Gael was apparently a troublemaker when drunk. On their subway ride home, he tried to pull two practical jokes on Blue, both of which failed miserably to actually prank her, but did make her laugh hysterically with him.

As they went through the full-height turnstiles in the dimly lit station, he stuck his leg out to try and trick Blue into thinking she was stuck and wouldn't be able to get out without calling the station agent over. He was a phenomenal actor, but apparently that all faded away when he was drunk and Blue immediately could tell by his smirk that he was joking. She quickly slid out of the turnstile, tiny as she was, and left him stuck in there as she bent over in an actual fit of giggles. Her laughing made him laugh, rendering him unable to figure out how to escape. Blue had to unjam the metal arms by kicking them with her boots until he was finally free.

They were out of breath from laughing so hard, and running from the station agent that came to see what all the commotion was about, as they stumbled up to the train with barely enough time to hop on before the doors shut. At the first stop, a mariachi band suddenly walked onto the train and began playing "Cielito Lindo" as they sped off towards the next stop. Thinking he would embarrass Blue, Gael stood up and started singing along with them at the top of his lungs. Not only was she not embarrassed - she could listen to his amazing voice any time, especially if he was singing in Spanish - but she also stood up and began to sing as soon as they began the chorus, " ay, ay, ay, ay...canta y no llores !" The musicians walked up and down the train car as it bumped along the tracks; Blue held out their hat for them as Gael serenaded an older woman, eliciting a ten dollar tip for the band. When they arrived at Gael's stop, he gave the band a card with the box office's phone number on it so they could call for complimentary tickets to the show and then slipped through the doors onto the platform as they were closing. Blue stood behind the yellow line, waiting patiently for him as she watched him stumble gleefully over to her.

"They were very talented, si ?" Gael asked as he dropped a heavy arm around her shoulders. He was a trickster when drunk, and apparently also spoke more Spanish. Blue might have encouraged him to have another drink or two if she would have known her ears would have been so heavily rewarded that night.

"Hey, if the show needs a little boost once publicity dies down, we could always get them on stage! Think of the headlines that would inspire!" Blue said as she wrapped her arm around his waist and began walking, letting him lead the way as he laughed at her. She had heard more of his big, warm laugh in the last half hour than she had in all the months she had known him combined.

"Are you funnier when you're drunk?" he slurred at her.

"Uh, I'm not the drunk one. I'm only halfway between tipsy and pickled. You, sir, are the one that's drunk. Remember, that's why you asked me to come home with you?"

"Pickled? You say the oddest things, I swear. It's muy linda though." Gael looked down at her as she held him tight against her while she walked next to him. "And you're wrong, I didn't ask you to come home with me because I'm drunk. I asked because I am tired of seeing you every day for what feels like two minutes, then having to leave you. I want to fall asleep and you be there when I wake up for once."

Blue apparently wasn't quite pickled enough, his words instantly sobering her right up. She looked at him as they kept walking, his eyes ahead, and an easy smile on his face. His mask wasn't just lowered tonight, it was completely thrown away. She had been worried after the fiasco with Carrie that he would retreat from her, but apparently his encounter only bolstered his feelings for Blue and made him feel free.

They suddenly stopped in front of a nice looking building as Gael took her hand and led her inside. The lobby was dark with broad plank floors and black painted stucco walls. Sharp gold sconces lined the tops of the walls and illuminated the room with a warm glow, showing off a very well designed sitting area full of tufted leather couches. In the corner was an interesting reception desk that looked like it had been a part of the building since its inception. So far, this seemed exactly like a place that Gael would live: eclectic, edgy, and minimal, while still feeling inviting. They rode the smooth elevator up to his floor and walked down the hall, hand in hand. He dropped his keys twice and finally asked Blue to unlock it for him, laughing at his own drunkenness. As she opened the door he let her step inside first and he reached to turn on the light.

