Breathe (Lucah)

[Belle Harrington]

((Continued from Worst Timing))

Rushing out of the cafe now, Belle didn't know what was going. Everything was happening so fast, as quickly as her wings had sprouted, she had brought them back in. She was getting better at controlling her wings now, and she was happy that she was.

Holding tightly onto Lucah's hand she followed behind him as they went to his car. When he opened the door for her, Belle sat into the car, and closed the door behind her. She knew they needed to get away from here. She knew that Lucah was upset, but he wouldn't stop apologizing to her.

Watching him get into the car quickly, Belle took one of his hands into hers, and the two of them drove off towards the Lake. "Lucah... Lucah..." She kept saying soothingly to her boyfriend, "D-don't apologize sweetie..." She smiled reassuringly to Lucah, but she could tell by his tenseness that he was upset. Belle obviously knew that he was upset, she had been there to witness the ruthlessness of Lucah's father.

Finally, the two of them arrived at the Lake. Sitting there quietly Belle watched Lucah about what to do. "Lucah...?" She asked quietly.

[Lucah Ivaskov]

Lucah had sort of blacked out during the car ride. Everything was blurry and he was seeing red. He heard Belle, but only a little. Everything was just overwhelming. His cheek was still bright red and it hurt. There was a lot of force behind that smack. Lucah felt her hand in his and he pulled away gently. It wasn't that he didn't want to hold Belle's hand, it was that he was more than upset and he couldn't get a grip. Comforting was something Lucah hadn't gotten since he was little. His mother had always been there to comfort him, once she died...he had nothing.

As he sat in the parked car he stared out the window. The red edges of his vision started to subside and he finally breathed. And yet, he couldn't look at Belle. He was a monster. A spawn of that asshole of a father he had. That was his future, manipulating his children, hurting the ones he loved. He would become Dimitri.

The thought tore into him deeply. It was like a serrated knife cutting him in half. Tears filled Lucah's eyes and he looked down as they fell down his cheek. Weak. That's what he was. That's what he would always be. His father was right. He had brought Belle to meet his father, knowing how it would end. He obviously didn't think. How could he do something like that? Hurt her after he had promised her he wouldn't? Lucah was becoming the man he hated more than anything else in the world.

And he was scared.

[Belle Harrington]

Belle felt his hand pull away from hers but she didn't say anything. She knew he was upset, and that he needed some time for himself, but when they arrived at the Lake, Lucah just parked the car and sat there.

Belle sat there quietly, watching her boyfriend, and then she saw his head drop and tears drop from his cheek. That's when Belle got out of the car, and quickly walked over to his side of the car, and opened his door, and sitting on her knees. She didn't care if she dirtied the dress, she didn't care how stupid she looked she just wanted Lucah to feel better.

Gently touching the side of his face, Belle turned his face towards her. Moving forward she gently pressed her lips against his. It was a small and soft kiss, one to just show him that she was still here.

It was their first kiss, and Belle couldn't think of a better time to properly express her feelings for him. "Lucah..." She said softly looking him in his eyes, "I will a-always be here for you..." She smiled reassuringly, gently rubbing her thumb on his cheek. "I promise..."

[Lucah Ivaskov]

Lucah looked over at her when she opened his door. He didn't know what she was doing. The dress would get dirty, what was she doing? He watched her carefully. His lip trembled slightly and tears continued falling down his cheek. He couldn't keep them contained. His eyes lowered to her lips and that's when he felt them touch his. That was a wake up call.

He didn't go much farther than she had, still remembering his limits. The surprise was clear in his eyes though. He hadn't expected that at all. Sure they were together, but that was still shocking. Not that Lucah objected in any way.

Lucah listened to her talk, her voice and touch soothing him. His body and nerves relaxing. Lucah closed his eyes when he heard her words. There was a ghost of a smile on his lips as he looked at her. He put his hand over hers and kissed her palm lightly. "Thank you Belle."

Now for the over-flow of apologizing. "I'm so sorry, I should never have brought you. I should have gone to face him alone. He was wrong, everything he said about you. Damn him for saying those things," He said softly and quickly, tripping over his own words.

[Belle Harrington]

Belle smiled up at Lucah from her knees as he kissed her palm, and thanked her. Standing up, Belle shook her head and widened her smile. "You're w-welcome Lucah, I will a-always be here for you." She said, brushing the dirt off of her dress.

Holding out her hand now, Belle motioned for Lucah to take her hand and get out of the car. That's when he began to apologize over and over again. "Lucah... L-Lucah..." Belle said, a small frown on her face, as she went back to Lucah, not getting on her knees this time, but leaning down to be eye to eye with Lucah, like a mother did to their child. Her hands on his face, as she brought her face close to his. "L-L-Lucah... I came with you b-because I wanted to meet your father... I'm not upset with what h-he's said..." Belle shrugged her shoulders, and then rubbed her thumb gently up and down Lucah's face. "Y-You're father is a s-sad man... It's unfortunate... B-but you are n-not your father... You're y-you."

