Doe's POV:

The soft press of fingerpads pulled their way agonizingly slow down the skin of my sides.

"A-Alex," My stammer was nothing but a pleading pant.

His lips lifted from my collar bone, green eyes peering up at me with flaming confidence. A smirk tugged at the corners of his lips before his tongue ran over the bottom one.

"Yes?" The single word rumbled deep in his chest, speaking it expectantly.

The air around me was burning, and only getting warmer the longer he kept that gaze on me.

His shirtless skin wasn't offering me any sort of relief, every spot of contact our bodies shared burning hotter than the rest.

The desperate hold I had on his shoulder, my other fingers bent around his tricep but fighting against absolutely nothing to draw him closer.

He was already on top of me, he couldn't possibly go anywhere and yet I took the precaution.

I fought against the invisible fire baking both of us.

Or just me. He looked completely unaffected.

He could fix this. I knew he could.

"I need you to- mph!" My lips pressed together tight at his movements.

As he lowered himself to right under my belly button, teasing my body with his tongue.

I was gonna lose it if this continued much longer.

That same look again, this time from further down my body.

"You need me to what, Dove?" he inquired, his innocent tone attempting to mask the roguery that laid just beneath it.

My stomach did a somersault at the sight, flustering me beyond anything that I was used to.

I wanted to snap back, to regain some of my control of the situation.

To regain and match the confidence he was showing me with a nip of my own, but I couldn't do anything through the increasing temperature.

That, and the internal strain my body was experiencing

I had to take in a few heavy breaths to will the words out of my mouth.

"Fix this," I begged, not even trying to hide it in my voice.

He was the answer. I knew he was

I didn't know how, or why, but that didn't change the facts.

My eyes squeezed shut, everything becoming borderline unbearable.

"Please," the word fell as a pathetic whimper, not having the strength left to be anything but genuine.

A quick grab of both his hands against my hips had my eyes springing open again, both from the shock of the suddenness of it, and that the action worked in turning down whatever was currently affecting me.

Not entirely, but enough for me to notice and feel the relief.

"Like this?" He teased, laying out the playing field, and awaiting the curt reply that would usually come from me.

The cheeky banter I'd become such a spitfire at was now leaving me with no words.

My head was blank, only truly processing his hands against my body.

I don't think that fighting with this was going to get me anywhere.

The hardened exterior I thought I had wasn't going to be a defense over what was creeping up on me yet again

I swallowed hard, and surrendered to it all.

Surrendered into him.

"Keep going," I pleaded yet again, not even entirely sure myself what it was I was asking for.

His fangs came into view while his grin turned into a smirk at my words, his hands continuing tediously down towards my thighs.

I writhed a bit against the touch but noticed something else soon after his hands passed my hips.

Or instead, a lack of something.

A quick, focused glance was all it took to show me that I wasn't wearing anything at all.

That I was lying completely naked beneath him.

That heat ignited again just centimeters from my skin at the realization, and where I promptly concluded that I'd feel embarrassed or bashful, I instead felt relief... excitement.

It was odd in its novelty, but I didn't dare replace it, not when those invisible flames backed away after feeling such a thing.

If I wasn't wearing anything, then was he?

I already knew that he wasn't sporting anything on his top half.

I dared to lift my head a touch more, attempting to glance past his torso and-

I awoke, eyes snapping open to try to ground myself

The first thing I could notice was the arms around me, and the sweat I was currently drenched in.

My heart thumped wildly in my chest- no, I could feel it everywhere.

Deep in my stomach, in my head... everywhere.

And the fact that I was now staring, and partially being held against Xander's bare chest...

The memories of my dream all dropped on me within the next second, hitting me like a ton of bricks.

Oh my god... Oh my god oh my god oh my god!

I'd never had a dream like that before. Nothing that was anything close.

I rarely had dreams that weren't nightmares, to begin with, but that...

No part of me was calming down, and that freakout was about to affect my breathing.

I slowly pushed myself back, feeling the sweat holding my thighs together get torn apart.

I needed to get out of here. Just out of this bed to cool off.

But the absolute last thing I wanted on top of that was for Xander to wake up.

Which was hopeful thinking. I've gotten up in the middle of the night before, and never have I been successful in keeping him asleep.

I dared to look at his face as soon as I had the ability, the peace written across his still-asleep features pulling an intense reaction out of me.

My face flamed- no it was my entire body.

This couldn't be normal. This just had to be residual emotions from the dream.

Like how I was still frightful when I woke up from a nightmare.

Yeah...sure...

I drew in a long, slow breath, preparing myself to just bite the bullet and inevitably wake him up while I maneuvered out of his arms.

The arms that tightened a half-second before the glow of his eyes came into view, loosening completely once he recognized what I was doing.

