The invisible car barrelled down the street as it erupted from the holographic wall of Evil Lair. The classic chassis shimmered as it faded from sight, hiding itself and the four unique individuals it carried as it sped off at breakneck speed.
Roxanne glanced over at Megamind's crack about her scream, fixing him with a glare while he smirked at her. He met her gaze unflinchingly, his expression smug and satisfied. In his eyes she saw crowing satisfaction at his accomplishment of finally making her scream and at her resulting embarrassment. She also noted the underlying adoration in his eyes as he watched her, his gaze tinged with a certain tenderness.
The blue man's smile warmed considerably as she wordlessly peered at him. It was a gesture she couldn't resist returning in kind, in spite of herself. As she slowly lost the battle with herself and a her lips lilted up into a smile, his own smile grew wide and affectionate. Before long, they were sharing goofy grins with one another.
The mood was shattered, however, when Megamind's wristwatch began beeping loudly. He looked down at it, his expression suddenly turning dark and serious. He sighed heavily, Roxanne frowning with concern at his reaction.
"Minion," he said simply, cutting off the brunette's words before she could open her mouth to ask.
"Right," the henchfish replied tensely. Touching a button on the dash, the henchfish brought to life a small monitor in the center of the car's dashboard. The three passengers all looked at the display while Minion pointedly watched the road, avoiding of the picture on the screen.
They were greeted with regularly switching video feeds of the inside of Evil Lair, exactly as it had been before Minion dehydrated everything and the brainbots evacuated the cubes. The darkly dressed soldiers swarmed throughout the building, looking in every possible hiding space for them.
"How...?" Roxanne said in a confused voice, "I saw Minion clear out the place...!"
Grinning at her she puzzled over it, Megamind answered, "so he did." The azure alien paused as she looked over at him, his lips curled in a kind, yet amused grin. "But you also saw a solid brick wall that we drove into..."
Her eyes grew wide as she looked at Megamind with amazement. "It's an illusion...a hologram...all of it," she said to him, staring into his increasingly satisifed emerald gaze. She glanced back at the display, which was switching constantly from camera to camera within Evil Lair. "you're buying us more time by letting their army search an empty building." She paused, continuing to watch. "The detail is amazing! You've recreated everything that was there, perfectly...!" It astounded her that he could do such a thing.
"Clever," Metroman responded with a begrudging admiration at the tactic.
"But that's not all," the blue alien added, his grin growing wicked. Roxanne furrowed her brow, about to ask what he meant.
"Sir?" Minion interrupted with a heavy voice, "They're starting to pull out."
Glancing back at the display, Roxanne saw that the troops had indeed just started to withdraw.
"It's time, then," Megamind said simply, with a small sigh. He touched his watch several times then turned a couple of dials and the complex, compact display changing with each action. Roxanne was about to ask what he meant when the car was suddenly rocked by a massive, earth-shattering explosion behind them.
Roxanne gasped in shock and turned, looking out the rear window. Metroman also twisted in his seat to look back, the muscular man blurting out, "Holly Hannah!"
Behind them, a rapid series of massive detonations erupted from within the building, ripping Evil Lair apart while many smaller blasts went off around its perimeter. The feed on the display became static, its hissing the only sound within the car. The white noise mixed strangely with the loud rumbling of the percussive blasts from behind them. A wave of heat struck the car as it sped away. The debris began landing heavily and loudly around the building as a massive column of thick smoke began to rise above the now leveled structure. As it rose above the horizon, the rapidly ascending pitch black column contrasted sharply with the brilliant hues of the setting sun.
Minion reached over and wordlessly flipped a switch, killing the display. The car fell silent.
"My God," Roxanne muttered in awe as she stared at the awesome sight, unable to look away, the red light from the burning structure illuminating her stunned expression.
Orange balls of fire plumed out of the crumbling remains of the building, blending at their tops into the massive column of dark smoke that curled up ever higher into the sky. It took a few moments before the shock wore off and she realized the massive blow they just struck at the enemy with. Just how many of the alien soldiers had been inside when Megamind had set off the charges?
