Ironic Demons (closed)

All of Olivia’s attention was on the feeling of Rune’s hand moving higher along her inner thigh. Any thoughts about whether this was a good idea or not or what the ramifications would be were pushed away by thoughts of how much she enjoyed his touch and the way he made her feel. When he suddenly stopped she thought he’d come to his senses. She’d retained enough self-control to keep from opening her mouth and asking him not to stop...but just barely.

His arm came around her shoulders and moved her closer to him. Then his hand was between her legs again and relief flooded her. She felt his fingers press against her panties and she knew their wetness would give away her desire. She knew it didn’t matter though, Rune knew every tell she had when she was turned on. She moved her hand to his thigh. His fingers slipped under her panties and she bit her lip hard to keep from moaning when his finger pushed inside of her. For a second it was like she couldn’t breathe as her body tingled. His touch had always been like a drug. Hours with any of the other guys she’d been with wouldn’t make her feel anywhere close to what she felt when he just slid a finger inside her.

"Your wet....during a funeral...it's good to see the little slut I raised hasn't changed too much."

She felt her shame grow, which she was sure was what he’d intended. He knew exactly what to say or how to touch her to make her desperate with lust. Pointing out what a depraved slut she was always got her there and this was no exception. Her fingers pressed into his thigh as she closed her eyes trying to keep any noise from escaping her lips.

It was a bit like accepting damnation for the devil's most beautiful flower.

He looked straight ahead, over and between the other heads of the other men and women all behaving as mourners and respectful adults with self control and reason should. All the way to the end of the long room and the spectacle of Martin's death.

He gave no indication he was a million miles away other then the occasional closing of his eyes. He was by this time rubbing his thumb along her clit, knowing it was not simply this action which Olivia found herself lost in but the fact that she was having it done in the most inappropriate place imaginable. She was a slut...yes. Even she would admit that to some, definitely to him, as she had in the past... But that was not where it ended. Rune knew her in a way that defied description. In a way a pimp would never know one of his bitches nor a man would ever know his wife. At one time...they were as close as two people can be and when you see every ugly thing inside someone, and rejoice rather than cringe, you know you've got something special.

He squeezed her clit painfully, trying to invoke a reaction. It was a game and one he was very very good at. When it didn't work he SHOVED three fingers inside her without warning, again rubbing her clitoris with his thumb.

His other arm was gripping her, again, it was not out of place in this house of worship and moment of loss. What was out of place was how his fingers circled her nipples over her dress, feeling them stiffening.

"Tell me to stop....and I will. Your gonna moan...your gonna call out....it's just a matter of time, or maybe you'll have a silent orgasm but will it go unnoticed?.... Doubtful."

Olivia was struggling. Struggling to stay quiet, struggling to stay still, struggling to look like she was mourning along with everyone else instead of relishing the finger deep in her cunt and the thumb on her clit. Rune, of course, looked completely composed though she had no doubt that he was enjoying himself. He’d loved doing this to her when they were together though he’d never done it in such an utterly inappropriate setting. It had taken a few times before she got past the total mortification of it enough to start to really enjoy the exercise in self-control. The shame had eventually turned into one of her favorite vices.

Knowing how immoral this situation was had only doubled her arousal. His other hand was teasing her nipples through her dress and while it wasn’t completely obvious it wasn’t exactly stealthy either. Her breathing was becoming more ragged even though she was working to keep it even. She couldn’t imagine how no one around them had noticed anything yet.

Rune pinched her clit hard and she barely kept from crying out. Any illusion that he was going to go easy on her because of where they were was destroyed when he slammed three fingers into her pussy. Even as wet as she was it was still painful enough to make her squirm.

"Tell me to stop....and I will. Your gonna moan...your gonna call out....it's just a matter of time, or maybe you'll have a silent orgasm but will it go unnoticed?.... Doubtful."

She wasn’t sure if he actually thought there was a chance she would tell him to stop. She knew he was probably right...it wasn’t too likely she would be able to last through this without giving herself away. She also knew that she wasn’t going to tell him to stop. Even if she hadn’t been well past the point of being able to resist she was too stubborn to admit defeat. She shook her head and spread her legs slightly.

Olivia's stubbornness could carry her a great deal of the way when she needed to persevere. But she was not the immovable object, and he was very much the irresistible force.

The slut spread her legs...she actually invited him, and deep inside he smiled. He was pleased. She always pleased him, that is in those days she was his, she did. He would command and she would obey. He would expect and she would give herself freely, never disappointing... Until she finally had.

He titled towards her, his long dark hair falling over an ear, cascading along one side of his face, obscuring it partially. He put his lips to her ear.

"You want my fucken cock... Don't you bitch?"

He punctuated his words with his fourth finger. It had joined the others and he was pushing them all inside her, stretching her sopping pussy as he pushed them entirely in and past the third knuckle.

