Arnold Phillip Shortman was a man of routine. There was something relaxing about repetition, especially with the chaotic schedule of being a college junior. He allowed more deviation with his personal life, not planning everything which is often how he ended up in predicaments, much like his current one.

It was 2:30 AM and Arnold was sweaty, naked, and staring at his plain white bedroom ceiling to avoid looking over at her. She had fallen asleep a while ago, her steady breathing the only sound in the quiet room, like white noise gently lulling him to sleep. He looked over, his emerald eyes trailing down her spine before it was hidden by the thin white sheet, pausing briefly before moving back up, landing on the small musical tattoo on her right shoulder blade, the colors fading slightly.

He turned to look at the ceiling, sighing as he ran his right hand through his unruly blonde hair, pushing the damp pieces out of his eyes and off his forehead. He wasn't supposed to be falling for her, keeping it casual had been his idea but here he was. They were just "releasing tension", but even he could see how thin of an excuse that had been. He rolled over, pushing his left hand under his pillow and closed his eyes, praying that she would stay out of his dreams.

Three Months Ago

"You know what we should do," Arnold said, breaking the silence that had surrounded the two college students for the past half hour. He was briefly distracted, finishing his last Calculus problem before straightening up, stretching both arms above his head, the edge of his teal t-shirt raising slightly. He slouched back against the wall, waiting for her response, a smirk playing on his lips.

"Hmmm?" she replied, distracted by the English assignment appearing slowly on her laptop. Her fingers moved quickly across the keyboard as her eyes followed the cursor flowing steadily on the screen. She wasn't paying attention, he could tell by the way she bit her lip in deep concentration. He didn't know why she was concentrating so hard, she was an excellent writer and English was her favorite and best subject.

Arnold shook his head in amusement, moving to lay horizontal across the end of his bed, his chest hanging off the edge. He moved so his lips were close to her right ear, barely touching the outer shell as he lowered his voice. "We should fuck."

He almost laughed at how suddenly her fingers stopped, hovering over the keyboard as she stared hard at the screen, as if her response was hidden somewhere between the lines of her Pride and Prejudice essay. She finally shook her head, a smile appearing on her lips as she rolled her eyes, her fingers and train of thought continuing where they had left off. "Sure."

"Sure?" Arnold replied, his voice confused mixed with disbelief, his eyes wide as he stared at her sideways figure. He didn't know why, but that four letter word made blood rush to his lower region. Laying on his stomach quickly became uncomfortable, so he dragged himself off the bed, landing beside her with an ungraceful thud. He sat so his back was against the bed, mimicking her position as he brought his legs to his chest, hoping to hide his growing problem. "Did you hear what I said?" he asked, his voice ragged.

"Something about us fucking, yeah?" she replied distractedly, her focus more on her paper than him. Calm down. Focus. She's just doing this to get a rise out of you. He was brought out of his thoughts by her piercing stare, eyebrow quirked, held tilted to the right, a smirk on her soft lips. "Right?"

"Yeah," Arnold breathed, hating how breathless and affected his voice sounded. His right hand ran through his unruly blonde hair as his head fell backwards against the bed. If she wants to tease, two can play at that game. He heard a light buzz, opening his eyes to watch her reach down to grab her phone resting against her right thigh. She smiled, shaking her head as she typed out a quick reply. He had a second to make a decision. It took him half a second.

He reached over, her focus still on her phone, thumb rubbing the smooth edge of her phone and grabbed her chin, not hard but enough to make her look at him. "I'm going to kiss you now," Arnold stated, already, leaning in without giving her a chance to respond.

He only meant for it to be a brief chaste kiss, but the minute his lips touched hers, his eyes instinctively closed and his mind shut down. It was a chaste kiss but he was craving more.

He pulled away, hand still firmly on her chin, eyes still closed. He heard her softly moan, the sound shooting straight to his chest. He counted to ten slowly before opening his eyes. She still had her eyes closed, left hand touching her lips while her right gripped her phone, the screen shut off from not being used. She opened her eyes, questions and confusion ever present but she remained silent, watching Arnold.

He had to say something, to tell her it was just a joke, but instead he leaned forward for another kiss. His right arm wrapped around her waist whilst his left saved, shut, and lowered her laptop gently to the floor.

"What are you doing?" she whispered, eyes closing as he pulled her close, He smiled, leaning forward so their foreheads touched. She brought her hands to rest on his forearms, squeezing slightly.

"I don't know," Arnold whispered, his lips curling into a smile. "But, tell me to stop and I will." His lips were inches from hers as he waiting for her to say something. Stop. Get away. Come closer. A little voice told him this was payback. The louder voice told him he wanted this. Everything suddenly went quiet as her long fingers tangled in his hair, pulling him impossibly closer.

"You should figure that out then," she laughed, lips in a smile as she shook her head, reaching past him for her laptop.

"Whatever you say, Helga," Arnold laughed, catching her arm and bringing their lips together in a passionate kiss.

It's been a while, but I'm back! There will be a poll on my account about whether or not this story should be left as a one-shot or made into a multi-chapter story. Feedback is always welcomed and appreciated! Thank you, much!

Lovelyseoul21