Phoenix fingered the slippery strands of his hair and grimaced.
It was simple, really. Almost trivial; the action of pressing one's fingers to his forehead. But for some reason it left a scalding reminder of her presence.
Phoenix buried his face in his hands. Shaking his head desperately to rid himself of such ridiculous thoughts. Those of which he had absolutely no merit for. He thought to himself, why? Why did his assistant leave such an impression? Walking around, sighing, pouting, smiling. It was all very simple. And yet entirely complex.
It perplexed Phoenix to no end. One second, he'd be inexplicably annoyed at her for accepting another man's invitation out and yet the next he'd be pathetically moping around his own office, and even later, wondering idly why he felt a certain way at all.
Frankly, it drove him mad. He contemplated heading over to the detention center for a bit to have a casual chat with Iris but decided against it. The sun was setting and the lateness of the hour would come off as unusual.
Plus, Phoenix definitely wanted to be home when his curious assistant decided to waltz back in from a night of (hopefully) awkward conversation.
Many hours later, Phoenix heard a light scratching at the door. Tentative and yet urgent, like a cat demanding to be let into the house.
He raised his head and looked over the back of the couch. He'd fallen asleep waiting for Maya to return from her date. Looking at the clock on the wall, he frowned when he saw just how late it was exactly.
Phoenix hoped they hadn't gotten into any sort of trouble. Though it bothered him slightly, Maya was a free-spirit and he couldn't deny she must've felt stuffed up in his office all the time.
Throughout the week following her date, Nick knew he had been rather insufferable. It was a weird sort of frustration that he felt when imagining Maya out and about without him. He was always there by her side and she was the constant that kept him comfortable. If she was on a date, she was completely out of sight. The thought made the attorney squirm but he knew he was in the wrong regarding his actions.
After a quick scolding about coming home before a certain time, Phoenix decided he ought to lighten up a bit. It was wrong of him to want Maya all for himself.
Getting up and marching towards the door, he swung it open, prepared to chastise the young medium.
"Maya, don't you know it's-" Phoenix paused midway when he saw she wasn't looking up at him but instead had her focus centered on the floor.
"Maya?" Nick bent over and tried to crane his neck to get a better look at her face.
She looked strained. As if she were concentrating her hardest on a puzzle she didn't fully understand. Phoenix could see sweat droplets forming on her forehead, a light sheen coating her cheeks. At any point of Phoenix's movement, Maya was sure to look in the exact opposite direction.
"Bad date?" Phoenix teased.
Maya scoffed, clearly offended but not even really sure why. "Like you'd know anything about dates, mister-!"
Nick raised a single eyebrow.
"Mister... loser!" Maya spit out lamely.
"So, I take it you didn't like him?"
"No, no I did like him, I did! He was nice and sweet and really smart! But there was just... just one problem! And the fact that I liked him so much really bothered me because he wasn't-!"
Phoenix frowned, slightly surprised she apparently enjoyed herself after all. "Wasn't what?"
Wasn't you! Wasn't you! She screamed over and over in her head.
"Ah, ah, uhm... wasn't..."
"Come on, spit it out!"
"Don't rush me!"
The pair fell into silence. Phoenix leaned on the doorframe, perplexed at her reaction. She says she had a good time and yet she comes home more flustered than ever. Nick knew he probably couldn't press her on this, but he attempted to in his own way.
"So... you liked him, huh?" Nick forced a sly grin.
"Shut up," Maya sneered as she pushed past him, throwing her bag onto the floor. She flopped messily onto the couch, snagging the ribbon on her waist on the way over. The black fabric trailed onto the floor in a tangled mess.
Following her back inside, Nick sighed as he picked up her belongings. His hand touched the ribbon of her dress and he brought it up slowly, admiring the texture as he went. It was smooth except for the delicate embossing of flowers sewn into it.
"Hey."
"What is it...?" Maya replied sleepily, the long night taking its toll. She stretched out completely, arching her back against the couch. She let out a small squeek of pleasure from the motion, feeling drained.
"The dress you wore tonight..."
"What about it?" Maya turned her chin to Nick and popped an eye open.
"It was nice."
