Needy kitty [Sydney]

[Rodrigo Santos]

Ow... ouch. Ugh... gaaaaah. Uff. 

Rod grunted again as he took another step. Everything hurt. Breathing hurt. Blinking fucking hurt! He growled under his breath as he remembered that little shrimp! It wasn't fair for people to have that kind of power! And how was he supposed to know that such a tiny man was a martial artist type or something? What was wrong with this town and all those fucking karate kids? 

He walked into the classroom, looking around and glaring at anyone who dared look at him, set to punch anyone who dared say anything about the bandages on his nose and the purple and green spots on his swollen eye. Pfff, he was fine enough to go to class. It barely hurt! Well, it hurt like hell, but he wasn't about to admit that to anyone. So here he was. Besides, he wanted to see her. It was all her fault anyway! What with yelling at him that day and working him up and then pushing him away and- "Gah!" He screamed out, punching the door open and glaring inside the classroom. There she was, sitting in her desk, early as usual. He snorted as he stared. She was avoiding him. Well, he was so going to make her talk to him! 

Rod moved behind her, flopping on the desk right behind her and leaning forward, kicking the desk in front of him slightly, just to make her pay attention to him. He usually sat at the back, where the teachers wouldn't see him dose off, but there were priorities here! 

"Still mad?" He asked in a low voice. Why was he acting like a kicked puppy? SHE was the one who was being irrational and yelling at him and stuff! "Hey, Syd! Hey." Was she ignoring him? He kicked her desk again. "Syd? Syd! Syd. Hey, hey. Syd! Syd. Can you hear me? Syd! Hey. Princesa? Come on! Syd. Syyyyyyyd." He pouted and immediately winced as pouting made his nose hurt. See? All her fault. "Stop ignoring me!" He yelled out in anger, grabbing her hair from behind and pulling. Okay, maybe that'd been a tad childish. 

[Sydney Emerson]

Sydney hadn't spoken to Rod since that day they fought. Well, the last day they fought. They really fought a lot it seemed. But she had scarcely even looked at him since then. When she had to be around him, she ignored him completely and it was thankfully working. At least their paths seldom crossed. That was certainly a blessing. Especially since she still didn't understand how she felt about what happened. She was angry, that much she knew. But she didn't know why. Why did she even care?

That was a question she hadn't been able to answer. And she hated questions she couldn't answer.

She was surprised when Rod arrived at class actually early. The second she saw him though, she looked away, barely catching a glance. Not long enough to notice his injuries. The classroom was nearly empty at this point, so she just forced herself to stare straight at the notebook on her desk. Even when he sat behind her. Especially when he sat behind her. Why the hell was he sitting behind her? He always sat in the back of the room so he could get away with more. Why would he want to sit so close to the front. So close to her. What was his deal? She didn't understand him.

That sentiment - and her returning anger - only grew stronger as he began to kick her desk. He was acting like a child! More than that, she could feel him leaning forward, close to her, his breath on the back of her neck... It was unsettling. Why did he have to get so close to her?

She bit her lip, resisting the urge to snap back as he asked if she was still mad. Was she still mad? Of course she was! How could she not be? She was furious with him. But this was a classroom, and this was not the appropriate place for this particular conversation. Not when she knew it would involve so much yelling. Hell, she didn't even want to have that particular conversation at all in the first place.

Then of course he kept talking, saying her name over and over. And kicking. And kept getting louder and louder. Then he called her Princesa. That pissed her off more than anything. How dare he. How dare he call her that after everything. Finally he yelled and it was that coupled with the tug on her ponytail that made her snap around to face him. "Will you shut up!" she hissed, her voice low. "What is your problem? What makes you possibly think that acting like a delinquent five year old is the way to make me less mad at you?"

It was then that she noticed that his nose was bandaged and his eye black and blue - well, technically purple and green - and overall, he just looked like hell. "What the hell did you do to yourself, you idiot!?" she exclaimed, her voice growing louder - not quite a yell, but close. She flushed slightly as she glanced around to see how much attention they were drawing. "What happened to your face?" she hissed as she turned her focus back on him.

