True to her word, Tina reappears in the kitchen fifteen minutes later. Her make-up has been repaired, and most of the evidence of her tears have been erased. However, there are some definite changes. She's still wearing Artie's gloves, but several black studded leather bracelets have also been tied around her wrists. One of her favorite key necklaces is around her neck, and the gold slippers have been replaced with black knee-high socks and her favorite clunky black shoes. In her hand, she's clutching a small blue-and-purple gift bag.
"Hi, Artie!" The cheerfulness is not forced, but she still sounds unsure. "Happy Valentine's Day. I got you something."
Artie takes in her appearance, amused. "Hi Tee," he says. "You look nice. Especially the gloves. Very classy. Happy Valentine's Day to you. And you got me something?" he tilts his head to the side. "You didn't have to do that, but thank you."
"Open it!" Tina can't help it, she's excited. She climbs back into his lap, tossing the gift bag at him. "I want to see what you think of it." Her hands drift down to toy with the hem of the yellow dress even as she stares at him expectantly.
Arching an eyebrow, Artie opens the bag and pulls out a black Beatles t-shirt with the album art from "Let it Be" on the front. "Tee!" he exclaims, excited. "You got me a Beatles t-shirt!" He laughs and kisses her on the cheek. "Thank you. It's perfect."
"I might have the ulterior motive of wanting to see you in it," she admits, but flushes from the approval in his tone anyway. Her hands wrap around him in a hug, and she buries her head on his chest, finally feeling content for the first time all morning.
He grins. "I'll wear it for you tomorrow, okay?" Artie rubs her back. "Better now?" he asks after a minute.
"Much." She takes a deep breath, then plows forward with the rest of her sentence. "Um, you can kiss me now if you want?" Tina gives him a shy smile. "I want to. Really, truly, promise not to freak you out this time. Love you."
Artie looks at her a minute and, when she still looks fairly confident, he grins and leans in. "Love you, too," he whispers, before kissing her lips quickly and then her cheeks, down to her jawbone. "I love you so much, Tee," he continues, kissing down her neck and then up to her ear, tugging on the lobe gently with his teeth before kissing back down to her shoulders.
Tina gives a soft moan when he kisses her ear, and her fingers reach toward his chest to clench at the fabric of his shirt. "Love you too, Artie. All year long." She he kisses her neck, and she shudders and lets her eyes drift close, because she really can't say anything else right now.
Artie smiles, pleased with himself, and kisses down her neck to her collarbones, nosing along them carefully before biting them and then trailing back up her neck to the soft skin of the underside of her jaw where he sucks softly before pressing a kiss there sweetly and running his lips back up to hers to engage them in a sweet, slow kiss.
Her hands roam upward to fist in his hair, and her hands tangle tightly as he keeps trailing kisses along her neck and face. When he bites her neck, she gives a tiny gasp, but then she can't help but sigh into the sweet, slow kiss.
Artie sighs at the feeling of Tina's fingers against his scalp, and his own hands trail upward gently to tangle in her hair. When they move for air, Artie leans his forehead against hers. 'Not that I'm opposed to making out in your kitchen, but--" he smiles. "Maybe we should move? I mean, that can't be comfortable," he says, gesturing to the way she's sitting in his lap.
"Later." Tina's eyes are set in a determined gaze, and she's not ready to move anytime soon. Because moving means she has to stop kissing him, at least for a few minutes, and she's not quite ready for that yet. Not after she scared him (and herself) half to death earlier. She instead, she digs her hands into his hair more deeply and reaches forward to give him a determined kiss of her own.
Artie groans into the kiss when Tina's fingers move in his hair, and he leans back a little, running his hands down to squeeze her sides gently.
She breaks away from the kiss and positively beams at him, even as she's smiling at him softly. "Happy Valentine's Day?"
