hold me like a conversation.

She draws her knees up onto the couch and bites her lip as she stares at the television. however, she's watching him from the corner of her eye, how he drinks his tea, his feather flush gaze staring straight ahead as well. slowly, she trembles like a wolf, turning her chin toward him, 'why did you hold me the other night?'

there's a thousand beats of silence as he sips his tea before shrugging his shoulders, 'you looked like you needed it.'

she sighs, twisting her fingers into her loose hair. 'there have been others times, though.'

he cocks his head to the side. 'i've never held you before.' he raises the mug to his lips again.

'exactly,' she whispers, throaty. 'i've cried in front of you before, and you just stayed where you were. but the other day...i wasn't crying. i wasn't...i don't know.'

his ocean gold eyes flicker for a moment and she readjusts her knees higher up to rest her chin on top of them. quietly, so as not to spook either of their mustang quick hearts, she purrs, 'did you need me?'

he studies her, full moon focus, and he doesn't say anything, the mug neglected in his hand, glinting with the colors from the television.

brave, she continues to breathe, 'loneliness is nothing to be afraid of.'

he jerks up a little straighter at her bullet words. his rock python hands coil around his tea tighter until he places it down on the table. 'love is, though,' he retorts, soft as death, and she startles backwards for a second, a shock of pink warming her cheeks, and she blinks, desperate to keep from crying out, and before he can say anything else, before he can leap up from the couch, she jolts closer to him, magnets, just magnets, and curls herself against the puzzle of his ribs, and they surrender their words as they hold each other again, but this time like honesty.