Then she noticed the obsidian tower standing tall over the burning wreckage of Evil Lair, a strange black twin to the thick column of dark smoke that was rising steadily higher.
This was far from over.
"Well done, little buddy," she heard Metroman whisper in awe as he too looked on in amazement.
The brunnette turned to Megamind to offer him her own praise, only to be greeted by a look filled with lament. It only took her a second to put it all together.
"You destroyed your home to save us," she said breathlessly, doubly astounded by the realization.
He hesitated, unable to speak at first then shrugged. "A small sacrifice," he said, but the tone of his voice belied his words. Dropping his gaze from hers, he added, "It had to be done."
Roxanne exchanged a brief glance with Wayne, gratified to see by the sullen look on the hero's face that he too appreciated what Megamind and Minion had just given for the safety of all of them. Turning her gaze back to Megamind, she refused to let it go.
Sliding closer to him on the seat, she reached out and touched his shoulder, causing him to look back up into her eyes. "That was your home," she said firmly, adding, "for twenty years," suddenly remembering what Megamind had said just earlier to rebuke Metroman. "There's nothing small about that."
She looked deeply into his troubled gaze, his emerald eyes full of pain and uncertainty. He swallowed, her touch weakening his resolve as he looked down again to gather himself.
He shrugged again. "It doesn't matter," he insisted in a trembling voice, once more lifting his gaze back to hers. He stared deeply into her blue eyes, his expression heavy with emotion. "Everything truly important to me is in this car."
Roxanne sucked in her breath at his words, her heart melting at his sincerity. She slid her hand upon his shoulder over his back and pulled Megamind to her in a tight embrace,wrapping her other arm about him. He resisted for only a moment, then collapsed into her arms, burying his face into the crook between her shoulder and neck. In her eyes, she felt the sting of tears as she squeezed him to her, pressing his lean body against hers while she tenderly rubbed his back. His arms slid around her and he squeezed back just as tightly, holding onto her as if his life depended upon it.
Metroman looked on for a moment, but quickly turned forward in his seat to respect their privacy. He glanced over at Minion, who spared a moment from watching the road to meet the hero's gaze. The two watched each other briefly, then looked back out the front window as the silence from the backseat lengthened. Neither of the two behind them were making any move to separate any time soon.
Silence settled over the four as they raced away from the burning inferno that consumed Evil Lair, away from the towering obsidian obelisk, the invisible car unseen by all.
"So does that put us over the top?" the Mayor asked the group of people sitting with him at the long, rectangular table. Budget meetings were always one of the most tedious parts of his job, but regretfully necessary. Especially this one.
"I think it should," a woman answered from down the length of the conference table. "With the budget cuts and the additional taxes, we'll have just enough."
"Fantastic!" the Mayor smiled. "I know all this won't at first be very popular with many in the city, but I think everyone will eventually gladly swallow these measures, once they've seen what they buy." He grinned at the approving faces surrounding him at the table, "By this time, next year, the Metroman museum will be complete!"
"In the years ahead, we should more than make up the cost in additional revenue from tourism," a thin man on the far side of the room pointed out, adjusting his glasses.
"Exactly!" the Mayor proclaimed, nodding at the fellow as murmers of approval were heard around the table.
Suddenly the double doors burst open, as a couple of men dashed into the room quickly. "Mr. Mayor, Mr Mayor!" the assitant mayor exclaimed, the police chief following wordlessly one step behind him.
"Yes, what is it?" the Mayor asked, furrowing his brow at the two.
"We found out what that large explosion was," he answered. "A massive...object smashed into the ground at the outskirts of the city, out in the old Industrial district. This thing is huge, it's got to be ten stories tall! The impact levelled three blocks around it in every direction..."
The Mayor frowned, lifting an eyebrow. "This sounds like it'll be Megamind's biggest ploy yet. It's far beyond anything he's created before, I'm surprised he was able to build something so large." he answered without hesitating. The people at the table with him all nodded and murmured in agreement. "Has he called Metroman out yet?"
