Chapter Text
Blinding white.
Connie's eyes rolled painfully as she blinked the sunlight away. She'd almost forgotten how bright it could be outside of the gorge, especially this close to the oasis, with the spring sun reflecting angrily upon the water's surface.
About half the town was gathered despite the early workday - the buzzing of anticipatory energy rippled through the crowd in a charged murmur, as though Sandrock itself were holding its breath. Its eternally parched throat would finally be quenched, and with it, well, maybe Connie could finally take a break.
“And with that, I officially declare that the city-state of Sandrock no longer has a water shortage!” Trudy called out to uproarious applause.
Oh yeah, she was supposed to cut-
She fumbled around with the shears, sweating from all the attention, and watched as the crimson ribbon fell to the ground.
She was swarmed. Various townsfolk approached and thanked her, told her she’d saved the town again - some even gave her gifts.
Rocky pushed a condensed power stone into her hands and slapped her on the back, almost sending her stumbling head first into the newly-filled oasis. Mabel had baked her a sand jujube cake - oh gosh, Mabel’s baking was just as good as her Pa’s, she was going to destroy the thing when she got home.
Pablo gave her an…almost-gift of face cream, with the added explanation that she looked terribly wind-chapped and dry. That the dark circles beneath her eyes made her look tired and did her no favors. But also a ‘Thank you darling, the water will really help with my business’.
Well, of course she was tired! Shadowing Wei and Heidi for a last minute inspection at the crack of dawn would do that to a person. It was perfect of course, she knew it would be - with how meticulous she'd been, with how she’d bled over it, sometimes literally-
And then she saw him, and she froze.
It must mean something, right? That something had changed? Just catching sight of Logan - standing awkwardly to the side, an uncomfortable expression on his face as he took in the crowd - made her mind stall out.
Anytime Connie hadn't actively been working, her thoughts had drifted to him. She'd laid in her cot late at night, in the tent she’d shared with Mi-an, sleep fitfully eluding her. How could she sleep when her chest clenched painfully at the mere thought of him? When those foreign, soft feelings would leak out, like ink bleeding into water?
She caught his eye, and her feet drew her to him like a moth to a flame.
“Well, well, well,” he drawled when she was finally close enough to hear him. It was like his whole demeanor shifted when she entered his orbit, from stiff and imposing to…he looked oddly smug for some reason.
“Well?”
“WELL,” he finished. “The hero saves the day again.” He rocked on the balls of his feet, and it looked like he was trying to hide his smile; trying to play it cool.
“I hate you,” she said, unable to hide her own.
“Let me taste. Gotta make sure.” He leaned down and softly brushed his lips over hers, and it was everything she’d been obsessing over for the past few weeks. When he pulled away, she nearly followed him like his lips were a magnet.
He hummed. “Hate tastes pretty good on you, I reckon.”
“Well, there's plenty more where that came from. I'm finally back,” she said with a laugh.
“Yeah.” His hand made its way to her hip, squeezing, eyes darkening with desire. “You certainly are.”
“Don't have work this morning?”
He shrugged. “Figure I oughta scope the danger out ‘round here. Heard there was a monster that needed hadlin’ - came out from the gorge earlier this mornin’.”
“Huh, I almost forgot how painful it can be when you try to make a joke.”
His grin finally cracked. “Shoulda fought you and the Corps off with a stand-up routine.”
“We would've never caught you if you had.”
“Uh, ya never did. You're always misrememberin’ things, Con’. It's gettin’ outta hand, really,” he scoffed.
He took a moment to study her, running a thumb under one of her eyes. “Feelin’ alright?”
“Last week was really a push. Was almost worried I wouldn't make the uh…deadline again.” She finished on an audible sigh.
“You oughta go and get some rest then.” He kissed her forehead. "Get on outta here before someone else tries to keep you.”
“You can come with me…you know, if you don't have anything else planned…”
His eyes widened once the implication registered. “Yeah? Well, I guess I don't need to be anywhere right now. Need an escort to push through the rabble?”
“Why, you offering your ‘services’?”
“Sure.” He laughed. "I won't even charge you for ‘em.”
And then…it suddenly hit her. This was actually happening. Their smooth back and forth - always uncharacteristically easy when it was with him - suddenly shriveled and died within her.
She’d never been good at flirting. Maybe he was equally bad, maybe that's why it always worked for them. But…but it was actually-
Her lips parted soundlessly, brain glazing over with sudden nerves.
Oh, she…she liked the idea of it. She’d offered, after all- but why was she suddenly so nervous?
And they'd gotten close…in the moment. Usually when she was distracted. Usually when her brain was focused on other things until wham! They were launched off a goat or- or, he…yeah it was always him - his stupid fingers would break her brain until she didn't actually have to think about it.
“Uhh…you alright there, Con’?”
No. Yes? Anticipatory. Excited. Panicked?! Whatever it was, a feeling of fight or flight skittered just beneath her breastbone, pecking its little beak: tap tap tap, you're taking him home and it's actually happening . She barely knew what she was doing - You're gonna fumble this somehow, Connie.
Her lips parted to respond to him, but her brain decided to settle on, “Uh?”
“Oh good! You two are still here.” She jumped at the sound and…it was just Trudy. “I was hoping to catch the two of you. Professor Luo says there’ve been some developments in our research. I was hoping that all interested parties would join us over at City Hall.”
All interested parties…
She was insinuating that they ought to be interested?! Was she… oh Light, are we expected to do something?
Logan tensed, the arm around her waist momentarily tightening, before he let go. “Oh uh…nearly forgot about that. Sorry, Trudes.”
“W-what'd we forget?” Connie asked as her head whipped back and forth between them. “Do I…am I needed?”
Trudy sighed. “We're going to need someone with technical expertise. Someone that's also proficient in driving the drilling robot. I'm sorry Connie, I know you just got in…”
“Can't Qi take care of all that?” Logan asked warily. “Girl looks like she's about to keel over any minute.”
