Smooth Surfaces

[Skylar]

“You have no idea.” She forced a smile and snuggled close to him. It was a nice change of events. It was nice to be around someone new. Someone that didn't expect things from her she was unable to give. It was nice to be cuddled close, and to share a warmth that caused her heart to be outta control. With all the thoughts reeling in her mind, her lips curled up into a small smile.

As her lids grew more and more heavy, she breathed in deeply. He smelled wonderful....really. If it wouldn't come across creepy, she'd bury her nose in his shoulder, and with that thought, she almost giggled aloud. Fearing that he may have felt her silent laughter, she peeked up at him.

The smile that already graced her lips only grew when she noticed he had fallen asleep. He looked so peaceful, so....beautiful. One could only assume he was her guardian angel. Without a bit of hesitation, she boosted herself up on her hand and places a kiss on his cheek, and with a whisper she said.. “Sleep sweet.”

The thought had crossed her mind to go to her room to sleep. Perhaps it would even be more comfortable for him. He'd be able to stretch out and what not. But she simply could not bring herself to do so.

Sliding down, she rested her head on his lap, letting the movie run its course. There was no point in fighting sleep anymore, while slumber fought so feverishly to take hold of her....and within minutes it did.

[Syntaphar]

Aron still had a great deal of conviction, and he was not moving from this spot until Sophie left the building. However, he didn't expect the anger that fueled his conviction to be replaced so quickly by boredom and despondence. Righteous cause or not, this was still no more than a stoop, and there was only so much to do on it. All he could do was wonder exactly what was going on behind that door, and try to prevent himself from doing that. The first fueled his conviction again, the second made him sane and kept him from wondering what the hell he was doing. The last few minutes, he had spent looking at a blank text screen aimed at Sophie's phone, wondering what to write, if anything. He had typed in a few sad faces and a few angry faces, and deleted them all.

He looked up at the door again, wondering if they were looking through the peephole. Maybe laughing at him? He wondered off hand from there if what he was doing was ridiculous, and if he should just let her be happy with whoever she brought home. She could handle herself, right? He shook his head to himself. He silently spoke to no one in particular. "Nah, nah, that guy is sketchy as fuck. She needs you here whether she knows it or not." At least that's what he told himself, instead of "You're about to sleep on someone's steps, you idiotic jackass." It got him through the minutes.

[Ramlock]

When Sophie woke up, she would find herself in her own bed. Zed had apparently moved her quietly during the night. She was underneath the covers, but still dressed, and the other part of the bed wasn't occupied. Zed hadn't left, but he was sleeping in a sitting position on the couch again, his arms crossed over his chest as his head was bowed down over his arms.

He hadn't interacted with Aron, aside from taking a quick look out a nearby window to see if he was still sleeping on the steps. He couldn't really be sure, due to the positioning, and so Zed had apparently let the situation go. Something had made him somewhat upset, though, judging from the frown that still lingered on his face in his sleep...

[Skylar]

She couldn't recall a sleep so peaceful. With a stretch she groaned quietly and opened her eyes. To her dismay, she was laying in her own bed. Confused for a moment she looked around, noting that she lay there alone. Pity....

Crawling from her bed, she gathered up some clean clothes and showered in the small bathroom off her bedroom. She didn't waste any time washing, drying and dressing. Jeans and a tee were sufficient for now. She really never wore makeup, save to go out, and she let her long black locks hang straight while it dried.

Silently, she went into her living room, a crooked smile stealing her features as her eyes befell Zed. He, too seemed peaceful and even in his sleep was handsome. She moved passed him and into the kitchen where she grabbed the things from her fridge to make them breakfast. After all, that is what a good hostess would do.

Bacon crackled upon the griddle top, along with pancakes and eggs. She loved to cook, and rarely had the chance to do so for others. While things were cooking, she crept to the front door, peeking out only to see that Aron had kept true to his word. Shaking her head, she returned to the kitchen to make some fresh orange juice and finish the meal she had started.

[Syntaphar]

Aron awoke from the single worst sleep of his life, filled with nightmares he tried to explain away. He mostly blamed the fact that he drifted off unexpectedly while fretting about what was happening in the house. Though he certainly couldn't discount the stone wall he used for a pillow. His conviction was running low, but it remained, just present enough to keep him focused through his aching head and back. He looked up at the door and scowled, hoping desperately that someone was looking at him at the time.

Aron sniffed at the air momentarily, smelling fresh bacon coming out through the houses ventilation. This did not help the fact that he skipped dinner the previous night. He came to the realization above the sound of his empty stomach that he was going to crack at some point, and thus decided to speed things up a bit. He pulled out his little black book, and pulled the small pencil from its binding. He flipped past the first page, noting as he always did when he opened this book that there was only one number in it at all. He pulled the second page the rings with a quick tearing sound and wrote: 'Not Bitter, Not Angry. Just Want To Talk.' He then folded the paper in half, and paused a moment before writing 'To S From A' on the outside. With a little chuckle, he drew a little Z in the corner and crossed it out, then quickly slid the note under the door. He subtly knocked once and leaned back again, against the railing of the stairs.

