"Eh?" Matthew began, looking perplexed. Any further questions were cut off when Rief pulled on Matthew's scarf, and brought him down to level for a kiss. Rief had never kissed before – chances at romance weren't exactly springing forth when traveling with his sister and aged teacher. It took a few moments for Matthew to respond, but Rief did not give up immediately. After all, this was the scientific process. One could never figure alchemy with simply one test, and affairs of the heart was the same. Matthew's fingers stroked his cheek, and it was a very pleasant feeling.
The flush deepened over Matthew's face. He rubbed at it, looking back in Rief in bewilderment and wonder as their lips parted. It was pleasant, perhaps not world-shaking, but it did make his heart race admirably. Matthew's lips were chapped, which made the experience slightly rough, yet it had a surprisingly arousing, if not somewhat clumsy.
"I accept your feelings," Rief said. Hmm. That sounded much more dry than the sorts of things that happened in the romance novels Nowell adored. He had only peeked once, for the sake of scientific research. Truthfully, he found them banal, but the idea of a kiss as a sealing of a contract between two people was a good one. It cut through the superfluous, got to the rawest inner meanings, beyond the stuttered words and sweaty palms that the romance novels so conveniently left out. He pressed a finger to Matthew's lips, and gave him a meaningful look.
"However, if you try to coddle me anymore, I'll smack you up the side of the head with my staff."
"Not even a little?" Matthew asked, with a smile.
"A little is acceptable. Of what sorts and means can be discussed at length later. As for now, I must request more time for research before we leave."
"Of course," Matthew said. "As long as you need."
"Good. If you will, help me check the books over there. I believe I need to reacquaint myself with the study of human sexuality. I of course, was familiarized in the basics of human copulation, but I never did go farther than that. I'm still not entirely sure what two men would do together, to be honest."
Matthew's ears and neck were quite red, as if he'd been severely burned. "Isn't that a bit...soon?"
Rief pushed up his glasses, and grinned, a bit mischievously. "It has always been my motto that there is no such thing as too much preparation."
Discoveries 3
"Eh?" Matthew began, looking perplexed. Any further questions were cut off when Rief pulled on Matthew's scarf, and brought him down to level for a kiss. Rief had never kissed before – chances at romance weren't exactly springing forth when traveling with his sister and aged teacher. It took a few moments for Matthew to respond, but Rief did not give up immediately. After all, this was the scientific process. One could never figure alchemy with simply one test, and affairs of the heart was the same. Matthew's fingers stroked his cheek, and it was a very pleasant feeling.
The flush deepened over Matthew's face. He rubbed at it, looking back in Rief in bewilderment and wonder as their lips parted. It was pleasant, perhaps not world-shaking, but it did make his heart race admirably. Matthew's lips were chapped, which made the experience slightly rough, yet it had a surprisingly arousing, if not somewhat clumsy.
"I accept your feelings," Rief said. Hmm. That sounded much more dry than the sorts of things that happened in the romance novels Nowell adored. He had only peeked once, for the sake of scientific research. Truthfully, he found them banal, but the idea of a kiss as a sealing of a contract between two people was a good one. It cut through the superfluous, got to the rawest inner meanings, beyond the stuttered words and sweaty palms that the romance novels so conveniently left out. He pressed a finger to Matthew's lips, and gave him a meaningful look.
"However, if you try to coddle me anymore, I'll smack you up the side of the head with my staff."
"Not even a little?" Matthew asked, with a smile.
"A little is acceptable. Of what sorts and means can be discussed at length later. As for now, I must request more time for research before we leave."
"Of course," Matthew said. "As long as you need."
"Good. If you will, help me check the books over there. I believe I need to reacquaint myself with the study of human sexuality. I of course, was familiarized in the basics of human copulation, but I never did go farther than that. I'm still not entirely sure what two men would do together, to be honest."
Matthew's ears and neck were quite red, as if he'd been severely burned. "Isn't that a bit...soon?"
Rief pushed up his glasses, and grinned, a bit mischievously. "It has always been my motto that there is no such thing as too much preparation."