Summer Rain
Home in New York
It was past midnight, and way past Cha-Cha's bedtime. She had been sleeping. Actually, legitimately sleeping too, not the 'sleeping' that often occurred in their bedroom. She'd been startled awake, nearly impossible for her to get back down.
The thing about New York City was the excess of tall buildings. When thunder and lightning decided to strike, it was, simply put, heart attack inducing. Really an awful racket, and despite how deep a sleeper Cha-Cha was, even she couldn't get through a night with thunder.
"I hate New York. Let's move," she grumbled sleepily, folding the pillow over her ears and turning onto her side.
Ed didn't open his eyes as he felt around for her. "Sure," he slurred, not paying too much attention to what was going on. "Whatever you want." He draped an arm over her side. It was too late to be up. Or was it early? The thunder hadn't bothered him, but she'd jumped a little and that woke hm.
Cha-Cha watched him in awe, shaking her head. "How are you sleeping through this?" she asked. Her eyelids were drooping again, but another bang opened them for good. After a few seconds she gave up on covering her ears, squeezing her eyes shut.
One eye opened to see a drag queen in distress. With an amused sigh he moved around so he could hold her, pulling her back to his chest. "Better?" Girls were such wimps. It was just a little noise.
"Kinda," she replied softly, a smile appearing slowly on her lips. Definitely, absolutely, always when he held her that way. But he didn't need to know that, did he? No need for him to get a big head or anything. Hers was big enough for the both of them. "What time is it?" she asked, too tired and lazy to look at the clock herself.
Ed groaned a bit as he leaned up and over her to see the clock. "Three," he said, falling back down. "What are we doing up at this hour? It's just rain, hun." He yawned. A little rain never hurt anyone.
"It's not just rain!" Cha-Cha protested, pulling his arm tighter around her. "It's...it's thunder so they say. More like the end of the world but yknow," she sighed. There it went again, a large roar from outside, causing the drag queen in his arms to jump.
She was too cute. "You're alright, you're fine," he cooed like he was talking to a child. "Roll over and face me, sweetheart, maybe that will help." The arm on top of her loosened it's grip slightly. He accepted the fact that he was not going back to sleep.
"'M not scared," Cha-Cha insisted stubbornly. The next bang from outside proved her bluff. Jumping, she flipped over and against him faster than the flashing lightning. "Much," she continued, smiling weakly. At least she had him there to protect her. She hated storms.
Ed held her firmly, suddenly fine with the storm. He didn't mind comforting her. Not at all. In fact it should storm more often, because while they always held each other as they drifted off to sleep, he was rarely clung to like this. Not bad. "This is what I'm around for, hun. What else can I do to help?"
Cha-Cha shrugged, pulling the blankets up over them higher. The other thing about rain; it made the whole room cold. Maybe that was just her. But it felt cold. She snuggled close to him gratefully, her arms around him tightly. "Tell the thunder to shut up so I can sleep," she mumbled with a grin. Lightning she was fine with, thunder was annoying.
"Shut up," he said to the ceiling, pretending he was looking through it to the sky. It simply rumbled back. "Great, now he's angry. Sorry." He tried.
Ed agreed, the room was colder. The blanket was so high it might as well be over their heads. Hmm. With a chuckle he pulled it up further, completely covering them and creating a small hiding place.
Cha-Cha laughed, ducking her head under the covers with him. It didn't block out the noise that well, but it made the whole situation better. She felt closer to him than she had before, and clung to him a bit tighter. "I dunno...it's still pretty scary," she grinned. Not really, but she wouldn't object to being held even closer...
He would be happy to oblige, if he could figure out how. "Hon, I don't think...how..." Open to suggestions. He wrapped both of his legs around one of hers.
Cha-Cha giggled, shifting against him a bit. Okay, it was hard to get much closer than they already were. "Or you could just kiss me. That works too," she teased, playfully trying to pull her leg free.
"I thought about that, but it's not very original." He squeezed his legs lightly so she couldn't escape. Regardless of whether or not it'd been done before, he kissed her. Finally a thunder clap that didn't make her jump. "Am I going to have to do this all night?" he said, pretending to whine.
"You poor thing, so hard done by. Keeping your girlfriend happily generally ensures your happiness too," she reminded him, her mouth travelling to his jaw. When she was happy, she found ways to make his life wonderful. When not...watch out.
"True." Ed's hands caught her and brought her mouth back to his. He wanted to , since he was trying to calm her, shouldn't he be the only participant and she the recipient? It was his turn to go for the jaw, and then neck, and wherever else he felt like traveling.
Cha-Cha laughed, her eyes closing again as he kissed her. That reminded her how tired she actually was, the storm waking her up in the middle of a dream. Another crash from outside opened her eyes again, and she ran her hand along his back.
Ed looked up from her collar bone. Oh come on, she'd had her eyes closed and everything! It's on now, he thought to the thunder. "Is it just the noise that bothers you?" he asked, going back to what he'd been doing. One hand absently felt around until he found the hand on him, taking it and moving it to rest beside them, lacing their fingers together. The other one after. He moved a little lower down her chest. She couldn't reach him with her mouth and he had both her hands hostage. Oh, frustrating someone didn't help to relax them? Oops.
Cha-Cha raised an eyebrow, watching him go. "Aren't you tired?" she teased, struggling to free a hand from his. Just one hand. She felt like she could easily sleep in any quiet moment, but he seemed determined to change her mind. "It's 3AM," she reminded him, touching him with one of her free feet. See? He couldn't hold down everything!
