Chapter 2

Alex brushed past her and sat at the dining room table. She watched him at the doorway for a couple seconds before pulling up a chair to sit beside him at the table. Norma had never seen him like this. He was looking down at his hands in his lap, avoiding eye contact with her at all costs. Still keeping his head down, he mumbled hoarsely, "It's important to me that you can trust me, for you to feel comfortable. You-you understand what I'm saying, right?"

He looked up from his lap intently, trying to read her glistening eyes. Norma was in some state of paralysis, unsure of where this conversation was beginning to lead. His eyes darkened, even in the candlelight, Norma could spot a faint desire in his eyes, and an ambiguous expression, similar to when they first met. Alex's palms began to sweat, and his breathing shaky. How could this be happening, and now out of all times? He needed to be calm and confident about this so that he wouldn't screw up. Putting himself in her hands made him feel vulnerable and he despised it. Yet there was something about her that put him at ease.

"I'm not sure that I do, Alex." Her voice was now a strained whisper, the anticipation of his response aching in her voice.

"I think, um, well, uh, me opening up shows how I feel about us." He couldn't bring himself to look into her eyes, so he shyly looked down at the table in front of him awaiting her answer. Norma's heart fluttered as she watched his dark lashes shut slightly, as if he was in agonizing pain.

"Us?" She asked gently. He shifted his body to face her, and she began to notice many attractive features of Alex that she normally overlooked. He was wearing a tight light-blue t-shirt that hugged the arms of his well-proportioned biceps, and she spotted a tiny bit of chest hair peaking out the neckline of the shirt. Glancing up a bit further, she saw his neck vein popping out, as if he was under a great stress. But wasn't that always the case?

Oh god, she can see right through me, he thought. His heart was pounding in his ears so hard that he felt as if his ears were speakers and they were blasting the embarrassing fast beat of his heart. She looked so beautiful, he mused, even in this socially uncomfortable state. Her beautiful blue eyes that he had noticed for the very first time when she was cleaning his wound were once again rendering him speechless. After what felt like several minutes of torture, he answered.

"I think it goes without saying our understanding, Norma. I don't need to say it because you know." Norma chuckled at this, leaning slightly forward, invading his space.

"Who's being the difficult one now?" She smiled at him seductively, and he let out a sigh and a small smile.

"Okay, okay." He collected himself and looked deeply into her anticipating eyes. "Since my mom's suicide, I've been on anti-depressants f-for my depression." He looked past her face as they were facing one another, but couldn't bring himself to see her face of pity. Little did he know she was admiring every detail of his face, looking more lovingly than she ever had before.

"Since I was a kid, it was important for me to find justice and make things right so that somehow, that would give me some kind of peace, I guess. It had nothing to do with following in my dad's footsteps. He was a dirty cop and he always thought I took myself too seriously. H-he didn't know I was sad. I had to find help on my own, and it was very difficult for me to admit that I couldn't do it on my own." He then checked to see Norma's facial expression, and his dark hazel eyes looked hastily at hers. Norma bit her lip, holding herself from making any move. Not now. He watched the lip bite and his groin tightened in his jeans.

"Norma?" He said, trying to find her eyes. She looked him right in the eyes and tried to make a sound, but nothing would come out. Her eyes were hurt and began to water, however she couldn't cry. She knew how unsettling that would be for him.

"I know what it's like to not want to let anyone in, or to talk about things." She smiled softly, but her eyes were melancholy and pained. Alex could hardly believe what he was doing next. He gingerly reached his strong hand over to her bare thigh only inches away from him. His hand grazed it lightly, and he took in a sharp intake of breath when he realized he was coming onto her. Usually, Alex wouldn't have normally done so, but her eyes were filled with love, and he knew he could let her in.

Initially, she jerked away from his touch, but as soon as he abruptly withdrew his hand from her space, she knew he would never hurt her. She yearned for his touch, for him to admit more to her. For him to beg for her, something he would never do. Slowly returning her leg to its original place, she moved it closer, so that it ever so softly brushed his leg. He blinked nervously, but didn't move away. Nerves were rising in his throat, while Norma felt more at peace than she ever had in her life.

It was up to her to make a move because he was too rigid to, she decided. Carefully and straight-faced, she ran her hand up the bare skin of his arm, up to the crook of his neck and he gazed into her eyes lustfully, but also softly, more soft than she had ever seen him look since she'd known him. It scared her how comfortable they were with each other now. And then he spoke, breaking the tension smoothly.

"I've been off my medication for four months now," he stated with a stone face. She couldn't decode his expression. She flashed him a small smile, and dropped her hand from his neck, embarrassed that it had been lingering there for some time.

"I don't need it anymore because…because I've found a remedial distraction." He sent her a grin. One with so much confidence, she had a hard time believing this was the same conversation. She brushed a blonde curl out of her face and scanned his face with a coy lip bite. When she did, his face went serious again.

"Really? If it's working you should continue to use it. What's this miracle remedy?" She bemused. "I might need some myself due to…" Without warning, he swiftly leaned in and claimed her lips. Her eyes we wide open, staring at his skin, and the closeness that took over her. She could hear him sigh quietly, and she shut her eyes. He couldn't believe he'd done it. Alex drank in her scent and left his lips pressed against hers awaiting the reaction. Not opening his eyes, he waited.

Not able to restrain herself any longer, she gently kissed him back. Alex's heart began to palpitate. Their feelings were sealed within their locked lips. Norma brought her hands up to his broad shoulders, and simultaneously, his hands framed her face. Both were short of breath, and knew they had to stop to breathe, but they both refused, and continued kissing. Each kiss more consuming and passionate than the one before it. At the same time, they caressed each other, which was a new sort of touch between them. This broke the tension, but also built up a new and more intimate kind. Neither wanted to take a breath. That would mean talking about what had just happened.