#natepucks

[vera-lo-blog]

New York, New York || NARA

WHO: Vera Lopez and Nate Puckerman.

WHEN: December 30th, 2015.

WHERE: Nate and Vera’s Four Seasons hotel room, NYC.

WHAT: Vera is having trouble sleeping, she asks Nate to join her on the bed, and then one thing leads to another.

TRIGGERS: smut (ish), mentions of abuse and rape.

Vera: was definitely exhausted from all of the travel that day, but she couldn't seem to bring herself to sleep. She'd arrived in New York with Nate a few hours before and they'd had a really nice dinner. For a little while, she felt like things were normal, and she'd begun to forget about all of the craziness of what had happened in Chicago, she'd even decided to bring the dress that Lexi had told her she might not want to, and decided to even wear it to dinner that night. They'd both decided that an early night was the best option though, and headed back to the room, where they were, of course, instantly reminded that there was only one bed. Vera thought she might be okay to share a bed, but the idea still made her uncomfortable. She'd offered to sleep on the couch, but Nate argued back that he should, and she was too fired to put up any kind of real fight. However, now here she was, laying in the bed, with her eyes wide open, unable to fall asleep at all. She'd drifted off twice, and both times was jerked back into wakefulness by a phantom feeling of Tyler tucking her hair behind her ear again. Vera sighed, finally deciding that if she wasn't going to sleep anyways, Nate might as well come and lay in the bed and sleep there, she could lay awake wether he was next to her or not. And secretly, there was a part of her that thought maybe she'd actually be able to sleep if he was next to her, because she couldn't deny that she felt some level of safety around Nate, like she could really trust him. Quietly, Vera crept across the room, sitting down on the floor next to the couch and whispering Nate's name, her hand reaching up to gently grab his harm, rubbing her hand up and down it softly, trying to stir him awake.

Nate: loved New York, from the atmosphere here around this time of year, to the fact that his second football team hailed from here. It was even better now that he was here with Vera instead of his team, he was able to relax a lot more, knowing he wouldn't have to play in front of a huge audience. Just Vera and him in this city seemed a little surreal to him; the last thing Nate expected was this trip off of Alexa, but he was incredibly grateful for it nonetheless. They'd already spent part of their evening at a fancy restaurant eating some of the nicest food he's had out in a while, but the travelling had taken it's toll on both of them, and they went back and crashed on their respected pieces of furniture. Nate's being the couch, which was fine for him, because he didn't want Vera to miss out on sleeping in the bed when he was more than comfortable sleeping on the couch, although his rib was playing up again, sending pains down his side. After a while of trying to get to sleep, he was finally out for about an hour, dreaming of the food he'd just eaten and the amount of pain killers he had to endure swallowing in order to stop some of the pain. He started to feel weird, feeling himself frown for a few seconds at nothing, because his dream hadn't changed at all, but he was still upset about it suddenly. His eye opened slightly, looking in front of him to see Vera sat in front of him, making both his eyes open quickly as he blinked rapidly, trying to get his vision back to normal. "Hey, you," he smiled sleepily, reaching for her hand with his, "What's up? Can't you sleep?"

Vera: felt guilty for waking Nate up, but she also knew that he wouldn't really mind, and she did think he'd be more comfortable in the bed. When he finally moved, and then opened his eyes to look at her, she frowned and nodded, "Yeah," She whispered, biting her lower lip, "Hotel rooms kind of freak me out." Which was true enough, they were big, and pretty empty looking, they had a very vacant feeling, and it always made her a little uneasy because one time she'd read about how you never knew who'd hung themselves in the closet before you got there, but she tried not to think about that. However, it was a good enough excuse for why she couldn't sleep, because tell him that she couldn't sleep because of Tyler seemed pathetic, and she'd already made herself look too pathetic to Nate when it came to Tyler. "Will you come and lay down with me?" She asked, hoping he'd agree, because she didn't want to have to explain further, or have him say no and have to go back to her bed alone.

Nate: wearily pursed his lips together, unsure of whether or not she was actually telling the truth about hotel rooms, or if there was something more she was hiding from him, but he wouldn't dare push it. "Well you don't have to be scared while I'm here, okay? I wouldn't let anything happen to you," he tried to shift himself to rest on his elbow, but winced at the pain in his side, quickly trying to hide the fact he was hurt by sitting up even faster than his body would have liked. Maybe the couch wasn't the best place for him to be sleeping after all, especially if it's hurting him even more now. Nate looked up to her and cocked his head a little, "When have you ever asked me to do anything and I've said no? Apart from our sleeping arrangement this evening," he laughed, "Of course I will." Slowly he pushed himself out of his seat, picking up the glass of water and pills he'd left on the table next to him, as he walked towards the bed, popping them in his mouth as he reached it. Once he got there, he paused, not really sure what side to sleep on. "Jump in, and I can just work around the parts you're not sleeping on."

Vera: nodded when he spoke, knowing that he meant what he was saying, "I know." She whispered, looking away from him, and out the hotel room window, instead. She looked back when she heard him wince, raising an eyebrow at him and feeling guilty all over again, for making him sleep on the couch, for waking him up, making him get up and causing him pain, for just about anything that she could really think of to blame on herself, honestly. When he spoke again, she frowned, knowing that that was true, too, and wondering how in the hell she managed to become friends with someone who was so amazing to her, and how she managed to get him to even care about her the way that he did, but she just nodded in response, "Thank you." She said, probably for more than just agreeing to sleep in the bed, but she decided to just leave it there. Vera stood from her spot on the floor, and watched him walk to the bed, following after him. She let out a small laugh and shook her head, "Just lay down and get comfortable, okay? I'm small, I can fit almost anywhere." She said, sitting down on the bottom corner of the bed and waiting for him to lay down.

Nate: was waiting by the side of the bed for her to come over and join him, "You're welcome, V," he smiled over at her, watching her walk towards him. He wasn't sure exactly how this was going to work, seeing as he'd never really shared a bed with her before during the night, and also the fact that he was incredibly scared he'd try and cuddle her during the night, and she'd push him away. Knowing everything he'd learnt from Tyler, he'd come to understand the whole situation a lot better, and was trying to be more cautious of his actions, without necessarily letting her know exactly how much he knew about what she was going through. "Okay, if you insist," he sung, peeling back the sheets from the bed and slowly lowering himself underneath them, moving around slightly to sink his body further into the comfiest mattress he had ever laid on in his life. "Holy shit, this bed is like being hugged from every angle possible," Nate laughed, patting the bed next to her, before placing his hands under the pillow beneath his head, resting himself on them, "We can just talk until you fall asleep."

Vera: watched as he laid down, smiling at him when he spoke. "I know, Alexa did good picking this place." She laughed, before moving the side of the bed and getting in next to him. Vera stayed a few inches away from him, but turned so she was facing him and nodded, "What do you want to talk about?" She asked, figuring he'd probably fall asleep first anyways, because she didn't think she'd end up getting much sleep at all. Even with Nate in the bed with her, she couldn't seem to get herself to calm down enough to sleep at all the past few days, and she wasn't sure that even Nate would be able to help with that.

Nate: nodded, "She really does know the best places, doesn't she." As she got in the bed, he was cautious of how close she was going to get to him, afraid of not only her feeling uncomfortable, even though she'd asked him to join her, but also because if she did want to get close to him, he wasn't sure how his rib would hold up with her arm around him, if she chose to do that. When she'd settled into the bed, not that far away from him, he couldn't help but turn his head to smile at her. It wasn't like he'd never been this close to her before - they've semi-hooked up previously, which is how they first met - but something about her was different. Maybe it was just them being in New York, but whatever it was, he liked it. "Hmm," he mumbled, turning his body slowly towards hers, "How about we figure out what we want to do tomorrow? After all, there's a lot to do in this place."

