I woke up in a cold sweat, rubbing my eyes and jerking myself upward. A nightmare had taken my mind to the end.

I was immediately pulled back by an unknown force.

I blinked quietly, slowly etching my head to the side to find that Malachi had his entire body strapped around my torso.

His lanky arms stretched across my chest and neck, holding me close to him. His head laid on my shoulder, shaggy hair covering his face and closed eyes. Soft snoring could be heard as his mouth was so close to my ear. His legs closed around my waist, fully enveloping me into his grasp.

Needless to say, I was alarmed by this.

My face turned completely red, the room grew hotter. I couldn't speak for a moment as I tried to cope with my situation.

"M-milord.."

I managed to whisper, attempting to move him off me, but to no avail. My heart was beating out of my chest.

"Malachi.."

I mumbled in his ear, causing him to yawn and snuggle even closer to me. I sneezed when his chocolate hair reached my nose. He nuzzled into my collar bone, his breathing quiet and warm against my neck.

When did I even fall asleep?

I did my best to use my peripheral vision, moving my head towards the grandfather clock in the center of the house.

"It's 5:00..."

I've been asleep like this for 5 hours?!

My mind swimming, my cheeks a blistering scarlet and my uncomfortableness reaching its limits, I attempted to wriggle out of this wrap.

He pressed his forehead against my cheek, unaware of the situation he was putting me in. His mouth just centimeters from my chin.

"Milord please.."

I pleaded, unable to contain my blush.

Even the thought of this was confusing to me, not to mention the situation.

When did I even get on the couch?

The hours before were a blur to me. All that was in my mind was getting him off me before I get in trouble with Alexis and Kyle.

"Malachi!"

I whisper-shouted in his ear, he moved a bit back, rubbing his eyes and opening them to see me directly next to him.

I was unaware if he was as embarrassed as I was.

"Y-y/n... What are you doing here?"
"Milord, you told me to stay with you tonight."
"I know, but like-"

He scratched behind his head, looking down at his legs which had previously been around my waist.

"We're so close..."

He mumbled to himself, I was unable to make out what else he said.

"Sir? Perhaps you would like to explain."

I said, crossing my arms and almost falling off the small couch.

"Hm? Oh this... wait, how did you wake up?"
"I had a nightmare, and I found you with you're face buried in my neck."

I wasn't irritated, just mildly annoyed at the circumstances given to me.

"Nightmare?"
"Not the point sir."
"Stop calling me that and I'll tell you."

He smiled, I sighed immensely, rolling my eyes and myself off the couch and into a sitting position on the carpet.

"Alright, Malachi."
"Good. You were shivering while you slept on the ground beside me, and it kinda freaked me out. So I pulled you next to me and the rest happened when I fell asleep."

I felt my heart sink a bit.

"So it-"
"I mean, I felt extremely comfortable around you, but if you didn't I understand."
"No.."

I swallowed, covering my cheeks.

"I was just a bit flustered. I'm not white used to such contact."
"Hmm. You don't like going out of your comfort zone much, do you Y/n?"
"No.. not really."

I admitted, softly brushing my hair behind my ear as I stared at the ground. Malachi joined me, inching closer to my body until he managed to lace his fingers into mine.

"How does this make you feel?"

He asked, green eyes sparkling.

I blushed, looking down at our intertwined hands. Swallowing, I didn't exactly know how to answer.

"M-milord I can't answer that."
"Y/n what have I told you-"
"Milord."

I said, releasing his grasp.

"That's what you are to me. That's what you should be to me. And to you, I'm just a guard, right? I'm just a friend. That's how it should be."

I stuttered, standing and taking a step away from him.

"That's how it is."

I mumbled, covering my face. I knew he would be hurt by this, but it was for the best.

I can't let myself fall in love.

A couple tears streamed down my cheeks, I whimpered into my hands as I wiped them away. Malachi stood, walking over to me and removing them and replacing my fingertips with his own. He softly cupped my chin and caught what saltwater he could.

