I changed this one too. Unlike the first part, this one needed a LOT of work. Hopefully now it's a little less cringey and choppy. If this is your first time seeing this series, I suggest reading Hot In Here first. If it's not, I hope you enjoy the changes I've made.
x.o.o.x
Cold In Here
It's been exactly seven months since that horrible elevator experience. Yes, I'm still dating Naminé. Everything is fine between us and we really couldn't be happier.
It took us about a month to get used to being a couple and doing couple things together, but we managed to create a comfortable, semi-normal relationship for ourselves. The top three floors at Saturo Print, however, stillhave a problem with it to this very day.
Not necessarily a problem as in they don't want us together. I think we're all a little too old to be telling one another who they should and shouldn't date. I just get tired of looking in my company mailbox and finding condoms, various sized toys, and BDSM instruction pamphlets inside.
I already have enough at home, thank you.
None of that is important. I want to tell you a kind of funny story that happened back when our relationship was still fairly new. It was somewhere around the three month mark, but I couldn't tell you if it was the first week or the last. What I can tell you is that you're in for one hell of a story.
I woke up next to Naminé the morning it all began, and was pleasantly surprised once again. The very first time we shared a bed I thought she would be a hectic sleeper because I was still comparing her to Kairi at that time. I quickly found out that she slept like a rock and stayed in one spot the entire time. I even had to check on her a few times to make sure she wasn't dead. Let me tell you, the novelty of going a whole night without being disturbed by your partner never wears off.
I rolled over to face her and smiled at the head of blonde hair in front of me. Everything still felt like a dream and it was hard to believe we couldn't stand each other at first. I still felt like shit for the way I acted around her before, but I was determined to make it up to her in every way possible.
Her phone started to blare Jekyll and Hyde by Five Finger Death Punch (I don't know, some rock band Naminé listens to) loudly and I just let it play. That was her alarm for work. Her music annoyed the hell out of me but it did a great job of waking me up whenever I would almost sleep in. That shit also gave me a heart attack when I woke up to hear raunchy lyrics, incredible grunting, an intense guitar riff, or her personal favorite, YAHHHHH!
Fucking Americans. I love you guys, but some of you got some weird ass shit going on in your lives...
The Jekyll and Hyde song was a lot calmer than what I was used to hearing from her and I kind of liked it. If I would have admitted to liking it, Naminé would have gotten all starry-eyed and tried to drag me into lethal mosh pits again. No joke, I went to a concert with her and I came home with a lot of bruises and a busted lip. Then she had the audacity to say Wanna go again tomorrow?
I sped home in my car like I was in a police chase.
Naminé yawned and stretched out on the bed as she came to, humming along with the chorus of the song. Her body instinctively turned towards the nearest heat source (me) and snuggled up to it. "Too early…" she mumbled, tangling her legs with mine.
"It's six o'clock," I told her, hoping the volume of the song didn't cover my voice. "We have to get ready for work."
She smiled, not even bothering to open her eyes. "Your morning voice gives me the fuzzlies."
Fuzzlies? Why did that sound like some cute but dangerous creature that R. L. Stine would write about?
Rolling my eyes playfully, I wrapped my arms around her and pressed my lips to her forehead. Five more minutes in bed wouldn't kill us, I thought. We could've just taken a shower together and have been done in half the time.
Just as I had started to fall back to sleep, Naminé pressed her petal soft lips to mine. Her nearly bare body brushed against me deliberately and suddenly I was wide awake. Whenever she did that, she wanted her way. Question was, what did she want?
"Let's call in today," she whispered. "We haven't had a vacation yet and I think my brain is frying from the workload."
I let myself fall into another one of her addictive kisses and tried to convince myself that that's all we would be doing for the next four minutes and thirty seconds. We couldn't slack off just because we were in a relationship And I knew that. The two of us had responsibilities to take care of as the C.E.O. and C.O.O. of a major print company. Work was my top priority, then my girl, then whatever else came afterwards.
But then the weirdest thought popped into my head. I couldn't help but think about why men hadn't approached Naminé in the past. Or maybe they had, but she had been too afraid to give any of them a chance. Hell, she was terrified of us in the beginning. When she finally got comfortable, I discovered that Naminé was even more amazing than I thought she was. With or without makeup, she was gorgeous, she was a beast in every video game she played, and she thinks hot dogs are sexy.
And…I loved her. Not even her flaws were enough to drive me away at that point.
"No, I'm not calling in. And you're not either. We're going to work," I frowned.
Naminé pouted as she pulled away, running a hand through my hair. "Come on, Roxas. We need a break and I need you. I'm two minutes away from tying you down and having my way with you."
Now that was a concept…
Let the record show that I am not, nor have I ever been against bondage of any kind. Tie me down.
No. I had to focus. Focus on shuffling through clients and papers for hours on end...bored out of my mind...wondering when I'd get another day off so I could make sweet love to my goddess of a girlfriend who was right in front of me with her hand down my sweatpants and holy shit. I honestly didn't think I was going to make it to work that morning. The only thing that saved me was my father, who called just seconds before I gave in to her.
I quickly grabbed my phone and answered it to distract myself. "Hello?" I answered in Japanese.
