Chapter 7
The next morning Roxanne woke up in his room, alone, with sunlight pouring in from the half-open windows, turning the mood in the room into a warm glow.
She hadn’t slept this peacefully in some time, and it was the first morning after many in which she didn’t wake up depressed, or with negative thoughts caused by her recent past. Last night she hadn’t even had a moment to take a look around his bedroom, considering they were so lost in the moment, she hadn’t even noticed the navy-blue color of his bedsheet.
Remembering that she hadn’t informed her family of her plans, and realizing that they must be worried sick, unaware of her whereabouts, she quickly got off the bed, and went outside to look for her purse. It was after opening the door, that she looked at the small clock on his kitchen counter, that she realized that she had slept through the morning, and it was two o’clock in the afternoon now.
She ran for her bag and got her phone out of it, messaged her mother that she had decided to spend the night at Agatha’s, hoping that they would let it go as a drunk mistake. She sent another text to Agatha, her best friend from back in college, informing her of the situation in case her mom was to contact her.
She suddenly realized that she was alone in the apartment, and thought that he was probably downstairs in his shop, dealing with some clientele. Realizing that she probably had time to look around, she took a stroll around the apartment, including his kitchen, living room, and even the toilet, in which she decided to take a shower since no one was around anyways.
Whistling her favorite song over the sound of running water, she soon heard the door of his bedroom open, which immediately brought a shy smile to her face. She hadn’t thought of the possibility of him walking in before she stepped into the shower.
“You in there?” came Chris’ voice through the washroom door.
“Yeah, I’m sorry. I just woke up ten minutes ago.” she answered, hoping that he doesn’t get pissed.
“That’s fine, take your time.” he replied, and after three distinct footsteps, she heard the bedroom door close.
After she was done, she walked out of the washroom with just a towel on, only to be disappointed that he wasn’t there in the bedroom, since she had been hoping to be naughty and tease him. Swallowing the failure, Roxanne put on her clothes, and made her way downstairs.
After she knocked on the shop door, Chris came to answer the door quickly, but in one glance she noticed that there was something on his mind. The calm and ease of his body language seemed to be overcome by some sort of stress.
Noticing a client inside, an old woman about sixty years of age, sitting on the sofa that Roxanne had been sitting on going through a few pieces of jewelry, with her toy poodle next to her, Roxanne made her way to the counter. She stood there awkwardly for a bit as Chris passed her apologetic glances in the midst of dealing with the client, and then walked out of the shop to have a smoke.
She was observing the hustle and bustle of the neighborhood, running images from the previous night in her mind, and was almost done with her cigarette when she heard the door open behind her, along with Chris and the client exchanging goodbyes.
Chris came to stand next to her, hands in his pocket, and she noticed that his eyes were darting in places as if looking for something or someone.
“Did you sleep well?” he asked.
“Yeah, quite pleasantly actually. I apologize if me staying the night or the showering caused any inconvenience…”
Chris cut in before she could finish speaking, “Are you kidding me? Hush up about that, I wanted you to stay the night. The showering was fine too, I was glad to see you making yourself at home.”
Roxanne looked at him and smiled, amazed by how understanding he was. She could see attributes in him that many girls would fall for without a second thought, and found herself wondering whether for him it was all just casual sex or if he ever caught feelings as well.
“Thanks for the night though. It was a lot of fun.” she said, and regretted doing so immediately after, because of the teasing smile it brought on his face that made her blush.
“I thought I should be the one thanking you. It was the best night I’ve ever had.”
There was a moment of silence between them, a pause with familiarity rather than awkwardness, as she started realizing how physically comfortable she felt around him after the night. She also realized how lucky she was for her first time to be a man like Chris, both gentle, and rough, in the most appropriate of times.
Seeing that he was lighting a cigarette, she fetched another one from her bag, and lit it up. If she was to be honest with herself, all she wanted in that moment was to take him back up to the apartment, and have sex with him again, even rougher this time. She felt like there was something inside her which hadn’t come out yet, her mind now working in ways dirtier than she could’ve ever imagined.
“What happened when you came to the room? Everything good?” she asked, after having taken two puffs.
Chris’ face went blank at the question as he shifted his gaze to the ground.
“Yeah, nothing to worry about. Saw that man again, standing outside the shop, he went away after a while though.” he replied.
He started taking longer and harder drags of his cigarette, remembering the menacing smile that the man always had when he looked at Chris, as if he was out to murder him.
For some reason he was also hiding the fact that the man didn’t go away on his own, that Chris had to walk out with a cold death stare and ask him what his problem was, and it was then that the man casually threw his cigarette stub at Chris’ feet, and walked away while laughing.
“Really? I’m so sorry about that.” she replied, getting awkward.
“What exactly is his deal though? I really think you should report him or something, this is not safe for you.”
She was almost overcome by tears because of the care and concern he exhibited for her, and had no idea how to respond.
“You’re right. I’ll do something about it.” she said, and threw her cigarette stub on the ground, crushing it hard this time.
Chris’ forehead curled hearing her answer, as he sensed something suspicious, but considering it was a situation regarding her discomfort, he decided not to push it too much, and to be there for her in whichever way he could, and to change the conversation since she was clearly getting uneasy.
“But let’s not waste our time on that.” he said, adding, “So what’s your plan now?”
“Um, I don’t know. Head home I guess.” she replied.
His eyes fell on the necklace, the way the sun’s rays were reflecting off of it, giving it a gleaming quality that was missing when it lay in the black case. It was as if it had come alive again.
“Alright. You could also stay here as long as you want, or come along whenever you want.”
Her body became excited with desire hearing this, knowing that he actually did have fun with her, and wanted her again.
“Really?”
“Yeah, as I said, I really enjoyed last night. I don’t know about you, but I would certainly want to have more of those.” he said confidently, seeing the burning desire in her eyes.
She blushed hearing this, and looked away shyly.
“I want to have more as well.” she muttered in a low voice, noticing how different this felt now that they were in the public eye.
She could see the cocky smile of accomplishment on his face, as if she was a prized possession he had just got hold of.
“Why don’t we go upstairs then?” he asked, gesturing with a sideways lean of his head towards the apartment building.