The first thing she noticed was the breathtaking wall of windows. The exposed brick was filled with floor to ceiling black-framed windows that wrapped around the corner to the other side of the apartment. Even still standing at the front door, she could see that they boasted a decent view of the city, enough twinkling lights filling the panes to turn the windows into a lighting feature better than any chandelier. Gael moved past her and shut the door behind them. He threw his keys on the kitchen counter that was to his right and took her jacket, hanging it next to his on the coat rack by the door behind them. The kitchen was filled with modern lines and warm wood cabinets topped with white quartz, a large island separating it from the living room that Gael was headed towards. He turned on an arc floor lamp that hovered over the dark green velvet couch as he kicked his shoes off and turned to Blue, pointing towards an open door.

"The bathroom is to your left, kitchen to your right, and bedroom is in the loft upstairs. Make yourself at home, I'll be right back." He walked into the bathroom and left her standing where she was apparently planted and had taken roots at the front door. Suddenly feeling very self-conscious, she took her shoes off and set them by the door next to her purse. She padded past the kitchen, thinking that it looked like he had kept up his cooking routine. Smiling to herself, she wondered what he had made in the pots and pans that were sitting in the drying rack. At least it was clean; according to his desk at work, she worried he might have been messier than Blue could handle, but apparently he either had a housekeeper or his desk was no reflection of his house. Blue tucked her OCD away and let it rest, exploring the rest of his apartment.

On her left, lining the base of the staircase that went up to the loft, was a bookshelf filled to the brim with items that were presumably important enough to Gael to display. There was an assortment of novels of which she was excited to ask his opinion on, research books on the Civil War that she assumed he had collected while writing Nothing but Tombs , and odd trinkets that each held some unrevealed interesting story that Blue immediately wanted to know. He had photos of people he assumed were his parents, the man's nose having the exact same shape as Gael's, and the woman's eyes belonging to him too. Random pieces of pottery and sculptures lined the shelves, mingled with piles and piles of sheet music. She recognized all the titles, all famous plays such as Phantom of the Opera and Cabaret . Just as she was thinking to herself that she would pay good money to hear Gael sing any song from Les Mis , he opened the door of the bathroom and walked out. She had been thumbing through the Sweeney Todd sheet music, reading all his notes in the margins, but stopped when he started walking towards her, feeling like she had intruded on his life.

"Sorry, I love reading the lyrics and watching the play unfold in my head." She put the sheet music back as he passed behind her, walking over to the couch and taking his shirt off along the way.

The sight alone was almost payment enough for him trying to drunkenly prank her all night.

He turned to look at her, intrigued. "I don't mind at all; like I said, make yourself at home. You can see the play in your head?" She nodded and fidgeted uncomfortably. "Can you hear the music too?"

"Yeah, but only the entire thing, as a whole. I don't think I can hear each instrument like Beethoven, so no musical genius up my sleeve." She joked to lighten her own tension since apparently Gael was experiencing none as he flopped over onto the couch.

As he hit the cushions, a small black cat chirped as he hopped up onto the back of the couch, obviously upset to be disturbed from his slumber.

Within seconds, Blue had forgotten where she was and why. All that mattered is that she got to pet the cat.

"You have a cat?!" she exclaimed as she walked over and held her hand out to him, letting him sniff her before he decided if she was worthy of petting him or not. He put his head down and gave her the signal that she was allowed, so she spoiled him with perfectly positioned scratches behind the ear.

"Huh? Oh yeah, that's Percy," Gael mumbled as he shoved a pillow under his head.

Blue stood there petting Percy as long as he would let her; she wasn't one to walk away from a cat and would pet until he was tired of it. "Why didn't you ever mention him?"

Gael shrugged, "I don't know. Do you have a cat?"

Blue nodded, "yes, an orange cat named Molly."

Gael smiled coyly, "why didn't you ever mention her before?"

Rolling her eyes, Blue admitted, "good point." Apparently Percy was done with her and jumped down to the soft rug and stretched, front legs first then hind legs.

Percy trotted off to the kitchen as Gael said, "someone was moving out and couldn't take him with them to their next place, so I agreed to let him stay here until he could find a home. A year has gone by and he's still here, even though I'm pretty sure he hates me. I've fed him expensive food and bought all the best toys, but he's yet to warm up to me."