"Good morning, Roxas. Ms. Takemoto is here and has called an emergency meeting. How fast can you and Ms. Carter get here?" he replied in the same language. I assumed by the way he'd referred to Naminé in such a formal way that he was in the room with other executives, potential partners, or sponsors.
"That depends. Do you wanna tell her to let go of my penis? She's incredibly persistent this mor-NING! Baby, I'm on the phone!" I hissed.
"Then get off the phone and do something about my problem. You're so selfish..."
There was silence over the line. "You uh…you're on speakerphone."
I facepalmed. That was just great.
"I am so sorry. We'll be up there as soon as we can." I quickly hung up before I caught any shit from him and removed Naminé's hand from my pants. "Seriously Koibito, we have to go."
Her eyes lit up and she smiled at me. "That means sweetheart, doesn't it?"
"Yes, yes it does. Come on, let's get dressed."
"Can we still shower together?" she pouted.
It took every bit of strength in me to say no. She was going to try and jump me and I knew it. Work cane first though. "Maybe when we get back, okay?"
Naminé sighed, but didn't say anything else.
x.o.o.x
"What's got your undies in a bunch this morning?" Axel—one of the very few Japanese workers in the building who couldn't (and didn't want to) speak the language— asked as he leaned over my desk. He used to work on a lower floor, but he got a promotion and came up to the forty-eighth floor with us. Being on one of the top three floors made you pretty important. You were included in more things and the pay was higher, so that was some promotion he'd gotten.
The crazy redhead with the even crazier tattoos under his eyes quickly became my best friend once he made it up here. He was one of those friends that you loved to hate, but you didn't want to remember what life was like before they arrived. He was the main one to give me hell about my relationship with Naminé.
"Just work," I answered with a sigh. "Fall is the busiest season of the year and I don't know why."
Axel sat on the edge of my desk, like he always did. "Because we all want to get as much shit done as possible before we start freezing our asses off. Speaking of which, it's supposed to snow tomorrow."
I raised an eyebrow at him, temporarily forgetting my work. We were on an island and it never snowed. We got tropical storms and hurricanes, but not snow. "You're definitely shitting me."
He shook his head, red spikes moving with the motion. "Nope. For the first time in over three decades, Destiny Islands is going to get actual snow. Saw it on the news this morning."
I didn't believe that. We had just gotten out of a very harsh, very brutal summer. There was even a second hurricane after the one that knocked the power out when Naminé and I got trapped in the building. It literally carried my car away and I was forced to get a new one.
"Hm. How 'bout that," I said as I sipped my afternoon tea that Naminé brought me. He knew that meant that I wasn't listening to anything he was saying.
"Alright. You're gonna be the only one to not prepare for it. Don't say I didn't warn you."
"And when it doesn't snow, don't complain to me about how disappointed you are."
He huffed, but didn't say anything more. So I turned back to my computer and continued imputing data.
And then my office phone rang. The call was from Naminé's office. "Hello, Koibito."
"Hey, come see me in my office," she spoke in that soft, sultry tone that riled me up more often than not. It definitely would have led to something that could have been labeled NSFW.
I tried not to sigh as I leaned back in my chair. For some reason that made her think I was getting tired of her. "I'm busy, love. I can't just leave my office for that."
"On your break, then?" she asked hopefully.
"Well I was going to see if I could run some extra copies of the paperwork we received in the meeting just in case something happens to it—"
"Ughhhh! You don't need to make copies of the paperwork because we have the same exact paperwork. Nothing's going to happen to it."
I was about to tell her that I needed to make copies for the sake of my own sanity, but Axel pointed to the phone and mouthed the word speaker. I put it on speakerphone because I trusted him to listen in on our conversation. Axel was a good guy. And more importantly, not a gossip.
"Why can't you just go back to being a normal boyfriend? You're always talking about work. At home, at parties, in your fucking sleep. I miss plain old dorky Roxas. This stupid C.E.O. workaholic is getting on my nerves."
I don't think I'm dorky. I mean…am I?
"I understand how you feel. It's like I said before, we both have responsibilities. You can't mix business and pleasure and you know that. That doesn't mean that you're not important to me, though. I'll try to come and see you today during our break, but I gotta get some things done first."
Naminé huffed. "That's fine."
It was not fine.
"You sure okay with that?"
"Yeah, I get it. I'm gonna get back to work now."
She was not okay with that.
"Good. I'll see you."
She mumbled a reply back, then hung up. I had a feeling that it wasn't over.
Axel chuckled. "Way to let work cockblock you, bro."
I rolled my eyes. "I have to work hard to maintain this position and so does she."
"I'm not saying that you don't. It's just that you work almost every day, and your only routine off day is Sunday. You said yourself that it's been a while since you two did anything."
It had been. Our first time together was three weeks after we first started dating. We went three days doing just that right after work. After that we got swamped with stuff to do and we never had the time.
Shit, we hadn't done anything since our third week as a couple.
"And you've been together for what, three measly months?" Axel added. "How long ago was it that you got some before Naminé came around?"
"A couple months. I don't remember how many."
Six. Six lonely, agonizing months of no play whatsoever.
Axel snorted, taking a lighter to one of my pencils. "That's some will power you've got. I won't let my girl go a week without it."