Logan was - well, he was being a little dramatic. She was…mostly alright. It wasn't like she had the luxury of saying no to her boss's boss anyways. She could push through. She’d been pushing through- “I'm fine.” She muttered. “Do you need this done by today?”
“What? N-no. This is merely a discussion to hash out the details.”
“Trudy, c'mon look at ‘er. She's been bustin’ her ass for the better part of a month straight.”
Connie bristled slightly under his continued deterrence. He always did this, liked to insert himself into her perceived workload - she was of the mind she could speak for herself.
But, the Mayor responded before she could get a word out. “Well…you and I discussed this earlier, Logan. If you're to head an excursion with the professor, wouldn’t you think that ah…escorting Qi as well might become a bit burdensome?”
She watched as he tensed, jaw working soundlessly against a brewing argument. He must've had nothing to offer however, as he slowly huffed out his frustration and deflated. He shot Connie an apologetic look. “Yeah, I s’pose you're right. When I led Luo and Nia to the Shipwreck, I was workin’ with a known evil. This place…Pa and I only got a couple steps in, don’t really know what to expect.”
Trudy nodded. “We want everyone to be as safe as possible, thank you. I'll see you two shortly.” But before she took another step, she paused, reconsidering her trajectory. She looked the two of them over, a gentle smile pulling on her lips. “It's…so nice, seeing you two finally together. This town could really use any little happiness that it finds. It really warms my heart.”
“Uhh…y-yeah. Thanks.” Logan said awkwardly, while Connie could only muster a shy nod. They watched as Trudy left for City Hall.
She clenched the front of her shirt, doing a little show of folding in on herself. “Hrrngh, why does she have to be so ridiculously precious?! I can't say no to that face.”
“She's really got a super power. It's kinda scary.”
She shot him a flat look. “ Don't need to be anywhere right now - buddy you came here specifically for that meeting, didn't you?”
“I honest-to-Light forgot. I wanted to see you, and then, well…the idea of finally gettin’ you alone sorta ended up trumpin’ all the rest.”
She snorted. “Yeah okay. Let's hurry up and get this over with so I can go and pass out.”
After the meeting, they stood off to the side so Logan could enjoy his second smoke of the day. He cast a wide glance over the town, a disorienting sense of deja vu pulling at his thoughts. They'd been here before, in a similar situation- her, beaten up and tired, them - the town, rarin’ to ask for more.
Maybe he oughta have a chat with Trudy - talk off-the-record. He knew, theoretically, that the town couldn't afford to wait forever; not with the Capitol's purse involved. But it seemed too much of a burden for one person to shoulder all the time. And now that Nia was onboard instead of the Professor - who was slightly more capable of defending herself - maybe Connie didn't have to be the one to go at all.
But if…if she found out - found out that he requested her to be pulled from the project - it'd likely really tick her off.
She was as stubborn as that camel she often complained about, actin’ like none of this affected her, like it wasn't ridiculous to immediately roll from one large project into the next.
He supposed he ought to trust she knew what she was getting herself into. Didn't like it none, but it was a horse/water scenario. Couldn’t force her to drink.
“So…lizard people.” Connie remarked dryly, leaning heavily against the wall of Pablo's shop. The dark circles beneath her eyes stood as a stark contrast against her pale complexion. “You think they're gonna play nice?”
“No.” He replied gruffly. “They're a really tight-knit crew. Cult-like. Don't think Larry’s gonna receive as warm a welcome as he’s hopin’. Not after livin’ here so long.”
She sighed. “You think we need to go in guns-a-blazin’?”
He pulled his lips away from his cigarette, grinning. “Hell no. Not with your aim.”
She threw her hands up in faux outrage - all wide-eyed and unhinged looking as she did so. “Whoa, always there with the pot-shots, Big Guy. Take it easy.”
“Girl, you look damn near delirious. Go and get some sleep already.”
Sighing, she looked at him. “I gotta go hit up Qi first.”
“Nah. You just need to let him know you'll need the robot ready for pick up, right? Let me go tell him for you.” And, to ensure he'd be ready in case she tried to argue, he quickly put out his half-finished smoke and pocketed the rest. “Go home.”
“Th-thanks.” She bit down on her lips, her tone suddenly growing bashful. “You'll…still come by, won't you?”
His brows rose, “Is that something you still want?”
“Yeah…definitely. I'll wait up for you.”
What was expected to be a quick request ended up devolving into digging through mountains of junk alongside Qi.
The robot was broken - apparently someone on Heidi's team busted it to high-hell on one of their projects. And so, a builder- undoubtedly his Builder - was expected to craft a new drill from scratch.
Logan was pissed. Things always seemed to go this way. Nothing could ever be easy - not for him, and definitely not for her. His mind briefly drifted back to his chat with Burgess last week, remembered his dark thoughts on how life was always one big struggle, and how indifferent the Light seemed to be.
sh*t, now he was of the mind that the barest of inconveniences thrown his way were the Light's comical rendition of dotting it's I's and crossing it's T's. f*ck you Logan , the words seemed to spell, you gotta woman waitin’ for you? Nuh uh, better take hours to play Heehaw and the f*ckaround Gang with Professor Scatter-brain.
He dug around in the newest mountain of schematics, lips pressing flat with barely contained agitation - Why were these smart types always so unbearably messy?!
“Hm…doesn't seem to be here either.” Qi casually remarked. “Perhaps it’s been stowed away amongst the ancillary notes?”
“f*ck me - what even is that?!” he barked, no longer able to contain his mounting outrage. “Don't tell me it's as large as this pile.”
“Oh no.” Qi’s brow rose. “Much larger.”
“Okay, stop. You're gonna slow down and think. What do you remember when that engineer fella passed it your way?”
“Oh, that was ages ago-”
“Try.” he bit out. “Get up, we’re going to walk through what you can remember of that day. Act it out if you have to.”
“My, someone’s testy. You're invading my personal space if you hadn’t forgotten.”