Blue walked over to the corner of the apartment where the window-covered walls met and looked at Gael's guitars sitting in their stands. "Well that's the problem, you can't just feed them, you have to treat them like royalty while ignoring them at the same time. It's all about the perfect ratio of attention." Percy had found his way back to Blue and rubbed against her leg. "Isn't that right, boy?" she asked as she bent down to pet him again.

Gael watched Blue, standing in his apartment petting his cat, and couldn't believe his eyes. He reached up and rubbed them, mostly from being exhausted, but also to make sure he wasn't seeing things and that she really was there.

"Do you play anything other than guitar?" he heard Blue ask, confirming she wasn't an illusion, but actually standing barefoot by his guitars in his living room.

"I play piano, guitar, and I can drum if I have to but it's not great. Oh and I can play a mean harmonica if the mood strikes me. I went through a blues phase in my early twenties and learned then, but I don't really keep up with it." His words were getting longer and his eyes were getting heavier.

Blue wanted to ask him a million more questions about everything, the stuff that filled his apartment feeling like the lost puzzle pieces found under the box that would help finish the entire picture of Gael. Instead, she walked over and laid down next to him on the couch, letting him off the hook since he was obviously trying so hard not to nod off. He instantly wrapped his arms around her as she nestled her face close to his, very aware of his skin on hers as her midriff shirt rose up even higher than it already was. He kissed her lips so gently that she barely felt it, then slowly moved up to her forehead and kissed her there, and finally on the tip of her nose. Blue was positive she'd never felt so content in her entire life as Gael's fingers slowly ran along her shoulder, even though she was pretty sure he was barely awake enough to know what he was doing.

" Mi Azul ?" he mumbled into the top of her head that was tucked under his chin.

"Hmm?" she replied.

"You're not leaving, right? You'll stay?" A slight crease appeared on his forehead as he barely spoke loud enough for her to hear.

"I'm not going anywhere," was all she had to say for him to relax in her arms even more, then drift off to sleep.

—

Blue's eyes fluttered open as a sunbeam dared to shine down on her face. There was no moment of disorientation, no wondering where she was or who she was with. As she felt Gael's arms around her and his body pressed against her back, she knew that she was in his bed and had slept the entire night next to him. The story of how they got there was a bit of a blur though since the last she remembered they were on his couch downstairs. Without disturbing Gael by moving too much, she looked around the room as best as possible to see if she could find any clues. There was a chunky wooden bedside table next to her, but her phone wasn't there. She saw her clothes piled on a leather chair in the corner, then looked down and noticed she was wearing Gael's t-shirt and her underwear, but nothing else.

That's when she remembered that she woke up a few hours after falling asleep on the couch because her arms started cramping up from being squished between her and Gael. She woke him up and asked if he wanted to sleep in his bed instead, but he just sat up like a zombie and was barely conscious enough to walk much less talk. Deciding to drag him up there herself, she started guiding him up the stairs and helped him reach the top. His instincts took over and he walked over to his bed, dropping his pants and falling onto the mattress with a thud. She could tell he was instantly slumbering away and she was jealous of his sleep skills. Since he was safe in his bed, she went back downstairs to the bathroom to wash her face and rinse the beer and hot pocket taste from her mouth. She grabbed her phone and his t-shirt before she trudged up the steps again, setting her phone down on Gael's dresser once back in his room so she could change her clothes.

Looking across the room now, she could barely see that her phone was still there, but she was unable to do anything about it without waking Gael up. When she laid down the night before, she was so tired she barely even thought about the fact that she was sleeping with Gael.

She was fully aware of it now.

His face was buried in her neck and she wondered how he could breathe from being so close to her. Blue could feel that he had his arm around her waist and was holding her close to him, perfectly forming her body against his. Her thoughts were developing more and more slowly as she felt his body so close to hers; she could feel that he was hard up against her and couldn't help but move slightly after staying still for so long. His arm that was wrapped around her stomach squeezed her even tighter as he finally began to wake up.

