NOVEL NEXT Chapter 36: Finally Tamed?
Seeing her this close, without the immediate threat of death, Adrian felt a strange, reckless courage. A thought came to his mind that others would've described as dumb and dangerous.
Slowly, so slowly that his movements seemed comparable to a tortoises, he raised his hand, palm open and empty, towards her face.
She reacted instantly, jerking back with a sharp hiss, her body coiling again defensively, a flash of the aggressive predator returning.
Adrian froze, then just as slowly, retracted his hand. He didn't show fear. He didn't get angry. He just waited, his breathing steady, his gaze holding hers as if waiting for her to calm down. He didn't blame her for reaction, in all honesty, he expected it.
After a moment, when she saw he wasn't attacking, her defensive posture relaxed slightly. Witnessing the green light he'd been looking for, He tried again, repeating the same slow, deliberate movement, raising his hand towards her cheek.
Again, she flinched away, a low growl rumbling in her chest. Her claws flexed at her sides.
Again, Adrian retracted his hand. He was playing the most dangerous game of his life, a game where the rules were unknown and the penalty for a mistake was a gruesome death. He was telling her, without words, that he meant no harm. That he was patient. That he would not force this.
He did it a third time. And a fourth. Each time, her reaction was a little less violent, a little less immediate. The fifth time, she still tensed, but she didn't hiss or pull away. She just watched his approaching hand with a wary, intense focus.
On the sixth try, his fingertips finally made contact with the skin of her cheek.
It was surprisingly cold to the touch. As if he'd touched upon not skin but a chilling ice sculpture, yet that supposed icy sculpture was softer than he expected. He held his breath, expecting her to tear his arm off. But she didn't move. Her eyes were wide, unblinking while continuing to watch him, a strange light emerging deep within her eyes.
After waiting, this time, He began to move his thumb, gently caressing against her skin, just below her eye. He could feel the fine structure of her cheekbone, the slight tension in her jaw. She was utterly still, a statue coming to life under his touch.
The last of the aggression seemed to melt from her posture. Her shoulders slumped, and the dangerous glint in her serpentine blue eyes softened into something closer to bewilderment. A soft, almost inaudible sound, not a hiss or a growl, but something like a relaxing breath escaped her lips.
It was working. He continued to gently touch her, the both of them soon began to enjoy each others company, in a way. It was as if he was silently apologising for intruding, a wordless plea for peace.
And then, it happened.
Just as he was starting to believe he had reached her, her body suddenly tensed again with shocking speed. Her powerful tail, which had been resting on the ground, whipped forward and coiled around him once more, pinning his arms again, though not with the bone-crushing force from before.
It felt more like she was confused with her own actions, to think that she actually felt comfortable towards a humans touch. The thought of it made her feel perplexed. Her face was now a mask of conflicting emotions, confusion, curiosity, and a deep-seated wariness of the man Infront of her that seemed to draw out something hidden deep within her.
Adrian's instincts screamed at him to fight, to struggle, to panic, his mind kept telling him that she had stopped trusting him, trying to crush his hopes, pushing him towards reason. But he fought them down, forcing his body to remain calm in her grip. He didn't try to pull away. Instead, even as his heart tried to beat its way out of his chest, he lifted his hand again and, with the same infinite slowness, brought it back to her cheek, resuming the gentle caress.
The surprise in her eyes was unmistakable. She had expected fear. She had expected a struggle. She had not expected this… this continued gentleness. It seemed to short-circuit her aggressive instincts.
With a hurried, almost jerky motion, she uncoiled her tail from around him and pushed herself back, slithering several feet away across the cavern floor. As if she felt it would be detrimental to her to continue to stay in this humans presence.
She stopped at a distance, putting a clear space between them. She didn't look angry anymore. She looked… unsettled. Vigilant. Her serpentine blue eyes were fixed on him, watching his every single move, no longer as a immediate threat, but as a profound and puzzling anomaly.
A man who should be dead but wasn't, a man who carried weapons but surrendered them without a second thought, a man who dared to risk his life just to make her feel comfortable, a man who she had tried to kill but who had only responded with a gentle touch. She didn't know what to make of him. And for now, that confusion was the only thing keeping him alive.
The silence in the cave continued to linger but Adrian wasn't worried, he knew things couldn't be rushed. The only thing that disturbed that very silence was the sound of Adrian's own heartbeat thumping in his ears as well as the Gorgon's own heartbeat that had begun to accelerate in line with his. The Gorgon girl watched him from a distance, her serpentine blue eyes narrowed, her powerful serpentine body coiled tightly as if ready to spring. She was in a constant state of of tension and confusion.
Sensing that it was finally time to act, Adrian's responded like a salesman who'd caught sight of an opportunity to make a huge sale.
