Chapter 38: Invested

RECAP: Robin successfully nagged Chrom to go out on more 'outside' dates. Lon'qu has returned and isn't happy with any of their present shit. Gaius and Priam are still annoying as ever. Robin's home is essentially a sausagefest. Chrom's shower rod broke because of sexy times last time and stayed a night at Robin's. (And you can all stone me to death now that I'm back temporarily.)

"Are you being safe?"

Surprised, Robin picked up her head from intently shoving her foot into her shoe, her ponytail spilling over her shoulder. Once her foot was successfully in her shoe, she straightened blushing.

"Lon'qu, you realize I'm a grown woman. We may have the same birthday, but I'm only two years younger than you. I really don't need the talk from you too."

His train of thought halted. He wracked his brains for words. "That's…that's not what I meant."

"Oh. Oh!" She adjusted the bag on her shoulder. "You meant like am I strutting around being stupid begging to be kidnapped in the middle of downtown."

That's not how he would've worded it, but she always had a graceful way to words. Tonight was no different.

"Relax, my dearest babysitter. I think Chrom might be way more anal than you."

Lon'qu's face tightened.

Waving her hands in denial, she immediately corrected herself. "Not that kind of anal! Like the serious, nitpicking anal. But I admit, sometimes I don't think he's the brightest bulb. Don't tell him I said that."

"I won't," he said dryly.

The phone in her hand played a short melody. "That's probably him."

"Do you need me?"

She blinked at him, then smiled with a shake of her head. "No, I really don't think the whole you tagging along on dates thing is going to work. We tried that."

On her fourth date out (since he had arrived), she agreed to let him tag along, mostly because he had been adamant about doing his job. She acquiesced but her discomfort was contagious to everyone within a fifty metre distance. Robin had dodged Chrom's kisses, refused to hold his hand, and wouldn't let him put a finger on her. After about half an hour, she texted Lon'qu, who was on the other side of the busy street, to "get his ass over here", and they ended up all eating dinner together. All three of them. Third wheel and all.

"Besides, I think he's kind of disappointed and weirded out that you went in and fixed his shower rod the next day," said Robin.

"That was his only reason for not being able to stay at his own place, so I fixed the problem," said Lon'qu matter-of-factly.

"Mmhmm. Right." Her phone pinged a second time. "Okay, I really need to go. I'll see you in a couple hours?"

"Call me if you need me to come get you. Be home by eleven."

"Yes, Mom."

And with that, she left him standing at the doorway. Alone.

He didn't like seeing her leave without him. To look out for her, of course. Nothing more. Grumbling something under his breath, he left to go on his business.

There hadn't been much to do since he had arrived back in Ylisstol. Priam and Robin were definitely up to something but they always told him that he wasn't needed yet. Even Gaius and Robin were scheming, but again, Lon'qu was told that there wasn't a role for him, or that they were simply discussing the secret ingredients to the cakes from Amelie's Bakery, which Gaius definitely abused his lifelong, unlimited access to.

So, he found himself pacing and wandering about the giant condominium. Waiting. For something.

"Smiles, what's with the frown?" the hacker chimed with a lollipop stick jutting from the corner of his mouth.

"Gaius, don't you have things to do?" snapped Lon'qu.

Gaius shrugged. "Nah, Bubbles hasn't really asked me to do anything yet."

"Yet."

"And you running around is starting to make me dizzy. I think she's just trying to enjoy what time she has left with Blue at the moment. But man, I'd love to really understand how that brilliant brain of her works."

Lon'qu frowned and slowly approached the coach Gaius was sitting on. "Why do you say that?"

"Have you seen her in action? She's a fucking genius."

The bodyguard leaned in.

"Everything she says makes no sense in our meetings. Well, at first, they don't. But when she explains it"—Gaius made a gesture of his mind being blown—"I can't get enough of her. This is the most fun I've ever had in any job. Legal and illegal. She's like crack. No better than crack. Like oasys."

"Elaborate."

A frisky smile spread on Gaius's face. "I'll tell you if I get a kiss, Smiles."