He stopped playing with her tits and instead held her arm as she squirmed. His grip was more than firm. He dug his thin fingers into her arm painfully, as if trying to bruise her or keep her from moving. In truth it was both.

A balding man wearing glasses whom Rune did not recognize glanced back briefly but did not get his head all the way around before again facing the service. Rune did not skip a beat and was now fucking Olivia's cunt with as much vigor as he felt he could get away with.

"I guess your gonna have to avoid this church and alllll these people for a very long time. Cause I'm gonna let them see how much of a cheap whore you are," he teased.

For a moment he pondered what the fuck he was doing. The ironic thing was that he was possibly more engrossed in this than Olivia was. He told himself it was an old habit, a reflex, that this is how they truly said hello to one another and now they could catch up on old times, making up for that debacle on the subway. The truth was something he did not want to explore.

He tore his hand out of her dripping sex and began licking his fingers.

"Mmmm, Just like I remember."

He leaned in and his hair brushed her arm sending shivers through her. She could feel his breath on her neck and it made her own breath catch.

"You want my fucken cock... Don't you bitch?"

She turned her head towards him slightly and whispered, “So much.”

She could hear the desperation in her voice and while some people would feel pathetic if they sounded that desperate Olivia thrived on it. She had accepted what she was and that left her able to just savor being a depraved slut. He’d forced another finger into her pussy and a soft whimper slipped from her lips despite her best efforts to stay silent. She took a few moments to see if anyone noticed but when no one turned to glare at her she went back to focusing on what Rune was doing. His other hand was now squeezing her arm painfully and she knew she would have bruises. The pain added another layer of pleasure to compliment the pleasure she was getting from his fingers. She bit her lip to keep from moaning as his fingers found just the right spot.

"I guess your gonna have to avoid this church and alllll these people for a very long time. Cause I'm gonna let them see how much of a cheap whore you are.”

His words pushed her closer to the edge and she was sure any second now she was going to lose the battle to stay quiet. He had always known exactly what to say to make her lose control and he’d exploited that knowledge more times than she could count. When he suddenly pulled his fingers out of her she nearly started begging for him to finish. She watched as he put them to his mouth and licked. She could see her wetness coating them.

"Mmmm, Just like I remember."

She couldn’t help but smile, she had never met anyone else who turned her on more than he did. She reached up and pulled his hand to her mouth. She wrapped her lips around his middle finger and slowly slid her mouth down to the base of it as she sucked. Her eyes stayed on his as she did it. She made herself slide his finger out of her mouth, there was no way what she was doing would look like anything other than what it was.

“Tease.”

He watched her watch him as she sucked his finger into her mouth, giving it the attention his dick was jealous for. Olivia was very found of blowjobs and as a result very good at them. She demonstrated this on his middle finger. It seemed to go on for forever. It was agonizing he couldn't toss her between his knees and shove his cock in her face but the sensation was enjoyable and causing his already swollen manhood to feel as if it would burst... Full of blood and pulsating, filling his slacks and easily noticeable underneath them.

"Tease."

He tried not to smile but the shit eating grin just slipped out. He was younger again, and his happy deviant self, as if not a day since those times had passed between them. But it wasn't reality.

Rune took his hand and wiped it off, his smile lingering but only just.

He looked at her. Again he had to slow himself. His pulse was quick and if not careful he'd of been swept away in emotion, his fingers still slightly moist between the fingers with her juices and saliva.

He didn't say anything else for the rest of the service but stole the occasional glance at her. Soaking in her beauty and elegance, the sex she dripped and the theft of several of his favorite memories. He wondered if he should have. The indifference might appeal to her but then again, he might look like an asshole... Which he WAS of course but still. It didn't matter he decided. Olivia knew him well enough to not pass judgement. Or so he told himself to alleviate his nagging guilt. He said his goodbyes to his once friend and made peace with the fact he was gone.

After the service he made the obligatory well wishes and offerings of sympathy and sentiment and briefly spoke to Tristam about the remains.

Rune had lost sight of Olivia during all the handshaking and hugging, who he had been inconspicuously keeping track of for the entire funeral. Now time to lay Martin's remains to rest he decided he would take his leave. He had no intention of following the procession to the graveyard.

He fled the church ahead of the family and friends and stopped before descending the steps. Sticking his hands in his pockets he felt a bit ashamed that he was more distraught he hadn't gotten to say goodby to Olivia than the fact that he had just said a permanent goodbye to Martin.

Rune sighed. He supposed he should feel better. Never in a million years did he ever expect to see her again, let alone touch her.

He leaned against the large stone wall beside a statue of a praying angel. Her desperation and pain evident in the stone features of her face.

"What the fucken am I doing?" He asked the angel before heading down the steps.

Rune gave her the smile that had always made her heart beat faster and she smiled back at him. He’d given her that smile hundreds of times when they were together and it was nice to see it again. She’d been certain she wouldn’t get to see it again after she’d left him.

