(Double post sorry!)
ON
Tom Freeman muttered under his breath as he stomped into the shower facilities, fully bent on decontaminating the hell out of his body. Every follicle of hair on his head felt slimy and dirty, every fleck of skin unclean and itchy. He simply felt... grimy.
Yukari did not look up. Whoever it was, it probably was not Tom, and she was deep enough in her own funk as to not want to come out yet.
Tom had heard the sound of running water and figured it was some random member of the crew, perhaps a sprite. Who cared anyway? Everything sucked right now. With nary a thought, Tom discarded his suit onto the ground, where it crumbled to the floor with a padded thud. He groped around for an open stall.
Yukari put her head down deeper into her knees; the other person was being rather loud. Must be Chigusa.
The water sprouted from the showerhead as Tom turned the knob. Unfortunately, in his mental stupor, the Yamataian had twisted the cold water knob. A stream of cold water slammed into his head before he managed a yelp of misery and quickly turned the hot water knob. "Dammit!"
Yukari's head popped up. " ... Freeman-Heisho?" she said with uncertainty, not seeing him. Had he gone to a stall behind her?
"Ma'am?" Tom turned around slowly. "You're here too?"
Rising to her feet, Yukari peered around the corner of her shower "stall," then quickly brought her head back, frozen in terror -- she was completely naked, and everything felt different. He was completely naked too, and she had made sure not to see much. "Y-yes!"
"Ah, I see!" Tom bowed deeply, although he was certain she couldn't see it. "I mean, I don't see! It's a pleasure to see you again!"
Yukari managed to laugh awkwardly at the scrambling for words. At least he found some. "Y-yes, a pleasure to see you as well!" The brief image she had of him was quickly banned from her immediate memory.
Laughing as he grabbed the soap and began washing himself, Tom spoke. "So! Come here often!?"
"Yes! -- No!" Yukari stopped herself. "I ... desired some peace."
"I guess finding peace in a time like this is welcome, no matter where you find it," Tom said, "The shower is a good choice, I think."
"Mmm," Yukari responded quietly. She leaned against one of the walls of her stall, the water splashing over her front, which she still covered with her arms.
"A KS for your thoughts, ma'am," Tom replied with delicate measure. "You've seen much these last few hours, I'm sure."
" ... " Yukari shook her head, her thick, wavy hair gently slapping the wall. "No. I do not want to think of those things ... it is too much." She weakly tried to change the subject. "Are the repairs going well?"
"As well as they could be, for a disaster," Tom groaned. "Everything sucks right now."
"Mmm ... " Yukari looked down at herself, her arms, her breasts, her feet ... absorbing what she was. Not like Kotori, she thought sourly.
"You go and try to fix a CDD and then WHIZ, BAMMO, Fold engine is fried!" Tom slid his hands together in a clap. "Oh man, I'm going to be working all night on this."
Yukari jumped a little at the clap. She shook her head, settling back down into the wall. "You should eat and rest then, before you must go back to work."
"Who has time to eat or rest when you've also got to make the crew's food," Tom said with as much enthusiasm as he could muster, which wasn' t much. "But every little big helps, you know? Whatever I can do to help..."
"I can help you with the food ... " Yukari said sheepishly. Her thoughts were quickly spiralling downward.
Tom cracked his neck with a grunt, then rotated the sockets in his shoulders, which make an audible popping noise as well. He had been hunched over machinery for hours, and he was rather stiff. "You don't have to, ma'am, you've probably been through a lot more than me up there on the bridge. You probably need this rest far more than I do."
"No, I want to," she said quickly. A little too quickly, perhaps. "I ... need something. So I do not think about the bridge."
"I see," Tom said quietly. He let the water run on his hair and picked his voice up. "Ok then, but I'm going to need some time here. I'm cramping up pretty badly."
"Yukari, go help Tom, give him a massage or something." Kotori's words rang out in her mind ... she looked away from herself to the stall's door, angry that Kotori had even suggested it, no matter how badly she wanted to. Surely Tom did not ... need her that way. She was not a comfort girl! But ... did she want him, that way? Do not let your emotions best you, she thought, trying to resist.
Tom gripped his left shoulder with his right hand, trying to rub out the knot that had developed in it. He huffed in pain as it proved rather resistant to his efforts.
"Are you ... in pain, Heisho?" Yukari could scarcely come to grips with what she was insinuating. I am not a slave to my emotions, nor to his needs.
"N-no, it's nothing, ma'am," came the reply from Tom. "It's just this damn knot won't come out.. what I deserve for hunching over that fold engine."
I might be able to help him, she thought quietly. No! He is a man, he is fine. Yukari smiled a little. "Would you ... like help?"
Tom raised an eyebrow at the suggestion. "Who am I to turn down such a nice offer?" He tried to play it cool, although his heart was pounding.
I am not a comfort girl! I am not his comfort girl! Barely able to contain herself, Yukari left her stall, without her towel, and went to the stall Tom was in. "Face the shower wall," she said shyly, the small, giddy smile on her face betraying everything in her head.
