Jaune had spent the last week less than relaxed. Unfortunately for him and Penny they hadn't really had any chances to talk to each other face to face. He knew of course he could simply pick up his scroll and call her, he probably should have. But talking to her about just what they expected to do together in a hotel room was not something he felt like discussing over his scroll, it felt like something that should be talked about face to face.
And so the week passed with his imagination going wild. He couldn't say that he wasn't excited at the possibilities. He couldn't deny that he had thought about it, thought about Penny that way. When she had been modeling clothes for him he couldn't help but appreciate her figure and he wondered why he hadn't thought of her in such a way before. He hadn't bothered to tell anyone, he had wanted to seek advice or some form or at the very least discuss his feelings on the matter but he didn't really know if that would be right. He also wondered if maybe he was drawing conclusions and making himself a fool and telling someone he was expecting to get laid seemed like a good way to make a fool of himself. He also felt that his choices to talk to were limited.
Talking to his team didn't seem right. Nora was already drawing those kinds of conclusions and telling her that Penny had suggested they spend the night together from the comfort of a hotel room would be pouring fuel on an already out of control fire. And Ren, he wasn't sure what he would get out of talking to Ren, he didn't know if he had any kind of experience in this sort of thing whatsoever.
He had decided that whatever was going to happen he would at least come prepared but that had quickly deteriorated. His first thought had been to get condoms but he quickly realized that would probably be pointless since the chances of any happy accidents seem nil. He only wished he realized that before he bought some that would likely expire unused. That did at least ease any worries of anything unexpected happening, unless he was wrong and Penny was far more advanced of a machine than he guessed.
With contraceptives out of the way he had thus drawn a blank on what to do next, he was still going out in his combat clothes with Crocea Mors sheathed at his hip so making sure he was well dressed wasn't a problem. So far the only thing different about tonight compared to his last date was the cologne he had bought for the occasion. Now it felt a little silly, he hadn't really known Penny to but much importance to his scent.
Dating an android certainly was different. Not that he had a lot of experience with regular non mechanical girls to compare to.
He waited outside the movie theater waiting for her. Usually they would meet up and take the bullhead together but she had texted him that there was a robbery that needed her attention so it would probably be best for him to meet her at the theater and get the tickets. She could finish up her job and fly to and back from Atlas on her own faster than any bullhead.
He had purchased their tickets and currently waited on a bench outside trying to distract himself with dumb scroll games while he waited for her. The little dumb games about sweets or enranged avians did little to take his mind away from his imagination spinning out of control despite his attempts. He wanted to relax for this, be chill and not get himself anxious but it was impossible, it was all he could think about.
The dull familiar roar of jet boots pulled his fragile attention away from his scroll. He smiled seeing her touch down and smile his way. "Hey honey," she greeted him stepping close.
"Hey babe," he said standing up and approaching her. He greeted her with a kiss taking her hands in his. She wasn't dressed differently, she was still wearing her green and white combat dress and her black choker. But a week of an active imagination had apparently had an effect on him. He noticed things, things he hadn't given much thought to previously, he stole a glance towards her legs noticing the exposed patch of flesh on her thigh between her boots and the hem of her skirt. The way her blouse and suspenders framed her bust. He blinked and forced himself to look away awkwardly.
"How was your day?" he asked her, wanting to avoid staring like an idiot.
"Busy," she answered as they idly walked towards the movie theater together. "I was… eager for tonight to arrive," she explained to him stopping outside "I wish we could have had a chance to speak face to face," she said looking down awkwardly.
"Me too," Jaune admitted, "we said we would talk but that proved to be harder than we expected."
She nodded in agreement, "Jaune, we do not need to go through with any of this," she told him, setting a comforting hand on his shoulder, "if you want, we could just have a regular movie date."
Jaune relealeased a breath he hadn't known he was holding and felt a tension in his shoulders ease. "You're as nervous about this as I am, aren't you?" He asked her, feeling a little calmer seeing her fidget and get flustered in her own way.
She nodded, "I know we have not been dating for very long," she told him, "I do not want to rush things Jaune but at the same time I am eager to explore more of the physical aspects of our relationship."
"I am too," he admitted to her, "I just… I've never really done anything like this before, but neither of us have really."
He reached out and touched her face cupping her cheek, she leaned into the contact. "Honestly, since you mentioned this over our call it has been everything I have been able to think about," he said to her stroking her cheek with his thumb.
She stepped close into him and wrapped her arms around him in an embrace. "You do not know how happy those words make me," she said to him. "I have worried that you might not think of me in that way."