His grin started fading and she was once again confronted with the reality of their current relationship or to be accurate the absence of any relationship. She turned her attention back to the service though it was hard for her to concentrate on it. She was still soaking wet and dying to cum. Her doubts were also starting to rise to the surface. It wasn’t that she felt especially guilty about doing that during Martin’s funeral, anyone who knew Rune as well as he had surely would’ve expected no less. She was worrying that opening doors from their past that they’d firmly closed was going to end badly. She couldn’t think how it could end any other way.

Rune didn’t say anything else to her and the few times she glanced over at him he seemed to be engrossed in the sermon. His expression didn’t give her any clue as to what he was thinking. When the service finally ended Olivia spent a little time giving her condolences and saying hello to a few people she recognized from when she and Rune had been together. She looked around but didn’t see Rune. She’d noticed him talking to his brother less than ten minutes before so she figured he’d just left. She headed outside the church and when she didn’t see him she started walking in the direction of the subway entrance trying to push the disappointment away.

She told herself it was for the best, it had been nice and it would be a good memory but that was the end of it. He’d left without saying goodbye that was a pretty clear message. She couldn’t quite bring herself to commit to just walking away, though. She pulled out her phone and ten minutes later she was sitting in the closest bar. Tristram had given her Rune’s new phone number when she’d called the other night and she pulled it up. She spent a few minutes typing and re-typing a text to him. I’m at The Whiskey if you want to come have a drink, she added the address and hit send. She figured if he didn’t come she’d be able to tell herself she tried.

Rune was in a cab heading downtown when the text message notification on his cellphone went off. He envied people with the type of phone that had a different sound for each person for texting and not just calls like his.

This outta be good for a laugh, he thought. He assumed it was Tristam griping that he hadn't stuck around for the burial. Rune didn't mean to be heartless, but Martin would understand. Rune's own mortality was not something he hated to be reminded of, in fact it was quite crippling for him to entertain the idea for any longer than the briefest of moments.

He checked the message.

I’m at The Whiskey if you want to come have a drink.

It was Olivia. She was asking to meet him at a bar near the church.

Was this just sex? Did it matter? He wanted a goodbye and this would be that. Rune felt foolish for searching around his emotions for excuses to justify his actions like a child. He tightened his fist and tried to turn his mind off, simply glad he would see her again if only for an evening.

He weighed the possibility of ever hearing from her again if he simply ignored the text and moments later told the cab driver to turn around.

When he arrived he found her seated by the bar, the subject of stares both envious and lustful. He grimaced. How different she seemed to him back then... In the beginning. What a fool he was. The Whiskey was like many bars, dark and inconspicuous for the most part. A classic jukebox sat nestled between the last seat of the bar and the door to the men's room. Perpetuating a stereotype. He hadn't been in here in some time. Not alone anyway.

He straddled the empty stool next to her and motioned for the bartender.

"Give her another and a ginger ale for me."

Olivia ordered a rum and coke as soon as she’d sent the text. She figured she’d need a few drinks whether he showed up or not. She tried to convince herself that she was hoping he wouldn’t show up, that it would be better for them both in the long run. She couldn’t quite pull it off, she knew she’d be pretty dejected if he didn’t show up. Of course, she had no idea what she was even going to say if he did.

She wasn’t used to this awkward relationship...thing. At work, there were definitely people she didn’t like but she also didn’t care about them so it didn’t matter if their conversations were awkward, it usually meant they would go away faster. In her personal life, other than friends, she rarely spent enough time with a guy to have awkward conversations. On the rare occasion it did happen she could just walk away. As usual, it wasn’t that simple when it came to Rune. She knew that as much as she hated to admit it she still cared a great deal what he thought of her.

She moved on to her second drink and checked her phone. He hadn’t replied and she was becoming more convinced he was going to ignore the text. Still when the bartender told her a guy a few seats down had bought her a drink she turned it down without a glance at the guy. She wondered how long she should sit here and wait before it would become truly pathetic. She really didn’t want to come across to Rune as pathetic though she was starting to worry that ship might have sailed. The bartender tried to make small talk but after a few one-word answers he got the message and left her alone for the most part. When he sat down beside her she somehow knew it was him before she even turned towards him.

"Give her another and a ginger ale for me."

He looked at her working on her drink. He wondered how many she had had but figured it couldn't of been too many. While she could of simply had a few refills it appeared she wasn't hammered by any means. Though that too meant little. Olivia could handle her drinks.

The bar tender served Rune his Ginger ale with a smirk.

He shot him back a scowl.

He was used to people misinterpreting his refusal to drink with an inability to handle his alcohol. While it wasn't the furthest thing from the truth his abhorrence to it was due to a family history... Not personal weakness. Besides, Rune was a purist. He didn't smoke... didn't drink... And didn't eat garbage. He wanted control of his body and mind, and only broke those rules one night a year.

