The Kiss

They had put up a good fight. It was over now since they were out of ammo. Soon, they would both be dead. His time as Han Solo would run out.

Even worse, his day with Annie would come to an end. Abed rarely had any time alone with her, away from the rest of the group. There was a different kind of energy between them now. Annie was looking at him in a different way than she normally did. It was, he knew, because he was being Han Solo. This knowledge did not make her any less tempting.

Abed had been approached by his share of women. They had looked at him the way that Annie was looking at him now. She didn't say the words, but her blue eyes spoke volumes.

She was attracted to him. He struggled to remain calm. No, he reminded himself, she is attracted to the character you are playing.

"Will you still be Han Solo after we die?" Annie asked, confirming his thoughts.

"Afraid not, Doll. Once I'm gone, I'm gone."

"Oh," Annie said, looking away momentarily.

He saw her desire and heard the disappointment in her voice. Since he was not unaffected by these things and since it was what Han Solo would do, he pulled her toward him and kissed her. He had meant for it to be short and sweet, but something unscripted happened. He got lost in the kiss. He got lost in her.

Her lips were soft and yielded to his. Then her arms wound around his neck and her body pressed against his. He couldn't get enough of her.

Abed had wanted this. He would have kissed her when he had done his Don Draper bit if the rest of the group hadn't been there. Annie had responded to him that time, too. Her lips had been tantalizingly close. Shirley had broken the spell by telling him to pick another character. Annie, however, had said that she liked it.

He had replayed that scene in his mind many times. He had changed the ending to include a kiss. Now he was actually experiencing it.

In Abed's world, fantasy was always better than reality. TV and movies were always better than real life. This was the exception. Kissing Annie far exceeded his expectations. Abed had often imagined this, but the reality was so much better.

The taste of her lips. The feel of her body. She was warm and soft, and she felt so good. So very, very good.

His analytical mind was overpowered by sensations. His thoughts had receded to the background. He reveled in this moment. Nothing else mattered but Annie. They stood apart in their own world. Even as the paint drenched them, and he knew he was dead and not Han Solo anymore, the kiss went on.

It was with great difficulty that he eventually forced himself to pull away from her. Han Solo was gone. It was only years of practice at keeping a detached demeanor that allowed him to hide his disappointment that it was over.

Within seconds he took in her flushed face and dazed look. Some secret part of him thrilled to see that his kiss had left her breathless. He would process it all later. He already knew that it was about to become his favorite mental movie.

He had kissed many girls. He had not spent as much time thinking about any of them as he did about Annie. He was back to being Abed. She didn't want Abed.

He wanted to be a good friend to her. He didn't want to be a typical guy with lust on his mind. It was something that he struggled with, because he did find her very attractive. This was not going to help him to stop thinking about Annie in all kinds of delicious ways, but it had been worth it.

He looked up at the ceiling and then back down at her. What he saw in her eyes almost made him lose control. The intensity of her desire sent a shockwave through him. And it was all directed at him. No, not him, he corrected himself. Han Solo. He was Abed. She saw him only as a friend.

He couldn't stay here one more minute or she would know. Annie would know how he felt about her.

"Cool," he said. It was all he could manage before he had to walk quickly away. She was still sexy even when she was covered in orange paint.