[Ramlock]

Zed awoke to the smell of breakfast, and the sound of Sophie moving in the kitchen, initially forgetting where he was. It reminded him of... The past. For lack of a better word. It took him a few minutes to remember the past few days, followed by his memories of last night... And now, the morning. He hadn't really slept well on the couch, but it beat sleeping on some other beds from the recent past.

"Good morning."

Zed stood, looking around the apartment. He happened to be standing in the living room as the note slid under the door... At which point, he did nothing. Looked like Aron had followed through on his threat to stay all night. Whatever was in the note wasn't really his business, anyway. Instead, he left it, going to kitchen and looking over Sophie cooking, a small smile on his face.

[Skylar]

The sound of his voice startled her slightly. It wasn't that she had forgotten that he was there, it was that she had gave fixing breakfast her full attention. “Well good morning to you, too.” A simple smile stole her features as she turned to grab some plates from the cupboard. “I hope you have time for breakfast.”

Her smile grew wider at her own words. Oddly enough, if felt to her as if she had done something...dirty, when in fact nothing horrible or...naughty had happened. Fact was, she had never had a man stay over night in her home, for any reason.

“I have pancakes, eggs, bacon, coffee, juice, milk. You name it. What's your poison?” She chuckled slightly, but it was quickly cut short when she noticed the paper under the door. “Unrelenting...” She scooped the paper off the floor, and read the message. Taking a pen from the table beside the door, she scribbled back.

A
I'll call you later.
S

And with that it was shoved back under the door. She didn't have to look, she knew he was still there. For a moment she even thought about writing that she would contact him when her company left. But there was no reason to rub salt in an open wound, even if the wound was self inflicted.

Her attention quickly turned back to Zed. “Ready to eat?”

[Syntaphar]

Aron waited for what felt like half an hour before the paper shuffled back under the door. He picked it up and rolled his eyes at the message contained inside. Oh no, he thought, she wasn't getting rid of him that easily. Taking the pencil, he scrawled the phrase "Sure. I'll be right here when you're ready." With that, he passed it back under the door. However, he was still hungry, and the smell of fresh breakfast from inside wasn't helping at all, despite his show of stubbornness. He pulled out his phone and called a delivery place he frequently called when there wasn't anything convenient to cook. As the phone rang, he mused wryly for a second that this was the first time he'd ever spent the night at this address.

"Hey, Tony. Heh, you know me too well, yeah, I'm over at her house. Don't get any ideas, I just came over early today. No, she isn't hungry at the moment, but yeah, the usual for me. Yeah. No, no need to knock, I'll meet you on the stairs. Thanks Tony, see you in a few." It was a relatively innocuous conversation, but the fact that he had to lie about the circumstances in which he was there made him wonder again if he was doing the right thing. Or rather, was he going about doing the right thing he knew he was doing in the right way? He quickly abandoned these thoughts, blaming his empty stomach and awful rest. He was certain this would all be for the best, but he still wondered exactly what form the best would take.

[Ramlock]

Zed smiled a bit and leaned up against the doorframe, happy to have someone cooking for him and happy about it, for once. And everything smelled very good... It had been a long night, after all. Apparently a long night for the guy who was still on the doorstep, too.

"I'd make time, if I had to. All the food smells good, and coffee sounds great..."

Zed closed his eyes for a minute, covering his face with his hands and looking around. It was going to take a bit longer for breakfast, and he'd slept on a couch all night... Not the most pleasant situation to wake up from, however superior it had been to a stoop. He could really use a shower, if only to help wake him up.

"Do you mind if I get cleaned up while you cook?"

[Skylar]

Before she could walk away, the paper slid under the door again. She passed an apologetic look to Zed as she picked the paper up again. This time it was more then obvious that Aron was going no where. The only good thing that came to her mind in the moment was that perhaps Zed would stay until Aron left. The thought made her chuckle quietly to herself.

“Cleaned up?” He looked great, still smelled wonderful, but she wouldn't deny herself the simply pleasures of the imagination that danced through her mind at the thought. “Not at all. The bathroom is straight through there. Fresh towels and wash clothes. Anything you need, it's yours.”

She nodded for him to go on as she flipped some pancakes. Luckily she had only started breakfast when he woke, she he had plenty of time to do his thing. Besides, she was in no hurry to get rid of him.

[Syntaphar]

With a small clicking noise, Aron flipped his phone open and shut. At this point, it was partially indecision about whether to call and partially simply something to do. He gazed idly at the door, knowing full well that Sophie planned to talk to him. The only question was when. The paper hadn't come back out yet, but Aron knew that she knew he wasn't going anywhere without a conversation. He had to think though... Was she talking it over with Zed? Or worse yet, was she ignoring the situation just outside her front door altogether? The thought brought a refreshed scowl to his face, and he knew he wouldn't be able to shake it without knowing what was going on in there.

