Committing.

Chapter 2

...

The next day Raven awoke to a light knocking at her door. She groaned and squinted her tired eyes as she tried to adjust to the blinding light of the morning. She tried to sit up, but found that something held her down and when she quickly glanced downward, she found the sleeping changeling, his arms wrapped tightly around her waist.

She heard the light knocking again. "Raven, come on it's time to get up. We have to get ready." She heard Kori say cheerfully.

She yawned and rubbed her eyes, not fully wanting to wake up when she answered. "What for?"

"The wedding is all but a week away, and there is much to do." Kori answered.

Raven let out an annoyed sigh, slamming her head down into her pillow. She knew it was only a matter of time before she would actually have to participate in the planning of the wedding.

"Raven..." Kori said again.

Raven sighed again. "I'll be out in a minute." She said as she tried to get up again, but she found the more she moved, the more her sleeping companion tightened his grip.

"Gar." She whispered and he moaned in response. "Gar, come on." She tried, but he only nuzzled into her.

She let out a tired sigh and watched as he tried to continue with sleep. He looked almost cute with his bed head hair in his face. Compulsively she brushed his bangs out of his eyes and the action made him blink them open.

"Gar, I need you to let go of me so I can get up." She told him in a soft voice.

He squeezed his eyes shut and moaned before slowly releasing her. "Do you have to go?" He asked as she moved to the edge of the bed and proceeded to get up.

"I have to participate in being a bride's maid." She told him distastefully, as she got up and started to get dressed. Normally she wouldn't be so bold to change in front of him, but his head was currently buried into a pillow.

As soon as he found that continuing to sleep wouldn't work, he rose and sleepily sat up. He watched her with a light smile as she continued to get ready, enjoying the mundane act that he never got to witness.

"You should get up too." She told him as she brushed her hair in her vanity mirror.

"I will." He smiled, admiring her.

He was in a much better mood after last night. He had never slept in her room before and he was pretty tickled pink that he just did. It was definitely a step closer towards a commitment in a relationship. Now there was hope, maybe by the wedding he will have a girlfriend to bring to the festivity.

And who could forget that it is also a step closer to being able to be with her physically. He wasn't sure which would come first, but he didn't care, for he knew they were a packed deal.

Once Raven finally got dressed and ready, she was barely able to get a cup of tea before the alien drug her out the door and into town.

The plan was to run some errands at the shopping plaza, check the catering services, pick up some flower arrangements, go get manicures at the salon, and then go out for lunch. And after that is all done, they would meet the guys at a bridal boutique so the guys could get fitted and Raven could get a dress.

By the time they arrived at the salon, Raven was overly exhausted and was happy to sit down while others did the work for her.

Kori multi-tasked while they got their manicures and discussed how they would be here before the wedding to get hair and makeup done, and Raven could only hope they wouldn't have to get up as early as she did today. Normally she was an early riser, but as of the past few days she hasn't been getting much sleep.

The ladies finished with their nails and let them sit as they dried. It grew silent for some time, until Kori took the opportunity to speak up.

"Raven?" She began and Raven lifted her head up in response. "Are you okay?"

"Yes, why do you ask?" Raven reasoned, surprised by the concern.

"You seemed troubled as of late, and I couldn't help but overhear your quarrel with Garfield yesterday."

"Oh that. It's complicated." Raven answered awkwardly, wishing their argument hadn't been so obvious to the others.

"I am aware." Kori sighed. "You tend to use that word a lot to describe your relationship with Garfield." Raven couldn't help but shrug to that. "Did you at least make up from the disagreement?"

"Yes." Raven said simply.

Kori smiled enthusiastically. "Well, that's good."

"But we haven't solved anything." Raven huffed irritably.

Kori's smile fell. "What do you mean?"

Raven let out a long sigh. "The problem is still there." She answered.

"Oh, I see... Tell me again why you are not partaking in intercourse?" She asked and Raven flinched at the word, as she tried to ignore the fact that they were in a public salon.

"Kori, I can't just involuntarily sleep with him like I kiss him." Raven said quietly, uncomfortable with discussing her private life in public.

"If you don't feel anything for him, then why do you even kiss him?" Kori asked, and Raven could understand how the expressive alien might not understand that there is such a thing as meaningless affection.

"Well…" Raven began, struggling with how to describe her reasonings. "It releases tension. It feels good. And… I want to do it." She found herself confessing.

"So why don't you just sleep with him?" Kori asked simply.

"Cause he's not like me. I don't think he's even capable of having impassive sex. Frankly, he can't even kiss me without feeling so much sentiment." Which she recognized is why she craved it so much. Raven frowned, glancing away. "I don't want to hurt him."

"You fear that while you're having meaningless sex, he will be making love?" Kori concluded.

Raven grimaced. "I never understood that term."

"Making love?" Kori questioned and Raven tensed unpleasantly.

"Sex is about release. An ugly combination of desire, and lust, fused into an uncontrollable urge to thrust genitals together for pleasure."

"Says someone who has never made love before." Kori commented.

"Exactly. And I don't even know if I'm capable of such a thing."

"I think you're not giving yourself enough credit, Raven." Kori smiled causing Raven to lightly roll her eyes in response. "So, why don't you find someone who feels that same way? Then no one will get hurt." She suggested.