"Oh...thanks?" She flopped onto her side, not sure how else to respond. She picked at the fabric of the dress in question, suddenly feeling a little self-conscious about it. Maya was in no mood to interpret Nick's strange motivations for oddly timed compliments though. She was too busy worrying about the boy she had just been on a night on the town with.
To be honest, she didn't have many complaints. It was simple, it was sweet. It was probably everything Maya had ever imagined a first date to be.
She placed a hand to her cheek. At the end of the night, the boy had planted a gentle kiss in farewell. Maya could only blush in response. She had never been treated so tenderly by a male before and the action made her heart race in embarrassment. Thinking again about the memory made Maya clench her eyes tight. In a fruitless attempt, Maya tried to forget the suddenness of it; the lightness of his touch against her cheek; or how warm she felt afterwards.
Maya groaned. The constant worrying and interpreting and analyzing every motion and detail was driving her absolutely crazy. She rolled onto her stomach and let her arms droop over the side, brushing her fingertips over floor below her.
Phoenix watched her every move. The tossing and turning, the audible groaning... it was all too curious for him not to ask about. But it was late and he figured there was always tomorrow to question her.
Nick sighed but instead of exiting the room, he scooted himself into the small space leftover on the couch next to his groaning assistant's feet.
Maya moved over to make room for him but placed her legs in his lap.
"Give me a massage, won't you?" She crooned like a child.
"Hey, who do you think I am!" Phoenix yelled back indignantly. All the same, she felt the soft pressure of his calloused hands laying across her toes.
Maya smiled, her face still pressed up against the couch cushions.
The silence that appeared between them was comfortable now, a stark contrast to the strained silences they've been accustomed to lately.
"Nick?" A wild curiosity sprung within Maya and she couldn't resist taking advantage of the quiet atmosphere.
"Yeah?"
"When was the last time you kissed someone?"
Urk! "W-what? Why're you asking me?"
Maya flipped onto her back to look sternly at the fumbling man besides her. "I dunno, who else am I supposed to ask about this stuff? Pearly?"
"What even is 'this stuff'?"
"You know... like relationship stuff? You've dated before!"
Phoenix's expression grew dark. "Well... that wasn't exactly what I'd call a successful relationship..."
Her eyes softened, "Right... sorry."
Nick shook his head. "But, yes, that was probably the last time I kissed someone."
Maya made a humming sound, her interest piqued. "And what was it like? Was it nice?"
Phoenix turned to look at her, "Why do you ask? Haven't you been kissed before?" He looked slightly amused and yet unsure of where this could possibly be going.
"Well, of course not! At least... not till tonight..." she trailed off, looking out the window to the lighted streets below. She thought once more of the night. They had been parting ways, that awkward moment of farewell to someone you weren't sure where you stood at. Maya was rocking on her toes as she often did during odd situations. The boy had smiled brightly, happy with the outcome of the night. Maya opened her mouth to say her goodbyes but was silenced immediately by a blur of movement and the pressure against her skin.
Maya barely noticeably shook her head to ease her thoughts once more of the memory.
"...What did you just say?"
Maya sat up again, alarmed at Nick's sudden change in tone and having momentarily forgotten he was sitting just next to her. When she saw him, his eyes were ablaze with a concealed fury. Phoenix was glaring right through her at an invisible target behind her head.
"H-hey now, what's with the scary face?"
Phoenix seethed behind clenched teeth, "On the first date! That little brat, I should-"
Maya immediately placed her palms up in a defensive stance. "Wait, don't freak out! It was just on the cheek!"
Nick momentarily paused in his mumblings but the look of anger did not drain from his face.
Maya squinted, examining Phoenix's infuriated expression. It wasn't often she got to see him so worked up over nothing. She was curious as to what exactly set him off exactly.
"So?"
"So what?"
"What would've been the big deal if he kissed me on the first date?"
Nick scoffed as if it were the most obvious answer in the world. "He could've... taken advantage of you!"
Maya let out a snort, "Oh come on, Nick, I really doubt that..."
"Well, like you said, you're inexperienced. He could have definitely taken advantage of that." Phoenix looked confident in his knowledge.
