Provocation

Gritting her teeth, she crammed the scream her lungs burned to unleash down her throat. Instead, she gnawed on her pencil, grating the covering off the wood. She wanted nothing more than to slap the deliberate smirk off his face, to punch in the malice teeming in his dark eyes. "Kevin, stop it." Her voice quivered, destroying the calm demeanor she had tried so hard to maintain.

He knew all too well that pestering her while she completed homework was dangerous. But he had grown restless of sitting around her room in silence while she scribbled away formulas and punched in calculations. She was perched on her bed and he sidled up behind her, twirling a strand of her long hair, whispering into her ear. Her initial warning of his actions had pushed him even farther to get a rise out of her.

Trailing the pads of his fingers down the length of her arms, he slammed the textbook nestled in her lap closed, snatching it away. Jumping from the edged of her bed, the springs moaned as she ran after him, complaints and shouts flying from her lips. Straightening himself to his full height, he loomed over her tense frame, textbook gripped behind his back.

"Give it back, you jerk!"

Feral hunger sparked his gaze, "No."

"I'm serious!" At her attempt to snatch the book back, Kevin backed her up towards the bed. Knees buckling upon knocking into the edge of the mattress, she was forced to sit down. "Give me my book back, Kevin! This assignment is due tomorrow and its worth—"

"I don't care," he smirked, stepping away from her to leaf through the thickly bound pages. "What is this shit, anyways? When will you ever have to use—"

"Just give it back!" She hated to acknowledge it, but Kevin had an uncanny way of getting under her skin. Unfortunately for her, he loved to tease her in moods like this.

"No."

"Ugh!" Exasperated, she rose from the bed, attempting to side-step past him again. To no avail, she turned from his daunting expression, fed up with his antics. "Oh fuck you, Kevin!"

She found herself being pressed into the plush comforter by his powerful hands. Her hair sprawled out like a licking flame as he settled on top of her. He leaned in close, nose against hers, breath scorching her face. An infuriating smirk on his lips purred, "Is that a serious offer?"

Her cheeks stained with a torrent of blood as her breath hitched. With her wide eyes, she noted the curvature of his grin. He's toying with me, she realized. Aggravation seizing her muscles, she shoved him off of her with an annoyed grunt, putting an end to his vindictive act.

But with her palms flat against his chest she could feel the steady thrum of his heart, a great contrast from the wild thrashing of her own. The air seemed viscous in her throat, an iron weight in her lungs. "I'm not ready for that, Kevin."

As if he were melting into her, his hold became tender, steely resolve softening at her words. "Hey," he tucked a strand of fiery hair behind her ear. Lightly stroking her cheek, she sighed into his touch. "I'm only teasing. I'm waiting until we're ready for that for sure."

On the floor below, the garage door rumbled upon her parent's arrival. "And until we get a place of our own," she smiled softly.

His heart lurched in his chest. "You mean that?"

She didn't even try to contain her humble laughter. Nestling into him, she relished in the thriving scent of him, "With everything I've got."

A/N: I felt like I haven't written anything heated lately. I had to end it with some fluff, though. Gwen always has her head on straight.