As Hawk stepped into the tattoo shop, the first thing he saw was Sky lying face down on the tattooing table, naked from the waist up. Rico was working on her left shoulder blade and looked up as he heard Hawk approaching.

"Hi, bro," he said, and Hawk gave a nod as a greeting.

Of course, Sky would be half-naked since it was the back of her shoulder that was being tattooed, but still, that sight hit Hawk like a wrecking ball. He hadn't been expecting to see her like this, barely decent in the presence of another guy.

He's just doing his job for fuck's sake. This is not the time to throw a fit.

"Hi babe," he said, walking closer - and hearing his voice, Sky carefully lifted her head to see him.

A ghost of a smile touched her lips, but she was pale and looked tired. "You came."

"I said I would. Sorry it took a bit longer." He grabbed a chair and sat down next to the table. "How do you feel?"

"Okay," Sky said. "A bit sore."

Hawk glanced at the design on her skin and realized it was some kind of a bird. A bird on her shoulder, the feathers of its long tail ran down her arm, the spread wings covered the front and the back of her shoulder. The bird's head curved towards Sky's neck, a delicate head with long, beautifully drawn feathers and a sharp beak that was opened as if the bird was singing, or screeching. The tattoo was far from finished, only the black outlines were drawn, and it was obviously going to be a colored design, but still, it looked awesome. And yet, it made his chest tighten.

"You're having a scar covering tattoo," he breathed.

"Yeah," Sky replied silently. "What do you think about it?"

"I think it's gonna look super cool."

Because what else could he say? He didn't feel like Sky's scar needed to be covered. He loved that scar because it was a part of her. He loved to kiss it, to feel the hollow in the middle of the star shape, he loved it because it was a part of her story, and there wasn't anything he didn't love about her.

But at the same time, he knew how much she hated the sight of the scar, and not just because she thought it was ugly (which it wasn't), but because seeing it always made her think about the day when Kat had died. And if covering the scar would make her pain diminish even a bit, then she should definitely go for it.

"It's a phoenix," Sky said silently. "It's gonna look so great when it's done, the feathers are gonna be all fire and flame."

"A phoenix?" Hawk turned his gaze from the tattoo to her eyes which were partly covered by her hair.

"Kat used to call me that," she said simply, as if it explained everything, as if there wasn't a whole story behind that short sentence. A story Hawk wanted to hear, but something in Sky's voice told him this wasn't the time or place to ask more.

"I love it," he said. "The name and the tattoo."

Sky didn't reply, but as Hawk reached to take her hand (the right one, not the one that was tattooed), she took it and their fingers entwined. Rico continued to work on the tattoo, drawing precise, black lines of the phoenix's tall feathers on Sky's shoulder blade, and the only sound in the room was the soft buzzing of the tattoo machine.

"You're not gonna be able to do karate this week," Hawk told her after a while.

Sky groaned. "I know. Sensei will be so pissed."

"Yeah, but he's always pissed," Hawk noted with a dry laugh. "You'd better tell him the reason, though. He's gonna think that tattoo is badass."

"True."

"Does your dad know, by the way? About the tattoo?"

"No. But I'm gonna tell him."

"Tonight?"

She shook her head. "When the tattoo is finished. But I think he's gonna be cool with it. He has some tattoos of his own."

Hawk felt his brows arching high. "He does?"

"Yeah," Sky replied with a smile. "Didn't you know?"

"Nope. I didn't."

He briefly thought about his own dad, his business suits and his thinning hair, his short temper and his absence in Hawk's life, and a hollow pain filled his heart. Dad sure as Hell didn't have tattoos. And Hawk suspected dad didn't even know that he had one, if Mom had ever told him that. If Dad knew, he hadn't said anything about it.

"My dad got them pretty young, I guess," Sky said, oblivious to Hawk's thoughts. "He has my Mom's name tattooed on his arm and my name on the other one. And then some Latin quotes," she rolled her eyes, "But hey, you're gonna see them when we go to Italy. The villa has a pool."

