Cha-Cha was played by OPERATIC. Send her fan mail!
Relaxation
Cha-Cha had had a very lazy day, in that she had barely left her bed in the past twelve hours. Of course, she wasn't alone in her bed, but still.
Time did fly when you were having fun though, and before they knew it, it was nearly four-thirty. Sighing deeply, Cha-Cha closed her eyes. Eventually, they were going to have to get up, as unwelcome as that thought was. "Well..." she sighed again, looking at Ed slowly.
"Well?" Ed rolled over to face her better. He hadn't stayed in a bed this long in a while. It felt nice. No, great, actually. Relaxing was something he didn't do very often. Even on free days he was out in the city. Normally too tense thinking about a case to stay home without fidgeting.
"It's late," Cha-Cha replied with a smile, amused he hadn't noticed. She'd never seen him so relaxed before. It suited him, though. Unfortunately though, she couldn't stay in bed much longer. She'd go crazy in a few hours. "Do you think we should get up...eventually?" she asked.
"Do we have to?" he mumbled, turning his face into the pillow. She was probably right. They hadn't eaten anything all day and he was starving. After a moment he lifted his face up a bit to glance back at her.
"I know," Cha-Cha sighed, moving in closer to him. Maybe a little longer wouldn't hurt? It wasn't even five yet. She let her arms wrap around him as best she could, shrugging lightly. "But it has been awhile!"
He accepted her into his arms gladly. "You're right. It's just you wouldn't believe how long it's been since I could just lay here and do nothing..." He kissed whatever part of her he could reach. Alright, so they hadn't exactly been doing nothing.
Cha-Cha shivered, smiling lightly and leaning in to kiss him slowly. It would be very hard to leave that bed. But they couldn't stay all day. Already her legs were getting restless and she stretched them as best she could, doing her best not to kick him. It wasn't easy considering how close they were.
Ed pulled away after a moment. She'd got him with her leg, and smiling he said, "I can tell by your fidgeting you're ready to move." He rolled onto his back, pulling part of her with him accidentally. "Sorry," he laughed, untangling his arm from hers.
"Did I kick ya?" Cha-Cha asked with a small smile, and adjusted herself closer to him as he moved. It only made it easier for her to lean over and kiss him, something she found herself doing more and more often. She couldn't help it, he made her want to.
Ed kissed her back, grinning almost too much to do it properly. He held her face in his hands to allow himself to talk. "I thought we were getting up? This isn't making me want to leave the bed, you know."
"I know, but..." Cha-Cha shrugged, frowning lightly as his hands prevented her from kissing him anymore. But he was right, staying in bed all day seemed satisfying but lazy. "I know. This is fun but we should move eventually."
"Would moving to the couch qualify as getting up?" he asked jokingly. He still hadn't released her, enjoying her pout. He knew that when he did get up, though, he'd be heading for the fridge and not the couch.
"Mmm, the less comfy version of the bed? We might as well just stay here if that's where we're headed," Cha-Cha pointed out, leaning in to kiss his neck gently. She really wasn't making things much easier, but...
"True, but..." Her lips felt wonderful and it was very distracting. "What was I going to say?" he asked. Oh, right, "I'm hungry..." He didn't make a move to get up, but had felt that he should at least try to act like he wasn't lazy.
"Me too," Cha-Cha sighed, kissing him a few more times before giving it up. They hadn't eaten since...since before he came over. No wonder they were both starving. "Okay, fine. What do you want to do?" she asked, rolling off him.
"Lay here. But what I am going to do is search for food." He shifted to the edge of the bed, hand groping around the floor for any clothes within reach. Success! After standing up and dressing he stretched, a bit wobbly.
"Uh...let me think about that," Cha-Cha giggled nervously, trying to envision her fridge. It wasn't packed to be honest. Well it had things, but they weren't all recent. "Not sure how successful you'd be. Though I will gladly lie here," she added, bringing the blanket up closer to herself.
"I meant I wanted to lay there," he smiled, moving to the kitchen. "But go ahead, at least one of us is happy." He returned a minute later. "On second thought, I'll be right back." He hadn't located a shirt yet, but he only needed to be out for a few minutes. "I'll bring something down."
"Didn't find much, did you?" she asked with a laugh, bringing the blanket up closer to her chin. Cha-Cha wasn't the best grocery shopper. It was even worse now that she was on her own. "Do you want your shirt, or are you gonna give a show? I'm sure it's around somewhere," she added, doing her best to look without moving from her comfortable position.
"I'm just running upstairs." How many people could he run in to? "It'll take longer to find it than it will to be there and back." Which was probably an exaggeration, considering it had to be within throwing distance of the bed. More like dropping distance. Kicked under the bed from this morning? Or in the bed? So it was true, it probably would take longer to look for it. Out the door he went.
"Our poor neighbour friends. Well..." Cha-Cha thought on that one. "Poor neighbour people that I tolerate. They won't know what hit them," she giggled, wiggling her feet under the blanket. To be honest she couldn't think of too many people in the apartment she was all that fond of. Aside from Ed, who she could arguably say she was more than just fond of. Oh well though, they'd get...definitely a surprise.
He returned a few minutes later, successful in his quest for edible food. He'd thrown it all in a bag, and as he unloaded it onto her counter he smiled, apparently amused. "I hope you're in the mood for spaghetti," Ed said from the kitchen. "First thing I found."
"Just a sec," Cha-Cha had retrieved her pajama pants, as well as a shirt to go along with it. She'd miraculously forgotten his shirt, though. Well, he didn't need it. She had decided he didn't. "Sounds good to me. Run into anybody?" she had to ask.
His smile was growing to a smirk, and he handed her noodles as he answered. "Only one." Bag emptied, he looked around shortly before asking, "Pot?" Water needed to be boiled.
"Who??" Cha-Cha demanded, crouching down at her cupboard to get a pot. The steel was a little dented from being dropped, but it still worked fine. "Was there screaming or staring? Guess it depends on if it was a man or a woman..." she thought aloud, clearly amused.
"Did you hear any screaming?" he asked with a laugh. "Thank you," he said absently as he took the pot from her. "No it was the man a few down from you."
"Ooh so there was staring! That man has a thing for me," Cha-Cha informed him. If it was the man she was thinking of. But really, most men had a thing for Cha-Cha, or at least Cha-Cha thought they did.
