Chapter Eight: Possibilities

Switzerland was always on the nicer lists. List of the top fifteen countries with the highest literacy scores, list of countries with the least gun violence, list of countries with the highest satisfaction of life among citizens. You know the kind of lists that I'm talking about, if Switzerland is on a list, you want your country to be on that list as well. Preferably somewhere near the top.

Basic point of the above paragraph, Switzerland is a pretty cool place and everyone was pretty excited to go.

Except for Fred. It wasn't that he didn't want to go, it was just that since he's family already owned a private ski resort in the country it wasn't as big a deal to him.

~o~O~o~

"Hmm," said GoGo thoughtfully, "If we all get this done quickly we might be able to get in some snowboarding in afterwards." As the Krei Tech private jet began its descent to the runway, she could see a thick layer of snow covering everything except for the tarmac (courtesy of the heaters installed underneath the runway reducing the snow to nothing but steam).

"I can get behind that idea but, personally, I think I'm more of a skier," said Honey-Lemon, "What about you, Denise?" Krei's short haired assistant rolled her eyes briefly.

"Please at least try to remember that we're here on business," she said primly, "And snowboarding is so much cooler."

"Whoa, shots fired," Wasabi said quietly to Fred and Hiro, causing the three to laugh.

"Looks like we have a welcoming party," said Hiro, looking out the window. Sure enough, standing out in the snow were four figures, all warmly dressed to protect them against the weather.

"That will be the representatives from Untersuchung," said Denise, "The woman that I spoke to over the phone said that they wanted to see us before we got settled in at the hotel. They probably want to establish some ground rules for the duration of our stay so everyone just keep quiet and follow my lead. It should be fine."

"So how did Krei take the idea of Untersuchung and Krei Tech working together on that watch idea you had to come up with?" Fred asked, speaking for the first time in hours.

"He actually liked the idea on its own merits," Denise replied wryly, "He's actually spent the past three days tinkering on ideas for it. Honestly, he's like a school kid with a papier-mâché volcano that erupts bi-carb soda and vinegar lava."

"Sounds adorable," GoGo deadpanned.

"It's really not," said Denise, "He gets really hyper-energetic when he's in ideas mode and there is a very real danger of having something thrown at your head if you interrupt him when he thinks that he's on the verge of a breakthrough."

"Sounds like someone that we all know," said Hiro, unsubtly nodding in Wasabi's direction.

"Hey!" he said defensively as everybody else laughed at him, "I don't do that."

"Uh, yeah you do."

"You definitely do."

"Kinda."

"Dude, you've totally been doing that kind of thing since grade school."

"It sounds like something you'd do and it really disturbs me that Krei is not the only one who does that," Denise finished. Hiro looked around at everyone.

"I think it's nice that we all got to share that," he said cheerfully.

~o~O~o~

"Wow, this is pretty swish," said GoGo, as she dropped her bag and collapsed onto the luxuriously soft king sized bed. Honey-Lemon walked through the door that connected their two adjoining suites. "Krei is certainly trying to get on our good side."

"You're telling me," she agreed, also flopping onto the bed.

"Buzz off, you've got your own bed in your room," said GoGo, giving the blonde a playful shove.

"But it's all the way over there," Honey-Lemon pouted.

"Oh fine," GoGo relented.

"Private rooms," said Honey-Lemon with a naughty grin on her face, "Just think of the possibilities." GoGo shook her head in dry amusement. Her best friend's severe lack of personal boundaries had long ceased to surprise her.

"Actually, that was something that I wanted to talk to you about," said GoGo, slightly hesitant.

"Talk about what?" Honey-Lemon asked casually.

"About the… uh… you know… the possibilities," said GoGo awkwardly. It took Honey-Lemon a full 2.47 seconds to realise just what her friend was saying and upon comprehension there was a massive grin plastered all over her face.

"Wow, that's huge," she said excitedly, "Wait, tonight?"

"Yeah," GoGo replied, keeping an excellent poker face.

"So tonight, you and Hiro are going to…?" Honey-Lemon's voice trailed off and she actually blushed.

"Yes, tonight, Hiro and I are going to have sex," GoGo said bluntly, "So, I was wondering if you'd be able to keep the others out of the way for a couple of hours later tonight."

"Yeah, I could do that," said Honey-Lemon enthusiastically, "So what's the plan? You're just gonna drag him back here and mount him?"

"Yep," GoGo replied, entirely deadpan, "That's more or less the plan." They laughed. "But you know," she continued, "I was thinking this would be a good time to… do that. We've been together for a few months, it's definitely serious and you can't deny that the Swiss Alps certainly help set the mood. I was thinking, bring him back here, have a romantic fire lit, snuggle close to him "to keep warm" and then, how did you put it, 'mount him'?"

"Simple, I like it," said Honey-Lemon brightly before becoming slightly more serious. "Hey can I ask you something?"

"Shoot."

"Do you ever have one of those moments where you think that someone is flirting with you but there's also the possibility that they're just being friendly?" she asked.

"Well, if I'm being honest I did have quite a few of those moments with Hiro actually," GoGo replied with a small smile. "Is it Denise?" she asked suddenly, grinning wickedly at the crimson shade of colour that flooded into her friend's cheeks. If anything, her grin widened when Honey-Lemon was unable to speak, too shy to do anything but slightly jerk her head in a nod. "If you'd like, I could, I dunno, talk to her, subtly angle the conversation to you, see where she's at, that kind of thing. I mean, if you'd like," GoGo offered.