Logan bit down on the inside of his cheek. “Please.” he ground out.
“Alright. If you say so.”
And so, they retraced what Qi could remember of the day.
“And then, I walked upstairs to find Sleepy-head drooling on the kitchen table.” They slowly walked up the steps, and Logan watched as he pointed to an empty chair. “Now normally I'd be bothered by someone drooling all over where I have my morning tea,” he started to laugh, “but that's just so him, right?”
“Uh…sure.” How would he know?! He’d never met the guy-
“And, when he woke up, he realized - oh! He’d actually drooled all over the schematic! That's right, he was a little worried he’d ruined it.” He rubbed a finger along his jaw. “And then…he looked exactly like the secondary protagonist from one of the panels in Gungam Vol. 2 - a mech mechanic who’d comically fallen asleep while-”
“I don’t know what the hell that is, Qi. Focus. What’d you do next?”
“Hmm…I don't think he believed me, so I took the comic out to-” he gasped, “Vol. 2! It has to be in there!” He rushed to one of his bookshelves, carefully drawing the book out with gentle reverence. He flipped through the pages and shouted, “Eureka! Our schem- ew, it really has been smudged with drool.”
“I'll take it.” Logan said, grabbing the paper to rush out the door. So much time had been wasted- “Thanks for your cooperation.”
“Uh huh.” The Director replied, barely paying attention as he'd taken to reading through the book again. “Ha! See! So Sleepy-head.”
Once out the door, Logan unfolded the diagram and looked it over. He wasn't completely at a loss, he'd watched Haru draft up some of his more complex inventions growing up and later while on the run. But…it looked leagues more complex than anything Logan had ever seen before.
How long would it take for Connie to construct this? And he knew her - she'd work doggedly on the thing, push as fast as she could, then rush off to the next damn job without taking a breather.
If he handed this to her now…
The sound of animated chatter dragged him from his thoughts.
“Oh absolutely! Could you imagine? This whole place covered in greenery? It would be such a pretty contrast against the desert scenery.”
“Especially because you got that cute industrial look with all your machinery. I always liked little cafes who were able to pull that aesthetic off.”
“Right? We have places like that in Tall-sky- oh, but does that mean you're thinking about staying?”
“I'm really strongly considering it. But don't tell Connie yet, alright? I want it to be a surprise.”
It was Mi-an. Maybe she could look this over for him. Find a way to lighten the load somehow.
He walked over to her balcony to find her and Nia scoping out a length of railing. “Right here,” Nia said as she swept a hand over a corner. “That way people could walk past, and it'll really catch their eyes.”
“Ooh! Great idea! We still have to settle on a name-”
Logan cleared throat to grab their attention. “Uh, sorry to bother you ladies…”
They turned. One of Nia's brows immediately shot to her hairline. “Ooh, thought you'd be busy by now. I saw you cozyin’ up to Connie out there.”
“Uh…yeah.” He shuffled awkwardly on his feet - there was something about Nia that always overwhelmed him to a degree. “Wanted to ask Miss Mi-an a question, if she's got the time.”
“Me?” She looked surprised. “Sure.”
“Maybe you can take a look at this?” He passed her the schematic. “It's supposed to be for a power drill, of some sort. Qi’s expectin’ Connie to build this, but um…it looks pretty work intensive, and y'know, she just got in like you did-” he mumbled, and felt a bit silly as his words trailed off. He cleared his throat. “Guess I'm just trying to see if there's any way to lighten the load.”
“Oh no problem, let's see…” Mi-an started as she opened up the diagram, her words trailing away as she quickly looked it over. The frown that tugged at her lips was a bad sign. “Is this for the robot she and Qi built?”
“Yeah. A part of it.”
“Oh gosh.” She said as she settled in one of her patio chairs. Her fingers trailed along the lines of circuitry. “This is…yeah this is really complex. And it's not just the electrical components - which, holy Peach-” she flipped the page to the broader overview, a copy of the original Mobile Suit, “she…really built this?”
She dropped the diagram into her lap, suddenly burying her face into her hands. “Ugh, what am I doing with my life?”
He blinked rapidly at her unexpected shift in demeanor. “P-pardon?”
“This is…this is so complex. The drill - yeah I can pull that off… with time . The robot?! Am I really falling that far behind? I never actually got a look at this before-”
His mouth parted, feeling completely at loss. This was as far from how he figured the conversation would go as possible. How's he supposed to navigate the murky-waters of her… builder's confidence - and direct her back to his own question? He really wasn't well suited for this sort of thing. “Uh…”
Nia scoffed, “Mi-an, she's just weird like that. Honestly you should be happy you're normal.”
“No, but I'm not! I worked my butt off when I first got here. I worked so hard that Elsie actually hid my license to get me to relax-”
“Oh, so you guys are all like that.”
“Well, you know, with my parents being builders…with what's expected of me-”
“Yeah? Well they're not here. Just like Connie's grandpa’s not. You guys live with some wild expectations on your shoulders for no reason, I swear to Peach-”
“Nia, it's not that simple-”
“Sounds simple to me.”
“But look at how far behind I am! I moved to town before she did, and she's wiring incredibly complex circuitry from scratch. She led the longest portion of piping, had the biggest team, is always the first to be called on for big town projects, is being promoted-”
“And she's miserable for it!” Nia shouted as she threw her hands up. “I know her. She doesn't vocally complain but I can tell! She's so stupid I swear-”
“Watch it.” Logan gruffly warned the blonde. He didn't know her well enough to tolerate hearing insults behind Connie's back like that.
“I say it affectionately,” she placated. “She's out of her depth-”
“Literally how? Because to me, she seems insanely successful?” Mi-An piped up incredulously.
“Okay, I'm gonna explain something- to both of you.” Nia shot him a pointed look as she settled herself in the adjoining chair. “Our girl doesn't know when to say ‘no’. You got a person in a position of authority telling her to jump? She'll just ask ‘how high’?”
