#artem x male mc | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

ohtomatotome · 2 years ago

Text

His Own Private Camgirl

—----------

Marius Von Hagen x MC Rosa (Tears of Themis) - Established Relationship

Word Count: 4,004

Rating: E

Tags: Masturbation; Toys; Voyeurism/Exhibitionism

Trigger Warnings: None

Part of Kinktober and #VisionsofTemptation2022 (prompts from @xxsycamore )

Kinktober Prompt used: Phone Sex (Day 3)

Author’s Note: This story decided it wanted to be based in “reality” rather than fantasy. We all know the ways erotica can defy physics, the male refractory rate, and the body’s flexibility. This little story isn’t like that. Sorry. It delivers a dose of reality, and the not-so-charitable emotions Marius might have when he’s uncomfortable with Rosa taking the lead in a romantic encounter.

—----------

Rosa closed the curtains on the full moon over an unfamiliar cityscape and stretched her arms above her head. The long term out-of-town assignment for Themis Law Firm meant an extended hotel stay for her and Artem. She picked up her phone, wistfully longing to hear her boyfriend’s voice before going to sleep. As if she summoned him, his caller ID blinked on the screen: King.

Marius was calling to say goodnight. Pretty soon the couple’s exchange turned sappy.

Rosa sighed, “I miss you so much. I wish you were here right now so I could get a hug from you.”

“If I were there beside you, I’d do a lot more than just hug you. First I’d start with a kiss on the forehead, then on the nose, then the cheek, then … can you guess where next?”

She shifted on the bed, hugging herself as if it were his arms. “The lips?”

His cocky laugh made her eyes crinkle.“Heh heh! That’s exactly where I WANT you to think I’d go next, but instead I would lean towards your ears and kiss you there light enough to make you squirm and then bite your earlobe to make you squeal!”

A muffled “Mhph!” came from her end of the line. Her reaction was enough to make him smirk.

Marius went on, “I could continue describing ALLLLLLL the things I’d do to you, but how about you tell me a few things you’d do to me?”

Rosa hesitated, “.....um, I would, um….” and then faltered into silence.

He wasn’t going to let that slide. “Aw, have you gotten shy all of sudden, jie jie? C’mon. Just one thing.”

“N-no.” Her stubborn pout could practically be felt through the phone.

Marius got ready to put on his best puppy-dog face and voice, but she continued, “If I get started, I might not stop. My room is next to Mr. Wing’s, and well … you know I get kind of high-pitched when I touch myself, and how could I NOT get hands-on if I started describing all the ways I miss you right now?”

It was Marius’s turn to be silent, dumb-founded at her frank honesty. Did she even realize how sexy she could be without even trying? He actually was getting a little hard at her few breathy, needy sentences just now.

Well, her admission was a nice surprise! Part of him wanted to push her a little more to see how far she would be willing to go, but the other half of him did NOT want Artem hearing a single one of her delicious sighs or gasps traveling through the hotel wall.

He took pity on her reluctance. “Yes, I do know. I love being the only man who knows what you sound like. So how about we take a rain check?”

He could hear a relieved sigh come through as he offered an alternative, “The next time I’m out on a business trip, we’ll try this again.”

—----

Two months later:

It was the crack of dawn and Marius was awake, checking the time zone difference between him and Stellis. Rosa would be home from work now, probably looking in the cupboard for dinner ingredients.

Marius texted: [ Good Morning from up east! Are you home yet? ]

Rose texted back: [ Yep! Good evening from downtown Stellis. How was your first day of meetings? ]

Marius dialed her number. “I figured I’d rather tell you about it than type it out.”

A soft smile bloomed on Rosa’s face. “It’s just as well, because I was hoping to hear the sound of your voice tonight.”

Marius grinned and launched into a recap of yesterday’s business doings.

After a minute Rosa exclaimed, “Oh pigeon feathers, Mr Wing is calling me. I need to take this. I’ll call you right back.”

Damn that Artem! Marius jabbed at the red END button on the screen to hang up.

He was just about to sprinkle the seeds of desire to remind her of their mutual rain check, when that goody-two-shoes had to stick his pointy nose into their night!

Tossing the phone onto his bed, Marius decided to brush his teeth and take his vitamins while waiting for her to ring back. He was a little shocked that he had finished those tasks and even made himself a cup of morning coffee without hearing her ringtone yet.