Vera: nodded in return and sighed, "She does. But she was planning on coming on this trip, so of course she'd do her research and find the best places." Vera watched as he turned to look at her, smiling back at him and then sighed, "We could talk about that. But I kind of thought that, you know, we'd maybe just see where the city takes us." She said with a shrug, "But we can plan it out if you want." Vera frowned at him for a second,"Or we could talk about this," She whispered, debating for a second before reaching out and very gently placing her hand on his side, knowing where he was injured, before flicking her eyes up to meet his, "I'm not hurting you, am I?" she whispered, pulling her hand back before he even answered and letting it rest on his stomach, instead.

Nate: grinned, "In that case, I'm glad this all worked out how it did." He continued to smile, before he shook his head lightly to try to shake himself out of it. "Honestly, just going with wherever the city takes us sounds like a much better plan than actually planning it. I'm just so used to going places with a strict schedule, so yeah, that actually does sound really nice." As soon as he saw her frown, he knew exactly what she was going to say. He sighed at the feeling of her hand touching his side, and then found himself frowning when she moved her hand to his chest, although he liked that too. He smiled at her again, "No, you weren't hurting me at all, I promise, but if you want to talk about it, we can do that." Nate took a deep breath in, only wincing at the pain slightly as the first batch of pills he took seemed to begin setting in. "So I may have bent the truth slightly about what I was doing that night," he began, closing his eyes, "I borrowed Javi's basketball and went to the outdoor court a few blocks from your house. I got there, played some ball by myself for a while and some other guy came to join me, and we got talking about basketball. He said he played for LSU's team, and after a while, the friendly talk between us became a little more hostile, and the next thing I know, we were fighting about it all." Nate shrugged, trying to play it off as no big deal, but he felt awful lying about it. Technically, it was more bending the truth. Tyler was an opposing team, and they were talking before it turned into a brawl, but he didn't feel like mentioning him and ruining their entire trip. "A couple punches later, I had him to the floor, he kicked me in the side, and ran off."

Vera: let a wide smile spread across her face when she heard him speak, "I love coming here, there's always something new to do, and there's all of my favorite places, too. There's just so much to do. All the touristy places, like Time Square, and Central Park, the Empire State Building, and just amazing food. It's hard to plan out because there's always so much that I want to do." She said, before clearing her throat, a little embarrassed at the way she was gushing about the city, Nate had been asleep and she was sure he hadn't wanted to be woken up to hear her rambling on. Vera frowned, though she relaxed a bit when he said that she wasn't hurting him, because she knew what it felt like to have your ribs feel like they were going to explode, and she didn't want to make it any worse for him. Vera looked back up to his eyes when he spoke again, raising an eyebrow at him when he said he'd lied. She felt her spine go rigid when he said where he'd been, know that it was a place where Tyler liked to hang out back in high school, and wondering if he'd run into him again, but she relaxed when he continued, though it still wasn't pleasant, at least it wasn't her fault. "Why did you lie about it?" She asked, sliding in closer to him, not really thinking about it. "I wouldn't have been mad, or anything. Just concerned about you." She added, as she reached for his hand, pulling it, as gently as she could, so that his arm was resting over her, his hand on her back.

Nate: couldn't help but smirk at seeing her entire face beam as she reeled off what she loved about the place. He'd never really seen any of it, but just from the way she was telling him about every place, it made him feel like he'd been there a dozen times. Laughing under his breath, he shook his head, "You should never stop talking about the things that you love, and especially not with an awkward cough after it either. I definitely wanna see all the things you love about this place, though. You make it sound a hundred time better than the websites do." Nate could tell from the way she looked at him while telling the story that at least some part of it had made her think of Tyler, even if it was just for a second, and he hated that. Though he was relieved when he heard her voice was exactly the same as it was before, and when she placed his hand on her back after getting the tiniest bit closer to him. He moved his arm comfortably on her side, letting his fingers run along the small of her back, "I don't know," he sighed, "I just didn't want you to think I was lame for fighting over basketball, and I didn't want you to think that I couldn't be away for a few weeks without playing basketball, enough so that I'd sneak out at midnight to go and do so. I was just stressed, like, about my family and stuff."

Vera: blushed when he said that shouldn't stop talking and shook her head, "Sorry, I just get a little over excited about some things." She said, and a part of her knew that she was just letting some of her insecurities get the best of her, that her talking like that would have been something that had annoyed Tyler, and she let that knowledge get the best of her, because there was a long period of time where she spent a large majority of her time trying to avoid fights. "Besides, getting all excited about everything will just make me hyper, it certainly won't help me fall asleep." Vera sighed, relaxing at the feeling of his fingers on her back, even forgetting that normally it would be something that would make her feel uncomfortable, with Nate it just felt nice. Vera raised an eyebrow, letting out a small chuckle, "I don't blame you, if I'd have been there, I'd have been the one jumping on his back and whacking him over the head for talking shit about your team. I mean, if someone said that about my team, they'd have a cleat up their ass." She stopped when he continued though, and knitted her eyebrows together in confusion, "Why would I have a problem with you needing to play basketball? I get it, if I don't go running, I go crazy, you know that. I wouldn't care." She said, but frowned even deeper when he said that he was stressed about family stuff. She knew that it had happened the night that they'd gone shopping, and she wanted to believe that he was stressed because of something else, but she couldn't help but feel guilty for adding to that stress. "I'm sorry," She said softly, bringing her free hand up to rest on her chest next to the other and sliding even closer to him still.

Nate: grinned at her, "No need to apologize to me, V, plus if you get hyper, we'll just stay up all night and talk. I'm totally fine with that, I don't need to run on a lot of sleep anyway, I've gotten used to that over the years. Plus I can nap just about anywhere these days. Quick ten minute nap while you're in the shower, another seven hour nap while you're getting ready," he joked. A half snort, half laugh escaped his mouth, causing his eyes to widen, "Okay I don't usually tend to snort at things, I try and keep that hideous part of me hidden at all costs, but the picture of you jumping on someone's back and going HAM on them has just made this trip even better, and especially with the addition of the anal cleat." He bit his lip gently as she carried on, wanting to look away from her so she didn't see the embarrassment in his eyes, and his gaze fell to her shoulder. It wasn't so much the fact that he needed to play basketball, more of the fact that he felt like he had to lie to her about him being stressed out in general, when he could have been stressed for a number of reasons. "You have nothing to be sorry for, if anything, I'm sorry that I lied about where I was. It's nothing to be ashamed about at all, because people would expect me to go there when I'm stressed, but I just didn't want you to think that I wasn't having a good time in Chicago or something, when that's so far from the truth, because I loved being there with you, and your family. I just didn't want you to feel... I don't know. I don't really know what I'm trying to say." It wasn't until he looked back up at her that he realised she was inching closer to him, making him half smile at her.

Vera: Grinned up at him, but it quickly turned to a glare when he began to tease her for how long it takes her to get ready. "I'm not nearly as bad as half of the girls in my sorority, so you should be grateful." She growled. She couldn't help the laughter that bubbled out of her when she heard him snort, shaking her head in return. "Oh god, an anal clear, that sounds really fucking horrible." She laughed, "But yeah, I mean, don't talk shit about my team." Vera listened when he continued to speak, sighing and shaking her head, "You don't have to explain." She said softly, "But for the record, you shouldn't be worrying about me getting upset, if you need to have that release, then that's what you should do. I may put a lot of blame on myself for a lot of things, but I wouldn't equate you wanting to play basketball with, like, hating me, or hating being in Chicago, or something." She said, "I don't care about that, I just care that you're okay, honestly. And that we're okay."