He ran a hand through her copper red hair as he held her close to him. The way her body melded against his, he felt her petite figure and couldn't help but find himself appreciating it pressed against him. "I think I'd have to be pretty dumb not to," he told her.
They stood like that for a while in each other's arms. "What should we do now?" Penny asked him.
He released her and took hold of her hand. "That depends, do you still want to get the room?" he asked her.
She paused for a moment before finally nodding to him. "Only if you want to," she told him, "I just… nothing intimate needs to happen but I would like to spend the night with you."
He gave her hand a gentle squeeze, "how about… whatever happens, happens." he suggested to her giving her a grin.
She grinned at him and stepped close giving him a kiss. "That sounds good," she said to him, "I was thinking you could eat in the room, we could just lounge around and cuddle and watch television."
Jaune gave her a grin, "clothing optional?" he asked her, mostly joking to ease any residual tensions.
She giggled, "yes," she agreed, "it will be optional, should we get in?" she asked him, "It is almost time for the movie to start, and I know you will want to get popcorn and other concessions."
"There's always a half hour of advertisements anyways," Jaune said with a shrug, "There's no rush," he told her bending down to bring his mouth to hers. He kissed hard, savoring the sensation knowing that tonight that maybe, just maybe there could be more."
The movie had been a pleasant if somewhat awkward affair. They had pulled up the arm separating them and watched it cuddling together which was nice. The awkward part had been the numerous on screen love scenes that had left little to the imagination.
Jaune supposed he shouldn't have been surprised given the first movie hadn't exactly been appropriate for young audiences. He had suggested it to her before the topic of a private hotel room had come up. Afterwards he hadn't exactly considered the content of the movie thinking about everything else. They had discussed that whatever happened would happen but the rather graphic cinematic display had certainly left him excited enough to let something happen.
He was grateful to step out into the cool night air since by the end of the film he was hot beneath the collar.
"How did you like the movie?" He asked as they walked, she led the way to the hotel she had apparently chosen and reserved a room in.
"It was not as good as the original," she explained to him, "I found it rather frustrating that they had the couple break up between movies only to remember that they were happy together and end up with one another once more."
Jaune chuckled at that, "that's sequels for you," he said, "on average they're not nearly as good as the originals, and they usually think up dumb things to keep them intresting."
"But I do not understand," she told him, "the whole first movie was about the two of them getting together, having them break up between the movies just makes everything they went through seem pointless."
"Oh but you do get it," he told her with a sly grin, "the script writers had no idea how to keep the drama interesting so they figured they'd just recycle the same will they won't they story everyone loved before. Except this time apparently they decided to triple the gratuitous sex and nudity."
Penny giggled, "Did you enjoy those parts?" she asked him.
"I uh... well I mean uh, a little I guess," he shamefully admitted to her, "the movie certainly left very little to the imagination and they chose some very attractive actresses."
"You do not need to feel embarrassed for enjoying it Jaune, it is natural after all," she explained to him, "I enjoyed it as well, much in the same way I have been enjoying the graphic reading material Blake has been lending me."
He chuckled, "I guess it's just how most people are," he said, "we're embarrassed to admit we're interested in something most people are interested in," he said.
"You humans are weird like that," Penny said with a warm smile, "but I suppose I am a little weird like that, I have also experienced my share of embarrassment about this."
"You're more human than you think," Jaune told her, "people like to usually keep such things between themselves so I guess it's just normal to keep such things private and feel embarrassed when other people bring it up."
Penny blanched, "I uh… I talked a little bit about this… during girl night," she confessed to him.
Jaune's eyes widened, "Oh," he said.
"I am sorry," she stammered, "I did not think about how you might feel if I discussed this kind of thing with our friends, I only wanted to be honest with them about how our relationship was progressing and what I was excited for and I completely forgot to consider your feeling on the matter."
"Penny," he said, stopping and putting his hands on her shoulders to comfort her. She stopped her babbling and met his eyes. "Its alright," he told her, "I grew up with seven sisters, I know girls tell each other everything."
Penny nodded, "but I still suppose I should have considered your feelings before talking about our relationship."
"I'm sure you didn't say anything scathing," he reasoned.
Penny shook her head, "no I do not think I told them anything too bad," she told him.
"Then don't worry about it," Jaune told her, "besides at least you kept it among our friends, though I imagine Yang probably had some less than amusing comments."