"Good for you," I muttered bitterly.
"Let me give you some advice: if your girl loses the D, you lose the girl," he said as if that were some sort of ancient proverb in the sacred book of relationships. "You have to keep her satisfied in every sense of the word."
That sounded like horse shit. I knew Naminé wasn't shallow like that. She wouldn't break up with me just because we weren't having sex. She loved me for me, not for what was in my pants. Axel had no idea what he was talking about. Naminé was just a little frustrated with my schedule, I told myself.
"Whatever, man. And give me my pencil!"
He dove out of my reach as I tried to snatch it away from him, holding the wood to the flame just to spite me. "No. Burning things makes me feel alive…"
Axel has some issues. We'll get him help.
x.o.o.x
During my break, I went to Naminé's office and had lunch with her. She was in a very foul mood when I got there, so I just sat down next to her and quietly ate my salad.
What? Men eat salads too.
"Our break is over in ten minutes, you know," Naminé spat.
"…I'm sorry. I got caught up with some work and forgot what time break was."
There was a heavy silence over the office after that. So I was a little late. Sue me! It's not like I purposely put off going to see her for work. I genuinely lost track of time.
I looked at her, but she didn't look at me. She just stared ahead with a blank expression and continued to eat her Chicken Habanero sandwich with melted Velveeta cheese, hot sauce, roasted red peppers, yellow peppers, mushrooms, and ghost chili peppers. The girl's pallet is indestructible, I tell you.
"How's the sandwich?" I asked her, eager to strike up any type of conversation with her.
"Cold. I wanted to wait for you, so I didn't touch it until two minutes ago."
I grimaced and turned my attention back to my salad. "I'm sorry."
"Oh noooo. I'm sorry of getting in the way of your work. By all means, go finish whatever the hell you were doing," she smiled sarcastically. She still refused to look at me.
I shook my head and put my fork down. "There's something else bothering you, isn't there?"
Naminé rolled her eyes, but I could tell the gesture wasn't meant for me. "Your brother came in here a few minutes before you did," she frowned.
"Ventus?"
She took another bite of her sandwich, then washed the food down with some Coke. "No, your other brother: Shmentus."
Naminé and Ventus had met a while back. She hated him, and he was constantly hitting on her. For the life of me, I couldn't understand why. Naminé wasn't his type.
Then again, look what happened with Kairi.
"What'd he do now?" I asked, ready to kick his ass if he crossed any sort of line.
"He made fun of my chest," Naminé mumbled, cheeks tinting red. "He asked me out on a date and I told him to go die, then he called my boobs...mosquito bites."
I wanted to kill him.
"You don't...think they're too small, do you?" she asked as she hid beneath her bangs.
I rolled my eyes. "Ignore him. Ventus is a superficial idiot who doesn't know a good woman when he sees one. You might lack in the boob department, but you make up for it in the...everything else department?" I tried to smile. That didn't even sound convincing to me.
"You know I can tell when you're lying now."
Again, I held back a sigh. "Koibito, that doesn't even matter—"
"It does matter, Roxas. I hate to ask this but is that why you don't want to have sex with me? Am I not proportionate enough for you?"
I felt like she was taking words and force feeding them to me at That point. "No, that's not why. If you really want to know, big breasts gross me out. I actually like girls in the itty bitty titty commitee."
A small smile spread across her lips. "Seriously?"
"Seriously. The highest I'll go is a C cup. Anything bigger than that is just...ugh." I shuddered, trying to shake the image from my head. All my life, I've been told that I had to be either stupid or gay because I didn't drool over girls with huge racks, but oh it's whatever. My life, my preference. Get the fuck over it.
"The point is, your boobs aren't a problem for me—and neither is the rest of you. You're amazing just the way you are. Just let me treasure you."
Naminé was a bit insecure about her looks, but she didn't want to admit that. Whenever I said something to her to make her blush, she'd insult me. I never took it to heart, though. It's one of the many, many, many reasons I like her. "Stop quoting Bruno Mars you dumb dickface," she muttered halfheartedly.
Damn it. I didn't think she'd catch on to that.
I smiled and moved my chair closer to hers. "I still mean it, even if the words aren't my own." I took a moment to kiss her cheek. "When we get back to my place, it'll be just you and me. No Ventus, no work, and no clothes."
Naminé stifled a laugh as I moved my kisses down to her neck. It brought back that amazing feeling she gave me earlier that morning. "You don't have to do this just because I want to," she said.
"I'm not. I've missed you more than you realize."
That seemed to do the trick because she finally relaxed. "Will you kiss me for real already?"
"Now that I can do."
I kissed her.
Worst mistake of my life.
"Fuck, you did that on purpose!" I grabbed her drink to try and ease the searing pain in my mouth. A little too late, I remembered that it was a Coke and not water. I covered my mouth, feeling myself start to sweat. My pallet was really weak and I couldn't handle spice the way she could. "Oh my God, do you have water?!" I groaned, trying not to drool as I sucked in ragged breaths through my mouth.
"Nope. That's for not eating lunch with me for the past few weeks and for being late today," she smirked.
I started to cry. With actual tears. It was really hot and I couldn't take it, okay? I'm not weak.