He forgot he didn't have that leg. Not that he really needed to hold her down or anything, it was just more fun. Ed looked up again with a laugh. "Are you seriously going to wake me up, ask me to make you feel better, and then when I try to, tell me to go to sleep?" Not fair.
Cha-Cha watched him. "What would you do if I did just do that?" she asked slowly. She was more amused by the fact that 'calming her down' automatically involved pinning her down and getting on top of her. Even at three o clock in the morning. He could justify it for any number of reasons but at the end of the day, was that not what was happening?
"I'd tell you that you were out of luck, because the thunder and I have a competition going on now. And you're in the middle of it." Ed could tell what she was thinking. She was too easy to read when she was tired. He released her leg and hands and rolled over onto his back, bringing her with him. There, now she was on him and he could wrap his arms around her waist. How did this help? He'll let you know when he figured it out. What he did figure out was that it got really hot really fast with both of them breathing under the comforter.
Cha-Cha grinned, leaning up to kiss his neck slowly. That was more like it. Now she could control how far they went and how fast they got there, rather than him pinning her down. Being still tired, the kisses were lazy, pressed to whatever was closest in her reach.
Ed smiled and sunk deeper into his pillow. He knocked the blanket back a bit for a little air. Not to mention light, he could hardly see her. Did she look scared still? With the little light coming in he could see she looked pretty much normal. Good.
It hadn't thundered in a suspiciously long time. He'd gotten her to smile, and laugh, so maybe he'd won and it had give up.
Cha-Cha shifted a bit, leaning over him to kiss him chastely. "Is it slowing down?" she mumbled, resting her head back down on his chest. Maybe then she could get some sleep. If he was going to let her, that was. Ed could be more distracting than the thunder was.
"Sounds like it." Too soon, he thought with a sigh. She probably wanted to get back to sleep. That had originally been what he wanted too, but now he was having fun. His hands were looped loosely around her waist still. He contemplated moving then a little lower. Was he going to get swatted for it? Wouldn't know unless he tried...
Cha-Cha rolled her eyes, grinning. She called it. "Good. We can go back to sleep then," she murmurred, punctuating it with a too-loud yawn. Now to see if he'd let his wandering hands stop and let her sleep or not. She was guessing not.
"Honey," he murmured, low and inviting. "We're both up. Might as well enjoy it." His hands ran down and then up to the middle of her back again, massaging slowly. She was not going to wake him up just to shoot him down.
"Baby, it's three am. Keep doing that and I'll definitely fall asleep," Cha-Cha added, snuggling deeper into his arms. How could he be so into her so late? "You're such a man," she added with a grin, closing her eyes insistantly. Always in the mood. He would have been perfectly content to sleep the night away if the storm hadn't woken them up.
That didn't work. He stopped massaging her. Yeah he would have slept but now he wanted to play. It was her fault! She started it! Or maybe it was him he didn't really remember. He just knew that if he tried out all her sensitive spots eventually he'd hit the one that worked tonight.
But first, to properly do that...he had to flip them over.
Cha-Cha sighed as he flipped her, that grin not disappearing. A sleepy grin, but nonetheless. "Honey, if we have sex now, I won't want to tomorrow," a total lie and they both knew it. "Wouldn't you prefer I was actually awake enough to return the favours?"
"Fine, no sex." This wasn't sex, so he could continue. Spot one, her thighs. He rubbed slow, deliberate circles on the inside of her legs with his thumbs. Watching for the slightest reaction that meant it was having an effect.
Cha-Cha bit her lip, her eyes sliding closed. Okay, fine. That was allowed. Very, very allowed. Wait...wasn't that letting him win? She wasn't sleeping! Taking his wrists, she moved them away, swallowing hard. "Good night, honey. Get some sleep," she told him.
Ed didn't fight her, and let her remove him. What to try next... Spot two, chest. Each hand went for a nipple. If he did it wrong she'd laugh. Right, he could get her to arch up a bit. The better reaction. He even got her to gasp occasionally. But they were under that damn comforter and it went smoother when he could see what he was doing.
He did it right. Cha-Cha tried to control her breathing, very, very awake now. Not that he could know that. After a few minutes she grabbed his hands again, relctantly taking them off her. "Edward," she warned in her most stern voice. Hard to do when you were ridiculously turned on. "Do I have to tie your hands together?" she asked, wiggling to get out from under him. It took her still sleepy brain approximately five seconds to realize what she said. "Keep your dirty comments to yourself," she added with a barely hidden grin.
His hands followed her arms to her own hands. Never threaten that to a detective if you weren't serious. "Sweetheart, just say the word..." he began, kissing her throat, "and I'll get the handcuffs."
"I said, keep the dirty..." Cha-Cha swallowed again as he kissed her. No, no no, it was three in the morning and she was tired. They'd been sleeping. It was not sex time. And he should not have been so good at changing her mind! Somewhere in the distance, the thunder continued to roar. "You are beyond evil, Green."
"You're doing it to yourself. If you'd just stop fighting me..." All would be fine. Really now. What was so hard?
Cha-Cha huffed. "I'm tired, Ed. Why didn't you hit me up earlier if this was what you wanted?" she whined. As much as she wanted to roll over though, dumb, simple curiosity got in the way. "Do you really have handcuffs?" she asked quietly with wide eyes.