"Can I get back to you on that?" she asked nervously.

"Sure," GoGo said warmly, "But, if you want my advice, woman up and go for it. The worst that can happen is that she says no."

"Anyway, that's a problem for another day," said Honey-Lemon firmly, putting a pin in that topic for the time being, "Today, we're working on your problem. For the first time being intimate with him you're going to want to make an impression so let's have you looking at your best."

~o~O~o~

"You know, I'm less excited about this project than I was a few days ago," Hiro grumbled. He'd been in the hotel's sitting area for the past two hours working on the plans for Krei Tech's new luxury watch and had exactly fifteen balls of scrunched up paper to show for it. It was driving him crazy.

"What's the matter? Denise asked in the kind voice that indicated a near total lack of concern.

"It's this watch thing," Hiro replied, looking down at his empty paper, "I mean, over the past fifty years, tablets, watches and smartphones have all been stuffed with everything from music to a remote control for your car. What else can I add to this that won't just come across as forced?"

"You're entirely missing the point," Denise scoffed while reading a Krei Tech financial report for the last quarter, "We're making a watch simply to get a look at the company's books. Besides, it's just a product for corporate scumbags like me with more money than sense who buy things because they can. Seven years ago, Krei Tech sold a device that projected a holographic diamond for twenty-five thousand dollars each. All it did was literally project a holographic diamond, nothing else. There was no point to it. We sold out within the first week. So just make the damn thing look fancy and slap a vaguely European name on top of it and call it a day."

"You're a very cynical woman," Hiro observed.

"I work at it," she said coolly, "Anyway, why aren't you with the other guys? Where are those knuckleheads anyway?"

"Fred and Wasabi are busy attempting to build the most perfect ski ramp that was ever constructed," he answered, smirking slightly. "Wasabi has two doctorates."

"Is that a criticism?" she asked.

"Not at all," said Hiro, standing up and tossing away the paper, "That was me simply realising that Wasabi is much smarter than me. I think I'll go join them. I know that you're going to say no but manners dictate that I ask if you would care to accompany me. So, would you care to accompany me?"

"Not even remotely," she replied, not even looking up from her reading.

"Thank god for small mercies," said Hiro.

"A tiny little part of you was absolutely terrified that I was going to say yes, wasn't there?" she asked.

"Oh god yes," he said, grinning at her, "Now if you'll excuse, I have a ski ramp to help construct."

"Whoa, slow down, skippy," said Honey-Lemon, practically gliding into the room, "You're not going anywhere yet. GoGo was looking for you before. She said something about needing to talk to you."

"Do you know where she is?" he asked.

"Yeah, I think she's back in her room," Honey-Lemon replied.

"Alrighty then, I guess I'll go see what she wants then," Hiro said, "Could you let Wasabi and Fred know I'll be a little late?"

"For some reason I seriously doubt that," she muttered.

"What was that?" Hiro asked.

"Oh nothing, nothing at all," she said quickly, "Now run along." Hiro gave her bemused look before leaving the room. "I know something he does not," she said in a sing-song voice the second that he was out of earshot.

"What are you up to?" Denise asked, actually looking up from her paperwork, "You look like the cat in the cream.

"Oh don't be so suspicious, Denise," Honey-Lemon said brightly, "I'm a naturally cheerful person. Everybody knows that."

~o~O~o~

Knock! Knock!

"It's unlocked," GoGo called out. The door opened to reveal Hiro. He paused at the threshold when he noticed the roaring fireplace. Exactly two nanoseconds later, he realised that his attention should be focused on the fact that GoGo was lying on the bed, posed rather provocatively. He stood rooted to the spot for several seconds until she rolled her eyes and said, "Are you going to close the door and join me or are you just going to stand there like a guppy at feeding time all night?"

"Uh, yeah, sure," he mumbled before closing the door and making his way to the foot of the bed before standing completely still.

"Are you joining me?" GoGo asked before patting the mattress, "Come on, it's okay." At a positively glacial pace, Hiro climbed onto the mattress and she pulled him close so she pressed against him. "Are you alright?" she asked, "I can feel your heart beating. It's going a mile a minute."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," he said quickly, "Just ah… What's happening?"

"Let me give you a hint," she said before kissing him on the mouth. It was a serious kind of kiss, far deeper and more lingering than any of their previous kisses. Eventually she broke it. "Figured it out yet?" Hiro swallowed nervously.

"I think I'm starting to," he said.

"Are you okay with this?" she asked, wanting to make sure that he was comfortable with taking this step.

"Definitely," he replied, "Just… nervous. You know… I haven't ever done this so it's just…" His voice trailed off. She grinned and kissed him again.

"It's going to be fine," she assured him before taking his hands in hers and moving them towards her waist. She then manipulated his fingers so that he was gripping the hem of her shirt. She then chuckled when he did nothing. "Are you going to take off my shirt?" she asked, "I know it's your first time but this is a two person thing so come on. Take it off." Her attitude about the whole thing made Hiro laugh slightly. He was still nervous but she made him feel safe.

"Alright then," he said and he slowly and deliberately pulled the shirt up and over her head. She tossed the shirt off to the side and he couldn't help but smile.

"What?" she asked.

"I think you're beautiful," he whispered before leaning down and kissing her again.

~o~O~o~

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