“Well, then why didn't Yan scam her like he did me?”
“Probably because she’s scary as hell. You know that.” She pointed to Logan, and he could only nod in enthusiastic agreement. “And I've heard the stories. You hear about a girl fighting off a 500 pound lizard man on the top of a train, uh, you’ll probably think twice about screwing her over.”
She folded her hands in her lap. “No, what I really mean is - she doesn't know how. She doesn't know when to listen to that little voice in the back of her head that tells her she's tired. That tells her that her feelings are valid. Because to her, they're simply not. She bottles them up, or ignores them, and just pushes through.” She pursed her lips, eyes flashing with concern. “She's approaching this job like she would've knighthood. Self-sacrificing, relentless, obsessive.”
“What does that…what does that exactly mean?”
“You worked with her - you told me you helped her through the final stretch in the gorge since your team finished up early. Any odd behavior? Anything stand out?”
Mi-an tilted head in consideration. “Um…well, she was very thorough - very meticulous. And, understandably, very hands on with all the remaining work that needed to get done after that misaligned joint fiasco.”
She paused momentarily, brows furrowing as though something had hit her. “Actually…she usually came to bed very late at night. I followed her out there a couple times, after she'd sent the rest of us away. She would double check the day's earlier work, sometimes triple check. I caught her doing something very tricky once - breaking several welds to re-seam them again because she said the work looked ‘sloppy’. And you know, I took a look - they weren't pretty, but they'd hold - they were fine.” She shook her head. “I thought…I guess I just figured that's why she was the Builder and I'm just…Mi-an.”
Nia huffed. “Okay, you and I are going to be addressing that way of thinking very soon. But to get back to my point-” She flung a finger at Logan. “Yakboy, your job - how much downtime you got? How often do you twiddle your thumbs while waiting for something to pop off?”
He sighed, shifting uncomfortably on his feet. Way to make me sound like a layabout or somethin’. “Uh, depends on the season. Colder ones? Not much - even commissions can dry up for a few weeks at a time. When the weather warms up? Got my patrols, set out the traps, sometimes I need to track somethin’ down. Can take days...maybe even weeks. But I guess you ain't too far off the mark. A lot of waitin’. It's pretty flexible, all things considered.”
“Exactly. And what do you think knighthood would have entailed? Pretty similar to what you and the Corps do right? Protection? Fighting? Ruin diving? Same stuff, different execution. She would've been traveling from town to town just looking for trouble, and being bored out of her mind when she didn't find it.”
“What a way to put it.” He remarked dryly at the oversimplification.
“A builder isn't a knight. There's no slow seasons. There's no sitting on her ass waiting for something to happen. Every little project, commission, ask - it's her enemy to relentlessly pursue and dispatch to perfection. She’s too damn stubborn - too stupid - to see the difference. And if you ever try to point it out to her she’ll deny it.”
“So what do we do?” Mi-an asked as she straightened in her seat.
“You had your Elsie.” Nia shrugged. “And now that I'm here, and I actually know her - am well equipped at seeing through all the bullsh*t she tries to hide away-” She paused, eyeing Logan before flinging a thumb his way. “Oh, and she’s got loverboy over here - we'll just have to figure out how to get her to calm down, like, a lot.”
“What a long way to circle back to why I'm actually here,” he huffed, tapping a finger on the schematic - he swore the universe was just trying to keep him away from Connie at this point. “I don't want to hand this sh*t off to her. Not after she just got in. How do I avoid that?”
Mi-an frowned. “Well, this is…technically City Business, since Qi is, oddly, a type of city official in a roundabout way. If he specifically requested Connie, it's got to go directly to her.”
“Oh my gosh - who even cares?!” Nia whined. “Just go post it to the Commision Board anyways, Logan. It’ll buy her some time before Wei figures out. Just act dumb - be the hot himbo we all know you're capable of being!”
“H-huh?” He was pretty sure she was insulting him somehow-
“I did it all the time in university,” she said as she leaned back and started twirling her hair. Her voice became an octave higher, “Oh? You mean the coffee in the faculty room isn't free? I'm not even supposed to be here?” She looked down at her empty hand. “Oh this is your mug?! Ooooh…so that's why it says No.1 Dad. Silly me. Oh my gosh, you’re so funny.”
“You want me to hit on the Commissioner?!” He shouted and - oh sh*t, he didn't mean to be so loud. He furtively cast his eyes around to see if any stray townsfolk had heard his outburst.
She laughed. “That's not what I meant, but I guess it couldn't hurt if you wanted to go the extra mile. Just post it and play dumb. You probably won't get into trouble.”
Mi-an puckered her lips. “Well…you might get fined. At least, Yan would've fined you. But you know, I'm not really sure, you're kind of doing the opposite of what everyone actually gets hammered for.”
“C'mon Logan! I'm trusting you to do the wrong thing here! Don't you want to - I don't know - spend the night getting to know your girl without the threat of competing with her job?”
“What do ya mean ‘bout that? I've wasted so much damn time fumblin’ around in all of Qi's crap just to find that damn schematic. I ain't got much free time before the boy gets home.”
“Oh yeah? Well, what if you had a babysitter? I'm the eldest of four siblings, I got plenty of experience.”
He looked her over, skepticism tugging at the lines of his face. Yeah, she was Connie's friend and all, but he didn't really know her like that. Hell, he still wasn't even sure if he liked her as a person or not. “Yeah, that's a nice offer, but-”
“Mi-an can babysit with me, right Mi-an?”
“Eh?!” The girl shot up ramrod straight in her seat, clearly taken aback by the offer. “I'm doing what now?”
“C'mon we can brainstorm the names of the shop we want to open! It'll be fun. Besides, Light knows Connie needs to get laid.”
“You ain’t really helpin’ your case talkin’ like that.” Logan drawled.
