328 RTYY 325 - A Dark Night (Extra Update - Happy B-Day Natasha Velen ^_^)

A/N: So, I know I'm a bit late, so sorry about that 😭 I've been so buzzy lately that unfortunately somedays I don't even have the time to read the wonderful messages you guys leave me. Still, I didn't want to miss the opportunity to celebrate this special date. Happy B-Day Natasha Velen 🎂🎁🎉. Thank you so much for all your amazing and so very special support! 😁 Wish you all the best and lots and lots of wonderful bookish adventures 😁 😁 😁)

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

A constant and relaxing sound was playing right next to his ear. And he felt warm and strangely comfortable, which hadn't happened in days.

Blinking his eyes open, Snow blinked again, trying to make sure that his eyes were really open. Everything around him was absolute darkness, and he could feel a cold breeze caress his face. Still, his entire body felt pleasantly warm.

Taking a deep breath, he instinctively snuggled closer to that source of warmth and relaxed. The long arms that tightened their hold around him in response didn't surprise him. Even in the darkness, there was no way he would ever mistake that nostalgic scent again. Besides, even though he had never realized it before, having his ear pressed against his chest felt so similar to what he felt when he tried to listen to Nox's land that it was strange and endearing, but, above all, unmistakable. It felt welcoming and safe, as if, somehow, he had been able to bring a piece of home with him.

The large hand protectively placed over his head silently caressed his hair, and Snow closed his eyes. It was no use keeping them open anyway. It was still dark, and the closest source of light was the campfire they always lit, which was too far and too weak to actually be able to grant him enough light to see more than a few tall, lean shadows.

It didn't matter anyways. He didn't need to see. He instinctively knew that, after all that time, he was finally safe again, finally exactly where he belonged. He should have gotten sick sooner, he thought, clenching the soft fabric beneath his hand in an attempt to make sure that no one would drag him away. The arms around him reacted immediately, gently pulling him closer, as if they wanted to reassure him.

And yet, even though he had been so sick that he could barely sit upright, now he felt just fine, he thought, taking another deep breath. Which could only mean that, like before, ZaiWin had helped him. It also meant that Snow had been right in his initial assumptions, and that that place was flooded with dark, corrupted energy. Like one of those death zones, he thought. The problem was that he had been completely caught off guard, on account of those weird portals. And, once he had realized what was happening, it had been too late, his energy already too tainted for him to be able to use his daitai without incurring the risk of corrupting them even more. But if that was really a death zone, how large could it be?

They've been inside it since the moment they had crossed YunZen's portal, that morning. They must have jumped right into it, the sudden encounter with that horrible energy making him instantly sick. Like before, his daitai must have immediately absorbed some of that horrible energy, and it had gotten to the point where he had developed a fever. But now all that was gone, and he felt just fine again. Which meant that, like what had happened in that small icy cave, ZaiWin had been absorbing that corrupted energy into his own body again.

The mere thought of that sent an alarming shock through his entire being, and Snow raised his head to look up at him, even though he knew he wouldn't be able to see much of anything. Only then he recalled that ZaiWin was probably very, very angry at him, for just leaving him behind like that, for having placed them in such a dangerous situation, for having forced him to submit to being a mere prisoner.

First and foremost he had to apologize!, Snow urgently told himself. He had to try and explain why he'd done the silly things he'd done. Why he hadn't at least waited until he woke-up so that they could visit that house together. And yet, no matter how much he wanted to tell him all those things, he just couldn't find the right words, his throat feeling constricted, his heart slamming anguishedly against his chest.

No matter how he tried to put it, that horrible mess was still his fault, and his fault alone. And he couldn't, for the life of him, come up with a good enough excuse that would justify what he'd done. No matter what he told him right now, he was sure that ZaiWin would still be terribly angry at him. No. Not angry. He would be lucky if ZaiWin was merely angry. In fact, ZaiWin had barely looked at him during the last eight days, his cold and distant behavior more painful to bear than Snow could have ever thought.

No matter! He would at least tell him that he was sorry, Snow decided, parting his lips so he could speak.

The scalding heat that invaded his mouth instead left him wide-eyed and with his heart beating so hard against his chest that he thought he might just die from it. Hot wetness wrapped his tongue and Snow couldn't help moan low in his throat, his entire body melting into that wonderful sensation. He felt embarrassed to admit it, but he had missed ZaiWin's kisses, the warmth that always flooded his body when their lips touched, the way it always made his heart beat harder and his mind float.

He wasn't being gentle and delicate like before, but he wasn't being rough either, like he'd been when he'd kissed him in the forest after he had run away from him. There was a lot of frustration in that kiss, Snow realized. But, unexpectedly, he didn't feel it was turned against him, more at the fact that they had been forced to be apart for so long. Or maybe those were just his own feelings, he couldn't tell. He only knew that being kissed like that allowed him to relax on a deeper level, as if he could finally breathe freely, the annoying irritation he had been forcing himself to ignore completely erased, his inner-energy automatically settling down, flowing smoothly through his body.

Even though he hadn't realized it before, Snow had been on edge ever since they'd left Seven Waters, his mind filled with questions and concerns that only led to dead ends. Now, all that was suddenly gone. None of that really mattered. Everything was exactly as it should be. But, above all, he hoped with everything he had, that that kiss meant ZaiWin wasn't as angry at him after all. That he had somehow forgiven him for his stupid mistake.

Reaching up, Snow tried to touch his face, but his hand found the cold metal collar they had latched around his neck instead. He hated seeing it, every time he looked at him. But he hated its cold touch even more. ZaiWin was supposed to always feel warm! And besides, who had granted them permission to put a collar around his neck?! Wasn't he supposed to belong to him?

Feeling around the collar, Snow finally found the small stone at the front, where the key was supposed to be pressed. It was just like the one he had worn, which meant that ZaiWin probably couldn't speak without being shocked into unconsciousness.

A large hand held his, pulling it away from that hard, cold surface and surrounding it with warmth instead, and the hot lips kissing him softly sucked his lower lip before finally letting him go.

Even though Snow tried to keep it under control, his quickened breath still filled the silent night around him. He wished he could clearly see him, but the night was so dark that he couldn't even distinguish his bright eyes.

Holding him against his chest again, ZaiWin pulled some kind of blanket over his shoulders and leaned back, softly caressing his hair again. And Snow knew, even without words, that he was silently telling him to go back to sleep.

Snuggling closer to his chest, Snow closed his eyes and took a deep breath. ZaiWin's heart was beating much faster now, he realized, the strong, rhythmic sound filling his head. Even though they were basically in the hands of those crazed people, even though they were stuck inside a prison cart, even though the air around them was so corrupted that it was almost unbreathable, even though he knew he should feel worried, maybe even a bit afraid, as long as ZaiWin could forgive him for what he had done, Snow just couldn't force himself to care about anything else.

Sitting right there, in the dark, surrounded by those gentle arms, he couldn't help feel that, even though a lot of things were wrong, the most important thing was undeniably right.

____________________________________________________________________________________

Author's Note: I would say ZaiWin simply couldn't resist any longer lolol 😁😁😁

Want to read all the earlier releases up to Chapter 361 join us on P a t r e o n! https://www.p a t r e o n.com/carpersanti 😁 (just eliminate the spaces between the letters of the word p a t r e o n 😁)

For all the latest news and some more crazy stuff, follow your crazy author on https://www.instagram.com/s.carpersanti/ or https://twitter.com/carpersanti 😁