Renaissance

Episode 9

Autry’s POV

I guided Cecelia into the room I rented. I suspect we have about two hours before my brother can reach the hotel. This will give us enough time to take a shower each and unwind, maybe have some time to talk, even. I didn’t want to push Cecelia so much, but I needed to apologise to her, for my sake as well, properly. 

I watched her back as she hesitantly walked into the room. I put the clothes I carried from the dry cleaner on the bed and tried to categorise them, so they made some sense when she came out of the shower. I separated the toiletries I bought for her and put them into the make-up bag we purchased to give her when she was ready to hop in. While I did that, she sat at the armchair, looking out to the small garden the hotel had, lost in thought. I quickly took a look into the bathroom and started the water so it will be nice and warm when Cecelia walks in. 

“Cecelia, you can use the shower first,” I called, breaking her line of thought. She simply nodded and gotten up. And I headed for the door. 

“Where are you going?” she asked, almost with a panicked voice.

“I thought I’d wait in the lobby so that you can take a shower without worrying about my presence,” I said nonchalantly.

“I don’t mind,” she said. I had no idea what she wanted me to actually do.

“You don’t mind me staying?” I asked to clarify. She just nodded her head, heading into the bathroom; I quickly handed her the make-up bag and a clean towel. I sat on the same armchair she was using a moment ago so that I could be faced away from the bathroom door. I looked out of the window, fighting Godric to convince him that the last thing she wanted in that shower right now was probably my sorry ass. He knew but was insufficient in resisting the urge to claim her, considering the situation. I was in the same state, unable to control my hard-on only by imagining her beautiful form in the shower. I sighed and tried to concentrate my attention on the swaying leaves out in the garden. 

*Cecelia’s POV* 

He took me to the hotel room. I was too nervous. As I walked in, I’ve seen the small garden visible from the tall window in the room. I slowly made my way to the armchair beside it and sat. The garden was so beautiful. If it were the 19-year-old me, I would be jumping with joy right now. Still, the scenery accomplished to move somethings inside me. 

“Cecelia, you can use the shower first,” Autry informed me, startling me. I nodded, getting up and headed for the bathroom. However, I saw that he was headed for the door. 

“Where are you going?” I asked. I knew the answer; he compensated me for everything and was leaving me again. It must be it! I shouldn’t care, but I did anyway, and even in the state I am in, it worried me to no extent, thinking that he will leave me again. 

“I thought I’d wait in the lobby so that you can take a shower without worrying about my presence,” he simply said. A warm relief hugged my sorry excuse of a being, and I relaxed. Without thinking, I said 

“I don’t mind,” he looked puzzled in response to my reaction. 

“You don’t mind me staying?” he asked to clarify. No, I wanted to say, I want you to stay, to hold me close, to end my pain, to mend to my wounds… I wasn’t able to tell any of that. I just nodded my head and headed for the bathroom. He hastily came after me, handing me a bag and a towel which looked and smelled so clean. I took myself to the bathroom. 

I was surprised to find the water already running. Autry must have come to set all this up. I opened the bag he handed me; inside, there was a shampoo, a conditioner, a hairbrush, a jasmine scented shower gel, a loofah, toothbrush and toothpaste, some lotions and a razor. Everything a girl would need to bathe was already in there.

I studied my reflection on the mirror for a moment. I visibly lost weight. My cheeks were shrunken, and my eyes looked bigger. I had traces of dirt around my face, and my ginger-coloured hair looked like it was an earthy brown. I was a total mess. No wonder my mother wanted nothing to do with me. 

I got under the warm water. It helped me relax, soothing the parts of my body I never even realised were aching. I thoroughly shampooed my hair twice, then put some conditioner on. I washed my body with the shower gel and loofah, brushed my teeth too. Then, I just stand there under the shower and let the warm water to fall through my body. I felt more alive with each passing moment. It was a miracle how every time I feel like a decent human being, I feel refreshed, and my emotional pain subsides as well as any physical ones. As if it washed my concerns away together with all the dirt and debris. 

After a while, I stepped out, carefully wrapping the towel around me, making sure nothing was peeking. I exited the bathroom. 

I found Autry sitting in the armchair with his back turned to the bathroom door. I smiled to myself. He did have some very thoughtful acts that warmed my heart instantly. I knew he already knew I was out of the shower, but he wasn’t moving a muscle. He just sat there, looking out the window. 

“I am out, Autry. You can get in now,” I informed him. He very carefully got up and quickly turned around. I suspected he closed his eyes so that he wouldn’t see me. I smiled once more. He grabbed something from his bag and walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind him. 