Nate: couldn't help but laugh gently, because she was definitely one of the fastest people to get ready that he knew of in her house, but yet she always seemed to be the most beautiful one stepping out at all times. She even looked great whilst slightly frowning at him. "Yeah okay, I'll give you that one," he joked, rolling his eyes playfully, "So my seven hour nap may have been exaggerated by like six hours or so, but I'm still sticking to the fact girls take way longer than they need to to get ready." He grinned widely at her laughing, and even more so when he realised she didn't even mention him snorting. "Yeah it really does, right? Don't worry, I'm not somebody who would ever make fun of your team, so you have one less person to worry about losing a cleat inside," he spluttered between small laughs. Nate knew that Vera understood him and his ways; he was just grateful that she was always supportive of him doing whatever he needed to do to make himself happy. "You're right," he sighed, "I knew you'd be okay with it, and I knew you'd get why I did it, I just wasn't thinking, that's all. I just thought you'd feel like I didn't think you were enough to keep me entertained or whatever, which you obviously are, just so you know, but then again, I've never really been good at understanding how the female mind works," he chuckled, his face getting slightly hotter as he furrowed his eyebrows slightly, "I'm always fine, V," he whispered, "I'll always be fine, and so will we." Nate leaned his face forward slightly, kissing her forehead, "Why wouldn't we be fine?"

Vera: shook her head, "It's not nice to laugh at me." She whispered with a blush, but even still, she couldn't manage to wipe the grin off of her face. "Well, trust me, some girls need the time." She teased, biting her lip again. "I don't think I'd be able to give you an anal cleat, I actually enjoy your company, and I just am not sure that our friendship could survive something that drastic." Vera shrugged at him when he tried to explain further, "I mean it, you don't have to explain yourself to me, Nate." She said, but she couldn't help but frown when he said he didn't want her to feel like she wasn't enough, because of course there was a part of her that did feel that way, but she didn't think bringing up was going to benefit either of them, so she decided instead to just pull her smile back up, and move on. Her smile turned more genuine again when he said he was fine, and that they were fine. Scrunching her nose up as he kissed her forehead, she shrugged, forcing herself not to remind him that he'd just found out about her past, and how she pathetic she was, so she just shook her head, "I don't know." She finally whispered, bringing her face closer to his, and biting her lip again for a second, before pressing her lips into his quickly, and then pulling away just as quickly, shaking her head, "Shit." She whispered, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that. I'm sorry."

Nate: tutted loudly, grinning, "And you, Vera, are not one of those. You could step out of the house in the ugliest double denim combo straight out of bed, and you'd still look amazing." His cheeks began to hurt from smiling so much, but he couldn't stop himself from doing so. "You're right, it would be an incredibly strenuous friendship, plus I'm not really sure how I feel about butt stuff as of yet," he joked, scrunching his face up. Nate pursed his lips while she spoke, knowing full well that she meant what she said. He felt like he had to explain himself a lot to people, so he was so used to doing so, but yet Vera was just happy to hear the basics, and he loved it. He could see a wide variety of emotion showing across her face, but he didn't really know what any of it really meant, and he didn't want to pry and ask, either. She'd tell him whatever she was thinking when she was ready, and not on somebody else's terms. Her face watching etching closers to his, and Nate became slightly nervous, not really sure what to do. Of course he knew what he wanted to do, but he didn't want to push her into doing anything. His gaze dropped down to her lower lip as she bit it, and Nate could sense she was still thinking about something, but before he'd got the chance to ask, her lips were against his, and were gone just as fast. Even if it was only for a brief moment, he knew he wanted to continue, but was shook out of his thoughts from her talking quietly in front of him. Nate couldn't stop smiling; his hand squeezed her side gently, "It's okay, I was thinking about kissing you too. We can... again, if you wanted. I won't stop you." He didn't want to make a move in case she really did regret it, but he didn't want her to believe she'd done something that he didn't want, either.

Vera: felt her cheeks burning when she heard what he was saying, biting into her bottom lip and shaking her head, "No." She whispered, "I mean, yes, but definitely no about the double denim combo." She added, laughing softly as her blush calmed down, "But I'm not all that." She added finally, and then couldn't help but laugh again, "I don't think the way to find out how you do feel about butt stuff is with a cleat, just my opinion." She teased. Vera's cheeks turned a dark purple again when she pulled away from the kiss, afraid to see how he'd react. She relaxed a bit when she saw that he was smiling, letting out a sigh of relief when he kissed her side. She did want to kiss him again, but she didn't know where it would lead, and she didn't know that if it lead anywhere, that she'd be okay with it, and she wasn't sure that it was fair to end a hook up half way through on two separate occasions with the same guy. It didn't seem to matter though, because a second later, her lips were pressing into his again, and one of her hands was reaching up to tangle into the hair at the back of his neck.

Nate: chuckled quietly, "Okay, maybe the double denim was a bit of a stretch, but I still stand by what I said." He thought about it jokingly for a second, before shaking his head at her. "You're right, I think that's something I'd have to work out alone, without cleats." Everything about this situation felt so surreal. They'd been close before, with her practically laying on him whenever she comes round to the frat house, but yet, something about being this close face to face again just brought back so many of the feelings he'd had the same time he first met her. He wasn't sure how far this was going to go, and he silently thanked Alexa for buying him the condoms 'just in case', but Nate was more than happy to go at her pace, and stop whenever she wanted to. There wasn't really much time to do any more thinking as their lips crashed together again as her hand snaked through the back of his hair. His hand ran along her side and down her back, pulling her in closer to him by the waist until their fronts were practically flushed together. He could feel himself smiling into the kiss as they became much more relaxed, like he'd done this hundreds of times with her, and his thumb started rubbing against her skin, enjoying the feeling of her fingers in his hair.

Vera: grinned at him, shaking her head lightly, "I think you're just being sweet." She said softly, before letting herself chuckle again, "This has gone in a direction that I was really not expecting when I made that comment." Vera was surprised at how easy it was to kiss Nate. The first time this had happened, she'd enjoyed it then, too, but then when things progressed, she'd gotten nervous. So nervous that she'd barely taken the time to get all of her clothes back on before running away, but it was different now. It was the same Nate, but she trusted him now, in a way that she'd never been able to trust Tyler, even if she thought she'd trusted him, she knew better now. But she also knew that Nate was hurt pretty badly, and she didn't know how much of this she was ready for, but she did know that kissing Nate was easier than she thought it would be, and she also knew that she was enjoying it. Vera chuckled into the kiss when Nate pulled her closer, but she pulled away from the kiss, rubbing her lips together for a few seconds, before making eye contact with him again, "Make sure you tell me if I'm hurting you, okay?" She whispered, before kissing him again quickly, and then letting her lips trail down to his neck, her hand that wasn't tangled in his hair slid down his chest, very lightly trailing over his stomach to make sure she didn't hurt him, and then finally to the front of his pajama pants, pushing them down just an inch or so, waiting to see if he would stop her.

Nate: was still smiling as he kissed her; his fingers brushed underneath the fabric of her tank top a little, feeling the curve of her side on his finger tips. The last thing he'd expected on this trip, was to be finding himself tangled up with her in the sheets of the hotel bed - or anywhere for that matter - and for him to be getting this excited about being back in this situation. When she pulled away from him, Nate thought for sure that they'd reached her limit, which he was perfectly okay with, and he smiled back at her. Though his eyes widened with the slightest amount of shock when she spoke and almost instantly kissed him again, not even really giving him much of a chance to answer, apart from him nodding his head slightly as she closed the gap once more. He closed his eyes and sighed into the kiss again, biting his lip as she made her way too his neck, and moving his head a little to give her more space. He barely even noticed her hand making its way between them, straight to the top of his pants. Nate's breath hitched as he realised his pants were moving down slowly, and his hand found it's way down towards her ass, squeezing it gently, letting her know he was okay with whatever she wanted to do, while also nodding his head, though he wasn't so sure she'd even notice it.

