Autumn Storm

Inside, she reached for the hanger, where she kept all her keys, and pulled one of the spare ones from the keychain. She offered it to Ivaylo, who reached out for it. She saw his claws and for a moment she hesitated. Will be that okay, to let a stranger Beastman live here?

Doubts filled her heart. If I will back away now, he will get angry... he could attack... She placed it on the shoe cabinet next to him to avoid any physical contact and entered the apartment. Their coexisting began...

First, they had to figure out the sleeping arrangement. Ivaylo claimed the window sitting area as his new "bed". She was baffled, she thought he would take her bed, but got surprised after he chose that specific spot. He couldn't admit that he tried it out before and loved that soft fluffy mattress.

She looked in that direction... is he a cat? I thought he was a canine type. The young lady smiled over it and entered the kitchen to cook dinner. Despite him having eaten not so long time ago, he still ate up everything that she prepared.

The next morning sleepy, she walked out of her bedroom stretching out. "I can smell blood..." She got startled and turned towards the window. That handsome Beastman was sitting there, blanket wrapped under his shoulders, dipped in the morning sun watching her intently. He looked like a handsome prince out of a fairy tale.

For her, it was that time of the month, she just realized it and hid her face in her palms flustered. "It's just my period..." she whispered. Those damn Beastman senses. Taken aback, Ivaylo didn't expect this answer and swiftly averted his face from her. Awkward, but this was bound to happen sooner or later... this specific situation.

Beastwomen always hide it by using different products that block the smell, than human women. Ivaylo got flustered into silence. At the same time, it was waking up a different, physical interest in that human woman. He needed to brush it off his mind as soon, as possible. It's disgusting! How could he think about her in that way?!



The coming days came and went peacefully. They seldom talked, just when Ivaylo needed something or when she tried to say something, he always shot her down. "You know this weekend I will go..." Ivaylo didn't even look her way. "I don't care about your whereabouts. Go wherever you like." She just always smiled slightly.

Work became easier since he didn't need to travel that much and it took away from that stress. They got used to the presence of each other and it soothed their souls. Autumn rain brought also some storms. This week was the worst.

Ivaylo doesn't mind strong rain, but the lightning and thunder... He had very sensitive ears and got overstimulated quite easily because of that. It was his biggest fear since he was a kid. That loud sound sometimes shook him to the core.

One particular evening, he came "home" running with his hands pressing his ears against his skull. That surprised the human girl and tried to figure out the situation. A flash of lightning struck, Ivaylo flinched, and soon after came the thunder, which made him crumble into a ball of misery in front of the TV table.

She saw it and came to his aid. "What should I do? How can I help you?" She was worried about him, she never saw him like this. Swiftly she grabbed the blanket from under the window and covered the whole Beastman with it. The girl knew only his cold arrogant Beast self.

She inched closer and he swiped out at her with his hand because he was startled. She saw the claws and fell backward to the floor scared. Another flash and she looked at the window and understood. Quickly the human woman covered the window with the curtain but it didn't help, the sound still came through.

Her bedroom! It had a better soundproofed window and door since she hates loud sounds as well, and that won't let her sleep *light sleeper* so she made this little "upgrade" some time ago.

She swung open the door of her bedroom, stepped inside, and called for him with a stretched-out hand. "Come here!" He slowly pushed himself up from the cold wooden floor and walked inside with the blanket over his head and shoulders. She undid the cover on the bed and pointed with her finger for him to lie down.

Ivaylos's eyes were switching from her to the bed multiple times and then he just obliged. She covered him with the blanket. "This is a special weighted blanket. I like it especially because it makes me feel like someone is hugging me and I don't feel that lonely..."

Without any more words, she closed the door behind herself with the plan to sleep in the living room. She was right. It really felt like someone was hugging him. The blanket was drenched in her sweet scent and made him think that that woman was embracing him right now. It was so silent, so fragrant and so comfortable, that Ivaylo fell asleep in the split of a second.

Sometime later, she silently entered her bedroom checking on Ivaylo. He was sound asleep clutching to her pillow hugging it tightly with his face dipped in it. She was worried he may suffocate and chuckled for herself. So, he does have a weakness... Never expected storms...

Ivaylo turned in his sleep and she got startled, that she woke him up, but he was sweet dreaming right now. He looked so cute and innocent, not like that cold-hearted glaring Beast he pretended to be.

She needed some stuff to get from the closet. This weekend, she will leave for her hometown to be with her gran-gran. She took those two days off for that purpose. Ivaylo didn't know about it, well she tried to tell him... Nonetheless, she will cook something for him, for tomorrow and then he will be on his own until she returns Sunday evening.

In the morning Ivaylo woke up unintentionally holding and nuzzling her pillow. He dropped it as soon, as he noticed and sat up while scratching his head. For a short moment, he was confused about where he was but then he remembered. That storm yesterday and her offering him a safe space to sleep...

He walked out of the bedroom to be met with silence and a note on the kotatsu. "I will be back Sunday, I prepared breakfast for you and some food in the refrigerator. See you!" Hmmm... Sunday she said. Nevermind! Ivaylo shrugged his shoulders and sat down to eat, what she made for him.