"I understand that you're wary of me but there really isn't any need to." Adrian said, his voice soft but clear in the quiet space. He held his hands out, palms open, showing her he still meant no harm. Seeing the same gesture from last time, her body became less tense.
"I'm not going to hurt you. I just came here to help you."
" And I'm not mad about last time, I promise I didn't come to get revenge. I'm sure you already know I'm not lying, so please, just let me help you."
" Let's help each other out ok." Adrian smiled at her, try his best to seem as harmless as possible.
Seeing that she didn't respond, He took a slow, careful step forward.
Instantly, her tail lashed out, not to strike him, but to slam against the stone floor with a loud, cracking sound that echoed through the cavern. It was a warning, pure and simple. Stay back. This girl really was too cautious, even till now she still had her suspicions.
' Guess you really can't change a girl.' Adrian chuckled bitterly inwardly.
He decided to stop for a moment to see something, instead of retreating, he monitored her for a moment before his eyes brightened a bit, then he took another step.
" I see what you're trying to do. You know I'm telling the truth but you just don't want to listen." Adrian smirked when he saw her flinch. Which meant that he was right.
" Looks like I'm right, since that's the case, there's no reason for me to be afraid of you anymore. You really are just a normal woman." he said, his voice remarkably steady. Adrian was actually still very frightened but he decided to risk it all rather than wasting time instead.
He continued his slow approach, and secretly rejoiced because she didn't lash out again, it seemed his bluff was working. She allowed him to continue to approach her. Though her tail remained tense, ready to lash out again.
As he got closer, his eyes drifted down from her wary face to her abdomen. There, wrapped clumsily around her torso, was the same familiar strip of tree bark now dirty and frayed but still holding on.
It was the makeshift bandage he had made for her, what felt like a lifetime ago, when he had first found her injured and his stupid, human guilt had made him try to help.
"You're still wearing it." he murmured, more to himself than to her. At that moment, the fear that had continued to cling to him was completely suppressed, A strange feeling, a mix of pity and connection, swelled in his chest. She had kept it. This terrifying creature had kept the pathetic little bandage from the man she'd later killed and eaten.
Eventually, after a few more steps, he was finally standing right in front of her.
Remembering how his touch to her face had only calmed her before, he decided to try something different. He slowly lowered his hand from where he'd been about to reach for her cheek and instead placed it gently on the smooth, scaled surface of her serpentine body, just below where her human torso began.
She flinched, a full-body shudder running through her. A low hiss escaped her lips, and her muscles tensed beneath his palm. But she didn't pull away. She was startled, wondering what the human was doing this time.
"It's really amazing." he whispered, his voice full of genuine awe as he began to slowly run his hand along the powerful curve of her form. The scales were cool and smooth, like polished ice, crafted like carefully sculpted jade. The details highlighted their exotic look.
" I must say, I'm really jealous, not only are you pretty strong but your really beautiful too."
" I-im beautiful?"
"..?!!" Adrian's eyes widened when he heard her speak for the first time. But he knew this was a rare opportunity so he didn't remain dumbfounded for long.
" Yes! You really are beautiful, especially your tail, I'm ashamed to say it but I kinda lost myself while looking at it earlier. Your scales are even more beautiful."
" Same as your hair, they really do compliment your beautiful eyes."
He kept his touch light and respectful while complimenting her, his fingers tracing the patterns of her scales, feeling the solid muscle underneath. He was complimenting a part of her that was purely monster, the very thing that made her deadly. And each time he spoke, her eyes would brighten as if she truly enjoyed listening to his words.
" Y-You really think I'm beautiful?"
" You don't find me disgusting?"
Her agitated hissing slowly faded away. The tense coil of her body began to loosen. Instead of staying rigid, she started to move, a slow, sinuous slither that began to circle him.
" You're joking, why would I find you disgusting, you're the most–" Adrian continued but stopped when the images of two women emerged in his mind. " mean your one of the most beautiful women I've ever seen."
He stood his ground, his heart hammering, but he kept his hand on her, letting his fingers glide over her scales as she moved around him in a wide, cautious circle. He didn't know why but his mind kept putting dark thoughts into his head, as if she was acting like a predator inspecting its prey, but the energy had changed. That he was sure of.
The apprehension was melting away, replaced by a deep, curious fascination. She was allowing his touch, even seeming to lean into it slightly as she passed.
After a full circle, she stopped, sliding back in front of him. Her face was now only inches from his. He could feel her breath, warm and quick, on his skin.
At a point he felt as if it was more rougher than usual but that couldn't be, right?
He blinked his eyes, taking in her serpentine blue eyes which were wide, searching his, he believed she might still be looking for a trick, a lie, any sign of the fear she was so used to inspiring. If only he knew how wrong he was.