The stool squeaked as he shifted, spinning around to face her, his elbow on the bar, his drink on his lips. After the bit of bubbles passed through his nose he nodded greetings without saying anything.

It was quiet for awhile, like back on the train.

He was so tired of this. A part of him hated her...sitting their like it was her life to live. What about the part of him she carried...dragged...stepped over every fucking where she went? What of it? Every moment of her life without him mocked him. He had to look at the ice in his glass, if only to take his eyes off her.

This was absurd. Madness! Adults don't behave this way... Fuck it all he thought. Fuck it. What's one more hole on a heart with no more room. Shes gonna get bored if he didn't speak soon.

"I'm glad you texted me, I was trying to say goodbye at the thing but I didn't see you."

Olivia murmured a quick thanks as the bartender handed her a new rum and coke. She was fairly certain a third drink would leave her buzzed but not drunk yet. She definitely didn’t want to be drunk for this. She would end up saying the things she didn’t want Rune to know, not to mention all the feelings and memories she didn’t want to experience would be harder to keep locked away.

They sat in silence, each sipping their respective drinks. She wasn’t sure if Rune wasn’t sure what to say or if he just didn’t have anything to say. She figured it wasn’t the latter or why would he have come at all.

What had happened in the church had actually made her feel less awkward around him but wasn’t quite sure what to say. It was as if each word out of her mouth had to be carefully thought out to ensure it conveyed the exact image of how she wanted to come across to him. She realized it was stupid, Rune already knew her flaws better than anyone. Granted now that she’d left him he might not overlook them as easily as he once had.

"I'm glad you texted me, I was trying to say goodbye at the thing but I didn't see you."

She was relieved Rune had taken it upon himself to break the silence, she probably would’ve let it drag on for a few more minutes.

“Your brother gave me your number when I called him the other night, I was hoping you wouldn’t mind. I wanted to say goodbye too, I didn’t think you were too far away yet.”

She actually was worried he would be upset that Tristram had given her his new number since he hadn’t offered it up on the subway.

“And I figured a drink might be helpful after having to say goodbye to Martin. I was thinking something stronger than ginger ale, though. No alcohol even for this?”

"Your brother gave me your number when I called him the other night, I was hoping you wouldn’t mind. I wanted to say goodbye too, I didn’t think you were too far away yet.”

Rune nodded, it was kinda crazy how hectic the church got after the service. Normally he didn't loose sight of anyone or anything he didn't want to. Had he purposely tried to sabotage or avoid an emotional farewell? It hadn't occurred to him till just now.

"And I figured a drink might be helpful after having to say goodbye to Martin. I was thinking something stronger than ginger ale, though. No alcohol even for this?”

He shook his head in answer before taking a large gulp of the last of the ginger ale and setting it on the bar.

"I understand it may sound... Extreme, but no. I don't really see the need."

He lied with as much skill as he could muster. Martin wasn't the need , but there was definitely plenty of it. He needed to resist though. Alcohol would only make this situation worse. The last think he needed was opening up to Olivia about everything he had been feeling since running into her again, hell, since they broke up all that time ago.

He smiled. It just happened. She caught the light just the the right way and looked so sweet and beautiful, for a moment all he could do was enjoy her company. God but she was a vision. Her long hair and strikingly adorable face, her sexy body... those ample breasts and curvaceous hips and legs. He could smell her next to him and she smelled sweet. Like a ripe fruit, opened and exposed to the air.

"I don't mind at all that Tris gave you my number, I'm actually glad he did. I know I wasn't exactly very... Hospitable in the subway but it really WAS nice to see you. Just caught me off guard is all. I was thinking..."

He swallowed and inwardly damned himself.

"Maybe this doesn't have to BE goodbye. I find I have a lot of free time lately, and all the old crew are...well, things change."

It was a cheap trick. Playing on her sympathies. But he hadn't planned on it. It just happened. Chalk it up to old habits or desperate measures but whatever the reason honesty just wasn't an option here.

"All I'm saying is...keep the number. I'm around."

"I understand it may sound... Extreme, but no. I don't really see the need."

“That’s probably good, I mean it’s not like there’s any benefit to drinking.”

She probably should have avoided drinking, or at least stuck to just one drink. She didn’t want Rune to think she was a drunk. She decided to finish the drink she had and then she could switch to water or something.

She took a sip and when she turned back to Rune he was smiling at her, genuinely smiling or at least it looked genuine. She couldn’t help but smile back. It really was good to see him...it made her feel contented. Some of the best memories she'd had been with him, he would always be special to her. He seemed to have forgiven her for leaving him. Maybe not forgiven but he at least didn’t seem to be holding on to it.

