Serena
Chapter 19- Lovers at Last
 

        I awoke to the soft touch of Tuxedo Mask's hand on my face.  My first reaction was to hold it there, but I let his hand rub my cheek a while longer before taking it in my hand and kissing his wrist.  I opened my eyes to find his face very close to mine.  He was looking at me and smiling.  I rolled closer to him and moved around so that my head now rested on his chest.  He began mindlessly running his fingers through my long hair.  I pulled the covers down to just under my arms.  I put my arm around his body and was now lying half on him.  I looked into his face.
        "Good morning, my love." he said as he touched my cheek and rubbed it with his thumb.
        "Good morning.  Did you sleep well?" I asked.
        "Oh, Serena.  I slept better than I have in years." he replied.  I leaned in and kissed him.  He returned the kiss full-heartedly and pulled the covers over our heads.  I laughed.
        We made love again, but this time, we did not fall asleep immediately afterwards.  This time we stayed up and talked to each other.  Now that each of us knew how the other felt, we found a new level of trust and openness that we had never had before.  He was lying to my right and was now on his side.  I reached out and touched the patch over his left eye.  It seemed to surprise him.
        "Do you ever take this off?" I asked, curiosity suddenly sparking my interest.
        Tuxedo Mask squirmed and the smile left his face.  He looked away.
        "No.  I never have."
        "What happened?"  He paused for a long moment, as if gathering strength to answer the question.
        "I was in a plane crash.  I woke up and I had a laceration that reached all the way across my eyelid and across part of my brow.  It scarred.  The eye is fine, but I don't like to look at the scar."  He said it as if he was ashamed.  As if he was traumatized by it.  It was just a scar.  I had one on my stomach from surgery when I was eight.  Besides, most men I knew loved showing off their 'battle scars'.
        "Can I see?" I asked.
        Tuxedo Mask sighed.  He obviously did not want me to know that this bothered him so much.  His hands shook as he raised them to the patch.  I had always found the patch sexy.  But now I wanted to see what it was that he felt the need to hide.
        He removed the patch and I saw his full face for the first time.  He avoided eye contact with me and I could tell he was embarrassed.  The scar was not all that bad.  It was long, but not quite as puffed out as most scars I had seen.  I reached to him and brought his face close.  I kissed the scar.  I kissed his temple and made my way back to the scar.  It was only at this point that I realized he was crying.  He left my lips and put his head against my chest.  I did not understand why this bothered him so much.  All I knew is that I would comfort him.  I held him against me and ran my fingers through his hair.
        "I love you so much, Tux.  I would never do anything to hurt you.  It is all right."
        I held him a while longer.  Then he started kissing my neck and face before he raised himself out of the bed.  He sat up and leaned over the edge and grabbed his clothes.  He put on his boxers and turned back to me.  He smiled.
        "You are so beautiful." he told me.  The way he said it made me think that it was a comment half to himself and half to me.  He got his pants on.  I rolled over to where he was and reached down.  I grabbed the shirt lying on the floor.  I brought it up and sat up.  I kneeled on the bed facing him.  I put the shirt around his shoulders and was about to begin doing up the buttons when he said, "Serena, honestly.  I need to go.  Now you should know I won't be able to tear myself away from you if the last image of you I have is you doing up my shirt, naked."
        I looked down.  I had forgotten that I, too, needed clothes.  He handed me my robe, which I had placed on the chair.  I put it on and did up his shirt.
        "You are coming back tonight, right?" I asked.
        "Princess, you couldn't keep me away if you tried."  He gave me one final kiss before departing by way of my balcony.  He certainly had gotten bolder.  Before, he would never be caught going in and out of his house during the daytime.

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