Thanks so much for the review, KookieEvans! I really appreciate it! :D

Well guys, this is it - the final chapter. I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

But fear not! I'm writing ANOTHER Rod/Nicky story, called 'A Double Date'. I've posted the first chapter, but for some reason it's not showing on the page (WHY, ?) so if you guys want to check it out, just visit my profile and hopefully like!

Well, that's all from me. Please leave me your thoughts and/or any future story suggestions!

~Shego~ x

Nicky was almost done with his clearing up and decided to take a shower whilst Rod was still asleep. He couldn't help but smile as he saw his best friend sprawled out on the couch, snoring softly and dressed in a casual t-shirt and pyjama pants.

He'd tried to help Nicky out with cleaning up the apartment, only to be gently shoved back onto the couch and told to rest. Rod had responded by huffily stating that he was going to take a shower, only to blush furiously when Nicky followed him into the bathroom.

"Nicholas, you are not staying in here." Rod managed to stammer out, his face redder than it had ever been in his life.

"Aw, c'mon, Rod!"

"No!"

"Ok, ok." Nicky laughed, holding up his hands. "If you don't want me to look, I won't, even though you really don't have to be embarrassed."

Rod furrowed his eyebrows together. "That's easy for you to say, Nicky."

Nicky had responded by pulling him in for another kiss and ruffling his already scruffy red hair. "Alright, I'm leavin'." He grinned, ducking out of the bathroom to resume his work.

When Rod had emerged from his shower, his hair still slightly damp and the bruise on his forehead highlighted even more on his pale blue skin, he'd managed to have some soup before eventually falling fast asleep, completely dead to the world.

Nicky carefully pulled the blanket back over him and was tugging off his hoodie on the way to the bathroom, when Rod began to murmur in his sleep. He turned around, amused, only to have the smile wiped from his face at what Rod said next.

"Ah…Nicky." The investment banker moaned loudly, rolling over onto his side.

Nicky flushed, suddenly starting to feel very hot and bothered as he swallowed nervously. Rod was continuing to moan Nicky's name in a very passionate way, though his voice had softened slightly.

Nicky shifted, unsure whether to wake Rod up or not, then decided against it and promptly continued his journey to the bathroom to take a desperately needed cold shower. One thing was clear; Rod wanted him and most likely as soon as possible. But could Nicky really live up to Rod's expectations? And would it be like taking advantage of him when he was still so weak and frail?

Nicky rubbed shampoo over his thick black hair, pleased to be back inside his own bathroom as he heated the water slightly, feeling his body calm down. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't desperate for Rod too, but he was understandably uncertain and nervous. He'd never done anything with a guy before…And if he was honest, not a great deal of women, either…

He shut the water off, grabbing a towel and drying himself down, before dumping his grimy clothes in the laundry basket. He had never looked so forward to getting changed into dry, comfortable clothes in all his life. Nicky wrapped the towel around his waist and peeked around the bathroom door, pleased to see that the sound of the water hadn't woken Rod up as he crept to their bedroom.

Immediately, he began to rummage through his drawers, producing a slightly creased yet clean t-shirt and jeans and shoving them on as he kicked the discarded towel under his bed. Oh, God, he'd be sleeping on a mattress again! Nicky beamed to himself, then frowned as he stared at the two beds, figuring that it would probably make more sense if he pushed them together, hoping that Rod wouldn't mind.

When he was done, he stood back to admire his work before leaving the bedroom to find Rod stirring and his eyes fluttering open.

"Hey," Nicky grinned, perching on the arm of the couch, "You ok?"

"Mm-hm." Rod rubbed his eyes and offered Nicky a tired smile in return, extending his hand. Nicky took it in his own, just gently clinging onto it and loving the slight blush that spread across Rod's cheeks.

"You look better." Nicky commented, "How's your head?"

"It's…ok." Rod shrugged, and Nicky knew instantly that it hurt like hell.

"You want some painkillers, Rod?" He asked seriously, sliding next to his roommate as he sat up and put his glasses back on. He comfortingly placed an arm around the skinnier man's shoulders, drawing him closer.

Rod placed his head against Nicky's shoulder, breathing him in. "No, no. I'll be fine. Nicky…"

"Yeah?"

"I'm so glad you're here." Rod murmured into his ear, blushing once more as Nicky raked his hands through Rod's red hair.

"I can't think of anywhere else I'd rather be." Nicky smiled genuinely, kissing Rod's forehead. "Oh, and Rod? I wasn't sure whether you'd mind, but I pushed our beds together…If that's ok?"

Rod stared at him in surprise, before grabbing him into a passionate kiss, opening his mouth and sliding his tongue inside Nicky's mouth. "Oh, Nicky." He whispered one he'd emerged for air, kissing practically every inch of Nicky's face that he could. "Nicky, I love you."