"I don't mind at all that Tris gave you my number, I'm actually glad he did. I know I wasn't exactly very... Hospitable in the subway but it really WAS nice to see you. Just caught me off guard is all. I was thinking...Maybe this doesn't have to BE goodbye. I find I have a lot of free time lately, and all the old crew are...well, things change."

He paused for a moment and Olivia tried not to look as ecstatic as she felt. She felt bad he didn't have a lot of friends anymore but she couldn't help but be happy that he wanted to be friends.

"All I'm saying is...keep the number. I'm around."

“That’d be nice...to hang out I mean. I’d really like that,” she said with a smile.

“So...what have you been up to? It’s been like what, three years? Are you married with kids now?”

As soon as the words left her mouth she wanted to die of embarrassment. That had been the most...not smooth way to ask if he was seeing anyone. She couldn’t believe she’d even asked. She was sure he was going to regret telling her to keep his number any minute now.

"That’d be nice...to hang out I mean. I’d really like that, So...what have you been up to? It’s been like what, three years? Are you married with kids now?”

He caught a slight glimpse of a grimace as she asked but didn't let on. Neither of them had obviously kept close tabs on the other, it was understandable... At least that's what Rune told himself.

She seemed genuinely Interested again, and he wondered if he was doing the right thing. He could play this a few ways and she didn't appear to be playing it at all. It's a hell of a thing when you think you see a mirage in the desert. You know it's not there but you need it to be... So it is. You forgo rational via desperation and necessity.

He wished in a heartbeat that he had lived some spectacular life in the past 3 years. That he had become this enormous envious success so he could brag about how full his life was, but it seemed foolish to lie to Olivia. Lies were something that led to his loosing her trust years ago and it didn't sit well with him anymore to tell them haphazardly.

"Well, I'm working in advertising now... But otherwise things haven't changed that much for me really. I never really had a ton of time for dating... Ive met a few chicks but I was merciful, I didn't marry any of them," he teased.

He looked in her eyes, absolutely burying his expectation beneath a blank smile.

"What about you?"

The last thing he expected was for her to have settled down. If anything would of surprised him it would of been her being married with several regrets running around or engaged but knowing his luck, Rune braced for the unexpected.

Rune had the good manners to not call her out on her clumsy attempt to ask if he was single. She still felt like an idiot though which wasn’t something she normally felt around guys anymore.

"Well, I'm working in advertising now... But otherwise things haven't changed that much for me really. I never really had a ton of time for dating... Ive met a few chicks but I was merciful, I didn't marry any of them.”

She nodded and smiled though she felt pangs of jealousy at the mention of him meeting other women. She realized how ridiculous that was. She had left him, did she really expect him to spend the rest of his life celibate and lost without her? Not to mention she had slept with quite a few guys in the last few years so she doubted she had any room to be jealous.

"What about you?"

It took her a few moments to respond even though she’d expected the question.

“Nothing too exciting really, definitely no husband or kids. I haven’t really dated a lot, you know, nothing serious. I’m working at an accounting firm, it’s pretty dull but I like it. Other than work I go out sometimes to some of the clubs around town, nothing too special. What kind of advertising work do you do?”

She still wasn’t quite sure what she was doing here...with him. It sounded like he was actually happy to see her and that he wanted to be friends but that just seemed too easy. The conversation had been polite and friendly but it felt impersonal; the kind of conversation you’d have with your boss. What had happened back in the church had only added another confusing factor to the situation.

She didn’t want more awkwardness so she wasn’t about to bring up the breakup or ask if he was still angry with her. She finished her drink and asked for a glass of water before turning back to Rune.

“So tell me something.”

"Nothing too exciting really, definitely no husband or kids. I haven’t really dated a lot, you know, nothing serious. I’m working at an accounting firm, it’s pretty dull but I like it. Other than work I go out sometimes to some of the clubs around town, nothing too special. What kind of advertising work do you do?”

For a brief moment he was calculating the truth to her words. Not dating only meant she was exclusively fucking. Nothing serious meant the same. The amount of time that had past and her personal and renown lust and need equaled her more than likely fucking more men than he would ever come to know in his lifetime. Rage built up inside him, but he turned away and reminded himself he didn't care anymore. She wasn't his problem.

He started in explaining about the few accounts he had been personally responsible for in the past year. As he spoke he felt her mind wandering. It was possibly the weight of the mundane at his sterile description at an expressive job were all the creativity is wrenched out if it. Or perhaps she was regretting this. This whole situation, this whole course of action. Sending that text.

Indeed this conversation was grueling. All that felt right...all that ever felt right to Rune was tearing her fucking clothes off and using her delicious body for his own amusement. It was the poison of affection, the plague of adoration that ruined that for him. He could be fucking her right now, getting his dick wet one last time so he could dispose of her finally on his own terms if it weren't for the fact that...just maybe, he still...

