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Every ounce of contact was cherished. A palm to the side of her cheek had Natalie melting against the connection, and when she felt the press of perfect lips against her own, her pulse jumped, regardless of how gentle she was.
It felt loving - if two strangers could somehow manage that so easily.
She inched herself closer, were it possible given their proximity. Anything to be completely enveloped in this entity.
"Natalie Illana Arazi." She offered back, letting her lips brush against hers as she offered her own full name.
Once Lena backed down and started to stretch, Natalie followed suit. She sat down with her feet pressed together, palms pressing to her knees and applying pressure. Briefly, she glanced away, eyes dragging towards her small pile of things before looking back up at Lena. Her students seemed so determined to get her back into the classroom - at least given by the way her friend spoke of them.
Everything. Natalie's eyebrows quirked upward. "Oh, you know..." Though really, she didn't, given the question within itself. "Work has been a little crazy - you know how kids get after so many months of winter." She paused, watching her friend with a careful eye. "I started seeing someone."
As much as she wanted to keep close with her, the shift offered a little bit of clarity. In darkness, she couldn't make out any details, but that wasn't for a lack of trying. Sheets offered a comfort, and Natalie couldn't handle how caring this woman was. Every move she made seemed to carry purpose.
Her arm ended up resting against her hip, fingertips drawing around her form and tracing patterns against her spine. There was so much desire to keep a connection - the form beneath her hands deserved the utmost appreciation.
"Teddy, then." Natalie eventually decided to land on, the corner of her mouth drawing upward. She liked the way it sounded on her own lips. "Because that's who you are."
She'd honestly never met a person that went by the nickname, and when Natalie received much more than the lengthened version, her eyebrows rose. If that wasn't the textbook definition of a classy name, she didn't know what was, and as an explanation followed she could only imagine how a child would dislike something so professional sounding. The concept of choosing your own nickname made her consider for the first time which she might prefer - it was often given without thought of her opinion, and the trainer never stopped to consider it.
"Do you call yourself Teddy because it's the norm for you, then?" She asked. Given that she learned to appreciate her name for what it was, she still introduced herself as Teddy. Moving to a new country, she'd have the chance to change the way she was referred to, if she wished it.
A laugh, however small, drew an amused smile out of the trainer. The motion brought her fingertips to life, tracing gently along Teddy's skin along her collar bone. Though she'd never tell someone to never visit the state she grew up in, it humored her to think that she crossed it off any potential list Teddy might have had for business. She doubted there could be enough going on to even warrant someone with such class and power showing up.
And another question came forth, this time drawing her eyes open. Proximity made it impossible to even look at the lawyer, but she could at least follow the path her own hand was taking. "Nat is pretty common, but it's interchangeable." Despite it being a core of her identity, she found no harm in either form of her name. "I imagine Teddy is short for something." She lead into. "How'd you develop that nickname?"
With the suggestion of another movie to attempt, Natalie offered a nod. She put a mental note in to make sure to add it to the long list of movies they would eventually watch. She was familiar with the concept, but hadn't actually given the film a chance. "We'll watch it next week." Natalie reassured, already making plans to insure it wouldn't be such a long time before she talked to the redhead again.
She lifted her arms above her head, hands coming together as she stretched. "Alright ladies, let's go out." She spoke to her dogs, who immediately jumped up at the idea. "It's getting late." Pushing herself off the couch, she reached for her phone before making her way to the door and opening it for Jodie and Oz. "Want to call it a night?" She asked, the corner of her mouth twitching as she saw the notification of a new text message.
Idle shapes painted across her shoulder were gentle in nature, but they kept her pulse at a high. Her attentive nature was overwhelming, even in the quietest of moments as they settled against a bed. Her eyes remained shut, but she couldn't consider sleep an option when she could barely feel the twitch of a pulse beneath her palm.
The question drew a slow smile out of Natalie, in part because she hadn't expected it at all. "New Hampshire." She explained lightly. "It was incredibly boring there." It felt like the best descriptor for her home state. She still couldn't grasp why her parents were so happy settling there.
Natalie could feel the tension melt away from Lena as she hugged her. She spoke like she believed she would never come back, despite the way she had tried to reassure her on the beach that it wasn't the case. Regardless, she squeezed the form her arms wrapped around, and after the dancer pulled away, she squeezed her arms lightly before letting her hands fall to the sides.