He looked at the screen notifications and saw he had a text waiting from her: [ Sorry about that. Is there still time for you to chat before your busy day starts? If so, give me a call. ]

She was so sweet and considerate, and here he had reacted with nothing but childish poutiness.

He dialed her back and was surprised to see that she answered with the video call feature.

Her cheerful face filled the screen as she said, “I figured this would be better for what I had planned for the call.”

What she had planned? She had something planned?

He nodded and grinned, “Yeah, it’s much better to see your cute face when I say something that makes you roll your eyes at me. And don’t worry about time. I still have at least another 2 hours before my first meeting.”

“Oh good. Are you sitting down? Or … maybe you want to lie down?”

Marius’s face went slack with concern. “---What?” Oh my god, what sort of awful news does she have to share? “What happened? Are you okay?” Panic was wreathing his words.

An amused giggle was his answer as he saw the scenery on the screen wobble and skim past. He recognized her ceiling, then her desk surface, heard a frustrated “tch” as the screen was covered by her hand. Marius didn’t know whether to be alarmed that she hadn’t answered his questions or give in to his wild guesses of what she was attempting to do right now. Was she trying to set up a little peep show for him? He had always wanted to suggest that some day. He couldn’t help but tease her as he heard more sounds of plastic sliding.

“Did you buy a cheap hands-free phone stand? You should have asked me, babe. You know, Pax makes really nice–”

“MARIUS VON HAGEN! Just – just shush. Okay?”

“Okay…” He smiled as her hand started to move away and his hopes soared, then frowned when it was replaced by something like a piece of cardboard and his view when dark again.

Rosa cleared her throat, “Do you remember two months ago when I was away on a trip for a Themis case, and you called me late at night? And we…began to flirt?”

He did his best not to laugh at her description of that conversation. After all, she might still be able to see him on another tablet display somewhere. Instead he schooled his face into a sexy smirk and nodded. “I would describe that exchange a little differently. But, yes, of course I recall. We decided to take a rain check.”

“Mh-hm. I’m cashing that check tonight. That’s why I wanted you to be sitting or somewhere you can prop your phone up without needing to use your hands. Because, um, you know…”

Marius suddenly understood he was getting his wish! He fumbled while picking up the phone as he answered, “Right! Give me a second.”

A glance around the suite told him he could rig up the perfect display area on the coffee table in front of the sofa. His hands worked as his mind raced with giddiness at what was happening. He had only imagined they would have verbal phone sex. But oh man, that Rosa! She elevated it to another level! Selfishly the phrase “my own private camgirl” floated to the surface of his mind. As he sat down, the fluffy hotel bathrobe pooled on either side of him; he untied the belt and opened the front all the way to his boxers. Nodding at the phone with visible excitement on his features, he asked, “Can you see me?”

“Yes.” There was obvious restrained laughter in that single syllable.

“You still have your screen covered. I can’t see you.”

“That’s correct. Oh, sweetie, don’t pout like that. You’ll get premature wrinkles.” A sprinkling of mischievous giggles followed.

What was she playing at? He was determined not to be indignant, but this was starting to feel a little unfair…he wasn’t used to being on the losing side. It was always him that planned the fun stuff, and it was always him that surprised her. She had turned the tables on him today. What an uncomfortable feeling to be along for the ride instead of being in the driver's seat. He had a difficult time hiding his vexation.

Rosa hummed a small happy noise, then asked, “Do you want to see what I’m wearing?”

Little crystal bells chimed in Marius’s head that would have otherwise sounded like alarms blaring ‘it’s a trap!’ if he hadn’t been thinking with the wrong head. He nodded, “Of course I do.”

“Good. I picked this out with you in mind.”

The camera was uncovered and he could see Rosa kneeling on her bed, legs wide apart. The black mesh and deep purple satin looked sinful against her creamy light skin. She was wearing a matching set of teddy, panties, garters, and thigh-high hose. That was as much as he could see in the 6 seconds before she waved at him gleefully and the screen went black again.

“Wha-?”

“Did you liiiiiiiike it?” The teasing lilt drove him a little mad.

His words worked their way through clenched teeth, “Yes. Very much. Now would you stop playing around? Uncover your camera and let me look at my hot girlfriend.”