He laughs and kisses her cheek chastely. "Happy Valentine's Day, Tee." He brushes a strand of hair away from her face and bites his lip, unsure. "I--you scared me a little bit, earlier. Are you okay? Not to, like, try and kill the mood or anything, and I want to move past it, but I need to know that you're--that you're okay."
"Yeah," replies Tina softly. "I'm all right. I'm really sorry I freaked out earlier. I'm still not entirely sure what happened." She gives a self-depreciating chuckle. "I love you, and really, you're the best boyfriend I could ever ask for, but sometimes? I guess I get ahead of myself sometimes, and act without thinking? Then my brain catches up with the rest of me and I get self-conscious. Especially around you, because this is important to me, really, really important, and well, I'm still kinda getting used to it. Boyfriend Artie is a bit different from Best Friend Artie. Both are still awesome, mind you, but there are differences."
Artie smiles and kisses her forehead.
A part of him feels guilty--incredibly guilty--because he should have known that Tina would need a little bit of time to warm up to Valentine's Day like normal couples do it, and he--well, he acted like a Neanderthal and tried to make out with her.
The other part is so relieved he melts a little bit. "I'm glad you're okay," he says finally, sliding his hands down her arms to take her hands. It feels strange, since he doesn't have his gloves on and the feel of Tina's skin against his skin gives him chills. "You shouldn't be self-conscious around me," he adds. "I love you no matter what happens."
"I know, but I am sometimes." Tina bites her lip and squeezes his hands tightly. "Let's go to the sofa, and um, I liked it when you took the lead earlier. Can you do that again?"
Artie smiles, pleased. "That wasn't--I didn't--" he coughs and tries again. "I felt kind of like a caveman. Like I was grabbing you by your hair and dragging you around. You didn't--you liked it?"
"I like your hands in my hair," Tina replies, trying to lighten the mood with a joke. "Okay, seriously? You weren't a caveman. Cavemen don't stop when their girlfriends start getting nervous. I like it when you take the lead sometimes, because I know I can be pushy, and I love you really, but when you take the lead, it lets me know that you want this too. It's good. Promise."
Artie rolls his eyes, but smiles. "I want this. I do. Badly. And--I like it when you're pushy," he admits, blushing. "But--I can take the lead sometimes. I can. Let's go to the couch?"
Tina beams at him, delighted that he's willing to try. "I trust you. So, okay, let's do this." She reluctantly pulls out of his lap so they can both move into the living room and the sofa in there.
Once there, Artie gets out of his chair and situates himself on the couch and then tugs Tina down onto his lap. "I like this," he says, and kisses her once, then twice gently, before deepening the second kiss and running his fingers back up through her hair.
"Me too," replies Tina, as her hands move down to wrap around his waist. She hums appreciatively into the second kiss as it deepens, and lets her fingers curl into the fabric of his shirt tightly.
Artie sighs into the kiss and he squeezes her sides, fisting his hands in the dress`s material.
She breaks the second kiss to move her mouth up to kiss along his jawline and up toward his ear, where she nips at his earlobe tentatively.
Artie gasps when Tina's teeth scrape his earlobe and his grip on her sides tightens minutely. "Tee..."
"Hmm?" Tina pulls back, curious because of his reaction. "Say something?" She lets her forehead rest on top of his, but her hands are rubbing up and down his back softly.
"I--like it. When you--do that. With--you--when you--it feels--" Artie can't form a coherent sentence, so he gives up and kisses her. "I like it when you do that. It feels--good."
Tina smiles at him, delighted by his reaction. "Okay then." Then, before she can lose her nerve, she leans in and does the same thing to his other ear.
His response is to groan and tug her closer, his hands settling around her waist.
Tina hums happily and wraps her arms around him, resting her head on his chest. She contents herself with listening to his heartbeat for a few moments.
Artie rubs her back gently. "Listening?" he asks her softly.
"You could say that. I like to sometimes." She hums again softly, letting her eyes shut and curling up close to him.
