hnngh bad romance

"I- I don't think I can run any further!"

This protest, gasped between frantic breaths, brought his attention back to her. The massive hand that enveloped her own slender appendage loosened its death grip, and he turned, bringing his dark eyes to bear on her. Sweat matted her strawberry blonde curls against her forehead, the strenuous activity having brought a flush to her cheeks. Her lips, red and full, were slightly parted as she struggled to regain her breath- he resisted the urge to pull her to him and explore their soft, silky texture with his own mouth.

"It's not far." he replied, his deep, rattling voice carrying easily to her ears. "Once we reach the place, we'll be safe and they won't find us." She licked her lips, and once more he had to rein himself in, tearing his gaze from her to continue on their winding path through the undergrowth.

Then, finally, his work-roughened hand pushed aside a curtain of foliage and trailing vines, and he pulled her through and into a space which seemed as far removed from the rest of the area as would desert sands in Spinesreach. Enclosed by a nigh-impenetrable wall of greenery, this small clearing was lush and serene, a sharp contrast to the clinging, swampy area they had been running through. The ground was a soft bed of tender grasses, which she gratefully collapsed onto, her hair spilling across the blades in a waterfall of golden strands. He knelt beside her, his broad chest heaving with deep breaths as he allowed himself to gaze at her fragile beauty. As he watched, she opened her eyes- a dark, slate-blue, they were the colour of the sea on a stormy, overcast day.

“Are we safe here?” she questioned, her voice trembling softly, eyes trusting as they flitted here and there across the masculine planes of his face.

“They will not find us,” he replied, stretching his body out to lie beside hers, propped up on one elbow so he could still peer down at her. He bent his head yet lower, antennae brushing tenderly over her cheek. “Not here. We will wait until the hours before dawn, and then flee the island on the ferry.”

She reached across to him, delicate fingertips brushing lightly over the hard lines of his arm. A tender silence stretched between them before finally she asked in a breathy, hesitant tone, “Lie with me?”

His response was a soft, clicking rumble as he lowered himself down from his supporting elbow, the length of his armoured body pressing to her side now. She let her eyes close, and inhaled his earthy scent. The light, feathery caress of his antennae slipped over the line of her cheek, tenderly feeling the contours of her face. She almost shivered as one of the sensitive appendages ghosted over her lips- they tingled in its wake.

“You smell divine,” he told her, his voice a low rattle. His head dipped lower, and she felt the hard edge of a mandible touch delicately against her jaw. “Sweeter than honey.” Even without opening her eyes, she felt him lean closer, heard the soft click of his mouthparts as the exoskeletal layers unfolded and opened wide. His large, curved mandibles cupped her jaw tenderly on either side as he graced her with his own peculiar type of kiss. She had been bewildered and frightened the first time she had encountered his insectile equivalent of intimacy, but now the feeling of the slick, pliant flesh that she supposed was his tongue sliding over her lips sent shivers through her, tingling feelings that spread through her whole body and made her nerves feel as if they were heightened and over-sensitive.

His armour-plated hand slid over her waist, with surprising gentleness for all his heavyset bulk, and lovingly cupped her breast. He knew that she was delicate, knew that he could easily break her if he wasn’t careful, but he also knew control, and the care he took in his grasp on her coaxed mewling sounds of pleasure from her lips.

She gasped for breath as the kiss ended, the hot, slick texture of his mouth leaving hers. His mandibles brushed against her neck, and she felt his tongue again, this time tasting eagerly the salty flavour that the sweat had lent her skin. She ran her hands over his smooth carapace, skirting his jewel-like compound eyes to cradle the back of his head. His mouth dipped lower, tending to her collar bone now, and she carefully ran her fingers up, and along one of his slender, sensitive antennae- he rumbled low in his chest, a faint tremor snaking through his powerfully-built frame.

His clawed hands slipped lower, deftly working at the buttons down the front of her dress- She shivered and tilted her head back as both his fingers and his mouth moved lower, and within moments she lay bare on the grass before him. His hands cupped the soft, rosy peaks of her breasts. His second set of hands, meanwhile, slid down to her waist, and over her hips- he graced her lips once more with a razor-edged kiss, before ducking his head lower, tenderly caressing her lithe body with his mouth and his thick, chitinous fingers.

A cool night breeze curled around them both as they lay in the moonlit grasses, soft skin and thick armour pressed together in heated ecstasy. His four hands caressed and held her, and the light stroking of his antennae on her skin sent electric shivers along her nerves. He enveloped her, protected her, sought her nectar and drank deeply, the delicate flower satisfying him as deeply as the first blossom had his arthropodal ancestors.

And then, as the heady yet fleeting dance faded away into sleepy, sated restfulness, he gathered her trembling frame into his arms, holding her possessively and safely within the armoured grasp of his body, rumbling soothingly to her as they both relaxed back into the grasses, content to wait the remaining time before their flight, together.