He could hear her clapping. Oh! “I’m so glad to hear that! It really makes me feel sexy, you know? Don’t worry, you’ll see more of it later, and less it, too.” Giggles spilled over before she continued, “But first I want you to imagine there are no cameras, okay?”

Marius narrowed his eyes with suspicion. “What do you mean? And why?”

“Well, it was really a turn-on hearing you through the phone on that earlier trip, describing how you would touch me. It was like having you whisper in my ear. So … I have the ear buds in right now, to emulate that. Part of me wanted to do just the audio only tonight because of that special feeling. But … I also wanted to give you a visual treat.”

He drew in a deep breath, “If that’s the case, then why do you cover–”

“--Ahem,” Rosa interrupted, “I wasn’t finished!”

She paused to make sure he wasn’t going to try steamrolling the conversation. He stayed quiet, but there was a defined pout on his lips.

“Here’s why. I know your, um … stamina isn’t the greatest. And it takes me a while to warm up. So … if you saw me, you might finish before I’m even ready. With you just getting the audio, and with me getting both audio and video, I have a chance to build up that extra arousal while you stay simmering….um, does that make sense?”

It did, and Marius hated to admit it. But he couldn’t help but love that she was trying to work out a compromise that would make them both happy. Except … he wasn’t happy about seeing a black screen when he knew a top-tier babe clad in lingerie was just on the other side.

“Yeah. Yeah it does. That’s really thoughtful, Rosa. I just wish I could’ve had more than a glimpse of you.”

There was evident amusement in her voice, “Oh, don’t worry, you’ll get the full view later in the call IF you can make me cum by whispering in my ear. Makes a nice reward, right?” There it was again, that naughty voice teasing him where he was weakest.

Marius dropped his head back against the couch cushion and grunted a frustrated sigh, “You must have learned a thing or two while sitting in on my business meetings, because you’re really driving a hard bargain, you know that?”

More giggles. “Yep! So, do we have a deal, Mr Von Hagen?”

“Jie Jie … just another little tiny peek again to get me started? Please?”

“Nope, not until the condition is met. I’m ready any time you want to start with the phone sex, hun.”

Marius combed his fingers through his hair, as if the motion could push aside his annoyance and make room in his head for the right mood and thoughts.

“First … I would pull you onto my lap so you’re facing away from me, with your legs straddling either side of me, just like you are kneeling now. I’d glide my hands up your side and down to your legs and all the way up again, appreciating your figure, before I reach around to the front and pull you flush against my chest.”

He slid a hand into his boxers to play with himself as he continued, “My mouth would be right over your shoulder so I could nibble on your ear and neck while my hands roamed underneath the fabric. I’d spend a good long time squeezing and kneading your perfect breasts. Oh god, they fit so well into my hands. Then I’d pinch your nipples until you squirmed on my lap.”

He heard a small gasp followed by a sigh coming from Rosa’s end.

With his confidence building, he went on in a more sultry tone, “One hand would pull your chin to the side so I could suck on your neck in that spot that makes your knees turn to jelly. The other hand would side down to your panties, rubbing you on the outside of the fabric. Are your panties already wet?”

“Soaked.” The word was practically a moan. “K-keep going.” her voice sounded small and pinched, as if she was breathless.

Marius grinned, suddenly enjoying his part in this performance. He couldn’t help it, his hand gripped his shaft and started pumping up and down slowly. He licked his lips and went on, “I pull your panties to the side. With my left hand I spread your lips apart, and my right index finger slides inside you to cover it with your sweetness. Then I glide it upwards over your clit.”

He paused to hear what her reaction might be. Silence.

“Babe, rub your clit right now and let me hear you. Pretend that’s my finger making you shudder.”

From the phone he heard the rustle of her shifting on the mattress and then a high-pitched squeal he knew very well. It hadn’t taken long for his shaft to become rigid. He had stopped rubbing the head in hopes of slowing his arousal, and was now just playing with his testicles for distraction.

“Good girl. Keep touching yourself and doing the things I say.”

“Mm-hmm…”

“I press on your clit a little harder.”

Raspy breathing, then, “Ah. Fuhhhck. Ahhhnnnghh.” More fabric rustling and puffy little moans come over the line.

He loved hearing her voice like this. Marius's fist moved faster on his dick, his other hand pulling the base downward to keep the skin taut. He closed his eyes as he slipped into the rhythm. Her sounds were urging him onward. A low groan starts to tumble from his lips.