[Rodrigo Santos]

Rod grinned at her like a little kid who'd gotten away with some mischievous prank as she turned around, FINALLY, and of course, hissed at him to shut up. He didn't care though. Even if she'd yelled at him before, he was happy that she was finally talking to him. Besides, he got to look at her pretty face, even if she was glaring and scolding her. "I made ya talk, didn't I?" He answered back with the same winning grin. She was still as beautiful as ever. His eyes were starting to darken as he stared at her and it seemed she was staring back and he leaned forward, obviously meaning to steal a kiss, when her words stopped him. Oh?

"What?" He asked dumbly, wondering what she was talking about. Was it him or she got even prettier when she yelled? Wait, she was talking. Oh, his face? He snorted, waving a hand. "Looks worse than it feels." He said smugly, crossing his arms over the desk, still leaning over it and smirking. "Ye should see the other guy. POW. Right in the face." He mocked a punch in the air and grinned at her. They were all lies of course. Rod had gotten his ass kicked by a tiny man, and had the boy been a bit more proud, he'd still be mad about it. But come on! It was all part of the fun. Getting your ass kicked from time to time was part of being a man.

"I still need a pretty nurse, ya know?" He licked his lips and leaned forward, his eyes dropping to her mouth. "Kiss the wounds better and all." He smirked again and turned to look at her eyes. So pretty. "Ya miss me, princesa?" He asked softly, not minding that the room was slowly filling up with students. "I miss ya."

[Sydney Emerson]

He was infuriating. That was the bottom line. Worst of all that he was right. His approach had gotten him to talk to her. "Maybe if you weren't always such a jerk about it, I would have talked to you sooner!" she pointed out. "Or maybe we wouldn't have stopped talking at all." Who knows what might have happened if he could actually be nice. But that was like expecting a tree to actually grow money. Absolutely impossible.

Why did he have to look so damn smug and happy about it too? She hated that more than anything. Well, not anything. Most of all, she hated that his smile had the corners of her lips curving upwards too. She was too angry at him to smile. So why did he make her want to?

"Oh really?" she asked, a look of disbelief on her face as he insisted it looked worse than it felt. To prove her point, she reached out and lightly touched his nose, knowing his reaction to the slight pressure would likely prove her point.

So he had gotten in a fight. "How dumb can you be?" she asked. "There's no good reason for fighting. And if it had been a proper boxing match, your face wouldn't have ended up that bad so don't even try to lie to me about that." Getting hit with a glove and a bare fist created very different sorts of bruises. Pressure was more evenly distributed with a gloved hand which was reflected in the bruise. "What are you, a masochist or something? Why would you do this to yourself?"

Sydney rolled her eyes as he remarked about needing a pretty nurse. "Well, I..." But the way that he licked his lips as he leaned forward, his gaze shifting down to her lips... well it reminded her what it was like to kiss him and that thought made her falter. "I'm no nurse," she finished lamely, her words soft and breathless. Damn it, she was supposed to be mad at him. Princesa. Damn it, why did he have to call her that? She loved and she loathed it. It made her feel special, but it also reminded her that she wasn't. He had said that himself the last time they thought. No, she wasn't going to fall for this.

"Well, you should find one of your other girls to kiss it all better," she said sarcastically. "I'm sure they'll be much more eager to anyway." She hated that thought and that is why she said it, why she flung it back at him. It kept her anger sharp.

Why did he have to say that he missed her? And why did he have to say it like that, in a way that almost made her believe him. That made her want to believe him. "Well I certainly didn't miss your bad attitude," she said. She couldn't lie, couldn't say she hadn't missed him at all. She had noticed his absence far more than she had ever wanted to. But she wasn't about to admit that to him.

[Rodrigo Santos]

Rod smirked at her, his eyes going white as he rolled them. "Maybe if ye weren't so stuck up I wouldn't be such a jerk." He retorted back in the same tone, trying to imitate her voice with a mocking high chirp. He frowned at her, shaking his head. "I still dunno why the hell you got so mad last time." He added. Not his fault, though! She never told him! He still thought it was a female problem thing, no matter what she said. What other explanation was there?

