He calls for her, and her response is to freeze.

And then she sinks lower, sucking in a breath as the hot water rises above her chin, brushes her lips. It leaves her boiling, overstimulated, too damn hot.

But it was better than the surmounting emotions that she struggles to keep at bay. The pain is better than the lonliness and the desperation, the hunger to devour him.

She was going mad.

TmVGh7F|

heat points: 706

KING WAYLAND

Emma glances at him, the movement sharp and aggressive, depicting all of the disgruntled irritation that she has at her disposal. She doesn't breathe a word, however, and instead leans back in her seat and pulls had hand away from the table.

Just as she glances away from him and his shameless feast, King broaches a new subject which brings her right back to him. Perhaps that's what he wanted.

"I have."

Warm, rough hands had once swept her off her feet, wrapped her up in his arms. But not anymore.

KING WAYLAND

She acts as a buffer, a blanket to disguise him amongst the rest. Realistically, there is a pretty good chance no one is really paying much attention. Most of the people in the bar this late at night are too drunk or too high to care. But those whose eyes do linger stray away, not keen on catching the ire of one of Rocket's beasts.

Emma observes him indirectly, more focused on the beer in front of her than the fake smile he presses to his lips. He makes it look easy, makes it look real, but she knows better. He'd almost certainly learned that trick from Rocket.

Unlike him, however, she doesn't smile. Her face is neutral, unreadable, purposely cold.

"You'd have to be the best to do that - and unfortunately, you're looking at her."

He tilts his drink toward her and she reciprocates, clinking the lip of her own against his glass. She follows his lead, taking a sip, and sets it back down against the countertop.

"Conquering cities through fear and manipulation. Just a day in the life, you know."

There is a thinly veiled note of bitterness in her tone.

boruta maher

Emma doesn't even open an eye. In fact, she settles into relaxation just a little bit harder. She doesn't admit it, but her lack of response, negative or positive, is a sign of her growth. In some ways she appreciates his attempts at conversation, at his interest in her, at his general presence.

More and more lately she's come to appreciate what little company came her way.

Eventually, however, the woman responds with a soft sigh imitating defeat.

"Whatever you'd like to call her, I suppose."

y_UhxkQf

heat points: 873

Sénon Game

"You tell me."

Alcohol and poor judgement clouds her feelings, clouds her thoughts, leaves her numb. She craves physical touch, craves intimacy, craves company. It leaves her hollow, desperate to fill in the cracks with something temporary in the hopes that something, anything, was better than feeling nothing.

It is a selfish, terrible plea - but it is one that she finds herself indulging in anyway.

But she does not approach him. The temptation to make him chase her is too strong.

zehaT6Gb

heat points: 796

KING WAYLAND

"Mm.."

She shifts only slightly, rolling her shoulders and curling her toes.

"That's what someone who's following me might say."

But there is a note of amusement in her tone, encouraged by the relaxation seeping into her tense muscles. She sighs, the exhale coming directly from her toes. The woman's eyes remain closed, her lips drawn in a perfect line, but she does not appear the slightest bit annoyed having him in her presence.

In fact, it felt natural.

"You should try relaxing, Bo. That is what this is for, is it not?"

She can hear his labored breathing, feel the static between his shoulderblades that only a man who bears a heavy weight could possibly carry. She knows that static all too well.

GmirJiUT

heat points: 961

boruta maher

She did, and that was precisely the problem.

Inevitably, however, she does. Day drinking does not look good on her, and the effect of the hot springs and sauna only magnify her intoxicating. She watches him openly this time after he speaks, and it unnerves her how immediate her intrigue is at the use of her nickname.

"Is that what you want?"

zePfTGun

heat points: 896

KING WAYLAND

It was coincidence, she reasoned, that King was here at the same time she was. And it was possessiveness that convinced her to round him up before someone else did. Only one of which she would admit to.

But now she sits across from him in a private hot spring, pushing a floating cup of sake across the bubbling water. Her attention lingers only for a moment at a time, hidden behind steam and raised cups of drink.

5ryQxf1G

heat points: 981

KING WAYLAND

The warm water, the steam, the scalding rocks pressed against her back with complimentary massages- she finds she just keeps coming back.

Not even the thought of being paired up with strangers deters her anymore. The relaxation and the calm, the mindless thought, the static, all of it is worth the trouble of spending time with another human being.

And so she doesn't look up even a little bit as footsteps near. Her face is buried in a soft cushion and hot stones bury comfortably into her back. She is totally relaxed and indifferent to the goings-on around her. Her lack of clothing does not seem to concern her either.

kjqvoZzX

heat points: 999

boruta maher

Where his eyes linger, Emma's avoid if only because she does not care.

She didn't come here to socialize - and she had, in fact, requested a solo experience. But it was frowned upon, apparently, as this was meant to be a couples or group retreat. The fact she came alone had then insisting they pair her up with another single.

One could imply what they may.

And so here she is, being coaxed into speech by a young man she met recently in battle. She leans against the warm stone, pressing her shoulders against it and closing her eyes.

"Good for you."

pOSOmXJF

heat points: 973

Sénon Game