Mi-an's face grew pale. “Well, I um…I suppose I can, you know…”
Logan shifted uncomfortably. He knew her secret. He knew she had someone waiting for her, that she’d been stuck in that gorge just as long as Connie had, and it wasn't right for him to take what little downtime she had away from her. “Mi-an, you just got back. Don't you have things you'd rather be doin’? Maybe…see a friend or…”
She furiously shook her head, and it almost looked like she was trying to overcompensate for her secret. “N-no it's fine. Talking shop sounds kind of fun anyways.”
He shrugged. He supposed he shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth. “Alright suit yourself. I'll do it. Skirtin’ the rules ain't too foreign a concept for me anyways.”
Nia's teeth flashed white. “Oh you're actually so damn cool.”
After he squared things away with Andy and the girls - really sat the boy down and explained that he better be on his best behavior - and, after stealthily writing up a commission and posting it alongside the schematic, Logan finally made his way towards Connie's workshop.
When he knocked on the door, silence greeted him. A flicker of uneasy anticipation darted through him, which he quickly brushed aside as mild paranoia. Maybe she’d fallen asleep already, or maybe she’d got caught up working with some of her eccentric junk.
He hesitated.
He should just go in, right? She’d invited him over. Figured that if the roles were reversed, he'd expect her to do the same.
He soundlessly opened the door.
Warm sunlight cut through her windows at an evening slant, contrasting sharply against the unlit surroundings. It cast her living room in a muted glow, his eyes taking a moment in adjusting to the hazy shadows stretching like fingers across the floor.
“Connie? Door was open, I…”
She’d fallen asleep waiting for him.
She was stretched on her couch, face down and away from him, and she-
He froze. Oh Light what a view.
The first thing he noticed were her bare legs. His eyes slowly traversed the long lines of shapely muscle - feminine and strong in equal measure. He wondered what it would feel like to have those legs wrapped around his waist, wondered how flexible she'd be - how easily they'd hook over his shoulders as he drove himself into her.
They tapered upwards to a loose set of grey shorts - and damn, were they short. The curve of her pert asscheeks poked out, and he felt himself stir, felt his blood rushing dangerously low, co*ck twitching in response to the delicacy laid bare.
All that ass dipped low to the small of her back, clothed in a black tank-top that tightly hugged her narrow waist. The image of her bare stomach filtered through his mind again, a familiar specter that had been haunting him of late.
He curled his fingers over his mouth and chin, issuing a low hum. He tentatively stepped closer, not yet wanting to spoil the moment by rousing her, head tilting in appreciation.
He wanted to sink his teeth into her. Wanted to run his mouth along her abdomen, lap up her trembling, dip his tongue between the valley of her breasts, suck on the stiffened peaks, taste the salt of her arousal on his tongue...
A mournful sigh escaped from between his lips. What a f*cking pity. She’d worked herself to exhaustion, he’d took too damn long, and now-
She was dead to the world. He ought to leave her be. He huffed in frustration. Goddamn that moral side of him-
How long had they danced around one another? How many times, in all those moments alone, could he have taken her? And with how responsive she’d always been, how easily would she have reciprocated? It was almost dizzying to consider it, his hesitation and thick head ever the culprit behind his own misfortune.
It was painful - she was right here and she was his, but the poor thing was out cold. He was torn between wanting to wake her and letting her finally have her rest and he…
He tilted his head again. Actually…damn. She'd got her neck bent at an awkward angle. Her chin was tucked tightly over an arm, he was positive she'd wake up miserable for it.
“Connie darlin’?” he murmured, gently laying a hand on her shoulder. She didn't stir.
Maybe he could get away with moving her. But uh…he wasn't sure where her room was.
He'd have to figure it out as he went.
He gently inched a hand under her shoulder, moving the other to her hip to roll her into his arms-
He was rewarded with her forearm smashing into his mouth.
“Son of a bi-”
She snapped awake, swiftly rolled over, and followed up with a knee to his gut, sending him crashing to the ground.
Descending, she landed on him, but he intercepted her fist just in time to prevent it from connecting with his jaw.
“You're always so goddamn vicious!” He snarled as he held her hand aloft.
Her glazed eyes sharpened with recognition, hued molten gold in shafts of waning sunlight.
“Oh sh*t, did I just- did I really- oh Light you're bleeding- DID I JUST BEAT MY BOYFRIE-”
He pulled her stupid face down, feverishly crashing his lips against her own.
He was right. He was f*cked in the head. He had a split lip, was bleeding - it hurt like all hell - but he was so painfully, instinctively turned on by her savagery he couldn't help but buck himself up against her.
The movement threw her off balance, and she let out a squeak of surprise as she collapsed against him.
He wove a hand through her hair, drawing her lips back to his own, his tongue delving into the depths of her mouth, lapping up the sounds of her sweet whimpers.
His other hand latched onto her ass, fingers practically digging into the exposed flesh, firmly canting her hips down as he thrust up. She let out a heady moan. “Logan-”
“You overwhelmed?” He panted. “Well f*ck me if I ain't, gettin’ punched for no goddamned reason-” it wasn't enough friction, so he let go of her hair to clasp her other asscheek, kneading the plump swell of flesh between his fingers as he ground her body down against his own.
“I'm sorry, I thought you were- I've been…you know I've been kidnapped before so you can’t-!”
“Stop talkin’,” he hissed from between his teeth, incensed by her earlier show of violence, by his own arousal - by the vicious need to get physical. His blood was practically boiling for it - things were always left unfinished between them, and he was tired of all the f*cking words that amounted to nothing.
She’d started this fight, no matter how unintentionally - he was going to make sure he finished it.
Hooking his fingers into the waistband of her shorts, Logan momentarily hesitated. He shot her a sharp look. “I'm going to f*ck you.” He warned, licking at the cut on his lower lip. “I get these shorts off, it's happenin’. Figure out if there's any stupid f*ckin’ reason to stop now - you know, like all them other times - because my patience has worn dangerously thin.”
She looked at him in a daze, lips parting soundlessly, her face awash in flushed desire. Her nod was nearly imperceptible.