He mumbled, "are you actually in my bed, or is this another dream?" into her neck, his breath hot against her skin. As she stretched a little, finally free to move in Gael's incredibly comfortable bed, her back arched and he moaned, "mmm no, you are definitely real."

Smiling at the fact Gael just let it slip that he had dreamed of her in his bed, she rolled over to face him. His eyes were only half-open, still trying to wade through the deep waters of sleep into the land of being fully awake. Pushing his tousled hair away from his face, she closed the minuscule distance that was between them to kiss his full lips, just enough to try and wake him up more. "Good morning." She dropped another kiss on his lips, lingering a little longer this time.

"You're right, it is a very good morning." His raspy morning voice was low and rough, like the warm sand satisfyingly rubbing against your skin at the beach. She hadn't expected to like it so much, his normal voice being such a source of joy for her, but she wanted to dig in and hear his voice like this every day.

This time Gael didn't wait for Blue, kissing her while running his hand through her hair and resting it on her cheek. This kiss was another addition on top of the ever-growing list of new kisses for them. Not rushed. Not secret. Not even burning. Gael's kiss was almost leisurely, as slow as the golden honey dripping off a spoon into a steaming cup of tea. It was sweet and sticky, making Blue want to lick her lips after just a taste, desperate to find another drop. Slowly, the kiss began to warm up and melt, flowing easily between their lips. Gael's hand slid down from her cheek, steadily grazing over every inch of her body that it could find.

Suddenly, the loud, high-pitched ringtone of Blue's phone broke the trance they were in and made her jolt up. Groaning in protest, she left Gael's arms and trudged over to the dresser where her phone was ringing and buzzing obnoxiously. Seeing Aunt Millie's face made the gnawing sensation of anxiety twinge in her chest, this being such an unusual time for her to call. She looked at Gael and mouthed "sorry" as she answered the phone quickly.

"Hey Aunt Millie, is everything okay?" Her shoulders fell and she rolled her eyes. Her aunt responded with an emergency about her online shopping delivery being delayed so she wouldn't be receiving the special shoes she ordered for her cruise in time. "Ah...yeah that's terrible...umm can I call you back?" She looked over at Gael who was sitting up onto the edge of his bed, not taking his eyes off her the entire time. "I'm a little busy right now with a coworker...sorting out something I've been working on for a while." Gael laughed loud enough that her aunt probably heard through the phone, but Blue didn't care. She started walking back towards the side of the bed where Gael was sitting. "Okay, love you, bye..okay, bye. Bye!" Blue hung up quickly before Aunt Millie could protest any further and gently set her phone down on his bedside table, after making sure to put it on silent.

"Are you wearing my shirt?" Gael asked, completely captivated by the sight of his t-shirt draping over her body. It barely covered her underwear that he caught a glimpse of as she walked across the room. Although they technically had sex a week ago, they still hadn't been together in such an intimate way; the thrill of her standing in front of him now was breathtaking.

Blue looked down, "oh yeah, sorry. I really didn't want to sleep in my uncomfortable clothes, so I borrowed this. Hope you don't mind?"

"I don't mind at all," Gael said as he ran both hands up her stomach, lifting the shirt as he went, until he realized she wasn't wearing a bra. With a desperate look on his face, he mumbled, "I can't believe you slept next to me in my bed all night long, in nothing but my shirt, and I had no idea...I'm never drinking again."

Blue let out a quick laugh, but when his lips connected with the tender skin of her stomach, she stopped abruptly. As his kisses traveled upwards so did her shirt, until it was completely pulled off, leaving her in nothing but her underwear. Her hands ran through his hair and stayed there, holding on to keep herself steady while delighting in his adoration. Placing his hands on her hips, Gael pulled her closer to him while hooking his thumbs in the waistband of her underwear.

No longer surprised and finally satisfied at their pace, Blue jokingly asked, "what happened to 'going slow'?"

Gael looked up at her, "don't worry, I intend to go very slow..."

