@godsforlorn sent -> tracing the outline of his lips with a fingertip
{elias && laurel}
moments just before dawn were always the most serene. sometimes, their hands would be stained with soil, a night spent in elias' gardens putting in work. other nights, he'd be emerging from the den, where he attempts to write another novel.
on the best of nights, laurel joins him while he sits at the bayou, listening to the sleepy sounds of nightlife starting to quiet for the morning to come. graced by the presence of her that evening, despite the danger that always lurked when they strayed too far from his secluded home, elias had employed a smile while listening to her speak.
he smiled more lately. the sneaky little thing finding it's way onto his lips, snaking across a typical frown; even when alone, he'd find himself distracted, and those lips upturned to the sky without any true reason why. but the crickets were loud, and the splash of water from jumping fish consistent. a breeze rippled, and somewhere, a loud truck backfired. it was hard to hear her, and at some point, elias had leaned in. their bodies close, and his head tilted inwards. dawn, and the morning, with it's burn of the sun, was coming. but for a moment; elias forgot what it felt to have a clock strike at metaphorical midnight.
for somewhere in the middle of their perfectly normal evening, laurel had stopped talking. he'd forgotten to listen, distracted once more by the sound of her voice alone, by the sway of sandy waves in the breeze coasting the bay. and though she'd stopped speaking, he hadn't stopped staring. nor had he pulled away, close enough he could hear her heartbeat as clear as if it were in his own chest. and laurel's fingers were a warmth to his cool lips, almost inviting him in. elias reached up, gently pressing the back of her hand into a gentle kiss.