<div align="center"><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>The Bet</strong></span></div><br/><div class="floatleft">(https://i.imgur.com/eRBwTzu.png)</div><strong>NAME:</strong>Albion<br/><strong>DAY:</strong>June 12th, 2021, Mid Afternoon<br/><strong>LOCATION:</strong>SOPHE, Training Grounds<br/><strong>TAGGING:</strong>Nerissa<br/><strong>EXTRA:</strong>Perhaps this was a better outcome than he could ever hope for.<br/><strong>WEARING:</strong>As pictured<br/><br/><hr/><br/><em>'... Stupid fool, how is the first thing you tell her after this... 'You taste good'...? Have you seriously lost touch with your sensibilities?'</em>Albion mentally chided himself, but Nerissa still seemed pleased and giggly to hear. Maybe she hoped to hear something a little more romantic and meaningful... But the man still had his a versions to the notion. Maybe a little less now after he'd... Basically broken his rule about intrapersonal activities with other staff of SOPHE, but then again... They were a budding friendship for three years who shared many awkward moments.<br/><br/>Maybe it was inevitable he would tire of the solitude and the false attempts at happiness. But he still wasn't ready to drag Nerissa into a world where his past dealings could easily jeopardize their existence in the present. He still needed a little time... But, given she stood by him for three years... Maybe she was already used to waiting...<br/><br/>Being called amazing though... He snorted and shook his head. "Looks like I asked for a remark like that, but a fairly good one to counter my own. I'm... Glad you enjoyed it though. I can't begin to tell you how much I enjo-" He paused as he watched her lock the finger... She had used to wipe her juices off of his mouth with and damn it, why did that turn him on!? His mouth was still agape mid-sentence as he watched her mischievously lick the mischief-causing digit... But the most important thing was her face: That look of pleased contentment. It made his day to always see Nerissa with a smile on her face, but it made his day so much more to know<em>he</em>was the one that helped put that smile there.<br/><br/><em>'Doing War and Love, huh...? ... Heh, I kind of like that, but I've got to deal with some bad habits first before I call what I do love... But...'</em>Once again, his thoughts internalized as he observed the playful vixen.<em>'This was a nice start... A nice recollection of times long gone.'</em><br/><br/>She had begun to apologize, but he simply raised a finger and pressed it to her lips, as if to try and silence her reasons to apologize for her uncouth behavior. "Remember, I made you remember those bad things... I made you angry for playing with your feelings, and... I made you... Do 'that'... Because...-" He trailed off... Why did he do that? Why had he even bothered to open his mouth when he could have left well and good enough alone? He had put himself on the spot now, but he simply smiled and leaned his head against the side of hers. "I felt you needed your best friend to help you feel better after he made you feel bad." It was maybe the best way to put it, without admitting he maybe got a glimpse into her feelings and thought... She needed more than a friend, or even a best friend. Would she know he knew? Or would she simply write him off as oblivious?<br/><br/>The brush of her tongue against his neck was mildly ticklish, tingly even, but her words... They weighed heavy on his mind. Closing his eyes, he tilted his head downward, placing the tip of his tongue against her neck and dragging upward gently... The same gesture she wanted from him earlier, that he had resisted giving... It only took a couple of beatings and some rough treatment to feel the bravery to perform the gesture for her.<br/><br/>"... As long as I'm able to.."