"Well, who doesn't?" he teased. Turning on the sink he said, "Anyway, too young for me." His answer to almost everything. Age. As if he'd consider him at all. Not with the pretty drag queen he had.
"Really? Doesn't shower enough for me," Cha-Cha admitted with a wrinkled nose. Daily cleaning was very important to Cha-Cha. At least every other week. At least more than once a week. "But hey, I'm younger than him!"
"He looked clean enough to me," he commented, ignoring her outburst. Too, too easy. He moved to the stove.
"How close have you gotten?" Cha-Cha asked with a laugh, popping up to sit on the counter. Unfortunately she was in long cotton pants, making for a less fun image for him. She hadn't even left a bare chest.
With the water all set to boil, he turned around to take her in. She really hadn't left anything for him. He stepped over to her, and wrapped his arms around her waist lazily. It was strange having to look up to see into her eyes. "We bumped into each other." He found it funny that her neighbor had, in a manner of speaking, gotten his hands on Ed in a matter of seconds when it had taken Cha-Cha a few weeks.
"'Bumped into each other'. Like it was so by accident," Cha-Cha giggled to herself, letting her arms rest around his neck. She sort of liked feeling taller than him. He was such a big strong man, it made her feel important."I know he's got his eyes on my man. Who could blame him, but still."
"Speaking of eyes on people..." He stretched up to give her a quick kiss, momentarily worried he'd honestly have to jump. "What gives with all the clothes? I can't see anything." Going from everything to nothing was a small shock to his system.
"I just thought, since we're semi-normal people and everything, I should put some clothes on when I leave the bedroom?" Cha-Cha asked with a barely concealed grin. Well, he was normal, anyway. Which was surprising considering he was wearing less. "If I were naked right now, we'd starve."
"You wouldn't have to go that far," he grinned. "But a little something would be appreciated." He kissed her again, finding her height quite awkward.
"I dunno, Ed," Cha-Cha grinned, though already she was adjusting herself in his arms so his hands were just under her shirt. "I don't think I look good enough to justify walking around shirtless. I'm too modest," she had to bite the inside of her lip to get it out with a straight face.
"Oh of course." Ed's hands were soon rewarded with skin. Finally, a small victory. But if she was going to be that way, "I guess I should follow suit. Did you happen to see my shirt anywhere?"
"I did not," Cha-Cha replied semi-honestly. She may have seen it in her bedroom. But she was certainly not telling him that. "It's alright though. If you have to stay shirtless, I'll understand," she assured him, leaning in to kiss him before he could respond.
"Mhmm." Amazing, he still managed to sound sarcastic. He could hear the water boiling frantically, but it had to wait a minute. Ditching her for water probably wouldn't go over well.
Cha-Cha grinned, leaning in to kiss him again. Okay, she bent the truth a little and he didn't believe her at all. But pretty much any sane gay man or straight woman would lie. Ed Green without a shirt on wasn't an unwelcome image by ay stretch of the imagination. "Too bad you found your pants. I mean, at least you found your pants," she backtracked, her smile widening a bit.
That was it for Ed. Laughing to hard to continue he leaned back to glance at the stove top. Yes, the water needed noodles now. He moved to dump them in and was back to her in seconds, still shaking his head with an amused grin. Ed kissed her lips slowly. "I'm getting my shirt."
"But!" Cha-Cha protested. She had to think fast. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she kissed him again, deeper this time. Hopefully that was some incentive to stay with her and away from unneeded clothing. That made her sound like such a nudist, but hey, Ed brought something out in her.
Ed was trying to stop laughing again as he kissed her, succeeding eventually. She eying him for once? "Finally," he said, multitasking by breathing, kissing and talking at once. "The shoe's on the other foot." Being the one with the attention for once was a nice change.
"What do you mean?" Cha-Cha was smiling, adjusting herself on the counter so she could hold him closer more comfortably. And more securely. She meant it, that boy left, she would run. As shotty a runner as she was.
"Mmmm, nothing." Ed was leaning against the counter hard enough that, were he thinking properly, he'd worry about bruising his hips. One of her legs were on either side of him, and he ran a hand down both, then moved back up to wrap his arms around her waist.
Cha-Cha bit the inside of her lip. "You are not going anywhere and you are not getting anything," she decided, and carefully wrapped her legs around his waist. It wasn't exactly comfortable for her and it was more than suggestive, but she wasn't about to let him leave. "Sorry."
Ed's eyes sparkled as she moved around him. Stoves and water and noodles were foreign to him. "Yes ma'am." The detective was close to just climbing up there with her. He'd done stranger things. Don't ask. But that didn't change the fact she was still wearing too much, and she had much more skin to play with than he did. His hands ventured under her shirt once more.
Cha-Cha soon realized the flaw in her plans. This gave him way too much lead. She was wrapped around him, but his hands could go pretty much anywhere. On second though, Cha-Cha didn't mind so much. "Enjoying yourself there?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Mhmm." The downside for Ed in this matter was that unless she leaned down, his lips couldn't reach much of anything. Her chest would have been a perfect target, but that damn shirt was in the way.
"You alright?" Cha-Cha asked with a grin. Her legs were tight enough around him that she could move her hands to his shoulders, rubbing them gently. Okay, he didn't get all the lead. She simply wouldn't allow it. But some of it, sometimes...that was okay.
"Yeah. Except you're not supposed to be taller than me."
A thought suddenly struck Ed. He swallowed a laugh quickly, only one telling sound escaping. Having her lips back was more important. Meanwhile, the pot on the stove was making some rather scary sounds.
"What was that?" Cha-Cha raised her eyebrow again, trailing her hands down past his shoulders. She sort of liked being taller than him, though. He was such a big tough detective, it made her feel important. The stove was somewhere a couple planets away to her, she wasn't paying it any mind.
"What was what?" he asked. It took more effort to patiently wait for her to answer than one can describe. And he was still starving, but that was being interpreted more like an ache for her against him. Which was much more rewarding.
"That giggle," Cha-Cha replied, squeezing her legs around his waist momentarily. She picked her words carefully. Because we all knew big strong men didn't 'giggle'. So the fact that he did was all the more amusing to her.
