"Well?" Barney asked. "Ready to say goodbye?"
Robin sighed. "You know I never am and will never be," she said, closing in for a hug.
As he burrowed his face in her hair, which smelled of fresh fruit with hints of lavender, he was reminded of the exact moment seven days ago, when they had so excitedly met up after what seemed like forever.
"I'm glad I get to have a hug before I leave," he muttered, pulling her closer, afraid to let go and afraid to break the embrace.
She ran her fingers along his back, a movement that sent shivers down his spine. "Shut up, you know you'd get to have anything if you asked." She said, closing her eyes and concentrating on the moment and the smell of his cologne.
"Okay then…" He drawled, snuffling a laugh. "Sex in the airport bathroom?"
"You're disgusting!" She exclaimed, clutching him tighter. "It's not happening."
"But you just said I could have anything if I asked!" He said, and he kissed her on the forehead before holding her again.
"Shut your face, you gross, gross man." She chuckled, and her eyes were twinkling as she reopened them. Trying to blink back tears, she tilted her head upwards. "Oh my god, we must be looking like one of those annoying couples who just publicly display their affection all over the place right now."
"You mean those who choose to sit on the same side of the table when going out for dinner even though it's totally annoying and anyone can feel the second hand embarrassment all the way from Mars?" He smiled, and she could hear the mischievousness in his voice, which was actually not hard to spot.
"Exactly," she replied, giving him a little nudge. "We need to stop this right now." She said, and she was about to break the embrace when she felt his arms around her, tighter than ever.
"Nope, we are not. I'm sorry about that. Except I'm actually not sorry at all." He commented, drawing her back in for a longer and fuller hug. "You're not escaping."
She tried to resist, but to no avail.
"Come on! You know I hate these types of people. We hate these types of people. And now we're becoming like them. How awful." She murmured as she shuddered at the thought.
And a public announcement was made at that moment.
'Flights to New York City boarding now. Passengers please make your way to gate number 15 by 10:50. Thank you for your attention.'
"Okay, okay, fine." Barney mumbled upon hearing the announcement as he took in the smell of her hair one last time and squeezed the lady in his arms before finally letting go.
Getting hold of the handle of his suitcase, he shot her a wistful smile.
"I'm going to miss you so damn much," He said.
While the two clearly felt bad, Robin tried to lighten the dampened mood. "You've got the gang!" She stated, as she faked some boxing moves and winked at him.
"Yeah, that is true, but you know the gang's not the same without you."
"Don't worry. I'll be back in a heartbeat."
"I don't think I can trust you on this one."
"Stop being sad and deflated!" She urged, desperate.
"I can't believe we're actually going through an emotional crisis right now," he agreed. "I mean, we're talking Barney Stinson and Robin Scherbatsky here. We're the emotionless robots of the gang. We fend off feelings like Luke Skywalker fends off storm troopers."
"Me neither." She smiled sadly, fighting back the tears once again.
"Aw, look at you. Come here. Don't cry." He stepped forward, placing a hand on her cheek and wiping away a tear that was forming, and she held his hand.
"I'm just… You know. This is stupid. You'd better go or you'd miss your flight. And I wouldn't want someone to third-wheel my Chinese takeout date with Luke tonight." She joked, stroking his hand.
Ah, so he was right. She had been thinking about having Chinese takeout with Luke. How did I just do that? I'm probably psychic or something, Barney thought.
"All right, all right. Ditching the friends now, I see where this is going." He grumbled, pretending to be mad at her.
"Stop it!" She blurted as she wiped away the tears that were quickly forming again with the back of her hand. "You're making me cry again."
"Look – I would rush to my gate, but I need to do something right now before I do that other thing, because if I don't do this thing, I will regret it as soon as I hand my boarding pass to that guy and I will keep having a feeling of regret all the way, from the moment I step on the plane to the moment I step off it." Barney looked her in the eye, his expression suddenly serious, and she raised an eyebrow, taken aback by his sudden and solemn approach.
"I didn't get a word of what you were saying."
"Well," he spoke clearly, and he traced his finger along her chin. "I'm glad you don't need to. You just need to get this." And with the word this, he pulled her in, throwing her face into his and kissing her.
And it was not just a peck on the lips of a quick, friendly kiss. It was the kind you saw in movies. The big, dramatic kiss, the kiss that swept girls off their feet and the kiss that made her heart flutter.
Except this time, she did not feel a thing. She did not kiss back, and instead of returning his affections, she collected them and threw them all in the recycle bin for something else to come and take care of. It was not for long when she pulled back from his lips, startled.
"You shouldn't have done that," she muttered, breathless as she hung her head, staring at the floor, unable to say anything else but those five words she had barely uttered.
"I shouldn't. But I had to." He stared at her eyes, hoping to regain eye contact by attempting to lift her chin with his hand like he did the first time, and she shook him off with a shake of her head.
"I can't do this to Luke. Barney, this is not romantic. I mean, it would probably be if I felt the same and all, but I don't. I don't think of you like that. And this… This is wrong." She explained, flustered. "We're going to have to pretend this never happened."
"So you're not going to tell him about it?" He questioned.
"I am, if I ever find a way to. I need to. Our relationship… It's about honesty. We're not very good at that but I think if we ever want to, we have to start somewhere, and this is a good place to start." She blurted, her words forming in her mind quicker than she could speak. "Can we just… Not talk about this anymore right now?" She breathed.
"I suppose so," he frowned, hurt.
"I'm sorry. But… You really should head to the gates now. Goodbye, Barney. Um… I think I'll see you soon?" She finished and smiled, pretending the kiss had never happened and they were just two good friends about to bid farewell.
And weren't they? They don't have to pretend, she thought.
Giving her a grin, he, too, acted as if the previous moment had never happened. "Bye, Robin." Picking up his suitcase, he turned around and walked towards the gate, but could not make it a few steps when he turned around. When he did, she nearly jumped out of panic, but gathered herself and waved goodbye.
"Just friends?" She suggested meekly.
"I think we're better off that way." He agreed, waving back.
"I'm glad we took so little time in resolving this," she smiled as she ran over to give him one last hug before he had to catch his flight.
"So am I."
And he headed into the gate, his emotions as conflicted as hers, both trying not to let their feelings show, both trying to think about it.
This had not been resolved, he thought. If only it were that simple. But no, it was not.
He was glad he had kissed her, and though he had been denied, he did not think of it badly. He knew there was bound to be an awkward moment afterwards and he knew their friendship would probably never be the same, but since they were so casual with each other, he thought the only actions he would end up regretting most would be the ones he did not fulfil. And he was right.
It may have seemed like he had just made a complete fool out of himself, but he was happy he managed to have a little taste of what Luke would have that night.