Penny smirked at that, "no, her advice was rather crude to say the least," she told him, "Neon and Blake were helpful at least. It was actually Neon's idea to get a hotel room."
Jaune nodded, "well I suppose I'll have to thank her for tonight," he said, dispelling any lingering worries Penny had about sharing what few sordid details there were in their relationship.
They arrived at the hotel Penny had chosen. A tall glass building that stretched skyward for who knew how many stories. The sign above the massive doors read Exalted and a uniformed bellhop opened the brass handled doors for the two of them.
"This is the hotel you chose?" He asked, feeling a bit overwhelmed by the rather fancy decor. An elaborate water feature ornamented the center of the lobby and off to the side he saw a dimly lit restaurant and sparsely populated bar. Men and women on business trips or visiting milled about the lobby moving all around them careless of the both of them.
"Is there something wrong with it Jaune?" She asked him.
"No," he said shaking his head, "it's just… wow this looks very nice and… expensive."
"Do not worry I have already handled the cost," Penny told him, "I actually have more money than I know what to do with so I was happy to pay and reserve a room."
Jaune simply nodded as they approached the reception desk. In a few simple minutes they had collected their room keys and were off taking an elevator up to the thirty sixth floor. It was all a blur to Jaune, the minute the doors opened and they traversed the hallway to their room, number 3628.
Penny swiped their key card and opened the door, Jaune was glad since usually his luck would mean the damn thing would have stayed locked for him. It was a small suite, one bedroom and a single living room, each had a television and of course a bathroom. The large bay windows had their curtains pulled open showing them the sprawling city of Mantle outside illuminated by thousands of lights, the streets below looked like glowing gold and red veins from all the traffic.
"This is nice," he said stepping inside and looking around at all the immaculately kept room. "I always feel a little weird in hotel rooms," he admitted, "it is all so neat and tidy it feels uncomfortable, like I shouldn't touch anything."
"That makes no sense," Penny said to him, "the rooms are kept tidy by workers, we are allowed to make a reasonable mess are we not?"
Jaune grinned, "yeah, it's just me being a weird human feeling uncomfortable about messing up something that people took hours to set up."
"How about you start by just sitting down?" Penny suggested taking his hands and leading him towards the couch letting him sit down.
His heart hammered in his chest. Even if there were no expectations tonight it didn't change the fact that they were here with the possibility of something happening. He expected Penny to sit down next to him to cuddle but instead she remained standing.
"Uh… Jaune," she said bashfully refusing to meet his eye moving to the curtains and closing them.
"Y-yeah?" he asked her, why was she closing the curtains?
"During girls night," she started standing in front of him, "Neon suggested I wear something… sexy for you," she explained to him, "and if it is alright… I would like to… show you, if you want?"
"Uh… yeah," he said, giving her a nod.
She released the buckles of her suspenders and let her green and black skirt fall to the carpet leaving her only in her blouse and choker. He watched silently entranced with her as she disrobed for him. She was shy, looking at the floor instead of him as she unbuttoned her white blouse pulling it open for him and letting it fall down her shoulders.
She was clad in a matching bra and panty set of elaborate lace that looked amazing on her pale skin. Little green satin bows ornamented it. Somehow her black thigh high boots made the display all that much more appealing to him.
He stared at her drinking the sight of her in as she dropped her white blouse. It was more than the display, more than simply seeing her perfect body exposed to him. It was strange but wonderful to know that this was for him, that she was wearing this and wanted him to look at her. She wanted him, desired him, and it was only now that it was really becoming clear to him.
"Do you… like it?" she asked him nervously while standing in her sexy underwear.
"Woah," he said with a numb nod as he tried to find the right words. "Penny you look… hot," he told her honestly, saying that he felt less embarrassed to admit it to her, less embarrassed to stare at her.
He laughed a little nervously, "I mean, looking at you I almost can't believe you're my girlfriend," he told her grinning like an idiot.
She grinned at him, twirling around for him with newfound confidence her copper hair flourishing about with the mechanically graceful movement. "Really?" She asked him, brightening the room with her smile.
"Absolutely," Jaune assured her, looking her up and down again, "and don't you dare take your boots off, you look amazing with them."
She stepped forward with a proud grin and straddled his lap kissing him. They melded together on the couch, kissing, touching. Their hands wandered, exploring each other as much as they dared. She helped Jaune shed his armor setting it aside and opening his shirt to run her fingers over his muscled chest.
She traced along the raised flesh of his scars with her finger giving each and every one special attention.
"You really seem to like my scars," Jaune commented a little short of breath from kissing her.
