I4.6

Chapter 33: Challenge Accepted

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Adult themes. DO NOT read if you are underage or dislike controversial things.

Author's Note: My fingers are cramping from typing so much but thank you for the reviews/comments. They help keep me motivated when my enthusiasm dwindles.

The early morning summer sun bares down on the back of Richard's neck. The sensation is borderline irritating and causes him to frown as he works to secure his small, but thick briefcase to the back of his motorcycle. His mood is downright fowl and he is hoping that taking the long way to the conference hall will help him get his emotions under control and reign in his wayward thoughts. All of the events from the last few days are swirling around in his mind which in turn is making him anxious. Richard is the type of man who appreciates organization and needs structure to help him feel grounded and safe. The recent upheaval in the team's dynamics and, more specifically, in his relationship with Rachel has him walking on a razor sharp tightrope.

Raven doesn't see Robin as a man...the Boy Wonder is just her leader.

Richard winces as those words replay in his head...again. The stern and determined voice of his beloved played through his mind on repeat last night. As much as he wanted to close his eyes to allow his brain and body to rest, he just couldn't. Everything about today had plagued him while the Tower was quiet. He woke up with a stiff neck, a sore shoulder from laying down awkwardly and with dark circles beneath his eyes. He was nowhere near camera ready, but thankfully, his mask should provide him with some coverage.

With that thought, the leader of the Titans finds himself glancing at the briefcase on his bike. Today will be filled with major decisions for both Rachel and himself. Today, he fully intents to send a very loud and resoundingly clear message to the mentor that has been shadowing over him for most of his life. There are one too many people who think that they know him. That think that they can predict him. That underestimate what he can do. As a leader. As an adult. As a man.

Raven doesn't see Robin as a man...the Boy Wonder is just her leader.

Without realizing it, Rachel helped Richard come to a revelation that he always knew, but didn't want to acknowledge. Now, it has him feeling rebellious. This might just be a tantrum of the youth demanding to be taken seriously, but everyone around him has been lulled into thinking that Richard will remain a boy forever. A boy swallowed by Batman's shadow. A boy who is a mini Wayne in the making. A boy who is supposed to be forever hung up on his first real crush. Did no one think that he was capable of growing into his own person? That he could change? That his wants, needs and desires will evolve as he does?

Tch, they'll learn, he thinks to himself as he settles in on his motorcycle. He can feel the machine purring beneath him as it patiently waits for his command. Richard gently revs the engine as he contemplates his choices. How many boundaries is he willing to push against? How many boundaries is he willing to break?

The young man is full of questions as he tears out of the Tower's garage like a bat out of hell. He purposefully decides to take the longer, more scenic route to the conference hall so that he can give himself time to think about today. He needs to solidify the answers that he plans on giving to the press. They need to simultaneously be suggestive but vague. Raven not seeing Robin as a man is unacceptable. The over confident look on Rachel's face as she said those words out loud is unacceptable.

With her arms crossed over her chest, Rachel leans back into her chair. She looks as though she just solved all of their media woes with that statement. This foolish woman doesn't understand the can of worms that she has opened for herself. How could she not know the hidden challenge in her own words?

How could she not feel the anger boiling away within him at what she is insinuating?

A few heavy seconds tick away between them as Richard doesn't respond. The darkness of the command room had once made the environment feel intimate, but now makes it feel dangerous and hostile. He watches as her self assure posture begins to falter when he allows his rage to rise. He can't put into words how angry and disturbed he is by her careless words and cocky attitude. His sharp eyes are tracking the changes in her expression as she realizes that she's fucked up. In an effort to cover her embarrassment, Rachel shifts in her office chair so that she is staring at the computer screen instead of him.

"Don't be mad, Dick," she says in a softer tone. "I'm trying to help. You know that these rabid reporters…"

Before she is able to finish her sentence, Richard is springing into action. He grabs her out stretched legs in both of his hands and quickly swings her rolling office chair towards him. He maneuvers his own chair around so that he can face her properly as he traps both of her legs between his own. There is a small cry of surprise from the violet empath at the sudden change in positions. She tries to pull away, but Richard has his strong hands locked behind her knees as he pulls her weight and, by extension, the rolling chair closer to his. Richard is hunched over in his own chair with his legs spread wide to fit his love and her chair in the space between his muscular thighs. The front of her knees gently bumps into his chair from the force of his pull, but his body weight keeps it from moving.