"Already am, ma'am." Tom was washing his hair with shampoo, lathering it so hard that it dripped down his face. His hair, which was yellow and poofy when combed, had now decended in a golden river down to his shoulders.
Tom could hear the door of his stall open ... then a pause ... then close gently. He soon felt small, dainty hands touching his shoulders, rubbing them a little. It wasn't enough pressure to get the kinks out. From her end, Yukari was just trying to focus on his hair and his shoulders. She was already locked in a full-body blush, and she realized (too late) that it was cold without the water.
Tom purred when Yukari touched his body, more from the feeling of finally having her touch his naked form than the actual work of her hands. "That's good, ma'am, but dig in a little harder. Put those Neko muscles to work." His hands dropped and he began to rinse the shampoo out of his hair.
Yukari gulped -- her mind was screaming at her not to take orders from this man! -- but she didn't listen, and she floated up a little so she could dig into Tom's sinewy muscles, her small, long fingers getting the muscles better than she imagined they would. She was struck by how long his hair really was.
Tom moaned. "I didn't know you were THIS strong, ma'am." He instinctively moved forward a little, the sensation of her hands pushing him as he relaxed completely.
"We are all strong, in our many ways ... " Yukari groaned internally; half of her wanted to shove him into the wall and proclaim her independence from all influence ... but the other was interested in maneuvers far more intimate. She struggled and kept massaging.
Tom melted from Yukari's steady hands until he felt like hot mush. "You are right, ma'am, but we also find strength in each other..."
"Mm." Yukari's hands unsteadily went lower, digging into Tom's back a little more. She found herself enjoying this against her will -- it was her work that was making this tall, strong man relaxed and vulnerable in her hands. "We are a crew. Our strength must come from that."
"Mm-hm" was all Tom could manage as Yukari's hands found their way downward. His head plopped against the shower wall now, and Yukari soon found herself gently being sprayed with water from the shower. So far had Tom moved forward from her work.
Yukari giggled a little, a sweet, happy giggle. She was doing well, or so it seemed. "Heisho?" she asked with a smile, her eyes wandering, just a little, to drink in the finer details of Tom's backside. How ... cultivated he was. It confirmed her suspicions from their dancing dinner date. She dug harder.
"Nnngahhh," Tom replied, trying not to drool against the wall. "Y-yes ma'am?" His knees quivered a fraction from each prod.
Yukari could not hide her enjoyment any longer. The realization made her blush fade some -- she was in control. "You are well, Heisho?" She was not covering herself any longer, she did not fear his nakedness nor hers. She was caught in the moment.
"Better than ever, ma'am." Feebly, Tom reached for the knobs to the shower to try to turn the water off, but couldn't find the grip to turn them. In fact, he had become like putty in Yukari's hands, so much so that he instead found himself using the handles to keep steady. "I, I think that's all of them..."
Yukari grinned -- really grinned -- and removed her hands from Tom's back. She then stepped out of the stall, to let him twist and recooperate as needed. "I am glad you feel better," she said, a bit of smug pleasure dripping in her tone.
As the sensation of control slowly returned to Tom's body, he grinned as well. "Haha, amazing. I never knew you had this in you, Yukari." Using the wall as a brace, he turned around to face her naked form. "So, we finally meet."
"Neither did -- " She suddenly realized what he meant. She had not covered herself, and the door to the stall was still open.
The. Door. Was. Still. Open.
The blush returned full-blown on her body as she slowly covered herself. "Ai--yaa," she said meekly. Her confidence had quickly somersaulted.
"So, Yukari, you have two choices," Tom murmured seductively with a wink. "My legs are regaining their strength quickly, but you still have time to run away..."
I am done for. It was the only thought that crossed Yukari's mind as she backed into the wall behind her. Running? She could not run! Her eyes honed in on Tom -- no! She shoved her eyes elsewhere, not wanting to think about his body, what it made her feel, what it was built for, designed for, looked very capable of doing -- her eyes darted again, arms inadequate cover. "Shimatta," she murmured under her breath.
"Ho ho ho, you still have time to run, Yukari," Tom said as he took a step towards his prey. "Or, dare I say, you don't want to run away?" His small frame was hardly intimidating, but the Yamataian put his best effort into being as macho as possible. What he lacked in bulk he made up in muscle tone.
She didn't want to run. Damn Tom and his perception. Damn him! Yukari swallowed and kept looking away, eyes hooded ... but now she was shivering. It was cold, and she was also struggling with herself. Chikushou, she snarled mentally. I am done for.
As Yukari looked away, seemingly dreading her approaching demise, Tom continued his methodical approach. Would Yukari's shivering form be embraced? Groped? Violated? Tom was so close now, she could feel his warm breath on her nape. But what came next was not the smooth, silky caress of his hands, but the rough edges of a white towel brushing the water off her body.