Nicky responded back as eagerly as he could manage with Rod stubbornly refusing to stop kissing him. "Well," he panted back, "glad to make ya happy, Rod!"

Rod laughed at that, wrapping his arms around Nicky's neck and settling his head on his chest. "That is more than ok - and the apartment looks great! I just can't believe you didn't get bored."

"Well," He replied mischievously, kissing the top of Rod's flaming red hair, "you kinda kept me entertained…"

Rod lifted his head, a quizzical look on his face. "What did I do?"

Nicky cleared his throat, feeling his cheeks heating up again. "You - ah - were talkin' in your sleep."

Rod's eyes widened and his jaw dropped open, suddenly remembering his vivid dream about Nicky. "Oh, holy shit, no! What - what did I say?"

Nicky smirked. "You moaned, Rod."

"Oh, fuck, fuck, fu-"

"Don't be embarrassed. I loved it." Nicky laughed, gently stroking the side of Rod's blushing face and ghosting his own lips across Rod's, playfully nipping at them. "Was I any good in your dream?"

Rod buried his head in Nicky's chest again, mortified beyond belief. "Oh, God…I'm sorry…"

"I only hope I live up to your expectations." Nicky joked, but Rod could sense his slight nervousness beyond the words.

"Nicky." He said seriously, staring deep into his dark brown eyes. "You know how much I love and care about you. When…if…you decide to…make love to me, you have to remember that you're my everything, ok?"

Nicky shook his head, a smile on his face. "There's no if about it, Rod. I love you too, y'know. I just don't wanna force it on you when you're still not feelin' great."

Rod sighed happily as Nicky continued to caress his face. "You really care about me that much, huh?"

"Obviously, Rod. Of course, there's also the fact that I haven't had sex in, like, weeks…"

"Nicky!" Rod scolded, shoving him, "Way to ruin the moment!"

"Ha. Sorry." Nicky grinned, pecking him on the lips. "That was pretty bad of me."

Rod melted at his touch and gave a shake of his head. He could never stay annoyed at Nicky for too long.

They stayed like that on the couch, simply holding each other and sleepily watching the TV, until there was a shrill ring of their doorbell. Nicky groaned in annoyance, lifting his head from Rod's shoulder to glare at the door.

"Can we ignore it?"

"I'm tempted." Rod admitted with a sigh, reaching for the remote to turn off the television, only to smile weakly as he heard voices from outside the door.

"Guys, open up! It's Kate and Princeton!" Came Kate Monster's excited squeal. Nicky raised a questioning eyebrow at Rod, who responded with a nod of his head.

"Let them in." He murmured, kissing Nicky's cheek. "But hadn't they broken up?"

"Ah, you know them." Nicky shrugged with a grin. "Kate missed him like hell and Princeton decided he couldn't live without her either. Kinda cute, I guess."

Rod sighed. "Did I miss out on anything else?"

"Nope. Nothin' important. Do you wanna…" Nicky shifted nervously, "tell them about us?"

Rod hesitated, reaching for Nicky's hand. He knew how scary it was to admit to people that you were gay - he still hadn't 'come out' yet, after all. And even if Rod was the only man that Nicky had ever had feelings for, it was still quite a daunting prospect for him to tell everyone.

"Nicky…Honestly, if you're uncomfortable -"

"It's not that!" Nicky said quickly, his eyes pained. "No, Rod, I'm not ashamed or anything! I just…I dunno…"

"Nicky, I get it. Trust me." Rod assured him, rubbing his shoulders soothingly. "But let 'em in anyway. I know Kate was worried about me."

Nicky nodded in response, quickly standing from the couch and heading to the door. "Hey. Just comin'." He called, fumbling for the key in the lock and opening the door with a smile.

Kate practically leapt at him, grabbing him into a hug. "Awh, Nicky! I'm so happy you two have made up!"

Nicky laughed, patting her on the back. "Yep. So am I. Come in, guys."

Kate let go of him, still grinning as she led her boyfriend into the apartment. "Rod! Rod, how are you?" She asked, sitting down next to him on the couch eagerly, suddenly frowning. "What happened to your head?"

Rod winced, his hand automatically flying to the bruise. "Oh, God, it was really stupid…I tripped getting out of bed." He laughed his awkward little laugh, his cheeks reddening. Nicky wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around him and remind him that everything was ok, but…

"Well, at least you're feeling better." Kate pecked him on the cheek, obviously delighted. Princeton stood in the centre of the room with Nicky, looking at his girlfriend so affectionately that Nicky couldn't help but smile.

"Thank you, Kate." Rod replied sincerely. "And…thanks for looking out for me. I really appreciate it. I know how crazy I was -"

"Aw, I just wanted to help!" Kate waved her hand, smiling. "I'm just so happy that you and Nicky are friends again! How did that happen?"

