Vael's POV
I couldn't breathe.
Lirien's whispered "please" . That one small word hit me harder than any battle I'd ever fought. My chest tightened. My hands trembled where they held him mone around his slim wrist, the other on his warm waist. This wasn't just lust. Something deeper was cracking open inside me, something I had locked away for years.
He looked so small against the curved wall, silver-white hair messy and glowing under the red emergency lights. His violet eyes were wide, shiny with fear and something else want. Real want. His flushed cheeks and the way his lips parted made my heart ache even as my body burned.
I was supposed to be the captain. The one in control. Yet right now, with his sweet scent wrapping around me, I felt lost.
"Why did you have to smell like this?" I said, my voice rough and low. My thumb gently brushed his bottom lip again. It was soft, trembling. "I've commanded this ship for five years without breaking a single rule. One look at you and all I can think about is keeping you safe… and ruining you at the same time."
Lirien's breath hitched. He didn't pull away. Instead, his free hand came up slowly and rested on my chest, right over my racing heart. His fingers curled into my uniform like he needed something to hold onto. That small touch sent heat rushing through me, but it also made my throat tight with unexpected tenderness.
"I'm scared," he admitted in a quiet, shaky voice. No defiance this time just honest, raw truth. "I ran away to be free, not to… to feel like this."
His words hit me like a punch. I saw the real boy behind the rebellious mask: someone who had been hurt, someone who was brave enough to stow away on a strange ship, and now brave enough to tell an Alpha he was afraid.
I leaned my forehead against his, our noses brushing. Zero gravity made us float closer, bodies pressing together in the most natural way. His warmth, his racing heartbeat I felt all of it.
"I know," I whispered back, simple and honest. "I'm scared too. I've never wanted anyone like this. It's not just your scent, Lirien. It's you. The way you look at me like you're fighting yourself… it makes me want to protect you and claim you all at once."
A soft whimper escaped him. His fingers tightened on my jacket. I could feel the heat rising in his body, the first real wave of his heat starting to build. Slick was soaking through his clothes now, warm and sweet against my thigh. My knot throbbed painfully, begging to swell and lock us together, but I held back.
Not yet.
I slid my hand from his waist to his lower back, pulling him even closer in the gentle float of zero-G. Our lips were so close I could taste his breath.
"Tell me what you need right now," I said softly, my voice thick with emotion. "Not what your heat wants. What you want."
Lirien's eyes searched mine. Tears glistened at the corners, but he didn't look away. The chemistry between us crackled like electricity hot, intense, impossible to ignore. His body trembled against mine, but his hand on my chest felt steady, like he was choosing this moment.
"I… I want to feel safe," he breathed. "And I want you to kiss me. Just once. Before everything gets too much."
My heart slammed against my ribs. For the first time in years, the cold captain inside me melted. I cupped his flushed cheek with my free hand, thumb wiping away a single tear that had escaped.
"Then I'll give you that," I murmured.
I closed the last inch between us and kissed him.
It was soft at first but grew stronger. I was indeed very hungry, deep. Lirien moaned into my mouth, his body melting against me as he kissed me back just as fiercely. His fingers slid into my hair, pulling me closer.
In that moment, floating in the dim corridor with stars shining through the window behind us, nothing else existed. Just him.