"Oh, don't be such a puss, Roku."
"I'm sitting here dying and you're laughing at me! Fuck, it hurts! Help me!"
She didn't help me at all, just laughed her little heart out while I slowly died.
x.o.o.x
Everything got better when we got home. We stumbled into my room and fell onto the bed without a care in the world, practically conjoined at the mouth. Work didn't even cross my mind. All I could think about was her and how much I'd missed her touch.
Her lips were petal soft and she tasted like the sandwich she'd eaten earlier, minus the heat. I didn't care. The only time my lips parted from hers was when I stopped to get her shirt off. She was a fun kisser. Naminé didn't submit easily, so I had a hell of a time fighting for dominance with her. That only turned me on even more.
We were so close. The two of us were both naked and ready to work off weeks and weeks of stress. I was literally centimeters away from her vagina...
"Bro! It's been a while!"
Then Ven's dumb ass bursts through the room door. Unannounced. Uninvited. Unwelcomed.
"Ooh...am I interrupting something?" he grimaced. It was fake. There wasn't a single trace of genuine remorse on his face. He thought the shit was funny.
I jumped up and attempted to cover us both with the sheets. "What do you think?" I glared.
"...I'm thinking my brother will be good to me for once in his life and let me join him. I haven't had sex since yesterday morning and junior's ready to go."
"GET THE FUCK OUT!"
He sighed, but left the room. Knowing him, he would most likely stay until I entertained him. I groaned as I started to get dressed again.
Naminé whined. "Nooo! What are you doing?!"
"Well we can't do this while he's here. He's the type of person to sneak pictures and leak them on the internet or something. If I tire him out, he'll eventually go home."
Instead of complaining to me, Naminé went to the door and yanked it open. "VEN! GET OUT OF THE HOUSE SO I CAN FUCK YOUR BROTHER!"
"What about me?! I look just like him!"
The two started to argue from two different rooms of the house. What a fantastic evening it was turning out to be. My girlfriend was horny, my brother was an idiot, and I later found out that there was a mosquito in my sweats and I hadn't put on underwear. Talk about itching in all the wrong places...
After Naminé got dressed, we met Ven in the living room. He was telling me all about some girl he met in a coffee shop yesterday morning (I honestly gave no shits about the flings he had while dating my ex-girlfriend) while Naminé drowned her lack of sex sorrows in vanilla ice cream and popcorn, which actually tasted much better than it sounds.
"She was a screamer," Ven smirked.
I concentrated on Mortal Kombat, playing on adventure mode. "Ven, I don't give a rat's ass about your bimbo hoes."
"Don't be like that, Roxy! Remember the good old days before you got with Kairi?"
"The one who cheated on me with you, then got into a relationship with you two days after we broke up? The cute redhead? The one you're dating? That Kairi? Never heard of her," I growled, voice dripping with sarcasm as thick as a cement chunk.
Ven laughed. "Well it seems to me that you have. No hard feelings, right? Seriously, if I would've known she was with you, I wouldn't have done…well, her."
"Whatever. Just stop talking. First you interrupt my sex time, then you bore me to death, then you bring her up, then you throw your ugly ass kunai in my chest and kill me. I hate you."
"...What?"
"Sorry. That last bit was meant for Scorpion," I said as I tried to restart the level.
Naminé sat up with a giggle. "When you fight him again, get his health down to the halfway mark, do a three hit combo, then keep backing away from him."
"What will that do?" I asked.
"Something hilarious. Just watch."
I nodded and did exactly as she said when I got to him. I kept backing away and he kept trying to spear me. When he finally did, Sub-Zero froze. Scorpion dragged the chain back and yelled: Get the fuck over here!
My character died. Naminé cracked up right alongside Ventus. "Now look what you did," I glared.
"Lighten up. That was funny—"
"No it wasn't! Now I have to start all the way over again! Christ..."
Her laughter abruptly stopped. I didn't look over to see if she was angry because I didn't care. I forgot to save my game and I had to start from insanely far back again.
"You know what, fuck this. I'm going to your room," she growled as she stomped off.
"Bye then," I mumbled, not really caring where she was headed.
Thankfully, Ven shut up about the girl he met/banged. But of course, one irritation had to be replaced with another. He pulled out his phone and started to play Wicked Games by The Weeknd. At least with Naminé's music I could barely understand the lyrics. The last thing I wanted was to hear some guy whine about women, sex, and/or drugs.
Ven wrapped his arms around my neck and started to sing in my ear. "Just lemme muhfuckin' lurve youuu!"
"SHUT THE HELL UP!"
x.o.o.x
The next morning, it was finally time for him to leave. He was getting all sentimental and blabbing about how he wouldn't be able to see me again for a while. I was just ready for the loser to get out of my house. That's when I looked outside and saw all the snow. It look so fluffy and flawless. I'd never seen it snow in Destiny Islands and it was beautiful. I wanted to play in it like a big ass kid.
Naminé ran outside and fell on the ground The second she saw it. "It's so pretty! Which one of you beautiful fuckers did this?!" she yelled at the sky.
I wanted to tell her that Greek gods weren't real, but that'd just break her little heart. She cried when I told her Pluto—her favorite "planet"—wasn't a planet anymore. Imagine what would happen if I told her Zeus wasn't real.