She called him dumb and he pouted again. "I ain't dumb!" He retorted childishly, "And I'm getting tired of ya always calling me that!" He growled at her, already feeling his nails move and he stretched out his hands, cracking his fingers. "I had good reasons! The shrimp ruined my shirt!" Okay, that explained nothing because he didn't give any context, but he wasn't about to go into more details. What if she found out he lost the fight and she thought he was a wimp? He frowned and leaned back, crossing his arms and looking away, glaring at a random spot. "I ain't done nothing!" He said stubbornly, "Dude had it coming. Gettin' all cocky on me. Stupid shrimp..." The last bit was mumbled as he remembered the guy. Next time Rod wasn't going to go down as easy. He just needed to train harder!

It was so hard to focus on that though, when Syd had denied him his... study sessions for so long. He missed touching a girl, kissing her, provoking small noises... Wow, he wanted to kiss her again. Now. Did distance do that to people? She was no nurse, she'd said and he snorted. She was playing hard to get, wasn't she? Well, he wasn't biting. "Nah, ye ain't as hot as a nurse." He said, though he knew he was lying through his teeth. But she mentioned his other girls and his eyes widened. What other girls? He wondered as he frowned in confusion. What the hell was she talking about? Sure, he liked to pretend there were tons of girls waiting to be stolen away by him, but he knew the truth was most girls found him gross. Who knew chicks were into more than looks? Or maybe he didn't look okay? He never considered that. Uh. But that was a thought for another time, because now Syd seemed to be mad about something... Again. What a difficult chick.

"They are." He said in a low voice, pouting at her, just trying to save face. "It ain't enough." He couldn't admit he had no one, right? That would be too pathetic! Everyone knew every sixteen year old dude already had tons of girls waiting for them in line! The good ones at least, those who weren't pathetic dorks. And Rod was no dork! "I could add ya to the waiting list." He added with a smirk. "Save some time just for you." He wasn't sure what he wanted to accomplish here, but he was still going to try teasing her. Anything to get back to kissing her.

She didn't miss him. He growled again. What the hell was her problem? "WHAT-?" The teacher finally entered the classroom and he leaned back, growling at her head. He still pulled at her hair slightly as the teacher made his way to the desk. No way he was going to let this go. So he suddenly moved to grab the messy notebook he kept for most his subjects, the one where he usually doodled on rather than take notes and wrote something.

Admit you miss me. He wrote, tore the piece of paper, crumbled it into a ball and flicked it over her shoulder, so it would land in front of her. He kicked her desk, just to be double annoying, as a warning to have her reply back. She had to miss him! If not then this whole thing was a one way street and he so didn't have the emotional maturity to deal with that. Not that he could come up with that conclusion on his own. Rod was just waiting for her reply, arms crossed as his right leg moved under him nervously. She BETTER miss him. Or... or... or he would have to do something drastic.

[Sydney Emerson]

She raised an eyebrow as he retorted, his voice a high pitched chirp. "What was that? Was that supposed to be an impression of me? If so, it was terrible. I sound nothing like that," she said, feeling a hint offended by his mocking. "Because you're an ass, that's why," she grumbled back, knowing that wasn't a reason. Hell, she wasn't even sure of a reason. Well... she did know why, but she didn't understand why she cared. It was all very confusing.

"Then stop acting like it!" she shot back. "Picking fights is stupid and you know it! Learn to control your temper or you're going to end up getting beat to a bloody pulp!" He made no sense at all. Who on earth wanted to get beat up? He was by far the least logical person she had ever met, and that was saying something considering what she thought of her sister. "So a shirt was worth all of that?" she said, gesturing at his face and the damage that had been done there. It all seemed so pointless and trivial to her.

She was taken aback by his agreement that she wasn't attractive enough. She had never been one to particularly care about appearances and yet... she found she did care what he thought. "Well fine then. I guess you won't have any issue at all finding someone else to nurse you then." If he wanted to be like that, she could be just as stubborn.

His insistence that other girls weren't enough and his offer to make time for her, like he was doing her some kind of favor or something, pushed her over the edge. "You made it perfectly clear that you don't need me, so just leave me the hell alone already," she hissed, her voice and stare cold and hard as ice before she whipped around to face the front of the room again. She hated him for throwing that in her face. For reminding her that she wasn't enough for him, no matter how much he claimed to enjoy it. She hated not being good enough - not being the best. She told herself that was the reason she was angry at him. Mostly because that was easier than admitting that she cared what he thought.