Italy. They were still going to go to Italy, and he was going to spend time with Sky at a pool, and suddenly that felt like the most amazing thing. He pushed the lingering thoughts about his dad determinedly off his mind and replaced them with an image of Sky in a hot bikini. They had never gone to a beach or a pool together, so he had never seen her in a bathing suit, but he knew she would look so fucking amazing.

And they were gonna be together. Together. She still loved him and everything was going to be okay.

"We're done for the day," Rico said, and turned off the machine, drawing Hawk back to the moment. "Let's continue tomorrow. You holding up okay, Sky?"

"I'm fine," she replied softly. "Thank you."

"Any time," Rico said and started cleaning the tattoo.

After the tattoo was covered in a bandage, Sky sat up, and modestly covered her breasts with a hand and a forearm, even if Rico wasn't looking - his concentration was already on disposing of the used needles. Hawk tossed Sky her T-shirt, and she pulled it on, making a soft hiss when she had to raise her arm. She didn't even try to put on the bra but folded it in her bag, and even if there was a truly legit reason for not wearing it, Hawk's mouth still went dry as he watched how the T-shirt brushed her chest and revealed the shape of her boobs.

Quickly he looked up and cleared his throat. This was so not the time for that kind of thought - fucking Hell, Sky was all pale and tired and sore, and suddenly it hit Hawk that she probably hadn't eaten anything all day either.

"Ready, Phoenix?" He asked and held out a hand for her, to help her.

"It's been a long time since anyone called me that."

A small smile touched her lips as she took his hand. "But I like it."

A half an hour later they were sitting on the beach, having milkshakes. When Hawk had asked about it, Sky had admitted she hadn't eaten anything either, so he had insisted she got something before heading home.

The wind came from the sea, and it was fresh with a tang of salt. It washed away the dirty smell of the cars and the streets that always lingered in the City, and it caused Sky's hair to fly around her face so that she had to constantly pull the strands behind her ears.

Hawk glanced at her and ran his fingers through his own hair. He didn't like it when it wasn't up. The smooth, blue strands that fell to his forehead looked stupid - but he hadn't had time to do the mohawk before heading out. Besides, Sky loved his hair like this, he knew. She loved running her fingers through it when they were kissing.

Which they weren't doing at the moment. They were both sucking the straws of their milkshakes (strawberry for her, plain vanilla for him) and silence sat between them like a living thing.

"So," Hawk finally said - very much aware of the fact that either one would have to start talking about what had happened, and it seemed like it wasn't gonna be her. "You wanna know what happened today?"

"You decided to murder the punching bag?" She asked. "Your knuckles look bad. You should be more careful."

Hawk glanced at his bruised and bloodied knuckles and shrugged. "Nothing but a scratch."

"Okay then," she went back to her Milkshake.

"Mom knows we're having sex."

Sky almost choked on her milkshake and started coughing hard, her face turning red.

"Shit, Eli!" She managed when finally able to speak again. "How the Hell did that happen? And how come you aren't grounded?"

"I forgot to put the bedsheets back," he shrugged. "So it was kinda obvious. But she wasn't really mad, just... wanted to talk about it."

"You had the talk?"

"I guess," he replied with a small smile. "It wasn't that bad, though. Just a little... awkward."

Sky took another sip of her milkshake. "So, what did she say? Am I forbidden to step a foot inside your house from now on?"

"No, actually. She basically said what your dad said too - that if we do it, she doesn't wanna see or hear and we should use protection."

That caused Sky to smirk at him. Her cheeks blushed a bit and she pulled her hair back behind her ear.

"Nice," she hummed. "Your mom is a lot more chill than I thought she would be."

Hawk silently agreed with her. He had been sure Mom would ground him for years and confiscate all his earthly goods if she ever found out he was banging his girlfriend - but instead Mom had been... kinda cool about it. And she had been there for him when he'd been breaking into pieces. That was no small thing.

