Cuddling with Sydney on my couch was a pretty standard way of spending my afternoons by now, but the happiness it caused me, the quiet exhilaration it filled me with, these I was positive would never wear off. And I was perfectly okay with that.
I pulled her closer to me and leaned into her from behind, my chin on her shoulder and my arm around her waist. I pressed kisses all over the smooth skin on the nape of her neck and smiled against her. "I love you," I told her softly, and she responded with a small, content sigh. I wasn't even sure she knew she was doing it, but I had picked up on it, and trying to elicit the sound from her had become my new favorite thing. Me professing my love for her. Her responding sigh. It was wonderful.
She turned around so that she was facing me and pressed her lips on mine. They were soft and still held the faint taste of her morning coffee. I pressed back harder, but after a moment or two, she pulled away to speak. I repressed a groan of disappointment and tried to focus on her words instead of the way her chest was skimming mine now that she'd moved closer.
"I need to use the bathroom," she said, then stared at me expectantly. I looked at her, puzzled.
"Go ahead and use it, I guess," I told her, because what else was she expecting me to say?.
"I need to use the bathroom as in, I need to use the shower that's in your bathroom," she elaborated.
Understanding dawned on me, and I tried to remain neutral-faced as images of Sydney's body covered in soap and water sprung into my mind.
"Well, do. You're free to do so. Encouraged, in fact," I told her. "Do I get an invitation, too?" I asked as seriously as I could, even though I was fairly certain I already knew the answer.
She surprised me by actually thinking about it for a few moments instead of outright declining me. She looked me over, inspecting me from head to toe, and when her eyes came back up to meet mine, her pupils were almost imperceptibly dilated. She was probably forming a similar visual to the one I had had as soon as I'd heard the word "shower" coming out of her mouth. The two of us, lathered in soap, kissing under the hot stream of water coming from the showerhead… But I should have known not to get my hopes up.
"I can manage on my own just fine, thank you," she said primly, and then she was on her feet and heading off towards my bathroom.
Alone.
Damn it.
"Oh!" Sydney squeaked quietly from the bathroom, clearly unhappy about something. I was in front of the door in a heartbeat.
"Sage, are you okay?" I called, my brain immediately conjuring up images of Sydney, lying on the floor, bloody and helpless after having slipped on the wet bathroom tiles-.
"I'm fine," she called back, and I sighed in relief. "It's just… I just realized I forgot to bring a towel inside."
"Hold on, I'll bring you one," I said to the door, then rushed to my bedroom and grabbed a clean towel from the dresser next to my bed.
I hesitated once I neared the door again. I tried to turn the knob, experimentally. To my surprise, it turned easily in my hand. When I pushed the door, it gave way. I could swear up and down that I stepped inside with the most honorable of intentions. I really, honestly did. But seeing Sydney's figure, barely visible through the semitransparent glass doors of the shower, did things on my self-control. I stood there, transfixed, watching the way her long arms stretched above her head as she washed her hair. I couldn't really see that much, not with the glass between us, even though its surface wasn't misty, but the amorphous shadow of her glorious body was enough to send my mind spinning.
My decision was quick, and probably- no, there was no probably about it- unwise, but I couldn't help myself. I yearned to share such intimate moments with her and, if I wanted to be honest with myself, the prospect of shower sex wasn't what urged me on, although I wouldn't be opposed to it if it came to that.
Mostly, I just wanted to be close to her in yet another way. I wanted to lather her back in soap. I wanted to see the water droplets on her cheek shine golden because of the tattoo underneath. I wanted to know what temperature she wanted the water to be. I wanted to wash her hair. I wanted us to exchange chaste, messy kisses under the showerhead and pretend we were starring in a Hollywood movie, desperately kissing in the rain.
I remembered the way she has been briefly carried away while studying my body before, the sexual tension boiling between us at that moment, and I was almost sure that she'd be on board with my sudden appearance in her shower. And if she wasn't, well, I could always leave the room and let her finish her bath. No harm done. Or so I hoped.