"It's not Megamind," the police chief answered definitively in his rough, gravelly voice.
The Mayor furrowed his brow, confused and slightly concerned. "Well," he started to answer hesitantly, shrugging,"It doesn't matter. Metroman will deal with the issue, either way."
"He already tried," the chief answered.
"What do you mean...tried?" the Mayor asked, his voice wavering as the worry of the two men started to infect him. There was muttering from around the table at the ominous words.
The gruff, burly police chief answered, "Tourists on the observation decks at the top of Metro Tower report that Metro Man already landed by the tower, but was greeted by some strange person that exited the object. The two spoke briefly, but then the mystery man hit Metro Man with some sort of ray. The blast knocked him into one of the buildings nearby. The stranger then charged in after him, riding some sort of large animal that also exited the object. A few minutes later both the stranger and its animal both came flying out again, at which point an army started to march out of the object that had crashed."
"What?' the Mayor asked incredulously at the news of an invading army, starting to rise out of his seat. "So where's Metroman now?"
"That's just it," the police chief answered, looking grim. "Nobody ever saw him leaving the building." He hesitated, causing the mayor to frown even more. "The soldiers started marching towards the same building. Several robots came out of the building that Metro Man was blasted into and started fighting with the approaching army. They were overwhelmed, the army poured into the old building, and then..." The chief hesitated, sharing a concerned look with the assistant mayor.
"And then what...?!" the mayor asked in a fairly panicked voice.
Looking back at the mayor, chief finished, "The building exploded. That's what the second, smaller blast was."
The mayor looked at the two incredulously, furrowing his brow. "What about Metroman?" he asked quietly with a fear-laced voice.
"He hasn't been seen since," the chief answered, looking deeply concerned.
"My God," the Mayor answered, looking afraid as he stared off into space.
"Jake," he said to the Assitant Mayor, "Get me the Governor on the phone..."
The long shadows of the twilight hour followed the Invisible Car as it sped along the empty road, racing away from the Industrial District and the city. It slowed while approaching a deserted intersection between the two barren roads, but only enough to make the turn without flipping. The transparent vehicle then sped up again, the engine roaring as it charged down the new road that brought it parallel with the edge of Metro City
Within the car, all four were silent. Roxanne and Megamind were still wrapped up together in their embrace, neither of them having moved or spoken since she pulled him to her. In the front seat, Minion and Metroman had only talked enough to agree where they were going, the entire short discussion having been exchanged in hushed whispers, after which they said not a word.
Metroman had quickly offered up his Secret Hideout to Minion as a place where they could all stay for the night and regroup. Having nowhere else to go, and not wanting to disturb his boss, the henchfish agreed. Metroman gave him the directions. The hero's hideout's was ideal for both its secrecy and its location, being on the far side of Metro City from where the alien ship now towered and Evil Lair had previously stood, just minutes ago.
In the backseat, Roxanne looked out the window as the countryside rolled by. She watched the trees, farms, and empty spaces they passed as the fading light cast lengthening shadows over everything, the sun kissing the horizon behind her. Her arms were securely wrapped around Megamind's wiry frame, her one hand lazily sliding up and down his back. She hadn't thought he was going to let her hold him at first, the way his whole body had gone rigid at her touch. But then, within the space of a heartbeat, he relaxed into her embrace. She'd heard a happy sigh come from the tips of his toes as he simply melted against her.
Once that happened, she couldn't wipe the smile off her face. Never before had she felt such utter contentment in another. She just couldn't bring herself to end the hug before he seemed ready.
In all the time they'd been on the road since then, he'd barely moved. This actually suited her. She felt surprisingly pleased holding him, and the quiet gave her much needed time to think about everything that had happened.
Her mind was reeling. She marvelled at the number of times that Megamind had helped her or saved her this afternoon after everything had started off as just another, boring, run-of-the-mill kidnapping. A wry smirk flitted across her lips when she realized that his kindness and concern for her would have been far more inscrutable if she hadn't first stumbled into the latent realization that Megamind was, in fact, a fairly toothless villain.
