Chapter 142: Kiss Me, You Oaf

The small cloth in Orion’s hand unfurled like a secret revealed, its folds whispering against the wood of his calloused fingers. Inside lay a pair of delicate earrings...twin drops of silver framed with faint traces of blue crystal that shimmered softly beneath the firelight. Sophia’s breath caught before she could stop it.

"Are those..." she began, her voice faltering as disbelief tangled with something warmer.

Orion’s lips curved into a slow, knowing smile. "The same ones we saw at the stall this morning?" He asked her. "Yes."

"But..."

"You pretended like nothing at the stall interested you." He supplied for her. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

Sophia blinked, then frowned, though the blush that crept across her cheeks betrayed her. "You...You knew?"

He chuckled, low and deep. "I’ve told you this numerous times Sophia but you can’t lie to me. You liked the earrings but pretended you didn’t."

"I was going to get them later...maybe when I had the money." She told him.

"Ehn...that’s take months." Orion said to her.

Her fingers fidgeted against her, and she turned toward the hearth as if the flames might swallow her embarrassment. "When did you even buy them?"

"Earlier this morning," he replied, crossing the space between them with that calm confidence that always made her pulse stumble. "I actually planned to give them to you tomorrow. But I thought...why not just give it to you now. Especially after everything you did for me today. If not for you...if not for you, I would never have met with my parents again or even get to enjoy the festival." He told her, his eyes softening as they met hers.

"Is that you thanking me for dragging you away from your favourite place? Never thought I’d see the day." Sophia said quietly because his words hit her straight in her chest.

"It may not last too." Orion said, a smirk lingering on his lips.

The world around them seemed to quiet...only the fire’s soft crackle filled the room, mingling with the faint sigh of the wind brushing against the windows.

"Try them on," Orion said, holding the earrings toward her, palm open. "And stop avoiding the fact that I bought these for you."

A small laugh escaped her, though it trembled slightly. "Who said I was avoiding it?"she said as she turned to face him fully, reaching for one of the earrings.

Her fingers shook just a little as she hooked it through her ear. The jewel caught the light a spark of blue gleaming against her skin. She was about to put on the second when Orion reached out a hand.

"Here," he said quietly.

Sophia froze, then let him take the earring from her. His fingers brushed hers, warm and rough, steady in contrast to the flutter in her chest. He stepped closer, close enough for her to catch the faint scent of smoke and cedar clinging to him.

Her heart drummed in her chest as his hand rose to her ear. The calloused pad of his thumb grazed the curve of her neck, lingering for a heartbeat before he secured the earring.

"There," he murmured, voice low. "Perfect."

Sophia swallowed. His face was inches from hers, his beautiful eyes catching the firelight, gold glinting in their depths. He studied her quietly, his gaze moving slowly across her face, from her eyes to the faint curve of her lips, then back to the earrings.

"They really do glow in the dark," he said.

Sophia laughed softly, though it came out breathless. "The vendor said it did."

"Yeah." His tone dropped to something gentler. "She did."

Her laughter faded. The air between them grew still, charged with the kind of silence that hummed with all the things neither dared to say.

Sophia felt the space between them closing, her pulse quickening as if her body understood before her mind did.

Orion’s gaze dipped to her lips. His hand, still hovering near her neck traced the line of her jaw, slow and deliberate, the touch sending a trail of warmth up her spine.

"I’m going to kiss you now," he said quietly, voice barely above a whisper. "If you don’t want it...push me away."

Her breath hitched. Her eyes met his and that blue orbs of hers darkened as she took in his features.

"I’m not going to push you away," she whispered, her voice barely audible.

"You say that now but you..."

She interrupted him then. "Kiss me, you oaf."

Orion smiled at her then closed the distance between them. Even Noctis, growled in appreciation when his lips met hers.

The kiss was slow, careful, like a question neither had asked until now. His lips brushed hers lightly, tasting of warmth and restraint, but when she tilted her chin upward and pressed closer, something inside him broke. His hand slid to the back of her neck, fingers threading through her hair as he deepened the kiss, pulling her in until no space remained between them.

Sophia clutched at his shirt, her fingers curling into the fabric as the fire behind them flared, heat spilling through the room. It felt as if she stood in its center, burning, breathless, and alive.

He kissed her like he was learning her, tracing the shape of her mouth with the kind of reverence that made her knees weak. When his lips left hers to trail down her cheek and along her jaw, she exhaled his name in a trembling whisper that carried too much feeling to be anything but truth.

Orion paused, his forehead resting against hers. His breath mingled with hers, warm and uneven. "Sophia," he murmured, and she felt her heart twist at the sound rough, reverent, aching with emotion.

"If we continue, I’m not sure I’ll be able to stop myself." He told her truthfully.

Noctis growled and told him not to stop but he had to take Sophia into consideration. If she told him to leave, he would, even if it was his home.

"Orion, you really are an oaf." She told him.

"What?" He asked, his brows furrowed in confusion.

"Don’t stop, then." She said replying to his earlier comment. "I don’t want you to stop."

Truth.