To Make It Better
(Tom Sato x F!MC*Taylor Vance) in a Choices It Lives Beneath drabble
Thirty Kisses in Thirty Days Challenge with the prompt: kisses against a wound.
A/N I've wanted to write for these two for a long time. One of my favorite scenes in It Lives Beneath is when Tom offers to help the MC with some first aid on the cult boat (and realizes he's in love *sigh*). I think, given how adorably sweet he is that he would have offered to treat her wounds in previous chapters. In this drabble, I'm going to have it happen after the attack at the gala.
Rating: Mature for brief mentions of violence and death *trigger warnings*
Masterlist
Taylor couldn't wrap her head around all that happened. The past events themselves defied belief. There really is a cult in Pine Springs! Her grandfather was not only a member but had also admitted to being part of the group who killed her parents. Then the monsters coming out of the woods to attack were just the icing on the cake.
And let's not forget the weird ghost skeleton in the lake who tried to drown her brother, Elliot.
If that wasn't enough to kill her, at least in spirit, then the rich jerk who was hosting the party tried to finish the job.
Remembering how it felt to be lifted in the air made Taylor shiver. The weird, mystical power Richard Sutcliffe used to choke her without even touching her made chill bumps erupt across her skin.
"What a night." Taylor mumbled as she collapsed in one of the kitchen chairs.
She gazed around her grandfather's kitchen. The log cabin had seemed cozy when she and Elliot first moved in. Now, she wondered at the shadows. They possessed a slightly ominous edge to them since she knew the kind of man her grandfather was.
Is he really a murderer? Is that why Mom and Dad never had him come around while I was growing up? Did they know Grandpa was evil?
A knock at the door made Taylor nearly jump out of her skin. Fear trickled down her spine as she crept quietly to peep out the window.
Her body relaxed once she made out Tom's faint outline in the porch light.
"Hey." She motioned for him to come in. "What are you doing here?"
"I was worried about you." Tom ducked his head bashfully with that admittance. "When Imogen's dad said he needed to talk privately to you and Elliot, I knew I couldn't horn in."
"That's really sweet of you." Taylor said. "You want to sit down?"
"Yeah!" He cleared his throat. "That'd be um, yeah."
They went into the living room and sat down on the couch.
"What's in the box?" She asked.
Tom looked down in surprise as if seeing the box he'd carried over for the first time.
"It's a first aid kit." His cheeks heated with color. "I um, I noticed you got banged up tonight and thought you could use some help."
He gestured towards her left shoulder. "You were bleeding there earlier."
"You could tell?" Taylor joked. "I thought wearing a red dress would hide that sort of thing."
Tom grinned at her. "What can I say? Nothing gets past these sharp eyes of mine."
He pushed his glasses up then popped the top off the container. He began to tske out bandages along with antiseptic spray and cream.
Taylor bit down on her bottom lip as she carefully eased her nightshirt off her shoulder.
Tom winced at the sight of deep gashes along the once flawless skin. He gently touched near the wound while studying it.
"Give it to me straight, Doc." Taylor looked over her shoulder at him. "Will I live?"
"You'll live." He began to clean it with some alcohol. "It's going to hurt like hell for a while, but you'll make it."
Taylor sucked in a painful breath when he dabbed at the deepest part of her scratches.
"Sorry." Tom gently rubbed her back with his free hand. "We have to clean this before I bandage you up."
"I know." Taylor hissed when fresh alcohol was added. "Damn weird snake bear thing! I'd like to rip its claws out!"
Tom fought a grin as she described all the ways she would tear the monster apart if it ever crossed her path again.
He next applied some antibacterial cream. It had some type of numbing agent that helped Taylor calm down.
"That feels good." She mumbled, relaxing back some closer to him.
"Yeah?'
"Yeah."
Tom added more, gently dabbing it into every crevice of the claw mark.
He reached for a set of gauze.
"Still good?" He checked.
"Yep." Taylor looked at him over her shoulder. "Though I think there is something that could make it better."
"What's that?" Tom searched through the first aid kit. "Other than sutures, I don't think I have anything else that can help heal it faster."
"Haven't you ever heard of kissing to make it better?" She asked.
Tom's face turned beet red. He nervously tucked a lock of his own hair behind his ear while debating on whether or not she was serious.
Does she really want me to kiss her on her shoulder?
After all, they had already kissed a couple of days ago. Granted, she'd been the one to kiss him. But still...he really wanted to kiss her again.
"I uh, I don't think you want me kissing your wound." He stammered.
"Maybe not directly." Taylor replied. "But I wouldn't say no to some kisses around it."
Tom blinked as he stared at her shoulder.
Taylor softly sighed. She knew she shouldn't pressure him into kissing her. She simply couldn't help herself. When she first met Tom Sato, she'd been instantly smitten. Seeing him take out the first monster who attacked her made her fall even harder for him. Take that and add in the fact that he believed her story about the ghost in the lake without question, she knew she was almost in love with him.
He was everything she'd been looking for in a guy. He was sweet. He had a great sense of humor. And...Tom was incredibly brave.
Why wouldn't I fall hard for---
Taylor remained perfectly still when she felt the first brush of his soft lips upon her skin. Her eyes closed over the strange flutters zigzagging in her stomach as he dotted gentle kisses around her wound.
His arms slid around her waist as he pressed a sweet kiss to the side of her neck.
"How's that?" Tom's voice was deeper with emotion than it had been before.
"Perfect." Taylor whispered.
"Then let's get you bandaged up."
Once he finished, the two settled closer to one another on the couch.
"You want to talk about what went down tonight?"
Taylor scooted even closer to his side while shaking her head.
Tom quietly touched her arm in understanding.
"Would you mind staying?" She asked. "At least for a little while?"
"I don't mind at all."
Taylor lifted his arm and snuggled under it, pulling it around her.
Tom grinned at her doing so.
"Comfortable?" He teased.
"Very." She pressed a tender kiss to his cheek. "Thank you, you know, for being here and helping me with everything."
He brushed another kiss on her lips. "Anytime."
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