She asked the bartender, who had left them alone for a spell, for a glass of water before turning to Rune.

"So tell me something.”

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Olivia had just had an extremely shitty day. Aside from the bullshit at work he had driven her crazy with more accusations and a few lies to top it off. Granted she was his to do with as he pleased but she was still a human being and while he often acted like he didn't give a shit, Rune in fact cared more for her wellbeing than even his own. He simply had no way of showing it... Or at least not a way that would seem normal to the average eye.

He was however...exquisite with words. He was after all the father of lies.

He was however not always lying.

That's the thing about a liar in love.

Like the boy who cried wolf, how do you know he means it. It was a shame, because with Olivia he truly did.

She sat down, defeated. Her body barely able to carry the purple light from outside Rune's window as it fell along her body and on his bed.

"So tell me something," she pleaded.

It was what she said when she needed to keep going... When she needed his words...his love, when she needed him to fix it, or at least that's what he heard. It was probably closer to an affirmation to her that there was a reason to still care to. Maybe she just needed to hear his voice, to know he was still there and it wasn't over.

He stared at her. Feeling nothing but the shame a man feels when he's not enough. He laid beside her and pulled her close to him. His muscular arms lifting her into an embrace with ease as she was nearly limp from her day. He stroked her hair and he told her he loved her. He told her the truth, it had been a long time.

They talked for hours. Then made love for longer. Then watched a show he let her pick out.

She seemed happy again.

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"So tell me something."

He froze. Nearly dropping his glass. He finished its contents again, after being filed up once more and set it down on the bar. He avoided her gaze for as long as he dared then faced her. Everything in him screamed to shut up. This was not the plan. She didn't deserve mercy. This was only a simple question, one asked of boredom and not longing. His mind cried out to reserve himself, stab himself, swallow his tongue...

"I thought about you all day."

FUCK!

For a second he seemed to stiffen and she cringed at her decision to say that to him. She had said it to him hundreds of times when they’d been together. The first time she had said it to him was after their first fight. It shouldn’t have mattered, every couple fights from time to time and the fight wasn’t even over anything serious but he was her world, she was infatuated with him. At that point, she had lived and breathed for him, having him angry at her, really and truly angry, had been awful. The whole thing had only lasted a few hours before they made up but it had seemed like much longer to her. Once they’d made up she still felt...lost and out of the blue, she had just told him to tell her something. And he had understood what she was asking for and told her how incredibly beautiful she was. The fact that he had been able to decipher whatever underlying message had been in her simple statement made her adore him even more and her infatuation grew.

After that anytime she said it he would always deliver, sometimes with a simple sentence and sometimes it was more but it never failed to be exactly what she needed to hear to make her feel happy again and loved. It always made her remember why he was her world.

Saying it now, after everything that had happened probably made it seem like she was trying to poke at old wounds or make a mockery of what they’d had. That hadn’t been her intention, she hadn’t even really thought about it, it had just come out. He didn’t say anything or even look at her for what felt like forever and she knew she should say something, change the subject or ask him any question that popped into her head. But...she didn’t, part of her wanted to see what he would say, wanted to see if he would finally fail to deliver after all those times. So instead of giving him an out, she waited. She wasn’t sure if that was cruel or selfish or both but she still just waited.

"I thought about you all day."

And there it was, exactly what she wanted. For a moment everything else fell away and she lit up as a blissful smile filled her face. For that moment any doubts about whether he meant it or if he was still angry with her or if this was a bad idea faded away and she could almost remember. She almost asked him to go somewhere else with her, his place, her place, a hotel, but at the last second, she stopped herself.

“That’s really sweet, Rune. I thought about you all day too.”

"That’s really sweet, Rune. I thought about you all day too.”

Remarking it was "sweet" stung him as someone telling you they are "flattered" by your love would sting. The burning gave way to a relief when she added she had also thought of him as well.

From parts inside he didn't believe her, but for as good as Rune was with people, Olivia wasn't always this open book as he liked to think. It may have been an honest statement or it could of been sympathy. The bile in his stomach rose up at thoughts of the later. He could not discern wich. Surely he had power over her, but not nearly as much as he once had. In fact even then it was a ruse. She could crush him if she wished, so what power did he actually hold? As always he despised caring. Despised that a sentence could make or break his day. A phrase from her lips could mean the difference between elation and severe depression.

Your a fool he told himself once more. What of all your ritual, what off all your lessons and learning. It counts for nothing if it cannot be relied on when facing the succubus herself.

Still...she thinks of me.

Fool.

"Oh I'm sure," he mused... As he often did masking a truth or half truth within levity. Rune joked often. At least back when Olivia knew him he did. This made it fairly difficult to tell fact from fiction. "No doubt thoughts of me swinging from some tree or drowned in some lake."

His smile was not a show, but it hid something. He wouldn't be sure himself until later, when he'd play this conversation out in his mind over...and over.