I really didn't get her.
I loved her so much though.
I threw on a jacket and met her outside with a smile. "Maybe Poseidon got new powers, Koibito."
"You think so?"
Hahahaha! I—! Ahahahahaha!
"It's possible," I shrugged, fighting down a very obnoxious laugh.
Then Ven's stupid ass came outside and stood over her wuth the most condescending look ever. "Sweetie, Poseidon and the rest of those weird ass gods in you look up too aren't real. Just because you're cute and blonde doesn't give you the right to be stupid."
She gave him a horrified look. I gave him a look that threatened the safety of his future children if he didn't shut the hell up.
Side note: I hope to God Ventus never has kids.
Ventus apparently didn't notice the look on my face because he said, "I mean come on. If any of them were real, we'd all be in some serious trouble. Honestly, what man gives birth from his thigh?"
Naminé stared at him. "Explain the hurricanes then."
"Natural disasters that occur due to strong winds, warm water, water vapor, and the fact that we're on a goddamn island surrounded by the shit. Google's your friend. Confide in him."
I really wanted to kill him.
Naminé clung to me and buried her face into the side of my neck. "He's lying, right?"
"Um..."
"Roku?"
"Well he isn't not telling the truth," I said, hoping to confuse her. She slapped me and stormed inside the house.
Goddamn it, she knew what slaps did to me.
"Babe, come on! I didn't want to upset you!"
The door down the hall slammed as soon as I stepped inside. She was going to be mad at me for a long while and I knew it.
"Hell, I wanna slam doors too!" Ven grinned as he slammed the front door with an unnecessary amount of force. Something on the roof made a loud scratching noise, then a mass of white came down and covered the windows and door. The front of the house was completely buried in snow, and because of the northward blizzard that the news warned me about last night (but I ignored) so was the back and the sides of the house.
We were snowed in.
"Haha...at least we still have power," Ven smiled.
Just then, power surged and shrouded the entire house in darkness.
Ventus tsked and folded his arms over his chest. "Everything in your house is electric, isn't it?"
"Yep..."
He swung his right foot back and forth, awkwardly kicking at the carpet. "At least we have each other?"
"…You're right." I turned to my brother with the brightest smile I could muster, extending my arms as an invitation. When he was close enough, I curled my hand into a fist and punched him in the dick. He went down quickly. "Don't ever say shit like that to her again. Let her believe in whatever the hell she wants."
"Doesn't she deserve to know the truth?" he wheezed as he cupped himself.
"No. She is precious and needs to be protected. If it comes down to it, I'm eating you first," I spat before going to check on Naminé. Luckily for me, she often forgot to lock the door when she was mad at me. Getting into the room was easy. Getting decent conversation out of her wasn't.
"I'm sorry for not telling you. You probably think that I think you're stupid. I don't. You're not stupid for having your own beliefs."
"Hmph," she mumbled from under her bedsheet burrito.
That time, I did sigh.
"Oh, so you're tired of me now?"
Jesus, take my wheel and drive me away from this mess.
"No. I could never get tired of you. I'm just tired of Ven."
"Then get rid of him."
"I want to but I can't. He has to stay here with us until the snow melts."
Naminé turned around to give me the scariest glare I'd ever seen coming from a woman. I thought for sure she was gonna castrate me in my sleep. "What do you mean when the snow melts?"
"Ventus kinda...knocked some snow down when he slammed the door earlier. The snow is blocking all the exits and the power is out. It's gonna get freezing in here and he's trapped with us."
"Hey Rox! Is there any way to get peanut butter out of carpet?!"
The two of us groaned. I saw that we were both on the same page, so I took that moment to wrap my arms around her. It would be the only warmth we'd be able to find for the next few hours or so.
"Roku?"
"Yeah?"
"Can we have sex now?"
I closed my eyes and huffed. "No, we can't. Not while Ven is here."
She pushed me away and curled herself up into her burrito again. "I'd rather get hypothermia than to cuddle you," she spat viciously.
"Be like that then," I scoffed, leaving her in the room by herself.
x.o.o.x
The house had gotten even colder as the day went on. I had to put on real clothes, a jacket, shoes, gloves, and a scarf as if I were going outside. Ven did the same. Naminé, however, was fine in a pair of my sweats and one of my thermal shirts. I remember thinking where is this woman from and how on earth can she stand this weather?!
Anyway, Ven and Naminé sat in the kitchen with me. We were attempting to eat the pizza we'd ordered the night before, but since the power was still out that meant the microwave wasn't working. So cold pizza.
Maybe the gods are real and we got punished because Ven and I mocked them. It was mostly him though. Why did I have to suffer more than he did?
"You know, cold pizza is kinda the shit," Ven spoke.
"This is true," Naminé said with her mouth full.
Cold pizza is disgusting, but I was starving. The only other thing in the house was several pints of ice cream and I'd be damned if I ate that in below forty weather.
I doubt it was actually below forty. I'm exaggerating.
"Hey, what's your favorite song? If not song, artist or band," Naminé asked.
Ven looked up, surprised that she was looking directly at him when she asked the question. "Me?"
