warming up

I'm rusty, so forgive my awkwardness. 
With this piece I entertain myself (2POVs), 
and try to ease my way back 
into writing. Again.

JJ

I shrugged Tom and his hot breath off of my shoulders. The feeling of being blanketed in hellfire eased and I could breathe again. “That wasn’t very nice,” he smiled into my neck. His arm pulled me into a bearhug. Those were the death of me. I felt him purr and sniff at my hairline, licking. “You taste salty. What’s the matter? Cat got your tongue?” His nose brushed my ear.

To my shame, I only found the strength to sigh. His joke didn’t ease that cold nagging at the back of my mind. How pathetic. I swear I wanted to tell him. He was the one I trusted most, but-. Too many buts in my life… The heat he radiated found its way into my lower back. Those beast-hugs could break me. I swear I wanted to give in. After a grueling shift, there was nothing better than one of Tom’s embraces. But something made me stay silent. “None of your concern.” I didn’t mean to sound that harsh. “Yet,” I added too late. That didn’t save a thing.

“Fine.” He grunted and got up, dragging my sheets to the ground. “Don’t tell me. I’m your-” he gestured at me in his bed vaguely, “whatever this means to you.” I turned to watch him walk naked to the hygiene cubicle. Loved how his black silky coat shimmered violet in the remaining light. Tom could glow, the man I bought him from told me.

The glass walls moved silently to the ceiling. They turned opaque as soon as he stepped in. Oh blessed sleep, let me rest. The shower filled his bunk with pine-scented vapor. My mind couldn’t tear itself away from the slightly inaccurate star-maps. Out here, we were on our own. The CPU was probably missing some updates. Tom would calm down after breakfast. I closed my eyes. Eventually… I’d update in the morning from the last relay. Problem solved. “No drama llama,” I told Tom towering inside the forest. I thought I heard him curse and growl. “That’s rude,” I mumbled. Heaviness embraced me.

Red light rushed at me. A giant ran up and down the corridors looking for his keys. Footfalls shook me, the bed, the bunk, my ship, and the void outside. This must be Tom’s curse. He was a were-giant and went on a rampage on my ship. How could he do that?! Bastard! “BRACE FOR IMPACT!” The giant burst through the wall, like a parasite through a chest cavity. Metal screamed. Fuck you too giant! It hurt my ears, but I couldn’t cover them. The bastard grinned and breathed ice on me. He picked me up and threw me across a cave. Something shattered behind me. Something fragile. It screamed and tore.

*

TOM

The door slid open and I was surprised to see JJ already in my bunk, mumbling at some data sheets and tablets. “I dreamed about you nearly every day this week,” I chirped at him. He gave me a shy smile, just before going beet red. He glowed so beautifully; his cheeks, eyes, and neck lit up with golden and pink patterns. I wish he could see himself the way I did. Still, something was wrong. His hands darkened worryingly. “How many secrets can you keep?” His fingertips brushed the almost healed scar on my left cheek. He kept so many things from me. His scars were not visible, but I could tell he had some. A tangy scent crowned him, it was the stress response of the Terran neurological system.

JJ raised himself on his tiptoes and pulled me into a kiss. Huh. Never thought he’d show initiative. “Well, well. Look who finally warmed up.”

“No drama, llama,” I chuckled at his wordplay. He beamed at me and thought he was hilarious, but I had found the t-shirt he kept hidden for my birthday. It warmed my chest, those rare moments of cublike innocence he let me see, now and then. Amazing how he opened up to someone like me.

I pulled him into a tight hug and let myself fall onto the bed. His warm scent made me purr. Usually, he struggled against my embrace, but today it was different. The more, the merrier! So I did the next best thing: got out of my clothes, grabbed the sheets, and rolled onto JJ, to purr like some badly oiled powerhouse engine. I must’ve fallen asleep because he managed to wiggle himself half free.

He sat, one of my arms over his lap, struggling to take off his clothes. I helped and sat up behind him. With a curt move, he shrugged me away. “That wasn’t very nice,” I nuzzled the back of his nape, licked the sweat.”You taste salty. What’s the matter? Cat got your tongue?” I pulled him back into the bed, purred to his rushing heartbeat, and the obvious heat and swelling in his groin. I never understood why some Terrans felt ashamed about their needs.

“None of your concern.” That was right. It wasn’t my place to question him. I knew, but I hated when he had problems he wouldn’t let me help with. JJ’s scent got acrid. I pushed him too far, or maybe not far enough. His body sent me contradicting signals. If he needed drama, and I was willing to be a drama-queen. I played hurt.”Yet.”

“Fine.”I got up and ignored the guilty look. “Don’t tell me. I’m your- whatever this means to you.” I pointed somewhat offended. My status was more of a discussion point between JJ and the rest of the crew. The ship was his property, but slaves and refugees were a grey area, even if the “Sanctuary” was a sanctuary. JJ looked so worn out, that I regretted dragging him into the deep end of emotional turmoil.

After a shower, things might look differently. The hot water started as soon as I stepped into the hygiene cubicle. What a luxury. The heat was most relaxing until I heard something. JJ snored lightly and spoke in his sleep. “No drama llama.” I felt more than heard it. A whining sound, as if the engines struggled with something. A rumble went through the hull and the high-pitched noise morphed into metal folding metal. The ship roared. “Come on that’s rude,” JJ mumbled. Red alert shrilled. Oh, crap.

“BRACE FOR IMPACT!” I screamed and got down. Something heavy hit the Sanctuary on the starboard side. The momentum threw me on top of JJ.