If he was even a villain at all.
How had she missed it for all these years? In hindsight, it seemed so obvious. She looked back on his countless schemes and saw the signs so clearly now.
Some reporter she was.
It confused and frustrated her that she had failed for so long to come to the logical conclusion.
Roxanne had never taken him to be any kind of real threat, even from the first kidnapping. In spite of all his efforts and bravado, or perhaps because of them, she'd only found him mildly entertaining and the kidnappings annoying. The rest of the city may have been afraid of him, but from her vantage point up close, she could just never see it. It always seemed to her like he was trying too hard.
Of course, the next big question in her mind was - why did he pretend to be evil? What was the purpose of his charade? Why did Megamind want her and the city to believe himself to be evil? Why, when he clearly didn't have a malicious or cruel bone in his body, did he seem to believe it himself so strongly?
Most importantly, could he ever accept or admit that he was not a villain?
With everything that happened right after her epiphany, there had been no time to even form those questions that now sprang naturally to her mind. Throughout that insane hour that followed, she had been stunned by his repeated acts of kindness and selflessness. His choices gave her increasing conviction for her growing belief that he was not evil, but was in fact a good man, hidden underneath layers of denial and wrapped in the thick shell of a facade.
As she thought about all that he had done for her, today, memories of their years playing the roles of kidnapper and victim ran through her mind in a whole new light. The banter they repeatedly enjoined in now took on new meaning as she realized they had been flirting with each other the whole time. She blushed furiously at the thought of it, not sure at all how she felt now, especially in the light of his overt kindness from today.
The only thing that surprised her more than those actions of his was how gutwrenchingly terrified she had become for him when he tried to put himself in harms way for her sake. Roxanne didn't even know how to process the primal fear she had felt well inside her for his safety, but she suspected what it meant. She didn't think she was ready for that, but wondered if she even had a choice in the matter.
The only thing she did know for certain was that she couldn't deny what she'd felt.
She sighed heavily.
Thinking of that harrowing moment caused her brain to, against her will, summon up once more the harsh image that had flashed in her mind at the time. In the blink of an eye, she again imagined that he had dashed out from behind the machine they had hid behind to draw their attacker away from her. As it had before, her mind cruelly conjured up the vision of him burnt to a crisp by a crimson bolt, his blue skin turning soot black as his body crumpled to the concrete in a lifeless heap, steam and smoke curling off his corpse.
As the nightmarish scenario wickedly flashed again into her mind, she shivered, sucking in her breath and gripping him even more tightly. Closing her eyes as the tears welled up, she pressed her cheek to his, nuzzling his face that was still nestled in the crook of her neck and shoulder. He squeezed her back just as strongly which brought a weak smile to her lips, in spite of the horrific vision still haunting her mind.
"What's wrong?" she heard him ask quietly with a deep-seated concern, his lips close to her ear, his breath warm on her skin. She shivered again, but not out of fear this time.
"Nothing," she lied as best she could, cursing inwardly as her voice cracked. She cleared her throat, blinking several times.
Megamind pulled away, but only just enough to look into her eyes, keeping his arms loosely about her, as she did about him. She was relieved that it was night now, the sun having fallen completely beneath the horizon during the reverie she indulged in during their embrace. The dark would hide the tears she was fighting back.
He was about to say something when she beat him to it.
Whispering, she said with a playful grin, "So that was quite the long hug you indulged in...taking advantage of my sympathy, Megamind?" Her words were clearly not serious, given that they still held onto each other. While not holding on as tightly, neither seemed willing to let go.
She caught him off guard, just as she had hoped, deflecting his concern enough for her to get a hold of herself. He couldn't resist the lure of her banter, his lips twisting into a wry smirk. "Why, Miss Ritchi," he whispered back, just as coy, "I am a villain. Taking advantage of my victims is what I do best..."