"Oh yeah? And how would you know?" Maya raised a delicate eyebrow.
"Er, w-well, it's obvious isn't it?"
Maya paused to think for a moment but absolutely no solution occurred to her. She shook her head.
"I mean, maybe you'd understand if you've been kissed before..." Phoenix coughed into his hand, "Legitimately speaking..."
Maya felt embarrassment and anger well up within her at the same time. Way to be condescending! "Well, excuse me, Lady Killer! I might as well just get some more experience if it's just that easy!" Maya waved her hands in his arrogant looking face. She had no idea Nick could possibly be this...
"More experience, huh?"
Phoenix quickly leaned forward, placing a warm hand to Maya's neck, pulling her closer. He pressed his lips gently just to the left of hers, careful not to move them too much. It was chaste, barely a peck, but it left Maya stone-still. Her eyes were wide the entire time as she watched Phoenix's angrily shut ones.
"See..." he said, pulling backwards with his face horribly aflame, "You're completely vulnerable right now."
... annoying!
After the momentary shock wore off, Maya slapped Phoenix noisily across the face. He reared back, hand flying immediately to touch the blooming red mark on his cheek. His eyes were wide in surprise.
"D-d-don't do stuff like that, Nick!" She shrieked. "Don't mess with me!"
"M-Maya, I wasn't, I promise!" Phoenix said in hurried whispers. "I didn't mean to offend you, I was just trying to make a point!"
"Well, point made!" Maya stood in a huff. She straightened out her now wrinkled dress and stomped out of the room.
Phoenix was shocked. As well as he should be considering he shocked even himself. It seemed so utterly easy, so simple and natural to just lean forward. A part of him was scared too though, he knew, considering he veered left only just to miss Maya's parted lips and hit her cheek.
Nick sighed and internally scolded himself. What was he thinking invading her personal space like that? They were friends and co-workers and he had definitely crossed some sort of line. He figured he ought to apologize in the morning for his actions.
Though, on another hand, Phoenix felt a strange surge of excitement when he was that close to his assistant. The light had shined dreamily on her face and every nerve in his body commanded him forward. It made him arrogantly prideful that he could pull off such a feat. At the time, he felt like his heart was going to hammer out of his chest and that his face would boil.
But still, he pressed on.
Phoenix sighed again, dropping his head into his palm. Rubbing his hair, he berated himself over and over.
But at the same time as his internal punishing, another part of Phoenix was trying his hardest to recall the taste, the motion, the feeling he felt immediately before and during.
Unfortunately, the feeling slipped away easily, replacing itself with a sorry guilt. Maya was upset now and no triumph was possibly left over from that.
Unwillingly a smile slipped back onto his face. He forced a frown immediately after.
In her makeshift bed in the loft upstairs, Maya was crouched under the covers, willing herself to stop crying.
"No, no, no, no, no!" She pressed her knuckles into her face, as if the pressure would cease her tears.
"I can't stop," she moaned to herself. She didn't understand it. Why was she crying so heavily?
Maya was miserable. How can one second, she be well over the thought of Nick; deeming it impossible and silly and even seeing another boy in the process. And yet a minute later, she's right back where she started.
He'd drag her back down. Make her feel things she thought inappropriate in their working relationship. Stringing her along on this sick ride of emotions and complex feelings.
She didn't like it, traveling down this path. It was wrong. She was just ready to move on and once again he pulled her back. He had Iris and they both knew it to be true.
There was no way they could ever be. And besides, Maya thought more and more readily, she didn't like him like that.
That thought alone, or the thought of him being there and yet also not...
Both incited the same painful reaction.
AN: Hi everyone again! Here is a decently long chapter. Thanks to all who review, it really inspires me to know people like the stuff I dish out. I'm working on my writing a little more, trying to show and not tell as I often do. Writing is hard. A story like this is hard. It's not actiony packed like other stories. It's simple, like sort of the theme in this chapter was. Simple. Everything is always so simple and yet to complicated. Do you notice that? Everything could go wrong at the drop of a hat and yet be perfect with the slightest change. Simple decisions, simple actions. Maybe not so simple outcomes...
Thanks again and please review!