She deadpanned. "No, Casper."
He shook his head with a snort. "I don't really have a favorite song. I do like the band Blood On The Dancefloor."
Damn I forgot Ven likes that kinda music too. The weirdos.
"Really? They're shit..."
"They're so not shit! Name a better band, I dare you."
"In This Moment, A Day To Remember, Asking Alexandria, Machine Head, Chevelle, Evanescence, Five Finger Death Punch, Iwrestledabearonce, Breaking Benjamin, Bullet For My Valentine, Heartist, Sick Puppies, Red, Disturbed—"
"Hey, I said one!" He took a bite of his pizza, then moved to the fridge to grab one of my beers. Like I told him he could even have one. Leech. "You like System of a Down?"
"Yes. And to answer your next question, I love their Violent Pornography."
"Shit, me too!"
They love what?!
"You love what?!" I asked, more than a little bit disturbed. That made my eye twitch. I was learning things about the two of them that I wasn't quite sure I wanted to know.
Ven laughed. "It's the name of a song, bro. Chill out."
I heaved a sigh of relief. It wasn't that I didn't agree with her watching porn or anything. I didn't care. It was the violent part that scared the shit out of me. The fact that my girlfriend and my brother could have something like that in common…I don't want to think about that.
They started to talk like they'd known each other their whole lives. I felt a little left out because I didn't know any of the bands or songs they were gushing about. Stupid Ventus. This is probably how he stole Kairi away from me; he was into literally everything, and could actually sit and have educated discussions about those topics in the most charming of ways. It was like some kind of fuckboy superpower that I didn't inherit.
I refused to let him take Naminé.
If your girl loses the D, you lose the girl.
No. Axel didn't know what he was talking about. Naminé wasn't like that. I was sure of it.
"Hey, maybe we could go see Issues in concert when they come next month. I don't know if you'd want to go still because Michael's not in the group anymore."
Naminé's eyes bugged out of her head. "Wait, Bohn?!"
"Yeah, I had that same reaction when I heard."
"We're definitely still going, but I'm gonna miss him." Naminé frowned. Within seconds, she was smiling again. "God, why weren't you this cool before?"
No.
Ventus shrugged. "I dunno. I'll admit it's nice to just talk like this. And I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable before."
Fuck.
"It is. Beneath all that perverseness is actually a really nice guy."
Okay, Axel may have been right. Watching them talk was like being forced to watch out elevator experience play out all over again, but with someone else where I should be. Seeing Naminé get all starry-eyed over another man—no, my brother—made me sick. At least when Kairi cheated it was behind my back. But this was happening right in front of my face and I didn't know how to stop it.
It didn't matter. When the snow melted, I'd just throw myself back into work and not think about any of it. I knew I was missing out on a lot because of Ven's dumb ass. I was going to be so behind in everything and people were going to wonder where I'd been. Nit like we could have called for help. All of our phones were dead and I didn't even have a landline. In short, I was completely screwed.
"Why so quiet?" Naminé asked as she nudged my arm.
I blinked and looked up at her in shock. This was the first time she had directly addressed me in two hours. "Uh—just thinking about how behind I probably am at work."
"Of course you are," they spoke in unison. Right after, they started to laugh. I'll admit that I felt left out. Because I was left out. So I left the room completely. They didn't need me there to ruin their fun.
x.o.o.x
Three days. It took me three days to get sick of being ignored in favor of my brother. So while Ven was building a house of cards in the living room, I dragged Naminé to my room. I wasn't planning to lose to him and I knew just how to get her to stay.
The answer was sex.
I can honestly say I tried. Whenever I tried to kiss her, she'd move her face away and look at me like I had two heads. I was confused because she had been asking for it this entire time, but now she didn't want it?
Naminé eventually placed her hand over my mouth to get me to stop. "What are you doing?"
"What's the problem?" I mumbled through her hand.
"Why do you want this all of a sudden?" Naminé frowned. "I've been dropping hints for weeks now and you didn't seem to want it. I even asked you directly and you said no. Now you want to because you're ready?"
"I…yeah, pretty much…"
She didn't like my answer. What else was I supposed to say?
I really didn't want to ask my next question, but a crippling fear settled into my stomach and made me. "So what, do I bore you now?"
"What? Roxas, where is this coming from?"
I couldn't tell her that it was because I was…probably, sort of, kind of, maybe jealous of Ven a little bit. She'd hit me for being stupid. "I just wanna know if you think I'm boring."
She rolled her eyes. "This is about Ven, isn't it?"
"…No…"
Naminé sighed, taking my hands in hers. "No, I don't think you're boring. I just think you're too obsessed with your work. I can't even get you to take a break without you bringing up the fact that your job is your priority."
"Well my job is my priority," I explained. "I can't slack off just because I'm dating you."
"I'm not asking you to slack off! I just—!" She buried her face in her hands and groaned, then threaded her fingers through her hair. "I miss the days where we got off of work and didn't think too much about it afterwards. You just wanted to get to know me better and I wanted to know you too. You're so different now. Where's the Roxas that would call my office just to tell me good morning? Where's the Roxas that would call me just to say sweet dreams before he went to sleep?"