Ed stood up straighter. "I didn't giggle," he said automatically. Then he remembered. "I just found it funny that you thought you being undressed would make us go hungry, and yet here we are. You're clothed, I'm starved, and I'm still unable to resist you." Would honesty get her shirt off at least?
"Okay, baby," Cha-Cha giggled to herself. Oh, he giggled. Whether he'd ever admit it or not, she knew the truth. At his comment, she paused. She was definitely clothed, and he was definitely almost on top of her. Well damn. "I guess you're right. Should I put more clothes on?" she suggested with a barely concealed grin, having a pretty good idea of what his answer would be.
"Don't you dare," he laughed. "That's exactly the opposite of what I want and you know it." He pulled his arms in to cross over his chest. "Do we want dinner or not? Because if we leave that pot alone for much longer-" he glanced over to it "-I'm afraid of what will happen."
"Awful forward now, aren't we?" Cha-Cha teased. Sighing, she knew she'd have to take her legs off him sometime. But would he abuse his freedom? "Okay, here's the deal. You stay shirtless, I stay shirtless?" she bargained, reluctantly unhooking her legs.
"Agreed." This would be different. Normally he had her legs to admire.
When he was released he went to work on dinner. He almost killed himself numerous times. He wasn't giving his complete attention to what he was doing.
Cha-Cha grinned to herself, lifting the tank top up and off her head. It was a small price to pay to get what she wanted in the end. "Please try not to burn the building down," she reminded him with a grin.
He rolled his eyes. "I am not going to burn the building down."
He had learned by now she had no problem showing off her legs. However, she hardly ever gave up her shirt without a fight, and he wondered if there was something behind it. Like usual, he thought about it later and not at the time. He was too busy enjoying the rare view. But it occurred to him a woman wouldn't walk around without a shirt, normally anyway, and maybe she followed that way of thinking. Or if the fact she could was a reminder she wasn't a woman physically? His analytical detective habits sometimes kicked in during off hours, used to reading between the lines and anticipating reasons. He honestly wouldn't be surprised if she'd just been cold. But that questioning was always there.
"You might if you're distracted..." Cha-Cha sang under her breath, crossing her legs. She supposed she couldn't really blame him if he was. She wouldn't want it to be her trying to cook with a hot stove at the moment, with his shirtless self on her counter. That would be a disaster waiting to happen. It wasn't like she was amazing in the kitchen to begin with, she wouldn't want to be staring at him while she did it.
Ed found a way to do it. Don't face her. Less distracting, but less enjoyable as well. Finally he finished, after much too long of staring only at boring noodles and pasta sauce.
"Done. And the building is still standing." He smiled, accomplished.
"Lucky man," Cha-Cha giggled, popping off the counter to kiss his cheek quickly. She didn't mention she'd apparently taken off her shirt for nothing. If he stared too long at anything else she could see it being a risk.
Now that he had successfully made dinner without killing himself or setting her apartment on fire, he set two plates, which he had found eventually himself, down quickly on the table. He faced her, happy he could take her in fully. His eyes traveled over her slowly and hungrily, then returned to her eyes.
Cha-Cha just grinned at the way he was looking at her. About time she got a little attention, she was starting to get self-conscious. Then again, Ed had proved he had no problem whatsoever with her body the night before. And for the better part of the day. And possibly later on. Her grin deepened and she leaned in to kiss him gently, placing a hand on his cheek.
Ed smiled against her lips. "You ready to eat?" he asked. He waited a moment before moving. He was starving, but...she was right there...he was torn. He pulled out a chair that was nearest the one in front of her, the changed his mind and went to the next one. The chair across the table from her which allowed him to see her better.
"I guess," Cha-Cha sighed softly, bringing her hand off and moving to sit down. Later, later, she told herself. After dinner. At least the spaghetti was unburned, and probably better than anything that had ever been made on that stove. Not that that stove was especially active anyway. Cha-Cha was not a cook. "You are a brave man though, working on that stove shirtless," she pointed out with a laugh. Not something she'd ever attempt.
"Well you said you never found it, remember?" He hadn't believed her, but he could still make it because of her. And there was no point in searching for it and putting it on. It would probably be coming off later anyway. Was this all he had in mind now? You bet.
"I did not," Cha-Cha replied, scratching her nose quickly. The disappearing shirt. It was probably right where he left it, right in the middle of the floor. But...it could just stay disappeared for a good while longer. Her thoughts were going in the same general direction as his was. While she didn't exactly have a pure mind, it was funny how...inspiring Ed was.
Ed had been hungry for nearly two hours, so the food went fast. Although he had a second motivation to finish quickly. "So I had no choice in the matter."
"You absolutely didn't," Cha-Cha replied honestly with a grin. He wouldn't have had a choice even if the shirt was in his hands. She would simply be forced to take it off him.
On second thought, she should have given him the shirt.
Ed had tried not to obviously wolf it down. He assumed he failed miserably. The couch was calling their name, the bed was practically screaming, and he still hadn't gotten used to seeing her chest. He didn't think it would ever get old, really.
"You must be hungry," Cha-Cha commented as casually as possible. Of course, she didn't mention what he was hungry for. Well food, she really couldn't blame him for. It had been awhile and she was starving herself. But it was clear they both had something else on their minds that would distract them from eating. The thing that was still on her mind that very moment. Apparently, a seal had been broken.
"Do you even remember the last time we ate?" he asked. Had they actually had breakfast? It didn't feel like they had. "And have you taken more than three bites?"
Two could play at that game. Ed got seconds. He matched her movements. Bite for bite, laughing slightly at the absurdity but anticipating a successful outcome. One of them would crack eventually.
Cha-Cha rose her eyebrows as she watched him. "Are you copying me?" she asked, trying not to laugh. She hadn't been copied in years. It was sort of funny, watching him. Ed Green just couldn't convince her he was a big, tough detective man. In fact, she wasn't even sure he was trying anymore.
"No," he said, intentionally unconvincing. He knew he wasn't coming off anything except immature, but he continued anyway. Ed never had the chance to do anything silly at the precinct, or he'd never hear the end of it.
"Yes you are! Yes you are!" Cha-Cha exclaimed through a laugh. It was a wonderful thing to be copied, though. It was easy to hear the things you wanted to hear. "If only Lou could see you now. Crying and copying," she shook her head. She meant Lieu, but she didn't know that.