Belle leaned forward and gently rubbed her nose against Lucah's nose, and giggled softly. "You're p-perfect to m-me..."

[Lucah Ivaskov]

Lucah watched her, his eyes never leaving her face. How did someone so sweet and caring end up with someone so cold and dark? It was a miracle. Lucah had never imagined finding a girl for himself, he had always sort of expected he'd end up with Vasilissa. It was just how he'd been raised, arranged marriages happened all the time.

Lucah cut off the apologies and listened to her talk. She was good at calming him down. Usually people couldn't get him to shut up. "What if I become like him Belle? I'm scared that I'll hurt you like he hurt my mother. She couldn't love him because he was too cold-hearted. What if I turn out like that?" He asked with desperation in his voice.

He closed his eyes when she leaned forward and sighed at her words. He was perfect...for now. He couldn't help but question if it would last. Lucah knew he was changing, but it was always possible that he would change back to that cold figure that never opened up.

[Belle Harrington]

Belle stood there looking at Lucah, a small smile growing on her face. "C-come with me..." Belle said standing up and holding out her hand for Lucah to take. When Lucah finally got out of the car, holding onto Belle's hand, she led the way to the lake. As the two walked hand in hand towards the lake, Belle leaned gently onto Lucah as the two continued walking. "D-do you know how I know you w-won't be like your father?" Belle asked as she squeezed tightly onto Lucah's hand, as she smiled softly, and looked up at Lucah.

After waiting for his answer Belle, smirked softly, "You know he's a monster... Y-you know that what he's d-doing is wrong... He doesn't. He doesn't s-see that what he's doing is wrong..." Belle shook her head softly at the thought of Lucah's dad. He was such a sad man. Absolutely miserable. "And I know th-that falling in l-love with you won't be hard..." Belle said softly, almost as quiet enough for no one else to hear, her eyes to the floor, her face a soft pink.

"You are not your father L-Lucah..." Belle said reassuringly, stopping in front of the Lake, as she let go of Lucah's hand and went closer to the water. Her back towards Lucah. She stretched, and yawned before turning back to Lucah with a smile on her face. "I-I'm happy with you Lucah! You are not l-like your father. You're Lucah Ivaskov. Not D-Dimitri Ivaskov." Belle smiled softly. "Y-You're a wonderful person. A beautiful, kind and caring person. And I'm h-happy to call you my boyfriend."

[Lucah Ivaskov]

Lucah took her hand and got out of the car. He followed her curiously. He smiled slightly when she leaned against him and kissed the top of her head lightly. He was slowly relaxing. Lucah looked down at her when she spoke, "How? Are you psychic too?" He asked with a small smile. His fingers laced between hers and he looked down at their hands.

Lucah listened to her as she spoke. He didn't know his father was a monster and he knew everything was wrong, but he also had the same gene pool as his father. He frowned at the thought, but continued to listen. Falling in love? With him? Had he actually heard that or was he imagining things? Lucah squeezed her fingers lightly and smiled. He had to have heard it. Or else she wouldn't be blushing...right?

Lucah reluctantly let her go and looked out at the lake around her. How much he wished he could draw in that moment. Catch the sun glinting off of her hair as it set, the way her eyes shined such a bright green. She was beautiful. He glanced down at his feet, but only for a moment before his eyes went back to hers. He smiled wider and ran his fingers through his hair. "Well as long as you think all of those things, I think I'll be able to stay on track." He laughed lightly and stepped closer until he was inches away from her.

Lucah reached up to brush a strand of hair away from her face and he leaned in to kiss her lips gently. "I'm happy I have you," He whispered against her lips before he pulled away.

[Belle Harrington]

Belle walked up to Lucah and stopped right in front of him, smiling up happily at her boyfriend. She absolutely loved the color of his eyes. And his smile. And his voice, and just everything about him it seemed. She couldn't help but smile when she looked at him. She couldn't help the feeling she felt in her stomach when it came to him. And she couldn't help the fact that her heart beat both faster and slower everytime she looked at him. He made her so happy, and she didn't care what his father had to say about her. Belle didn't care how Lucah's father acted, because she knew that Lucah was a better person. She knew that with time and age, Lucah would never become like his father.

Belle watched as Lucah ran his hand through his hair, and Belle smiled and blushed softly to herself. She was so incredibly attracted to him that she had to stop herself from jumping him sometimes. She was only a teenager, she had the emotions and feelings that most teenagers got. She listened to Lucah speak and nodded slightly, "Good, I know you'll stay on track, and I'll always think these things..." Belle spoke happily, throwing her hands around Lucah's neck and smiling up at him. Belle knew she would always feel that way about Lucah, and that she would always think those things about Lucah as long as he didn't change. As long as Lucah didn't give into his fears and become his father. Belle knew that she would always feel this way about Lucah. As long as he stayed as Lucah.