Hawk reached a hand and took Sky's small hand in his again. He wanted to pull her close and kiss her, but something between them still felt fragile and he didn't want to break it. He was also painfully aware of the fact that they still hadn't talked about what had happened in bed and that they really, really needed to talk about it if they were ever going to have sex again.

Which he very much wanted to have.

It was as if she was the drug and he was the addict. Just being near her made his heartbeat quicken, and feeling her palm against his own turned his breathing shallow and fast. He couldn't help but glance at the front of her T-shirt from time to time, and the sight of her nipples under the fabric of the shirt was like a dose of that drug straight into his veins.

Jesus Christ, what's wrong with me?

I bet that sex with me is the fucking last thing in her mind right now.

And truly, she pulled her hand from his and her eyes turned to the horizon. The sun was setting, and it painted her hair with all the shades of pink and gold, like she had a halo of fire around her.

"I want you to know that you did nothing wrong," she said after a silence that must have lasted a couple of minutes if not more.

"But... Sky, I hurt you." He swallowed. "I... I fucked up."

Her cheeks began to turn pink again, and she looked down, at her hands that were holding the milkshake.

"I liked it," she said so silently that the sound of the waves almost drowned her words.

"What?"

"I said I liked it," she breathed. "I loved it."

He opened his mouth to say something, but words failed him, so he closed it again and wet his lips.

"But... then, why—?"

"I wanna be able to have that kind of sex with you," she said, her blush deepening. "Like, a bit rough. Or trying some... things."

Hawk felt like his brain was melting as he tried to understand what she meant by things. All kinds of ideas swarmed his mind and he let out a soft, hot breath.

"What do you mean?" he asked, the sound of his voice in his ears low and raspy. He drew his knees against his chest to hide the effect this conversation was beginning to have on him.

"I mean that you did nothing wrong," a small silence. "It felt good. Like, really good."

Jesus Christ, hearing her say things like that worked like an aphrodisiac. There was nothing better than knowing that he had managed to please her in the bed, to remember her trembling thighs around his hips, the way her back arched off the bed when she climaxed. But then, the memory of what had happened after she came, hit him like a bucket of cold water.

"Then why did you freak out?"

"Because it caused a flashback." she breathed. "Of a moment when I was hurt. When I didn't feel good at all."

His chest tightened. He knew what she was talking about, even if she had never told him in so many details. All she had said about it was that Matt had hurt her in bed, but sometimes Hawk wondered if there was more to it. He wasn't sure if he wanted to know, and so far Sky hadn't wanted to share more. But just the thought of anyone hurting Sky like that was enough to make him want to draw blood. It was a good thing that Matt was in prison - otherwise, Hawk would've found him and beaten him into a puddle of bloody squish.

Realizing that his hands gripping her wrists had reminded Sky of Matt, made Hawk's stomach turn. The arousal he had felt earlier had now vanished completely.

"I don't want us to do anything that makes you feel like that," he said, trying to keep his voice level. "If something doesn't feel good, you need to let me know. Like right away."

She glanced at him. The light of the setting sun made her eyes glow like emeralds. "And I don't want you to be scared of touching me."

"Okay," he replied, but that was a lie.

He was scared already - scared of hurting her, scared of causing her another flashback, scared of her not telling him if it didn't feel good. He wanted to say to her that he would rather go without sex altogether than cause her pain, but the words wouldn't come out of his mouth.

They finished their milkshakes in silence and watched how the sun went down. For a short moment, the sky was pink and golden, but soon it would turn dark, first into the shades of purple until it would be so deep blue it was almost black. And then you could see the stars - not clearly here, of course, they were too close to the city where the light pollution destroyed any chance of seeing all but the very brightest ones, but still. Hawk had always loved space. One birthday he had gotten a real telescope as a present, and he had spent many nights in their backyard trying to see the rings of Saturn, the craters and oceans of the moon. That telescope was now gone, of course, because he wasn't a nerd anymore, stacked into a box and hidden in the attic.

It didn't mean he couldn't enjoy watching stars on the beach with his girlfriend, though.

