Her hands were trembling gently. "It's okay." She whispered. "This is the best… Best I've been with it. I used to be worse,"
Revolutionary War Roleplay! [CLOSED]
Knowing he would regret it later, Pierre carefully cupped his strong hands over her trembling ones to still them. "Even so, I'm sorry."
She stared down at their hands. The lukewarm water cooled her palms through the glass, and on the other side the stabilizing firmness of his grasp. She said nothing.
Pierre loosened his grip, his way of silently letting her know that she could pull away any time she wanted to.
Edonine didn't move. Inhaled slowly, flexed her fingers and held the cup tighter. "It's not your fault…" She spoke with the same volume as the nighttime's breath. "I've bore this burden for a very long time.."
Pierre ran his thumb over her knuckles, relaxing his posture in an attempt to calm her further. "That still doesn't mean you deserve it.."
He could feel the tremors run through her fingers. "Ten years.."
Ten years.. Pierre was surprised to find his heart aching for her. Biting his lip, he let go of her hands. "Would you mind if I gave you a hug?"
"I don't know." She laughed. "I haven't been touched for a decade."
Pierre hesitated, unsure how to respond to the comment.
Her eyes fell in measures, down to the still water in her glass.
Pierre gingerly put his arms around her in a careful hug, giving her more than enough room to pull away.
"Pierre," she spoke with a panicked tone.
Pierre immediately pulled back, withdrawing into himself. He shifted his chair away from er to give her space, cursing himself at how incredibly stupid he had been. "I'm sorry–" he said frantically, trying to make amends.
She was gripping the chair now. Heavy breath, for a few seconds, then sipped her water to try and calm down. Her trembling hands made water spill down her front.
A dozen differed curses raced through Pierre's head. Oh god– How could he have been so thickheaded and insensitive?? Moving quickly, he removed the glass from her hands and grabbed hold of a towel, tossing it lightly to her but keeping his distance.
"Jesus–" she whimpered with embarrassment, covering her face with the towel.
"It's fine, that was so stupid of me, I'm so sorry–" He moved around the room, trying to give her space, panicking a little inside.
"No, you.. You didn't mean to." She half laughed, finding this equally amusing and heartbreaking.
Pierre shook his head, incredibly tempted to slap himself across the face. "I'm still sorry–"
"Sit, please," she croaked, wiping water off her chin.
Pierre followed her instructions, sitting a distance away from her. His cheeks were red with shame.
She drew the towel over her lips and let it fall onto her lap. "Don't feel.. bad, Pierre.." she made eye contact, albeit weak. "I haven't had a man in my home for a long time. I'll… adjust,"
"I'll be gone soon," he reminded her gently, averting his eyes. He still couldn't believe himself. I'm sorry.
"Don't go." She whispered.
Pierre froze. What? She wanted him to stay? She wasn't anxious to get him out of her house as soon as possible. Knowing that he was threading on thin ice, he dared a question. "You enjoy my company?"
Edonine's mouth went dry. She took a generous sip of water. "You.. Don't realize how lonely you are until you have company.."
"Believe me, I know what loneliness is like…" He averted his eyes once more. "I just didn't think.. I thought you'd want to be rid of me as soon as possible."
She looked down. "I didn't want to admit it outright.. I feel ashamed for it.."
"Don't feel ashamed, if I was in your position I'd probably want me to leave as well.." he reassured her, lifting his hands before forcing them back down onto his lap. "It's completely reasonable."