I looked at the clothes very neatly categorised on the bed. Only the underwear bag was still unpacked. I sighed. Too bad he made us go through that hell. Before showing us these acts of kindness and thoughtfulness, I was ready to let him jump on me the night before my birthday. Still, I am so resentful of him now that I couldn’t imagine anything like that, even though my body thought otherwise. 

I selected a pair black of jeggings, a sports bra and some oversize-shirt in orange colour; Wearing some sports socks and the olive-green sports shoes Autry bought for me. I brushed the tangles off of my hair and braided them, securing everything as a crown around my head with a black ribbon in a butterfly knot at the crown of my head. I loved this style; it was comfortable, classy and sassy all at once. I looked inside the cosmetics he bought, and I put some lipgloss on for the first time in my life. The shopkeeper gave me an earthy-reddish-orange lipgloss, and I have to admit, it compliments my eyes and hair. 

I started to put the other clothes away to be ready when Autry was out and his brother came to collect us. I was almost done with the last batch, the dresses when Autry stepped out of the bathroom. I instinctively looked up...to a god! His burnt sienna coloured wavy hair was dripping wet. I followed the dripping water through his god-like tuned torso, leading me to the towel, hanging low on his hips, to cover only his private parts and nothing more. He was a sight to enjoy, and when I caught myself, I was devouring the view so openly, I felt the blood rushing to my head. I turned my back instantly. I wished the ground would split into two so that I can bury myself in it. 

I heard his chuckling from behind me. I peeked sideways to see that he was casually drying his hair with a smaller towel.

“No need for you to be ashamed, Cecelia,” he called. “I have nothing to hide from you; you are free to enjoy this sight as you wish.”

I was getting more and more embarrassed by his remark. 

“I- I didn’t- I…” I said unintelligibly. 

“The new clothes suit you better than that old junk of a dress.” he said, changing the subject, to my relief. “you look beautiful either way, but I prefer this,” he added. 

“Why?” I asked. 

“You look much comfortable and happy in them,” he says innocently. I don’t know what I expected. Maybe I expected him to say they showed off my curves better, or they showed more cleavage or something in those lines, but no! He had to say I look happier in them! I wanted to stay mad at him for all eternity, but he was making it impossible with how he treated me for the last ten hours or so. 

“Thank you,” I said in a whisper, going back to folding the last bit of clothing, which will probably be able to carry me through 5 years.

“No, thank you, Cecelia,” he answered. I looked at him, puzzled. “You saved me, and I thank you for that,” he said, his pine-green eyes were shining with an interesting sparkle. 

Go and hug him. Bendis instructed in my head. 

Are you crazy? I answered her. 

You want it, and he wants it; it’ll help heal us all...just go and hug him. He won’t eat you. she pressed further. Better more, maybe he will…  she said with a giggle, showing me things he may do to us. 

You betrayer! I shouted, turning beet-red just by the thought.

“What’s Bendis saying?” Autry asked, and I automatically answered him, caught off-guard for a split second.

“She wants me to hug you.” the corner of his lip curled up on his right into an innocent smirk, which was breathtaking. “Not that it’s gonna hap-” my exclamation was cut short as he came and hugged me. I thought to push him away, but the moment his body touched mine, sparkles -no- fireworks of electricity came rushing through everywhere his body touched mine. It was a delicious experience, and my body seemed not ready to let go; furthermore, I was ready for the images Bendis had played in my mind earlier. I hugged him back and heard a low growl escaping my lips. Causing Autry to stir before me. I felt so right against his muscular chest, yet my mind was in a fight against my body. My instincts said I needed him, like water, to survive, where my reason was screaming me to stop, turn and run. I didn’t know which to believe, yet, it was true that being held by him, like this, somewhat eased the pain sitting in my chest from the information about my real family. 

“Cecelia…” he breathed out my name, like a melody from a beautiful love song. My heart skipped a beat. I looked up at his face without distancing myself from his chest. His eyes bore into mine, his one hand came up from the small of my back to my face, as he dried the tears I haven’t even realised I shed. I just watched as his beautifully carved lips closed in to kiss the place he just rid of a tear. I closed my eyes. “Please, Cecelia”, he begged yet again, “Let me cure you…” his heartbeat was racing as mine “let our love for each other cure us.” he pleaded. 

I looked at his jewel-ish eyes once more; not being able to resist the urge anymore, I closed the tiny gap between our lips and finally kissed him.