"What are you doing?!" she exclaims as she places both of her hands on his shoulder in an effort to push herself away. He responds by tightening his grip on the back of her clothed knees. His memory taking him back to a time when these very same hands explored the sensitive skin between her shapely calves and toned thighs as she slept. His brain replaying the soft sighs of contentment as he stroked these parts of her.

Richard tightens his grip around the handles of his motorcycle as memories upon memories repeat in his head like a marathon. His body heat rising as he recalls the intensity of that moment. His excitement causing him to grin like a madman behind his helmet. It was exhilarating to watch Rachel react to him in such a flustered way. She could tell from his intense emotions that her words had an impact on him, she just didn't realize how deeply. Whether she meant to hurt him or was trying to put him in his place in that moment is inconsequential because the challenge had been loudly declared. She invited this on herself.

Was Richard surprised by her statement? No, he can't say that he was. He knew from the beginning that it would take some work for her to realize the potential that they have together. He understood that she wouldn't want to ruin the perfectly good friendship that they've built to pursue something that might not last. He can sympathize with her fear of this ending badly. What he could not accept, however, is her dismissal. He knows that Rachel takes him seriously as a friend and as a leader. Now, he will make her take him seriously as a man and a lover.

"Do you mean it?" Richard asks in a deadly quiet voice. Pleased when he feels a slight shudder run through her small frame. She halfheartedly shoves at his shoulders again in an effort to put some space between them. Richard doesn't budge.

"Mean what?" she asks with uncertainty in her voice.

"Don't play stupid with me," Richard hisses between clenched teeth before repeating "Raven doesn't see Robin as a man. Do you mean it? Is that true?"

There is stunned moment of disbelief on Rachel's part. Her mind is probably trying to figure out why that statement would have such a negative impact on her long time friend. Richard wonders if she thinks that he doesn't see her as woman. But she has to know where he stands on that by now.

"Dick…," Rachel starts before stopping. Her hands are still on his shoulders while his hands are still clenching her knees. It occurs to him that she wants him to speak in order break this awkward silence developing between them. He refuses. He will wait her out.

After a few seconds, there is a sigh from his love before she answers with "You are my friend, Dick. And I'm thankful for all of the things that you've done for me. And for always being there when I needed you."

"That's not what I asked you, Rachel," Richard states in a stern voice. He's clinging to every ounce of self control that he can find within himself as he keeps his eyes off of her face. Rachel is so close that he can smell her. The scent of tea and old books are invading his senses and playing with his emotions but what's wrecking havoc on his will power is what's beneath those surface smells. He's so close he can feel the heat of her skin. A primitive part of his instincts can practically taste the natural pheromones her body isexuding in this heighten state of tension. It makes him painfully aware that she is a woman. She smells like one, feels like one and he knows that she will taste like one, too. He knows that Rachel isn't the same child that he met on the rooftop. She isn't the same preteen dealing with her daddy issues. She's matured and developed into a healthy and beautiful young woman. What Richard doesn't understand is why she couldn't recognize the same changes in him?

"What I asked you, Rachel," he stresses her name to make sure that he has her attention, "is whether or not Raven really doesn't recognize Robin as a man."

Richard keeps his gaze trained towards her lap as he asks this question. He knows the answer he is about to receive but doesn't want her to see his face as he hears it. Yes, he knows that she's an empath and can pick up on his smallest emotions, if she concentrates hard enough, but he feels the need to hide his face anyway.

"It's…," Rachel begins to answer. Her hands grip the fabric of his shirt as she puts together her simple reply. "It's true. Raven does not see Robin as a man."

He can hear a slow exhaling of air as she lets go of the breath she has been holding. Poor thing thought this was over when in reality they were just getting started. He had expected her to answer in the negative. They were talking about their alter egos, after all. Their superhero aliases. The part of themselves that represent their work life. It would be easy enough to admit that that "Robin" and "Raven" would only see each other as comrades. That's not surprising since the world also sees Robin as the Boy Wonder. The childishness is in the name that he once wore so proudly.

Now, it's time to ask the harder question. Richard steels his nerves before lifting his eyes to meet her own violet ones before asking in a commanding voice, "What about Rachel? Does Rachel see Dick as a man?"

He doesn't take his eyes off of her as he watches her squirm in her seat. He has been careful to keep the pressure off of her with the previous question, but now, he has to press deeper and harder to get a truthful answer. He carefully watches her face as her eyes dart to any other object in the dark room. She's looking for an out but Richard squeezes the backs of her knees firmly to bring her focus back to him.