He smirked. "Of course I do." Came with the job. Detective's weren't all work and no play. "And I would have but you wanted to go to sleep early. Being the gentleman that I am," Ed grinned, "I let you."
"So you see fit to do this at three am?" she sighed. But the handcuffs thing...was sort of kind of interesting. She tried not to be too obviously into the idea, but it was going to be very hard to get back to sleep.
"Absolutely." No hesitation whatsoever. Why wouldn't three am be a good time?
Spot three wasn't really a spot. More like a tactic. Lightly thrusting his hips against her, teasing her, knowing she could feel that only so much fabric was between her and a very ready him.
((Im sorry, did you wanna keep this fluffy I seriously dont know whats gotten into Ed this week. He never used to do this o0))
That was it. That was absolutely it. Cha-Cha shoved him off of her with all the strength she had, pushing him forcefully onto the other side of the bed. It was easy to create the illusion she was angry. It was hard to keep it when she ended up following him, climbing on top. If this was happening, if he was waking her up at three am, then he could forget being in control. He'd get what he wanted, but it would be on her terms.
Ed awoke, still feeling quite smug. He knew he could get her to give in. And for the record, she was the one who had woken him up first. He just insisted they stay up a bit later than planned.
It was probably after noon. He didn't want to look for a clock or his cell. Poking his head out from under the blanket he had to blink quickly, blinded by light. Yeah. Had to be after noon. Good thing it was a Saturday with nothing planned.
"Cha-Cha, you awake?"
Barely. Moaning softly, Cha-Cha shifted a bit. "...no," she replied finally, her eyes staying shut. Though she could see red, the light from the afternoon sun glaring into the room. It was too early to be up. Then again, it was at three am, too, and he didn't seem to care too much. Dick. Literally.
"Good morning," he smiled. He was partially under her, and he shifted her around enough so he could prop himself up on one elbow. "You still look tired, hun. Rough night?"
Cha-Cha sighed, really not interested in being awake. "You are mean," she muttered, rolling over to face away from him. "And you know...you took advantage of me," she added, grinning so he couldn't see. She didn't mention how much she liked being taken advantage of.
Ed placed a hand on her arm, squeezing her lightly as he joked. "Honey you were yelling a lot of stuff, but you never once yelled stop. And no means no, but I didn't hear that either."
Cha-Cha bit her lip, grinning. "It was the fatigue. I couldn't think right," she protested. No, she definitely couldn't think right, though it wasn't so much sleeo-depravation putting her mind in a tizzy. More like his hands. And some other body parts.
"Mmm," he nodded. He let go, getting slightly bored with her back facing him. "You feel like lunch?" he asked. "We ought to get up. It's probably past twelve."
"I want breakfast," she sighed, pulling the blankets back over her. She wanted to go back to sleep. She wasn't getting very much lately. Giving up, she tilted her head back a bit to look at him without having to roll over. "Compromise? Brunch?"
"Sure." He was more awake than her, and once his eyes adjusted to the brightness of the room he got up and headed for the kitchen without much problem. He was used to weird hours. And he didn't feel any need to complain about last night. Besides, she was the one who pounced on him. He was just playing around. He had agreed to no sex. Completely innocent was Ed. "What do you feel like, I'll bring it to you."
"Whatever," Cha-Cha called back, cuddling deeper into the bed. She could eat anything, as long as she wasn't forced to move too much. Yes, she was going to be lazy that day. It was Saturday, she was allowed.
Did they even have food in this place? he wondered. Cereal. Boring. Fruit? ...sure. Why not? Oh, coffee was needed, definitely. He gathered a few other things so she'd have a choice. Found a small tray to put it on. Returned to the princess still hiding under the covers.
Cha-Cha smiled at him as he came in, finally sitting up. "I hope that's coffee," she added. She was not in a tea mood. She needed some waking up. "Remind me to never ever stay up past midnight ever again," she added. Though to be fair, she'd fallen asleep as soon as it was over.
"Mm, can't promise anything. But I might remind you." Wasn't he caring? Ed handed her a mug. "Sleeping Beauty emerges."
Cha-Cha smirked. "Beauty. Right. I haven't washed my face or anything today," she made a face, running her tounge along her teeth quickly. Gross. She gladly took the coffe though, blowing on it gently before taking a sip.
"You look fine," he said, smiling behind his own coffee cup. They both needed a trip to the bathroom, but he didn't see either going any time soon. He munched on the fruit he'd found.
"Thank you for lying," Cha-Cha teased, stealing a piece for herself. "Well, I would've been washed and dressed by now, on a regular day," she added, rolling her eyes.
"But you're getting brunch in bed. It can't be that bad." Still sitting up he pulled the top blanket over his legs to get warm again. After watching her for a moment he snickered. "You went to sleep early. You slept in late. How could a little break in the middle leave you this tired?"
'Because, it...took alot of energy," Cha-Cha complained. She'd already been tired as it was. He made her stay up for another however long it was. And it wasn't like they were just lying there, either. She grabbed a few more fruit pieces, rubbing her eye quickly.
Ed munched on a bagel, still amused. He felt fine. Almost perfectly awake. Almost sorry she was so tired. Almost.
Cha-Cha rolled her eyes at him, downing a good amount of coffee in one go. "Don't you dare laugh at me. This is your fault," she instructed him. She had wanted to sleep. He made it awfully difficult.