The bodyguard's lips pressed into a tighter line than usual. Gaius was toying with him. "I'm not interested."

Gaius laughed gleefully, enjoying the act of playing with him like a cat teased its prey. "As in not interested in men or just me?"

"Who I'm interested in is my personal affair," stated Lon'qu.

"Oh, what a vague answer. I love it. I won't pry any further. But..."

Lon'qu responded with a cool expression. "No."

"You and Bubbles."

He turned to walk away. He did not have the patience for this.

"Not even a denial this time!" Gaius called out from behind him. "Where are you going?"

"I'm taking the dog for a walk," grumbled Lon'qu.

"Smiles, we're going to have so much fun together."

Chrom had lost again. It was the way she'd take his hand in hers, coaxing him with her eyes. Her voice was always gentle when she already knew his answer to her request, like she was trying to tip the scales in her favour. And if that didn't work, she added an extra layer—logic he couldn't argue against.

"This is a terrible idea," said Chrom, sitting across from Robin at a wobbly table.

The restaurant was shabby, but packed with hungry late-night diners. The delicious aroma of dumplings offset the humidity of the place. Shouts of the owner's native language bounced off of the other employees.

"You say that every time." Robin grinned at him, clearly satisfied that she had gotten her way again. "It's a must-try place. Lon'qu found it a couple years back. He said it's the only dumpling shop that tastes almost like the dumplings back in Chon'sin. He makes better dumplings anyway, but he only makes them if he's really homesick. Of course, he never admits being homesick, but I know."

"Yeah?" Chrom finally broke his intense eye contact from Mochi, the cafe they had raided a couple weeks ago and found 8.6 million G's worth of heroin. It was empty and dark with investigation tape branding it off-limits.

She nodded. "You end up craving foods from back home when you miss home."

"Do you miss home?"

"Sometimes." Robin turned around to look at what Chrom was staring at. She sighed. "Chrom."

"Sorry, I'm here." He tore his focus away from work to her.

"Do you want to switch seats? Would that make you focus on something other than work?"

"No, I'm good. I'm here."

"They're not going to re-establish a base there again. And if they do, it won't be doing anything for a while," said Robin with a wave of a hand.

"How do you know that?"

"Know what?"

"The thing you just said."

"Oh. I don't know."

"Tell me. You've caught my interest."

Regret flickered on her face before her eyes dropped to the table. She straightened out her chopsticks and then her spoon on her napkin. She tapped a finger on the table top for a long while before finally saying something.

"I don't know anything, Chrom. I just said what I thought would make you feel better."

It was the way she said it though. Like she had analyzed the case.

She shrugged and picked up her tea cup and sipped.

Now, he was really curious to see from a civilian's perspective.

"You're not going to drop this, are you?" asked Robin, lowering her cup.

"I mean, do you remember how we started seeing each other?"

Robin grimaced. Chrom laughed.

"Fine."

Chrom leaned in to hear what she had to say. Her brows knitted into one another. Her lips twisted to the side. And her eyes wandered away. She was beautiful and intelligent.

Then, she leaned back in her chair, prepared to explain her thoughts.

"Fruitflies."

"Fruitflies?"

"Yeah. When you wave fruitflies away, they'll fly around for a bit and won't return to their previous position because it's not safe. But wait. Humans are more complicated. Well, no. Survival is instinctual for every living organism when life or death is on the line.

"So there really are only two options left. If the Triad feels that threatened, they won't return. They know you're after them. But if you're really not fazing them, they'll return, just as a huge 'fuck you'. They don't have as much to lose as you think."

A waitress came up with three different bamboo baskets of steamed dumplings. "You're food is here. This is the shrimp dumplings. The pork dumplings. And the soup dumplings." She set each of them on the table. "Be careful with the soup dumplings. We recommend you put them on your spoon and rip it open to let the soup cool before eating it."

"Thank you." Robin dismissed the waitress with a kind smile and a nod.

"How did you come up with that?" asked Chrom.

"Come up with what?" Robin offered him a plump dumpling at the end of her chopsticks. "Say 'ah', Captain."