“Marius. Marius! Pace yourself. If you orgasm right now, I’m ending this call and you’ll never see this outfit again.” She sounded angry. Actually angry!

His eyes snapped open, but the screen was still dark. Nevertheless, he could picture her stern eyes and downwards-turned mouth. And that stubborn chin. Dammit, he knew she meant business.

“Alright. Alright. You just sounded so sexy, I got carried away. I won’t jerk myself that fast. Let’s keep going.”

“No. First you sit on your hands. Don’t touch yourself again until I say so.”

His jaw dropped. What? What in the hell? Was she bossing him around?

“Jie jie….. Jie jie, please?”

He was putting on his best pleading voice and using the saddest puppy dog eyes, they worked every time.

“No.” The single syllable came with finality and authority. No hesitation whatsoever. He could tell she wasn’t going to budge.

He raised his hands in surrender and slid them under his thighs. But inside his mind he was fuming.

“See? No hands, no touching.”

He looked mournfully down at his erect penis, hot, bright red, a bead of precum glistening at the tip, straining for relief, aching with the need to sheath inside Rosa’s tight wet–

“Marius?”

His forlorn face turned up the phone but the screen was still dark. The frustration at being led around by the nose like this was chipping away at his confidence. Had she ever been this controlling in the bedroom? He couldn't recall her acting like this before. It didn’t feel … natural. But he was still going along with it. Why? He mentally shook his head to clear the feeling and get back to the action.

“Right, sorry.”

Where had he left off? Oh yeah, about to move on to fingering her.

Inhaling deeply, he attempted to return to that sexy mood he had built earlier, “With one finger still rubbing your clit, my other hand slides to your pussy. I know you’re ready for at least two fingers. I sink them inside you and get them coated with your juices. Then I start pumping them in and out slowly.”

He had expected to hear a moan or something, but all that was coming from her side was heavy breathing. He paused.

“Rosa? Are you doing what I’m saying? Are your fingers inside you yet?”

“Oh. Um, no, it’s easier to use a toy for what you’re describing, so I was just getting that ready. Sorry. Hang on.”

He felt like he had completely lost control of this situation. Or maybe he never had it to begin with. A toy? What was wrong with her own fingers? Mounting annoyance was visible on his face, and he hoped she could see it. But no audible reaction confirmed that she had noticed at all as she gave a breathless “Okay!” And then in a lower purring voice, she prompted him, “Fuck me with your fingers, hun. Just the way I like it.”

And just like that, at her command his mind was back in the zone.

“I start out slow, watching your face melt into bliss. In. And out. In. And out.”

He could hear a wet squelching sound from her side as he kept the tempo steady. He nodded approvingly, finally grinning again.

“That’s right, nice and slow, until you start to get impatient. Do you want me to speed it up, babe?”

“Y-yes. Yes-s-s-s-sss…” A high-pitched gasp followed.

“I put more pressure on your clit while I fuck you harder and faster. I love how your body trembles on my lap.”

“More, mmm…more. Hnngh!”

The wet noises were increasing in rhythm and so was her gasping. In his excitement Marius leaned forward, forgetting to sit on his hands. His knuckles were grasping his knees as he stared at the darkened screen as if he could actually see her through the barrier.

“I add a third finger, and thrust as far as I can go, stretching you wide. And then I curl my fingers up to brush that sweet spot over and over and over and–”

A guttural moan spilled through the phone, louder than any other noise she had made that night. Marius heard the bed creaking and then her voice again, “I … I came. Oh mmm…. Good job, babe. Oh my god…” A sigh of weary bliss is heard after a few seconds.

Marius sat back, pleased with himself. He rearranged the robe and shorts so he can begin jerking off. He eagerly awaited for the screen to show his lovely girlfriend. Ten seconds went by. Twenty. He heard water running in the background.

“Rosa?”

Her voice sounded like it was coming from farther away, “I’m just cleaning myself up a little. Legs are slightly wobbly and making it difficult to get around, heh. I’ll be back in a sec.”

“No, don’t clean up. You’re just going to get all wet again.” His cheeky tone and smirk were brimming with confidence.

Her answer was just as challenging and plucky, “Oh? Sound rather sure of yourself there. Let’s see if you can make good on that promise.”

He blinked rapidly as his view was flooded with light. She had uncovered her camera and taken it off the stand, holding it in her hand so her face filled the screen. The surface of her neck and cheeks were flushed scarlet and her eyes were glossy with lust.