"I don't see why you're complaining. I made you forget about the storm, didn't I?" He considered it a job well done. "You always whine the morning after," he joked. "And I had agreed to no sex, remember? You jumped on me."
Cha-Cha stared at him. "Okay, you are not blaming this on me. Do not even try," she told him in disbelief. No way was it getting pinned on her. Was he crazy? Did he want hot coffee on him? Cha-Cha was easily provoked when she was tired. "It' hard not to have sex when you're...undulating on me," she added.
"I'm not blaming you," he said. As if it were something bad. "I'm giving you the proper credit. There's a difference. It's a positive thing, Cha-Cha."
He took a sip of his coffee. "Do you have plans for the day?" Did she need to be up and dressed and out of the apartment by a certain time?
"Not so much," Cha-Cha admitted before she could think better of it. Oh no. If she had no plans, and he had no plans...she could pretty much see the wheels in his head turning. "Don't be getting ideas though. I haven't gotten much sleep lately, thanks to you, so I should probably catch myself up."
"Fine," he said. "I felt like going out anyway. It'll leave the apartment nice and quiet for you." When was the last time he'd gone out without her? Seen his friends for more than a quick drink after work?
Oh. So he didn't have any wild and crazy adventured planned for them. "Fine," she shrugged. Well, she was tired anyway. Though the coffee's buz was edging away at her bleariness. "What are you going to do with them?" she asked.
Oh he had. But he wasn't going to admit to being so disappointed. And he tried hard enough last night. She wasn't going to make him beg twice in a row, was she? Not if she was just going to whine afterward anyway. He shrugged at her question. "I dunno. Whatever comes to mind."
Cha-Cha nodded, biting her lip. No, she was not disappointed he was leaving. Being disappointed was letting him win. Besides, she didn't want to sleep with him anyway. Nope. Not at all. "That's nice," she said softly, not a very good actress. But she couldn't let him know that he was very, very much wanted. Didn't need him to get a big head. He was already gloating enough about last night.
Yes, but it was getting very disheartening very fast in here. "Take a nap and you can come," he suggested, moving the food around enough so he could get up without anything falling over. "Meet a few of them." One at a time was good if they were coming to the apartment. If he took her out with him she could handle more than one, right? He'd be with her and getting her attention so no one else would be jealous if she picked a favorite.
Well that wouldn't be so bad. Sleep, then meet some friends? She'd only wanted to meet them for months. "I like that idea," she decided, putting the tray on the side table and wrapping her arms around his waist. What? There was no point in lying in bed if they weren't holding each other. "Who will I get to meet?"
Ed looked down at the arms around him. He'd planned on getting up to shower, but if she was going to show some interest in him without him starting it today he could wait. With the brunch stuff gone he shifted back to laying down. "Vaughn, probably. David or Eric...I'm not sure. Group changes each time." David, if he remembered correctly, was the one who mentioned him meeting at a place nearby. Ed had said he'd try but no promises, might be busy.
Cha-Cha nodded, resting her head on his chest, her hand joining it. She had no problem getting up close to him when she was initiating it. And after a good-ish night's sleep. "Where do you think we'll go?" she added, kissing his chest gently.
"That thing around the corner and down that I never remember the name of," he answered. They went there all the time, he knew how to get there, and that's why it had been suggested, but he never remembered the name. He smirked when she kissed him. What happened to 'I'm tired and it's all your fault'?
"Mm," Cha-Cha nodded, signalling that she knew where he was talking about. Not that she really cared at the moment. More focused on trailing those kisses up to his neck. Hey, if he could be horny last night, at a totally inappropriate time mind you, she could be now. And he had to let her win, since he won last night! Not without some convincing of course but...she was hoping Ed would forget that part.
He had no interest in playing hard to get. He wasn't even sure it was possible for him. Glad they were starting off undressed. Just made things so much easier. "Mmm," Ed hummed happily. "Getting your second wind, my dear?"
Cha-Cha smirked, her hand travelling up his chest to rest on his neck. "Well you know. Coffee just wakes me right up," she mumbled, the kisses trailing up his neck to press against the ear slowly.
Ed moved until he could catch her mouth with his. He pressed a hand against her lightly, urging her to roll onto her back, wanting to follow after and onto her in case she was just teasing him and planning to get up in a minute. "What time do you want to go out?" he asked. "After dinner?"
Cha-Cha easily rolled onto her back, even helping to pull him onto her. "I dunno, um..." it was hard to say. Well, more like hard to think. About anything. "After this. Figure out the other details afterwards," she decided, her legs already bent at the knee, her feet flat on the mattress.
She was...her legs...that was...wait a minute. "This is too easy," he said, looking up from her neck. Should he be suspicious or relieved? He didn't mean to imply she was easy. She was ridiculously hard to get sometimes, even after all the time they'd been together. Which was why this was surprising. He wondered why he was even questioning this.
Cha-Cha rose an eyebrow at his confused face. Okay, that was never a good one to see when a man was on top of her. "What is?" she asked, bringing one leg teasingly around his waist. Why would he think she had an ulterior motive? Cha-Cha never had an ulterior motive. She was a perfectly honest angel.
"This. You never..." Well, hey, why fight it? "Never mind." He resumed kissing her. Grabbed her hips.
...it was just too easy. He tried not to think about it, but he couldn't move on from simply kissing her.