Rachel asks with an exasperating sigh, "What do you want from me? What kind of answer are you looking for?"

"The truth," he counters with his steady gaze trained on her face. He's mentally preparing himself for the inevitable and dreaded dismissal. He has to fight the urge to not grab his wayward woman by the nape of her slender neck and haul her closer for a bruising kiss. Pull her out of her comfy chair and push her onto her knees between his legs. Force her to realize, in the most visceral way possible, that he is a man and that he can handle her like one. Richard has every intention of making her hyper aware of his masculinity before she leaves this room today, but he has to convince her mind so that her body will follow.

"Ugh. Don't refer to yourself in third person, Dick," she says with a roll of her eyes, "It's obnoxious."

There is a small huff of a humorless laugh from Richard before he says, "Don't change the subject. I want to know if you see me as a man."

"I don't know what kind of answer you want from me," she replies while finally looking into his eyes. "I see you as my friend. We've grown up together. We've worked together. You've saved me as many times as I've saved you."

Richard is pleased to see that she is finally looking at him instead of around him. His right hand loosens its grip on the back of her knee and slowly makes it way up to her face. He notices that she doesn't flinch or pull away when his fingers lightly graze the ends of her short violet hair, which is reassuring in his eyes. He heavily rests his large hand against the base of her neck, where her shoulder, throat and chest connect. Rachel's dark t shirt stops the majority of his hand from caressing her skin, but he can still feel the warmth of her flesh radiating through the fabric. His thumb is the only part of him able to make skin to skin contact. He feels her swallow in nervousness which encourages Richard to playfully say "You're using a lot of words to answer a yes or no question, Rachel."

"Fine, Dick" she says, "if you want the short answer, then no. You are not a real man in my eyes."

As she says those words, she attempts to brush his hand away from her neck. As soon as the back of her hand makes contact, he snatches her smaller one in his. He knows that he shouldn't be angry because he knew this was coming, but that foresight didn't stop her confession from stinging his pride. His ego is hurt and demanding that he put her in her place, which is beneath him. Beneath him in bed, in the team and in life. He could put her down so easily, it would be unfair. Throughout the years, Rachel has shared so much of herself with him. Her hopes and dreams. Her insecurities and fears. With just a few sentences, he could hurt her more than she is hurting him in this moment. He could tear her apart and break her down until there is hardly anything left. Then, collect and reassemble the pieces of her so that they fit exactly how he wants them to. However, Richard has to remind himself to shelve this instinct for revenge when dealing with his beloved.

This hurtful moment is just a steppingstone to their happy ending.

Richard recklessly zooms right past the highway in favor of the back roads. The longer route allows him to get lost in his thoughts and put himself together before being scrutinized by the masses. There's no doubt in his mind that he's still very high strung from yesterday. Rachel's outright denial of his manhood still puts him on edge even though he knows that it shouldn't. It was expected. Planned for. Dealt with. But he guesses that's the dangerous thing about emotions. There is no real way to control them. He just has to feel them and learn to let them go. Did Rachel even realize how close they came to disaster in that room? His very real, very sexual urges and her carelessness could have exploded if he wasn't concerned about the lasting impact that would have on their relationship. Oh, and her dark powers.

Up until this point, Richard hadn't really contemplated using I4.6 on Rachel. He was too worried about the side effects of the drug and if they would do lasting damage to someone that he dearly loves. However, he is starting to lose patience with the more traditional way of wooing this stubborn woman. It would be easier and more energy efficient to just shut down her powers and have his way with her. Then he can really put her in her place as he pleases, when he pleases. It wouldn't be as hard to put together the happy life he wants and needs to have with his beloved. Even if it is a farce.

The plot had crossed his mind in the command room yesterday. Taking the easy way out hardly ever appealed to him before, but it was looking mighty inciting last night as he thought about it in bed. The only caveat is that he wouldn't have what he really wanted, which was Rachel, the woman. It wasn't just her body or her submission. It was everything. He wanted the whole package. This ultimate goal has been the only thing tempering his agitation at not getting very far, very fast. It's the only thing keeping him from doing something regrettably stupid.

Richard isn't willing to completely destroy her just so that he can keep her. So, the only thing that he can do is convince her to see him as more than just a teammate. As more than just a friend. At least she didn't call him a "brother." That's even harder to recover from.

