Haley Thistle
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Rafael the Centaur: Part Two (rough draft)
🕑 Added 2022-02-19 21:00:04 +0000 UTCThe surgery went well, and a day later I was able to bring him home. He’s mostly been resting since then, staying to himself in the room I set up for him. But partly, I think he’s doing that because of something he said on the way home while he was still a little dopey on painkillers.
I didn’t think too much of it, while it had been shocking at the time, I figured the painkillers had caused the outburst so I put it behind me. It has been awkward, and while he’s been able to move around the house on his cart, I’ve not seen much of him; almost like he’s avoiding me.
“I’ve got dinner ready,” I said after knocking on his door.
“I’m not that hungry just yet. Leave me a plate in the fridge, alright? I’m finishing up some of these edits on your next book.”
I frowned at the door. “Well, alright. I’ll be out here if you want any company.”
“Thank you, Lilian,” he murmured from inside.
This wasn’t like him at all, he was such a people person, unlike me. He was always his best around people.
I cleaned up the kitchen and made Rafael a plate I put in the fridge. Afterwards, I made myself coffee and sat at the table with a bit of apple crumble while I scrolled through my phone. It was raining outside, so I left the doors open to hear the patter of it upon the tin roof. The atmosphere was tranquil, cool, and time was still.
There came the squeaking of wheels from down the hallway, and a moment later, Rafael appeared. His front legs rested on the special cart he’d been given after his surgery. He looked disheveled, unshaven and wrapped in a gray hoodie. He didn’t see me at the table as he opened up the fridge. Once he turned, he flinched like he had seen a ghost.
“Oh-” Rafael closed the fridge while his eyes darted around, looking for something to focus on. “I didn’t think you’d still be in here.”
“I was dicking around on my phone with coffee.” I watched him curiously. “Are you alright?”
“I had surgery,” he grumbled as he removed the cellophane from his dinner plate, and it stuck to his hand.
“Yeah, I know. But your doctor said you’d be fine to move around by now. Is something bothering you?” My heart then leapt up into my throat. How could I be so stupid and not consider this before? “Are you abusing your painkillers?”
“No!” He snapped at me, still trying to shake the cellophane off. “My painkillers are nothing but glorified ibuprofen. You know that!” He grabbed the plastic wrap with one hand and slammed it down to get rid of it.
“Right-” I muttered weakly “Uhmm...then what’s been up with you? You’ve kept yourself holed up in your room almost all this time.”
Rafael scoffed and he picked at his food with his fingers. “It’s nothing to worry about, Lilian.”
I raised my brows at him.
“Don’t give me that look!” He tried to move but that same sheet of cellophane got caught in the wheel of his cart. “What the fuck is this?”
I stood up and went to him, kneeling down to remove the plastic wrap from his wheel. “I know something is up with you. Out with it or I wrap your bed in plastic wrap.”
Rafael pouted and looked away from me. “I told you not to worry about it.”
“Okay, wrapping your bed up in plastic,” I grumbled as I stood up.
Rafael grabbed my hand, stopping me from going any further, but also freezing me in my tracks with how sharp but gentle his touch was. I looked back up at him, seeing the pained look in his eyes.
“Oh,” I jerked at my realization. “Is this about what you said when you were high?”
His grip around my wrist tightened and he pressed his mouth into a firm line.
“It’s okay. I once tried swimming in an empty pool the first time I tried pot. I mean, I broke my arm, but it was because I was high and sixteen.”
“I wasn’t high and sixteen though.” Rafael let go of me and he smoothed his hand over the front of his hoodie then fidgeted with the pull strings. “I was mildly drugged and thirty-eight.”
I placed my hand upon his arm. “It’s really okay. People say all sorts of things when they’re mildly drugged after surgery. There’s a whole genre of that online.”
Those dark brown eyes fell onto my hand and his lips puckered slightly. “As a professional though, it’s embarrassing.”
I squeezed his arm. “As my friend, I can let it slide.”
A heavy breath left through his nostrils and he looked into my eyes. There was a beat where I felt the air change and something different was about to happen. I kept a hold of his arm and I looked away.
“It’s not like you meant it anyways,” I tried to laugh. “Right?”
Rafael remained silent.
I wasn’t sure what to do, I didn’t even move my hand off his arm. I just stood there. I bit my lip as I tried to think, tried to plan, tried to plot. This was Rafael, he didn’t fool around or tease like this. Everything he said, he meant. Even if he was doped on painkillers, every word from his mouth would be earnest. But I had chosen to believe otherwise until now.
“Lilian,” he said sternly. “You can let me go now.”
I didn’t. In fact, I squeezed harder onto his arm. I looked up into his eyes, and while I wanted to remain cool for his sake, tears still welled up in my eyes and my throat began to choke up in the back of my throat. I swallowed, but nothing helped soothe this sudden rush of emotions bubbling up.
I opened my mouth to speak and Rafael put his hand over my mouth.