Vera: shivered against him when she felt his fingers on her skin. She couldn't help but chuckle when she felt his hand on her ass, but she took it as his way of saying she could continue, so she pushed his pants down further, leaving them around his knees for him to kick off the rest of the way. Pulling away from his neck, she sighed, as she glanced down, seeing his bruises, before going back to his neck, and then moving down slowly to his chest. Her hand slid back up from where she left his pants along his leg, before wrapping her hand around him and squeezing gently, moving her hand in a rhythm as she began trailing kisses further down his chest, making sure to skate around the outside of his bruises as she did. Her lips continued moving further down, only stopping when she'd gotten past his abs, before stopping again, "It's been a long time since I've done this, so I'm sorry if I'm bad at it."

Nate: could feel his pants being removed, and he bit hit lip gently, not really sure how far she was going to go with this. The feeling of her lips on his neck just kept getting better, until he could feel the slightest breeze when they were removed. He sighed, knowing she was probably quite hesitant about touching his bruising on his body as he caught a glimpse of her head turn in that direction, but he chose to say nothing. Rolling flat onto his back some more with his eyes open, looking down at his legs, he began moving them, shuffling his pants further down them until they were low enough for him to remove his feet, and relaxed against the bed once again. As she continued to kiss his neck and down his chest, he felt her hand move up towards his groin, and immediately sighed as it gripped around it, tugging on his length, while her lips made their way even further down his body. Nate sat up slightly and grinned at her, "It'll be amazing, so don't worry about it," he whispered, reaching down to her face as he stroked his thumb against her cheek, before placing it back onto his abs.

Vera: bit her lip when she heard him speak, nodding and hoping he was right. It wasn't as if she hadn't had practice at this, but she wasn't lying when she'd said it had been a while. She brought her lips back down where she'd left off, continuing to move down, until she reached where her hand was still working. Vera pulled her hand away, kissing down his entire length, before pulling his tip into her mouth, letting her tongue swirl around it. She brought her hand back, working it up and down on his shaft, before pulling him further into her mouth.

Nate: dropped his head back onto the pillow after propping it up slightly and placing his hand behind it, so he could still see her, and smiled as her mouth trailed down to meet her hand; his own trailed along the bruising to his body, gliding over the most painful areas gently. Feeling her tongue on the tip of him made his lips part slightly as his breath hitched in his throat, letting it out as her hand began to move along him once again. His hips subconsciously moved upwards when she took him into her mouth, and he let out a quiet groan, biting down on his lip a little harder than usual.

Vera: took the small noises he was making as encouragement, making her move a bit faster. She pulled more of him into her mouth, sucking gently. She let her tongue press up against him, moaning gently to let him feel the vibrations. Vera used to be pretty good at this, at least, she thought she was, and she certainly never got any complaints, but it was definitely odd getting back into it. She felt clumsy and like she was putting more thought into it, instead of just doing what was natural, but hopefully Nate didn't notice any of that. She wanted him to enjoy it, and she certainly wanted it to go well, because hopefully he'd want it to happen again at some point in the future. Vera began moving her hand in rhythm with her head, being sure to try and apply the same amount of pressure with her fingers, lips, and tongue.

Nate: couldn't remember the last time he'd gotten head from anybody, and especially not this good. Whether or not it was because she was pretty damn good at giving it, even though she said she was out of practice, or the fact that it was Vera down there with her mouth wrapped around him, it was the best he'd had in a long time - possibly ever. Although it was more than likely a mixture of both of those things. He couldn't control his hips from bucking upwards gently in rhythm with her mouth and hand, enjoying every inch of her skin on his, sucking gently and squeezing him while her tongue pressed against him. "Jesus, V," he growled, looking down at her working his length, watching her mouth take him in fully.

Vera: grinned to herself when she felt his hips bucking up to meet her, and she groaned again when she heard him speak, moving her mouth faster again. She pressed her thumb into the softer underside of his base, she brought her free hand down towards his hip, letting the pads of his fingers drag lightly on his skin. She moved it down toward his thigh, then to his inner thigh, and then upwards, until she finally reached his balls, and she began to massage them gently. After a few more seconds, she pulled away from him, but kept both of her hands going, her hand on his shaft now moving up and down his full length, rather than just at the base. Instead, she brought her mouth down, pulling one ball into his mouth, swirling her tongue around it gently, and then switching it for the other and giving it the same treatment. She continued for just a few seconds before bringing her hand back to messaging his balls, and bringing his shaft back into her mouth, taking it even further this time, as far as she could make herself go, and began sucking again, moving her mouth and hand in unison again.

Nate: felt his chest rising much faster than normal as his breathing became heavier, having her apply different pressures around his length and hip, driving him mad. Her hand gently roaming his leg added an extra sensation to what he was feeling, but he wasn't expecting her hand to cup around his balls. Nobody had ever done that to him before, and his eyes widened slightly until she began massaging them, which caused him to slam his eyes shut, enjoying her soft touch. He frowned the tiniest bit as he felt her mouth move away, and his eyes opened slightly, noticing she had other plans as her head lowered to meet her other hand which was still massaging his balls. The feeling of her taking his balls into her mouth made up for the fact Nate thought she was going to stop, and he groaned loudly at the contact, even more so when her mouth found it's way back to his length. His hand reached down and his fingers lost themselves in her hair as a deep moan left his lips as she brought him into her mouth as far as she could. "Fucki-... Jesus Ver-" He could barely get any words out as he felt his stomach knotting gently, the hand behind his head gripped onto the back of his hair, pulling it slightly while fighting the urge to finish himself off with her mouth like he would with anybody else. Nate could feel himself reaching his peak, and he could barely control his waist from lifting off the mattress every time she sucked on him. "Vera, I'm so close," he growled through the moans, "Fuck, I'm close,"

Vera: listened to the noises he was making, and kept doing exactly what she was doing, urging him closer and closer. She made sure to keep her pace even, not wanting to get sloppy now and lose whatever momentum she'd gained thus far, she did let her hand that was massaging his balls speed up though, just a little bit as she heard him speak, hoping to get him even closer than he already was, and she let out a long moan, letting her tongue vibrate against him once again.

Nate: could feel the knot in his lower stomach getting tighter the faster she went, and he knew it wouldn't be long at all. His fingers already wrapped in her hair grabbed the strands gently as he moaned her name, trying not to move too much in case his side began to hurt and ruined everything. He was balancing on the edge of his release; her hand on his balls getting faster and the vibrations from her tongue were too much for him, and he groaned loudly, feeling the warmth spread from his groin and along his length into her mouth. "Fucking... Jesus," he cried, continuing to pull on his own hair with his heart pounding hard against his chest as he came, slowing his hips as he rode out his orgasm with her mouth, wanting it to last as long as possible. When he'd finally finished, his entire body relaxed against the mattress, his breath shaky and panting as he bit his lower lip and grinned, shaking his head lightly. "I can promise you now, ​that​ was incredible," he laughed quietly, unravelling his fingers from her hair, reaching for her to come up and join him.

Vera: let out one final moan before she felt him coming, she swallowed it quickly, while slowing her movements until she felt him relax. Vera pulled away finally, planting kisses on the skin surrounding, and then back up to his lower abs again until she heard him speak. She let out a small giggle, trying to fight off her blush, but mostly she was just glad that he'd enjoyed it, and that she wasn't completely horrible at it now. "Good." She whispered, before kissing back up his body again, being careful to avoid his bruises again, until she reached his neck. Vera pulled away and laid back down next to him, resuming the same position she'd had before she'd kissed him in the first place.

Nate: laughed when she just replied with a simple 'good', and shook his head as she made her way back up to him, and hummed quietly to himself. He was still struggling to catch his breath, but he turned to look at her as she laid next to him and grinned. "I mean, I wouldn't have cared if you were good or not, but shit, I didn't think anyone could be that good," he chuckled breathily, his eyes looking into hers before looking down to her lips, smirking slightly. He shuffled slightly so he was facing her again and leaned forward to catch her lips with his, tasting himself slightly on hers as his tongue slid past; his hand began stroking her stomach under her shirt, waiting to see if she would stop him there or whether that's as far as he wanted him to go.

