This Time

Chapter 24

Maybe it was silly to feel nervous given the context, but that night as he dressed for bed Toshinori couldn't ignore the butterflies that somehow had made themselves at home in what remained of his stomach. He paced. He changed his shirt twice. He brushed his teeth, worked himself up until he had a coughing fit, then had to brush them again to get rid of the metallic taste of blood. He finally decided to go to her room when there came a soft knock at the door, and he couldn't get the lock undone fast enough.

Mei grinned at him easily, leaning against the door frame. "Sorry to keep you waiting, handsome," she apologized, and the hero felt himself jolt slightly at the compliment. It had been a long, long time since he'd been called that out of his hero form.

The blonde huffed in amusement, stepping back, and holding the door wider for her as she entered the hotel room. "You need an eye exam," he joked, feeling the blush creep into his sallow cheeks.

"Nah. My vision is just fine," she smirked, pointedly sweeping her gaze over him head to toe. By the time her eyes reached his face again his cheeks were blazing. Had he been in his muscle form, he would have been preening, soaking in the praise. But now? Now he wasn't quite sure how to respond to it.

The hero closed the door and gestured towards the small shopping bag the woman held. "What's this?"

"The reason I'm late," she said with a shrug, eyes light. "Most of the stores were closed today, and the one I managed to find had a pretty pitiful selection." She reached in and pulled out a DVD.

"Indiana Jones?" he asked, raising a brow.

"I didn't remember seeing it in your movie collection at home. Want to watch it with me?" she asked, nodding her head toward the hotel room's television.

Toshinori was pretty sure his heart was melting as he looked at the young woman before him wearing his t-shirt and staring at him with excitement in her blue and green eyes. "That sounds like a perfect night," he said.

She pumped her fist in the air in triumph (as if he would have said no) and turned around to put the movie in. "I was going to grab snacks too, but I know you're not really a junk food kinda guy," she said over her shoulder. She then climbed into the bed, patting the spot next to her. Toshinori had no clue how she did it - how she acted so casual about all this. Every move he made he worried might be the wrong one, and even after her assurance this morning, he still worried he might accidentally overstep. Mei in contrast was bold as usual, and if she felt any awkwardness, she did a good job of hiding it.

He leaned back against the headboard, propped on the pillows and Mei easily tucked against his right side, carefully avoiding putting too much weight on his chest. The broken ribs were either a blessing or a curse, and he couldn't decide which for the life of him. The injury kept him in check - for now at least - and it made it easier to behave himself with the knowledge of how bad his body would hurt later if he didn't. On the other hand...

On the other hand, here she was in his bed again and she'd already admitted she wanted him. How easy it would be to tilt her chin up and capture her lips - to kiss his way down her neck, her shoulder, her chest. How would it feel to finally run his hands along the smooth skin of her breasts, or trail his fingertips up her inner thigh? As much as he loved seeing her in his shirts, right now he also really wished to see her out of it.

This morning had been a close call, and injury or not he hadn't been far from losing his self-control. Of course, he would never, ever touch her in any way she didn't want him to - and that was probably the most nerve-racking part right now. Her expectations or wants were still unspoken, and he was worried if he kept going off of her body language alone, he might accidentally misinterpret something. Mei had asked to postpone any conversation that might define what this was, and while it made him nervous, he also understood. This was new, and he'd be lying if he said it wasn't also a little scary. Toshinori truly cared for the woman, and with so much left open to interpretation, he was worried he wouldn't be able to convey that to her enough.