Rod smiled weakly, rubbing the back of his head and glancing at Nicky for help.

"Uh…" The green puppet cleared his throat. "Well, we…I mean…"

Princeton raised an eyebrow. "You apologised?" He prompted.

"Right!" Nicky said quickly. "I apologised for…for…"

Rod groaned, muttering to himself and eventually glanced up to an intrigued Kate. "Kate Monster. Princeton." He began, his heart hammering furiously as his throat turned inexplicably dry. "There's something that I…I have to tell you."

Princeton nodded. "Sure. What's up?"

Nicky stared at his shoes a mixture of nerves and excitement coursing through him.

"I'm…well…I'm gay." Rod whispered the last word, immediately turning away from them all, blinking fiercely behind his glasses.

Kate laughed. "About time, honey!"

Rod frowned, swinging his head back to her. "Wh-What?"

"Well, we kind of knew that, Rod." Princeton laughed good-naturedly. "But hey - congratulations."

"Oh…" Rod blushed once more, fidgeting on the couch. "Oh, well…thank you…"

"Yeah." Nicky added, smiling as Kate budged up on the couch and he took a seat next to her, whilst Princeton occupied the armchair. "So, I apologised…we made up…"

"Even though there actually wasn't anything to apologise for." Rod admitted with an embarrassed smile. "So, really, everyone: I'm sorry for being so uptight all of the time…"

"Aw, no!" Kate giggled. "Not at all! I'm just happy that you're happy! And you too, Nicky! Y'know, most guys would probably act a little weird around their best friends if they turned out to be gay, but not you!"

"Nope…" Nicky muttered, staring at the floor. "Not me." This was a lot harder than he'd anticipated and he felt like crap for dragging it out in front of Rod.

"Nicky's the greatest guy I know." Rod said gently. "It took me a long time to realise that what I am is nothing to be ashamed of and that Nicky would always stick by me. I should've known that all along, really."

Nicky felt even worse at that statement as he hesitantly glanced at his roommate to receive a small, understanding smile. "I have something to add to that." He said quickly, before he could change his mind.

"Uh-huh?" Kate asked, looking at him interestedly.

"Rod and I…are…We're together." He rushed, blushing furiously as he dropped his head back to stare at the floor. "Only like a few hours ago, but we…we love each other."

Kate had gasped excitedly and was now clapping her furry hands together in happiness. "Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, this is the greatest thing!"

Nicky laughed, pleased at her reaction and even more so at Rod's expression.

"I knew it, Nicky! I totally knew you had a crush on Rod!" Kate was practically bouncing up and down on the sofa. "Oh, I'm so happy!"

"Yeah." Princeton looked surprised. "Yeah, congratulations! That's awesome!"

"Thank you." Rod smiled, looking so relaxed and content as Kate flung her arms around him. "Really. Thanks so much, you guys."

As they all chatted, Nicky simply looked at his life-long best friend, an emotion swelling in his chest which he could only call love. He found himself suddenly eager for the other two to leave so he could show him just how much he cared for him…

"Well, we should really be going." Princeton admitted, getting up from the armchair. "Kate and I were heading to the Around the Clock Café, if you wanna come?"

"Thanks for the offer, but we're just a little tired." Rod said, taking off his glasses to rub his eyes. "Sorry. Another time, though. Promise."

"Yeah." Nicky gave a nod of his head. "That'd be fun. See you guys later."

As the goodbyes were exchanged, Nicky led them to the apartment door, receiving one last hug from Kate before closing and locking it.

"That was…nice." He said, chuckling slightly as he walked back to Rod and put his arms around him.

"Yes, it was." Rod agreed softly, nuzzling his head against Nicky's shoulder. "Thank you, Nicky. Thank you."

"Nothin' to thank me for." Nicky replied, kissing Rod's lips and gently moving down to his neck.

Rod arched his back, moaning slightly as Nicky placed his hands on his hips to draw him nearer as he continued to suck on his warm flesh. Their hips bumped together and Rod could hear how hard Nicky's heart was beating through his t-shirt.

"Oh…Nicky…" Rod whispered, raking his hands through the scruffy black hair of his roommate. "Nicky…"

"Rod…" Nicky moaned back, gently trailing his hands down Rod's chest, lifting up his t-shirt. It was possibly the best thing Rod had ever heard.

He was elated. He was passionate. And above all, he had never felt so secure and content in his whole life. Just by being in Nicky's arms, he was complete. And one thing was for sure, he thought to himself as Nicky continued to kiss him and rake his hands over his body, now he had the opportunity to be as loud as the hell he wanted.

And dear God, was he going to make that happen.

Fin