Cha-Cha broke the kiss, keeping one hand at the back of his neck as the other wandered. "I never what?" she asked innocently. Her tongue ran along her bottom lip quickly, trying not to show any emotion on her face.
Well, okay, 'never' wasn't the right word. She pounced on him regularly. But she was just complaining ten minutes ago. Now no coaxing was needed? Make up your mind, woman.
She was right there. Under him. Undressed. Leg around him. Waiting. There wasn't a problem here. He'd go with it. Yeah. Finally, no begging. Ed was experiencing a great example of the 'careful what you wish for' scenario. But he was forgetting the suspicion more and more. "Never mind," he said again. He kissed her again, more into her change of attitude.
Cha-Cha grinned, returning the kiss. Whatever suspicions he was having, she wasn't surprised they were ebbing away. What could she say? She was irresistable.
((skip ahead?))
((mkay))
Ed played with her short curls, not surprised her head ended up back on his chest. Happy sigh. A nice change of attitude, indeed. "We've still got plenty of time before anyone would be there," he said absently. "Do you want to go out to a movie or something? A...three hour dinner. I bet we could make it last that long if we tried."
Cha-Cha moaned as a response, rubbing her cheek against his chest gently. Apparently her brain hadn't gotten the memo it was talk time now. Try again. "Yeah, okay," she nodded, her eyes closed. Not that she was all that tired...a little tired, but she'd live. She was insanely comfortable though, and the thought of moving to go anywhere was unwelcome. It had to happen sometime though, right? "Where do you wanna eat?"
"We'll find something. We always do." He'd gone through the kitchen today. Nothing exciting for brunch, even less for dinner. Did they ever have food? "Come on, rise and shine." He started to sit up slowly.
Cha-Cha was about to protest, but couldn't work up the nerve. She sat up slowly, getting out of bed and searching for fresh clothes. The closet would probably be the best place to look. Good job, brain. Looking inside, she bit her lip. "Did...did we do laundry this week?" she asked slowly. There were a few things she could wear...all old and not the best fit. Nothing she'd be thrilled to meet his friends in. Wonderful.
Did they even do it last week? "No, but hun you look good in anything. And in nothing. But preferably anything since we're leaving." He would wear the first thing he found. He didn't need to impress anyone.
Cha-Cha bit her lip harder, shifting through the very back of the clothesrack. Something had to be decent, right? No leather. No pleather. No...weird furry skirt thing. Ew. Seemingly matching furry vest thing was also out. What was she honestly thinking when she went out sometimes? "Okay...what's worse," she started. "Bare midriff or ridiculously short dress?" either one would be business as usual on a regular occasion, but these were his friends.
"Worse? That's not what I'd say." Both sounded great to him. His friends, for the most part, probably would agree. "I vote dress. Haven't seen you in one for a while." Normally skirts.
Cha-Cha nodded, pulling the dress out. She wasn't kidding when she said short. The skirts he enjoyed so much would be modest in comparison. "Remind me to do a wash," she told him. Pause. "Better yet, remind me to remind you to do a wash."
"I will, I will, eventually. I miss some of your stuff anyway. Do you want the bathroom?" She would need the mirror, right? He'd just change in the bedroom and be done in two minutes.
Cha-Cha looked at him odd. "Honey, I think I've seen you naked before. It's okay," she teased. She went to their dresser in search of underwear and tights. "So what are your friends like?"
"Well I didn't know if you wanted a shower. And if I was in there too we'd never get anywhere." Actually, he needed one. Good thing he brought it up.
"Oh I don't know. Typical friends." He headed for the bathroom.
"It would probably be a good idea," Cha-Cha nodded. She followed him in. No, they'd never get out the door if they showered together, but she needed to brush her teeth. Wash her face. Choose a wig. Then she'd get in after him. "I don't know what typical guy friends are like," she reminded him.
"Well you know. Typical in any kind of crowd. There always has to be the quiet one, the loud one, the flirt..." He set the clothes he'd grabbed onto the counter. When the water was warm he got into the shower and continued. "Each one becomes obvious after just half an hour."
Cha-Cha grinned, squeezing some toothpaste onto her brush. "Am I going to be fighting off men, Eddie?" she to him called over the sound of the running water. As she brushed, she forced her eyes forward to keep them away from the shower. Of course, the mirror infront of her gave her a clear view. Sighing, she turned her body a bit.
"I'll be fighting them off, you'll be having fun," he guessed, just teasing anyway. Ed was the one and only man in the group to have dated a drag queen. Well, okay, Steve had a single date. That didn't count. He knew the old philosophy of the two involved having no interest in dating a queen because the point of being gay was to date men, not women. But they'd be fine with her seeing Ed. Whatever he wanted, right? And maybe they'd change their minds? They were easily influenced. The other two, if they were there, were extremely curious. Those would be the two that, if anyone was going to be fought of, would be. Didn't help that one of said two was the flirt.
"Naturally," Cha-Cha giggled, putting her brush back and grabbing a face cloth. As long as they knew who she was going home with, they'd have no problems. And as long as they weren't as stupid as her own friends. "How many are there in all?"
Ed thought about it. "Around ten. But usually only four or five show up." They tried to meet regularly, but they'd only once had everyone present. The first time they started their weekly meetings years ago. Aside from last week Ed hadn't gone for months, too busy trying to see Cha-Cha, and others missed for their own reasons.