Richard pulls her less than willing hand to the space between them. She doesn't outright stop him or says anything, but he can feel the tension in her arm.

"Do you remember the first time we shook hands?" he asks her. Rachel looks slightly taken aback by the tangent he's taking them on.

"No...not really," is her honest reply. Richard nods his head. It probably didn't register as a special moment for her but it did for him.

"Well," he begins as he spreads out her slender fingers, "I do. I do because it was the first time you let me...or anyone else for that matter...touch you."

Richard lets out a low chuckle as the memory replays in his head. "It was our first 'deal.' More like a bet if anything. If you managed to single-handedly bag the criminal, then I would do your chores for the rest of the week. We shook on it."

"I'm having a hard time reading you, Dick," Rachel whispers. The trip down memory lane during such a tense moment is putting her on edge even more. The story sounds benign enough, but there is an undertone to Richard's voice that makes him sound exceedingly dangerous. "There are too many emotions swirling within you. I think you need to meditate or detox, my friend."

Richard winces at the mention of the word friend but decides to swallow his anger and disappointment because he is attempting to make a point. "It was a stupid bet, Rachel. But we were kids. Children who thought that we were great or more mature because we were training to become superheroes. But kids, none the less."

"What's your point?" she asks as she begins to lose patience with him. He didn't need to be an empath to notice that.

"My point is that the first time we shook hands, I couldn't help but notice that we were the same size," he answers with a dry chuckle. "At that time, we were roughly the same height, and our hands were exactly the same size."

As he tells his story, Richard uncurls his long, thick fingers and extends his palms. Anyone could tell that he is a fighter with one look at his outstretched right hand. There is a thin scar running between his middle and ring fingers. There are callouses on his knuckles and the pads of his fingers. This hand tells the story of hard training and formidable discipline. A matching left hand gently places Rachel's much smaller and much softer one in the middle of his.

"At the time," he continues while still staring at their hands, "when we were still children, I was annoyed at the thought that I was the same size as a little girl. I was worried that the enemy wouldn't take me seriously because I was just a boy. A small boy, at that."

"We're not children anymore, Dick," Rachel quietly says as she also looks at the differences between their hands.

"Yes, Rachel," Richard agrees as he closes his long, sturdy, callous covered fingers around her smaller, softer and more delicate hand, "We aren't children anymore."

They lock eyes with one another. The message that Richard is trying to send isn't lost on her, but he knows, with the level of certainty that comes with knowing someone for years, that she will talk herself out of it. Now wasn't the time for vague and ambiguous wording. With that in mind, Richard sits up straighter in his chair.

"Look at me," is his quiet command. Rachel raises her eyes so that they are looking at Richard's ear instead of his face, so he gives her hand a little shake and repeats, "Look at me."

When she does, he lifts her hand closer to his face. He gently forces the tips of her fingers to ghost over his heavy brows, high cheekbones and the dark stubble along his jawline. "Is this the face of a boy to you?"

There is a quiet pause before a barely whispered "no" from the young woman sitting across from him. Richard nods slightly before forcing her hand to travel lower. He drags her fingertips across his Adam's apple and watches in satisfaction as Rachel's eyes dilate and her pretty mouth fall open. He presses her whole hand more firmly against his throat so that she can feel the deep vibrations when he asks, "Do I sound like a boy to you?"

He is amused by her little jump of surprise at feeling the bass in his voice. He's sure she's wondering if that was always there as an adorable blush spread across her cheeks. His 20/20 vision barely picks up on it in the darkness of the room. But he is still waiting for an answer. Richard hums a low "hmmm?" in the base of his throat and watches as Rachel gives her head a little shake so that she can focus on the present. There is a muttered "no" as she looks away from him.

He continues on with his little tour as he forces her hand lower still. At this point, he shifts his hold on her from her hand to her wrist so that she can feel him better. He makes sure to angle the palm of her small hand over his heart. He leaves it there for a few seconds so that she can feel the strength of it beating. The pulse is strong and steady because he is in the prime of his youth. It beats with the knowledge that Rachel loves him. She admitted it herself. 3 times. In his arms. "Do you think this heart loves you like a boy's would?"

