Respite For The Weary [Liltotto, Dorian]

She'd 'pfft' at his explanation. Good lord he really was tired, dare she say delirious - though Dorian normally showed his affections quite well, she was getting a very different vibe from him now, several days restless. It was a nice rest from everything that happened, though she definitely was going to give him a very stern 'never fucking work yourself to that point ever again' when he was more cognizant, for now she'd just run with the dumb fluff feelings, having an awful lot of those just looking at his body. It was almost embarrassing, like what was she, a teenager? Feeling that way?

"Ughh, for fucks sake dropping the 'beautiful' on me.." She'd grumble in joking annoyance, face red and holding his hand with two of hers, laughing softly. Even her plain features occasionally revealed another woman at times, and this instance she was smiling warmly as if bad times never befell her, at least not with him. She didn't have to think about it with him.

Wordlessly, she'd pull the two of them into the shower, the warm rain of water hitting her back and chest, gently wrapping her arms around Dorian's waist as she'd sigh, pulling herself closer to him, "I'm kidding, I like it when you call me stuff. Just not in front of other people, they'll think I'm a wussy."

"That's just as well, then, because I think I'd rather you be the only one who heard me say it. After all, it's not meant for anyone but the two of us."

He went along with her lead, certainly not awake enough to properly take charge of the situation, but at least enough to keep pace and maintain his cool. As Liltotto held herself closer, Dorian effortlessly returned her embrace, arms wrapped around her in a manner that wasn't just affectionate, but carried with it an undeniable air of protectiveness. Was he remotely strong enough to protect someone like her? No, he wasn't. But he could certainly work on that, and it didn't change that he'd worried for her even knowing she wasn't in the city when the attack had occurred.

"But knowing you like it, now I feel like just 'beautiful' was too simple. Generic, even. I can do better than that, can't I?"

The warm water running over them certainly added to the atmosphere of the moment, and Dorian could say with absolute certainty that he'd never felt any moment of intimacy that compared with this. He'd always been rather closed off, after all. Liltotto was, really, the first person to pierce through that shell he'd put up decades ago.

"Mm... 'Captivating,' maybe. That at least includes more than just your features, not that any sane man could undersell those. I think it captures that way you carry yourself, so forward, gruff even at times. The little changes in your expression when you're annoyed, or pleased with yourself. How sweet you are when no one else is around."

Yeah, that about summed it all up. At least, as much as Dorian could think to put together with how tired he was. As it turned out, when you finally stopped working and took a moment to enjoy a relaxing moment with your lovely girlfriend, exhaustion really began to creep up on you. His smile grew a little more coy again as he spoke again, finishing this whole rambling train of thought. Ah, he really hoped she shut him up soon.

"Or would you prefer 'darling?' I think it has a good ring to it."

She couldn't help but break into a small laugh as she led, holding him, a sense of relief washing over her much like the patter of warm water on her skin. Just hours ago she was terrified of what she would return to; several people she knew and even held fondness for were in terrible shape, and she honestly didn't know how she'd feel if Dorian was hurt, or worse. She'd already lost hundreds to war and the marches of time, but somehow she felt that losing him would hurt vastly more than others. Did love make her biased? Possibly, but she didn't feel wrong in her feelings - She'd feel crushed if he was unceremoniously taken away.

She'd lift her head up from resting on his shoulder with his musing of what to call her, "Yeah?" She'd breathe out, letting his rambles slide for a bit, just enjoying the sound of his voice reverberating in the small space with a fond smile, a restful expression on her face. She honestly was somewhat concerned that she wasn't expressive enough with him at times, having held that flat emotional expressiveness all the way from childhood with only specific things pushing her to have a lasting visible emotion, but she felt some comfort in Dorian taking notice of such little things - That was one of the things she always appreciated from him.

Soon her gaze would meet his once more as he settled on 'darling', "That's good enough for now.'
Though before the man could go off on another delirious ramble of what best to call her, she'd lean in, closing her eyes, and gently placed her lips on his.

Ah, that was good, she had shut him up. Dorian hadn't entirely expected this to be the manner in which she did it, but he would be the last man to argue with her methods. After all, they were entirely to his benefit right about now, and his hand moved gently to the small of her back (and not an inch lower) as he held her all the closer.

Was he particularly good at kissing? No, not really. Dorian had never had time for relationships, after all, and even this one had snuck up on him all at once. He would have worried about that in most cases, and found it even a bit embarrassing. But this was a situation that made it rather hard to be embarrassed.

