Healing a Broken Heart Part 2 (tags: John Rolfe)

Odette followed John to his place and after tying Honey off, followed him inside. She didn't say anything just guided him over to the couch and waited for him to start talking while she lightly held his hand and rubbed the back of it with her thumb.

John remained silent on the walk back to his cottage. He was, for once, thankful Belle was with Flynn. He sat onto the couch and sighed, looking down and furrowing his brows.

"When I got home...she wanted to talk to me, so we did...She'd been talking to some princess who apparently gossips with the maids -- they saw us, when you fell in the bathroom," He mumbled. "They started a rumor that we slept together. That's what the princess told Marina, at least," He sighed, swallowing the lump in his throat as he kept his gaze on the ground. "I didn't deny her accusation of us seeing each other, but when she accused me of cheating on her -- no, it wasn't an accusation. She said it like it...like it was a fact," He scoffed. "I snapped," He admitted quietly, closing his eyes. "I've told her so many times that I loved her -- swore my heart to her and she thinks I would just cheat?" she shook his head. "She's always -- always -- accused me of everything she could come up with. She always said I was lying to her and hiding things...I don't lie," He whispered.

"Then again...her whole reason of even meeting me was to try and squeeze a confession out of me," He mumbled, opening his eyes finally and ignoring the tear that slipped down his cheek. "I tried to make her see she was wrong -- t-that It wasn't me...I wanted to make her see I wasn't the one who killed her father...I just didn't have the evidence to prove it -- a-and I couldn't tell her who his killer was because I don't know who did it," He said, leaning his head back onto the couch.

"I've tried to make her happy since the day I met her. I've tried to heal that pain in her -- make her see I'm not the man she thinks me to be," He sighed, closing his eyes. "I wasted my time..." He swallowed roughly once more and unconsciously squeezed Odette's hand gently. "She hired a spy to watch me -- watch us, I presume," He sighed, looking over at her before looking away again. "I knew she didn't trust me, but I thought that...maybe she loved me enough to..." He choked up slightly, quickly squeezing his eyes shut and taking a deep breath.

"To top it all off...she might be pregnant," He said with sarcastic happiness. "I told her to keep me out of it's life -- that no child should have a killer as a father...I told her..." His breathing shook as he looked down to his lap and closed his eyes. "I told her that no child should have a father who killed their grandfather," He whispered. "I've never lied to her...but...I had to make her hate me. I loved her enough to know that we weren't meant to be -- no relationship like that is. Distrust and faking and...pain," He whimpered slightly, though he tried to silence himself. He hated being so weak. "I thought I loved Marina...but...now I just...I think I was so obsessed with trying to make her happy -- trying to make her see me as a good guy that...I didn't care how intertwined she and I became -- I just wanted to do something good for once in my life," He whispered.

"The thing is...I think I was so blinded by her that I...wasn't paying attention to what my heart was actually saying," He said gently, his brows furrowing as he was coming to the realization. "Everyone else saw it...I never did, because she was there..." He looked over to her, his warm, green eyes searching hers. "She's not who I was supposed to fall in love with."

(o-o *heart starts palpitating really bad*)
Odette stared at him slightly confused, "What do you mean? Do you...you love me?" She asked in surprise but with a little smile on her face. She looked down at their hands still clasped together and lightly squeezed his hand. She looked back up at him, "I...I think I..love you too." She whispered softly as she stared into his eyes.

John pursed his lips, looking down to their hands before carefully looking back at her. "I...I don't know," He admitted, looking away. "The words foreign to me," He mumbled.

She sighed, "Well it is to me too." She said quietly as she lightly squeezed his hand one last time before she released it. "I...I'm really sorry about you and Marina John...I..I just wish I could help more." She said quietly.

John chewed his bottom lip, looking back over at her. The feeling of being just...tired came back to him. Not physically tired at all. But, drained from thinking. He knew one way to test his feelings.