Raven sighed, remembering the two weeks she avoided Garfield, in pursuit of a stranger. Someone she could have a meaningless fling with. Someone she knew would be okay with a non-committed fling. But every stranger she kissed didn't feel right, there was no yearning, no passion, no desire that was just for her.

"I've tried that, Kori. But it's not the same." She tried to explain, but she rather not go into the details, because she knew why it wasn't the same.

Because she got some sick pleasure out playing with someone she knew was head over heels in love with her. And she relished in feeding off his love, while she didn't reciprocate it. But she didn't need to explain to Kori, because she understood.

"Love is like a drug, and you easily can become addicted."

Raven glanced away from her. "But this isn't love."

Kori frowned. "Not to you."

"Which is exactly why I need to put a stop to it." Raven said with determination. But actions are stronger than words. And she knew her words were empty if she didn't go through with them.

Kori let out a saddened sigh at a loss of what to say. "I'm sorry friend, but I do not know how to help you." She wanted nothing more than her friends to be happy, especially on such a joyous occasion like her wedding.

Raven forced a smile, the guilt of Kori's dismay weighing on her. "It's okay Kori. This is my problem." She told her, resting her hand atop hers in a comforting motion. "I will deal with this, and everything will be okay." She reassured her.

After the salon, the girls went out to eat for a quick bite before meeting the guys at the bridal boutique.

The enormous boutique was very overwhelming. There were two stories, the bottom containing prom attire and the top wedding.

On one side there were men's selections, containing suits, ties, and shoes. And on the other, was women's selections, containing jewelry, accessories, shoes, and dresses, dresses, dresses…

In the tuxedo department, all three men stood on pedestals and awkwardly got their last fitting before the big day.

Garfield couldn't help but squirm as a man measured every inch of him, and he couldn't help but roll his eyes every time the man would scold him and yell,

"Hold still!"

Next to him, Victor smirked at the struggle, giving him occasional pointers on how to stand as two men focused on his own abnormally large measurements.

And Richard supervised the pair while his nicely fitted suit got finished.

On the other side of the store, Kori pulled Raven around in search of the perfect bridesmaid dress. Kori had already picked out and purchased her gown and it currently hung in her closet. And now it was Raven's turn.

Kori pulled Raven and a clerk through every isle and pulled off every dress from the rack, and poor Raven was forced to try on every single one.

Over an hour went by as Raven found herself in a short blue dress, sitting in a chair outside the dressing room as Kori and the store clerk went through more gowns. This was almost as exhausting as the day they picked out the actual wedding dress.

Raven let out a tired sigh as she glanced at the bride and the overwhelmed clerk as they ruled out styles, lengths, and colors. And as she sat there, completely overlooked, she realized she wasn't needed at the moment.

She quickly stood up and glanced one more time at Kori before sneaking away to find the others, or more one in particular.

Garfield stood by himself, going through some random tie racks. He wore a nice suit that was a little too big as he glanced at his tie options, not that he had a choice in the matter.

"You look nice." He heard from behind him, and he turned to smile at the girl leaning against the wall.

"Wow, Rae, you look great." He admired, looking at the girl in the short blue dress as she leaned opposite him.

"Where's Star?..." He asked, looking around, assuming they would be together.

"I ditched her at the girl's dressing rooms. I wanted to see you." She told him.

"What for?" He asked and then watched her look down and bit her lip hesitantly in a suggestive action.

He stared at her a little perplexed, yet excited as she looked back up at him and smiled lightly before glancing over at the unoccupied men's dressing rooms.

Her back was slammed against the wall as he picked her up, her legs automatically straddling his waist. Her short dress was bunched up as she ran fresh manicured nails over his back. Lips were vulgar as hushed moans were escaped.

His hands tightly grabbed her hips as he grinded into her, and mixed in the deep lust and heated kisses, he slowly slid his hand up her thigh and grabbed at her dedicates and moved to pull them down.

She gasped, "No, Gar no." She whispered and he pulled away to look at her as she shook her head.

"Okay." He nodded and went back to kissing her, yet left his hand there.

She could sense his desire and definitely could feel it. And it took all she had not to take him up on his offer. She wanted this as much as he did, though he would beg to differ.

But she stopped herself, because despite him being rough and vulgar, she could feel the gentle side of him, and she refused to let herself consume that.

After a few more kisses, Raven gently pulled away. She knew it was only a matter of time before the bride would come looking for her and it was best if she didn't find her in this position.

The pair left the dressing room, and surprisingly, when Garfield grabbed Raven's hand, she didn't pull away until they were forced to part ways.

Kori was still busy as she continued to go through an assortment of gowns, and upon lifting up what she deemed perfect, she spotted Raven as she rejoined her.

On the other side of the store, Garfield found the others. Richard was looking at himself in the mirror, admiring his finished suit, while Victor was still being fitted. Richard then looked up and spotted the changeling in the reflection and turned around just to reprimand him for running off in his suit that desperately needed more alterations.

It wasn't long after that when they left the boutique, their arms full of giant dress bags. The sun just started to set as they headed to their favorite pizza place for dinner before heading home.

And yet, for this whole time, from leaving the bridal boutique to walking into the tower, the non-committed pair were holding hands…