Belle giggled when Lucah brushed a strand of hair from her face, and couldn't help but blush when Lucah leaned in to kiss her. "I'm happy I have you," Belle heard Lucah whisper against her lips, and she smiled softly. She would never admit it but she was slightly sad when Lucah pulled away from her lips. She wanted to kiss him more. She liked kissing him, it was something she could do all hours of the day. Kissing was new to her, and she liked it already. "I'm happy I have you too, L-Lucah..." Belle said softly before standing on her toes, and kissing him again. This time with a bit more depth, and excitement.

[Lucah Ivaskov]

Lucah couldn't read minds. He loved his power of course, but in that moment, he wished he could read Belle's thoughts. Just to hear how much she cared about him. It was nice being so cared for. It reminded him of how he felt with his mother. Safe. Protected. And watched over. His mother had kept him from being his father in the beginning. Belle would keep him from turning into his father in the future. He trusted her with his life and he was happy to give her anything back in return. She was everything to him. Something he had never felt when he was with a girl.

Lucah wasn't a typical teenager. Not an American one at least. He had his priorities in order. He had morals. He knew that the woman was in charge. That's how it was in Romania. The woman of the house was the one who made the calls. The husbands followed willingly. Lucah would do just that. He wouldn't screw this up. He couldn't. Call it what you'd like, but Lucah was falling hard. Was it too fast? Maybe. But he had time to make it level out. "I know you will." He said with a smile as she wrapped her arms around his neck. He put his arms around her waist and pulled her slightly closer.

Lucah smiled when she blushed and leaned his forehead against hers. How he wished he wouldn't have pulled away! Kissing wasn't exactly new to Luc, but he had never felt his heart react the way it had when he kissed Belle. The reactions he got when he touched her or looked at her, those were all very new to him. He sighed in relief when he heard her speak. Then he kissed her back, slightly caught off guard by the enthusiasm, but willing.

[Belle Harrington]

Belle broke the kiss and stood back, her arms still around Lucah's neck, but just far back enough to get a full look at her beautiful boyfriend's face. She looked over every feature of his face, and couldn't help but smile at him. Her green eyes on his electric blue eyes. She wanted to say something, but she didn't know if it was the right time, or the right thing to say. She knew she felt strongly for Lucah, and she knew that she couldn't imagine living her life without him now. And she didn't ever want to live her life without Lucah Ivaskov in her life.

So letting out a sigh, standing on her toes and kissing her boyfriend gently, Belle let the words she had been wanting to say flow out of her mouth, "I l-l-love you..." She whispered to Lucah, pressing her head against his chest so he wouldn't see how bright her face was at that moment. Once she uttered the words, Belle immediately wished she could breath the words back into her. At that moment she loved him. She was sure she loved him... Right? She loved him. She didn't know. Hell she didn't even know what it was like to be "in love." She just knew that she was happy, and that Lucah made her happy, and that she wanted to be with him, and only him.

Belle couldn't believe that she had uttered those three important words. It was still so early in their relationship. And she didn't even know if she was truly in love with him. She knew she liked him very much, and cared about him very much, but was she in love? She didn't know.

With her forehead pressed against Lucah's chest, she was too nervous and scared to look up at Lucah. She knew he was just as shocked as she was that she had said those words. And she was scared that he wouldn't say it back. Or was she more afraid that he would say it back?

[Lucah Ivaskov]

Lucah looked down at her when she pulled back. He raised an eyebrow at her expression. It seemed like she was thinking the exact same thing he was. Love. Was it true love? Lucah didn't know. He had never been in love before. Maybe it was just very strong like? Then why did he feel the need to say he loved her? It was so complicated trying to sort out everything in his head. He liked her. A lot. More than he did anyone else.

But he was terrified of falling too hard too fast.

He watched her as she stretched up and kissed him. He kissed her back willingly as he had before. Then he heard her say the words he had been thinking over and over again. Lucah felt her press her head into his chest and hide. He had a feeling she was embarrassed. Or afraid. The words bubbled to his lips and before he could stop them, he said, "I love you, too."

Crazy? Well Lucah was kind of thinking that he was. Why had he said it? Because he felt it. Right? He just wished he could know what love was so he would know for sure if he loved her. He saw it in movies, he saw it in his father's eyes when he looked at Jessamine, he had never felt it though. Not once. Not like this.

Lucah hugged Belle close and buried his face in her hair. He cared about her. He wanted to be with her. He couldn't imagine himself with anyone else. He was happy. Love? Maybe....

Unless he thought about it too long....

((Wrap))