He started to respond then but was thankfully cut off by the teacher's arrival. Finally. She could just focus on class and ignore him and all his childish antics. She gritted her teeth as he tugged at her hair again, but she was determined not to crack this time. Sydney was surprised then when he tossed a crumpled up piece of paper onto her desk. For a solid minute she ignored the paper entirely, not even glancing at it. But the way he kicked at her desk told her that if she didn't at least read it, he was never going to let her alone.

She smoothed the paper out, reading his words. How arrogant was he? To just assume that she missed him. Damn it. Why did he have to be right? Why did she miss him? She had been asking herself that ever since they thought and she was no closer to an answer now than she had been that first day.

Why should I? I'm just some other conquest to you. There are hundreds of other girls at this school. Why don't you bother them? It's all the same to you anyway.

There it was. The truth of it all. She hated the idea of him with someone else. The idea that she was completely replaceable to him. She didn't know why it bothered her so much, but she did. Maybe it was just because it was the first time in her life she hadn't been special. She had always been special and quite frankly, she liked it. That had to be the reason she cared, right?

Sydney stared at the paper for a long moment, finding the courage to offer it back to him. Finally, she set about folding the paper into a precise square before casually flipping it over her shoulder to land on his desk. She swallowed hard, suddenly feeling very nervous about how he might respond.

[Rodrigo Santos]

"I sound nothing like that." He imitated again in the same voice, just because he knew it was bugging her. She called him an ass and he grunted. "And yer a bitch." He replied back in a low voice, not wanting other classmates to hear it. Hey! He could call her anything he wanted, but if he heard anyone around agreeing, he would be forced to break their faces, and hearing him say it could cause others to follow. He wasn't about to let that happen.

"I ain't getting beaten into anything!" He said with the same heat. "If anything, I'm the one who'll be doing the beating. 'Sides-" His frown turned into a smirk, "I didn't know ye cared." He shrugged as she motioned his face. "Twas a pretty nice shirt." He added, still smirking. "Why? Ye miss seeing my face? I'll get back to handsome in no time, princesa. Dontcha worry 'bout me." He wasn't about to admit he'd actually been angry because he'd been thinking of her. It all came down to it, right? To her.

He snorted as she agreed he found someone else. "Fine." He said, although it was mostly because he had no more energy to keep fighting it. Besides, it was all going the wrong way. He'd been wanting to come steal a kiss from her, not start fighting again. But she was even telling him to leave her alone! But- but- "But what 'bout studying?" He tried, wanting to lure her in with something she liked. "I'm missing classes. Homework... failing exams." He needed her! "I need you." Again, he spoke without thinking, not even minding if his words had a deeper meaning than just school related things. But maybe she didn't catch the tone and was still upset.

The teacher had started class so he'd been forced to keep his conversation via notes. Not that he minded. It at least got her responding back... after some convincing of course. He smirked as he looked down at the neatly folded square, raising an eyebrow. This was the same piece of paper he'd crumpled before and now it was all smooth. How had she done that?

He opened it and his eyes widened as he read the message. Was this why she was mad? She thought she was just another conquest. Well, she was but... He sighed. He'd never wanted to be close to any other girl before. Or enjoyed anyone's smile as much. Or even liked making someone so angry. And he missed all those things and more. Especially touching her. Man, how much did he miss touching her. And that's when it hit him.

Had he fallen for her already? Was that what had happened? He hadn't hung out with her that much, had he? Had it been something like love at first sight? He snorted. Yeah, right. He didn't fall for that stupid mushy crap... Right? Oh wow. Was he that into her? And he had to find it all out in the middle of the class. How much he truly liked the bitchy, stuck up, pain in the ass tutor. He gulped and turned to writing, still terribly confused.

Thats why your mad?

His grammar was horrible, but it was no surprise. He kept writing though.

If you wanna be my only girl you just have to ask.

He watched the teacher closely and stood when he turned to write something on the board. He quickly threw the newly crumpled ball of paper on Sydney's desk, quickly placing a kiss on her cheek, smirking as he flopped back down on his desk. He heard some of their classmates make noises, chuckle and tease, but he didn't care. Did she like him too, then? Was that why she was so mad?