Chuckling softly at his words, she smiled from ear to ear as she stared into his emerald gaze, which was surprisingly luminescent in the dark. A set of oncoming headlights showed half of his face briefly, then vanished upon passing, leaving him again deep in shadow. The half moon was out and provided some light, but not enough for her to see him in full detail without further aid.
Unknown to her, the oncoming headlights had also given him a view of her moist eyes, of her tears that had almost spilled out. He chose to not press her on the matter, but filed it away in his massive brain for later.
"Villain?" she asked skeptically in a hushed tone. "Mmm, I don't think so." her grin lilted even more at the look that she saw in his eyes as the light of a lone streetlight on the dark, country road briefly shone into the cabin. "As I remember, we've already debunked that particular delusion of yours, just before all the excitement..."
He blinked in surprise, having apparently forgotten about that, with everything that happened. She grinned all the more as he took a moment to gather his wits, enjoying as always the feeling she got from putting him on his back foot.
"No, no," he countered as he recovered, his voice quiet, yet amused, "you offered an alternate theory, that's all." She lifted her eyebrows at his words, "but you've yet to prove it..."
She tsked softly, slowly shaking her head. "Megamind," she whispered tenderly, "you gave me the proof today, with everything that you did." Reaching up, she caressed his cheek, watching with satisfaction as he failed to keep his eyes open at her touch. He covered her hand with his, smiling and sighing happily, leaning his head into her palm.
Moving in to press her cheek to his other, Roxanne whispered into his ear, "you untied me, you cared for me when I was hurt, you saved my life several times, you tried to sacrifice yourself to protect me, and you destroyed your home to save us all..." She his breathing quicken against her. Her smile bloomed.
"Hero," she intoned with a gentle finality, whispering sweetly in his ear and placing lingering a kiss upon his cheek. Roxanne felt a shiver run through his body as she breathed the word against his skin.
Megamind inhaled deeply at the touch of her lips, his breath trembling. She smiled from ear to ear at the feeling of his reaction, the way his heart pounded in his chest with their bodies now again pressed together after she moved in to whisper to him. Her own heart beat just as heavily, and she suddenly felt warm from head to toe, her stomach knotting nervously at their sudden intimacy.
He then pulled away to look into her eyes, his own wide in shock as her name for him finally registered in his massive, yet very distracted brain. Hero. From Roxanne Ritchi. He was stunned by her words. Random lights from passing cars and street lamps teased them with glimpses of each other as he stared at her in wide-eyed wonderment while she looked steadily back at him with a tender smile and adoring eyes. Neither said another word.
They leaned close as they stared at each other, drawn together.
Roxanne's heart hammered in her ears as she realized what was about to happen. A small, yet vocal part of her protested because of who this was. The rest of her quickly overwhelmed that minority, her desire for him drowning out all reason within her. She felt her stomach knotting up nervously in anticipation att he last second.
In the darkness, their lips met, touching lightly, hesitantly. She felt Megamind's body tremble, just as a shiver shot straight up her spine, causing her to grip him in her arms while they tentatively kissed. Suddenly his lips pressed against hers firmly, caressing hers with an unbridled passion, stealing her breath away as he squeezed her tightly against him. Any ability she had to think was stolen away. She softly moaned against him, gliding her tongue over his lips.
Megamind felt as though he were in a dream when she first pressed her lips to his. He hesitated, his mind still reeling from her naming him Hero and then the first shock of her kissing him. Never in his life had he been more confused, his massive brain a raging storm of passion for this woman, terror that he would do something wrong or that she would be unhappy afterwards, pride and distress conflicting within him at her praise for him, and total disbelief in his fortune as her lips pressed against his.
How had this happened to him?
Suddenly his mind switched off and he started to lose himself in the kiss, the passion he felt for her driving him to show her the passion he felt for her. He instinctively wrapped himself about her more tightly, his strong, thin arms pressing her body firmly against his as he felt his hunger for her growing. When his lips grew more urgent against hers, he was shocked to feel her tongue brush over his lips, which he reflexively parted for her. He sucked in his breath as she explored, hesitating a few moments before meeting her tongue with his. He heard her moan into the kiss, causing him to smile against her lips while they caressed one another so tenderly.