She winked at him, “You were such a good boy with keeping your hands to yourself like I asked. AND you got me to cum. You deserve a special reward.”

Marius’s brain was doing little somersaults trying to make her sexy words FEEL good, but they still nipped at him in all the wrong places, rubbing his nerves raw. He ignored her “good boy” praise as much as he could while focusing on the pleasure to come next.

“Yeah? And what’s that?”

“As I describe what I’m doing to you, I’ll move the phone to that spot so you can get a close-up. And if you want to see a part of me or have me do something particular, all you need to do is ask. I’ll do and say whatever you want tonight, hun.”

She blew him a kiss and smiled.

There was a hint of shyness in her eyes and he realized that maybe she wasn’t nearly as self-assured in tonight’s performance as she let on with all that brave talk from before. Perhaps she had kept the camera covered because she needed the allusion of being hidden so she could really let herself go? Marius’s more generous side took hold of this possibility and ran with it. Giving her the benefit of the doubt lessened the annoyance he had felt at her taking charge like she had. He wasn’t used to being condescended to like that, especially not from her. Yeah, maybe she had just been putting on an act and needed the privacy to keep up her courage. That had to be it.

He nodded to himself as if to convince his worries away, and then began stroking his dick leisurely as he threw Rosa a cocky look. “So you’re my own private cam girl is what you’re saying?”

—----

After he had climaxed – which didn’t take long – Rosa suggested they take their phones to the bed and lie down so it looks like the other person’s face is right there on the pillow next to them. He wished her good night and sweet dreams while she wished him a good morning. Cute little mumblings and screen kisses followed until he had to go.

He smiled at how such a lewd call could end sweetly, but he also knew that was exactly how the two of them were. Sometimes they couldn’t keep their hands out of the other one’s pants, and sometimes they would blush as simply holding hands. He loved that about her, about them as a couple.

He had never experienced all-encompassing love like this before. Rosa accepted everything about him. What a gift. He could never earn that, never repay her. But that’s what love was, right? Freely giving something to your special someone what they don’t deserve, and accepting all they are without making them feel worse about those weird ugly things they already are ashamed of.

In that case, maybe he ought to ask her sometime about that bossines she was exhibiting earlier, and see if that’s something she was afraid to show him. Was that one of her sides that she thought was ‘weird’ and didn’t want to risk letting it out?

#visions of temptation 2022 #Kinktober #kinktober 2022 #Tears of Themis #ohtomatotome #marius von hagen #tears of themis rosa #my fanfic #tot marius #tot rosa #tears of themis marius #tears of themis marius and rosa #tears of themis marius x rosa #marius x rosa #tearsofthemis

35 notes · View notes

alstroemeriadissonance · 3 years ago

Text

On Denial

Warning: Long read.

EDIT: Edited out bits here, posted as its own fic.

As much as I like Tears of Themis, this being my first otome game I found it hard to suspend disbelief that Rosa could practically date all four male leads at the same time without the complications of jealousy and competition between the men. Which resulted in this fic here.

This is mostly inspired by this wonderful translation by @vynegar (CN content spoiler, don't click if you're gunning for future Vyn SSR cards and want to avoid spoilers). Which sort of made canon Vyn's volatile nature under that cool facade. It's so fun to write about.

Pairing: Vyn x MC. Artem x MC tried but failed here (sorry, Artem fans)

"Accept this file request," Artem said with a swipe on his tablet. "Marius has provided notes on the missing person cases around the CBD in the past three weeks."

Rosa accepted the file and quickly scanned the contents. "As expected there was an increase after it was made known that the police was on to them." She pointed at a certain blip in the line chart displayed in the digital worktable between her and her senior partner.

Both of them agreed to report for work that day in the NXX Headquarters instead of their offices in Themis Law in order to review documents that they couldn't, and shouldn't outside the headquarters.

Rosa found herself yawning then stopped when she noticed Artem looking at her. "Ah, sorry," she quickly covered her mouth. "I've been sleeping late for the past few days."

"The reason why I have adjusted your workload is so you could allocate some time for your reviews, Rosa," Artem said, sternly. "So that you will be well rested for the next day when you're at work."

He put his tablet down and crossed his arms. "I don't want to pry, but," Artem paused, as if struggling to find the words he wanted to say.