“That ain't good enough, darlin’,” he growled, untangling one of his hands from her shorts to pull her in closer, speaking directly into her ear. “Say it.”
She shuddered against him and he felt the shakiness in her voice vibrate through him as much as he heard the words. “Please.”
“Please what?!”
She swallowed. “f*ck me.”
He sucked in a sharp breath of air, felt the shock of those words run along the length of his spine, an electrifying path of desire pooling low in his abdomen, co*ck practically jumping in response.
He ripped her shorts down and off - ignoring her mild fumbling atop of him - and threw them as far as he could.
She paled at the exposure, eyes widening - as if stunned that this was actually happening - and then furrowed her brows in defiance.
He’d presented a challenge, and like always she surged forward to meet it. She dug her fingers into his vest and tore it open, not stopping until she’d repeated the action on the shirt underneath. “Take this stupid thing off!” she demanded. “Stop- ah-!”
He shut her up with a rough swipe of his fingers against her cl*t - not even bothering to work her into the sensation - and quickly grew frustrated with the restriction the elastic band of her panties presented.
He started working those off her too.
She sat up and scooted backwards - her puss* frustratingly out of reach of his hands - and started to aggressively fumble with his bracers. “You have so many of these dumb buckles!” she complained. “Why?!”
“To keep wild beasts like you at bay.” he blurted, and couldn't quite stop the grin threatening to pull at his lips.
She shot him a scathing glare, quickly giving up on the endeavor and focusing all her efforts on his pants belt. “f*ck it.”
“That's the idea- hrngh”
He didn't have a chance to finish his sentence. Connie proved equally adept at shutting him up by freeing his co*ck from the confines of his pants and immediately placing it within the confines of her hot mouth.
He groaned at the sensation, near blinding in its intensity, his back arching off the ground against his will.
He felt her gag and she started coughing, “Be careful you asshole, I'm-” she cleared her throat and seemed to change her mind about an explanation, instead running her tongue up the underside of his shaft and popping him back into her mouth.
He shuddered, casting his gaze down to watch the woman he loved - the woman who'd just bust his lip open - slowly bob her head up and down the length of his co*ck, lightly moaning in satisfaction.
Light, she was beautiful, and infuriating…and violent-
Tension started to coil thickly in his belly, and when she turned her eyes on him - large and soft and full of lust - he had to hurriedly pull her off of him in fear of coming too soon, “Off- get off, you're gonna-”
“Gonna what?” She smirked wickedly.
He ground his teeth together. “It's been awhile! Just get up here-”
“Take your shirt off...and your stupid complicated pants!”
He huffed in annoyance, sitting up to shrug off the rest of his shirt and meticulously unlatch his bracers and boots.
“Ugh, taking a long time. Starting to dry up over here.”
“f*ck off.” He countered, bristling at her amused expression.
As soon as his remaining pants leg cleared the length of his foot she pounced on him, bodily shoving him back to the floor. Her mouth was feverishly hot against his own, but it didn't last long before she licked and nipped a trail down his throat to his collarbone, over his chest before she sharply bit down on one of his pectorals. He jolted and hissed in pain.
“I've been wanting to bite you there for so long,” she murmured against him, licking away the pain. “You're just…you're so-”
She sat up and inspected him, inadvertently sliding herself against his bare length - causing them both to groan and rock against one another.
“Oh Light…” Her eyes momentarily closed in pleasure. “You're just…so perfect.” Her hands hungrily traversed pathways over his torso, a look of desperate yearning overcoming her.
Logan nodded dumbly at her almost pained expression, too caught up rutting himself against her slicked heat for the words to register.
She reached a trembling hand down between them, grasping him in her fingers, biting down on her lip as she eyed him…for permission?
What the f*ck was she doing - he’d already said yes?! He answered her by impatiently thrusting into her palm.
But she…almost looked unsure. Was she having doubts?
“Connie?” He asked softly, momentarily sobering - he didn't want to force her to do anything she didn't want. Didn't matter how big of a game he talked - what she wanted mattered. His hand came to rest on her cheek. “Sweetheart, we don't actually-”
She leaned forward and kissed him tenderly, slowly lowering herself down on his co*ck.
He gasped into her mouth - she was…oh f*ck, it was almost painful how slow she was going. Inch by agonizing inch her inner folds gripped him, so impossibly tight he saw stars.
She paused, panting, before she shakily sat up. “S-sorry. Just…give me a moment. I have to…adjust.”
He nodded, and he could feel the sweat bead along his hairline - it felt like he was stretching her to her limits, so incredibly soft, and wet and his -
He suddenly realized her shirt was somehow still impossibly on. That wouldn't do - he slowly started inching his fingers up the sides of her waist to feel the smooth skin underneath.
She watched him, watched the intense concentration on his face, the awe, thumbs swiping pathways from the underside of her breasts to her already hardened nipples. She shuddered at the contact, sensitive.
“I wanna see all of you,” he rumbled, the feeling of being drunk on her returning. Every minute shift where they were joined sent jolts of pleasure radiating throughout his body. “Please.”
She nodded wordlessly, the flush on her face as rich a color as her hair as she helped him remove her top.
It was almost funny how quickly she burned from one emotion to another- near feral one moment to uncertain and shy the next.
Was she self conscious? Logan couldn't imagine why, she was stunning - her stomach was a mixture of athletic and soft, the hint of hidden abs dipping a shallow valley from the top of her navel to the base of her ribs. Her small breasts - small enough to envelop completely with a single palm - stood pert and flushed with her desire, the stiff rose-colored peaks drawing his eyes. She had a constellation of freckles dotting her chest and shoulders like stars, mirroring the ones along the bridge of her nose.
“Beautiful,” he whispered reverently, running his hands up her sides, watching the uncertainty and wariness flicker in her eyes. “Connie, you're so f*ckin’ beautiful.”