Vera: blushed when he grinned at her, burying her face into the pillow they were laying on for a second as her blush grew, before looking back at him when he began to speak. She bit her lower lip as he turned to face her again. Vera grinned into the kiss, a hand finding it's way up into his hair again. Shivering at the feeling of his hand on her skin again, she slid in closer to him, just a bit, but enough to let him know she wasn't pulling away. She certainly hadn't been expecting this to happen, but now that it was, she was enjoying it, and she wasn't ready for it to stop yet.

Nate: took the fact that she shuffled closer to him as a sign that he could carry on what he was doing. His hand continued to slide up her top until it reached her chest, gently palming her right breast, rolling his thumb over her nipple as he did so, and his leg pushed between hers, parting them slightly. He made his way down to her neck, kissing her skin gently, leaving open mouthed kisses on her neck and throat, until he couldn't go any further down because of her tank top. Leaning up slightly, he began pulling up her top until he decided to just take it off of her, throwing it next to them on the floor. As he looked down at her bare chest, he couldn't help but sigh and bite his lip, placing a quick kiss to her lips before moving down her body, trailing kisses down her collar bones until his mouth enclosed one of her nipples. The amount of movement he was making was causing his side to pulse in pain a little, but he wasn't going to let that stop him. His tongue flicked over her nipple lightly, teasing it before moving to her other one, sucking it, while his hand replaced itself where his mouth just was.

Vera: let out a shaky breath when she felt his hand sliding up her shirt, but she couldn't deny that it felt amazing, and it had been so long since anyone had touched her like this, she felt like she was hypersensitive to everything he was doing. When she felt his leg pushing between hers, she let it in willingly, her hands resting on his shoulders, to try and keep out of the way. Vera sat up just enough for him to get her top off, sighing as the cool air hit her, making goosebumps rise all over her now bare skin. Her let out a breathy sigh as he began kissing down her chest, but it turned into a small moan when his mouth found one of her nipples. They'd always been a weakness for her, but she was extra sensitive after so long of no contact from anyone else. Vera rolled to her back, trying to make it easier for him to do what he was doing, moaning his name as she did so, one of her hands digging into the blankets below and clenching it tightly.

Nate: shifted over slightly on top of her as she laid on her back, shuffling over to being completely between her legs so his side wasn't in too much of an awkward position. He smirked to himself as she moaned his name and it spurred him on even more, seeing the amount of trust she had in him to let him touch her like this. His tongue still continued to flick over her nipple, changing sides once more before he began kissing further down her stomach to the waistband of her shorts, and kissed her from one side of her hip to the other along it. Slowly he raised himself up and tucked his fingers into the waistband of her shorts and underwear, and pulled them down slowly, taking in every inch of new skin being uncovered. Nate bit his lip and groaned slightly at the sight of her, and began to slide off her shorts faster, placing them next to her. He moved further down the bed so his face was between her legs, and began kissing her inner thigh softly, leading a trail down to her center, but just before he reached there, he changed to her other leg and did the same on that side.

Vera: let her legs spread enough for him to fit between them, her hips grinding up into his just slightly as his tongue continued on her nipple. She rested her head back against the pillow when his lips trailed down her stomach, lifting her herself again as he began to pull her pants down. Vera felt her skin get hot at the realization of what was happening, and at the fact that she was about to be completely naked in front of Nate, in front of anyone for the first time in years, but she reminded herself that it was Nate and forced herself to relax. When he started kissing her thigh, she gasped, not really expecting it. It wasn't something Tyler would do very often, and as his lips moved closer to her center, she forced herself to relax again, and just enjoy the feeling of his lips on her sensitive skin.

Nate: could almost taste her already, with his lips being an inch away from her center, and he placed an open-mouthed kiss to either side of it slowly, until he couldn't figut the urge anymore. His tongue ran up along her wetness slowly, moaning gently at the taste of her finally being on his lips, until he reached her clit, flicking it lightly with the tip of his tongue. It felt like forever since he'd last done this to anybody, but he was glad that the next person was Vera. He pushed his tongue further into her center and ran it upwards towards her clit again, not stopping until he'd passed over it. Kissing her once more just above it, Nate took her clit into his mouth and swept over it with his tongue, circling around it lazily, before sucking on it with the tiniest amount of pressure.

Vera: groaned as his lips trailed around her center, but she let out a loud gasp when she finally felt his tongue. She'd wanted this for the past few years, ever since it had almost happened the first time, and had even imagined it on more than one occasion, but it actually happening felt so much better than it had ever played out in her mind. "Oh, God!" She moaned, when his tongue reached her clit, causing her back to arch, and her hands to curl into the blankets below her again. She felt like her whole body was on fire, and as then his tongue was on her clit again, and she had to fight the urge to not grind her hips up against him, instead she pushed her head down into the pillow behind her. When he began keeping his attention on her clit, she groaned, and then made the mistake of closing her eyes, because as soon as she did, all she could see was Tyler's face again, just like when she'd been trying to fall asleep before. Only, it wasn't him pushing her hair behind her ear that she saw this time, it was the night of the party she was remembering, of him hovering over her, and her trying to tell him to stop, but not being able to get the word out. Only now she could hear herself saying it, and her eyes flew open as she did, as she sat up, trying to push him away, not even realizing that it was Nate she was pushing away now, not Tyler, all she knew was that she wanted it to stop. Vera started reaching for her shorts, fumbling with them trying to pull them back on before looking around for her shirt. Seeing it on the floor, she stood up off the bed, reaching for it and just holding it up in front of her to cover herself. It wasn't until she turned back around that she calmed down enough to realize what she was doing, that it was Nate on the bed, that she'd just done to him the same thing she'd down freshman year, that if he didn't already think she was crazy, he definitely would now, and her heart sank into her stomach. "Shit. I'm sorry." She whispered.

Nate: was caught so in the moment with the smell and taste of her as he continued his movements with his tongue, but it didn't last much longer before he was being shoved off of her, again, and she was clambering for her clothes. With her pushing him off, he wasn't strong enough to stay upright, and he fell back onto the bed, his side twisted slightly causing more pain than he'd like to show. "Vera," he whispered, not really knowing what else to say to her, as his hand clung to his rib gently. He wanted to tell her it was just him, that she would be fine, but she, personally, had never told him what happened, and it pained him to see her so traumatised about it. Nate didn't know what she'd remembered about the night Tyler so explicitly explained, whether she'd just imagined Tyler between her legs, or whether she had no clue what happened, but knew she didn't like it, but he understood why she freaked, and he couldn't do anything about it. He slowly sat up, crossing his legs while she tried to find her shirt, grabbing a pillow and placing it over his middle, and sighing quietly when he heard her voice. "It's okay, V," he smiled politely, not really sure what to say, as he reached for his pants that were at the end of the bed, awkwardly trying to put them on without making her upset her any more, "You don't have to apologise." Once he'd managed to get them on and was laying back on the bed, he looked back over to her, and pursed his lips, "Did you want me to go back to the couch? I don't mind if you do."