The breath on her neck made her shiver even more. But her doom did not come. Yukari's naked form was lightly scratched by a standard-issue towel, which was drying her and making her less cold, though the wet mass of thick hair flowing down her back was unreachable in her current position. She looked at Tom's face, into his eyes. "You are mean," she said, almost pouting.
"You know I'm not a Saint." Without hesitation, Tom took Yukari's chin in his hand and tilted her lips to meet his. His towel fell to the floor as he kissed her passionately, deeply, the two nude forms becoming one between the stalls of the showers.
"But -- " She didn't finish, as her eyes glazed over from the kiss that quickly silenced her. Her eyelids slowly fell as she deeped the kiss with him, reaching to put her arms around his neck. His taste -- it was the same, yet better. Her brain failed to compute why, but she didn't care, as she pressed the kiss to have more of it.
"No 'buts,' Yukari," Tom said quickly between kisses. Another. "Say it. Don't hold back."
"I -- " A kiss. "Don't know -- " Another. "Ahmph!" Another. She pulled away for a moment, her relatively small frame dwarfed by his height. She pouted without considering how she looked, then, with only slow hesitation, she brought her arms around his chest, pulling him close to her naked form. Her breasts pressed into his abdomen, her hands into his back. "I do not know what I should say," she said, words muffled into his chest. Each kiss was another slip of sweet, sweet poison into her brain; all she wanted was more of it, more of that feeling that she was desireable because of what she was.
Another kiss. "Actually, I don't really know where I was going with that. I saw it in a movie once." In his passion, he had picked Yukari up and moved her into the stall behind her, carrying her until she rested against the wall. Painfully, he pried his lips away from hers and gently move down, brushing against her neckline.
"Idiot," she said softly, with no sting at all. Yukari had been picked up so uncerimoniously -- she loved it when Tom did that. Loved it too much. She felt safe, she felt comfortable, she felt loved ... she felt horribly aroused. She should not have pressed her breasts into him; that made it worse. And now Tom was making it much worse by not kissing her in the one area she could control. Now she was pressed against a warm wall with him kissing her neck, sending shivers of pleasure through her. "You do this to me ... so easily," she breathed.
"All in a day's work..." Tom moved his body harder against Yukari's, using the added pressure to keep her in place as he used his right hand to gently move her face to the side. "You're beautiful. The most beautiful woman I've ever set my eyes on..." his throaty words faded as he traced a line up the side of her neck with his tongue, running the tip along her jugular on a path to her ear.
She shivered a little more violently from his minstrations, though his words pierced her mind. He was pressed against her; she was trapped and she was happy about it and wanted him always that way. She tried to ignore another part of him pressed into her, but that was also difficult. "You lie," she said, again with no malice. She was almost trying to make herself believe it. "A handsome man ... like you ... has seen women more attractive ... than me ... " He was certainly the most beautiful man she had visuals on. Had anything on. Her brain seemed to be melting.
His tongue stopped at the base of her ear, just for a moment, for the Yamataian to whisper. "You're the most beautiful woman I've ever set my eyes on... I will say it until you believe me... even if it takes an eternity..." He followed his statement with a sigh of hot air before he began to nibble gently on her earlobe.
Yukari's brain had melted. She was sure now. She wondered if Tom could taste it flowing out of her ears. It was hard to care because his little movements, his breath, his words ... she swallowed and breathed harder. "I believe it now," she managed. "I believe you are the most handsome man I will ever know ... " She wanted to kiss him in response, do something to give him pleasure, but she felt paralyzed.
Tom smiled and he backed away slowly from her body, guiding her softly to her feet. "Thank you, Yukari. Thank you..." His eyes did not shimmer with tears, but his entire face radiated an inviting, loving glow.
The same hazy glow encompassed Yukari, who smiled a slightly dreamy smile, but she instead took the initiative, taking Tom back into her arms and giving him a deep, wet kiss, full of everything she had felt for the past few minutes. They had taken up so much of their precious little time together. She did not care. She held him close, gently rubbing herself against him before pulling back herself. Her breath was hot and heavy. She ... had been close.
The kiss almost overwhelmed Tom right there. Only his surprise at her initiative kept him at bay. "As much as I want to throw you down right here, we'll have to save it for another time..." He whimpered as he looked over Yukari's perfect, nude body. "...I hope a time very soon."
"Assuredly," Yukari said, for the first time drinking in every minute detail she could capture of Tom's lithe form. "Though, I must admit a preference of you picking me up before throwing me down." She blushed but maintained against him. By Chiharu's very soul, she was out of her mind. "My room, when we are next at leave ... let Mara cook ... "
"Agreed," Tom said as he tore his gaze away from her and wrapped a towel around his form. He stopped at the door to the stall. "Just... make sure you live until then... I will..."
"... We all will."
Yukari nodded, and he left her. She remained under the shower for a moment more, then left. The look clouding her face was one she'd never tried before -- unbridled happiness.
END