[Sydney Emerson]

Her only response as he imitated her again (just as poorly) and called her a bitch was to fix him with an even harder glare. What was wrong with this guy? She barely understood how normal people acted and he was about ten times as confusing. Just as she prepared to launch into a speech about how he didn't seem to be as capable at fighting to end up in his condition though, he threw her off but changing the topic to the fact that she cared that he was hurt.

And she did care.

"I don't care," she protested hastily. "I just think it's stupid and I didn't think you were actually that dumb and hard headed. Guess I overestimated you then." Why did he have to make her feel like this? It was so much easier when he was nice...

"You never cared about studying, Rod," she said, her voice going softer. "Just what you thought you could get by agreeing to it. And that's not an option anymore. I'm not going to fall for it," she whispered, glancing over her shoulders at him. She met his eyes for a moment as he insisted he needed her, though those words made her turn away. She didn't understand how words could make her feel like she had been stabbed in the chest. But he didn't mean it, any of it. He was just trying to get her to pay attention to him. He didn't like losing. That's all this was.

Sydney wasn't sure why she continued the conversation in notes, but for some reason she couldn't let it go. Maybe it was because she was mad at him - for today, and before both. Maybe because she hated seeing him in pain and she knew that he wasn't going to take care of himself. He'd probably have new bruises by the time these ones healed. Not that it was her problem. But she knew she cared. She worried. It was silly, but she did anyway.

Though she had been expecting the note to be returned, she wasn't expecting the quick kiss on the cheek that accompanied the motion. Were it not for the class's reaction, she might have dared a glance at him, but given the laughter and sounds their classmate's made, she didn't dare look anywhere but straight ahead. Once the noise died down with an admonishment from the teacher, she turned her attention to the paper which was now in her hand.

She was almost afraid to read the note when he passed it back to her, but she forced herself to slowly uncrumple the paper. Was it really so hard to just fold it? Her eyes widened as she read the words though. Could it really be that simple? Was this some sort of cruel joke? As hard as it was for her to believe this though, she couldn't think he'd be so cruel. She didn't want to think he could.

Was that what she wanted? Her face flushed slightly as she remembered what it felt like to be near him, to be kissed by him. It felt... good. Could they really get that back? Could it really be that simple? After all this time fighting and being angry, she could just ask and everything would go back to how it had been?

Yes, of course it is. How else was I supposed to feel? she wrote next to his first question, barely even noticing the incorrect grammar. She bit her lip, her pen hesitating as it hovered above the paper, her heart beating loudly in her ears. ...Is that what you want?

It couldn't just be her, right?

Before she could talk herself out of it, she added another line to the paper, before folding it and promptly tossing it over her shoulder. She didn't dare look at him. Sydney could only think that she had never been so terrified in her life as she was to know how he would react to what she had written just then.

If so, then alright. I'm asking.

[Rodrigo Santos]

He glared at her when she said she'd overestimated him. Wow, if that was her overestimating someone, he really pitied those she underestimated. She was just far too demanding of others! Sure, she demanded as much of herself, but that was probably why she was such a drag. She never had any fun. That's why she needed him, he figured, why it was all the more important for her to be around him. It was for her own good, really.

He snorted. Sure, she was right. He never cared for studying but- "Like ya didn't enjoy it too!" He accused, even pointing at her with one finger, his voice raising once again in anger. So she was going to give everything up just because- whatever the hell she was mad? "Never took ya for a quitter." He added in a mumble, setting down on his desk once again.

She was taking her sweet time replying and his leg moved nervously under him. He was starting to get frustrated and growl under his breath. What was so difficult about what he'd asked? Had he known she wanted to have such a relationship with him, he'd have asked ages ago! But, okay, maybe he'd been playing just a bit with her, but he'd be the first to admit he missed her. And not only touching her but just hanging out with her too. It'd been fun to tease her, to push her buttons, just to talk to her, and even watch her read. It'd been obvious how into her he was. Had she not noticed that? Then why the hell was she torturing him so with making him wait? He kicked her desk again in hopes of hurrying her up.

