The sunlight slanted through the half-open blinds, spilling onto the hardwood floor, painting gold across the sheets where Kaein and Lior lay tangled. Even after the intensity of the past nights, there was no rush, no urgency—only the quiet comfort of two bodies entwined, still tasting and claiming each other in small ways.
Kaein's head rested against Lior's chest, the rise and fall of his Lunar's breathing a steady rhythm that grounded him. His fingers traced lazy patterns across Lior's shoulder, mapping muscles that he had memorized over countless hours of touch. Every hair, every curve, every faint scent of pheromones still lingering from the marking—he inhaled deeply, letting it anchor him.
"Morning, my Alpha," Lior murmured, voice low and warm, hand brushing Kaein's hair back from his forehead. He tilted slightly, pressing a soft kiss to the temple, then another along the curve of Kaein's jaw, teasing, tender, impossible to resist.
"Morning…" Kaein's voice was husky, a soft echo of the night before. He shifted slightly, letting Lior's hand slide to rest along his back, pressing closer, inhaling that familiar scent. "You smell… like you always do… like home."
Lior chuckled, deep and warm, lips brushing against Kaein's ear. "That's because… you're here. You make it home." His hand slid lower, teasing, guiding, a soft possessive stroke that made Kaein shiver with both longing and comfort.
They lingered in bed, exchanging soft kisses and whispers, fingers brushing, exploring. Even after permanent marking and the knotting, their intimacy had softened into a rhythm—seductive but tender, playful but deliberate. Kaein nuzzled Lior's chest, pressing their skin together, whispering against it, "I could stay like this forever… just you and me."
"You can," Lior murmured, lips tracing Kaein's shoulder. "No one's stopping us." His hands roamed gently, exploring, pressing, claiming in small, intimate ways, never overwhelming but impossible to ignore.
Eventually, the scent of coffee brewing from the kitchen pulled them reluctantly from the sheets. Lior groaned softly, still draped over Kaein's back. "You drag me out of bed… just to feed me?"
"You like it," Kaein teased, sliding out and pulling a soft hoodie over his damp hair. "Come on… breakfast waits, and Witty is probably starving."
The little white cat, Witty, padded around their legs, tail high, rubbing against both their ankles in protest that he had been ignored for too long. Lior laughed, scooping the cat up into his arms and kissing his temple. "You're spoiled… just like your humans," he said, pressing a quick kiss to Kaein's lips.
Breakfast was a soft, warm routine. Lior poured coffee while Kaein chopped fruit, occasionally reaching over to touch fingers or press a kiss to a shoulder, eliciting small shivers and soft sighs. The mundane tasks—spreading butter on toast, pouring orange juice, arranging plates—became intimate rituals. Every glance, every brush of skin, every lingering touch was a whisper of possession, a murmur of love, a subtle reminder that they were bound together in ways both primal and tender.
After breakfast, Kaein packed lightly for the seminar at another college. Only one suitcase, minimal belongings—yet even as he packed, the air was thick with longing. Lior hovered, trying to sneak touches, brushing hair back from Kaein's neck, murmuring small teasing phrases about "forgetting me already."
"You'll be fine," Kaein said softly, brushing a thumb across Lior's knuckle. "It's only a day… and I'll be back before you know it."
"Day? One day? Alpha… I've spent entire lifetimes waiting for you," Lior murmured, pressing a soft, teasing kiss to Kaein's jaw. "I don't like you leaving. Not even for a second."
Kaein chuckled, shaking his head, pressing a quick kiss to Lior's lips. "I know… you're clingy today."
"Clingy?" Lior's voice dropped lower, sultry and teasing. "No… protective. You're mine, and I'll make sure everyone knows it—even if it's just by smell." His hands slid along Kaein's shoulders, fingers tracing down his arms in subtle possessive gestures, sending a warm shiver through him.
Even as Kaein left for the seminar, the scent trail of their intimacy lingered. Lior watched him go, hand pressed to the door, inhaling faintly, a quiet murmur leaving his lips: "Hurry back… you're mine."
---
At the seminar, Kaein's mind was focused on behavioral problems, the theories, the case studies, but he couldn't shake the memory of Lior's fingers, the scent, the warmth still pressed into him. Even speaking to students, explaining nuanced psychological effects, he found his thoughts drifting to the life waiting at home—the apartment filled with Witty's tiny paws, their intertwined bedsheets, the morning kisses, the soft murmurs of possession and love.
Meanwhile, Lior was alone in their apartment, pacing lightly, trying to distract himself. His pheromones had started to rise again, instinctual desire, the need to mark, to be close, to claim. He wandered the rooms, brushing fingers over Kaein's belongings, pressing a cheek to his pillow, inhaling deeply, murmuring soft, seductive promises:
"You're mine… always… every breath, every thought, every inch…"
By evening, Lior couldn't wait. He ordered dinner, laid out their little apartment, set Witty on the rug near the heater, and curled into the bed with one of Kaein's hoodies, pressing it to his chest. The familiar scent wrapped around him like armor, a reminder that the bond was unbreakable—even if only temporarily separated.
When Kaein returned late from the seminar, the apartment was quiet but steeped in anticipation. Lior's head popped up from the hoodie, eyes glinting, a soft purr in his throat. "Finally… back to me," he murmured, sweeping Kaein into his arms before he could even set down the suitcase. "I missed you. I couldn't… wait any longer."
Kaein laughed softly, pressing lips to Lior's temple, nose brushing against the Lunar's cheek. "I missed you too… every moment."
The night stretched slowly, deliberately. Their kisses lingered longer, hands explored freely, pheromones thick in the air, teasing whispers slipping between lips. Lior's fingers traced along Kaein's spine, teasing, marking subtly, every brush of skin a whisper of dominance and affection. Kaein leaned into every touch, every murmur, letting desire and tenderness flow freely.
Even Witty jumped onto the bed, curling against Kaein's legs, purring, a tiny observer to the intimate domesticity. Lior pressed soft kisses to Kaein's shoulder, murmuring, "Mine… all mine…" as Kaein shivered, closing eyes, and pressed closer, replying softly, "Yours… always yours…"
By morning, the apartment was filled with warmth—sunlight, laughter, quiet teasing, the soft brush of skin on skin. Cooking breakfast together, brushing teeth side by side, Witty circling their ankles—their lives were simple, domestic, and yet charged with a simmering undercurrent of desire and possessiveness.
Kaein pressed a soft kiss to Lior's lips as he buttered toast, murmuring, "We can't stay apart… even for work or a day."
Lior grinned, fingers brushing Kaein's side, hands lingering just a moment too long, teasing, possessive, full of subtle seduction. "We never do. Not now, not ever. You're mine."
And in that small apartment, with a white cat curled nearby and the faint scent of their entwined pheromones lingering in the air, life moved in quiet rhythm—love, desire, warmth, and intimacy seamlessly entwined in every moment.