Back then, I did that because the relationship was fresh and she was so interesting. I couldn't get enough of her. I wanted to figure her out. There was a time where I couldn't even concentrate on work because she dominated every single one of my thoughts. I was fascinated and enthralled and excited. I just wanted to be around her all the time and forget about everything else.
And to be honest, I still wanted that. My feelings for her hadn't changed. I just knew that if I spent a little too much time with her, I'd get lost in her again. She was so addicting and I didn't want to forget that I was a C.E.O again.
"It's not just about sex, but it does play a small part in this," Naminé continued. "Roxas, I'm not asking you to pay attention to only me all the time. It seems like you only pay attention when it benefits you. Is that why you want sex now? Because you think Ven is gonna steal you from me or something?"
Well…
"I just don't want to lose you," I admitted.
"Then don't let me go."
My eyes went wide as she brushed past me and left the room. So the problem wasn't Ventus. It was literally me. I wasn't paying enough attention to her. But what kind of attention did she want?
"And you let me leave the room anyway?! God!"
"I—how was I supposed to know you meant that literally?!"
Women!
x.o.o.x
Another day went by. I'd been showering in freezing cold water for about four or five days and Naminé had been spending nonstop time with my brother. Even though she said it wasn't about him, I felt like I was still fighting to keep her.
It wasn't until I went in the kitchen for a midnight snack that everything changed.
"Rox, you okay?"
"Mm-hm."
Naminé pouted as she watched me pretend to microwave a piece of pizza. The power was still out but it brought me joy, leave me alone.
"It's not doing anything, Roku..."
"I'm aware. Let me live my life," I grumbled as I poured myself a glass of nothing from the empty juice carton and drank it.
That was just great. I was losing my girlfriend and my mind.
Naminé shook her head at my antics. "If you want me to play along, I will, but I think this is borderline unhealthy."
"You know what's unhealthy? Watching my girlfriend and my brother flirt all day every day right in front of me."
"What?! I was not flirting with him! He and I just have a lot more in common when it comes to music!"
"Then suck his dick, why don't you?"
"That's ridiculous!"
"Oh, so my dick is ridiculous now? That's basically what you're saying because we're identical twins!"
She ran a hand through her hair in frustration, then walked up to me and placed her hands on my chest. "That's not what I'm saying at all. Calm down. I like yours very much, Roku."
"So then you obviously like his! I fucking give up! Go to Ven since you think he can make you happier than I can!"
Naminé glared at me and snatched her hands away. "You should know that prolonged horniness, if left untreated, turns into a boiling, murderous rage. If you still want your dick attached to your body, you'll shut that up right now. I'm not in the mood to hear this shit."
My eyes widened as I leaned away from her. What was her problem? "Chill, Nam. It's not that serious..."
"You just made it that serious. What the hell is going on with you? Do you want sex or don't you? Do you even want me anymore or do you want to be left to your precious job?" she growled.
"I don't know," I hissed. "Are you gonna be thinking of Ven if we do have sex? If I said I didn't want you, would you wind up being another one of his whores—?"
She slapped the insanity right out of me. That shit was so hard that my head turned in a whole different direction. My cheek was throbbing. I was dazed…and slight turned on.
I knew she was pissed, but it wasn't like my reaction could be helped.
"How dare you? I didn't start dating you for sex, so why the hell would I leave you because I'm not getting it? I care about you, Roxas. Not your stupid penis."
"Why does my penis have to be stupid?"
"Shut up!" she yelled.
Obviously that was no time for jokes, but I'm just stupid.
A part of me started to hate myself because she looked like she was about to cry. That's when I remembered we both had a bad history with that word. So fuck me.
"How could you even think that of me? How could you say that to me when you know how I feel about that word?"
I shook my head stupidly, trying to come up with the right words to say. Or any words at all. "I'm so sorry, baby—"
"Sorry isn't enough for how you've been treating me lately."
Guess who felt like the lowest piece of shit on earth? Go on. Guess.
"I shouldn't have said that to you, or to anyone, really. I do know how you feel about that word, but I promise you thatwasn't me. That was a mix of jealousy and insanity from being cooped up in this huge ass refrigerator for days at a time. I was really angry and you're..."
Right there. It was that exact moment where I realized she looked just like she did when I confronted her about our first kiss. Naminé looked absolutely beautiful, but she was also terrified and curious. Except this time, she was hurt and she felt like she was alone.
Her expression reminded me of something my dumb ass had been missing the entire time: relationships need work too. At first I was putting the majority of my one and effort into her and not my job, and then I put all of it in my job and none in her like a fucking idiot. Yes, my job is my priority, but I still had everything left to lose. No way in hell was I gonna lose my baby. She meant the world to me.
"You're my everything," I smiled, wrapping my arms around her. "And I'm so stupid. I was angry because I was scared to lose you, but I was the one pushing you away. That won't happen anymore. I swear to you I will find a way to balance all of this out because I don't want a life without you in it."
Naminé forced down a smile as she sucked her teeth. "Congrats," she sniffed. "You're the first man to ever make me cry happy tears."
I hugged her close to me and let her cry it out. Knowing that she was happy made me feel on top of the world. Making her happy was my superpower and I was glad to have it. "I'm sorry, baby. Please be patient with me. I'm not used to being this happy, and my fear of fucking up makes me fuck up. But I swear I'm going to give this my all."