Surprisingly she didn’t start to feel regret after saying she thought of him too. It was nice to think that she didn’t regret it because it was the truth but she didn’t know if it was that simple. She could think of plenty of honest things she could say to him that she would instantly regret. It was better to continue to weigh her words carefully. If they did actually start spending time together she figured they would have to be less reserved around each other but she wasn’t about to take the lead on that and risk looking like a total fool.

"Oh I'm sure. No doubt thoughts of me swinging from some tree or drowned in some lake."

His tone was light and he was smiling but Olivia wasn’t 100% sure he was kidding. She was probably just being overly paranoid and she smiled back at him.

“Those are exactly the thoughts I had after what you did back at the church. The ones before that were nice, though. So...why’d you and Martin grow apart? You guys used to be really close.”

She normally wouldn’t ask someone she hadn’t talked to in three years a question that personal but it was Rune...and she was really curious about what had happened. Besides, she still felt like they were being extra careful with their words...which she still thought was a good idea but it still felt weird. They had been so close before, she’d never had to hide who she was or her thoughts from him like she did with everyone else. So talking to him like she would to anybody else just didn’t feel right.

“Those are exactly the thoughts I had after what you did back at the church. The ones before that were nice, though. So...why’d you and Martin grow apart? You guys used to be really close.”

If it had been anyone else, Rune would of avoided the question but it was proving too easy to simply slip back into a certain familiarity with Olivia that he had long forgotten he was even capable of. The most embarrassing facts about himself were at one time shared with her, and he spent so long rebuilding those emotional walls to have them ignored so easily. And it was easy... Like swallowing a pill. Like closing your eyes. It was so comfortable and hard to resist. Like sleep when you've been up for hours and you just want the long hard day to end.

"It just kind of happened," he began "when you and I met I was spending a lot of time with the old crew. But you know how it is when you meet someone. You remember how inseparable we were." He paused... the mention of it causing him to relive a memory.

"Anyway, Martin never liked being a third wheel... So then after you and I broke up he had already met the woman that would become his wife. I wasn't.... I wasn't in the frame of mind to be a third wheel either, and he and a number of others spent a great deal of time trying to... Sympathize"

Rune glanced about, no longer seeing the bar but looking through a tint of past memories. He could see Martin and himself hanging around at his house arguing over who had the best car and Olivia when they were freshly infatuated with each other. Even his relationship with his brother Tristam seemed better back then.

"People got tired of my attitude I guess, and for all their trying I wasn't. So when they stopped trying, it kinda just...ended."

It all seemed so fickle and petty. Especially for such a strong friendship but nothing's forever Rune thought, especially when your not the most likely candidate for caring for or when your prone to set fire to every crossing.

"It just kind of happened when you and I met I was spending a lot of time with the old crew. But you know how it is when you meet someone. You remember how inseparable we were."

She nodded, she remembered very well how much time they’d spent together. Usually, that only lasted a few weeks or a month and then the newness of the relationship wore off. With Rune though that had never happened. She had wanted to spend every minute with him.

"Anyway, Martin never liked being a third wheel... So then after you and I broke up he had already met the woman that would become his wife. I wasn't.... I wasn't in the frame of mind to be a third wheel either, and he and a number of others spent a great deal of time trying to... Sympathize. People got tired of my attitude I guess, and for all their trying I wasn't. So when they stopped trying, it kinda just...ended."

She knew her expression turned remorseful but she didn’t want to say anything patronizing, figuring it would just come across as pity and no one liked to be pitied. She did feel guilty that their breakup had affected his friendships.

“I’m sorry, Rune. It’s always hard when friendships end, especially if they were close friendships. I’m sure Martin understood, though.”

She took a few sips of her water as she felt some of the awkwardness start to creep back in during the silence.

“Hey...were you really serious about wanting to hang out?”

She was a little worried he was going to say no but she figured it’d be better to find out now than to look like an idiot later when he kept turning down her invites.

"Hey...were you really serious about wanting to hang out?”

"No, not all....I was just saying that like as polite conversation... I'm actually hoping you die in a horrible dumpster fire accident."

He held a straight face for as long as he could but it was only several moments before he bursted out laughing. He enjoyed seeing her eyes widen as his sentence began and then the quick realization that he was just being a dick as her eyes narrowed. It was one of his favorite games they played, and he couldn't resist.

He coughed a bit, the laugh affecting him more than he realized. Rune then straightened up, sitting tall and serious once more.

God help him, he still adored her. How could this be. It wasn't fair.

"Yeah Hun, I meant it. I'd be great."

He checked his watch and realized they had been talking for far longer than he realized. He had no where to be currently but as was the norm for them, time was never in their favor.

"Do you....have anywhere to be?...I'm obviously keeping you."

"No, not all....I was just saying that like as polite conversation... I'm actually hoping you die in a horrible dumpster fire accident."