Ed shook his head as well, intent on copying her to the point of annoyance. So he could follow her elsewhere when she got up. Or, she got bored. Whatever came first. If he himself didn't get fed up and pounce on her right there...
"If Lieu saw me now, she probably wouldn't know if she wanted to laugh or shoot me," he said, rolling his eyes at his absent boss. "Although she isn't entirely against fun," Ed admitted. "As long as it was her idea."
"Isn't Lou a boy's name?" Cha-Cha asked with a laugh. Then again, Cha-Cha wasn't generally used for either a boy or a girl, so who was she to talk? She was still trying to come up with things she could make him do; he wasn't copying her speech otherwise it would be easy. With a sigh she adjusted one of the rings on her fingers quickly.
It wasn't the same finger, but he did have a ring. Shifting it around absently he answered, "Lieu's just short for Lieutenant. Her name's Anita Van Buren." Ed thought it wise to avoid repeating what she said. Who knows what she'd make him say.
Damn. Foiled. Cha-Cha hadn't noticed his ring, and it ruined her jewellery plan. She didn't even have a wig on to curl hair around her finger. It was back to first base. "She seems nice. Minus the whole shooting of Ed Green bit," she giggled, returning to eating her food and watching him while she did.
"She's hard to get along with at first, but, once you get to know her, Lieu's like a second mother." He paused. "An angry mother with a gun. Kind of scary, now that I think about it." He was very grateful his biological mother never had one. "She's protective when it comes to her detectives, especially the younger ones. Which, shockingly," he laughed, "I would be considered."
"That's terrifying!" Cha-Cha replied with wide eyes. But he didn't seem to phased, so she figured it was alright. When someoe walked around with a gun as much as he did, she supposed it became like second nature or something. How a gun could be second nature was beyond her, but then again she didn't see them very often. And they were never on her side. "Are you really? So who's the oldest detective there that you know?" she asked, obviously surprised. Thirty eight wasn't ancient she knew, but she figured it would at least be in the medium. That was almost forty, which was almost half a hundred.
"That would be Lennie," he guessed. "He's near retiring, he keeps talking about it. I'd hate to see him go, but, he really can't chase people like he used too. Maybe if he was just asking the questions..." He tried to imagine that. "Nah, never know when you have to sprint down a flight of stairs."
"Do you have to chase people alot?" Cha-Cha asked with wide eyes. It was strange, but it hadn't occurred to her what an exciting job he had before. He was more than just Ed Green...he was like a hero in the movies. In some strange way. Somewhere in her mind it was flashing how dangerous it must've been too, but she tried not to focus too hard on that one.
"Everyone always tries to get away," he said, rolling his eyes. "They never realize we've got the block surrounded. But occasionally they break through, and there we go after'em. There are exceptions though, to the blocking off thing. Sometimes it's not even a suspect we're chasing, so we don't have the extra help. Just someone we have a few questions for who feels like climbing out a window..."
"So you just jump out the window after him?" Cha-Cha asked with wide eyes. She didn't care what her job was, what the guy did, that would take alot out of her. But it seemed like he could do it without a second thought. "Why? I mean, why did you want to be a detective?" she asked. It wasn't something she could ever do, or would ever do willingly.
Ed laughed at her reaction. Ducking out windows and racing down fire escapes were normal to him now.
Why? "I wish I could blame it on some desire to save the world," he said with a half grin. "But it all started because it was the last thing my parents wanted me to do."
"Rebel! I think I like you," Cha-Cha decided with a giggle. It wasn't totally noble or anything, but somehow she preferred it. Many people would fish out the 'desire to do good' reason, but how many actually honestly truly believed it? Cha-Cha just didn't think there were that many honestly good people in the world. Or maybe she just believed that to feel better about herself.
"Luckily it ended up being something I enjoy. Putting criminals away, not dealing with murders," he explained. Even with his experience, he still couldn't look at some of the victims without wincing and glancing away. When he could look into the face of a homicide victim and not flinch, it would be time to retire. Like Lennie was leaving. "But," Ed continued, "looking beyond the rebellion part, I do like to think the little Lennie and I do makes a difference."
"Why were they so against it? Your parents," Cha-Cha asked. Being a detective seemed like a respectable job. It helped people, it made good money, what was the big deal? Besides it being horrendously dangerous. But Cha-Cha was sure he was careful (or at least, he was if he knew what was good for him. Cha-Cha was a shrimp, but liked to think she was a force to be reckoned with when she was scared). It was definitely a job she'd be proud to say her kid was...if she were even slightly interested in ever being a parent. Which she was not in the slightest.
"My father was an oil engineer, and expected me to do that too. Or be one of the few members of our family to get a college degree. And I did, but not in anything he was interested in. My mom thought it was dangerous..." And it was. But that's what Lennie and guns were for, right?
"Both good reasons. Well...maybe not your dad's," Cha-Cha admitted. What was it with parents and having their children follow their footsteps? She wouldn't be at all offended if her son didn't want to put on a dress and sing Madonna. But if she'd done what her father did, richer she might be, but one could never find a good foundation that could stand up to life in a factory. That idea was out.
"I'm happy where I ended up, whether or not they are." He took a bite of his dinner without waiting for her to do so. When he realized that he didn't wait for her to move, he also realized he'd had a point in watching her. He was supposed to be annoying her away from the kitchen and over to...anywhere else. Conversation dropped from his list of things to do.
The copying game wasn't on Cha-Cha's mind anymore, and she barely noticed when he broke it. Her spaghetti was almost done with, but she wasn't really feeling it anymore anyways. "Do you still talk to them?" she asked, oblivious to any wish he had to leave the table. He seemed like such a stable person, it seemed odd that he'd have trouble with his parents. Someone like her she could understand, it didn't surprise her when girls from her own community complained about their families. Or worse; didn't talk about them at all and kept them out of their lives. Cha-Cha herself wasn't exactly bouncing to talk about her parents. But it just seemed odd to her, that it happened to normal people too. People with careers and cars and lives.
"Yeah. Not as much as I should. I get along with my mother better." Hardly, but, still better. "My dad still expects me to bring a girlfriend home for holidays." He assumed she knew that Cha-Cha wasn't the type of girlfriend he meant. "Mom's always been willing to at least meet the men I've brought home," he said, more of a mumble to himself than to her.