Roxanne lost all sense of herself and where they were, there was only this man and their kiss. Her heart raced as he responded to her so hungrily, a deep, gut-wrenching passion surging within her in answer as she matched his growing intensity, feeling a tidal wave of desire well up within her. Nothing had ever felt so right. She lost her self in the feel of his lips and the press of his body against hers, never wanting this moment to end.
Suddenly the car jerked to a stop as the brakes squealed, causing the two of them to slide forward on the smooth leather seat that was without safety belts. They were broken out of the kiss abruptly, each grabbing the back of their seat to avoid hitting the front seat while still half embracing, both trying to likewise save the other from the same.
"We're here!" Minion unwittingly announced happily as he stopped the car, oblivious to what was going on in the backseat. The henchfish and Metroman promptly opened their doors and got out, flooding the cabin with the dome light on the ceiling of the interior. The two walked off into the darkness outside, Minion closing his door while Metro Man left his wide open, thus keeping the light on.
Roxanne and Megamind didn't move, both in total shock. They were blinking painfully at the sudden bright light, staring at each other in utter disbelief, agape at what had just happened and how abruptly it had ended. Neither spoke, both still breathing heavily from the passionate kiss they had shared. The reporter flushed a deep crimson while the blue alien turned a bright purple. He watched her with abject fear as he naturally expected the worst. It was lost on him why this had happened, but surely it was a mistake that she would not repeat.
The brunette was drowning in a sea of conflicting emotions as she stared back at him with wide eyes. She wasn't sure what she'd expected to see on his face, but fear hadn't really been on the list. Was he disgusted by her? She was as alien to him as he was to her, after all. But that didn't make sense, he had been just as aggressive as she had been. Her confusion wasn't helped by her inner conflict about having done it at all, let alone the surprising fervor with which she had done it.
What was she doing?
Roxanne's expression fell ever so slightly as she started to feel the conflict now well up within her.
Megamind closed his mouth and swallowed as he saw her face. Here it was.
"It's okay," he forced himself to say. "You don't need to say anything," he assured her, the emotion heavy in his ragged voice. She furrowed her brow in confusion. Swallowing, he looked down, adding weakly, "I understand..." He turned away to open the door, suddenly feeling an urgent need to quickly get far away from her and this latest and worst rejection of his life. The shame, humiliation, and bitter emptiness hit him like a tidal wave, overwhelming him like never before.
"What?!" she cried out, more confused than ever by his reaction. Suddenly that same urgent terror from before surged within her again, this time as he moved to leave. She desperately lunged, grabbing his wrist as he reached for the door handle.
Megamind froze in shock as she grabbed his wrist so violently. He looked down at her hand gripping his arm with iron fingers, taking a moment to stare at it to be sure it that what he thought had just happened did indeed happen.
"What are you talking about?" she demanded in a hushed whisper, realizing their voices would carry outside through the open passenger seat door. In the back of her mind, she wondered why Minion and Metro Man hadn't called after them, or come back to look for why they still lingered in the car.
Megamind blinked in confusion."You...you've realized your mistake, in..." he hesitated "in kissing me," he finally answered in a trembling voice. When she didn't answer, he hesitantly glanced back at her, his face a portrait pain and confusion. "Haven't you?"
Her heart twisted when she saw the haunted look in those emerald eyes. Rejection. A history of rejection, the expectation of it and never anything else. A lifetime of hurt and exclusion.
But, hadn't he earned it, villain that he was?
Yet, he wasn't really a villain, she suddenly remembered as her certainty of that newly discovered truth came rushing back.
Nothing made sense anymore, but the pain she saw in his eyes tore her apart.
When she hesitated, Megamind looked down and tried to pull away, unable to bear it any longer. He tried to free his wrist from her grip, but Roxanne held him even more tightly as he tugged.
