Chapter 27: That Which Burns, That Which Freezes
The room was dim.
Outside, the world cracked in quiet ruin.
But inside—it was heat and trembling restraint.
Aria curled closer, her breath hot against Selene's neck, her fevered skin slick and flushed. Her body had become a furnace, still radiating the same untamed magic that had drawn Selene into her orbit like a moth to flame.
Selene stayed beside her, breathing evenly, doing nothing more than being present. But it wasn't enough.
Not anymore.
⸻
"Selene…"
Her voice broke the silence.
It was soft.
Almost shy.
But burning at the edges.
Selene turned to her, barely holding back the whirlwind of need twisting deep in her chest. "What is it?"
Aria's eyes fluttered open, unfocused and glassy. Her fingers trembled as they clutched at Selene's shirt, seeking the chill beneath her palm like a lifeline.
"You feel so good," she whispered, voice thick with need, heavy with longing. "So cold… I want it again."
Selene's breath caught in her throat. Her body ached to answer that call. Her instincts screamed yes. But her mind, still clear enough to remember what they were risking, hesitated. "Aria—"
"I want to kiss you again."
And gods—how could she say no to that?
⸻
Selene kissed her.
Slower this time.
Gentler.
Savoring the delicate shape of her lips.
She let Aria lead—let her test the boundary first. But then came the whisper again, a soft, cracked plea:
"Please…"
Selene deepened the kiss.
Her tongue brushed lightly against Aria's, coaxing, asking permission. Aria melted into it—her mouth opening with a breathy moan that undid Selene more than it should have. The fevered heat that rolled off her skin wasn't just magic now—it was hunger.
Selene's control cracked like glass underfoot.
She pulled Aria closer, threading fingers into her damp hair, kissing her harder. Their lips locked deeper—longer—slow and drugging, like they had all the time in the world and no right to want it.
Aria clung to her like she'd disappear otherwise.
Their legs tangled, skin to skin, Aria pressing herself against every inch of Selene's chill, sighing like it soothed her from the inside out. Her body arched instinctively, seeking, aching.
Every sound from her mouth—every tiny moan—felt like a blade against Selene's restraint.
She wanted her.
God, she wanted her.
But Aria didn't remember.
Not yet.
Didn't know who she truly was.
⸻
Selene broke the kiss with a gasp, panting. Her hands curled tightly into the sheets at Aria's sides, her body trembling from the effort of stopping. "I can't—" she whispered hoarsely, not trusting her voice with anything more.
But Aria kissed her again.
Softer this time.
Desperate.
Her hands slid up Selene's back, fingertips like fire beneath her shirt, each touch searing through the last of Selene's self-control.
"You help me," Aria breathed, barely more than a sigh. "Please don't stop."
Her voice was silk and wildfire.
Selene gave in again.
And again.
Every kiss deeper. Every brush of tongue slower. Each movement careful, restrained, purposeful. Like she was dancing on the edge of a sword.
Her lips slid down Aria's throat, kissing gently along her fevered skin—cooling her where she could, drawing quiet gasps from her throat. Selene was learning her, relearning her. Where she shivered. Where she sighed. Where she gave in without knowing why.
But even as desire bloomed hot and beautiful inside her, Selene's grip never left the sheets.
Not her hips.
Not her skin.
Never there.
Aria arched again, soft and pliant in her arms, giving more. Wanting more.
And Selene had to pull away.
Again.
Her forehead pressed to Aria's shoulder, breath ragged, restraint fraying thread by thread. "I like you too much," she murmured, voice low and broken, "to touch you like that… when you don't know me yet."
Aria didn't answer with words.
She just curled into Selene's chest and stayed there, arms wrapped loosely around her waist, head tucked beneath her chin. Her breath came slower now. Still warm, still flushed—but no longer desperate.
"…Stay," she whispered, the word soft as snow.
Selene closed her eyes.
And did.
⸻
Outside, the world stayed broken. The sirens, the ruin, the echoes of what was—all still there. But inside that dim apartment, they found something close to silence. Close to peace.
The chaos could wait.
Because Aria—the girl who burned like the end of the world—was safe in Selene's arms.
And Selene—the girl who once thought herself made only of ice—felt her own frost thawing by inches.
In the quiet that followed, Selene didn't dare think of consequences. Or memory. Or what might come next. All she knew was this:
Aria wanted her.
Even if she didn't understand why yet.
And Selene, for the first time in years, wanted to believe she was worthy of that want.