Welcome to Gaia! ::

"Mm..." She still hated the very idea of him leaving the planet entirely, but... he needed this. That entire shocking conversation they had back at the hotel was not for nothing.
"Well... time for sleep. Come on..." She got off from his lap and the chair, placing the books she had on a small table. They wouldn't go anywhere in a night, surely.
"I know I said I'd like my own room, but... want to cuddle the night away?" Lorey smiled softly with the idea of them curled up together like they had been the night before. It was lovely to go to sleep like that and wake up, knowing that you were safe with someone by your side. Such a wonderful change from what she had grown used to over the years.


((let's have these two catch up to the whole sleeping thing now xD))

"I do... I don't like sleeping in strange places alone."

Lorey and Richard found their way to the other side of the house where the bedrooms were. The lights were low, making everything peacefully dim. She noticed, however, that a light was on in one room, and thought someone must still be awake.
"Hang on," she whispered to Richard, before slowly peeking her head in to say a good-night to whomever was still up, but...
Well, she really hadn't expected to find two people asleep with each other.

With a very confused look, Lorey pulled herself back out into the hallway.
"They're... sleeping together?" she whispered to Richard, hooking her thumb inside the room.

"Huh..." Lorey shrugged, though she couldn't help but feel curious about this. One night he was holding a gun, saying he loved her, and now he was practically cuddling with a woman he'd just met... but then again, her and Richard had been much the same. Sometimes after life had been so terrible, you just wanted something to go right and latched on to whatever made you feel right.

Lorey ended up choosing a rather feminine room, in a victorian style. It was lovely to her, with floral patterns here and there, lacy bedspreads and fluffy pillows. Something smelled faintly of lavender. It was like her dream room, only better.

"I feel guilty for not even putting away the dresses he bought me," she said, slumping over onto the bed. It had been a long, eventful day. "He's had such a change of heart... I'm almost ready to think it's all an act."
Lorey let her shoes drop off her feet before she curled up on her side. It was like sleeping on a cloud for her...

Lorey looked over her shoulder for a moment long enough to kiss his chin. It was the only thing she could reach without disturbing their warmth and cosiness.
"I love you, Richard," she said before placing her head back down in the fluffy, soft comforter. Even if he was leaving soon, she would act like they would stay like this forever.



Morning did come, regardless of anyone's comfort. Damian was the first to wake, and not without a great jump. Raquel's face was so close to his that he nearly went cross-eyed upon waking, but once he realized what had happened and where he was, he had to laugh at himself.
It seemed to be somewhere around nine, judging by the light coming through the window. It was the loveliest time of morning, he thought.

Raquel looked worn down and a bit unhealthy lying in the bed, but he would remedy that, too. The refrigerator and ice box had been stocked with basics, which he would be sure to have made into something nice thanks to the high-tech cooking system also installed within the kitchen.

Damian had stopped dead when Richard emerged from thin air, it seemed. His tongue was still fond of lashing, though, regardless of him just having woken up.
"Oh, shove it," he hissed in a very unrefined manner. "Raquel was frightened... I was only there to comfort her and see that she slept for once."

He stayed in the hallway with a very venomous challenge in his eyes. How could richard know what he did about her? That much he could be excused for, but not for delivering such a jab after all he had done for them.

Damian scowled once his back was turned, but found himself trailing after Richard. If the brute did anything to his kitchen, he'd be shelling out more money, and goodness knew they couldn't afford any more major spending...

"Richard," he said, as he watched him make a bit of coffee. "I can't believe I am actually talking about this with you, but I am not about to talk to Lorey about Raquel."
Damian hands anxiously buttoned his shirt back up, not even realizing how sloppy he looked. It was little wonder why he had thought they'd been 'busy' last night.

"She... I wish I could say she was a prostitute, but she hasn't promised me whole-heartedly that she won't go back to that life. But good grief, she barely even feels like a human being... she's..."
With an exasperated huff, Damian sat down upon a small chair. It looked like it belonged in a doll house for crying out loud. Almost everything did.

"You were right to say she's beautiful, but I just wish she could see that for herself. The things she has suffered, Richard... she can barely sleep at night because of them."

He couldn't answer that at first. He picked his mind for all the reasons, but kept finding the same one: she wasn't that different from any other girl who had been subjected to the same sort of pain. And yet, there was a very simple answer playing on his lips, and it wasn't until he said it that it made perfect sense.
"She is Raquel."

Damian stopped to look down at his feet, trying to hide that smile that only she could make appear.
"Just as Lorey is Lorey. But Raquel has been subjected to nothing short of heinous crimes against her flesh, and I swear, if I ever hear that you have forced yourself upon Lorey in any way--"

And he stopped. He hadn't meant to launch an attack on Richard, or suspect him of such a thing, but the anger in his voice was unmistakable. Damian looked up to Richard with something like shock, but quickly began an apology.
"I am sorry, Richard, that was not my place... it's the stress talking..."

A wince on his face didn't quite communicate the angst he felt in his heart. There was relief that Richard was going to be honorable, which he had to admit dispelled one of his latest fears, but...

"Richard," he said, with a subtle hint of desperation. "I know that... I've been..." Intolerable? Touchy? "I'm sorry."
Sorry for far too much that he could never properly apologize for, but was trying to anyhow.
"I'm sorry, for everything. I know this must be confusing, that you probably think Raquel is some great ruse, but she is not. I don't even know what is going on right now, but... it feels right."

Run away, his senses told him. Leave this awkward situation and go back to Raquel. And yet he couldn't find himself moving in any way other than his breathing.