"Y/n, stop."

He spoke, pressing his forehead against mine. I was forced to look him deep in the eyes.

"Our relationship doesn't need to be defined by that. It can be anything."

His words wove into my heart, stitching themselves in and staying there.

"And it doesn't matter to me if you think of me as more than your lord. I hate being called sir by you, because I know you don't mean it."

The more tears that flow, the closer he gets to me. Soon enough he had me pulled into an embrace. Arms fastened to my back, with one hand on my cheek wiping away any excess.

"I know that you want to be formal.. but it hurts me when I hear you say that."
"W-why.."

I asked, as if pleading for an answer. He was so damn close to me. Lips mere millimeters from my own. I could sense the tension between us.

"Because that's not how I feel. I never considered myself a lord. I never considered myself worthy of a guard like you."

My blush increased substantially as his nose touched my own.

"Because I've always thought of you as more than just my guard."

Malachi closed the gap between us, sealing his words with a warm, soft kiss. His lips enveloped mine, pressing deeply against them.

I felt him pick me up, wrapping my arms around his shoulders. I couldn't think straight.. I wasn't awake.

This has to be a dream...

As we broke apart, heavily breathing, I noticed my distance from the ground.

It wasn't a dream.

"Mi-"
"Y/n.. don't."

He silenced me with another kiss.

"I'll continue to do this until you stop calling me that."

He seemed stern about this, despite our incredulous blushes.

"And I don't care how far I have to take it."
"B-but s-"

Muffled again by his mouth, I took a break to breathe before almost surrendering.

I mean.. it's not all that bad anyways.

"M-m"

His tongue prodded against my lip, begging for an entrance. My blush exceeded all records.

"W-wait! Hold on."

I stammered, covering my mouth before he stopped.

"Too far?"
"H-how far can this go?"

I wondered aloud as he set me back on the ground. I hesitated before almost falling over.

I've lost so much oxygen.

"Have you learned your lesson yet?"

He asked, crossing his arms and giving me a rather cocky look. I muttered under my breath, brushing my hair to the side.

I was particularly flustered.

"Fine. Malachi.. I want you to know I was going to call you that before."

At this, he blushed.

"M-my bad. I thought you were gonna-"
"It's fine."

I shrugged, tugging at my shirt.

"I mean, you didn't mean anything by it, right?"

I asked before he smacked himself in the head.

"Do I need to kiss you again?"

He asked blatantly. I broke into a fit of stutters and complaints.

"I-I mean well I-if you want to b-but I mean w-wow you don't g-gotta I mean-"
"Y/n.."

He mentioned my name, holding my hand and leading me back into his chest.

"You're awful cute when you're clueless."

Malachi said before pressing his lips into mine once more.

~~~~~~~~~~~

The ship left that morning. We were heading back to Phoenix drop.

Apparently according to a letter raven sent us, Lord Aphmau had finally returned to the island.

Malachi rejoiced, partying with Kyle and Alexis the entire ride back.

He officially made it a rule that I wasn't allowed to call him any formal name other than Malachi. If I did, the same treatment would apply like prior to my signing in ink.

Although, it would be nice to let it slip once in a while.

My mind spoke for me, and I blushed to myself.

Alexis walked over to me, nudging my shoulder slightly.

"You're red. Cover that."

She said, causing me to blink before slapping myself in the forehead.

I'll never escape this, will I?

Maybe not.

But I'm at least glad I've come to a realization.

I love him..

-----------------

Admin Time!

Gotta make this extra fanservice when I've been gone for like 3 weeks.

I'm so sorry guys, but I put a lot of effort into this!!

It's a bit graphic, but with so many people asking for Lemons, gotta cater to both groups.

Woo if this goes well maybe next chapter will be one lol

And maybe not.

We'll just have to see :w:

But, till then,

Thanks for Reading :)