Interlude ~ Tryst

I'm working on this as a part of a novel. I listened to Stay with Me by Sam Smith and it made me think of why we connect to others, particularly sexually, when we feel weak or so strongly desire love. These feelings are very real and human, and I think there is a lot of power in them, though they often do not help us gain the love we desire. They're the starting ground for exploring the dynamics of love, relationships, morality, and many other things. Enjoy :)

 

I awoke and the first things I noticed were the softness of my jersey bed sheets, the cool air touching the uncovered parts of my body, and the warmth of the man sleeping next to me. For a moment, I was relieved to have not spent another night alone, but then I thought of who was lying next to me.

Our costumes were strewn in one corner of the room. My bright yellows and blues mingled with his dark grays and navy. I smiled because the colors complemented each other. It made me think that, maybe, my decision to lay with him wasn’t so bad, that we could make something work.

Still, reality came crashing down and I understood the gravity of sleeping with a “bad guy.” Not everyone would think so highly of me. Others would be even less kind.

I knew him as ‘Grave,’ an up and comer among the city’s villains. He was quickly gaining a reputation for big heists. Some banks, other laboratories around the city. No one knew what he was up to, but among the heroes he was becoming a significant worry, if not a threat.

Trying to foil one of his schemes was why we came into contact at all. He’d gotten onto one of the university campuses and had briefly tripped an alarm. I was able to intercept the signal before anyone else. I quickly flew to the campus and found him searching through the Engineering department. He hadn’t gotten ahold of too many things by the time I confronted him.

“You know, you shouldn’t take things that aren’t yours,” I joked to him.

“Classes aren’t in session, so you shouldn’t be here,” he gave a stone reply while still searching through the machinery.

“Nice quip,” I nodded. “Got one for how you’ll feel being in jail?”
He dropped what he was doing and turned to me. “No, but speaking of feelings…” he said as his body began to emit a subtle glow. I had been okay for the past few days, but it was as though all those horrible feelings came back to me. My eyes went wide as I felt a surge of negative emotions.

I felt the pain from my last year. Loss, hitting bottom, guilt. It was as though a year’s worth of emotional content hit me at once. I felt weak; I knew I hadn’t put all those things behind me, but I did think I had squashed them down enough to function. Up until that moment.

I dropped to my knees, so in shock that I could barely let the tears roll down my face. I was frozen, and now he could do whatever he wanted. My emotions had gotten to the point that they could cost me my life.

He slowly walked over to me, and picked me up by my scarf. He had stopped glowing and as he stepped into a small sliver of light, I could make out an expression on his face. It was as though he felt my pain. The negative emotions were starting to dissipate. Whatever he had done before had stopped. Yet, I was still surprised when he leaned closer and his lips met mine.

Shock was the first thing to enter my mind, but it soon melted into tenderness. His lips were soft and warm. He let them part to allow for a deeper kiss and I followed suit. Soon, he let go of my scarf and moved his hands down to my body. He pulled me close and I could feel his heart beating on my chest. I moved my hands up to his hair, sleek and smooth. I could feel each bristle under my fingertips, the edge of his mask, the light hairs on his ears. No other villain had ever sparked this in me.

I broke free for a moment and stepped back to look at him. He responded by shifting back into the shadows, though I knew he wasn’t leaving. Whether it was the moment of intense vulnerability or a desire to forego loneliness, I extended my hand to him and moved closer. He softly placed his in mine and pulled me to him again. As we resumed kissing, I teleported us to my room.

For a moment, he was surprised. He hadn’t expected to come back here. It was a risk on my part; this could reveal too much to him. Yet, I didn’t want to spend my night alone. He’d taken action, I’d accepted. Feeling all the pain he elicited in me just made me that more desperate for a loving touch.

He turned from me and looked out my windows. From my balcony, you could see the glittering lights of the city and their dim reflection in the bay beyond. I could swear he gave a sigh of happiness before he closed the blinds.

“I’m sorry, but it’s probably better for both of us this way,” he said with regret in his voice.

“I know,” I replied, understanding how this could affect both of us. I embraced him, feeling his sinews through the fabric of his costume. I slowly stroked his back as he put his arms around me. We both needed that moment, to feel connected to someone. Even without psychic abilities, I could feel that we were starkly similar to each other.

He kissed my forehead, then leaned his against mine. We both breathed for a moment before we began to kiss again. We freed our hands to take off each other’s costumes. He removed my scarf and caressed my neck with his mouth. I pushed him back to remove his shirt, running my hands down his chest and stomach. Like most of us, I could tell he kept in shape as my fingers ran over the ridges of his body. He tried to return the favor and remove my costume, but I stopped him and gave a laugh.

“The scarf I let you have, but this is how it usually works,” I closed my eyes and felt the energy wash over my body. In a slow shimmer, my costume seemed to melt away. “Makes things easier.”

“That’s absolutely true,” he said, loosening his belt and stepped out of his pants. We both stood in the silence, revealing a different kind of vulnerability to each other. I slowly stepped back to the bed, holding his hand and guiding him with me. He climbed in and held my body, reminding me that, underneath our masks, we are still human.

Through the darkness, we looked in each others’ eyes. He caressed my face and I raised my hand to touch the edge of his mouth. I felt his lips curl into a smile, and I couldn’t help but to do the same. I was grateful to be a hero that night, not because it saved someone’s life, but because I could share my loneliness with someone who wouldn’t make me feel so alien. The night melted away as he kissed me again and our passion manifested within those four walls.

Looking at his body again, I could feel a strange mingling of emotions. Regret, gratitude, loneliness, connectedness. I could barely get a grasp of each one of them. Soon his body began to stir. I laid still, waiting for my eyes to reach his, even though the blinds kept much of the sunlight from penetrating the room. I could feel him turn towards me, and I thought for a moment I could make out the edge of his smile. Before he completely turned, though, he stopped and sat up.

“I’m…” his words broke the silence. “I’m sorry.” He kept his back to me as he searched for his mask. I could still see the outline of his naked body in the dim morning light. As he found it and put it on, he turned to me, a look of sadness and regret in his eyes. One stream of light that managed to break through the blinds caught a tear, shining through the darkness. He quickly put on the rest of his costume and opened the balcony door. I summoned a pair of underwear using my abilities and rushed after him.

He climbed onto the railing and braced himself. He turned, one last time, then lowered his head. As he jumped over, I barely managed to see the last glimpse of him as I ran to the edge of the balcony. I tried to search for him, but it was pointless. I put my back to the sky, facing the emptiness of my room. The morning sunlight warmed my body, but could not assuage what I felt facing loss yet again.