Shallow Pleasure || Chapter Twelve

"If it means something, take it to heart…"

Josh couldn't take it anymore, being stuck in a car with someone he genuinely considered to be his adversary. He couldn't stand to be near Roland for even a minute after everything that's happened between them. From having to look like a complete idiot in front of Maya to being thrown out of an art museum, Josh still felt much disdain for Roland as he didn't believe the tribulation would ever go away. Albeit, opting to sit quietly in the passenger seat, and keep his eyes fixated on anything other than the chump sitting beside him.

Elsewhere, Roland had other plans. He repeatedly shifted his eyes from Josh and the road, contemplating what to say. Roland didn't care much for Josh either, although, his distaste wasn't as serious as Josh's. He didn't enjoy the incessant war amongst them, especially over something as precious as Maya. He'd been raised to never treat a woman as a prize, and Maya was no exception. Roland glanced at Josh, speculating what to say that would ultimately ease the underlying stubbornness between them. However, considering Josh's current mood, he wouldn't likely give Roland the time of day.

Roland then sighed, turning the steering wheel of the car to the right, and pulling into the parking lot of a food joint. Later, unbuckled his seatbelt, and awaiting Josh's reaction. He arched a brow in perplexity. Josh hadn't moved an inch, and his facial expression never altered. "Uh, you do plan to come inside, don't you?" Roland asked curiously.

Josh shook his head. "When did we suddenly decide to stop for food? We've been driving for almost two hours. Why stop now? We're almost there."

"Which is exactly why we need a break. Besides, you look like you could use the energy." Roland mentioned, his eyes trailing the length of Josh's body judgmentally.

Josh scoffed. "I'm fine. How about you just worry about yourself." He argued, unwilling to cooperate to any of Roland's pleasantries. He was only helping Roland in a chance to finally confront his ex-girlfriend and her mischief. If it weren't for that, he would gladly ignore Roland's sudden financial issue as he couldn't care less.

Josh may have not had direct proof of Holland being the culprit behind the sly bizarreness happening lately, but there hadn't been a more appropriate person to blame. Holland was known for getting her way through blackmail, and once again had she been disturbing innocent just to get to him. The thought of her wicked smile as if she believed herself to be victorious within this strange little game of hers even causing him to groan out in disgust.

Suddenly, Josh flinched, startled as a tapping sounded against the car window of the passenger side. Josh turned his head, and Roland instantly visible as he smirked at Josh cannily from outside of the car.

He'd been so caught up in his thoughts that he didn't even hear Roland exit the vehicle.

Josh furrowed his eyebrows, attempting to talk to Roland through the glass. "What?" He exclaimed, aggravated.

Roland forcibly opened the car door, urging for Josh to get out. "C'mon, you're coming in with me."

"Aren't you old enough to go in by yourself?" Josh murmured, crossing his arms, and leaning back into the seat.

Roland rolled his eyes, ultimately fed-up. He'd been trying to do Josh a favor, but his stubbornness had been just as bad as his ego. "Look, you're even more annoying when you haven't eaten anything. Just sit and eat with me, and then we can get going. I won't move this car unless you do." Roland demanded, his ultimatum clear as he waited for Josh's decision.

Josh glared at him bitterly, while desperately seeking out any sign of a bluff. He hadn't eaten anything since earlier that day when Maya attempted to have him eat her breakfast, and even then, did he only have a bite and a taste of her lips before calling it quits.

He sighed before decisively placing a foot onto the pavement, and soon the other. He stood next to Roland blatantly dissatisfied. Roland smiled. "You're clearly not happy, but you will be once you've tried the food here. It's amazing. I haven't even brought Maya here, so you should feel special." He taunted, and stepping away before he could witness Josh's sullen attitude.

Josh sluggishly followed Roland up to the front entrance as he stood there, holding the door open for him prior to walking inside together. Josh then stationed his hands into the depths of his pockets, and glancing around the eatery with a dull expression masking his features. He could sense Roland's presence as he then walked up beside him. Josh narrowed his eyes, staring at the profile of his face as Roland continued to face forward—a proud grin plastered along his lips. "You go find a table and sit. I'll be over soon with the food." Roland said, and Josh cocked an eyebrow.