He internally cringed at the pet name and accepted Robin's offer.

"Robin?" He forced out her name through his mouthful of food.

"Hmm?"

"Could you not call me 'captain'?"

"Why? Technically, you are a captain."

Sumia called him that whenever they had sex, especially when she was blowing him. He didn't want to remember how everything in their relationship felt like a chore towards the end. Even the sex.

"I don't really want to be reminded about work when I'm with you," lied Chrom.

Robin snorted. "Chrom, we're talking about your work right at this moment."

"'Snuggle bunny' is kind of degrading, but I'd rather you call me that," admitted Chrom.

Smiling, she rolled her eyes before eating her first dumpling.

"So, I'm guessing this is what you do during your free time? Analyze the gang activity in Ylisstol," said Chrom off-handedly.

She choked on her food and began to pound her chest with a closed fist.

"Babe, are you okay?" He offered her his glass of water.

She nodded and waved her hand, her face turning red, trying to clear her airway. She coughed a couple times more before she was able to speak again.

"I just read a lot of news on TV," Robin choked out.

"You read a lot of new on TV?" Chrom teased.

Robin coughed once more before speaking again. "I've been following the news about all the things that I guess you're involved in. I worry about you." She whispered, "I don't want you to die."

"I promise I won't."

"Chrom, you can't promise something that is out of your control," croaked Robin.

He took a deep breath knowing that she wasn't wrong, but this wasn't enough to get him to change careers. "I know. But have some faith. I've been doing this for a while and I'm still alive."

"We should eat before the food gets cold."

Chrom opened the cab door for Robin. She thanked him and slid into the far left seat. He joined her and shut the door behind him.

"Seraph Towers," Chrom told the driver.

"Actually, please head to 275 Altea Avenue," Robin interjected.

"You're not going to go home?" asked Chrom.

Robin rested her head on his shoulder. "A bit later."

The driver joined the late the traffic to the new address once he had typed it into his GPS.

It had only been two weeks since Robin's personal bodyguard had returned to Ylisse, and Chrom didn't quite understand how Robin managed to persuade Lon'qu to not stalk them whenever they were together. A part of him wouldn't have been surprised if Lon'qu was a ninja, and secretly had been following them all along. Whenever she insisted on going back to his apartment, it meant that they were going back for pancakes. He wasn't going to complain about that ever. What he hated was that she never stayed after. She left him in a half-empty bed. Cold and alone. Robin had joked about to buying him a heated body pillow if he was that damned cold all the time, but it wasn't the same.

He wanted her to stay. He wanted her to stay and fall asleep in his arms like they had done before Lon'qu's arrival. But she always left, while whispering one excuse another as she dressed.

"Your bodyguard is going to freak," said Chrom.

"He knows I'm with you."

"Your bodyguard is going to freak," he repeated. "Last time, he said your curfew was eleven. He looked like he was going to kill me if I even dropped you half an hour early. It's 10:45. Why does this feel like I'm in high school and Lon'qu is your overprotective dad?"

"Lon'qu is harmless." She hugged his arm.

He kissed her on the crown of her head. "Baby, you should put on your seatbelt."

"Chrom?"

"What?"

She sighed. "Just live a little. Is there any wine left at home?"

Chrom smiled when she referred to his apartment as 'home'. He reached over regardless and pulled out her seatbelt and clicked it in. "I think there's still two bottles you stole from your cousin."

"Stole." She scoffed. "Hardly. I'm helping his alcohol problem."

"By drinking his wine?"

"Yeah."

He chuckled. "Okay then. We're almost there. Let's get you that glass of wine."

"Fuck yeah."

"Babe?"

"Mmm?"

"Are you staying tonight?"

"Staying?"

"After."

"I'm sorry. I can't." The tone said that this wasn't up for discussion.

"Okay."