Naminé looked up at me with a smile. "I believe you, Roku. That's all I wanted from you." Then, for the first time in days, she shivered. "Shit, it's cold in here."
Well when you're unbelievably pissed at someone I assume the raging flames of the devil work overtime to keep you warm. Hell really hath no fury…
"You need me to warm you up?" I joked as I placed teasing kisses all over her face and neck. She said no, but she didn't try very hard to push me away. Plus, she was giggling. I just wanted to keep her laughing.
Since she was still shivering, I figured she was still cold. Laughing, I hugged her tight and rubbed my heavily clothed body all over hers. "Is this working?"
"No, it's weird! Get off of me!"
During my twisting and turning, a part of me that was bothered by that earlier slap accidentally brushed her inner thigh. She must have felt it too because she hissed when it happened. I immediately stopped, but I didn't let her go.
"You still cold?" I asked softly.
"Sort of. You?"
"A little," I grinned. I gently grabbed both sides of her face and kissed her. Unlike before, she actually let me. Soon, the two of us were slowly moving towards the floor.
The tiled floor was unbelievably cold, but neither of us cared. The kitchen was quickly becoming unbearably hot and clothes started coming off. The best part about it was that it didn't feel like we were forcing ourselves. It happened naturally, and I think the both of us had been wanting that for some time now.
x.o.o.x
"Someone got laid," Axel sang, nudging my shoulder.
The snow had finally melted and Naminé and I were back to work again. I was smiling a lot more than usual, but it was because I was happier than I had ever been. Naminé and I had grown closer and I had the snow to thank for that. Sort of.
"Yes. I. Did," I smirked, not caring that he was burning yet another one of my pencils. "And it was great."
"Told you. Who was right? Uncle Axel was right!" he grinned, ruffling my hair.
"Fucking whore," I spat, trying to fix the mess he made.
The pyro laughed. "Watch it. The last time you called someone that you ended up in a relationship with them. You trying to tell me something, Rox?"
"...Not even if I was gay."
"You don't have to be gay to get a little Axel in your life. Chef don't judge," he winked, then laughed when I threw up a little in my mouth. Me and Axel? Hard pass.
"Wow, and you were worried about me being with other men."
I looked lover towards the door in a panic. Of course Naminé would walk in while Axel was teasing me. "Hey Koibito. Ignore this dickface."
She laughed and closed the door as she came in. "Hey Roku. Hey Chef," she joked.
"Hello Short-Blonde-Who's-Currently-Dating-The-Love-Of-My-Life."
Naminé pushed Axel off the edge of my desk and casually took his spot. "What are you working on?"
"Pain..." Axel groaned from the floor.
I sat up and leaned forward. "The usual. Our break's in five minutes, though. We should go out and do something."
"And by something you mean...?"
I smiled and winked, which made her blush. It was adorable.
"…Here?" she asked, looking surprised.
"Here."
"I…alright then. Here some paperwork your dad asked me to bring you. Finish up and I'll see you in five." Naminé kissed me on the cheek before left. I couldn't help but watch her walk away. She was wearing one of my favorite skirts.
Axel let out a low whistle as he sat up on the floor. "Damn, she's hot."
"Watch it," I glared. It didn't last because my mind started to wander. Just how many times could I make her explode in an hour?
"Chill man. When did you get so possessive?"
Since I realized I never want to let her go. I'm not going to slack on my work, but I'm also not going to slack on my Naminé. She deserved better than I've treated her and I intended to prove that I would adjust to her being in my life.
"I'm going on break early. Watch the office for me," I told Axel as I made my way to Naminé's office.
x.o.o.x
I opened the door and peaked out of Naminé's office. There was no one in sight. My hair was really messed and my shirt was ripped in several places. And there was lip gloss all over my shirt collar. "Coast is clear. I'm gonna head back," I smiled.
"Wait!" Naminé gave me one last kiss. It made me want to stay, but I couldn't. I had to maintain balance. "Heard you might have to do some overtime today. Good luck. Love you."
"Love you too." I eased out of the door and made a beeline for my office. My hand was on the handle right as my father called for me. "Sir?" I sighed.
"You doing alright, son?"
He never asked me that. I was immediately suspicious.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Why?"
"Well I went by Naminé's office to see if she knew where you had disappeared to..."
I looked at him…
He looked at me…
And we both just kinda exploded. His was filled with laughter while mine was more of an angry explosion.
"What the hell were you looking for me for?! I was on my break!"
"Your break was around noon, Roku. It's two in the afternoon. I didn't know you had such a filthy mouth. I swear, it was like listening to a professional porno!" he laughed.
Was I completely mortified? Yes. Would I be doing that again? …Yes.
"Y-You stayed to listen?!"
"Oh, everyone stayed to listen."
I growled and stomped into my office, making sure to slam the door in his face and lock it. Even though I could still hear his laughter, I smiled to myself because I still had chills from her touch.
More importantly, I was happy. Our sex life was fine, I was catering to her emotional needs, and I was stupid in love.
Four months later, it remains true. That makes seven awesome months I've spent with an angel.