Vera: felt a thousand times worse as she watched him holding his side, know that her shoving him away probably hurt him. Her heart was still racing, and so was her mind, trying to decipher what had just happened, and what was so wrong with her that she was just in bed with an amazing guy and all she could think about was her asshole of an ex. Vera swallowed, watching him put his pants back on, and turning around to put her own shirt back on, too. "It's not okay," She whispered, when he said it was, "It wasn't you, I shouldn't have done that, I'm so sorry." She said again, feeling like she was going to cry, but was trying to do everything she could not to, she'd already cried in front of him once, and she really didn't want to again. Vera was still standing next to the bed, her arms folded across her chest, as she watched him lay back down. She shook her head when he spoke, "No!" She said, probably a little too quickly when he offered to go back to the couch. The truth was that she was even more afarid to be alone in the dark now than she had been before. Closing her eyes and seeing Tyler standing in front of her was bad enough, but closing them to see him above her, it was so much worse, and it made her want to cry, and puke, and pull her hair out all at once. But she wasn't sure if Nate offered because he didn't want to share the bed with her after what had just happened. "I don't want to be alone." She whispered, "But if you'd rather not share the bed, I'll go lay on the couch, I probably won't sleep much more anyways. You should be comfortable and take the bed." She whispered, before finally sitting down on the edge of the bed, and chewed her bottom lip as she waited for an answer.

Nate: raised his eyebrows at her response, not sure whether she was angry with him or not from the way her voice raised. He kind of expected this reaction from her anyway, especially after the last time they nearly hooked up, and he was surprised she even let them get this far. Being physically abused by a significant other could be so damaging, but being sexually abused was even worse, especially when it comes to being sexual with somebody else, and Nate fully understood that. He'd never pressure her into doing anything she didn't want to, hence him asking her whether she wanted him to go lay back down on the couch, which he was more than happy to do if she felt more comfortable that way. "Okay," he smiled at her, not really knowing what else to do, "I'll stay." He pulled back the sheets and slid under them, lifting them on her side too, "I'm not going anywhere if you don't want me to, and honestly, I don't want to leave you alone. You got me off the sofa to join you for more than what happened just here, and I'm still gonna be by your side regardless." Nate was rambling but he didn't really know what to say to make her feel better, so he just said a lot of words, hoping they made sense.

Vera: pursed her lips as he spoke, trying to decide if he meant what he was saying or if he was just trying to be nice. She watched him as he help the covers up for her, and nodded slowly before climbing under them. She wanted to apologize again, to tell him that she was sorry for being the way she is, but she didn't want to annoy him, or want him to think she was trying to make excuses. Vera sighed, sliding in next to him, this time facing away from him, so her back was pressed against his chest. She wasn't sure he'd want her that close, but she just wanted things to feel okay again, and she wanted to be in his arms, because she felt safer when he was holding her, but she knew that probably wasn't fair to him. "Is this okay?" She asked, but she knew he wouldn't speak up if it wasn't, "I'm not hurting you, am I?" She asked, because she didn't want to be, but she also wanted to give him an out, incase he needed an excuse to ask her to move away.

Nate: couldn't get the look on her face out of his head, even now she'd calmed down and was sitting on the edge of the bed. Having her shove him off again for the second time was a slap in the face, but in the back of his mind had accepted the possibility that it could have happened the next time they hooked up, if at all, but seeing her face so shocked and devastated broke his heart. The only upside to the situation, is that it had happened with him, and that he could be there to help her through it. Breathing out slowly, Nate shuffled down into the sheets a little more, hoping that Vera would still want to be close to him, and he was glad when she joined him under them, pressing her back against his front. He smiled at the back of her head, "It's perfect, and no, you're not hurting me." His arm wrapped around her waist as he moved closer to her, getting himself more comfortable. "You know, whatever's happened here tonight doesn't have to change our friendship, okay?" He kissed the back of her head gently, sighing as he closed his eyes, "We're always going to be fine."

Vera: let out a sigh of relief when he said it was perfect, and relaxed even further when she felt his arm around her. Vera nodded her head, even though he probably couldn't see it and sighed, smiling as he kissed the back of her head, "Okay," She whispered, "Thank you." She added, though she wasn't sure he'd understand all that she was thanking him for, she decided it didn't really matter right now, because she actually felt tired, and she hoped with Nate close by, she'd actually be able to sleep. Vera let her eyes closed, and let herself sink further into Nate's arms, because for the first time in days, she didn't see Tyler's face.

[vera-lo-blog]

Blast from the Past || NARA

WHO: Nate Puckerman and Vera Lopez.

WHEN: Sunday, December 27th.

WHERE: In a store in Chicago, then Vera’s car, and then a parking lot.

WHAT: Vera and Nate are shopping when they run into Vera’s ex boyfriend.

NOTES: TW: mentions of physical abuse.

Vera shook her head as she walked way from Nate, refusing to let herself laugh at him, because that would just give him way too much satisfaction. She began wondering down another isle, looking at the shelves absently, waiting for something to jump out at her, and just as she was about to give up, something did. It was just a little picture frame, but it was something that she felt like Lexi would love, even if it was a little late to be buying gifts, it was cute, and she could put a picture of them in it, and she knew she would love it. 

Vera had been distracted, lost in her thoughts when she heard a voice behind her, someone saying her name. Her first instinct was that it was Nate with some other stupid joke, but in the back of her mind she knew it wasn't. She could tell by the chills that went down her spine when she heard that voice, and the unpleasantness made her not even want to turn around, but yet she did. Vera swallowed thickly, trying to smile as she saw who was standing there, grinning at her. "Hi sweetheart." He said, his grin making her want to crawl out of her own skin. Vera's eyes darted around, trying to get a glimpse of where Nate may be, half praying for him to come find her, and silently wishing he'd stay away, so he wouldn't have to ask who she was talking to. Finally, Vera forced a smile on to her face, "Hi." She said simply, wishing she could just turn back to the picture frame and ignore that he was there, that she wasn't terrified of possibly making him angry.

Nate: was trying to figure out why Vera didn't like the gold latex pants he'd picked out for himself to try on. Maybe she just wasn't a fan of latex, but then again, he wasn't exactly the greatest lover of crotch hugging items of clothing, either. When she walked away, he assumed she was only walking away because otherwise she'd laugh uncontrollably at him, and couldn't handle the embarrassment of Nate's far too carefree attitude towards embarrassing himself in public. Walking around the store, he was picking up all sorts of items that he could see that could further embarrass her; a pair of candy briefs that were clearly too small for him, 'his and hers' lighters that he'd play up on far too much, and a bunch of really ugly clothing items that had no relevance to anything whatsoever, but that he decided he needed to try on anyway. Looking over to his left, Nate saw this older lady staring at him in horror, as he pulled an elephant man thong from the rack and was measuring himself next to the trunk to see if they'd fit. "Excuse me, miss, but could you see me in these?" he grinned, posing for her, which warranted a grunt from the woman as she walked away. "Rude." He had no idea where Vera had disappeared to, so he went to try and find her amongst the several aisles she could possibly be in. "V, what about these?" he called out, hoping she'd give a clue as to where she was.

Vera: continued to stare in silence, fighting the urge to just run straight out of the store every second. The only thing that was really even stopping her was the fact that she could feel her legs shaking so much that she wasn't sure she'd even be able to take a single step. "How have you been?" Tyler asked, taking a step closer to her, and making her lean back, almost knocking into the shelf behind her. "Fine." She answered, somehow keeping her voice level. "Great, actually." She added, before her head snapping to look down the isle when she heard Nate's voice somewhere a few isles away. "Wh-What?" She answered, her voice cracking, to her horror, as she did, before looking back at the man standing in front of her, his grin seeming to grow even more. Vera swallowed again and then shook her head, "My friend is here." She stated, not sure if she was offering it as an explanation, or an insurance policy of sorts, but it didn't seem to phase him much, as he took another step closer to her, bringing a hand up to tuck a piece of hair behind her ear, which did nothing but make her queasy.