"Anybody you don't like?" Cha-Cha could resist asking. Hey, there was already one or two! Just because your friends were friends with somebody didn't mean you liked them. There were tons of queens Cha-Cha could do without.
"Should I tell you after so you aren't biased?" In other words yes. He could survive without David. Normally he didn't bother Ed much, but he currently was on a 'Cha-Cha is stealing all your time' kick. Every conversation lead up to it eventually. It was getting annoying. His friend didn't understand just how difficult it had been to see her.
"Meaning there's somebody," Cha-Cha giggled. "On second thought, don't tell me. I'll try to guess for myself." It couldn't be so hard, right? If Ed didn't like him, she probably wouldn't either. Plus, she'd be able to tell from his face.
"It's not that I don't like him exactly, he's just been...dumb, lately." Hopefully he'd be better tonight. "Good luck," he said, honestly interested if she'd figure it out. Grabbing for a towel he came out, drying off quickly.
"I'm extremely good at detecting annoying-ness," Cha-Cha informed him. Poking his bare stomach as she swapped places with him in the shower. Just because it was there. "As long as they're better than my friends, we'll be fine."
"Yeah, you haven't done much to bother them." Not compared to him killing anyone. "Be nice when you figure it out." His only request. Or he'd be hearing about his abusive time stealing girlfriend.
"I will! I will I will. Can I do like the back-hand compliments and stuff though? Like..." Cha-Cha shrugged, thinking about it. "'Oh Eddie, your friend's so cute!...you know, for a white boy'?" she grinned. That wasn't fair though, white boys were very cute. But an annoying guy wouldn't be as cute as her Ed anyway. It worked out.
He considered this. Anyone who wasn't being insulted would find it funny. Win three lose one. "That's up to you," he decided. "But if you piss them all off, I can only take so many in a fight" he teased.
"Okay fine. What about... "oh, nice sweater! My mum got me one just like it when I was five," Cha-Cha thought that one was pretty good, actually. For something that took five seconds to come up with.
Ed laughed. "Again, do whatever you want, say whatever you want. But I can only take on two. Maybe three if one is Steve." She could joke around. Just don't flat out insult them. He had to see them again even if she didn't.
"Ed, I am a very nice lady. Your friends will love me," Cha-Cha assured him. "And even if they don't you still will. Or at least you'd better," she warned him. Hey, she didn't dump him when Rusty and Grace wanted him to! And she would've had better reasons for it.
"I know, I'm very lucky." Lovers like her were hard to find. His friends would need something more than 'She sorta insulted me' to get him to consider walking away.
He was dressed before she was out, and he sat on the counter, waiting. "I'm sure everyone will like everyone."
"I hope so," Cha-Cha nodded. She was in for another ten minutes, alternating between singing loudly and making off the top of her head comments. Finally she was out, wrapping the towel around her whole body like a woman would.
"Why don't you air dry," he suggested with a grin. "We've got time, I'll watch. I mean wait?" Intentional mix up couldn't be helped. Honestly sometimes he didn't know what happened. He was almost shy around her in the first few months. He'd been more of a gentleman. Commented on how gorgeous she was. Now he just bluntly said how much he wanted her. Which was fun and saved time, but wasn't the gentlemanly thing to do.
Cha-Cha giggled, raising an eyebrow. "Sure you don't want to just help?" she asked, only half kidding. That would very much make them late. If it didn't lead to other things, it would at least distract them. But like he said, they had time right? She teasingly offered him the towel, smirking.
There was nothing in the world Ed wanted more than to just grab that towel.
"You're such a tease," he said, trying to convince himself he wasn't imagining what part of his lover would need the most attention. Hey, some spots were hard to reach...
There would be more than distractions if that was started. "Another time. Or I'd need another shower."
Cha-Cha giggled, shrugging. "Fine then. You should probably just leave the bathroom, then, if that's what you're worried about," she teased. Hey, she needed to get towel-dry somehow! If he wouldn't do it for her, she'd have to do it herself. But that had the potential to have the same effect on him as if he were doing it.
"I probably should." But he stayed put. It couldn't get him that worked up, right? She toweled off in front of him in the morning before. No problem. Why would this be different?
"Suit yourself," Cha-Cha shrugged, sitting down on the edge of the bathtub. Yes, she towel-dryed in front of him sometimes. But that was different. She had a purpose this time. Crossing her legs, she held one in front of her, slowly dragging the towel up the length of it.
Ed's eyes followed her every move. Didn't care if he got caught. He was allowed to look at her.
"Do you feel like dancing...or just...eating...?" He'd forgotten his own question for a moment. And she'd just started.
Cha-Cha forgot herself for a minute. "You want to go dancing? Really?? Eddie that's a great idea--" wasn't she supposed to be doing something...? Oh yeah, seducing him. Whoops. She went slowly again, not crossing her legs just yet. "Both. What are you in the mood for?" she asked with a grin. She meant in terms of food, but it could be misconstruted in other ways, she supposed. Not that is was intentional, of course...
Ah, but Ed was prepared for this. He did it to her too often. "Both." Had they never really gone out dancing? What was wrong with him? They had to have had at least one free night. He went all the time when he was single... More free time, he supposed. "When I said the thing around the corner, I meant the thing with the dancing." Specific, he knew.
Cha-Cha nodded. "Do you mean dancing dancing or club dancing?" she asked. Two very different concepts, both fun to do. In a club you could get as close as you wanted without getting arrested, but in a hall you felt like you were in an old, classic movie. Finally she switched legs, taking her time.