Robin arched back, a giggle tickling his ears, as he unbuttoned her blouse one pearl button after the other. The shirt opened to reveal a black lacy bra, her hard nipples pressed against the sheer fabric. When he finished with the final button, he slipped the blouse off of her. Chrom tossed the blouse aside and it landed somewhere near the rest of the clothes on the bedroom floor. She straddled him, a titillating smile on her lips waiting to kiss him again. Only their undergarments stood in the way of act now. But that was fine, even with his hardening cock saying otherwise. They had gotten comfortable enough with one another that teasing and foreplay had become a larger source of baited pleasure.

"I've had too much to drink." She tipped her head to the side, inviting him to come play.

His arm around her waist tightened and he cupped her face. He leaned in to taste her. Each kiss was hungrier than the last. Chrom could taste the wine they had finished moments ago, before he had carried her to the bedroom.

"Same. Maybe we should sober up before we—"

Robin cut him off when she grinded against his erection. "I think it's a bit more fun when we're a little bit tipsy." Giggling, she brought up a hand to his chest and gently pushed him down to lay flat on the bed. "Be good for me."

Chrom grinned. He loved how she had opened up to him over the short span of their relationship. He loved it when she was feeling confident to be on top. This was going to be a good night. (Aside from Robin leaving at the end.)

But protesting was the last thing he was going to do. For the first time that night, she was enjoying herself, like she had finished work and she was finally unwinding. Just the two of them. His body gave in and relaxed to enjoy the show.

She angled her body forward and moved her hips over his cock. She purred, "Do you like this?"

He groaned, "Take your bra off."

"Why don't you do it for me? It's fun watching you struggle with these one." Robin laughed, sitting up on him.

"Is it the one that you have unclip from the front?" asked Chrom.

"Mmhmm."

He reached for his phone.

"Are you checking work in the middle of pancakes?" Robin gasped.

"Nope, I would never. Just checking the time." Chrom flipped his phone back over on the bed side table. "You're way past your curfew. Debating if it's worth wasting time trying to get you out of that evil contraption."

"And?"

"Fine. I accept the challenge because it would be a shame to not enjoy the full view with you on top," said Chrom, sitting up with Robin in his lap.

"Is that so?" asked Robin as Chrom fumbled with the clasp in the front. "Wanna do it like this? I like being close to you like this." She ran her fingers through his hair.

"Hmm? Sorry. I'm really close. Yes!" Chrom shouted in triumph and unclasped her bra. He threw it away like it had burned him.

She laughed. "You're such a loser sometimes. It's adorable."

"Not as adorable as you." He kissed her.

"If you want time to snuggle after, snuggle bunny, which you always do, we're going to have to hurry up." Robin sucked on his neck.

"You don't have to tell me twice," said Chrom.

The two stripped away their remaining underwear and added a condom to the equation. They both moaned in relief when Robin finally sank down on Chrom's erect cock with his guidance. Robin clutched the headboard behind Chrom for support. His hands grasped her hips as she began to ride him.

Robin's lips parted, soft, heavy wanton cries filling the room. She rolled her hips slowly, teasing him, drawing his pleasure out. He moaned with her. Her hot body consumed him and made him feel whole. She felt so good as she grew wetter and wetter.

She was so beautiful, especially when she took control of their pleasure. He loved how she glowed when she enjoyed herself like this.

Chrom urged her faster when his hold on her grew tighter and began to thrust into her. He earned himself a surprised gasp followed by a laugh.

Before she could say comment on his impatience, he confessed.

"I love you."

She stopped and looked down at him, eyes wide. Almost as if she were afraid.

His heart sank. Fuck.

He watched her catch her breath and offered an awkward smile. He made a poor attempt at a recovery. "I forgot. It doesn't count if it's said in the middle of sex, right?" Chrom added a nervous laugh at the end.

Robin climbed off, his body no longer being hugged by her warmth but the shameful cold. "I…umm…sorry." She moved towards the edge of the bed and stood up. "I'm sorry I don't think I can finish. I…can…I'll clean up first." She grabbed one of his t-shirts and slipped it on.

"Okay."

"I'm sorry," she repeated at the door, her voice trembling. "I'm sorry."

"No, please," said Chrom, regretting his words. "Don't worry about it. Like I said, it doesn't count if it's during sex."

Robin's footsteps faded into the dark.

"Or so I am told."