Again, he stared at the door, sighing at his options. With every new move, he felt more and more that he was making the wrong choice being there. It wasn't enough to make him leave, but it was enough to cast some doubt. Walking carefully up the stairs, he pressed his ear against the door, arranging himself in such a way that if someone looked through the door's peephole, they wouldn't see him. He only listened for a minute, but already he started rolling his eyes at the snippets of sentences he heard. She was going to cook for him while he used her shower? Aron wasn't exactly sure why that made him angry in particular, but his resolve had been restored. Gritting his teeth, he sat back down on the stairs, sitting cross-legged and waiting for wither Tony or Sophie to show.

[Ramlock]

Zed didn't worry much about the Aron situation... A few passive-aggressive notes was far from the destructive possibilities of the situation. He had originally been looking at a murder, after all. Besides, it wasn't like Zed was really going that far away to shower. It was only a matter of feet, really...

"Thank you. I'll be ready in a few minutes."

Zed went into the bathroom, closing the door behind him, and set about looking for a towel and washcloth. He didn't have clean clothes, or any of his normal toiletries, but he'd make do. While he was looking for a towel, though, he couldn't help that his eyes looked around a bit. Not that he was snooping, but... Well, maybe instinct couldn't help but check for a few things. Like whether any other man had left his presence in such a place...

Soon enough, though, he would undress and get in the shower, the smell of breakfast mixing well with the steam of the shower as he got cleaned up.

[Skylar]

With a nod, Zed was off into the bathroom. This would be the perfectly opportunity to take care of some things.

With no warning the door swung open only to reveal Aron on the front stoop. “Sleep good last night?” There was a hint of sarcasm in her words, a fact she didn't try to hide. “Before you say anything to me, I have a few things to say to you.”

She stood in the door way, the door closed slightly, but her hand behind her back holding it ajar to where she wanted it. “You're important to me, more then you will ever know. But I do not belong to you.” She released the door, and took a few steps towards Aron, her hand outstretched to him.

“While I don't agree with the way you handled yourself, I know you did what you did because you care about me.” She smiled slightly, looking away from him. “Just know if you ever put your hands on me like that again, sleeping on my stoop will be the last thing on your mind. I won't have that Aron.”

Should he take the hand offered to him, she would pull him into a hug. “You're my best friend. But I'm a big girl, and I can take care of myself.” Taking a step back she would look at him for a moment. “I have company to attend to. I'll call you later for coffee or something, alright?”

She wouldn't wait long for an answer, knowing she still had food cooking in the kitchen. And he knew that she would stay true to her word. She always did....

[Syntaphar]

When Aron heard the door click, it startled him nearly to a standing position, which he pulled himself up the rest of the way into. He did his best to look dignified as Sophie walked out. As she started talking, he took a half-concerned, half-vindictive look onto his face, but as she went on he just found himself less and less able to maintain eye contact. He gave a silent nod when he mentioned how unacceptable his actions were the previous night, but perked an eyebrow at her almost threatening promise shortly thereafter. He mentally shrugged, guessing that he deserved it. When she put her hand out, he gladly took it, and equally gladly went with the hug. She was his best friend too, whether or not he found that good enough.

When she finished, he nodded. "I know you don't belong to me. And I know you can take care of yourself, Sophie. It's just... Over the course of that whole night, I was getting weirder and weirder vibes off of that Zed guy." He looked behind her to make sure she wasn't listening in. "I don't trust the guy. Frankly, the fact that he spent the night without any sort of trouble is surprising to me. I know his type, Sophie, and trouble follows 'em. I'll leave if you want me to, but just keep that in mind, and keep your eyes open around him." He turned around, recalled something, and silently cursed at himself, a small, sardonic smile flitting across his face. "Actually, I gotta stay here a little bit. I smelled your cooking through the windows, and called Tony up. I'll probably dash after he gets here though. Sorry to inconvenience you, and if you like, I'll wait for him here on the porch."

[Skylar]

She hated how he could make her feel so terrible. Guilt was an evil monster. And it was starting to take its toll on her.

“Of course you aren't going to like him Aron, but the truth is, as hard as it may be for you to hear it, is that he was a perfect gentleman last night. Even put me in my bed when I fell asleep on the couch. And, he stayed in the living room.”

She wasn't sure that Aron would be strong enough to do that. In fact, she was almost certain he would have crawled into bed with her, or left her on the couch with him. Sadly, she knew if things were different in her life, they'd also be different in Arons, another fact however that she couldn't share with anyone. Another fact....that ate away at her from the inside out.

“You know I can't invite you in. It'd be total discomfort for everyone, and there's no need for that. I told you I'd call you for coffee, have I ever lied to you before?” She locked her eyes to his, something in them was always so soothing. Leaning forward, she kissed his lips quickly. “Tell Tony I said hey. And I'll talk to you soon.”

Slowly she closed the door, watching him the entire time. She felt bad leaving him out there. She wanted to scream a hundred apologies to him. None of which he would understand. Before the door would close completely, she blew him a kiss.

Once the door was shut, she leaned her back against it. She didn't deserve Aron. Not as a friend, not as a boyfriend, not at all. And yet, she wasn't strong enough to let him go either. She was a horrible person, and she knew it. But as it were, there was nothing she could do about. Least, not yet....