"So they know you're gay," Cha-Cha said softly. She wasn't meaning to pry or anything, or upset him. Part of her realized she should probably stop, but at the same time, she felt like she was getting to know him. Though at the moment all she knew was she felt like hugging him. "Did they know Starr?" she wondered. If they dated for a year, they must've gotten some word of it. If they talked at all.
She wasn't upsetting him exactly. If he had any way to know she was worried about that, he'd tell her so. He just got annoyed with his parents easily, and a weird vibe often hovered around him.
Starr. Ed almost laughed aloud. He definitely grinned, but it was a grin mixed with a touch of an unknown emotion. "Introducing her to dad was an experience I'll never forget." He could still see his dads face. "He looked so...relieved. For about ten seconds." Once his father realized it wasn't exactly a woman beneath the skirt, well, that didn't go well.
Cha-Cha's forehead wrinkled slightly at his answer (and she couldn't help but think with a grimace how beautiful Starr must have been, if she could pass so easily. But it was neither the time nor place to get jealous of that). "Do you wanna stop talking about this?" she asked softly. It was fine with her if he was. She was pretty much done her pasta, and suddenly all she wanted to do was curl up with him for awhile. She couldn't help it, he seemed so sad. Well, maybe not sad, but it was depressing anyway.
Ed actually didn't mind as much as it was coming off. He'd tried to laugh about Starr tricking his father, he had wanted to, but he couldn't get it out at the moment. He'd already jumped ahead to being angry at what had come after that.
"Not if you really want to know," he replied. Next month was March. Easter. Ed would be going home for the weekend, the normal routine and often times only time aside from Christmas he went back. He planned on inviting her to come along, and hearing this would probably help her decide if she'd want to go or stay with her girls. He wouldn't blame her if she'd rather spend it with Rusty. Ed would too.
He stretched a little, adding, "I would like to move to the couch or something, though." Kitchen chairs were only comfortable for so long.
Cha-Cha nodded her head, standing up and taking his plate. "Honestly honey, I don't even know why I'm asking," she told him, dropping them into the sink. Either way though, she was glad they were done. It wasn't that she was overly perceptive, but she didn't want to make him feel bad. Or maybe it was just that she could relate so easily.
He appreciated her caring enough to ask. And was surprised she'd mention Starr.
"For the record," he began, trying to show that he had seen the humor in his fathers mistake, "my dad's face had been priceless." Ed followed her to the sink. "All hell broke loose, but, for a minute it was actually pretty funny." Before she could turn he wrapped his arms around her, happily enjoying the feeling of his skin against hers. As for the conversations topic, if she was done, he was done. If she had a question, he'd answer.
A smile came to Cha-Cha's face almost instantly as he hugged her, and she wrapped her arms around his neck in return. He was laughing. Laughter was good. He couldn't feel too too bad if he could smile like that. "I can imagine," she laughed softly. "You okay?"
Ed gave her a light squeeze around her middle. "Yeah. And, with that out of the way...couch...?" Dinner had taken longer than expected.
Cha-Cha nodded her head, moving her arms down to grasp his hand in hers. If she thought of another question, it could wait for another day. At the moment all she wanted to do was sit around in his arms and think of absolutely nothing important. Leading him towards the couch she plopped down, patting the spot beside her. She'd left him his corner.
Sitting around wasn't exactly what Ed had in mind, but he did his best to control himself. He fell into his corner and pulled her over. He let his hands wander around but kept it snuggle worthy. She wasn't as enthusiastic as before, but after that conversation, he didn't blame her for being more mellow than normal. He, on the other hand, could switch gears fast.
Cha-Cha shifted herself so she could lean against him as best she could. Her arms ended up around his middle, the rest of her fidgeting a bit every so often in an attempt to get comfortable. The couch was no comparison to the bed, but the bed often led to other things that she wasn't sure he was up to right at the moment. Maybe later on. "Remember that time we slept together on this?" she asked with a short giggle, forgetting it had only been a few weeks ago.
"And the floor is so much better? Stiff back," Cha-Cha reminded him. "I sort of like the arrangement we had going last night, to be honest," she added with a smirk, knowing he did too. Or at least, hoping he did too. It would be a little weird if he hadn't.
"Definitely the preferred spot," he agreed. "But if for some reason we absolutely couldn't leave this room, you can have the couch to yourself. I'll take my chances with the floor."
"But then I'd be cold and pillowless!" Cha-Cha whined. That was tough. Sleep alone on the couch or break her back (not to mention get all dirty) on the floor. "Why can't we get into my bedroom anyway? What could possibly prevent us from walking a few extra feet?" she asked, putting way too much thought into this.
"I don't know! Um, my partner was in the area and needed somewhere to stay. And he happened to show up here, and you being the kind hostess you are offered him the bedroom." The fact that would mean Lennie saw them was irrelevant.
"Why the heck is he here? I don't even know him!" Cha-Cha asked with a laugh. "Plus I'm your drag queen lover who he's not supposed to know about, plus plus, kind hostess? Who do you have me confused with?" she was laughing harder now, her body shifting up a bit so she could look at him better.
"I don't know!" Ed laughed. "I...told him where you lived? No I wouldn't do that...well he's a detective, he could find you. Someone from the building suggested he look here?" He was trying hard to make this hypothetical situation work. "And what do you mean who do I have you confused with? I can't see you throwing him out, he's an cute little old guy!" Not exactly true, but, she hadn't seen him.
"Wait, what? Ed, that is so stalkerish!" Cha-Cha squeaked with wide eyes. Could the detectives really find her if they wanted to? She supposed so, it was one of the perks. She didn't like that. That made her very very uneasy. "New York's worst criminals are set up against some eighty five year old? I feel so safe," she teased.
"Lennie isn't that old, and I was just kidding," he said. "If they don't have a reason, no one will come looking for you." Ed gave her a quick kiss on the cheek, adding, "And you can always call my cell phone if you think Lennie is outside."
Again Cha-Cha was holding in a laugh. "You make him sound like the boogeyman or something," she couldn't stop her giggles despite the fist against her lips. Suddenly she just had this image of a zombie lurking around outside her door. Zombie Detective. Sadly enough, Cha-Cha was pretty sure she had that movie.
"There's no winning with you, no matter what I say," he laughed. Ed absently danced his fingers down her arm, trying to come up with something to say.