So he simply kissed her back, for as long as she was willing. It wasn't overly forward, and admittedly, there was perhaps even a little bit of hesitation. How could there not be? He hardly knew what he was doing, and the last thing he wished was to make a mistake in something so delicate as this.

Yeah, she'd let herself be embarrassed in a minute. She and Dorian mostly went about with pecks on the cheek and the like, but she didn't recall if they'd ever done a full kiss on the lips so far. It definitely felt a lot more intimate, but maybe that was just her perspective; didn't make her feel any less hot in the face though. Soon she'd part the kiss, her lips firm in a straight line, before pushing her face against his bare chest and letting out a grunt,

"Oh my fucking god I did the stupid movie thing." She'd mumble, clearly trying to hold back laughter, "I'm sooo bad at this."

While Liltotto may have been doing her best to keep from laughing, Dorian certainly had no such reservaions, and be let out an earnest, heartfelt laugh at the whole situation. The two of them were quite similar in these respects, weren't they?

"Think nothing of it, darling. I, for one, think that was quite perfect."

Of course, he knew that it hadn't been in any practical sense. They were both amateurish at best in the field of romance, awkwardly fumbling through it after a lifetime without it. But that was thoroughly inconsequential when they genuinely enjoyed one another. Whether she was good or bad at it hardly mattered, so long as it was her.

Slightly raising her head, she'd give him narrowed eyes, "You'd think anything's perfect with how braindead tired you are."

It wasn't as if she hadn't noticed how much more open he was now compared to his typical self, and as flattering as his comments were, she really felt that he should get on to getting comfortable, on the couch and not the shower.

"Alright I think that's enough shower, yeah?" Her face still looked warmed as she'd turn the water off, "We gotta actually do the cuddling part of this."

She'd hop out of the shower, going off to the closet to get Dorian his own towel, gesturing him to wait for a second as she'd go through a few drawers to come back fully clothed with a neatly folded t-shirt and shorts laid on her hands, offering them to him.

"You ain't cuddling me in sweaty clothes." She'd say in a direct tone, her gaze averted in slight embarrassment "They ain't fancy but they're comfortable. I'll get your outfit cleaned."

She'd place them on the counter beside him, soon going off to the bedroom door, "I'm gonna get snacks ready while you do that, I'm starving."

"Then you'll just have to see if I give the same appraisal after I've slept, won't you?"

He didn't particularly mind the clothes she was offering, but Dorian was hardly the sort to care about what he looked like behind closed doors. After all, his appearance wasn't something he kept up simply for the sake of it, and right now, he was squarely in favor of being comfortable.

Admittedly, changing took a bit longer than he might have liked, but that was simply because he was exhausted. He finally walked out to the couch, and his steps were certainly growing heavy now. As he collapsed onto it, he could feel his eyes begging to close, but Dorian wasn't going to sleep yet.

After all, he'd said he intended to cuddle with Liltotto, hadn't he?

Within a few minutes, Liltotto would come by with several bowls and plates of snacks, one plate with wrapped sandwiches she had stored in the freezer so she didn't just have junk to eat when she came back, already having gone through one bowl of chips to make her stomach shut up for a bit. The weakness and pain had been settling in, having been too wrapped up in feelings to immediately notice it. Steadily and quickly she carried and placed everything one by one on the coffee table, her more recent experience waiting tables obvious as she'd sigh and sit on the couch next to Dorian's head.

"Sit up, I gotta get comfortable too." She'd toss the folded blanket on top of his lower body, sighing softly as she'd shuffle underneath him so that he was lying somewhat on top of her, though there was enough room to lie closely side by side. Given she slept on this thing, of course since she shot up in size she'd invest in a larger couch. She wouldn't cease movement til the man's head was dangerously close to her breasts, not that she minded, lying her own head on a pillow, grabbing the remote and flicking the TV on, playing a show with lowered volume to not be too disturbing.

"Comfy?" She'd ask, lying a hand on his chest.

This was, really, nothing short of heavenly. If he were more awake, he might have thought more intently on just how ideal a position this was to be in, nestled against her in such a manner, but he was only just clinging to consciousness at this point. The exhaustion he'd simply opted to ignore in all his muscles was firmly settling in, and he simply smiled faintly as he spoke in a quiet voice.

"I could hardly think of any place more comfortable."

Really, he knew he probably ought to eat, too, but he didn't quite have the energy for that. He just closed his eyes, and just as quickly, he was out cold.