He held her gaze for a moment before leaning over to her and pressing his lips against hers. A spark ran up his spine at the simple touch of her lips. He broke the kiss for a second to look at her, as if searching her eyes to see if she felt the same thing.

She hadn't been expecting him to kiss her like that but she felt a pleasant shock at the touch of his lips against hers. When he pulled away she swallowed hard and then leaned forward to kiss him again, a bit more hungrily this time.

John rested his good hand against her cheek as he returned her kiss. It was nice...for a moment, he wasn't having to think about what he was doing. It was all based on his feelings. He winced slightly as he moved his injured hand, and made a face against her lips before leaning back. "Let me...take care of this first," He pointed to his hand. He got up and went into the bedroom where a first aid kit was. He winced as he wrapped his hand, then injected a medication into his arm to numb his hand. He sighed in relief.

When he went back into the living room, he sat down, then tugged her onto his lap. He cupped her face with his hands and smiled a bit before kissing her lips deeply, sliding his good hand into her hair and holding her close with his other hand on her waist.

She kissed him back, lightly wrapping her arms around his neck as she did so. She pressed herself lightly against him and then she slowly pulled away, "What...am I to you John?" She asked softly.

John looked at her, his eyes warm and gentle. He brushed a strand of her hair back behind her ear. "You're... the only person in the world I feel comfortable with... the only person I don't mind being weak around... the only person that makes my heart even beat after today," He whispered.

Her eyes softened and she lightly kissed him on the lips again, "And you're the one person I feel completely comfortable around. You make make me feel safe and...cared for, with you I don't feel like I have to hide who I am." She said quietly and gently leaned against his chest. She frowned when she saw his injury, "What happened to your hand?" She asked with concern as she lightly touched it with gentle fingers.

John stroked her cheek gently, his eyes soft as he looked at her. He smoothed her hair down as she leaned on him. As she pointed out his injury, he shrugged. "I punched a wall," He mumbled. "Marina's the only person who has ever been able to make me that mad...I kicked the bird bath across the yard -- that thing is solid concrete," He laughed slightly before shaking his head and looking back to her. "It doesn't hurt, though...I took some medication for it," He said quietly.

He sighed and then lifted her up into his arms. He carried her back to his bedroom and took her over to his bed. He laid down on his side, her beside him on the bed on her side so that they faced each other. "...So... do I get permission to watch over you now?" He asked with a small smile before he gently kissed her lips. He leaned back and brushed her hair back behind her ear.

He liked how it felt to lay there with her. It was so... light -- it almost felt easier to breathe than normal. She made him feel lighter, too. Like, by just being near her, the pressure he felt from the rest of the world to be that noble, good guy was lifted from his shoulders. Odette was an assassin as well -- he no longer felt like some horrible person just because he enjoyed his job. Marina had always found some way to squeeze how she hated what he did. It was who he was -- all he could remember. The council was new to him -- it was his acting showcase. That's who Marina loved. That wasn't him. Odette had never even seen him in the council.

She laughed, "Yes you have my permission." She said with a little blush on her face as she said those words, she smiled at him. "It feels...different with you...nicer." She said quietly as thought about it. With Phoebus she had always felt like a caged bird...there for display but never to be seen as someone who could defend herself. She smiled and then kissed him again, she bit her lip as she pulled back and then just smiled at him.
(perhaps he could see the bandage on her wrist? x3)

John smiled a bit, gently stroking her cheek. "I know what you mean," He said simply, leaning over and kissing her forehead tenderly. He trailed his hand from her cheek, down her neck, across her shoulder, and then down her arm. As he took her hand, he noted the bandage on her wrist. He gave her a questioning look before he gently unwrapped the bandages.