"I could let you win sometimes," Cha-Cha giggled lightly, leaning in to kiss his jawbone gently. "I'm sure there's a lot we can agree on," she added. Then she started thinking on that one. And thinking and thinking. "I'll let you know when I come up with one."
"I agree with where that was going," he said, referring to her lips against his skin. He tugged her closer so she could move up a bit, putting her at the perfect height for him to kiss her.
Cha-Cha grinned, kissing up to his mouth. She figured he would. There was no chance to say it though, or tease him, or anything. That was alright though, she'd rather kiss him than be a smart ass. She was fidgeting again, trying to get against him more comfortably. This would be easier in, oh she didn't know...a bed maybe.
Ed spoke between breaths, asking, "What's with...the...wiggling?" He was afraid she'd fall off if she kept it up, so one hand help her hip, keeping her close.
"Just trying to stay close," Cha-Cha replied, bringing a hand up to rest against his chest instead. "While not falling off. It's not easy," she admitted, thinking about it. What if he lay down and they went from there? It was all very complicated.
"What if we just intentionally fall off?" he asked. "The floor is bigger." Ed shifted to get one leg on the couch so he was partially laying down, hoping that would help.
"You just have a thing for the floor, don't you?" Cha-Cha asked with a laugh, shifting closer to him if it was at all possible. "What if I get a back pain from cuddling-and-possibly-more on my apartment floor? I'll have to hold you liable," she pointed out, and poked his chest for added effect. And just because it was there and bare and she wanted to.
"No, I just don't want you falling off and hurting yourself." After he listened to her protest further, he laughed. "Fine, I give up. To save myself from a lawsuit, we'll just sit here carefully." And with that, he picked her upper torso up momentarily to move himself back to an upright sitting position, then removed his hands, crossing his arms.
Cha-Cha watched with a sense of loss as he moved, and she was sure it turned up on her face. It left her with two options. She could play it cool and put her shirt on, really tease him. Or, she could be direct and do exactly what she wanted to.
"Eddie," she whined, going for the latter and climbing into his lap.
Ed smirked. Exactly what he had been waiting for. She was in the perfect holding position, and he quickly had his arms around her. No need to worry about falling off, he had no intention of loosening his grip any time soon.
"I just played right into your hands, didn't I?" Cha-Cha asked after a second, though obviously not too concerned by that. It just so happened that what he wanted was exactly what she did, too. What was bad about that? His arms arond her were always welcome, whether she was in his lap, they were both on the couch, what have you.
"Yep," he smiled. Both figuratively and literally. He was happy to not be the one to fall for something again. He was getting better at this, and he was proud. And a bit smug. Is this how she felt all the time? Amazing.
"Lucky, lucky," Cha-Cha grinned, leaning down to kiss his smirking lips. Alright, he could win sometimes. It was only fair. Wrapping her arms around him, she shifted a bit in his lap to get closer. "See? You win sometimes. I'm not all-powerful," she assured him.
But she was sure close, he thought with a sigh. He savored his small triumph.
Sitting they way they were, it was hard to do anything aside from hold each other and cuddle. While Ed had a bit more in mind, he could control himself. If he had to, that is. If she felt like a conversation, he was up for it. His parents talk had been in the back of his mind since they'd ended it. He was curious about hers. She'd never mentioned her family.
However, if Cha-Cha felt more inclined to leave the old couch cushions for a soft mattress...he wasn't going to protest.
Cha-Cha shifted a bit more in his lap, sighing softly. She couldn't sit still for especially long periods of time as it was, she got restless. It could be very annoying at times, and she stretched her legs out, hoping to ease it a bit. "So how should we spend the rest of the..." she tilted over to catch a glimpse of the clock. "...evening." No wonder she was bouncy, they'd spent literally an entire day in bed or close to it.
"Quality bonding time?" he suggested. He realized that could imply several things, and he grinned, but really meant talking. For now, anyway.
"Apparently so," Cha-Cha giggled, cuddling in close and determined to make that the last fidget. Of course she doubted that would happen, but she was gonna try. "I have to say I'm proud of us, though. I didn't think we'd be fully clothed at six o clock tonight..." she paused. "Well, mostly fully clothed."
"But how long will it last?" he asked jokingly. Not all night, if he had any say in things. After a moment or two he asked, "Do we feel like talking, or just relaxing?" More like resting up for a long night...
"Jumping ahead, aren't we?" Cha-Cha teased. Yes, a seal had definitely been broken. She couldn't help but notice it was affecting him, too. "Talk about what? Should we get words in when we can?" she added with a smirk, leaning in to kiss him again lightly.
"Dunno," he shrugged, searching for something. "What's your family like? You got a brief idea of mine..." Ugh. Hopefully his father wouldn't scare her off if she ever met him.
"My family?" Cha-Cha repeated, sighing softly. It was only fair he heard about her's too. As unpleasant as some of it was. "I don't see them that often. I mean, my brother I talk to pretty often. But my parents..." she sighed. In a way it was the same situation as his, with the roles reversed. "My dad is alright with the fact I'm gay, the drag put him off. I haven't talked to my mother, like actually talked to her, in years," she figured it was easier to just tell him than to beat around the bush about it. He told her his.
"I was wondering how drag had gone over," he said honestly. So they each had a parent who was relatively supportive, and one...not so much. My mom and your dad should get together, he thought sarcastically. One big happy.
"It...I had it better than some girls did," Cha-Cha admitted. At least she had one supportive parent. At least she hadn't been kicked out. At least no violence had been involved. But in some way she could argue that being kicked out would've been easier; staying at home meant she had to face the fact every day that her mother was ashamed. "My dad tried to be kind about it, I remember her called me pretty, though his face said otherwise," she grinned lightly, biting her lip. "Just my mom who wouldn't budge."
The fact 'pretty' had even been said was very impressive to Ed. "Well for what it's worth, I think you're gorgeous." Ed's eyes grinned in a playful way, but he meant it.
Cha-Cha smiled to herself. People had said that to her a million times over, it had lost it's meaning to be honest. But somehow he made it new again and she looked down. "You're gonna make me blush," she admitted, the smile easy to hear in her voice.
"Good. You're cute when you blush." If the criminals he'd harassed during interrogations could hear him now... Getting back on topic, he asked, "Where does your family live? Close to New York?"