Rachel's lovely violet eyes snap back to look at his. He can see her mind working in overtime to connect the dots. Questioning if this moment is real and if she just heard what she thinks she did. Love was always a concept that they would talk about in the abstract. The love for family and friends. The love for a pet or hobby. They never really addressed whether not they loved each other. It was almost an unspoken truth between the team that they did love each other, but they never actually talked about it. In this present moment, both of the birds knew that that was not what he meant. Normally, Richard would also be skittish with talking about this, but Rachel did admit to loving him first so he felt no shame in pulling on those heart strings.

"Dick…" was her quiet reply as she tries to pull her hand away. The blush on her face has only deepened with the implications of his questions.

"Do you?" Richard asks again as he maintains his firm grip on her hand. "Do you think that this heart loves you like a boy?"

There is a pained expression on her face as she swallows once before whispering "no." What wouldn't Richard give to be able to read her thoughts? He knows that he's forcing her re-realize things that she thought she buried deep in her mind. If what Starfire said was true and she did have a crush on him at one point, then she already knew all of these things. If what Beastboy and Cyborg said was true and she seems particularly attached to him, then her feelings ran deeper than just a measly crush or even lust. He just has to break down her stubbornness.

Richard wasn't sure how far he should take this, but fortune favors the brave. Or so he's heard. Setting aside his own nervousness, he drags Rachel's hand lower. He can feel her tensing as he forces her touch down the expanse of his abs. The fabric of his own shirt is thin and clingy. She can easily feel the tight ridges of his eight pack and the hardness of his compact muscles. Even though Richard is clearly ripped, his frame is not bulky. He is both sturdy and flexible. He purposeful contracts his muscles beneath her touch so that she can feel him better. His hawk like eyes watch as Rachel's mouth falls open into an adorable little "o" at the feel of his body responding beneath her touch. He can't tell if she's surprised that he would take it this far or if she is fighting feelings of lust. Probably both. Hopefully, the latter.

"Does this feel like the body of a boy to you?" he asks as he shamelessly passes her hand over the growing erection in his pants. He bites back a groan when he feels her fingers gently squeeze the unfamiliar bulge filling her small hand. He is amused when her nostrils flare and her eyes dilate before snapping to attention when she realizes what part of him she's touching. Richard catches a reddish glint in her eyes as her chakra gem throbs in the middle of her forehead.

"I get it!" she exclaims as she yanks her hand away from him "I know what you're trying to do."

"Answer my question," Richard demands, but Rachel was already on the move. The chair that she is sitting in violently rolls back from the rush of her movement as she stands and attempts to back away.

"I can't give you what you want," she hisses at him like an angry, cornered cat. She is rubbing her hand against the fabric of her jeans in an attempt to forget the sensation of touching him. Her eyes are tracking him as he slowly stands. He doesn't want to throw her off balance any more than she already is. Rachel is at her limit and if he pushes much harder, she'll probably slap him again and disappear.

Richard stands to his full height and shifts his shoulders back so that she can take in his full figure. He knows that the image of fourteen-year-old Robin is engraved in her mind. He understands that she clings to that picture of himself because it is what makes her most comfortable. Recognizing that he has grown and changed is taking her out of her comfort zone. He is forcing her to take a good look at the present him. He's feeling more than pleased as he watches her eyes scan over the places that she's been touching. Large, violet orbs that are tinged with red around the irises are taking in and, hopefully, committing to memory the changes in his face. Gone is the baby fat that used to cling to his cheeks. Replaced with high cheekbones, chiseled jawline and the beginnings of a beard. His shoulders are no longer slender and bony, but broad and filled out with dense muscles that crawl down to his strong arms. Arms that had lifted her up in the kitchen yesterday morning. Arms that have held her in moments of turmoil and danger. How could she not have noticed how they've changed over time?

He continues to stand still as Rachel appraises him with new eyes. Eyes that weren't all the way open when she helped undress him that day he was sick. Eyes that had refused to see the physical changes in him because she so desperately wanted to keep the memory of the harmless Boy Wonder alive. The fearless leader. Her dearest friend. Now, she has no choice but to recognize the firmness of his chest and tightness of his abs as her eyes roam over what she could see in his fitted shirt. The dimly lit room both hiding and highlighting parts of him that are enticing and seductive. Rachel's red tinged eyes continue to travel lower until she is confronted with the very clear evidence of his erection. She might not realize it, but Richard picks up on the way her breathing intensifies and her fingers spasm before she rips her eyes away from him.

"Answer my question," he demands, again. He drops the bass in his voice so that it vibrates throughout the room as he rephrases his question. "Does this look like the body of a boy to you?"

