love? flayn is kind and fierce, beautiful and warm, charming, gentle, powerful, someone nearly everyone in this camp adores. in contrast, yin yu is an unnoticeable, presenceless, nobody, a failure, a banished god, the kind of person who fades so easily in the background, eclipsed by the brightness of every star around. but, settled here like this, he doesn't feel like any of those things. not the xianxianyue officer, not his highness the failed martial god of the west.
...he just feels like yin yu. a person with a name. a person who could maybe do something half right to protect flayn, to keep her safe.
from a thrown piece of fruit at a ghost, to a persistent, lovely, endless kindness. from pinky promises, and trials, memorials and flower language. from someone who refused to let him hide, because he thought it would be easier to slip away from everyone instead of make a single bond of his own. from laughing until his sides hurt at a mountain goat that stole their food, from the worst memory of his life that she saw, and accepted, and she loved him anyway.
she loves him anyway.
it's a little while after she's asleep, and he can feel her breathing even out, that yin yu leans forward, and presses his lips to the crown of her head. he lingers there, for a while, eyes closed, feeling so overwhelmingly warm he might burst.
it gets stuck in his throat. it's like he has to push it out, like the words are creaky and old from disuse, because they are. and when yin yu says it, flayn can't even hear him, but he sounds vulnerable, open. quiet.
tender. ]
...I love you, too.
[ it will be another hour before he sleeps properly, but when he does, it will be restful.
yin yu stays curled around her the entire night. ]
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fishingforcompliments) wrote2020-06-06 12:53 pm
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and then he speaks up.
her cheeks flush faintly, and she can't help but smile. he isn't ready for this to be over yet, either.]
I did. [i decided just now that she did.] ...would you like to read a little more, together?
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I’d like that very much. [ ..... not that he wants to really.... move from where he’s settled so warm and close to flayn but that’s fine, he’ll still - ] I can fetch it.
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[...she doesn't really want him to move either but she supposes, if they're going to read, one of them will have to. it doesn't really stop her from pouting, but she gestures vaguely in the general direction of the book.]
It is right over there. Thank you.
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....it puts an embarrassed smile on his face, and yin yu ducks his head to look away from her to hide it. they're--this is something. ] ...Flayn.
[ you gotta.
you gotta let him get up.
(how absolutely novel to think, that someone would want his presence so much they wouldn't want him to leave. it blows yin yu away, every time, and she'll feel the warm, squirming way his feelings curl up at it, amazed and quietly in love.) ]
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[she does not look at all happy about it (this fool), but she slowly loosens her hold on him, then draws back so he can get up.
hurry back, yin yu.]
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....right. okay. well! yin yu bows his head and gets up quickly, practically unfolding from where he's settled, and hurries over to fetch the book from flayn's things. he finds it quickly, and, as requested, comes right back.
getting comfortable again with flayn - or, rather, allowing himself to do so - is going to be a different challenge entirely for him, considering he's still more flustered than is necessary and also awkward, but! yin yu sits back where he was before, book in hand. ]
...Is this a comfortable enough way for you to sit...? [ and he has to stop himself from saying "my lady", again, which means he just sort of trails off at the end. help him please he's struggling. ]
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she kind of wants to sit in his lap, actually, so that she can lean back against him and his arms can be around her while they hold the book directly in front of themselves to read it. but that seems a little forward to suggest, even for her.
as they are now is fine.]
I - yes. It is.
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yin yu nods, a little flustered, as he settles back in to where he was before, leaning back against the couch. there's a beat, like he's still trying to decide what to do, before he just ... lifts his arm so she can scoot in a little closer again, if she'd like.
it's subtle, and his ears are red, but if she wants to tuck back close into his side again, that... that would be nice. ]
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that's even better.
it would, perhaps, be more appropriate for her to hesitate at least a little before she scoots in close to his side - but she doesn't. she likes the feeling of being close to him, of sharing her warmth with him, and, well...
it's just the two of them here, isn't it? it shouldn't matter to anyone else what is or isn't proper, here. that's for them to decide.
(her cheeks are warm, though.)]
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embarrassing, but, nice. it takes him a little shifting to get comfortable - his limbs are all very long - but once he's settled, he'll offer flayn the novel. ] ...like this, you'll have to hold it, if you don't mind.
[ he can either hold onto her or...the book... yin yu would do either but this is pretty nice. she may be able to feel a little bit of his hesitance and embarrassment--throw him a bone here. ]
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[flayn would much rather that he hold onto her as opposed to the book, so she nods and takes it, opening it up to where they left off.
she looks up at him, then down at the book.]
Um - can you see it, from here?
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[ while he could tell you the basic plot of the story they had read, even the observant yin yu had forgotten a few details. more than once, he'd found himself soothed by the sound of her voice, but moreso, by the way she just seemed to enjoy the story with her whole being. the way it just seemed to enchant her was a lot more than the story itself. ]
But I can see just fine.
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[...that's sort of flattering? it's really flattering, actually. flayn smiles to herself, and looks down at the book. right. right, she's on the page they were at, which sentence was it...]
Um - I shall begin, then. If you are ready to listen...?
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At your leave.
[ boy i'm glad we started another thread because threading out reading is very hard, ]
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anyway. they read! it's comfortable, to stay cuddled up to yin yu's side as they make their way through the story. so comfortable, in fact, that later on, as they go, flayn can't help but feel a little sleepy. it isn't really easy for her to sleep, ever, but with yin yu here...
oh, she doesn't want to sleep, though. she wants to stay up with him and remember as much about all of this as she can.
so, stubbornly, she keeps going, even as she mispronounces some of the words from the book. oops.]