Artie smiles, content to just sit and hold Tina for the moment. He chuckles when she curls up against him and hums, struck by how much his girlfriend is like a cat.
Tina breaks the silence a few moments later. "Whatcha thinking?"
"You're like a cat," he says softly. "In a good way." He traces random designs on her back.
"How so?" Tina's definitely intrigued now. She shifts a little, propping herself up on her elbows so she can glance at him curiously. "I'm not offended or anything, I just wanna know why."
Artie thinks for a minute. "Well... you're kind of...like, when you're happy, you hum, and you like to cuddle sometimes. And you're just--" he breaks off, smiling. "I don't know. You just are."
"You're so poetic. Shakespeare had better look out, he's got competition." Tina smiles at him, definitely making it clear that she's teasing. "Kiss me?"
Artie grins and leans down to kiss her on the forehead, and pulls back, smug and pleased with himself.
"Not quite what I had in mind, but it'll do." She rolls her eyes and kisses him gently on the tip of his nose.
He wrinkles his nose playfully but then runs a hand up to cup Tina's neck and pulls her closer for a proper kiss, deepening it almost immediately and touching the seam of her lips with his tongue curiously.
Tina parts her lips eagerly, shifting in his lap so she can be more comfortable. Her hands move down to grip loosely at his waist.
Artie runs his hands down her neck to rest on her shoulders, his fingers tightening a little bit as the kiss grows in intensity.
Her grip tightens at his waist, and Tina can't help the small moan that escapes from the back of her throat, but she refuses to break the kiss off just yet.
Artie finally has to breathe, and he pulls away, resting his forehead against hers and breathing heavily. "That was nice," he says softly. "Want to try it again?"
"Try what again?" Tina's brain is kind of a fog at the moment, and thinking hasn't exactly resumed just yet.
He smiles and instead of answering, he leans in and kisses her again.
Tina gives a hum of approval at this gesture, and hands move up to get tangled in his hair again
Artie groans in the back of his throat when Tina's fingers rub against his scalp again and his hands go to squeeze her sides again, only to run up and over her shoulders to the back of her neck.
Tina whimpers into this kiss, and her legs adjust underneath her to wrap around him more tightly.
Artie's brain goes kind of blank when Tina wraps her legs around him and he tugs her closer, deepening the kiss.
She squirms as the kiss deepens, and her dress starts riding up considerably, but she really could care less at the moment. Instead, her nails dig into his scalp and she gives another quiet moan into the kiss.
He finally has to breathe and he breaks the kiss, but doesn't pull away, kissing the underside of her jaw and up to her ear and then back down her neck, nipping gently at the skin.
Tina sighs and pulls away for a minute. She holds a finger out to Artie, signaling for him to wait and be patient before he starts talking. With a determined glint in her eye, she works herself out of the sleeves of her dress, tugging it down so that it's bunching around her waist. With a casual little shrug, she then goes for his jacket, tugging at it roughly.
It takes Artie a minute to respond--he blinks at Tina for a minute before shrugging out of his jacket and working at his suspenders while Tina goes for his buttons.
The minute his shirt is off, Tina wastes absolutely no time leaning in to trail kisses along his exposed chest and stomach. Okay, fine, she might've wanted Artie to take the lead earlier, but for goodness' sake, he was killing her. Slowly. And agonizingly. It was time to even the score.
Artie moans as Tina kisses along his chest and stomach, leaning back and completely incapable of thinking by this point.
Tina lets her tongue lick experimentally along his belly button, and her hands reach over to run up and down his sides roughly.
Artie's hips twitch and he runs his hands up Tina's ribcage, gasping when Tina's tongue traces his belly button. His hands reach over to fist in her hair.
Tina gasps and pauses mid-kiss when his hands tangle in her hair, and she arches her back slightly, lifting her head to meet his hands.
Artie takes the opportunity to press open-mouthed kisses down, starting at just under her ear and ending just above where the dress cuts him off. He can't quite reach where he wants to with the dress the way it is, so he tugs it down a little farther to reach her bellybutton; his tongue darts out quickly to trace the indention, and then he kisses all the way back up to her lips.