"Club." Ed loved her legs. A well known fact. And a well used fact, apparently. She was going painfully slow. They'd be here all day. He couldn't sit and just watch for all day. Hurry and get it over with before he had to do something.
Cha-Cha could tell he was watching her, trying to hide the grin on her face. "What's up, baby?" she asked innocently. Why was he staring at her, his mouth hanging open like that? She really did have no idea.
"Taking long enough?" Sarcasm was good for situations like these. Sound annoyed, not intrigued. He hopped off the counter. Really needed to leave before this got out of hand. "I didn't grab socks."
((ya dude, he'll be back *snickers at the hopeless Ed* ))
Cha-Cha just rolled her eyes, giggling again. Of course he didn't. When he came back--and he would come back--she'd be standing, trying to get the water off her back.
Yes indeed Ed returned. And within the thirty eight seconds he'd been gone he decided that it didn't matter if they were late. They'd be there all night.
"Just let me do it already." As if she couldn't do her own back solo. But he didn't mind. Not at all. There were a few hard to reach spots he'd be happy to help with too.
So they'd be fashionably late. Big deal.
((skip ahead again XD))
There wasn't time for another shower, so Cha-Cha tried to dress quickly. On second thought, maybe seducing him hadn't been such a great idea. She wasn't good under pressure, and beauty took time. "What's up with us lately?" she asked as she fastened some earrings in. This was three times in twenty four hours. They'd always been active, but come on...
"I don't know," he admitted, looking himself over in the mirror. Presentable. Good. "If I didn't enjoy it so much I'd say it was a problem." He hunted for shoes. "Maybe we've become addicts. There's probably a support group for it," he joked.
"I dunno, don't addicts jump on everybody? Least I only jump on you," Cha-Cha giggled. Humming as she rooted around for a necklace, she finally chose the one he'd given her. Why not? She had silver earrings on, and she could casually show off what an awesome boyfriend Ed was. Two birds, one stone. "I don't think we'd even make it through a meeting, if there was one," she added with a smirk.
"Yeah I don't see how talking about it would help. I think it'd only remind me what I was missing as I sat there. But maybe I'm addicted to just you. That's possible. Some alcoholics only drink a certain brand. I only jump a certain girl." He smiled at her jewelry choice. "Do you need help with that again?"
"Well, the thing about support groups is...they're not as fun as sex," Cha-Cha admitted bluntly. Well they weren't! "So if they wanted me to quit, they'd have to use a better tactic. Like...I dunno. Jumping on trampolines or something." Nodding, she turned her back to him, handing him the two pieces.
He hooked it together easily, asking "You'd choose a trampoline over me? That hurts." A trampoline would wear her out ten times faster, and was only a one person activity. This was good bonding time. Yeah.
"Maybe not over you, but it's more fun than just sitting in meetings. Now if you could incorporate sex into trampolines..." Cha-Cha trailed off, thinking about it. That would be something. She was sure they could do it somehow of they wanted to. Laughing, she turned around to get a view of him. "You look handsome," she commented, adjusting the collar on his shirt.
"Oh god no, it'd be the water bed all over again." Horrible, horrible time. He almost shuddered.
He felt better after the compliment. "Thank you. You look great too. And you weren't kidding, that thing is short."
Cha-Cha was almost tempted to buy a water bed. She was almost the cruel. But then she remembered he'd never sleep with her againm and the idea was out. Funny as it would be.
"You love it, baby," she reminded him with a grin, taking his hand. "You ready to go?"
"I do." After double checking that all of her that needed to be covered was, though unsure how that was possible, he was ready to leave. "Yeah."
It was a short walk to the meeting place. It was exciting and nerve wracking at the same time. What if they didn't like her? She didn't like them? She didn't like how he himself acted around them? Who knew, maybe he'd pull a Danny from Grease and be completely different.
He counted on everything going smoothly.
Cha-Cha was a little nervous too, but tried not to show it. There was always the chance they really and truly wouldn't like her. She could deal with that, but imagine they were able to change Ed's mind, too? That would be a little more devastating. Not that she thought there was a real threat of that, but...always that small possibility. "Just make me a promise?" she asked him. "Even if your friends hate me, you gotta stay with me, ok? Unless you hate me too," she laughed. She didn't think he needed to be told, but just in case.
"They'll love you, Cha-Cha, but it's a promise. Not going anywhere. Your friends aren't fond of me and you still love me, today proved that," he smirked. "So it's only fair." If he had to he'd stay away for a while. He'd gone the past few months without seeing them a lot. Not much would change.
"True," Cha-Cha beamed. Nothing Grace and Rusty said could really change that. He had a point. "If we don't end up liking each other though...how's that gonna work? Like, do we keep trying, or give up?" she asked. She still hadn't given up hope that Grace and Rusty would one day love him.
"It depends on who it is," he admitted. If it was David, Ed didn't really care. They'd been drifting anyway. Vaughn, they'd try for. But he was one of the curious ones Ed had a feeling would follow Cha-Cha around. Didn't matter that he was straight.
They'd gotten to the club fast. Maybe they could circle the block...? He held the door open for her as he searched for his friends. He grinned when he spotted them, but then laughed nervously. Oh. Seven had shown up. Great. "Hey!" they all called when they saw him. "Where ya been!" "Long time no see!" all got mixed together. And they hadn't even walked to their table yet.
