His gaze found hers and Fred felt herself smile. She was pretty certain she felt everything in that moment, so the sensation of an upturned mouth was a natural consequence. She was less inclined to shed it than she had been Wesley's shirt. As she continued to look at him it flickered into something softer, but still remained.

One hand slipped across the sheets to take Wesley's into her own -- from the same arm he'd so recently cast across his face. Her fingers tangled tightly with his, the unintended epicenter for all the tension coiled tightly inside her. Fred wasn't without her own doubts, perhaps despite certain evidence to the contrary. But she also knew the more time went on, the less weight they all seemed to have.

Her fingers tightened even further still, to the point she could feel the erratic nature of her own pulse. Then she claimed Wesley's mouth in a quick, fierce kiss as she pressed fully down onto him.