Olivia sat there stunned unsure of how to react. She realized he had been kidding as he started laughing and she glared at him.

“Good to see you’re still an ass,” she said with a smile. She really had always loved their back and forth teasing.

"Yeah Hun, I meant it. I'd be great."

Her smile grew and she started to wonder if maybe this all hadn’t been such a bad idea. Sure she’d hurt him but he’d obviously gotten over it and now they could be friends.

"Do you....have anywhere to be?...I'm obviously keeping you."

She really didn’t want to say goodbye yet. She still felt content when she was with him, at least now that they’d gotten past the awkwardness, and she figured that was better than being all alone after a funeral.

“You’re not, I don’t have anything going on for the rest of the day. It is a little pitiful to sit around a mostly empty bar in the middle of the day, though. Do you want to come over to my place…or we could go to your place if you’d rather? I mean if you don’t have plans.”

She tried to sound totally casual like it was just an offhand suggestion.

On good days he saw her.

They would meet up as early as possible, often stealing moments despite their busy work schedules and demanding family and friends. They would talk for hours and hours about things most passerby's would consider obscure or downright psychotic but theirs was a humor and a special connection that reveled in the obscene that no one could possibly comprehend. It was as if they were separated at birth, and born of some hideous individual. Never did he feel so accepted and loved. During the night, when they had one another they would spend hours making love. Exploring every conceivable taboo and shameful thing as if trying to find a limit which never came.

On bad days he didn't.

He could barely breath. The day and night were as long as one could imagine and sometimes twice as long as that. The mundane seeped out of ever dark corner and threatened to swallow him. His work dragged on, his family was infinitely more annoying and nothing seemed to make sense in his world. While visions of her filled his mind he couldn't seem to concentrate on anything else. Any happiness he gleamed was full of memories...of her.

And so that's how it was. That's how he lived. Depending on her in the most intimate way. Nearly defining himself through her.

It wasn't healthy. But it was what it was. The good times were...indescribable. The bad times....were misery. Nothing short. And those moments when they argued...

He never wanted those feelings again.

---------------------------------

"Good to see you’re still an ass."

He laughed. It was loud and strong, filling the bar with a joy that pierced the heavy hanging desperation with ease.

"You’re not, I don’t have anything going on for the rest of the day. It is a little pitiful to sit around a mostly empty bar in the middle of the day, though. Do you want to come over to my place…or we could go to your place if you’d rather? I mean if you don’t have plans.”

'Come over to my place' would more than likely always mean sex to Rune. But he knew instantly she did not mean that. It bothered him for some reason, as if he expected her to be a whore with him as well since in his mind she was a whore in general. Deep down he knew it wasn't so black and white. A man will call any woman fucking others and not him a whore as if that somehow levels the playing field as if she owes him something she gives everyone else. He knew it was stupid but being a sexist pig was a hard habit to break. Mostly he just felt wounded that he was her world at one time. Commanding her legs open whenever it suited him and now they were simply "old chums". But what good would come from sex? Especially sex with the devil.

"I don't have any plans....sounds good. How about your place? Mine is....a mess," one of a dozen articles of women's clothing no doubt laying throughout his loft came to mind. For some reason he didn't want Olivia to see that. He wasn't exactly sure why he just didn't want her to. "No funny stuff though," he winked.

"I don't have any plans....sounds good. How about your place? Mine is....a mess. No funny stuff though.”

She was glad he’d agreed, saving her from feeling stupid for asking.

“Oh please, I’m the one who should be saying that,” she said with a laugh, “I was sweet and innocent when I met you, one might even say I was pure.”

She left some money on the bar for the drinks and led the way out the door. She flagged a cab down and gave the driver her address. As they drove she made small talk while she tried to remember how clean her place actually was. She usually kept it pretty tidy so she wasn’t too worried.

What the actual plan was did worry her, though. She really hadn’t wanted him to leave yet so she had invited him over on an impulse without actually thinking it through. Now she was stuck trying to figure it out during a ten-minute cab ride. What was she going to do, pull out Yahtzee? She just didn’t know what she could suggest that wouldn’t be weird. Her mind kept going back to sex because of what had happened earlier but also because sex had always been one of the main components of their relationship. As much as she might enjoy it sex wasn’t really a viable option here, though. With anyone else it wouldn’t have been a problem, Oliva could fuck someone without any kind of emotional entanglement, she had mastered sex without attachment long ago. As with most things though she was sure Rune was the exception to that. Not to mention she felt like it would run the risk of opening old wounds.

As they pulled up to her building she still hadn’t come up with anything and she was resigned to just improvising.

She unlocked her door and walked in, doing a quick scan to make sure there wasn’t a pile of dirty clothes or takeout boxes lying around. She set her bag down on the kitchen counter and turned to Rune with a smile.

“Do you want something to drink?”