He chuckled caustically. "You're kidding?"

"What?"

"First you make us stop for something to eat, you're opening doors for me, and now you're taking my order? When did this turn into a date?" Josh retorted, and Roland shook his head. He momentarily diverted his gaze.

"Look, you didn't even want to come inside. No way am I going to sit, and watch you purposely be indecisive on what to order. Just let me handle it." Roland said, and Josh couldn't hide his growing smirk. It felt good to be getting under Roland's skin for once rather than it being the other way around.

Afterwards, he shrugged. "Fine, but you better be paying for the movie then too, while you're at it."

"Whatever, Joshua." Roland grunted, his accent full of scorn as he began walking away towards the counter.

Josh chuckled one last time to himself, and subsequently scanning the area for an empty table to reside at.

He located one near a window, and easing himself down into the chair to sit. Josh truly didn't want to stop for anything he didn't deem relevant, including food, but he couldn't neglect his grumbling stomach. His energy really did feel depleted, but he couldn't stand the thought of doing anything else when Holland had been right underneath his nose.

Josh leaned an elbow against the table, and resting his chin in the palm of his hand as an imagine of Maya soon materialized. His decision had been hasty, and he loathed the fact of ditching her the way he did. Their last kiss together hadn't nearly been enough as he craved her affection more and more. Josh didn't know when all of this would be over, but he wasn't planning to go back home until it was. Holland had been controlling the game long enough from the very beginning, and it was time for things to change. No way would she have the last laugh if he had anything to do with it.

Meanwhile, Roland returned approximately three minutes later with a tray in his hands that consisted of two large drinks, and two large bowls. Josh stared at the food the second the tray hit the table. He looked at Roland, dumbfounded, and watching as he carefully sat down in the chair across from him.

Josh parted his lips to protest. "Uh, what is this?"

"What's what? Did you not realize we were in a Japanese restaurant? What else did you expect?" Roland said sarcastically, and Josh awkwardly bit the inside of his cheek.

He stared down at the food skeptically. "This is soup. You really expect some damn soup to relieve me of how hungry I am?" Josh exclaimed irritably. With his sleep deprived state and empty stomach, he really hadn't been paying much attention to the detail of the restaurant, although, it had been obvious. Nevertheless, he wasn't impressed.

"Quit your whining. I bet you've never even had Japanese food before. At least take a bite before you go judging another culture."

"I'm not judging. I just don't want to eat this." Josh replied bitterly.

Roland stared at him resentfully prior to shrugging. "Whatever. I don't care anymore. Starve if that's what you rather do, but I'm going to eat. I want to be fueled and wide awake for whenever we run into this chick because there's no way I'm letting her get away with this." He said, taking a bowl from off of the tray, and blowing on the noodles with the help of his chopsticks.

He gazed directly into Josh's piercing eyes from his side of the table, and obnoxiously slurping just to bring aggravation. Roland merely wanted to be nice to Josh, and hopefully put their feud to an everlasting end, but evidently Josh's grudge against him wasn't going anywhere any time soon. He didn't think Maya made the right choice with choosing Josh over him, but not like his opinion mattered. Somehow Josh managed to regain her trust, and now her heart only rippled for him. Truthfully, Roland would never understand why, but still would he be waiting presuming things didn't entirely follow through as planned. He smiled, anxious for the day.

Nevertheless, Josh groaned. As much as he would've preferred not to eat, he couldn't risk the chance of fainting the minute him and Holland were in the same room together because he'd merely been stubborn. Besides, it wasn't as though he had to pay for anything.

Why let free food go to waste?

He sucked in his pride, rolling up his sleeves, and taking the other bowl from off of the tray. Josh helplessly fumbled with the chopsticks, and studying the way Roland used them, although, trying to appear as if he weren't.

Roland snorted, amused by Josh's incoordination and cluelessness. "You know, I really didn't think you could be more pathetic," He mocked, and Josh glowered. "It's not that difficult."

"Says the guy, who's clearly done this before. I'm from America! When the hell do I need to eat my meals with two sticks?" Josh said, and slamming the chopsticks down against the table in frustration.

