athena ➢ sherlock's daughter

Chapter 25

Studying for Exams, and Feelings

Riley and Joseph were lingering on her mind far too often for her to be considered sane. The very thought of Riley brought up hope and sadness, companionship and betrayal. But Joseph brought only two things, vulnerability and betrayal.

If there was one thing Athena Holmes did not ever want to be, it was vulnerable. The word itself merely refused to roll off her lips. She spent far too long in her life being vulnerable. Abuse, kidnapping, fear, isolation- those things brought the harshest vulnerability out of her. And that was something she did not want to go back to. The emotionless robot-esque demeanor she forced herself into was a result of vulnerability.

She did not want to go back to that. But she was afraid that if she wanted Riley back, she would need to make herself just the smallest bit vulnerable. She would need to share herself a tiny bit.

That's why she found herself outside his front door, maybe not in the best attire for the occasion. Her hair was thrown up messily and she stood in a pair of fleece pajamas. It was approximately seven p.m. And thank god he was the one to come to the door.

"Athena?" he asked shakily. "What're you doing? Come inside, you're gonna freeze."

She shook her head. "I have to say this while I still have the nerve. I know that you've already moved on. I know that I might be way too late. I know that I don't deserve for you to say anything back to me because I've been blind my entire life. But I understand why you've been so great to me. I understand why you have stayed so long. And I love you too. And if for some reason you don't love me anymore, then just I love you."

Riley stood there with a stupefied expression for a moment before clearing his throat. "You... You love me..." he breathed. Then, he grinned largely and stepped out of the doorway and onto his front porch, leaving little space between them. "I have been waiting three years for you to say that."

As he dipped his head toward hers, she stopped him. "What about Trinity?"

"Forget Trinity, she's a bitch. That was the worst date of my life," he said before grabbing her hand and dragging her inside. "You're staying here tonight, just because Mum is making chicken alfredo and I love you too."

She stopped waking behind him, which caused him to stop too. "You can't just be that casual about it," she laughed. "I don't quite think it's on par with your mum's chicken alfredo."

He smirked. "I beg to differ. Chicken alfredo- especially by Mum- is like the best food on the planet."

She grinned. "Whatever, you dork. What were you doing when I showed up anyways?"

"Studying for the Spanish exam," he frowns. "What were you doing before you decided to...?"

"I too was studying for said dreaded exam," she giggled. Then, in mock contemplation, she said, "By Joe! Maybe we should study together!"

He laughed. "And you call me a dork."

She rolled her eyes and pushed his face. Grinning devilishly, Riley reached for her, but she ran towards the kitchen. Athena, however- being Athena and all- was the least athletic one could get, so he grabbed her around the waist smoothly. For a moment she struggled, until she felt Riley swing her around and place her onto her feet. They were laughing breathlessly as she turned to face him.

As their eyes met, they're laughing slowed, as did their breathing. Little distance was left between the two, and Athena felt her heart quicken and blood rush to her face. The world seemed to slow down around her as Riley leaned closer to her, and she found herself leaning a bit too. Their lips met slowly.

Athena really hated to say that she saw fireworks behind her closed eyelids, but there was no other way to describe it. Emotion exploded inside her, illuminating her entire being as she kissed him.

Riley was not one for cliches. After all, he's kissed plenty of girls. But now, kissing the girl he loved most in the world, he felt whole. More than whole, even. He felt so many feelings he simply could not describe how he felt.

Then, they're lips parted. Riley's hormones were coursing through him, and he didn't want to stop, but he respected Athena's boundaries. Contrary to common belief, she didn't either. Something inside of her clicked, and she finally realized what everyone was talking about when they said they wanted someone. She was confused- she was at least 90% sure she was asexual. What was this? Was she demisexual? What was happening? Nevertheless, she smiled as Riley's hand drifted across her cheek.

"I didn't want to stop," she admitted.

He blinked. "But you're-"

"I've got time to figure it out, I guess," she smiled.

Oh god, this was not helping to control him at all.

Despite their desires, they patted a little more and Riley cleared his throat. "So Spanish, yeah?"

Athena found herself laughing. "You do have a way with words."

"Oh hush, before I start speaking in only Spanish."

"Oh no."

"No, señorita. Creo que te refieres 'oh sí.'"

She wrinkled her nose and smacked his shoulder lightly. "I don't know what that means."

He rolled his eyes. "Okay, Miss 4.5 GPA."

"Whatever, Mr. I Don't Think I'm Gonna Pass, Oh Wait I Made A 100."

Riley grinned goofily at her before linking their hands and leading her upstairs to his room, where they did, in fact, study Spanish- get your minds out of the gutter.

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AN:

1. I am deleting Brave and Reckless, but I did post what would've happened, so please check that out!

2. I have a poetry book up called Introspection! So if you're willing, please give that a read and maybe a vote?

Love you all! Hope you enjoyed it!