Cha-Cha's blush deepened. "Just outside the state. My brother Javier lives in the city," she told him, shifting in his lap. Things were getting too heavy and not enough...romance...y. Or whatever that word was.
"You have a brother?" he asked, surprised. He didn't know why he was so surprised, she didn't give off that annoying only child vibe. But he couldn't imagine what the brother of Cha-Cha would look like. Or be like. Similar to her or completely the opposite?
"I do. What's so weird about that?" Cha-Cha asked with a tilt of her head. Okay, she wasn't the most manly of men out there. Any brother or hers would be interesting to say the least. He seemed so surprised though! Despite common belief, it was possible for Cha-Cha to just be friends with a male. As long as they were related.
"Eh-nothing." It was completely normal to have siblings. He just had a little trouble imagining that. "Where's he?"
"More uptown. He's a nurse," Cha-Cha replied with a grin. It was great in a way. Even the straight brother was doing something that would be perceived as girly. Not that her parents minded too much; he was always the smart one so they were just glad he was doing something worthwhile. They didn't know what Cha-Cha did for a living.
He tried to hide a smile. Ed too found a slight humor in that, but he wasn't brave enough to comment. "Which hospital?" he asked to keep her attention off him. "I'm in and out of them a lot." Lots of witnesses tended to get shot, and suspects injured during a chase. Well, once the wrong detective caught up to him. But Ed had only blown up on a few people, and, in his opinion, with good reason.
"St. Michaels. He doesn't look all that much like me. Tall guy, not as tall as you but tall to me," Cha-Cha told him. Really they couldn't be more unalike. But Javier was really the person in her family she liked most. "Do you have siblings?"
"An older sister," he answered. "In Virginia with our parents." Ed had a better career going for him, but his sister was straight. In other words, the favorite, and unwilling to drift too far from mommy and daddy.
"Virginia!" Cha-Cha repeated in surprise. That was a far way to come. For some reason she'd expected him to be a New Yorker all his life. "I didn't know you was Southern," she added, doing her best to use her own Southern accent. Albeit, a very bad Southern accent. But you had to give her points for trying.
"Well, we went all over the place when I was growing up, but they seemed to hang around the southern states when we were in the US." Ed never let the drawl get ahold of his speech. "I went north and stayed put. Moving gets old after a while."
"I can imagine," Cha-Cha replied. She hadn't had to move too much in her life, and she was glad of it. That would mess her up so much. "Why New York then? You'd think you'd want somewhere calmer, since your life was so crazy before..." she asked, letting the topic trail off her own family.
"I dunno. When I thought 'Hey I'll be a cop and piss dad off' New York was the first place I thought of. And...well, to every other state, the grass is greener in New York." He found that was true in several of the schools he'd been to as a kid. Anyone who wanted to go places and be somebody dreamed of moving to New York City. Well, he did move there, and he had to admit he wasn't as impressed as he imagined he'd be.
"I guess I looked up to New York before I came here," Cha-Cha thought back. It had seemed so glamorous; beautiful people everywhere and bright lights. Not so much in her part of town. And it could make you feel so small and insignificant, really. On a regular day.
He nodded. "The whole country wants to move here, and half of New York wants to move out. It's ridiculous." Well, maybe not half. But who's counting? "But I like it here more than most places I've been. Detroit was interesting, but...too small."
"Plus there's nowhere to tie up your alligator! Rip off," Cha-Cha added with a giggle. No, she was not going to forget that. How could you forget something like that? That was probably the point of putting 'alligator', so it would stick in your mind. But still...an alligator!
Ed laughed and gave her a squeeze around the middle. "That was the deciding factor," he teased. "I can't remember what I was doing over there, I was just visiting for some reason, but aside from being minuscule compared to NYC, no alligators."
"That's depressing," Cha-Cha fake sighed though her smile broke the illusion. It was good to laugh. Somehow they had gotten on a series of heavy topics; or heavy-ish, at least. It was refreshing to talk about Detroit. Silly silly Detroit. "I'll stay in New York with you though, after half the city leaves. It's really not so bad aside from the pigeons. There isn't really anywhere else like it, at least."
"And with half the city gone, twice the privacy." He kissed her, his smile refusing to budge making it harder than it should have been. He wondered what was wrong with pigeons. He found watching them during lunch breaks quite amusing.
"I like that," Cha-Cha grinned, returning the kiss slowly. One thing couldn't get past the censors in her mind though. "Except for the whole I Am Legend thing. Cept instead of zombies, it's rats..." she bit her lip, fighting back a shudder. Even with Ed armed, with all the city gone, who knew what would wanna come up out of the sewers. She tried really hard not to think about it.
Ed leaned back, studying her with an amused yet very confused look. "How does that even cross your mind?" he asked. "You and me alone in New York equals zombies?"
"My teachers always said I have a very special brain," Cha-Cha replied with a proud smile. The not-so-positive connotations behind that were apparently lost on her. "Fine, we could also run through the streets naked if we wanted to, but we'd have to have about ten guns in our purses."
"Our purses?" One might assume the running through the city naked would be what he protested first, but no, the thought of carrying a purse in public overwhelmed the detective.
"Fine, fine. My purse, your briefcase. Or whatever big tough detectives carry," Cha-Cha rolled her eyes playfully. Though really, if they were alone in the city, who would be around to care anyway? Ed could carry whatever he wanted to. Or wear. She did her best to backtrack that, it was not a good thing to get ideas like that. She figured she was pushing Ed enough, drag would not only push him away, it would be very very frightening.
"Thank you." Ed relaxed into the back cushions of the couch. He yawned slightly, but wasn't tired, just comfortable. It came out more of a content sigh than a yawn, really. He ran a hand lazily down her leg and back, trying to think of a topic that could beat zombies and briefcases.
It wasn't quite a moan, but Cha-Cha couldn't stop a small, happy noise from accompanying her sigh. What could she say? She was too comfortable not to. "I like this," she said quietly, resting against him as best she could. It wasn't often she did this sort of thing, just sitting with a man who, she was relatively sure, had no ulterior motive. Well, not an immediate ulterior motive (and not really an unwelcome ulterior motive). Then again, finding a man she could do it with was a task itself.