Robin's even, soft breaths against his chest comforted him—she was still here right with him. Safe and sound. Their limbs entangled in one another. Her long hair was in a casual braid behind her to keep Chrom from accidentally pulling it whenever they readjusted positions.

He hugged her tight against him and kissed her forehead.

"You're quiet today," said Chrom, yawning.

"Am I?"

"You normally pretty chatty after sex."

"You're mistaken. You're far more talkative than me."

"Is that so?"

"Mmhmm. Unless we've gone for more than two rounds." She poked him accusingly in the stomach. "Then, you usually pass out and sleep like a log."

He chuckled. "Do you have evidence?"

"I could prove it."

It made him smile. They were 'okay' enough for her to be cheeky with him. "Maybe another time, babe. I like this right now."

"Chrom?"

"Hmm?"

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry I can't do more for us," she whispered. "I wish I was someone else."

Chrom's stomach clenched. He knew better than to say 'it doesn't have to end' or 'you could stay' or 'don't go'. She had been clear about the decision. It wasn't her decision. It was simply 'the' decision. She would return to Plegia early September. They had six weeks left to be together.

"I need to take my vacation days. Let's go to my family's cottage near the border," said Chrom. "Maybe in a couple weeks? Mid-August? There's a lake right in front of the cottage. It's been a while since I've last gone, but if it's anything like how I remember it to be, you'll love it."

"How long would we be staying for?"

"As long as you want. Well, no more than two weeks."

"I can only be gone for a couple days or Dumbass Crew back home gets real paranoid and dysfunctional."

"Sure, we could go just for a couple of day."

"Can we go stargazing too?"

"Absolutely. Best place in Ylisse to do that."

Robin frowned and picked up her head.

"What?" asked Chrom.

"Do you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

Robin let out an exasperated sigh and sat up. "I think someone's calling me."

He grabbed her hand. "I don't hear anything. Just let it ring."

"I can't." She pried her hand out of his. "It's probably important."

"What would be important past one in the morning?"

"Stuff, Chrom." Robin left the bed to pick up her discarded blouse and put it on. "Stuff. Wait, did you say past one? Fuck, Lon'qu is going to freak."

When she opened the door to get to her bag, Chrom finally heard her ringtone. Someone was calling Robin past midnight. The ringing stopped and was replaced by a low murmuring. Chrom strained to listen to what was going on outside. Then, he stopped once he became conscientious about falling into his professional role in a more intimate setting.

Chrom laid there, the warmth of Robin cooling as each minute dragged on. "Babe?"

"Sorry, I'm almost done!" she called back.

Another five minutes passed before Robin slipped back through the gap of the ajar door. He propped himself on his elbows to watch Robin dress herself with her back turned to him.

"You're leaving," he stated.

"I'm really sorry." She zipped up her pants and turned around. Her fingers worked fast to close the front of her blouse again. "I missed like seven calls. They want me back home."

"They?"

"They…as in my father's paranoid for my safety…with all the gang activities…" Robin finished buttoning her shirt.

"That was the president of Plegia?"

"Oh gods, no. He wouldn't call this late. Priam called. Lon'qu and something about my loose security."

Chrom threw off the covers to get dressed himself. "Let me drive you home."

"There's a car outside for me," she said quietly. "You don't have to drive me home."

He deflated and sat back down on the bed. The mattress shifted under Robin's weight when she sat on the bed beside him. She wrapped her arms around him from behind.

"I'm sorry I'm not staying. I'll try to figure something out, so we can spend more time together." She kissed his shoulder. "Please forgive me, snuggle bunny."

"It's okay."

"Are you upset with me?"

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't upset, but it's not your fault, babe. I understand. But let me at least walk you down. I'm not letting you refuse me that."

"Okay."

Two figures emerged at the entrance of the small apartment. The couple leaned in and kissed before the woman came down the stairs. She had a braid. Robin always had her trademark ponytail. From the black car, Lon'qu frowned. He found himself annoyed. He had made it clear to Chrom that Robin should be home by eleven, or he would hunt him down.