Nate: could hear where she was roughly in the store, and followed where he thought the voice came from. He didn't like the way her voice sounded when she quietly responded to him, and became super worried about her. He placed the items back on a random shelf, making sure that he wasn't wearing any of the clothing items still before he began walking past all the aisles, checking down all of them for her. Not wanting to say anything just in case whatever was happening had stopped by the time he got there, Nate walked faster when he couldn't see her down any of them. That is, until the last one he walked past, where two people were standing uncomfortably close for his liking. He backtracked to that aisle and looked down it, seeing this guy practically breathing on her from centimeters away. "I'd appreciate it if you took your hand off of her now, sir, because I will not hesitate to kick your ass right here in the store." Nate stormed down the aisle and stood next to Vera, who clearly looked distressed. He could feel the anger boiling inside him, "You need to leave. Now."

Vera: sucked in a sharp breath when she suddenly heard another voice behind her, the volume making her jump, which could have ended badly considering how shaky she already was, but luckily she managed to grab the shelf behind her and steady herself. All she could really hear was her own heartbeat pounding in her ears, and the voice that seemed to be getting closer, though she wasn't registering what was being said, she was registering that it was Nate's voice, and that Tyler's grin seemed to drop into more of a snarl. But he was backing away, which made Vera feel like she could actually breathe again, and she turned to look back at Nate, who was right behind her now, feeling a giant sense of relief wash over. Vera felt herself grabbing onto his hand before she could stop herself, though she practically dropped it with how badly she was shaking as she heard him say that Tyler needed to leave. Tyler looked down, seeing her holding his hand and saw something familiar flash in his eyes, making her squeeze Nate's hand even harder, more out of fear than anything else, "Who the hell are you?" Tyler asked, glaring at Nate, but before Nate had the option answer, Vera finally found her voice, feeling a little more confidence now that she wasn't alone and seemingly trapped by him, "Tyler, just go. I have nothing to say to you." She said, surprised by how steady her voice actually stayed. She was still clutching tightly to Nate's hand as Tyler gave one final glare but turned to leave anyways, and it was with a whole new horror that Vera realized tears had started to fill her eyes. She had never cried in front of Nate, and now seemed like a horrible time, but it was happening, and she didn't know how to stop it, but she was certain that it wasn't by turning to face him and burying her face into his chest, which is what she found herself doing before she could think better of it.

Nate: was usually a pretty calm guy when it came to most things, but his rage was building up a lot faster, only being intensified by the fact that she was shakily trying to grasp his hand with hers. Whoever this guy was, he needed to back up out of this store before Nate released a side of himself that even he'd never thought would emerge. He could see the guy look down at their hands, and his eyebrows furrowed hard, not liking the look her was giving them one bit, or the fact the grip on his hand was getting tighter. "Wh-" He was about to answer, but Vera had already spoke for him with a voice that seemed like she was okay, which confused the hell out of him. Who exactly was this guy to her, and why did he react like this to seeing them being this affectionate? If you could call hand holding affectionate in these circumstances. His chest puffed out instinctively, readying him to take a swing if this guy tried anything, but luckily for both their sakes, this 'Tyler' walked away. Nate let out a breath, but before he was done, Vera's head was resting on his chest, with muffled cries emerging from her. "Hey, it's okay," he spoke softly, wrapping his arms around her gently, not wanting her to freak out about him touching her, "I'm here, Vera, alright? I'm sorry I left you." He let out a deep sigh before resting his lips on top of her head, staring at the end of the aisle where Tyler had walked away, trying to remember his face perfectly, because it wouldn't be the last time Nate saw him, that's for sure.

Vera: let herself rest against him for a few more seconds, relaxing a bit more when she heard him speak, but it only lasted for a moment as she realized that he would want to know what had just happened, why she'd reacted this way, and on top of that, the fact that she was causing a scene by crying like this in the middle of the store. Vera nodded when he said he was there, before pulling away from him, she looked down to realize that she was still holding his hand and let that go, too. She'd finally stopped her crying and she used her now free hand to wipe any remaining tears away before shaking her head, "You didn't leave me, I walked away." She whispered, and then took a chance to look around, making sure Tyler was really gone. "Can we just leave, please?" She asked, biting on her bottom lip, "I just don't want to be in here anymore."

Nate: tried to hold her as close as he could, for as long as he could; he'd never seen her this upset, or panicked, or shaken up before, and it didn't sit right with him at all. There were only two thoughts that were in his head - whether or not she would be okay to walk out of here with the slightest possibility that they could run into each other again, and whether he needed to investigate who this guy was a little more. When she pulled away from him, he unwrapped his arm from around her, resting it on her shoulder. He hadn't even realised she was still latched onto his hand until he felt the cold breeze of the air con stroke past his clammy, aching hand, and the last thing he wanted to do was argue with her words, even if he did disagree, but he offered a gentle smile instead of words. Nate nodded in response to her request, "Yeah, sure. I'm done finding mens ugly Christmas g-strings anyway," his face softened as he tried to make his words playful, hoping to get the smallest of smiles from her, even though he knew it was a long shot. He walked past her to the end of the aisle, looking out to see if it he was still lurking about anywhere, but also trying not to walk too far in front of her, in case she did want to hold his hand again, or got scared.

Vera: nodded at him when he spoke, not even really realizing what he was saying, "Okay, good." She answered, watching as he walked towards the end of the aisle. She followed him quickly and then sighed, looking around, and then noticing that he was doing the same she sighed, "Don't worry. I'm pretty sure he left." She said, heading towards the door and picking up her pace a bit, hoping that he would follow suit. She sucked in a sharp breath as she reached the open door, grateful for the fresh air, and made a bee line for her car. When she got there she stopped and turned to Nate, "Do you think you could drive? I just feel like...Like I'm shaking." She said, not bringing her eyes up to look at him, she felt embarrassed and ashamed, and she just couldn't bring herself to completely face him like this.

Nate: began to purse his lips, his eyebrows furrowing even more when she said she was sure he'd left. That may have been the case, but Nate could never be too careful. He didn't want her to think he wasn't listening to what she was saying, so he smiled sweetly at her, "You're right, I'm sure he has." As she overtook him and began bolting to the door, he tried his best to keep up with her, still secretly searching the shop for any signs of him. The cold air hit his face, and he felt himself sighing into it; he'd never been this happy to get a breeze across his hot skin, still sweating from the encounter. Once they reached her car, Nate began walking to the passenger side door, and was caught off guard with her turning to face him, but not look at him. "Yeah, of course, V," he smiled gently, knowing that she couldn't see him. He opened the door and got in, and took the key, placing it in the ignition. As the car began moving, and the road seemed to pass quickly under the car, Nate turned to look at her, "You don't have to tell me what that was about, or who that was or anything, okay? So don't worry about that. Like I said back at the frat house, we can start small." His hand reached out to her, squeezing her hand lightly, as his eyes concentrated on the road in front of them.

Vera: let herself sink into the passenger seat, and closed her eyes, trying to let herself relax. She could feel the car moving, but she didn't pay much attention to it until she heard Nate speak, opening her eyes again to look back him. Vera watched as his hand moved to squeeze hers, and she squeezed his back, nodding at his words, "Can you just pull over?" She asked, finally looking up at him, "I can't go home like this, I just...I need to calm down first." She whispered, and part of her did want to tell him what had happened. Though, she didn't want to talk about it, necessarily, she felt like he at least deserved to know.

Nate: could feel her squeezing his hand back in return, and the corners of his lips rose the tiniest bit. He obviously knew she was still a mess, but he was glad to be there for her in any way that he could, even if it meant just holding her hand. When she spoke, his eyes darted towards her, feeling his heart break at her words, "Yeah, okay, no problem," he smiled, and waited for the next exit to pull over into a quiet parking lot. The car stopped, and Nate sunk into the back of his chair, his body twisted slightly to look at her; Vera's face still looked like it did when she was crying on his chest, so he understood her wanting him to stop the car. "We can stay here for as long as you want, just tell me when."