"Roxanne," he pleaded with a broken voice, not understanding why she didn't just push him away and be done with it. Why was she dragging it out like this? "Roxanne, please..." he begged her, closing his eyes and hoping she'd just end it already. All of his past rejections combined didn't hurt as badly as this one.
She couldn't stand it anymore, the heartbreak was too much. She cupped his cheek in her free hand and pulled on him to face her. He resisted at first, but she gripped his chin between her thumb and fingers and pulled forcefully, refusing to take no for an answer. His eyes jerked open at this, his agonized emerald eyes greeting her with shock at her actions, but yet with the expectation of the final rejection to follow.
Staring into his fearful green gaze with blue eyes that were steady with solemn sincerity, she slowly and passionately told him, "I did not make a mistake."
His eyes flew wide at her words and he opened his mouth to speak, but she didn't let him. She leaned in fast, pressing her lips to his. He tried to speak, but the sound only came out muffled against her lips as she passionately kissed him. Roxanne was relentless, putting her hands firmly on his shoulders and roughly pushing him back against the seat, her kiss growing more urgent and intense with each passing heartbeat, rubbing his lips with hers, delving deeply with her tongue to wrestle with his as he tried to use it to speak.
He hesitated, too stunned by what was happening to react. She kissed him all the more fervently when he didn't respond, cupping his face in her hands as she climbed into his lap, straddling him with her legs. The urgency she felt welled up from deep inside of her, in her mind she could only see the hurt in his eyes when he had looked back at her, the memory twisting in her heart like a knife.
She was determined to drown out that hurt, to vanquish it forever.
Roxanne kissed him incessantly, intending to keep going until she got the message through to him. Finally, Megamind started to kiss back again, allowing her to relax. She hadn't realized how afraid she'd been that he wouldn't respond in kind. They kissed deeply as she settled into his lap, their tongues entwining while she stroked his face with her hands, caressing him tenderly. She lavished him all the more with affection, her heart melting as he moaned weakly into the kiss.
She smiled against his lips as she felt his hands very hesitantly come to rest upon her hips. Reaching down to grasp his wrists, she guided his arms around her waist. He sighed against her lips as she did, finally relaxing along with her, pulling her tightly against him with strong, yet thin arms. Reaching up to again cup his face, she settled in happily, the long kiss becoming lazy and luxurious. She pressed her body against his as he held her, feeling the slow release of his anxiety.
As they kissed, she suddenly tasted salty wetness upon his lips. Furrowing her brow in surprise, she pulled back to look at him with a worried face. She saw the tears in his emerald eyes that looked up at her, still filled with pain and uncertainty, in spite of all her efforts. Roxanne's heart twisted again at the sight of his inner torment.
"Megamind," she whispered tenderly in a pleading voice, leaning in to place kiss after kiss along where his tears fell, her hands gliding over his cheeks and the sides of his head. Blue lids fell shut as she did, his arms wrapped tightly about her. His breathing was ragged, she could feel his heart pounding in his chest against hers as she pressed her body against him. She lastly placed a tender kiss upon each of his closed eyes. Then she hesitated.
"Did you," she closed her eyes, suddenly afraid, "did you want me to stop...?" she finally asked against his cheek in a hushed whisper, her own insecurity starting to take root at his intensely turbulent and anxious emotions.
"No!" he answered hoarsely in shock, gripping her in his arms more tightly, as if he were afraid she wouldn't wait for his answer before leaving.
Breathing a sigh of relief, she sat up a little and looked into his eyes, smiling widely. He weakly returned the smile, causing hers to bloom even more. Leaning in, she kissed him thoroughly on the lips again. She was a wreck inside. Her own inner turmoil still roiled within her, and she felt exhausted from the intensity of the passions that swirled between them, all the fear, the desire, the hurt, and the hunger. Through it all, though, she began to feel with increasing certainty, deep down within, that this was right.
After briefly hesitating, the blue alien beneath her kissed back just as passionately this time, putting to rest any concerns she had left about his interest. Roxanne rewarded him with a soft moan, smiling as his lips became all the more hungry against hers, their tongues dancing sweetly together as he sighed contentedly from the bottom of his heart. Time dragged on as they lingered in the intimate kiss.