As he gazed at the slice wounds, he pursed his lips and swallowed the lump in his throat. "When I was younger... first starting out as an assassin...I felt horrible. I watched my parents die with my little sister sitting beside me crying... then, the next thing I know, I'm the same as the guy who cut their throats," He said quietly, his fingertips ghosting over the cuts, careful to not put any pressure on them. "I thought... I thought I didn't deserve to live, because I'd become no better than he was," He mumbled before rolling up his sleeve enough to show his forearm. The scars were faded and barely visible, unless they were pointed out. There were at least twelve of them, overlapping and different widths and lengths. All were obviously deep.

"I realized that...I was better than that man. He was alone in life -- I wasn't. I knew that... no matter how horrible things were, I had my little sister. I had to be there for her, but... I also needed her there with me," He said before turning his eyes to hers. "You're not alone anymore. I will never judge you for what you do or who you are... I told you before that I'll come running whenever you need me... That's even more true now. I need you, Odette..." He placed his hand on her cheek and sighed. "And you need me, whether you like it or not," He said with a small, sheepish smile.

Her eyes filled with unshed tears as he spoke and then bit her lip as she studied him, "How is it you know just what to say to make me feel so much better? I...did need someone and now I know who that someone is. Thank you John...you really have no idea just how much it means to me to hear you say that." She said quietly. She let out a shaky sigh and then gently traced the scars on his arm, "No one can understand what that feels like unless they've gone through it themselves." She commented softly. She leaned over and kissed him again letting her lips linger before she pulled back, "Well now we have each other right?" She asked quietly.

John watched the emotions that went over her eyes. It was refreshing to see that he was capable of making her happy. "I know what to say because I know you better than you think I do," He murmured, watching as she traced his scars. He returned her kiss, his eyes following her lips when she leaned back. "Right," He said with a small smile. He pulled her closer to him by her waist and kissed her lips tenderly once more. "I'm sorry it took me so long to realize that...I don't belong in some big, fancy mansion -- pretending to be some noble councilman -- trying to prove I'm someone I'm obviously not...I belong right here, with you...like this," He whispered, brushing his fingertips against her cheek.

She blushed and then looked down, "I...I can't ask to intrude on you and your sister." She said quietly. She didn't want to be someone who got in the way of things. She was still scared of going to her own home for obvious reasons...seeing as how she had been raped there.

John hooked a finger under her chin and met her eyes. "You didn't," he said simply. "I was...terrified...the other day when I heard that bastard had laid his hands on you...I've been worried since then. The thought of losing you..." He shook his head. "You will always be safe so long as you stay right here in my arms," he said softly, his eyes honest and gentle.

((Agh, he doesn't know about Belle and Eric...and how Eric comes over whenever he wants...o.o We should rp that tomorrow ._.))

(we should and Eric won't be happy with Odette after what happened in the stable o-e)
Odette nodded, "I know...I trust you." She whispered quietly as she met his gaze. Any thoughts or worries she had about the Korso's she shoved away and forced herself not to think about them. "I...you make me feel safe." She said as she lightly brushed his hair with her fingertips.

"Good," he said simply before tugging her against his chest and kissing her tenderly on the lips. He kissed her forehead, his hand brushing along her side. "Are you tired?" He asked quietly, brushing his lips back against hers gently.

Odette shivered at the feel of his hand brushing her side, "Not really, you?" She asked softly as she studied him. Her own hand moved down to lightly rest against his chest.

John shrugged and kissed her cheek. "Im fine," he chuckled lightly. He stroked her cheek and smiled a bit. His gaze on her was loving and deep, like they were connected just by their eyes. He leaned in and kissed her lips softly, savoring the feeling.

She kissed him back just as gently before she deepened the kiss a little bit, she loved the feel of his lips against hers. She pressed herself against him just a little bit as she kept kissing him.

John ran his hand through her hair gently, loving the soft waves she had. He could feel how she deepened the kiss, which only made him smile against her lips. He held her close, careful to not cross any lines.

She kept kissing him enjoying the feel of his hands holding her and his lips on hers, she felt secure and loved. Something she hadn't felt in a long time....she moved her hand back up to cup his face gently as she kissed him.