gentle

that thing where your alien boyfriend doesn't know how to show affection properly

it's another one of those nights - where he's staring at her instead of the TV as they lounge in bed, his clear blue eyes wide like little stars as they move back and forth over the planes of her face. he watches as her own gaze darts from the TV to meet his, and he looks away shyly as she grins at him.

"what is it?" she asks in that soft, sweet voice of hers, turning on her side so their bodies are pressed up together, barely any space left in-between them. his mouth opens and closes for a moment like a fish out of water, the gears in his brain turning to form the right words. 

"I…want to touch," he says finally, his brows furrowing slightly. "can I touch you?"

she smiles, her eyes crinkling slightly, and nods.

this is a common occurrence between the two of them. on hazy, sticky summer nights like these, he's fond of touching her. it's never sexual, not usually, at least - yet more of an exploration, and experiment.

his pale, boney hands snake up to her face, grabbing her flushed cheeks lightly. the lamplight reflects off of her skin in a way that leaves him slightly dazzled, her eyes boring into his as his lanky fingers roam about her face. she giggles as his fingers run along her jaw, up to her temple and over her hairline. down the curve of her nose they wander, up to her eyes where they pull slightly at her eyelids. finally they settle on her lips, tracing over her cupid's bow. 

he stares at her with such intensity, such focus, that you would think that he was doing this so as to have the image, every small detail of her face burned into his memory forever. that when he would close his eyes, he would see her dimples, her smile, her eyebrows imprinted so clearly on the backs of his eyelids. 

he smashes his lips against hers in a swift, sudden motion, his fingernails digging into the soft flesh of her cheek once more. his hip bumps against hers as their teeth knock together slightly, noses smushed against one another. his leg slots between her thighs, rolling half on top of her as she lets out a tiny hiss of discomfort. he quickly pulls away, eyes wide and frantic as he takes in the small bit of blood that forms in little beads on her lip. he stammers, scrambling off of her as his chest heaves with worry, his fists clenching and unclenching, knuckles white. she moves close to him once again, cupping his gaunt face.

"hey, hey, it's okay," she whispers. "it was an accident." 

"I hurt you," he manages, voice hoarse and filled with despair. she smiles at him sympathetically. 

"you didn't mean to," she replies, licking the blood off of her lower lip. "besides, I'm not in any real pain, see? just a little blood."

there's a long silence, him nodding slowly as he looks at her, eyes still wide and slightly teary. she smooths over his hair, trying to soothe him. 

"you just need to be gentle," she explains softly, as if talking to a small animal. she presses her lips to his in a slow, tender motion. his eyes stay open as she kisses him, taking in the sensation that he so desperately tried to create moments earlier. 

"gentle, see?" she whispers against his mouth, her eyelashes grazing his cheeks. 

"yes," he nods, eyebrows furrowing once again, "yes… gentle." 

"try again," she urges, her hand moving along his arm affectionately. "it will go better this time." 

he's hesitant at first, but does what she asks, sliding his lips over hers in a shy, apprehensive motion. yet he quickly eases into it after a few moments, his hands lightly gripping at the fabric of her shirt. he can't help but be desperate, can't help but display some sort of yearning for her that's seemingly uncontrollable.

he pulls away finally, slightly winded from the action, finding his cheeks warming as he sees her beaming at him.

"now that wasn't so bad, was it?" she says sweetly, her fingers dancing along the skin of his forearm. 

he shivers, smiling bashfully. "no, I suppose not."