WildCat

Thnaks so much for reading and reviewing.
Chapter 4.

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Claude gingerly walked into the room that Tala was leading him to. He glanced around the lavish hotel room as Tala closed the door behind him.

“Do you want me to order something or would a drink from the bar do?” Tala asked, walking towards the mini bar.

“Whatever you have is fine, but no alcohol,” Claude replied.

“Why? Afraid I’ll get you drunk?”

Claude narrowed his eyes and placed his hands on his hips looking like he was annoyed. “No. I’m allergic to alcohol.”

Tala nodded and opened the bar. “So is Kai,” he pulled out a small bottle of non-alcoholic champagne and showed it to Claude, mentally asking him if this will do. Claude nodded as he moved over to stand by the window.

“Do you share this room with anyone or do you have it all to yourself?” Claude asked, making small conversation.

“Nah, this room is mine. A little too pretty for my tastes though,” Tala replied, pouring the champagne into two tall champagne glasses.

“Thank you,” Claude said as he carefully removed the glass that Tala was offering him and turned to look back through the window.

He heard Tala move and lean against the window frame, sipping his glass as well. Claude wondered what Tala has in mind, bringing all the way to his hotel room. Was it so they could talk in private? But the way he acted at the small café moments before…

Claude placed a hand over his heart, felt it racing as he recalls the way Tala leaned in impeccably close. He was so sure that he was going to kiss him and felt disappointed when he didn’t.

A blush rose to his cheeks. Why was he feeling this way? It’s not like he actually knows Tala very well. He could be a right flirt for all he knows.

“They’re quite gutsy, aren’t they?” Tala asked suddenly.

Claude snapped out of his thoughts to regard the speaking redhead. “Who?”

“Kai and Miguel.”

“How so?” Claude asked, turned slightly away from the window to look at Tala properly.

“The way they gave each other a chance. The way they threw all caution aside to give their heart to someone they hardly knew, only seen fleetingly,” Tala said, his voice hinting with a bit of awe and wonder. “And yet they seem to complete each other. As if they had been friends for years.”

“It’s strange how the heart works,” Claude said, his voice also soft.

“It is, isn’t it?” Tala said, swirling the liquid in his glass. “It must have been terrifying. Especially for someone who has had the sentence ‘emotions are weak’ beaten into him everyday for 10 years.”

Claude felt his eyes widen and his hand moved up to cover his mouth to prevent a small gasp of surprise. He watched Tala, his heart aching somewhat with an unknown emotion. The expression on Tala’s face was complacent. As if he had excepted everything that had happened and decided to move on.

“I envy Kai sometimes,” Tala went on. “He has seen so much, yet frighten of so very little. If something scares or confuses him, instead of turning away he confronts those fears head on, gaining more experience in doing so.”

And yet, there was this sense of… a sense of something Claude can’t quite put his finger on. It was as if he was surrounded by this ice and yet wants to be able to open up to someone, but something was holding him back. Was it because he was hurt so much in the past?

“I’m sorry,” Tala said suddenly as he turned his blue eyes to Claude. “I was blabbering, wasn’t I? I tend to do that sometimes.”

“Tala…” Claude started, unsure of what to say. He swallowed thickly and took a small step towarded the redhead. “You…, you wonder what it would be like, don’t you?”

“Hmm?”

“You wonder what it would be like to have someone to care for you,” Claude said, his heart thudding in his chest, but his voice soft. “To be able to trust someone, a complete stranger no less, with your heart.”

Tala stood up tall and placed his glass on the window sill. He stared at Claude for few long, agonizing moments, then smiled softly. “I guess I do.”

Swallowing again, Claude also placed his glass on the window sill as well. He licked his lips and stepped closer to Tala. Slowly he raised his hands to frame Tala’s face. He leaned in close, closing his eyes and whispered against Tala’s lips.

“If you want, I can show you.”

He pressed his lips against Tala softly. Tala remained completely still for what seemed like an eternity when he wrapped his strong arms around Claude’s waist, pulling him closer and deepening the kiss. Dropping his hands from Tala’s face, Claude let them rest against his chest as one of Tala’s hands moved up his back to rest in between his shoulder blades, successfully pulling him closer.

Slowly the kiss was broken. They pulled a part but Claude kept his eyes close and bowed his head slightly. Moving his hand from Claude’s back, Tala slipped a finger under his chin and tilted his head back to look at him properly. Slowly Claude opened his eyes, looking expectantly up at him.

The hand on his chin moved to slip along his jawbone, fingers entangling at the hair near the delicate curl of his ear. Tala quickly pulled Claude in for another kiss, his tongue flickering over his lips then slipping inside. Gasping softly at the intrusion, Claude sunk against Tala’s frame, loosing himself in the simple, yet amazingly sensual kiss.

He understood what Tala meant. It took great courage to give a delicate thing like your heart to someone else and then trusting them not to abuse or break it. It was a great risk, but he now knows why people do this day in and day out. The feeling of having someone close, of having someone to share small meaningful moments with together makes the risk worth wild.

“If you think that I’m worth the time and effort,” Tala whispered with their foreheads touching. “The how can I possibly say no to that?”

How indeed.

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Next chapter there will be a Miguel/Kai lemon. Promise.
Read and review. Please?