“It’s true,” he murmured. “What I said then, even if I was out of my mind, I meant it. And I can’t look you in the eyes just yet.”
I sniffled and my chest began to shudder. Rafael moved his hand, smoothing that huge palm over my cheek, while his strong fingers brushed away the tears I squeezed from my eyes as I closed them.
“Don’t cry,” he sighed.
“I can’t help it. No one has ever told me they loved me before,” I whined pitifully. “I can’t believe you’re the one who said it!”
Rafael’s hand stilled on my cheek. “Is that a good or bad thing?”
I whimpered and hiccuped, rubbing my eyes so I could look at him without such a ridiculous face, but I couldn’t stop. I continued to cry, and Rafael put his hands upon my shoulders and let me weep against his hoodie. I clung onto it, making myself calm down enough so I could speak again.
“If this is going to cause a problem, I can have Will deal with everything until I can get over this. I promise, this isn’t going to affect anything. I’ll keep working for you just as-”
I tugged hard on his hoodie. “Hush!” I swallowed and caught my breath again. “Since I started working with you, I haven’t enjoyed baking this much since my granny was still alive.” I hiccuped again. “You’ve made working like this a joy, you’ve made my cookbooks something really special.” I looked up into his confused eyes. “You’re my friend.”
Rafael nods solemnly. “You’re mine too, which is why-”
“I love you.”
Rafael stopped everything. He cut off mid sentence, holding his mouth in the same pose. He wasn’t breathing, I don’t think anything inside him was working. “I want to-” He took a breath. “Remain-” He looked into my eyes.
I nodded and stood on my tiptoes. “I love you,” I repeated in case he didn’t hear it. “Is that o-'' Rafael picked me up off the ground, pulling me into a tight embrace and laying his face against my hair.
“When?” he whispered.
I wrapped my arms around his neck, holding him as tightly as he held me. “What do you mean?”
“I remember the moment I realized it. It was that first day of shooting and you were so excited over one of the tech guys fixing your grandmother’s mixer. I saw you smiling and thought ‘I want to work all my life for this person, just to see that smile everyday’. I was so fucking terrified of that thought I tried burying it. But I could never forget it, no matter what I tried.”
“Rafael-” my voice tremored.
“I just want to know if you had a similar moment?”
“I’m not sure,” I murmured against his cheek. “I just know everyday it’s been growing, the more I see you, the happier I get. Whenever you say my name, I can hardly stand myself,” I laughed. “Your hair is really tangled. Let me brush it.”
“Not now,” he whispered. He pulled back and I lost my breath. My heart was pounding so wildly I couldn’t stop a moment to process what was happening. His lips touched my cheek and neck, then they pressed against my mouth and I was swooning.
When Rafael pulled away, I figured a few days had gone by at least, but the rain hitting the tin roof was still going strong.
“We should hit pause on this, for now.” Rafael cleared his throat and placed me back down on my feet. “We should talk about this a little more in depth. Don’t you think?”
I just made a noise as I didn't have a thought in my head besides kisses and big hands. I glanced back up into his eyes and nodded.
“I’m glad you think so.” He cleared his throat. “There is a lot here we need to discuss.”
“We do?” I was finally able to speak.
Rafael got a cross look that softened just as soon as it appeared. “Of course we do! We work together, we’re starting a production company together soon. We can't just fling ourselves into some romance if we’re not going to be taking this seriously! And if we are friends then we deserve to make sure we’re going to take care of that.”
“Yes, of course. Of course.” I clear my throat. “Maybe I should put on some coffee for us. We can talk here.”
“That’s fine,” Rafael murmured.
I fumbled with the coffee pot, forgetting how having a body worked for a short spell. I glanced up from the sink, seeing him standing over the table as he lifted the newspaper.
“I remember,” I gasped.
Rafael looked back at me. “Remember what?”
“The moment!” I smiled shyly at him. “It was a couple of days after we started filming. You’d gone out of your way to get me the right kind of apples I had wanted, because the crew wasn’t sure. You drove to that fancy grocery store an hour away. You didn’t tell anyone why you’d left so everyone was kind of panicked. And when you got back and I saw you walking up my steps-” I stopped and broke into a big smile. “It was like Prince Charming coming to give Cinderella her shoe back.”
Rafael walked around the counter to stand before me. “I’m no Prince Charming, I’m barely even charming.” He placed his big hand upon my cheek. “But I would think of you as my princess.”
I cupped my hands over my face. “Stop! That’s too much for me!”
He kissed the top of my head with a chuckle. “Let me see that smile at least.”
I lowered my hands, beaming up at him with tears in my eyes. He kissed me, sitting me upon the counter just so he could kiss me more.
A few days later I took Rafael walking around the house. He’d just gotten a good report from his checkup, and his doctor asked him to try walking short distances every day.
“How does it feel?” I asked.
