7. Time
"That was amazing! Thank you, Rafael." You said as the two of you walked out of the theater.
He had managed to grab tickets to one of the matinee shows at the local theater. You weren't surprised when he asked if you would join as the two of you had shared numerous lunches and burgers together over the past few weeks since you took him the first time.
However, tonight was different. You couldn't quite put a finger on it though. Maybe it was because this was the first time the two of you had dressed up or maybe something shifted between the two of you. You didn't know.
All you knew was that you loved spending time with him. You had started to fall for his smirks and his eyerolls at others when he was annoyed.
You had learned the hard way over the last few weeks he did, in-fact, get very sassy when he was hungry. You knew you he had warned you but you had to laugh and hide your smirk when you heard it first hand in a Liberal Arts department meeting.
"Thank you for joining me, Y/N" He said with a smile as he hailed a taxi.
"Thank you for inviting me, Rafael."
As the two of you climbed into the back of the car you leaned into his form and silently placed your head on his shoulder as he wrapped one arm around you. The two of you drove towards your apartment in a comfortable silence for a few moments before he spoke.
"You look beautiful tonight, Y/N"
He placed a soft smile on your head before you could look up at him and when you did you moved a hand towards his face. Running your hand over the soft scruff that had accumulated on his jaw and chin you gently pulled his face closer to yours.
The kiss was not a heavy or a hard kiss. The two of you had not shared more than soft kisses and you desired something more, you desired something deeper.
As you ran your tongue along his lip trying to feed the desire you heard him slightly moan before he pulled back from you and looked into your eyes, leaning his forehead on yours.
"Y/N" He whispered against your lips as his eyes remained closed.
You didn't say anything, you didn't have to. Instead, you tipped your head up and softly kissed his lips once again before placing your head on his shoulder before taking his hand in yours.
"Y/N" He whispered again softly as he moved his lips closer to your hair.
"Hmm?" you hummed softly, enjoying the feel of him being close.
"I'm sorry."
"For what? Rafael, you didn't do anything wrong." You said as you lifted your head to look at him once again.
You could see he was torn and as your eyes met his you saw something in them you had not seen before. You saw fear mixed with desire.
"I want.. I want to. It's just.. There is so much, Y/N. So much I want to share with you, to tell you, before … before I .."
"Shh.." You said as you placed a hand on his chest with a small, soft smile on your face.
"Rafael, we have time. We don't have to do anything. How about we just see where everything leads us? I am in no rush. I just want to spend time with you." You said as the taxi pulled up to the front of your building.
Like a true gentleman, he moved to open your door and help you out of the car. The two of you walked hand-in-hand towards your door and as you reached the front of the building you couldn't help but turn towards him.
"Raf.. do you want to come up? It's still pretty early and I'm sure I might have some scotch in the cabinet." You said as you blushed.
"Yes… no.. umm.." He started and you felt your face drop as he spoke.
"It's okay, really. Umm.. I had a good time. Thank you." You stated as you turned towards the door as he reached for your hand.
"Y/N" He said as he pulled you back to look at him.
"Y/N, I do want to come up and I do want to take you up on that offer for a scotch." He started as a small smile formed on his face.
"I would like to be in something more comfortable than a tux and I am sure you would rather change out of that beautiful dress. Can you give me an hour? I want to run home, change, and then I can come back if the offer still stands. That is if I didn't completely ruin my chances to spend more time with you." He rambled.
You allowed a smirk to cross your face before leaning in and kissing his cheek stopping him immediately.
"I have a better idea. If you give me ten minutes I can run up and change. It would be easier than you driving all the way home just to come right back."
"I would like that." He said as he wrapped his arms around you to pull you into another chaste kiss.
"Give me 10 minutes. I'll be right back." You said as you left his embrace and quickly made it into the building and your apartment.
As you ran through your apartment changing and gathering a few items in your purse as you did you couldn't help but smile. Were you really going to his place? With him? Do you take a change of clothes? Do you just take yourself?
In the end you decided to stick to a comfortable pair of black pants and an oversized, but comfortable sweater. You didn't bother taking any clothing as you did not want to make any assumptions and stuck to the basics when gathering the odds and ends you would need until you came home later that evening.
When you made your way back outside you watched him for a moment from the door before leaving the building. You had never known a more handsome man and never realized how handsome someone could be just by checking their phone while they wore a tux and leaned against a taxi.
"Ready to go?" You asked as you started to make your way to him.
As he saw you his eyes lit up and his smile crossed his face. It was the smile you loved, the one that made his eyes squint a little and as you made it to where he was you leaned in for a soft kiss before the two of you climbed into the taxi once again.
The drive did not take nearly as long as you expected and you were surprised to learn he only lived a few blocks from you. The two of you made your way towards his apartment you could tell he was becoming more tense by the second.
"Are you okay, Raf?" You asked as he smiled back at you.
"Nobody has been here before, no one. This is new territory for me, Y/N." He said shyly as he dipped his head for a moment.
"Hey.. It's just me. We can sit out here for a bit if you prefer. I don't want to rush you. We have plenty of time, Rafael." You said as the two of you stood outside his door.
"No, I want you here." He said as he unlocked the door and allowed you to enter the apartment first.
You were surprised just how tidy and organized his place was and as you looked around you could see more of his personality and his inner feelings.
Pictures lined the overfilled bookcases, sudoku books were stacked on the coffee table, and while the apartment was very tidy you also noticed the coffee mugs sporadically placed around the living room and kitchen.
It was that moment you realized why he was so anxious and nervous about having you over, he had never allowed someone past his outer walls before.
"This place is amazing, Rafael. Thank you for inviting me." You said as you turned and smiled at him.
You watched as his nervousness and anxiety ridden shoulders relaxed a bit as he smiled back at you before moving to take off his tux jacket.
"I'm going to go.."
"Take your time. I'm not going anywhere"