*Autry’s POV* 

She was folding her dresses and tucking them into the bags when I stepped out of the shower. She looked up, and without meeting my eyes, her eyes scanned my body from top to bottom, so sensually, I was thankful for the thickness of the towel, covering my instant hard-on from prying eyes. The longer her eyes devoured my body, the more I washed with a painful need to just touch her places as she has never been touched before. She then abruptly turned her back to me, her cheeks flushing, making me chuckle. I started drying off my hair with a smaller towel and realised she was peeking at me still, with surreptitious sideways glances. 

“No need for you to be ashamed, Cecelia. I have nothing to hide from you. You are free to enjoy this sight as you wish.” I said. For some reason, she blushed even more, as if she wasn’t beet-red already. 

“I- I didn’t…” she blabbed. 

“The new clothes suit you better than that old junk of a dress.” I stated to spare her from the uneasiness. “you look beautiful either way, but I prefer this.” 

“Why?” she asked. Still, her back turned to me. I shrugged, although she couldn’t see.

“You look much comfortable and happy in them,” I answered, obviously. 

“Thank you,” she whispered and went on folding the remaining few dresses. I shook my head. This woman was unbelievable. Why, thank me now! I destroyed what should have been cherished with all my might. 

“No, thank you, Cecelia,” I corrected. She looked at me as if to say why so I elaborated. “You saved me, and I thank you for that.” I watched as her eyes clouded over for a minute. Then her cheeks were flushing all over again. I was curious about what was going on. “What’s Bendis saying?” I asked. And to my surprise, she actually answered. 

“She wants me to hug you.” that was a wish I more than happily could grant, and learning that the inner struggle I needed for her to start forgiving me has already begun made me fill with undefinable joy. I strode towards her as she started a sentence, which was destined to be left unfinished, her eyes on the floor “Not that it’s gonna hap-” 

I hugged her. Finally, I did! And it did all the things that legends told a mate would do to your body. It sent fireworks all through my skin, my body. Never have I ever experienced anything even close to the sensation I felt at that moment. And when she reached up to hug me back, a very erotic low growl escaping, I was flying to the moon and back and all over again. I positioned myself so that my not-so-surprising hard-on didn’t poke her and break the magic of the moment. I felt little streams of tears dropping onto my bare chest from the Jadeites that were her eyes.

“Cecelia…” I said, hoping my emotions would reach through just from that. Slowly Cecelia looked up at me, not really willing to let go. I watched as her beautiful eyes shed tears; I raised one of my hands to dry them off of her beautiful cheks. She didn’t protest as I leaned in to put gentle kisses on her face. She closed her eyes to my touch. 

“Please, Cecelia”, I pleaded “, Let me cure you…” my tension rising with every word in anticipation of a rejection “, let our love for each other cure us.” 

I watched as she opened her eyes once again and bore them into mine. It was as if she was searching for answers, which I didn’t know if I had. I was beyond surprised as her juicy pink lips closed in and in and finally met mine. My mind stopped working with the indescribable pleasure she was giving me, just by a simple kiss. My eyes were closed, and I felt like I was flying. Then I started hearing soft sounds of the ocean caressing the sand and the salty smell of a sea-side. When I opened my eyes for a split second I was shocked to see that I was on a beach, with Cecelia kissing me in my arms, I didn’t know what was happening, but hell if I cared a soul. I cupped her cheek with the hand I raised before to dry her tears. She responded to my touch by leaning in more into my hand. I couldn’t believe what was happening, but it was happening nonetheless. I didn’t pursue anything. I just kissed her lips, let her lead the pace, and I would accept willingly when she was done. But it seemed she wasn’t done just yet. That’s when I heard a ringing voice from a distance; it kept coming closer the longer it kept ringing on. Cecelia unwillingly broke our kiss. The kiss, which left us both utterly out of breath. I opened my eyes once more, we were back in the hotel room, and the ringing voice was coming from the cellphone I purchased today. 

I left a chastise kiss on Cecelia’s nose, apologising for letting her go, and went to answer the damned phone.

“What?” I asked curtly.

“I’m in the lobby?” Damon answered, apparently taken aback by my attitude. 

“Okay, we’ll be down shortly,” I said before hanging up. 

I looked at Cecelia to check if she was in regret and ready to meet with my brother for the first time. Her eyes were shining again, and she had a better overall aura around her. It worked; even if it wouldn’t last forever, our little intimacy bubble was able to cure both of us in different ways. 

“Let’s not make your brother wait for more than necessary,” Cecelia said with a voice that was like music to my ears.