He punctuated the statement by sitting up and caressing her lips with his own, cradling the small of her back with a steady hand. She rocked her hips in response to the attention, and he moaned.
He mouthed along the column of her throat, a steady rhythm of open mouthed kisses to the cadence of her grinding, until he dipped down to claim one of her nipples in his mouth. Her movements momentarily faltered, hips snapping forward as she cried out.
A low chuckle filtered throughout his chest. “You're always so damn sensitive - makes sense you'd squirm.”
“Logan…I'm not actually sure…um…”
He paused to give her a questioning look. “Huh?”
She looked embarrassed. “I…don't exactly know what I'm doing.”
His mind went blank…what?
“This…being on top…I've never, you know- just normal position, or maybe…look I'm not sure-”
His eyes blew wide at her admission - was she playing with him?!
“I don't want to…bore you by…I know how to uh…” She rocked on him. “...that's about it.
Bore him?! How was that even a possibility, she-
Wait.
No…no f*cking way she was this inexperienced - with how eager she was?! With how she’d practically tackled him to get him into this position in the first place-
His mind stalled - she'd never been on top - he was her first - she wanted to - with him…he was…her first?
Her earlier hesitation made sense now.
Something wild seized him then, primal, as he dropped back down and dug his heels into the rug, powerfully thrusting himself into her.
She cried out at the sudden brutal pace, her body falling flush against his own.
“Don't you f*ckin’ worry about it,” he gasped out between thrusts. “I'll take care of you - hell, I'll f*ckin’ ruin you if that's what you want.” He snaked a hand to where their bodies were joined, vigorously massaging her cl*t as he continued his punishing pace. “Bore me?! That’s about the dumbest sh*t that's ever come out your mouth.”
“Logan!” she whined, her thighs quaking over him. “I can't…you're gonna make me-”
He pulled her hair with his free hand, drawing her ear close. “Come. Don't you f*ckin’ make me wait-”
She spasmed and screamed, clamping down on his co*ck like a vicegrip, and he f*cking lost it - he couldn't stop himself, couldn't help but drive himself in as deep as possible, hands latching on her hips to hold her taught against him. His own pleasure tore through him with a shout, blinding white heat as he pumped the last of his waning release into her.
They both collapsed to the floor in a tangle of limbs, gasping for air.
Once the high calmed down, once he took a moment to lay there and let his pulse even out, he realized what he'd just done.
Oh…oh f*ck…did he just-
Horror immediately shot through him - he just came inside of her. He shouldn't have-
“Oh sh*t I'm so sorry- I didn’t mean to-”
You just didn't. That's not what people did anymore. Not in today’s world - not without certain precautions-
“It's okay,” she mumbled atop of him, her voice hoarse and almost sleepy. “I'm uh…” Her hand came up to gently run through his hair, which must've come undone sometime during their session. “I wouldn't have invited you over if - you know, I really try to stay on top of those sorts of things.”
He nodded, numb, as his mind quickly flashed through all his previous encounters. Had ever finished in a woman before? He didn't think so, not even after a night of drinking - he'd always kept enough wits about him to pull out at the last minute - as was expected - as every man grew up understanding.
But with her…he'd lost his senses.
“It was hot,” she blurted. “I've never…nobody’s ever…”
His co*ck twitched at the implication, at the arousing mixture of guilt and shame and firsts and…the heady feeling of having laid claim to a part of her somehow.
He was already growing hard again…he was still inside of her - neither of them had pulled apart yet - and he was already raring to go for another round.
It'd been too long; and he was so f*cking turned on by the severity of what he’d just done - turned on by the danger - that he felt himself mildly pump his hips up into her again.
“Oh…” She moaned breathily, “already?”
He nodded, expression pained, sweat running from his brow and into his eyes. “If that’s-”
“Yes.”
It hurt - of course it did - he was overstimulated, but it wasn’t enough to stop the burning need to f*ck himself into her again.
He sat up, making to roll them over - fiercely needing to be on top this time - but he accidently pulled out with the movement. “On your knees,” he choked, pleading. “Please, for the love of Peach-”
“Ah- uhuh,” she answered in a daze, bending herself over the couch cushions and he - oh Light above, what a sight -
Their combined fluids trailed a wet path from her opening down to her thighs - dripping - evidence of what they’d just done, of what he’d done to her-
He quickly lined himself up and thrust into her in one fluid motion. “Oh f*ck- f*ck- f*ck-”
What were they doing? What was he doing?
It was the hottest thing that had ever happened to him, and she was just…letting him?
It wasn't enough, he needed to get deeper-
He pressed a heavy hand into her shoulder, forcing her torso deeper into the cushions, lifting her ass up with his other hand, and slowly, agonizingly, stroked himself as deep as he could possibly fit.
“Oh Light- Light- f*ck!” Connie’s muffled cries filtered up to his ears - panting from the effort just to take all of him in.
“You do somethin’ to me-” he groaned as his hips snapped tightly against her ass. “You've always done somethin’ to me - make me f*ckin’ unreasonable, drive me mad.”
His own legs were shaking now - it was torturous, and euphoric, and addicting. “You're the only one - the only one, who'd ever - it's like I know you, always have, even before I knew your name-” He wasn't making any sense, it wasn't coming out quite right, but it felt terribly important to say.
“You were always in my f*ckin’ face, givin’ me trouble-” He punctuated the statement with another punishing thrust, and he watched as the sweat beaded off of himself to drip along the line of her back. “Stupid me - turns out I like trouble.”
She let out a low whimper and he wanted to taste it, wanted to swallow up her pained pleasure, taste the sound of it when she inevitably crashed and burned all around him.
He lifted her head up, and they worked in tandem to support their combined weight, her hands flying to the back of the couch - white knuckled grip as if holding on for dear life - his free hand intertwining with her fingers, as he slid his other to work at the apex of her thighs.
“Sweetheart…” Logan groaned into her mouth. “Darlin’ - you're…you're-” Perfect. Everything. My salvation. The feelings were so intense and raw and terrifying he had to cut himself short.