"Come on..." He whispered under his breath, kicking her desk a second time. She was SO doing this on purpose, wasn't she? Wanting to torture him and make him suffer while she- And she threw the paper back to his desk. He gulped as he stared down at it. He was half expecting it to say 'PSYCHE!' right under all their conversation. One deep breath and he was hurrying to get the thing open. Why did she have to fold the paper? That made it miles more annoying to unwrap!

He read the first line and grumbled under his breath. How was he supposed to know she had a problem with him hitting on other girls? She never said anything about being exclusive! Well, he was offering that now and- is that what you want? Uuuuuuuhhh... He never really thought things through, did he? Was that what he wanted? To be exclusive with just one girl? Not like he had much action as it was anyway, but being only with her meant he wouldn't be able to flirt with anyone else. He could just... have her not find out, right? But... he let out a sigh. He would never do that to her. Besides... besides that last line made him smile. She was asking. She wanted him to be hers, and that just meant she wanted to be his, right? Only his. Wow... He let out a small, breathy laugh. This was amazing.

"Yes!" He exclaimed suddenly, raising a fist in victory, interrupting the class of course. Not that he cared about whatever nonsense the teacher was saying. He was being scolded or whatever, he wasn't listening. Instead he was grinning like an idiot, his body urging him to just do something. And that was exactly what he did.

Rod leaped to his feet suddenly, ignoring anything that was happening around him, suddenly grabbing Syd's wrist and pulling her up from her desk. "We gotta talk." Was his only explanation as he pulled her out of the classroom in a hurry, picking her up as best he could, throwing her over his shoulder and running away from there as the teacher yelled something about detention. He didn't care. She was his! He could do what he wanted with her! He even ignored her if she even tried something. They needed to be alone.

Rod ran to the nearest closet, full of brooms and what not. He kicked the door open, set her down in front of him, turned to close the door behind him and turn the light on to see her. Finally, he turned to her, smirking proudly at what he'd accomplished. They were alone, screw consequences, and she'd just agreed to be only his. What was better than that?

[Sydney Emerson]

Sydney's face flushed as he challenged her to say that she hadn't liked it too. That wasn't the point in the least. The point was that he was pretending he cared about studying whenever he only cared what they did instead of studying. It was completely different things. She was about to tell him as much, only then he called her a quitter and that really got under her skin.

She turned away from him, but that word kept echoing in her mind. Was she a quitter? Was that what was happening? No. What defined a quitter was why they walked away from something. There were perfectly legitimate reasons to do so after all. Stubbornly continuing to do the same thing could be just as bad or worse even than quitting. Yes. Her reasons were good. She wasn't a quitter at all.

She was slow responding to his note this time - and why shouldn't she be? It was a very serious topic and she wanted to give it proper consideration before she replied. Yet that didn't seem to occur to him since he was kicking her desk and trying to rush her. Part of her wanted to take longer now out of spite, but regardless, her nerves did the trick. She took her time folding the paper just as precisely as she had the first time, finding the process soothing.

Waiting for his reaction turned out to take much less time than she anticipated though as he suddenly shouted, interupting the class entirely. She sank down an inch or two in her seat, feeling a little embarrassed by the attention, even though he was the one actually being scolded.

At this rate, she should just get used to being surprised by him. Because whatever reaction she might have expected to her note, him dragging her out of the classroom was certainly not even on the list of options. "Rod!" she hissed, giving an apologetic glance at the teacher. As he lifted her and threw her over his shoulder, a loud yelp of surprise fell from her lips. "Put me down!" she protested, hitting a fist against his back. Just like that though, they were out of the classroom. "Rod! We're going to be in so much trouble..." she groaned. "Where are you taking me anyway?" But he just ignored her. Now she felt even more confused.

Finally he shut them in a closet together and after he set her on the ground again, her first response was to lightly shove him, both hands on his chest. "What the hell are you doing? Now we're sure to get in trouble. And why did you have to make such a scene? Oh god, I'm going to end up in detention... What were you thinking?" she cried. But then she looked at the goofy grin on his face and couldn't deny the small smile that was beginning to show on hers.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" she asked, crossing her arms over her chest and trying with all her might - and failing - to stay mad, or at least annoyed, at him.