She finally parted her lips from his, feeling emotionally drained. Touching his blue forehead with hers, she closed her eyes and rested against him, stroking his cheeks slowly as she tried to catch her breath. His breathing was just as heavy and just as ragged as he held her, his exhaustion apparent. Neither spoke for a long time.
"Roxanne...?" he finally murmured, after working up his courage.
"Hmm?" she asked gently, not moving from her secure position atop of him, her forehead still against his large blue head, her hands stroking his cheeks.
"What...what does all this mean...?" he asked, his voice laced with fear of what would come next.
She hesitated. Of all the questions he might have asked, this was the one she had no answer for.
But at least now she understood why he had still been so afraid, even as she kissed him so long and so deeply.
"I...I don't know," she said honestly, her voice barely audible. She heard him swallow at her answer. Pulling back just enough to look into his eyes, she watched him, waiting patiently for his blue lids to open, when he was ready.
It took a while, but he finally did. She saw the terror in his gaze, but the underlying courage to face whatever she said.
"I don't know where this is going, or what comes next," she admitted further, caressing his face. "But I want to find out, with you...if that's what you want..."
"Yes!" he answered anxiously, cutting her off. Swallowing, he realized too late he might have appeared too eager. She smiled at him reassuringly, her fingers still playing tenderly upon his cheeks. "Yes," he repeated more quietly, staring into her blue gaze. The smile he saw blossoming on her face at his answer helped relax him. "I want that so very, very much," he said definitively, nodding slightly.
Roxanne drew in a deep breath as she stared down at him, nodding confidently as the smile slowly bloomed on her lips. "Okay. Good," she said. "Let's just take this one step at a time, and see where it takes us..." Megamind nodded eagerly, his eyes at last shining with hope.
The brunette smiled from ear to ear at his increasingly happy expression, a feeling of relief flooding through her. She leaned in and pressed her lips to his once more, sighing happily as she felt him squeeze her tightly to him, at last kissing back eagerly at the first touch of her lips. They enjoyed each other a while longer before she broke the kiss, albeit reluctantly. She rested her forehead against his, but kept her eyes closed.
"We should..." she began hesitantly, not wanting to end their moment, but knowing they had spent a ridiculously long amount of time alone in the invisible car, wherever Minion and Metro Man had driven the four of them. Whatever happened to those two, she wondered inwardly.
"Yeah," he agreed, his voice equally reluctant but at last free of the terror and hurt that started after their first kiss had ended. "We've an alien invasion to fight off, after all," he said with a heavy sigh. She giggled at his words, causing him to chuckle along with her. They opened their eyes together while a smile bloomed upon her lips.
"This is probably about the worst time we could have picked for this..." he said with wry humor, his gaze meeting hers confidently. Her heart soared to see his usual self peeking out. It made her feel better about everything she had just done, helping to quell her concerns about what had just happened between them, about what she had just started without even intending to.
Smiling sweetly at him, she caressed his cheeks all the more. "Most people don't get to choose when this sort of thing happens," she explained warmly, happy to see his smile answer hers. She then whispered to him in a conspiratorial way, her smile wide and genuine as she looked into his eyes. "Actually, it's usually the best kind that sneaks up on two unsuspecting people like this."
Megamind smiled from ear to ear, his eyebrows lifting high upon his forehead. "You think so?" he asked eagerly.
She giggled happily at his gleeful hopefulness, feeling more right about what happened between them with every passing second she spent in his arms. Her heart settled and warmed within her chest as she stared into those green eyes, her doubts finally starting to melt away. "I do," she answered intently and honestly, gazing at him dreamily, stroking his cheeks tenderly. He stared back at her in wonder, his emerald gaze shining.
"So, let's you and me find out, together, if that's what this is," she said confidently, kissing him one last time.
They lingered for a while longer before finally forcing themselves to reluctantly exit the car, the both of them exhausted, yet ready to face whatever came next.