Page 69 of Encounter

You’re so fucking horny you’ll just throw yourself at him? Fuck.

I grabbed the cigarette sitting on the top shelf of my work table. Quickly lighting one and exposing myself to the cold air from the outside, I let out a deep, painful exhale and hung my head down as I leaned against the railing.

“I umm...”Crap, my voice’s all messed up.“I hope you... know that you don’t have to— You don’t have to let me do anythin’ that you don’t want. I know you’re not shitfaced or out of it, but... maybe you should do this with a clear head, too.”

The heavy sensation quickly set on my shoulders and filled my stomach from the bottom up. I heard something like a gasp or a grunt behind me but felt too tense to turn around and face him.

Have I let myself get too carried away with this whole Lydy thing?

“I know I’m a lot older than you. That... you might feel like you need to do things, but I assure you that ain’t the case.” Holding the cigarette between my fingers, I pressed it against my lips, but couldn’t force myself to draw in air. The cold night’s breeze started to bite against my skin, and even my mind was now completely cooled down. With a bitter smirk, I sighed. “You always... seem to be goin’ with the motions. Just don't want you thinkin’ that I'll get mad if you reject me.”

Finally, I forced myself to turn around and face him.

Galen stared at me, with about the amount of confusion and wild emotion I had expected. But instead of fear or regret, there was something else.

Drawing his brows together, he mouthed something inaudibly before clearing his throat and speaking out loud. “I’m not so stupid as to keep coming to you if I really thought you'd hurt me.” I got taken back by the reaction. He seemed hurt, offended almost. Not the emotion I would’ve expected seeing from him. “I— I could’ve gone home today, but I chose to come here. I wanted to. You didn’t make me, and... I know I keep spending time here, but I feel safe here and... better than at home.”

I couldn’t tell what was the core emotion behind those determined, sharp words, but I didn’t mean for him to have to explain himself like that. “Okay,” I said firmly, closing the door behind me. Galen stared at me, his shoulders lifting with each heavy, wild breath. “I understand.”

I was the same way, with Lydy. Even though her foster family left much to be desired, it was still better than being home with my father. I knew where Galen was coming from, and I wasn’t going to take it away from him.

God, don’t look at me like you’re going to cry, kid.

“I guess I worried for no good reason is all,” I mumbled, trying to move on.Now, I feel even more stupid. What a damn mess I’ve made.Not only did I make the mood awkward, but now I was even more tense. “It’s really late. You sure you don’t want me to drive you home?”

As soon as I asked, Galen’s eyes widened in a visceral, unfiltered show of what I could only describe as unease. “Could— I know this is stupid, but could I sleep here? It’s already late and... Dad’s been gone for a few days. Sometimes, I don’t— Don’t like staying in that house alone.”

His mother... Fuck, did she kill herself in that house?

Knowing I was helpless against that cute face, I sighed and rubbed the back of my head.

“Alright. Sure. That’s fine.”

There was no point in making him more distraught by kicking him out. Not after he made his way here. Knowing Galen, it probably took him more courage than he let on.

“You want the couch or the bed?” I asked calmly.First ever sleepover, huh...

Standing above him and waiting for a response, I noticed Galen glanced at me before he squeezed the remote in his hands, holding his breath. “I can’t fall asleep on the couch,” he said, in a strangely low, careful voice. “But you... you shouldn’t either. That could hurt your ribs, right?”

I cracked open my mouth in surprise when I finally understood what that undertone was—enticing, provoking. My blood ran hotter and hotter.

Smirking, I stared at Galen, hoping the shameless little bastard would look up at me, but he didn’t. Oh, he was playing it perfectly. He knew what he was doing, and he knew he was the one in control.

Damn. What a few decimals in one’s bloodstream can do...

“Get in the bedroom then. Left side,” I ordered and took the remote from his hands. “Just gotta pop some painkillers and take a leak.”

After Galen walked toward the bedroom, I stood there for a moment, giving myself the time to snap out of it and change my mind, but... there was no going back.

I turned off the TV, all the lights, did what I needed to and entered the bedroom. Galen squinted at me when I briefly turned the light on to see where he and Kitty were—she slept on top of her cat tower in the very left corner, while he sat on the left side of the bed, with pants off, only in underwear and shirt, legs held against his chest.

The timid look he gave me, tainted with the lust I knew was there, drove me wild.

Right after I put the lights out, I dropped the towel on the ground. Knowing he heard it, I couldn’t help but smile. Galen’s breath echoed in my ears as I made my way along the bed and sat down. The door was left slightly open, just in case he felt like he needed to leave. That was my last message to him, his way out.

I laid my head down.This has got to be the first time someone slept in this bed with me.Not counting the very few one-night stands.

Galen’s presence itself made my heart race, and all the blood was already rushing South. After I put the blanket over me, it took Galen a while to also move down and slide under.

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