Before I knew it, my clothes were off, the towel was put next to the sink and I was contemplating the best way to sneak into the shower with her. I finally decided that stealth wasn't my strong suit, so if I wanted to get in there with Sydney before she came out to find me stark naked in the middle of the room, I had to do it now.
And so I did.
I slid open the glass door, and she turned her head, alarmed by the sound. As soon as she caught sight of me, her mouth fell open and she turned around wholly to face me. My eyes took in her naked body, glinting from the water, and it was an undescribably beautiful sight. I looked back at her face, where the tiniest of smiles was starting to form. She hadn't screamed or slapped me or yelled at me, which I took as good signs.
And then her grin spread on her face, and her eyes, breathtaking and gorgeous and golden, shone with amusement and mischief.
"Come here, you rule-breaker," she said affectionately, and my heart swelled with love. I stepped into the shower and she offered me her hand so I could step forward and stand under the running water next to her.
I didn't hesitate as I took it. She pulled me to her and pushed her fingers in my hair. She started to guide my head down to hers at the same time that the first drops of water hit me.
It was ice-cold.
It felt like someone viciously stabbing me in the back, and it made me scream a little in surprise. I backed away, cursing. How was she still standing upright with all that freezing water dropping down on her? Maybe this was how they made even the best secret agents spill their secrets. Seemed like a solid guess. The cold was unbearable, and I hadn't even stepped fully under the showerhead! I shuddered to think what might have happened if I had. That scenario probably involved serious body and brain damage in the best case.
"Are you kidding me, Sage?" I exclaimed. "Are you fucking- hey, don't you laugh at me!" I said accusingly. I'd give it to her, she really was trying to stifle her laughter behind her hand, but it wasn't really working.
"I'm- I'm sorry, okay?" she said, giggling a little. The sound was so endearing that I momentarily lost my train of thought, watching the cute curve of her lips as she laughed.
"I didn't do it on purpose. How am I supposed to know that you don't like cold showers?" she asked, hiding her delight behind the most serious expression she could muster, given the circumstances. The only thing that gave her away was the amused crinkles around her eyes.
"Most normal people don't like cold showers, you know. You," I said, jabbing a finger at her, "are the exception. Not me."
She reached behind her to turn off the water, while I wrapped myself in the towel that was originally intended for her.
At least now I know what temperature she wants the water to be in, I thought to myself. Curiosity killed the cat, after all. Adrian Ivashkov had just barely survived curiosity's claws.
"Hey!" Sydney's agitated voice brought me out of my reverie. "Is that the towel you brought for me?".
"It was," I replied, unruffled, "until the moment you attempted to kill me by freezing me to death."
"It was unintentional!" she said, once again failing to keep her laughter completely under control. "Look, I'm sorry. Let's just forget about this."
"Oh?" I said, but I couldn't form a coherent response. I was too distracted by Sydney reaching me in one stride, her body still very much uncovered.
"Yes. I say we forget that you tried to sneak into my shower and that I almost gave you a heart attack."
And then she unwrapped the towel from around my hips, leaving me uncovered and uncomfortable in more than one way. She wrapped it around herself with delicate fingers and stood on her tiptoes to kiss me.
"I guess… I could agree… to that," I managed to say in between kisses. I wrapped one arm around her waist while my other hand traveled upwards to tangle in her wet hair as I kissed her back.
"I love you," she said against my lips.
"I love you, too," I said, meaning it more deeply than anything else I'd ever said, then held my breath waiting for the inevitable.
Ah, there it was.
A small, content sigh came out of her lips, and it was almost ridiculous how happy the sound made me.
She let the towel fall down, and the fabric pooled around her feet. We retreated to the bedroom soon after that, proving our love for each other in other ways, and I realized that it wasn't the sound that made me so happy.
It was her.
It was all her.
A/N: This was originally posted on tumblr, based off an imagineyourotp prompt (Imagine Person A of your OTP trying to sneak into Person B's shower, and then failing miserably because Person B likes ice cold showers. ) Thank you for reading!