"I noticed that you have been...working with Vyn for the past weeks or so more often."

"Well, yes," Rosa nodded. "I've been tapped as his teaching assistant. It was the only way I could sit in his classes and listen into his lectures."

"No, apart from that." Artem shook his head. "You've been going along with his own...investigations."

"Yes?" That was true, after all. "I've been assisting him with gathering and organizing the data. Also," Rosa quickly said as she browsed through her folders in her tablet, displaying the files that she have collected herself during the course of accompanying Vyn. "I believe that the case he's currently handling is related to this one. I'm going to hand the report to you once I'm finished with analysis and annotations." She pushed her tablet towards Artem.

Artem didn't bother looking at her tablet, but instead with a low voice said, "I know I told you to mind what you are saying around him."

"But that was because I didn't know him yet then, right?"

"That's partially true. But,"

"But?" Rosa prompted.

"Is he making you...forcing you to do anything?" Artem's eyes are looking intently at her, as if trying to observe how she would react to his question.

"Dr. Richter?" Rosa shook her head. "No, of course not. If anything I am the one troubling him. To be honest he doesn't need any assistance..."

"Then why have you been with him for these past few weeks?" Artem asked, almost accusingly.

Because I wanted to be with him, Rosa would have said if she could tell the truth. "If you listened to what I've been saying, Artem, I am exploring the possibility of both this case and the one he's handling to be related."

"Even at night?"

Shocked, Rosa found herself at a loss for words. Crap. He's finally caught on.

"You haven't answering my calls at night since almost a month ago, so I got worried," Artem fiddled with his phone to display all the missed calls to her. "It didn't take much to figure out you've been with him all this time--"

A familiar voice cut in from a distance. "If you will talk about me behind my back, make sure you do it quietly and not inside my property."

Footsteps resounded as Vyn walked towards them.

"Well," he said as his cold gaze locked into Artem's, "Care to start the inquisition from the beginning so I know what you are accusing us of?"

Artem wordlessly glowered at Vyn. Then came his question.

"Rosa, are you in a...relationship with him?"

What seemed to be a long, drawn out period of silence followed.

"Prying into her personal life now?" Vyn said in acerbic tones.

"I am asking my partner, not you."

Rosa's nails dug deeply into her palms.

"I...don't know what you are talking about, Artem," she said, the wavering in her voice almost imperceptible. "To be honest, I am offended that this has been asked at all." She looked up at Artem angrily, despite her words being calm and measured. "And you should apologize to Dr. Richter too."

Rosa looked to Vyn, but he did not show any reaction.

"I'll leave it at that, then," Artem muttered as he picked up his things from the digital workstation. "I'll see you later at the office." He left the headquarters with nary another word.

Silence followed.

Rosa tried to reach for Vyn's hand, but before she could touch him he turned his back on her and walked away.

"Do you have any more business here, Rosa?" Vyn's voice was devoid of emotion. "If not, it would be best if you followed your partner."

"Vyn?"

He stopped and looked at her over his shoulder. "If you have work to do here, then I shall be taking my leave."

"Vyn, wait!" Rosa protested. "What's wrong?"

"What is wrong?" This time he turns around to look at her in the eye with only coldness in his gold eyes. "You ask me, when you have very clearly denied our relationship in front of him, and act as if the suggestion of that very thing was a grave offense on your person. As if the very idea of being with me is disgusting."

"Wait, let me explain--"

"There is nothing to explain, there is nothing in your words that are open to interpretation," Vyn interrupted in clipped tones, as if he was scolding a student.

"Vyn, please, if you could just let me--"

This time, a flash of anger shadowed his face. "Enough. Your words already cut me deep."

"..."

"Tsk. I've had enough myself. I'm leaving." Rosa grabbed her things and slung her bag over her shoulder, as she strode past Vyn towards the door.

===

Rosa was nursing an already cold cup of coffee in the pantry when Kiki approached her. "Hey...are you okay?"

The junior looked around to see if anyone was within earshot. All clear.

"Did you fight with Artem?" she whispered.

"No, not really," Rosa said, listlessly drawing circles on the table. "Stuff just came up."

Kiki was obviously not convinced with what she said. "Look...I know you probably don't want to talk about it yet, but..." she squeezed Rosa's arm to reassure her friend. "Let me know when you need to, okay?"