He watches her swallow as thoughts are flying through her head a mile a minute. There is no way that she can rationalize away this interaction in an effort to stay "friends." He is clearly going out of his way to force her to accept that she can't keep him in the friend zone. He's refusing to stay there.

"What do you want from me, Dick?" she asks with desperation in her voice. She is begging him to give her a way out. To tell her that this is all a joke. That they're still friends and that nothing will ever change that.

"Your answer," he calmly states as he watches her labored breathing. He can see that she's weighing the pros and cons of answering his question truthfully.

Rachel's brows are furrowed as she bites her tender lips in frustration. She runs a hand through her violet locks as she lets out a deep sigh before saying "no" beneath her breath. That's all Richard needs to hear to feel relieved. Elated at the fact that he's finally getting somewhere. He takes a step forward and she takes a step back. Her knees hit the seat behind her and she stumbles back into her chair.

Rachel is looking up at him from her sitting position. Her precious hands gripping the arm rest as a means of grounding herself in this unexpected situation. Richard wants to grin at her like a lecher but decides that now isn't the best time for that. He's come a long way in this short conversation and doesn't want to damage his momentum with things she wasn't quite ready for. Instead, he softens his expression and extends his right hand to tuck a lock of hair behind her ear. Appreciating the silky feel between his rough fingers and the shudder that flows through her body.

How could she not feel this tension in the air? He does and they're connected. Now that she's sitting and he's standing over her with hardly any room between them, Richard couldn't help but notice that her face lines up perfectly with his lower abdomen. All he would have to do is entangle his hand in her hair and gently push her head down so she'd be face to face with his excitement. Her current frown of anger and uneasiness just adding more fuel to the fire that she's been stoking for years. Her expression is practically challenging him to put her in her place.

But now is not the time. He's pushed her as far as he can without her pushing him right back. Or blasting him into another dimension.

Rachel's distressed voice breaks the silence as she asks, "What do you want?"

You, he thinks. I want you.

Richard takes one measured step back so that he can think a little straighter. He's pushing his own self-control to the limit and doesn't want to fumble in such a dangerous situation. He takes a deep breath as he rolls his neck from side to side. There is a soft crack as something gives and he feels a little less tension in his body. He angles his head back down to look at her as he answers her question.

"What I want, Rachel," he says, ever careful to leave the base in his voice, "is your respect."

There is a huff from the young woman beneath him as she challenges him with "You think I don't respect you?"

"I know that you respect me as a leader," he answers, "as your friend. But we both know that you don't recognize or respect me as a man. That needs to change."

"Is this because I called you boy wonder?" she asks, "Because the rest of the crime fighting world sees you that way, too. Are you going to shove your dick in their face as well?"

The attitude in her question makes Richard click his tongue in annoyance, but he's smiling anyway. "Oh no! I have something else planned for them but this dick...it's for you."

"Keep it," she spits back, "I'd rather have one not attached to an asshole."

A genuine laugh erupts from Richard as he allows his body to flop back into the chair that he had been sitting in. The heated spell has been broken. Of course, she wouldn't just fall at his feet with some simple seduction. That would be too easy. "Well, Rachel, the jokes on you because all dicks are attached to assholes."

There is another sigh from the lovely lady sitting across from him. She looks at him with determination in her violet eyes. Richard can only guess that she's made up her mind to repel his advances.

"We do it your way," she states and Richard's heart nearly jumps out of his chest with hope. Was she really agreeing to… "Tomorrow. At the conference. We'll work with your story. We are teammates and canoodling is prohibited."

Oh. Richard watches her with keen eyes as she attempts to put together what else she wants to say. He sees her lovely lips parting and quickly puts up his hand to stop her and says, "Think about it before you respond. I respect you enough as a woman to recognize and appreciate your growth and your changes. I expect the same in return."

Rachel shakes her head once, twice and on the third time says, "I can't give you what you want."

Before he can reply, she has already melted into the shadows of the dimly lit room. He's left sitting there with too much to think about and a raging erection to deal with.

The more Richard thinks about their conversation, the more he realizes that they had a breakthrough. While Rachel isn't ready to view him as a romantic partner, she is finally seeing him in a different light. He's forced her to recognize that he is a man and not the boy from her memories. Now it's time for the rest of the world to realize this, too.

Do you think he managed to get his point across? We all know how dense Rachel can be.