[Rodrigo Santos]

He didn't listen to anything she was saying, barely grunting as she hit his back with her fists. Wow, was that girl stronger than she looked. But he kept going, carrying her through the hallways, running to the nearest make out spot he knew. As soon as he entered the closet and finally settled down, he felt his heart hammer inside his chest and felt his face grin widely. She'd asked for it. She wanted them to be exclusive. She wanted- she wanted him. He felt like yelling in triumph again, but the run had left him breathless. Maybe she was right and he ought to stop smoking. Well, either that, or the fight combined by hurting his foot had left him a tad out of shape.

She kept asking questions but he could only smile and not answer. Who cared about trouble? Who cared about making scenes. She'd said she wanted to be exclusive! In his mind that sounded- that was just like- well, she was agreeing to be his! Only his. As he would agree to be hers.

Why was he looking at her like what? He shook his head, still unable to answer and then, just like before, acted. He suddenly was on her, his hands gently grabbing the sides of her cheeks, caressing gently and crashing his lips against hers, pushing her back until she was pressed against the shelves, so he could kiss her properly. Ah, he missed this so much. He perhaps kissed her longer and he should, taking his time to savour her lips slowly, licking gently and grunting in appreciation. It'd been too long...

But then he parted, just slightly, still keeping her in place and opened his eyes to stare at her, smiling again. She was so beautiful. Just staring at her made him feel warmer, feel his heart beat louder too. "I'm yours." He whispered finally, accepting her request and then leaned down to kiss her again. He would accept anything if it meant he got to kiss her again.

[Sydney Emerson]

She kept asking questions, thinking aloud about the consequences of this little stunt of his, but he didn't seem to be listening to her at all. It was infuriating! What was wrong with him? What was he thinking? It was times like this that she started to think that being a telepath might be more useful than being an empath. Though for once, she actually had her ability turned off... She always tried to keep it off during class so she could focus on her education rather than be distracted by her fellow students... especially Rod.

It was at that moment that she let go of that leash, wondering what he was feeling, only to be greeted with a strong rush of what she could only call pure delight. That and something else... that feeling was familiar though and it led where it always had as he took her face between his hands and brought his lips to hers. At that point, all concerns about classes and trouble were gone and she could only focus on the boy in front of her.

Her eyes closed slowly as she sank into the feel of them, an absent thought at the back of her mind marveling in the way they could always come back to this no matter how much they thought. Was that normal, or something special between the two of them? She had barely noticed they were moving backwards, at least until her back pressed against the shelves behind her. The pressure of the shelves against her was slightly irritating, but drastically overshadowed by the feel of him against her, kissing her again. Much as they might have kissed before, it seemed different now... slow but intense, like savoring a desert you'd been looking forward to all day. Maybe because it had been so long since they last had...

Her thoughts went silent though as her hands settled at his waist, holding to him until he finally pulled back leaving her gasping for breath. Her hands lightly grasped the bottom edge of his shirt, toying with the fabric even as her skin brushed against his. She looked up at him as he spoke, eyes wide, searching his even as he whispered that he was hers. "Really? Just like that?" she whispered back, feeling uncharacteristically uncertain. After all that fighting, could it really be so simple? Could she really be enough for him? Just her and no one else? This was so far out of her comfort zone, and even her realm of knowledge.

But then his lips came down to meet hers again and she found herself surrendering all too eagerly to the gesture, returning the kiss once more.

[Rodrigo Santos]

He was kissing her again, barely registering what she'd said since her hands barely gracing the skin in his stomach took far too much space in his mind to actually care. But as he kissed her, her words echoed in his head. Just like that? He parted again from her, panting slightly as he was short of breath. "What?" He said huskily, "You said you wanted to." He pouted, unsure of what she wanted now, but he still stood close to her, in case what she wanted was, well, another kiss. "Isn't that- what- what you said in your note?" It had been, right? Or did he misinterpret it? Fuck. Maybe he had.

He took a step back from her, still short of breath and ran a hand through his hair in confusion. "I thought-" He growled, punching a random shelf and making things there jump. He licked his lips, red from their kisses, and stared at her, looking very much like a kicked puppy, pouting and looking at her from under his eyelashes.

"What do you want, Syd?" He asked impatiently, his leg moving under him nervously. "I-" Another sigh, "I want you, alright? I like you. So," He licked his lips and waved a hand. "You-" He nodded, unsure of how to word it. He was so bad at this. "You like me too?" Well, why wouldn't she? She kissed back and all and touched his stomach and stuff. Was she just playing with him?