Rosa smiled weakly. "Yeah, I will. Thanks Kiki, you're an angel."

"Oh darn, here comes Artem," Kiki whispered suddenly, throwing her a worried glance.

"Could you drop by my office for a bit?" Artem said curtly, then walked out of the pantry.

Rosa took a deep breath and stood up to follow him.

===

The partners remained quiet until Artem closed the door of his office behind them.

He cleared his throat. "Rosa, I apologize for my behavior back in the headquarters this morning."

Rosa said nothing as she crossed her arms.

"I was only concerned about you," Artem sighed. "I was afraid that...that..." his voice trailed off.

"Concerned, to the point that you are almost stalking me at night?" Rosa couldn't help but take a snipe at him.

"Because it's not like you to go completely dark after you leave the office!" Artem said loudly, as if he finally let out something that weighed heavily in his chest. "All those times, I waited for you to either come back to the office so I can take you home, or return my calls...but ever since you've been with...with him..."

"Those are already my personal hours, Artem," Rosa reminded him. "Also, whatever did Dr. Richter do to deserve this much suspicion?"

He looked away. "Vyn is competent, yes. He is one of the experts in his field, yes. But nobody knows what he's thinking most of the time," he took a deep breath to calm himself down.

"Not a lot of people even know who he actually is." Artem took his seat by his desk. "Frankly speaking, he isn't to be trusted."

You mean you oppose him just because you two couldn't see eye to eye about your mentor, Rosa badly wanted to say, but thought the better of it.

There were so many things that Rosa wanted to say to him, but decided not to. She didn't want to drive a wedge between them unnecessarily, but a line must be drawn. After much deliberation, she said,

"I can't claim to know how deep your distrust is of Dr. Richter, but I have long decided that he is worthy of my trust. If you're not satisfied with my judgment, then feel free to rethink if I'm still worthy to be your partner."

This made Artem look up at her. "Rosa...?"

Rosa made her way towards the door. Before opening it, she added,

"Also, whether or not I am in a personal relationship with anyone should be none of your business."

===

Rosa once again deleted the draft of her text message to Vyn before sending it for the umpteenth time.

It's no use, she groaned inwardly in frustration. I don't even know what to write to him.

She threw her phone onto her bed. Then let herself fall face down onto the bed as well.

Ah, I'm so tired. Maybe things will sort themselves out tomorrow.

Tomorrow. Rosa frowned, her face still plastered into her bedsheets. I still don't want to see Artem...

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of her phone's ring tone. Rosa's hand grabbed it to see who was calling, and almost dropped the phone. Vyn!

"Hello?" she said as she accepted the call.

No one was speaking from the other end of the line. Rosa double checked if the call was still active. It was.

"Hello? Vyn, can you hear me?"

Still nothing from the other end, except a rustling of movement, then a faint crashing of what sounded like glass.

"Vyn, what's wrong? Answer me!" Rosa shouted into her phone's receiver.

Oh no. Rosa hurriedly changed out of her pajamas and immediately called for a taxi as soon as she got out of her apartment building.

===

"Vyn!"

The door to his house was unlocked, and what greeted her was the sorry sight of Vyn lying face down on his sofa, one hand clutching his phone.

There was a red splotch of liquid on the floor near him, which alarmed Rosa. However upon closer inspection it turned out to be not blood, but red wine that spilled from the shattered wine glass on the floor.

Rosa gingerly avoided stepping on the glass shards as she crossed the distance to where he lay. "Vyn," she shook his shoulder gently.

The man stirred and lifted his face to look at her with bleary eyes. "Rosa..." he groaned and quickly shut his eyes, as if blinded by the lights the ceiling above him. "...what are you doing here?"

"You called me, don't you remember?"

"No, I don't..." came the slurred reply. He was no doubt drunk.

"Vyn, you're clearly uncomfortable there, let me help you up to your room..."

"I can get up by myself." Vyn struggled to push himself up the sofa, but failed. "This sofa should suffice for now."

Rosa was having none of it. "No. Let's get you to bed now." She took hold of one of his arms and slung it across her shoulders, pulling him to an upright position.

His bedroom was upstairs. Oh boy, this will be a tough one, she thought and steeled herself for the arduous task of half carrying the man to his bed.

===

It was already morning when he came to.

He tried to tug at the blanket to cover his shoulders and sleep more, but it didn't budge. When he turned around, he was surprised to see Rosa sleeping soundly beside him. The other end of the blanket was pinned underneath her.