"They interest me," she commented examining them, "I do not have any scars, each one is unique," She touched a series of little ones on his side, "where did you get these?" she asked him.
"Thorn bush while camping," he answered her, "I fell off the trail hiking."
"And this one?" she asked again, touching another on his arm.
"Road rash, I fell off my bike when I was twelve," he answered.
"Why did you fall off our bike?" She asked.
"I got my shoelace stuck in the chain racing some kids," he admitted laughing at his younger dumber self, "I wanted to impress a girl back then."
She giggled touching his other scar. She didn't ask about that one as she traced the thick red line of flesh. She already knew where it had come from, who had given it to him.
They did not let the bitter memory tarnish their time as they continued on feeling each other exploring, Jaune traced the edges of the lace as if flirting with the idea of sipping his finger past the elastic temping himself to push himself further. His apprehensions where dissolving, he felt bold. They had talked about taking things slow but why should they? He wanted her, she wanted him. And the scar Vasily's knife had left was only a reminder of how short and fragile life was.
He almost did it, almost tried slipping past the thin barrier of lace when she pulled away. Penny's mechanically green eyes flashed as she received an incoming message looking defeated. "There is an emergency at the edge of town," she explained, "There was an malfunction with the automated defenses and they need me to help secure the area."
Jaune felt his heart sink. They both knew this was a possibility, they were both on call and there was no chance of escaping that. Despite his desire to beg her to stay he simply nodded. "Good luck," he said standing up to give her a kiss goodbye, "I'll uh… I wait here for you," he said hoping that she would be able to return tonight for him, he would stay up for her.
Penny nodded grabbing her blouse and putting it back on silently and sadly.
"Hey," he said giving her the best and most comforting smile he could, "we made progress at least," he said trying to show her the silver lining, "and if you get back… we can maybe make some more."
She smiled, still disappointed. "I would like that Jaune," she told him.
She finished getting dressed into her usual combat attire and left without another word. Jaune took the couch and turned on the television anxious for her return.
Penelope watched her sister race across the sky towards the edge of Mantle.
"Arc's little sex doll has left the hotel," Vasily said amused into her built in scroll, "Are you ready to intercept her?"
"I am," Bonnie affirmed.
"Excellent," Vasily said, "Penelope it's time, get Arc away from the hotel and bring him down to the street for me."
"Yes sir," Penelope said leaping from the roof and activating her jet boots flying low towards the hotel.
Everything had been prepared. Bonnie had managed to help her fashion an exact outfit so she looked exactly like her counterpart, observing them entering the hotel and going to their room she had even been able to fabricate a key card so she could even enter. Not that a wooden door would stop her from getting in but Vasily had insisted that they take precautions not to alert the security team tailing Jaune until absolutely necessary.
She touched down in front of the hotel and stepped in. She had never seen so many people before in person but she kept her focus towards her target. As instructed she took the elevator up and traversed the halls.
"The android has arrived," Bonnie announced to them, "engaging her now."
Bonnie would be doing what she could to keep her counterpart distracted as they had planned, giving her the opportunity to bring Arc to Vasily so he could finish this. It was finally happening, they were finally putting their plans in action.
She arrived at their room and swiped the keycard Bonnie had made, the light flashed green and she turned the handle stepping in. There he was, sitting on the couch watching the television. He looked up at her and smiled.
"Wow," he said, "that was really quick."
"The malfunction was not serious," she lied to him going with the elaborate distraction Bonnie had constructed to lure Penelope's counterpart away. Unlike her counterpart she could tell a lie without a form of tell, apparently that was an intentional programming aspect likely devised by General Ironwood, she had no such difficulties it seemed thanks to Bonnie.
"Well that's good to hear," he said, turning the television off and steppig close, "we can… still have our night together."
She approached him and let him put his hands on her as she had seen him do to Penny dozens of times through camera lenses.
As she had seen him do many times to Penny he brought his lips to hers kissing her.
Hope you all enjoyed this week's chapter. The showdown has finally arrived and I hope you're all excited. Sorry to disappoint those of you who were hoping for a lemon, it's still going to stay rated T. But I promise you the next story that I'm currently planning will have a lot more sex and violence so look forward to that. Hope you enjoyed Jaune and Penny being awkward teenagers this chapter. As usual please review and leave me with your thoughts and opinions. As usual I would like to thank MidKnightMoonglow99, MajorBrony95, Firefly25 and DrknssRules1 for all the help they've given me in writing this fic and the next.