Lips pressed to her cheek, and it drew a small, genuine laugh out of the brunette. It seemed so like Lena.
Questions filled the air like they hadn't seen each other in years, and Nat realized that it had felt like longer than it had been. "I'm good. Really good," she explained with a bob of her head. "And how're you? How's are your classes going?"
Once settled into it, she realized that silence wasn't something to be bothered why. It filled the air between them without a need to be broken. Her spine curved to the feeling of growingly familiar hands traversing along the length of her back. Gentle pressure eased her down, and she eased herself down. A shoulder hit the mattress, limbs tangling with the lawyer's. Her head ducked down, lips pressing to the mark just below her collar bone before she drew her closer, were it even possible.
Dark eyes fluttered shut as she became content listening to staggering breaths, a hand resting against her chest.
After finding a few recipes that caught her eye, Natalie closed the book with a snap, tucking it under her arm as she scanned the titles again. The corner of her lip twitched as she spared a glance at the blonde, but she let her attention fully settle back to the task at hand. It was interesting to hear that he'd show up for something he said he hadn't much interest in, and it brought a hum out of the trainer. She humored the thought of actually being given a chance to teach someone to cook.
For someone who looked so perfectly poised and professional, the power behind her hands offered another side to her. Each sound that escaped her lips was perfection voiced; each strained breath she took ripped the air from her own lungs.
The smile worn drew out one from Natalie as well, and when her gaze shifted up from those lips, she caught a set of bright blue eyes - powerful in every sense of the word. She opened her mouth, wishing to offer something, but all that she managed was a harsh exhale. Anything her mind could draw up to say wouldn't do justice to the erratic beating in her chest.
Natalie's smile was met with something less than enthusiastic, it made her wonder how the dancer had taken her words and let them settle over the length of time they hadn't spoken. Still, she kept her own smile warm as she continued to stretch, at least until Lena dared to inch closer. She never believed she could see her lack her usual confidence. A question filled the space left between them, and it took Natalie a moment to figure out what she meant.
Slowly, she pushed herself up to her feet, breaching the distance left between them with arms spread. There, she pulled Lena into a tight embrace, arms wrapping around her form and hands pressed to her back. "It's good to see you." She replied honestly.
When Clarke took her hand, Natalie raised her eyebrows. The trainer was overtly aware of the difference in her friend, all seemingly coming from the talk between them, though she didn't complain on the matter. If anything, she was glad to see her friend progressing after years of practically nothing. When the credits rolled, she turned down the volume, curious what her friend had to say over the first superhero movie they watched together.
"Hmm, maybe." Really, Natalie didn't notice too much on it. It was clear in the film that they were pinning Jane against Thor, but she couldn't deny that the two females had an on screen chemistry.
She rolled her shoulders, stretching her back muscles. At the first sign of movement, Oz jumped into her lap, drawing a lap out of the brunette. "But how'd you like it overall? I mean it's so different than metas that it was hard to compare to us at all." Especially considering the main character was more of a god than anything else.
Nat had no desire to put any real distance in place, and as the lawyer shifted, she did her best to keep it at a minimum as she pressed her back against the sheets and shifted herself on top of her. To cement her reassurance, she caught her lips again, and once more between breaths with sweet intention.
Control was unfamiliar, but Teddy had a strange way of giving the trainer a confidence she didn't know existed. While it ran through her veins, she wasn't about to let the moment pass.
She claimed to not know how, and to an extent, Nat had to believe that. The redhead wasn't particularly close with anyone, even the person labeled as her best friend. Though it didn't mean that she couldn't try to change - were that what she actually wanted. Her concern lingered on Clarke as she watched her wipe away her tears.
Again, she tried to shift the subject back towards the trainer, and Natalie shook her head, putting a hand up to try and stop her friend. The breakdown her friend just had was enough to put the conversation on hold. "Let's finish the movie," she suggested instead. It was evident that Clarke didn't want to keep going on the subject of herself at this rate, and she thought going back to the film would offer some sort of comfort. She reached for the remote, hitting play before slinging an arm around Clarke's shoulders and pulling her close as a reminder that she wasn't going to push her away.