Vera: sat still for a few seconds once they'd parked in the lot, staring straight ahead. She didn't know if she should just gather herself and then head home, try to forget all about this, or if she should tell Nate what happened. She knew that if the situation were reversed, she would want to know, and she would be much less patient than Nate was being. "He's my ex-boyfriend." She finally said, not looking at him still, her eyes still fixed straight ahead of her. "Tyler, I mean. The guy in the store. Obviously." She said, her voice more of a whisper now. "We broke up the summer before I started at FSU." She said, chewing on her bottom lip, and then squeezing his hand again, trying to keep her own from starting to shake again.

Nate: wasn't sure how long he could stay sat here silent for, and it had only been a few seconds after they'd pulled into the parking lot, but he was going to hold out until she said something. Anything at all. Luckily, it didn't take her long to say anything, and when she did, it short and straight to the point. Not that he had expected anything different, but he was grateful that she was willing to talk. He listened until she'd stopped talking altogether, staring out the front of the car still, "Okay, so you bumped into each other, and he got a little too friendly with you? Does he still want to be with you, or?" Nate wasn't sure whether his words would be upsetting, but he wasn't sure whether or not to speak five seconds ago, but they kept spilling out from between his lips. "What was he doing to you?"

Vera: frowned as she heard him speak, not really sure how to answer him. She was surprisingly okay with him asking her things, but she just didn't know how to answer without sounding pathetic. "He-...No. He wasn't he really doing anything. He was just there. I don't know if he still wants to be with me, I don't talk to him, I got a new number and I blocked him on all social media after we broke up. I don't know what he wants." She said, finally looking down at her lap now instead of out the window. Finally, she looked up at him when he spoke again and she shrugged. "He wasn't doing anything. I mean, not really. He just.." She trailed off, unsure of what to say, she was trying to find the right words, but there weren't any, really. "He just scares me." She finally said, biting her bottom lip. "He can be really scary. That sounds dumb, but God, he terrifies me. And he just kept getting closer to me, and then he was touching my hair," She said, and then cut herself off, not wanting to think about his hands being anywhere near her.

Nate: could tell it was something serious that happened between them, but he could never ask her that. Just from the way she spoke, he was feeling himself getting angry, but kept it hidden, shoving his other hand in his pocket, clenching his fist. "Well I'm glad you don't speak to him, he seems like somebody that nobody should be associating themselves with. No offence." He couldn't move his eyes from looking forward out the windshield, feeling relieved that he didn't do anything to her, but his eyes shut suddenly as he sighed at the rest of her words. The last thing he'd want was for her to be scared, and especially when he should have been there. Nate wasn't really sure what to say, but he knew he couldn't stay silent. He didn't want her to think she was telling him too much. "It doesn't sound dumb at all, Vera," he whispered, turning to face her finally as he smiled sadly at her, "I'm just glad you two broke up, for whatever the reason was. I'm also glad I didn't witness that, otherwise I would have broke his hand."

Vera: nodded in response, thinking for a second and then looked up at him for just a second before looking away again. "Listen, Nate. No one in my family knows about how things really were with him. I could never tell them, if they found out that he ever hit me they would-" She started, but cut herself off when she realized what she'd said, because she realized that she hadn't actually admitted to him that he'd hit her, not until that moment. She'd never admitted it to anyone, but she didn't think that telling Nate like that was her best option. "I mean, not like, he did that a lot, it was just like...I mean, it was nothing. I mean," She paused, and took a deep breath. "Maybe we should just go home. I'm fine now, honestly." She whispered, even if that wasn't true, she didn't know how he was going to react to that, and she felt embarrassed and pathetic, and she had a feeling that he probably thought she was pretty pathetic, too, and probably wouldn't feel the need to spend much more time in this car with her.

Nate: lowered his eyes to the car radio, checking the time on it, when he began staring intently at it, feeling his body practically erupt in flames. His fingernails on the hand in his pocket were digging into his palm, possibly drawing blood, but the warm sensation filling his palm could also have been sweat. He'd thought for a while that something like this may have happened, with the way she reacted to certain touches of his before they became much closer and more comfortable with each other, but he didn't think he'd hurt this bad by hearing her say it. Not wanting her to feel awkward or embarrassed, Nate wiped his free hand calmly on his jeans, before shifting his weight to his side and placing his hand on the back of her seat, while using it as an aide to pull himself closer to her. He hesitated for a split second, before sighing quietly to himself as he leaned forward and kissed her on the side of the head, letting his body fall back into his seat. "Nobody else has to know if you don't want them to, okay? I won't tell anybody, but just so you know, Vera... it doesn't change my opinion of you, or how amazing I think you are. You'll always be the same sassbag I know and love, and that's not gonna change, no matter what." His hand reached towards the key hesitantly, "Are you sure you don't wanna sit here for a bit longer?"

Vera: sat so still while she waited for him to react, she wasn't even sure she was breathing, she was too scared to even fidget. Watching as he started to wipe his hand on his jeans, she bit her lip, but continued to stay still, waiting to see what he was going to do, or say, and then as he came closer to her, she felt like she was frozen in place, as if she were watching him move in slow motion in front of her. She finally brought herself to let out the breath she'd been holding when he kissed the side of her head, not entirely sure what it meant, but he didn't seem angry at her, or disgusted by her, at least. But as he spoke, she felt tears forming in her eyes before she could try to stop them, and her hand flew to cover her mouth, as she tried to hold in a loud sob, but it was no use, all she could do was nod, though she wasn't sure what she was nodding to. All she really did know was that she trusted Nate more than ever, but yet, she also knew that she couldn't tell him the rest. She couldn't tell him why she'd finally left him, what he'd done to her, she knew that more than anything. "I'm so sorry." She finally whispered, once she'd managed to catch her breath. Vera wiped her tears away and then sighed, "I'm okay now. We can go." She finally answered, forcing her voice to level out and forcing herself to be okay enough to go home.

Nate: hated hearing her cry, and hated seeing it even more, and not being able to do anything about it apart from just being there for her. Even if she'd never cried in front of him before today, he knew it was the one thing he hated more than anything in this world. Hearing her choke up broke his heart, and his hand in his pocket relaxed slightly, the pain in his palm slowly aching less and less as his skin colour faded back to normal. "You never have to apologize to me, okay? Unless you've burst my signed basketball, and then there'll be trouble," he smiled down at her, the side of his head rested against the headrest. He knew she was lying about being ready to go home, but there was no point in arguing with her, and he didn't want to, either. His hand turned the key in the ignition and started the car, driving out slowly to the edge of the road as he looked left and right, waiting for the opportunity to pull out onto the road. It was at that moment, when he saw Vera out of the corner of his eye still visibly upset, that he knew something needed to be done about this Tyler kid.

[vera-lo-blog]

TEXT MESSAGE || NARA

VERA: Are you all ready to go for tomorrow, because I refuse to stay here longer than I have to.

[vera-lo-blog]

TEXT MESSAGE || NARA

VERA: Can I ask you something?

VERA: It's kind of ridiculous, so don't be afraid to say no.

[vera-lo-blog]

Text Message || NARA

NATE: The only thing I got from that was ‘burritos’, and from that alone, I’m excited for whatever you’re telling me. Is this your hint to tell me you wanna come back and hang out with me?

VERA: I said how come when when I say wanna burrito it cna mean so some many things?

VERA: LIkeee want a burrtito?

VERA: Or wanna roll yourself in an a the blanket?

VERA: ORRRR like if we're talking about burritos like BURRIOTS LIKE DOWN THERE BURRIOTS THEN IF I SAy wanna burrito it's diiirty!

[vera-lo-blog]

Text Message || NARA

NATE: It’s gonna suck that you’re gone for a week, but I’m sure I’ll get over the heartbreak eventually. I’m loving the plan, though, this is a must do for our evening. Could I ever have really said no to this?

VERA: I know it' gonna suck. I'm not so sure about you getting over it, though. Good, that's what I wanted to hear. No, you definitely couldn't have. If you bring the pizza, I'll supply the rest.