Her breath hitched as his teeth barely grazed her nipple, the heat from his mouth against her skin sending waves of delight across her body. She moaned quietly and pressed against him as he teasingly moved as slow as he had just promised he would. Unwilling and unable to go that slow, Blue began to push him down onto the bed. After leaving a trail of kisses up his body as she found her way back to his lips, she was finally positioned on top of him and helplessly moved against him, causing his hips to press upwards and meet her with even more friction. The look on her face was something Gael immediately understood and he knew she couldn't wait any longer, struggling to keep her composure as she moved faster. He gently stopped her and pushed his hand inside her underwear to touch her. The look on his face was pure delight, drinking in every sound she made in reaction to his touch and watching her face that was only inches away from his. In what only seemed like a few moments, she found the relief she was looking for and sank against his body. Rolling her next to him onto his bed, Gael admired her while he pulled her underwear off completely, shudders of pleasure still vibrating through her body. He slowly shook his head in astonishment, unable to comprehend how she was so beautiful. He looked at her lying naked in his bed, her eyes pleading for him, and tried to think of something, anything, to say.

But the writer couldn't find his words.

Finally able to concentrate, Blue reached down and started removing his underwear after he reached over to his bedside table to dig around for a condom. As she slipped it onto him, he kissed her deeply, only pulling away to push her hair to the side and holding her face in his hand. The way he looked at Blue made her already erratic mind completely lose focus on everything else. There was nothing but his eyes. They never left hers as he slowly pushed inside her, making her hips rush to grind against him. She could barely form the words, "faster...Gael, please." Hearing her beg him broke down all his barriers. His eyes were wild, different than they normally were; they were completely feral and he took from her what he needed. Just like their first time together, he didn't hold back and she saw him completely unbridled and unwavering in his need for her. They weren't quiet, they weren't refined, and they weren't patient. For the first time, they were completely free to be alone together.

—

Gael abruptly opened his eyes after having been half awake and half asleep for quite some time. They had dozed off together in each other's arms, Blue's head lying on his chest as his breathing gently bobbed her up and down while she slept. He looked at his phone that was laying on the bedside table next to him and saw the time.

"It's noon?! I have never slept this late in my life!" He sat his phone upside down on the table and ran his hand over his face.

Blue slowly stretched and yawned as she said, "you weren't only sleeping," with a mischievous smile on her face as she wrapped her arms around him even tighter. His bed was almost as comfortable as hers, which she was completely ecstatic about, and his body heat was so warm and relaxing that she thought she could lay there for the rest of her life and never leave his bed again.

"Mmm, very true," he mumbled as he absentmindedly ran his hand along the ticklish skin of her side, making her laugh and sit up.

"I desperately need coffee. And you are good at making coffee," she hinted, swirling her fingers in a pattern along his torso as she sat next to him.

"Ah, well it seems we are a good pair then. How about I make coffee, and you sit next to me - so I can bask in the sight of you in nothing but my shirt again - while you ask me the dozen questions I know you wanted to ask last night before I embarrassingly fell asleep?"

"Hmm..." she said as she pretended to ponder the arrangement's contractual nature, "sounds like a fair deal, but if you get to choose what I wear, then I do too." She bent over him and said matter-of-factly, "shirt stays off."

"Shit, I should have added that clause to my deal too." He swept his hands across her back, already missing the skin that was about to be covered up.

"Too late!" Blue laughed as Gael stood up and walked across the room to a wooden dresser that's style matched the bedside tables, giving her a fantastic view of him from behind, making Blue immediately wish he was back in the bed next to her and not so far away. He pulled out a pair of shorts and a new shirt for Blue, tossing it over to her as he quickly slipped his shorts on. She had never really worn a guy's clothes like this, even guys she had been dating for months; it felt so intimate, and she liked that.

Gael walked over and held his hand out to help her escape the tangled mess they had made of the duvet and sheets. As she stood on her toes to thank him with a kiss, she asked, "was waking up next to me as good as you have imagined, dozens of times?"

He blushed for the third time since Blue knew him and laughed loudly, saying, "uhh much better. My imagination isn't that exquisite...but you, mi Azul , are."