Priam told him to 'hold his horses' every time she broke curfew. He thought it was healthy that she was breaking rules for once. She was far too old to be going through a rebellious phase! Especially with the shit going on in Ylisstol.

Robin opened the front passenger door, climbed in, and slammed it shut. Robin smelled like she had finished half a bottle of wine again. And like him.

She yanked the seatbelt and clipped it in. She didn't say a word. She didn't even glance over at him. Her stony gaze was fixed on the dimly lit street ahead of them.

"Miss Grima, you should be more weary of your position." He pulled away from the side of the street. "You've been drinking a lot since I left."

"Lon'qu, please. I don't want to do this right now."

"What's wrong?" he asked.

Before slouching into her seat, she adjusted her seatbelt. "Nothing."

"I can't help you if you don't tell me what's going on, Robin," said Lon'qu.

"I don't think you can help me with this," whispered Robin. Her phone screen glowed in the dark car, illuminating the melancholy on her face.

Lon'qu didn't probe her. He had tugging feeling that they'd end up having an argument if he pushed tonight.

Her phone buzzed every time she received a text but she never responded. She only read them until it seemed to painful to keep reading them. Then, she tucked her phone away into her bag.

Robin kept her ears peeled to check if the house was asleep. Priam was most likely asleep by now. Gaius was most likely blasting house music in his headphones. Lon'qu was most likely half asleep. That man did not know how to rest.

She grabbed her phone off her bedside table and climbed out of her bed. Quietly, she put on her slippers and dragged her feet to the kitchen.

I love you.

Robin stopped in her tracks and violently shook her head. It was in the heat of the moment. That's all. He didn't mean it. He couldn't mean it. This relationship was coming to an end soon.

She checked her phone as she continued her journey to make herself a cup of tea. There were eight more messages from Chrom.

Navigating the underground crime world was a piece of cake compared to handling her emotions. In the kitchen, she clicked on the electric kettle and listened to the low rumble of the water. She opened the cupboard of tea and decided on a vanilla chamomile tea.

Again, she checked her phone. Chrom was still awake based on the timestamps of the messages.

Once the kettle turned off, she poured herself a cup of tea and wandered over to the living room and plopped down on the couch.

Did she love him too?

Absentmindedly, she sipped her tea and hissed. It burned.

She felt awful. Not because she burned herself on her tea but the way she left Chrom hanging. How badly did she hurt him by freaking out at those simple three words? Perhaps giving him a call might be a good idea? She set her tea down and mentally prepared herself.

Why was this harder than being intimate with him? Maybe a bottle of wine would calm her nerves.

No more wine. She needed to stop drinking so much. Lon'qu was starting to wonder if she had a problem. Maybe she did. But then again, she was Plegian. Plegians always drank a lot. And not all Plegians were alcoholics. Thus, she was not an alcoholic.

She just needed to get this over with. Holding her breath, she unlocked her phone and dialed his number.

He picked up after the third ring. "Hey."

"Hey."

"Can't sleep?" he asked softly.

"I'm sorry," said Robin.

"About? Oh. Earlier. Hey, don't worry about it," said Chrom. "Please stop apologizing." He chuckled. "It's starting to make me feel really bad."

"It's not that I'm not into you. I really am. Everything's just complicated right now."

"I know."

"I'm sorry."

"Robin, stop it with the sorries."

"I like you a lot, Chrom."

"I like you a lot too, Robin." She could hear his smile in the words.

Maybe she should break it off right now. Tell him that she was putting an end to it. But she enjoyed the attention and affection too much. She was weak.

All she could ask was, "Did you mean it?"

"Mean what?"

"That you…love me."

"I did mean it. I understand that you may not be ready to say it back though," said Chrom. "And that's okay."

"Chrom…"

"I know. I know. This is going to come to end soon. Our days are numbered." He listed off her usual excuses for her. "Is long-distance really out of the question for us?"

"Yes. Unfortunately."

A silence filled the empty space in their conversation.

"I wish I met you earlier," said Chrom.

"Me too."

A/N: Should be updating Sunflower soon~ Don't know how long though...