Honestly Ed could think a few other ways he'd like to be spending time, but he had to keep his girl happy. "Mhmm." His finger was tracing the pattern on her pajama pants now. It was surprisingly entertaining.
Cha-Cha shivered and squirmed, moving up to kiss his neck slowly. That was the only problem, now Ed was learning her weak spots. She was losing her upper hand and what was worse, it was so hard to notice and to care when she was losing it. Her mind was on other things.
Ed ran out of lines to trace soon, so his fingers danced up her chest. "Are we taking a break from talking?" he asked with a chuckle.
Apparently so, because Cha-Cha's mouth was way too busy to talk at the moment. She trailed her kisses up to his mouth, her arms wrapping tighter around him as she shifted closer. Okay, it had been less than twenty four hours. How did he know exactly what he was doing already?? It wasn't fair.
It was simple. Ed was trained to be quick at noticing the slightest reaction of witnesses. Why not apply that training to the bedroom as well? He remembered what he had to do to get which reaction from her.
Cha-Cha stifled a moan, breaking the kiss slowly. She wasn't as well trained as he was. She still had no idea what to do to make him tick, and he wasn't making it too awfully easy for her to concentrate. "Baby...you are ridiculous," she got out, unsure of what to say to him.
"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked with a laugh. He didn't know this was any competition. And she didn't have to try to make him want her, he'd been itching to get his hands on her since... well the feeling hadn't quite gone away at all that day.
"You're just...amazing," Cha-Cha tried again. Though she didn't say so, she wasn't talking exclusively about his ability to turn her on. She leaned in to kiss him again, though this time it was a bit softer.
Ed had always had a strong urge to come to her apartment every evening, but now that'd he'd spent over twenty four hours with her it seemed impossible to leave. He would simply have to quit his job and sit on this couch forever.
Well, maybe that was impossible too. He didn't let the kisses stay soft for long. Without a word Ed laid themselves down as best he could, hard since he was starting with her in his lap. After a moment he reconsidered this, because having issues with the couch was what had led to giving up and talking. He lifted his head to look down the hall to the bedroom, then back at her. How to get from point A to point B...
Cha-Cha followed Ed's eyes, biting back a smirk. Well, he'd be getting no complaints from her. Wait, wasn't that him getting upper hand again? A moment before they'd been snuggly and calm, now she couldn't wait to get where they were going. Her head would probably explode if things didn't progress further. Damn, he was good.
"I dunno, baby, I just got comfortable," Cha-Cha told him, shifting into the cushions and wrapping her arms around his neck. Alright, she wasn't denying him exactly, but she wasn't planning on walking there with her own feet. She had to have some semblane of control over the situation. At least a little bit. "I could honestly fall asleep right here."
Ed groaned. Seriously? He'd missed her smirk, and was now on the brink of threatening to pick her up and carry her there if he had to. Then realized that would probably be considered less of a threat and more of welcome idea. Well, fine, he could handle that. He'd had to have moved heavier victims out of danger, she would be no problem. Buf if he was going to have to do that, she was going to have to wait a minute.
"Go ahead and try." He kissed her neck, but instead of moving up to her mouth like he normally did, he went down to her collarbone, hovered a moment, then went an inch or two lower.
Cha-Cha did all she could not to moan, biting down on her lip hard enough to cause pain. Still she couldn't prevent a small sound from escaping her, somewhere between a gasp and his name. If she could get words out at this point, she'd probably comment on how, for someone who's job was to protect the community, he sure was evil. Unfortunately no words were going to make it out. Nothing half-way sensible, anyway. Alright...so she was powerless. Was that really the worst thing in the world? If this was how he was going to use his upper hand, maybe it was a good idea to let him lead sometimes.
Ed grinned and sat up, pleased with her reaction. "You know you don't really look like you're ready to sleep." She appeared wide awake to him, and he smirked lightly.
Cha-Cha swallowed hard, keeping her eyes closed. He was evil. There was no two ways about it. And what was worse was that she was pretty sure it was intentional. "Well that's your opinion," she argued, even though she wasn't fooling anybody. She had half a mind to pull him right back down.
Before she could, he stood and moved in front of her, negotiating his arms around her to pick her up. With laughing eyes he made for the bedroom, saying, "If you're so tired, I'll give you a hand getting to bed."
Cha-Cha tried not to laugh as she placed her arms around Ed's neck. She'd gotten exactly what she'd been trying for, and it wasn't that hard either. Alright, she still had a little control of the situation. All was not lost. "What a gentleman. Will you tuck me in, too?" she added with a grin.
"Eventually," he said honestly. Not in the near future, that was for sure. He dropped her a few inches from the comforter, enough to surprise her a bit but obviously not hurt her at all. Just needed to throw Cha-Cha off guard a bit before crawling after her.
"Eventually? Well, someone's got his evening all mapped out--!" Cha-Cha's voice raised a bit as she found herself being dropped down rather ungracefully onto the bed. Well. Somehow, just when she thought she was getting what she wanted, he decided to go and throw her. Literally. "Ahh, attempted murder. That's the way to impress a lady," Cha-Cha rolled her eyes once the initial shock wore off.
Ed was already halfway on her before he apologized and, he assumed anyway, before her slight confusion disappeared. But it didn't sound very convincing through a laugh.
"No you're not," Cha-Cha replied, though she was laughing too. It was hard to be mad at someone when they were about to give you, ultimately, what you wanted most at the moment. Yes it was all his mastermind, but at least he gave her what she wanted too. He used his powers for evil, but ultimately, for good. Or something.
"I don't sound sincere?" he asked, trailing kisses down her neck again. His fingers were working on buttons but he couldn't tell where exactly. All he knew was they weren't his, and that was all that mattered.
Cha-Cha swallowed hard, trying to get words out. It was easier said than done. "Uh uh," she finally managed, her hands trying to still the movement of his. Though, admittedly, she wasn't trying too hard.
Ah success, one article of clothing undone. He slowed his actions, trying to let her at least take a deep breath. Her hands hadn't gone unnoticed, and he playfully batted them away.
Cha-Cha soon gave up any attempts to stop him, and instead pulled him up so she could kiss him properly. Honestly she hadn't really wanted to stop him anyway (a total shocker, she knew). One hand stayed at the back of his neck to keep him close, while the other was trying to catch up with him.