“I can't-” she cried, “Logan I'm going to-”
“Please-” he begged - he couldn't hold out much longer. “Please, Connie-”
As if reading his mind, she took hold of his jaw, drawing him in for a deep kiss, shattering all around him. Her sweet moans filtered throughout her and into him, and he could feel it vibrate throughout his lungs, tasting it - breathing in her vibrancy, her pleasure-
When his movements faltered and became jerky he immediately pulled out, spilling himself all over the small of her back.
And then he collapsed on top of her.
She grunted at the impact, smashed between his body and the couch. “Logan- Peach above, you're crushing me!”
“S-sorry,” he muttered, shifting his weight so she could extract herself from underneath him. He stayed leaning over the couch as if in prayer, head swimming from the exertion.
“Logan?”
“Hm?”
“Why’d you pull out?” She laughed. “You think being good for the second round is gonna negate the first? What - you think it's possible to un-come in me?”
His embarrassment burned along the bridge of his nose. Tucking his head deeper into his hands, he groaned. “Stop teasin’! I wasn't thinkin’!” He cleared his throat. “...again.”
“Well now I'm just messy.”
His curiosity won out over his humiliation - so he cast a quick glance between his fingers.
She was standing in all her nude glory, hands on her hips, her body slicked with sweat - whether his or her own, he wasn't sure - and he watched as her chest heaved, eyes drawn to her tit* like magnets.
“Ain't too shy no more, are you?” he said through a smile, and the way she immediately curled inwards - like she had just remembered to be shy - made him laugh.
She tucked a loose sling of hair behind her ear. “Well, you know- after what we did…hey you wanna come wash up with me?”
He nodded, his knees popping angrily as he stood and followed her down the hall to her washroom.
“Your shower sucks.”
Her eyes slowly trailed up from the spot on the table she was zoning out on, catching his own. Swishing her lips around while she stirred her cereal, she remarked dryly, “Well…your pull-out game sucks.”
Logan's only answer was a slight lift of his brows - a look that read fair enough - and he went back to eating his cereal.
They were sitting at her table, after a shower, clad only in their underwear while enjoying a post-sex meal of cold granola. It was kind of stupid, really. Not sexy at all. But comfortable.
And Connie was the happiest she'd been in a very long time.
Logan cast a glance around the room, sniffing. “Really cleaned up ‘round here. Where's all your weird builder junk?”
Running her palm over the bare surface of her table, she frowned. “Nia. Her other Solstice Day gift was to…what did she say? ‘Un-f*ck me’. Made me give her a spare key so she could tidy up and put my laundry away.” She held up her jug of milk, shaking it. “Brought me fresh groceries too. This excellent meal was brought to you by the little plant witch.”
He smirked over a bite of cereal. “Can’t unf*ck you now, I reckon.”
She kicked at his foot, which quickly devolved into an aggressive, albeit friendly game of footsie beneath the table.
“I don't like it,” she mumbled. “Yeah, it looks cute in here, but how am I supposed to find my crap now? I have a system.”
“Organized chaos,” he reminded her.
She nodded, swallowing the mildly sweet bite of granola. “Meticulously organized on the outside of the house, well lived-in…well worked-in, here.” She sighed, leaning back in her chair. “Guess I should fork over some extra cash for another house expansion. Could use an indoor work-room or an office or something.”
“How ‘bout you fix your plumbin’ first? Hot water lasted what...eight minutes? Terrible.”
She groaned, “Noo I'm tired of plumbing. I just got stuck laying miles of pipe and I don't want to-”
“When I'm through with you it'll be even more miles.”
She snorted, shooting him a flat look. “Oh, bet you're really proud of that one - look, I'm trying to complain here!”
“Well, what do builders do when they don't wanna do a job? Can’t you just post it to the Commision board?”
She’d…never thought about that. And now that her thoughts had been directed that way, like an animal led on a leash - she hated it. “That sounds so embarrassing.”
His spoon clattered loudly in his empty bowl as he pushed it away. “Why?”
“Well, why should I bother Mi-an, who just got done with the same bullsh*t I did? And then…I don't want my boss rooting around in my plumbing, that's just weird.”
“Ain't there other builders?”
“The nobodies that live outta town?” she scoffed. “Yeah that'll cost an arm and a leg.”
Logan laughed. “Wow, you’re such an asshole. Poor…uh…what's their name? Slack?”
She shrugged and made a mildly disgusted face. “I didn't see any of them working the gorge.”
After quietly finishing the last dregs of her meal, she asked, “So, what’d you get up to while I was away? Stay out of trouble?”
“Uhhh…” He started nervously before swiping at the unruly hair in his eyes, and losing the battle. “Not much. Oh! Down to three smokes a day now. Burgess ain't too bad, all things considered.”
“That's great.” She beamed, giving his hand a light squeeze. “I'm…really happy to know you're in good hands.”
“Yeah, for the most part. Feelin’ pretty decent lately- nicotine withdrawal aside.” He looked momentarily thoughtful before flashing her the whites of his teeth, his lopsided dimple on full display. “Well, not so decent now…practically indecent, even.”
“Ope- yup, there it is. You're definitely a dad. That one was terrible.”
His smile tapered away as he cast a furtive glance around the room, furrowing his brows. “Y’know…if you really don't like how tidy it is in here - I can fix that for you.”
“Yeah?”
He nodded, chest rumbling with a low hum as though he'd made up his mind on something. “Yeah…I'm gonna destroy this house. I'm gonna f*ck you on every surface you own. Against the walls. Maybe even on the stairs.” He looked so sure of himself, the way he casually threatened her home with… sexual aggression ? It made her stomach clench in giddy anticipation.
She shot up, climbing up on her table - knocking down their bowls - and pulled him in for a hungry kiss, fingers tangling in his wild hair. “Do it,” she demanded. “Put up or shut up.”
He smiled into her mouth, and pulled her towards himself.