It was so easy for him to say what he felt though. He had words for that at least. But as in touch with his emotions as he was, he still didn't understand hers. Not in the slightest. Sydney was so hard to read sometimes and maybe he'd gotten it all wrong. But- "I'm yours if yer mine. That's how it works, yeah?"

[Sydney Emerson]

At first she had thought that his kiss was his answer. He tended to do that after all, answer through actions rather than words. But when he suddenly pulled back, she realized that in reality he had just been distracted by her proximity. She could feel his sudden confusion. "I did," she reassured him as he worried he had misunderstood her note. "I'm sorry, you know I'm not good at this sort of stuff..." she murmured, annoyed that she seemed to have ruined his mood. Despite her all too ironic power, she wasn't good at talking about feelings, or acting on them like he did. She was barely even able to understand them half the time, especially when it came to him.

She jumped as he punched a shelf, surprising her. But even still, she found herself looking up at him, trying to figure out where she had gone wrong. As he spoke about wanting her though, it made her blush even as a smile spread across her lips. Sydney nodded as he asked if she liked him too. "I do..." she murmured. That's what this feeling was right? The way she couldn't stop thinking about him even when she wanted to.

"I just meant... you're always talking about your other girls. How it's good that you have them so you can put up with me... Can I really be enough for you?" she asked. It wasn't even so much him that she was questioning, as it was herself. She knew that she wasn't normal. Especially when it came to emotions. So how could she not worry?

Sydney swallowed hard, trying to find the words for how she felt, her gaze fixating on his chest straight ahead of her. Trying to find words for something she barely understood. "I like it when you smile... I like making you smile," she admitted, her voice soft. Her thumbs absently brushed across the skin at his hips. "But I don't know how to do that. Not really. I don't know how any of this is supposed to work. I know I'm not... I'm not normal... Is this... Am I really what you want? Can just I be enough to make you happy?" Her eyes lifted to finally meet his, her uncertainty suddenly so clear in their depths. She wanted him to say yes, but more than anything, she needed to know the truth. That was why she had to say it now. No matter how much she'd rather be kissing him.

[Rodrigo Santos]

Rod stared at her in confusion at first, unsure of what was the problem. If she meant it then why was she even questioning this? What was the problem here? They shouldn't be talking! They should be making out or something equally pleasurable instead of wasting valuable time with words. But stupid him, he had to question her further because, well, because even Rod sometimes felt insecure as well, not that he'd ever admit it. Men didn't second guessed themselves, after all.

But then she said she liked him and he grinned again, taking a step closer once more. Oh, wow. Did she have to touch him like that? It made it so hard to focus on what she was saying. Something about smiles or whatever. His eyes darkened as he stared down at her, nodding along though he had no idea what she was saying. And she was so sexy too, the way her lips moved, like begging to be kissed. Oh wow, if she kept touching his hips like that he was so going to have to grab her and- and now she was staring at him. He blinked in surprise. Wait, what? What- what had she said? He had no idea. And she was staring at him as if expecting an answer. Uuuuuhhh... Quick, Rod. Say something. "Of course." He breathed out with a smile, unsure what he was agreeing to. Yeah, not sure what it was, he just wanted to go back to kissing her. And that was exactly what he did.

Rod kissed her again, suddenly picking her up and pressing her against the closed door of the closet. He really had been bending his back too much to be able to kiss the short girl, so this was much easier. Plus it let him feel her body pressed against his. "You're mine now." He whispered against her lips with a wide grin, moving to kiss her neck. She was his and he was so going to show it to the world. So he sucked on the skin, and licked and nibbled and sucked some more, kissing the same spot and licking it so it wouldn't hurt that much. He left a mark there, as well as he could, just to let others know she was taken.

"You're awesome." He whispered against her neck, still grinning, moving so he could rest her weight on one hand so he could let the other wander. She was so hot and she was all his. He still had no idea what he'd agreed to before, and now he truly didn't care. She could have his house for all he cared, as long as she let him touch her like he wanted to. His free hand squeezed her waist and moved to slip under her shirt. Oh yeah, skin. That was what he'd been wanting to feel.