Roland involuntarily listened as Josh began groan, becoming weary. He then reached across the table, picking up the chopsticks with one hand, and Josh's hand with the other. He positioned them the way they were supposed to be held, and Josh closely examined the results. He looked at Roland speechlessly. "Oh. Thanks."

"Yeah, sure. As much as I enjoy laughing at you, I don't want to be here all day. Not while my money is still up in the air somewhere." Roland said, and bringing more noodles up to his mouth.

Josh mimicked his actions, trying to eat, and immediately did it feel as if his taste buds were dancing the second the noddles touched his tongue. The soup truly did taste better than he believed, but he hated the thought of giving Roland brownie points.

The choice of restaurant had been random and unexpected, but already could he sense his stomach feeling better, and his starvation subsiding.

Roland looked at Josh expectantly. "Good, right? See, maybe you should trust me more from now on."

"I would rather chop off one of my fingers," Josh grunted. "But it is good, I'll give you that." He confessed, intaking another mouthful.

Roland didn't reply, however. Instead, staring at Josh intently as his face displayed sternness. He may have stepped back with his pursuit for Maya, but Josh wasn't an idiot. He knew Roland's feelings for the blonde were still just as strong, despite not wanting it to be obvious.

Roland sipped some of his drink, and fiddling with his chopsticks, while Josh paid him no mind whatsoever. Soon he murmured, "Why do I get the feeling you dislike me for a reason outside of our rivalry for Maya?" He interrogated.

Josh scrunched up his eyebrows, his face contorted. The question had honestly taken him aback. "Why would it be for anything else?

"You tell me. You're the one clearly against us even having to be together right now. Do I really get under your skin that much?" Roland asked, and for a moment, Josh didn't reply.

He looked at Roland tensely prior to dropping his eyes down to his bowl of soup. He didn't think he disliked Roland for any reason other than his constant chase for Maya, but he still had to consider everything else between them because of Maya. Josh licked his lips, gritting his teeth. "As long as we're asking questions… why do you even like Maya?" Josh inquired nervously.

He wasn't sure he wanted to know the answer, but Roland had appeared to know everything about him even before coming to London, while he knew absolutely nothing. He'd never heard the story of how the two met specifically, or why Roland had been so keen on making him looking bad in front of her. Josh didn't want to be clueless any longer. "I mean, I know why I love her, but what about you? What is it about her that you like so much?" Josh elaborated, fully aware of his casual use of the "L" word.

Roland smirked. He set his chopsticks down onto the table, patting a napkin to his lips, and glaring at Josh intensely as he formulated a response. "I'm sure my reasons are identical to yours, but sure, I'll talk." He said. "Riddle me this, on a scale of one to ten, how well do you think your life would be if you never met Maya?" Roland queried.

Josh furrowed his brows, confused by the question. "I—I don't, how would I possibly know that?"

"You know, trust me." Roland replied, grinning. "Can you honestly say that Maya makes you happy?"

"Yeah, of course she does."

"And would you say, you'd care if you were to ever be apart?" Roland insinuated, his questions seeming to become more and more deliberate.

Josh nodded slowly, his eyes closely surveying the table as he mumbled. "Where are you going with this?"

Roland leaned back into his chair, smiling. "Maya is that person to me when you start to wonder how your life was before they showed up. She's one of those, 'I can't believe how annoying she is, but I still like her' kind of girls." Roland said, and Josh remained silent. "We argue and disagree just like any two people would, but still does my heart pound ten times harder when we're together. Maya," Roland paused, chuckling. "she can be the sweetest person ever with a heart made of steel, but then turn feisty the minute she believes in something. I… I love how passionate she is with her art as every artist should be. Her paintings, sketches, they all have a meaning or tell a story." Roland explained, and Josh immediately having flashbacks to the monkey drawings he stumbled upon that Maya drew of him. He faintly smiled.

