"Hm. That might be the only thing you're right about."

She narrows her eyes, suspicious especially given the winded but not discouraged tone in his voice. That, and he starts spewing nonsense in the form of empty compliments. Empty if only because he is a stranger, and this isn't the first time she's heard similar.

"... Men."

But when he reaches for her other hand to assist the first, she is pulled closer to him so that her nose brushes his cheek. Temptation purses her lips and her hands are stiff in an attempt to express how not-interested she was.

Or was she?

vqUmq1jZ

heat points: 714

Sénon Game

"Most men do."

She is straight-faced and serious even though, from anyone else, her comment would likely have been delivered with sarcasm. Perhaps there is a little bit of that in there somewhere, but she doesn't show it.

The fact his eyes wander only supports her claim.

Emma sniffs, tilting her chin up as water splashes her skin. He is tapping the water, splashing it just enough that it reaches her. Beckoning her like a dog, how original.

"..."

Reluctance shows briefly, a glimmer of truth behind usually cold, unresponsive eyes. She watches him carefully, unwilling to approach and yet unable to walk away. She's selfish.

And so she stays.

"Fine."

8pHBnEp0

heat points: 527

KING WAYLAND

"Hm."

She doesn't argue because it isn't her place to. He's right, and she knows that, vague or no.

And, up until he asks her a question, Emma is staring down the bottom of her glass and swirling its contents, losing her thoughts in it's idle movement and probably putting too much thought into their simple conversation and whether either of them had to do anything.

But the mention of his dad as well as the glass raised to his lips brings her out of it. She frowns openly, staring at him for a long moment.

"Does he want something from you?"

boruta maher

Ah, social cues. She was evidently still bad at those when she immerses herself in a more casual setting. The slight tilt of his chin and the sharpness in his eyes is telling: she's made a poor joke.

And, rather than attempt to fix it, Emma chooses to let it fester.

Some jokes just fall flat.

"Must be some coworker."

The lack of a name drop suggests it isn't any of her business. Normally she wouldn't care, and a part of her reasons that she doesn't. But he looks and acts like a cornered rabbit, swapping from trembling and stiff but fully prepared to rip you apart with sharp back claws.

Bo's smile causes her to pause this time and appear mildly uncomfortable. Or perhaps it is because of the company she finds across his shoulder. A familiar, painful face traverses the dance floor with someone else. Ghostly fingers hold her, uncomfortably familiar.

With a blink that is followed by a small, shrill voice raised in an accusatory tone, the feeling evaporates.

"You're looking for co-workers instead of me now?"

Curious, Emma glances back at Bo, very subtly amused.

Only for that amusement to come to a halt at another familiar face-- too familiar, as it happened. She blinks slowly, glancing now between Sénon Game and Bo. Did they know each other too? Small world.

In the confusion and stumbling of words, Emma chooses to focus on Boruta's stressed collection of speech, putting pieces together she really had no business in.

Emma does not miss the way Senon's attention never once lands on her. How curious, as that was not the case when they'd last met in the hot springs. Once again, the woman's attention shifts to the kid, waiting for his reaction. Senon doesn't stay long, choosing to chase after some black speck in the crowd or something.

boruta maher Roman Maher Sénon Game

"Or something really wants us together."

The way his attention scans the room to locate the sound of her voice, to find the source of a single syllable easily lost in the noisy room stirs something. She swallows slowly, savoring the taste of the champagne she has been sampling.

Focus on anything but the familiar feeling in her stomach that never leads anywhere good.

But the fact remained, he had heard her. He had looked for her, and he had found her. She wasn't invisible.

"Are you looking for someone?"

boruta maher

She comes alone, with no one on her arm.

The feeling is bittersweet, even now. Ever the lone wolf, since domesticated and cut loose and expected to pick up where she'd left off. Expected to survive as she once had despite the core piece of herself being transformed, retrained, reprogrammed.

Perhaps that is why a specific face in the crowd catches her attention so quickly.

Boruta strides across the room with purpose, exuding agitation that puts him out of place. He isn't here for pleasure, his eyes skirt everyone in his path. He's looking for something, or someone. And although she knows it isn't her, she finds it all too easy to follow his coattails.

"Bo."

Emma Wolfe

Emma was so difficult to read that she had stopped learning how to read herself. The hesitation in her voice had caught herself off guard just as much as it had him.

And now that he didn't have anything to say, the air felt even more tense than it had a moment ago.

He apologizes, and somehow that makes everything worse.

"Why?"

O74sr9Hz

heat points: 855

boruta maher

"Oh, I heard you, I just have no idea what you're talking about or what it is that you want. Am I supposed to remember you?"

But she does, she's just choosing to be difficult.

"You're asking a lot of questions to gauge whether or not I have a partner. Do you want to be handled? Is that it? You want to know if I'll give you a taste of whatever 'firm hands' you seem to think I have?"

There is a dangerous flash in her eye as she approaches. His closed eyes only make it that much easier to advance without warning.

"Is this what you want?"

This time, her voice is a whisper as her hand disappears beneath the surface to fasten on him with a warning squeeze.

lNZjaTyG

heat points: 805

Sénon Game

They were far more alike than she gave him credit for- than she ever would, probably. Where she doesn't dare to let anything in, more dedicated to icing people out, icing the world out with her cold front, he offers warmth even if it is an artificial sun.

She watches him, surprisingly thoughtful, as their glasses clink together. The contents slosh back and forth before being raised to their lips in unison. It's bitter taste sits heavily in her belly, giving her something else to focus on.

"You don't have to."

But that wasn't true, or at least, it wasn't advice she took herself.

"What are you doing back here?"

boruta maher

He was talking to himself, bringing up points and conversation pieces from a moment she scarcely put much thought in the moment it had ended. She remains unresponsive for the time being, leaning her neck against the warm stone and allowing the water to lap at her skin.

But even in doing so, even in avoiding answering him, the man is relentless and constant. His gaze is hotter on her skin than the water and steam is, and she eventually rises from the water enough to face him.

"Can I help you with something?"

Emma removes her sunglasses with an exasperated noise of annoyance. Piercing golden eyes stare back at the man, and this time her sight is unhindered.

GM20OQuV

heat points: 822

Sénon Game

She digs her nails, not having fully retreated. The taste of him was familiar and had inspired a hunger. Though she'd recoiled originally, she'd only leaned back so far. His taunting or teasing- or maybe his honesty if it had been that only serves to encourage her.

"You're lying."

Temptation sits at the forefront of her thought, electricity sparking from her fingertips at their close proximity. The warm water stings, the loneliness aches, the choice he offers her is too intense.

"What do you want?"

5RByeO6K

heat points: 602

KING WAYLAND

It is undetectable if only because she is inebriated. She is sloppy, clumsy, hungry. Where she crashes against him with more force than may be necessary, he is far more gentle, far more deliberate.

He cups either side of her face, bringing her closer, deepening their kiss. To steady herself - she reasons - her hand presses against his chest. But this time her touch is softer, without that same rage she once had.

Eventually, reality sets in and she moves to pull away, almost recoiling.

"Is that what you wanted?"

She sounds bitter.

9Xw8oxBZ

heat points: 609

KING WAYLAND