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relaxing is hard for him, and always has been.
he ends up leaning forward a bit, cheek nestling against the top of her head, and lets the mispronounced words go by; she'll feel the warm, ensconcing feeling of yin yu's fondness, quiet, but a little overwhelming all the same. it's more than fondness, though. he -
it's something he hasn't really felt, ever. an intense and true something, that's hard to describe. watching this wonder of a person trust him with one of her fears - and watching her stumble sleepily, cutely, over words, still desperately trying to stay awake a little longer to spend time with yin yu of all people - is what gives him the tiny, bright realization - i love her.
meditation is a key part of cultivation - of being cognizant of all of your feelings, recognizing them, letting them pass by. it's a few lines down the page further that yin yu finally reaches forward to gently place the bookmark they were using before in the center of the book, so his hand brushes hers. ]
[ there's...arguably more than enough space to sleep; he doesn't want to disturb flayn now that she's so close to slumber. gently, quietly, he'll try to close the book.
and when yin yu speaks, his voice is just soft enough to not disturb the gentle peace they've created, his usual gentle timbre even softer than usual, just a little hesitant. ] ...do you want to stay?
[ stay here. stay with him. he'll walk her back to her cabin if he has to, but if flayn, who fears sleep, is comfortable enough to rest, then by the gods, he'll stay here with her all night. ]
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flayn isn't sure when it started.
but she does know that, right now, there is nowhere else she would rather be than here with him. she doesn't want to be walked back to her cabin. she doesn't want to split up for the night.
she wants to stay here, warm and relaxed and loving him, and keep this moment close to her heart for as long as she possibly can.]
...would that be alright?
[she asks that, because she's concerned - would it be comfortable for him, to sleep here? she knows she's comfortable, because yin yu makes a rather good pillow, but. his comfort is important, too.
...she sounds really sleepy, though. and she makes no move to get up.]
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he takes a moment to fetch one of the throw pillows that's laying around and move it behind his head, his other hand coming to rest gently in flayn's back so he doesn't disturb her too much. ] Mn. [ the noise is agreeing, quiet, and he as he makes the final adjustments, he wriggles down a little so he's laying down properly and flayn can keep just using him as a pillow if she wants, reaching up to pull the blanket up and over flayn's shoulders, even tucking her in a little because he's considerate like that.
yin yu tries to do all of this as carefully as possible, so not to jostle flayn as he slowly settles back, folding his other arm behind his head to act enough as a pillow for himself. it's all yin yu really needs.
and having flayn here is - it's more comfort than he could ask for. ] Rest well, my... [ mmn. his arm settles a little warmer around her, and even if he doesn't sleep right away, it will be a restful night. ] Flayn.
...I'll be here.
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that, more than anything, puts her at ease. she can close her eyes, right now, and drift off to sleep, because when she opens them again, he won't be gone. he'll be here, as promised. yin yu is a man who keeps his promises, and if he swears to her that she won't be alone, then she knows she will not be.
it's been a long while since she's been able to truly believe that.
she doesn't seem at all bothered by his moving around, but that's likely because he's considerate and careful not to jostle her. with a yawn, she curls up at his side, one arm coming around his waist to hold onto him -
he can feel everything she's feeling. affection, peace, trust, love. but just letting him feel it doesn't necessarily feel like enough. she wants to put words to it, so there can't be any doubt.
and so, she mumbles:]
...I love you, Yin Yu.
[in the next breath, she's fast asleep.]
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it shouldn't. it should feel obvious. it's felt obvious all evening, as they were stuck sharing their emotions - but he wasn't able to put a name to it, not really. or rather, any obliviousness towards it was willful. even though it was right there in front of him, it's just...
even now, yin yu wonders how could someone like flayn could love him. what has he possibly done to earn this - this warmth, this affection, this love? flayn is kind and fierce, beautiful and warm, charming, gentle, powerful, someone nearly everyone in this camp adores. in contrast, yin yu is an unnoticeable, presenceless, nobody, a failure, a banished god, the kind of person who fades so easily in the background, eclipsed by the brightness of every star around. but, settled here like this, he doesn't feel like any of those things. not the xianxianyue officer, not his highness the failed martial god of the west.
...he just feels like yin yu. a person with a name. a person who could maybe do something half right to protect flayn, to keep her safe.
from a thrown piece of fruit at a ghost, to a persistent, lovely, endless kindness. from pinky promises, and trials, memorials and flower language. from someone who refused to let him hide, because he thought it would be easier to slip away from everyone instead of make a single bond of his own. from laughing until his sides hurt at a mountain goat that stole their food, from the worst memory of his life that she saw, and accepted, and she loved him anyway.
she loves him anyway.
it's a little while after she's asleep, and he can feel her breathing even out, that yin yu leans forward, and presses his lips to the crown of her head. he lingers there, for a while, eyes closed, feeling so overwhelmingly warm he might burst.
it gets stuck in his throat. it's like he has to push it out, like the words are creaky and old from disuse, because they are. and when yin yu says it, flayn can't even hear him, but he sounds vulnerable, open. quiet.
tender. ]
...I love you, too.
[ it will be another hour before he sleeps properly, but when he does, it will be restful.
yin yu stays curled around her the entire night. ]