"Her mind and creativity is utterly different than most of the famous and aspiring artists out there, including myself, and I envy that. She has this cute giggle whenever she finds something hilarious that quickly becomes loud and obnoxious whenever she's really amused. The way her nose scrunches up, or her blue eyes light up the minute she's completed a finished piece of artwork is adorable. She laughs when people die in scary movies rather than flinching from fright or suspense, and cries at movies like Finding Nemo. I love how her cheeks turn red whenever she's angry and yelling, and how she can easily fall into a fetal position literally anywhere the second she's knocked into exhaustion from working so much. I like Maya because she makes my days interesting. She gives me something to look forward to, and I can't imagine not having her in my life." Roland concluded, and leaving Josh speechless.

He didn't know half of anything Roland mentioned because before coming to London, him and Maya never spent any time together, especially alone. He enjoyed the moments whenever they could be together, although, they were short. Josh could barely focus his attention on Maya because he'd constantly be worrying about Holland, and it was still happening. While he was in pursuit for a sneaky brunette, Maya was left home alone without him by her side.

Josh knew very little about Maya, and it wasn't until now that he begun to realize it.

Roland looked at Josh with his face distorted, waiting for him to say something. He figured Josh would find something to protest about, but instead his thoughts seemed to be preoccupied. Roland soon cleared his throat, reluctant to do the unwanted. "Listen, I… I'm sorry."

Josh quickly raised his head up, perplexed. "Huh?"

"It's not right for me to be telling you that you don't deserve Maya, and it's not my place to judge her decision." Roland stated. "Maya's smart, so I'm sure she wouldn't do anything that would badly affect her in the long run. If you two want to be together, then who am I to argue against that?" Roland said, and Josh replayed the words over and over again.

Although, he appreciated the apology, he suddenly felt as though Roland were right all along. He bowed his head down solemnly. "Can we just go now? I don't really want to eat anymore."

"Uh, yeah. Sure." Roland replied, and pulling his wallet out to leave behind the cost of the meal.

Their chairs then screech along the floor as they both got up, and walked toward the exit with their heads down. There's an awkward silence as they amble side by side, however, mainly due to Josh. Roland didn't understand what had caused the abrupt distress considering all he did was answer Josh's question. Regardless, opting to leave him alone at least long enough for his attitude to change.

Roland used his keys to unlock the doors of his car, and calmly waiting for the both of them to be situated before revving the engine to continue driving. He easily pulled out of the parking lot of the restaurant, and keeping his eyes forward on the road as several minutes passed without either one of them talking until Josh finally disrupts the quietude.

He steadily proceeded to look out the windshield, and quickly attaining Roland's attention as he spoke. "Thanks for date…" Josh whispered. "Let's never do this again." He said, his cheeks flushing, and hopelessly looking anywhere other than his left side.

Roland smiled.


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Now, Josh and Roland are still on their way to the location they were told to go to, but stop for something to eat on their way there due to Josh's silent and grumpy attitude. According to my research, London has nice Japanese restaurants, apparently. I thought I'd make at least one chapter solely dedicated to these two, considering they don't really get along, but would then maybe start to understand each other more, especially before their encounter with Holland. They're on the same team, therefore, should learn to cooperate with one another.

However, Josh is now concerned because although he's happy to be with Maya over Roland, it's suddenly been brought to his attention that he may not know as much about her as he thought, and is starting to wonder if he does deserve to be with her. He's second guessing himself, but of course he doesn't need to be since him and Maya can now just take the time to get to know each other properly, but Josh is simply under so much stress and paranoia that he can barely notice the realization.

Elsewhere, Roland doesn't want to continue the constant bickering any longer. He genuinely wants to be friends with Josh, and has made the first move by apologizing. He can still sense that Josh doesn't quite trust him, yet however, but there's a lot more respect for each other now than from the start of their little outing. Hence, his smile at the end of the chapter.

Overall, not much happened, so I'm going to consider this to be a filler. Although, I hope a lot of you still enjoyed reading it. I tried to make it somewhat comedic with a lot of the dialogue and the mention of it being a "date". In other words, as long as most of you are satisfied, then I am too.

Thanks again to the readers, and anyone to review, follow, and favorite. Much appreciation! I also recently updated Written in the Scars, my other Joshaya story, and the reviews are going great for that story as well, and I'm glad, since I'll be continuing that one once finishing this.

Until next chapter, :)