I couldn't face him. I... I just couldn't.

My mind was racing, I was covered in sweat, and it felt like I had just broken into a fever.

He opened up his hold on me, a drowsy, questioning sound rising from his throat.

I was pretty sure I had a short grace period after Xander first woke up before he decided to tap into his senses, and I took advantage of that.

"Bathroom," I whispered before hurriedly shifting away from him and retreating.

The same way I did everytime I truly did need to pee in the middle of the night, but a lot more rushed this time around.

I quietly shut the door, basking in the cool feeling of the tile against my feet right away.

I stopped suppressing my breaths as soon as the door was shut, taking a few steps over to sit on the tile that bordered the tub.

What on earth was that about?

Images kept flashing through my mind, not aiding whatsoever in all of this.

It wasn't even fear or worry this time around that was causing this odd panic, but instead, it was the level at which I was feeling it.

The unfamiliarity of such an intense desire was my current hang-up.

I'd felt this before, just a whole lot tamer.

This pull, this ache that only he could make go away. The want of his... of him.

It was enthralling in a way, knowing who it was centered around, but the lack of control the intensity caused... that's where I found myself second-guessing.

That's where the panic was coming from.

I just needed to take a step back and analyze it for a moment before digging any deeper.

These types of feelings were still new to me... now that I was embracing them and discovering them in the safety I had here, I still didn't have all the answers that I wanted.

Xander was safety... I knew that. This strange reaction had nothing to do with him.

Or... the root of it didn't, but he was definitely involved.

The freak-out was mine. That wasn't his fault.

I let out a deep sigh, leaning forward and letting my face fall into my hands.

I debated even stepping out onto the balcony to speed this cooling-off process up but concluded that might raise too much of a suspicion.

I didn't want Xander to ask about anything, because I honestly wouldn't know what to say.

My brain still wasn't entirely working since I had just woken up a few minutes prior.

I could barely put it into thoughts, so putting it into words was an absolute no-go.

It ached whatever it was.

Whatever emotion was dancing around in my brain whenever he was nearby.

That would go from a warmth in my chest, to a simple yearning for his presence, for his touch, to this.

And much much more.

I pushed my head back up with my hands until my back was straight, letting my hands continue through my hair to smooth it out.

They dropped into my lap, leaving me just staring at whatever semblance of my reflection I could make out.

My breathing eventually settled while I steadily chilled out.

While I accepted what just happened for what it was, and stored it away for when I can think clearer.

For when the day comes that I can give this feeling a name.

Until then though... I wanted to be back in his arms.

I rose to my feet, taking quiet steps over to the separate isolated room that only held the toilet.

I flushed it, then went and let the water run in the sink for a bit to aid in my fib.

Grabbing the washcloth, I ran it under the cold water and gave it a quick swipe over my arms and legs. Just to get rid of that sticky sweat feeling.

It didn't take long for that to air dry, and leave things how they were prior.

Padding over to the door, I glanced through it as I opened it.

I didn't see that green glow anywhere, but that was usually the case when I had to use the bathroom in the middle of the night.

He'd just sometimes switch his position, and just lay with his eyes closed to await my return.

I could see that he'd rolled onto his back, one eye peeking open the second I got myself back onto the bed.

I celebrated the fact that I could look at him normally again, maneuvering myself back to where I should be.

His arm felt its way around my back as soon as I was close enough, aiding in guiding me back in the darkness.

"You okay?" His voice quietly croaked. A subtle check-in he did every time.

I caught myself softly smiling at this one.

"Yeah, I'm okay," I assured him, which allowed him to close his eyes again.

This time though, I stopped before laying back down entirely.

I don't know what prompted me to, but I just stopped and stared at him. At the features I could make out.

It made that feeling return, but luckily at an intensity that I could manage.

One I didn't have to fight when it pushed me to do something.

Instead, I listened to the urge without a second thought, leaning in to place a kiss on his forehead.

He stiffened beneath me, both eyes now open.

I hid the laugh that threatened itself, not wanting to wake him up more than I already had at his reaction to such a simple gesture.

It made me want to do another one, so I did.

Lowering a few inches, I placed the next one on his lips, feeling his hand press just noticeably harder into my back at the single, slow kiss.

I parted from him just an inch, meeting his still-wide eyes.

His heart was racing clearly when I rested my head on his bare chest without another word, his hand hovering for a moment before finally setting it on my back.

The other fixed the blankets before it came to gingerly hold the upper arm of the limb I'd slung across him.

The cool touch of his skin was more comforting than usual this time around, relaxing into it with no further issue.

Right... No matter the panic, no matter whatever fears or worries might momentarily attach themselves, in the end, Xander was still Xander.