Sky tossed her empty milkshake cup into a nearby trash bin and lay down on the sand, her eyes in the darkening sky. The warm wind carried the salty taste of the ocean, and the sand too still held the heat of the day as Hawk lay down on it by Sky's side. The constant roar of the waves hitting the shore filled the world, the sound both soothing and exhilarating. His heart felt heavy in his chest, his body was tense and restless after all the training he had done today, but also because of all the things they had talked about and especially the ones they hadn't.

The silence between them lasted for a long time, but it was that kind of silence that didn't need filling. When the first stars finally appeared in the now black sky, she turned to look at him.

"Tell me about that fantasy where I'm kissing a girl." she said silently, and whatever he had been expecting, it sure hadn't been that.

"What..." he wet his lips. "Why do you wanna know about that?"

"Because I wanna think about something fun."

Hawk swallowed hard. His heart was climbing up his throat, he felt every individual beat, their quickening rhythm ticking in his veins. Sky's face was pale, but her eyes were dark and her lips slightly parted.

"You are... lying on my bed, naked." he told her, his words slow and hesitant. "And there is another girl too."

Just a nameless girl, just somebody. Not anyone Sky could know, especially not Moon.

"Go on," Sky said softly with a small smile playing in the corner of her lips.

He had to clear his throat, but it didn't really help. "She's on top of you."

"Oh," Sky grinned teasingly. "Am I the submissive one?"

"Yeah."

"So, what is she doing to me?"

Fucking Hell.

The teasing gleam in her eyes together with the fantasy that had been haunting him since he had first seen Sky dancing with Moon in that canyon party, was having a certain effect on Hawk. He couldn't help the awakening arousal and it made his voice thick in his throat.

"She's kissing you. Your lips, your neck... your boobs."

"Nice," Sky breathed, and took her lower lip between her teeth.

They lay a couple of feet apart, but now Hawk rolled to his side to face her. It felt like he had ants crawling on his skin, butterflies flapping their wings in his belly. Looking deep into Sky's dark, green eyes, he went on.

"And she's touching your..." he had to pause, to clear his throat. "She's touching your clit. Just the way you like it - gently, not too hard."

"Is she any good?"

"Oh, she's good," Hawk said with a soft, dark laugh. "You're fucking loving it."

Sky giggled, her cheeks blushed. "What am I doing?"

"You're begging for more."

"And what are you doing?"

Holy fuck.

He swallowed hard. "I am... touching myself."

He fought the instinct to lay his hand on his aching dick and to palm himself through the pants. Even if the beach wasn't crowded, and the wind silenced their voices so that they were unlikely to be overheard, he sure didn't want to draw any attention to his situation.

Her brows arched high and she gave him a smirk, glancing at his hard-on. "That doesn't sound too exciting."

"Oh, it is exciting, trust me."

And he would be doing just that when he got home. He would grab his dick hard and jerk off to this image - not the fantasy he had been telling her about, but this - Sky on the beach, sand in her hair, looking at him like this, starlight in her eyes.

"I would like to see that sometimes." she said softly and Hawk almost choked.

"What—?" He rasped. "You wanna see me—?"

"Yeah." She bit her lip teasingly. "That's hot."

If he hadn't been hard already, he sure was now. Sky wanted to see him jerk off? She thought that was hot?

"That's your fantasy?" he let out, his voice barely more than a groan.

"Maybe," she hummed. "Is that what you're thinking about when you do it? That fantasy about me and some other girl?"

Jesus Christ he was going to come into his pants soon, just for talking with her.

"Sometimes," he confessed, and moved closer to her, close enough to see every individual freckle on the bridge of her nose. He ran his fingers through her hair and she let out a soft sigh.

"Mostly I just think about you." he breathed. "The things we've done. Or things I'd like to do with you."

"Oh?" Her lips parted and she smiled at him. "And what are those things?"

"Enough," he breathed. "Now it's your turn to tell me something. Do you... think about me when you... touch yourself?"