Tina lets a shudder trail all the way down her body, she's sort of moaning his name as she's wriggling, and when he kisses her mouth, it's all she can do to weakly wrap her arms around him and remember to kiss back.
Artie chuckles softly against the kiss and then kisses the corner of her mouth before nosing up to press a kiss against her eyelids, then back down, a brief peck on the nose, a brush against the lips and then around to suck softly on her earlobe before kissing sweetly to her shoulder and then down her arm. He flips her arm over gently and kisses back up until he's kissing across her chest and repeats the same process on the other arm.
Tina's hips arch once, than twice. It's a purely involuntary movement, because she definitely can't think straight right now. Artie is kissing her, and she loves this feeling, loves him so much, that all she can kind of do is make murmured hums of approval... and if she's lucky, she might have been able to mumble an "I love you" in there once or twice somewhere. She can't really remember at this point.
He smiles and then kisses her throat before kissing up the side of her jaw to her cheekbone and then down the side of her neck to where her neck and shoulder meet. Gently, he unhooks her legs from around his waist and turns her slightly to kiss along her shoulder blades and upper back, and then down her spine, as his fingers draw patterns on her stomach.
"I-I-I love you," is all she can stammer out. She stuttering, but it's not faked by any stretch of the imagination. Her eyes are squeezed shut, and she sort of vaguely wonders if this is what bliss feels like. Or at least, what it feels like to be a contented pile of goo. Then she feels his hands running patterns over her stomach, and her mind goes blank again as she gives out a soft groan.
Carefully, Artie runs his hands up her sides and then up her back to run along the fabric of the back of her bra. He takes a deep breath (this feels like a bigger step than it actually is, like there's a line here that isn't just physically, like he's about to change their relationship both physically and emotionally with just the flick of a clasp) and, fingers shaking, flicks the clasp open and lets it fall to the side, pressing a kiss to the skin that's just been bared. His hands slide up to brush the straps away from her shoulders.
Tina opens her eyes and lifts her hands up to help him with the straps, giving him a small smile that is ultimately, the most trusting look she can muster at the moment. Her eyes are still heavy, but they're clear, and it's clear she's glad he's the one taking this step with her. "Love you," she whispers, softly.
He smiles softly and kisses her forehead sweetly. "I love you, too, Tee. So much." He settles his hands on her waist and presses a kiss to the juncture where her neck and shoulder meet, before resting his forehead on her shoulder, overcome with emotion. "So much, Tee," he repeats softly.
Tina wraps her arms around him, giving him some time to compose himself. After hugging him tightly for several minutes, she takes a deep breath and brings her mouth up to his ear so she can whisper into it. "Artie, I love you, and I trust you, and this is perfect, really perfect, so don't take this the wrong way, but can you kiss me brainless again? Please?"
Artie chuckles and kisses her ear. "You're too good to me," he whispers, but obliges and kisses down from her ear to her shoulder and then across to the center of her chest. She seemed to like the open-mouthed kisses from earlier; he starts this time just below her left collarbone and then down, down, down to her bellybutton again, which he flicks gently with his tongue and then, feeling brave, pushes the dress down a little bit more to kiss just below her waist.
Tina shudders again as his kisses trail along her body, and her hands move up to fist in his hair again. "God, Artie," she breathes, arching her body up to meet his mouth. "I... love... love ...y-you."
He grins against her skin and then kisses back up to her lips before leaning back and brushing her hair out of her face gently. Before she can complain that he's stopped, he holds a finger up, telling her to give him a minute. "Listen, Tee," he says seriously. "I want you to stop me if I--if this goes too far, okay?" He waits for her nod of affirmation and then slowly reaches for the hem of the dress before sliding it up.
"I love you, it's all right, I want this too." Tina smiles at him and helps him take her dress off.