He realizes that things are changing when getting out of her bed starts being difficult. At first he thinks it's just because winter is coming and the cold air of her apartment on his naked skin isn't really the best of feelings. When the warmth from the radiators has spread everywhere he starts thinking it's just tiredness, he blames the long hours at the office, the sleep deprivation, his trips back home in the middle of the night. In the end he just has to see things as they are: he doesn't feel the need to flee from her anymore.
He can't help letting his feelings control his actions and his thoughts. When they're at work his eyes keep lingering on her body, on her dresses and on the way they all hug her curves like a second skin; he calls her in his office more than usual, just because he loves the way her name rolls out of his tongue, the way she just stops everything she's doing and rushes to his desk. In his condo he pays attention to the way she moves like she owns the place, he lets her decide what exactly they're going to do and where. When memories of defining life events come to his mind he realizes she's responsible for making most of them so remarkable.
He inhales deeply but her scent is all he can feel, it's everywhere on the sheets he's tangled in, on his skin, on his tongue. He feels so inebriated and it has nothing to do with the fact that she's there beside him, on her side, red hair splayed on the pillow, watching Manhattan through the large window of his bedroom.
He recently noticed how she permanently lives in his mind by now, how the thought of her never leaves him even when she's not there physically; he wonders when they're going to be ready to talk about feelings and possibilities.
"Do you want children?" His voice comes out hoarse, as if he just woke up from sleeping.
It's the first time in so long that he asks her something personal, but he's curious to know if she dreams what he dreams and if she's ready to let him in.
"What?" She asks as if her hearing betrayed her.
His question, who seemed to come out of nowhere, startled her, but she keeps her composure as her heart beat starts accelerating. The knowledge that they don't talk much anymore in favor of their newest arrangement is something she had to learn to live with.
"Do you?" lying down on his back he watches as she doesn't move a muscle, her whole body curled up as far from him as possible.
She gulps but keeps her eyes on the city skyline, "Maybe."
"You're forty."
She turns around as if insulted, "I'm not."
"Well, you're almost forty."
"And so are you," she snaps back without even thinking.
"Didn't they teach you this in school? I still have time, you on the other hand-"
"Wait," she props herself up on one elbow to have a better view of his face, "do you want children?"
The look on her face is one of disbelief.
He sighs, he can't really tell her what he wants; not yet. "I don't know."
Her eyes widen, "Oh my god,"
The sound of her laughter reaches his ears and for a second he's distracted by it and thinks about how that's a sound he wants to hear every single day for the rest of his life.
"You want a baby Specter running around in your apartment and messing up your life."
He's annoyed by the way she's making fun of him, "I didn't-"
"Really?"
"Okay," the smirk on her face irritates him, "what's wrong with that?"
She sits on his bed and tries to locate the clothes she was wearing when she got there, "Nothing."
He watches as the sheets fall off her body and she walks towards the armchair in the corner to pick up her clothes, "Where are you going?"
The moon light brightens her bare skin and her red locks, he watches as she slides her panties up her long creamy legs and covers her breasts with her bra.
"Home?" She replies as it's the most obvious thing in the world.
"Want to take a shower?"
She catches his mischievous tone and knows that all he wants is for her to stay there and have another round with him.
"Yes," she takes a few steps back towards the bed and bites her lower lip seductively, excitement already showing in his eyes, "in my bathroom."
She laughs because he's just so predictable.
He pouts, "You're not funny."
She smirks while zipping up her dress and putting on her heels.
He's desperate to keep her there and talk to her. "Let me call Ray-"
"No, it's late. I'll catch a cab like usual."
He spaces out as he thinks what it would be like if he'd just ask her to spend the rest of the night with him, what she would answer. He wonders if the promise of a morning off from work and his credit card would do the trick.
Her 'bye' takes him out of his trance and when he replies she's already out of the room.
She closes the door behind her as she gets out of the apartment. She acted like she didn't notice his behavior has been different than before, like it hasn't been changing in the span of a few weeks. She fears changes in their relationship because she doesn't know what to expect from them. Her heart is still beating fast as she presses the ground floor button in the elevator.
He waits for sleep to overcome him without success. He untangles himself from the sheets and walks to his living room. He heard the door shutting and knows she's probably home by now but a part of him still expected she was there, waiting, sat on his leather couch. He sighs as he gets aware it's late and he has work in the morning.
AN: Again, thanks for the reviews, they're really appreciated. This one chapter was very short but it's mostly because I wanted it to end at a certain point, the next ones will probably be longer.