Vyn groaned. His head was clear, and he was not hung over. He had a vague recollection of what he did last night: he probably had imbibed more alcohol than he could tolerate while he was mulling the events of yesterday morning.

As for Rosa's presence, he could not remember why she was there, sleeping on his bed. I thought I clearly stated what I said that time.

The bed shifted gently beside him.

"Are you awake?" came Rosa's soft voice.

"Yes, I am," he replied, not looking at her.

"How are you feeling?"

"Much better."

"I'm glad."

"Why are you here?"

"You dialed my number but you did not talk when I answered your call. I got worried so I came."

"I see. I am sorry for the trouble I caused you."

"I cleaned up last night. You drank two full bottles of wine."

"I think I did, yes."

"Please don't. You worried me back there." A hand reached out to hold his.

Suddenly the feelings came crashing down again. Despite himself, tears rolled down his cheeks, and he turned away from Rosa.

The bed shifted again. Rosa moved to gently wipe away his tears with her fingers. She hugged him from behind. "I'm sorry," she whispered gently to his ear.

He said nothing.

"I felt that I had to hide our relationship from others," Rosa said quietly, her voice low. "I didn't want to cause friction in the group.

"I'm not oblivious, you know? I've known this entire time that Artem...Artem carried a torch for me. I knew that if everyone else knew we were together, it would just cause certain...complications."

Vyn finally found his voice. "Ah. But you would continue your little charade with Artem then, leading him on, because it is convenient? And what we have is not?" His voice was choked up.

"No. That wasn't my intention." Rosa hugged him tightly. "But you do have a point. It was wrong of me."

Rosa gently pulls on his shoulder. "Vyn. Please look at me?"

After taking a deep breath, Vyn turns toward her, revealing his tear-streaked eyes. He smiled derisively at himself. "As you can see, I am actually very weak and vulnerable when it comes to you." His lips twisted in a mirthless grin. "You may laugh at me."

The scene was heart-wrenching for Rosa.

"Vyn, I already made my choice long ago," she whispered as she held his face in her trembling hands. "I chose you.

"When you confessed, I accepted your feelings. When you took my first time, I willingly gave myself to you."

Rosa planted a kiss on Vyn's lips.

She sat up and caressed his cheek, and smiled. "Will you let me show you my feelings this time?"

===

Rosa returned to the office from her lunch break when she noticed a small gathering crowding around the door to Artem's office.

"Rosa!" Kiki called out to her, panicking.

"Kiki?" Rosa gestured towards Artem's office. "What's happening there?"

"That... foreign-looking doctor dropped by and...and..." Kiki fumbled over her words. She apparently forgot Vyn's name.

"And...?" Rosa prodded.

"They've been fighting in the office ever since!"

"What?!" Rosa threw her purse onto the desk and was about to run into Artem's office when the door suddenly opened, almost hitting one of the onlookers.

Out emerged Vyn from the doorway, straightening his tie as he strode away. His usually crisp white coat was creased in places and had what seemed to be strands of carpet lint clinging onto its immaculate white fabric. As if he just came from a brawl.

He spotted Rosa, and with a soft, gentle smile he walked briskly towards her.

Everyone on the floor watched in rapt attention the way Vyn placed a chaste kiss on her cheek in greeting, his wispy silver strands mingling with her auburn hair. "Good day, my love," he said.

The solemn hush that fell around them ensured that everyone heard what he just said loud and clear.

As if proclaiming his victory.

"Uh. Yeah." Rosa blinked in confusion.

The door to Artem's office slammed open once again. This time Artem showed up. "Vyn Richter," he growled. He was in almost the same condition Vyn was in: slightly disheveled clothing, crooked tie.

Vyn coolly gave him a side-eye in response.

"If you put my partner in harm's way even only once," he said loudly, "I will. Personally come for you."

"I know."

Then, to Rosa, "I must take my leave now. I will see you later."

Dazed, all Rosa could do was nod. "Mm. See you later."

The silence permeated the entire office until Vyn finally went out through the main door.

Rosa buried her face in her hands, hiding her blush in the midst of all the resulting commotion around her.

#mo yi x reader #mo yi #tears of themis #vyn richter x reader #tot vyn #tears of themis vyn #vyn richter #vyn richter x you

151 notes · View notes