“It’s fine. Weird feeling but fine,” he huffed.
I pointed to the big red barn. “My grandparents got married there, which is why we never tore it down, even when we couldn’t keep up with the farm anymore.”
“Are you suggesting something?” Rafael chuckled.
I jumped out of my skin. “No! No! I was just saying-”
“Show me.” He tugged on my hand, having me lead him up into the barn.
Inside it was dusty, filled with what remained of my grandfather’s old farm equipment and Christmas decorations. Sunlight filtered through the cracks in the walls, while dust floated amongst them.
“It’s really nice here.” Rafael murmured.
“I’ve often thought about doing something with it. Maybe fix it up so people can have weddings here.” Rafael then picked me up, setting me on top of the wall so I was above him. He smirked at me and I had to glance away.
“I’m not mentioning weddings a lot for any reason, I swear!”
Rafael kissed my neck and I lost my breath. He moaned against my skin and a shiver went down my body.
“This feels different,” I muttered, leaning back until I touched a beam.
“You look so beautiful right now,” he whispered in my ear. Rafael pulled back a bit and looked into my eyes. “I’m feeling pretty good today too.” His eyes went down my body and my heartbeat spiked.
“Whoa, whoa,whoa-” I caught my breath. “Just how good are you feeling?”
Rafael licked his lips. “If it’s alright with you, I’ll show you.” He unbuttoned my overalls and slowly tugged them down until they hung off of one foot. He stepped in close, kissing my shoulders and collarbone.
My legs felt slightly cold, so I wrapped them around him. “That tickles,” I whimpered.
Those hands I loved so much pushed up my shirt and he kissed between my breasts. “Does this?”
“A little,” I whimpered.
Rafael’s hands traveled down my waist to my hips, gently kneading his fingers into my soft skin. He looked up at me, kissing me softly as his fingers traced the lace on my panties.
I gasped against his lips as I felt his fingers find purchase on something much more sensitive. I gripped onto his arm and a soft chuckle rumbled in his throat.
“Right here,” he whispered into my ear. “Is that the spot?”
I whimpered as his fingers sunk deeper into the fabric, his touch becoming more direct. I tightened my hands around his arms.
“It’s alright, isn’t it?” He asked.
“Yeah,” I panted.
Rafael kissed my cheek and neck. “Does it feel good?”
I nodded wordlessly.
“Good,” he moaned. “All I want to do is make you happy and smile.”
His fingers rubbed up and down the crotch of my panties, finding them grow wetter with each stroke. He groaned into my ear and my whole body shivered.
“Do you mind if I touch a little more closely?” He whispered.
I nodded again with a whimper.
“It’s alright, my love.” He kissed my lips. “Just going to push this little bit of fabric aside and-” he hissed and I cried out as his bare fingers touched my vulva. He rubbed me up and down very slowly, moaning into my ear as he did.
“Is that alright?” He breathed.
“You’re so warm,” I whimpered.
He chuckled, kissing my cheek and lips. “You have no idea how good you feel.” His fingers gently sunk inside. He then sputtered with a laugh.
“What?”
He shook his head, a big grin on his face. “Just thinking something stupid.”
I gulped as his thumb rubbed to my clit. “Tell me.”
Rafael kissed me as his finger slipped inside. “Just thinking that...I love every pie you’ve ever made.”
I started laughing but was choked by how good his fingers worked below.
Rafael removed his hand, licking his fingers with a smile upon his face. He looked into my eyes, kissing me before pressing more down my body. His torso knelt down and he placed his head between my thighs.
“Wait-” I whimpered.
“Unless you want me to stop, I will.” he pushed my panties aside more. “But right now, I’m wanting to make you happy.”
His tongue lapped over me and I quivered. I cupped my hand over my mouth, even though no one was around for miles. Rafael moaned against me, sending shivers up my spine. His fingers slipped back inside, moving slowly as he licked and kissed my folds.
I took hold of his hair, tugging it gently. This only made his eyes flick up and look at me. Those eyes had affected me since the moment I met him, now, in their spell, something else powerful occured. Rafael’s touch and affections radiated through my whole body, pulling my limbs so they curled. My back arched and I pulled his hair a little too hard in my excitement. I dribbled down his chin, and he lapped up the corners of his mouth with that amazing tongue.
“I like seeing this as much as your smile.” Rafael laid down his hoodie and laid behind me so I could snuggle against him.
My legs were still shaking and I was trying to catch my breath. I looked up into the streams of light filtering through the wood of the barn. It sparkled brighter and more radiant before. I leaned back into Rafael more and his fingers combed through my hair.
“I really enjoyed that,” I giggled. “Even if you compared me to a pie.”
Rafael knelt down and kissed my cheek. “I love you, I just felt like...pampering you a little.”
I beamed up at him. “I love you too. I’ll have to pamper you next time.”
Rafael let out a laugh. “Maybe we can pamper each other together. Does that sound fun to you?”