Cha-Cha was sure to keep her hand in Ed's at all times, to assert her position. It was hard not to laugh at his popularity, though, squeezing his hands. "It feels like something outta 'Cheers'. If...you know, they were all gay," she laughed. She did her best to walk on her tip toes to catch a sight of his friends, though it was hard on heels. From what she could see though, not bad.
Ed lead her over and asked why so many had come tonight. He'd been expecting four.
"We heard you came last week, and that you'd probably be here again," answered one. All eyes were wide and roaming, taking all of her in. "Rumored you wouldn't be coming alone," said another. Ed looked to his innocently smiling best friend. That so? "Come on Ed, introductions!"
"Alright alright. This is Cha-Cha-" another delighted outburst of greetings "-Cha-Cha, this is Brent, Vaughn, Tom, David, Steve, Mark, and Jackson."
"We're gonna test ya later," Steve teased.
While Cha-Cha was used to attention from men, she had to admit this was pretty exciting. "Ed, your friends are cute!" she gushed, moving her arm to wrap around his waist. They were! And so friendly, too. They better be careful, or she was gonna get a big ego on her! Waving, she winked at Steve.
"I like her," Steve decided. Tom agreed. Well, that was easy. The group was around a table made for five, one of many that surrounded a dance floor. Most were sitting, the others standing. They'd left a chair open for one of the two that had just arrived. Ed sat, expecting Cha-Cha to simply sit on his lap. They were low on space, after all.
"Aw Ed, give the lady the chair," insisted Brent, waving his beer bottle at him as if to chase him away. The fact he was seated beside the previously empty chair wasn't coincidental. Steve, who had the privilege of being waved at and having the seat on the opposite side seconded Brent's suggestion. David was still eying her outfit, unimpressed.
"Aw, it's ok. I can sit with Ed," Cha-Cha teased. She was being pulled in two different ways and she didn't mind it at all. Disappointed cries came from the direction of the empty chair. "But he gets me every day. It won't kill him," she decided with a giggle, moving across to sit with Steve and Tom. It was official; she loed Ed's friends.
Ed rolled his eyes. She would ditch him. He kept an eye on David, the only one who hadn't given an enthusiastic hello. If he was annoyed with Cha-Cha getting Ed's attention, how did he feel with these two already attaching themselves to her? Mark seemed to be going that way too. He doubted Cha-Cha would notice, since Tom was now leaning down to be between Cha-Cha and Steve, wanting to give a more personal hello than the group cheer. And to prevent Steve from getting any more attention.
Vaughn was happy where he was beside Ed for the moment. Poor guy needed some love, his girl had been snatched. Smiling, he said, "Okay, I may have mentioned you promised to come tonight."
"Thanks," Ed laughed.
"Hey, I didn't think you'd bring her, you never do." He was obviously pleased Ed had.
Cha-Cha had three or four guys up in her face, and she was loving every minute of it. A ton of drinks had been offered, millions of compliments made, and the smile was not coming off her face. Looking around Mark a bit, she beamed at Ed, pretty sure he'd get her meaning from it. Not a Rusty or Grace in the crowd, that she could see. She accepted Tom's offer of a drink, giggling at the moans from the others. "He asked first!"
"You gotta tell us where you found her, Ed," Steve asked, finally tearing himself away. "And why didn't I meet her first?"
"She found me, actually, at The Life."
Steve looked depressed. "I'm there everyday." Life was not fair.
"What do you do?" asked Jackson from across the table. He wasn't eager enough to run to her side, but he was still interested.
"Assuming you do work," David added. He crossed his arms.
Assuming she did work...? She worked. Sort of. "I'm a dancer," she replied. If she could see into David's head and knew how he felt about her, she probably would have picked a better word. One that didn't suggest so many things. "Well, performer," she corrected herself slightly. If the boys' interests weren't peaked before, they certainly were now.
David was aware of Ed's above average financial status. It wouldn't be the first time that had attracted someone to the man. But Ed thought he should know that Cha-Cha was not in it for money by now. He'd told them what happened with Bunny. She wasn't with Ed so he'd support her. That would have driven her off. He shot him a 'Watch it' look.
A few eyebrows shot up at dancer. Looks to Ed like 'Seriously? Man we're jealous!' Ed glared 'Not that kind' at them when Cha-Cha wasn't looking.
Cha-Cha noticed the eyebrows. "A clothed dancer!! I dance clothed," she corrected herself quickly. A few disappointed grumbles came out, the faces dropping. Okay, so Ed's friends were a little perverted. So was he. So was she, for that matter. So it was okay. "At a drag show...Busty Rusty?"
A few of the men seemed to have heard of it. Tom rose an eyebrow. "Wasn't there some dancer there...she won Miss Flawless a couple times," a few approving mumbles. "She was hot."
"Hi," Cha-Cha grinned, absolutely tickled by this point. And they knew her title? Good lord these men were perfect.
"Oh no, don't get her started."
"What? You?!" Tom hadn't recognized her without the wig she'd worn.
"Ed! You have to tell us these things!" cried Steve.
Tom nodded vigorously. "Yeah, what are you doing with Miss Flawless? One of us would be much better suited! We're more fun!" Ed laughed and rolled his eyes. Yes yes, boring detective. He continued his conversation with Vaughn.
Mark crossed his arms, looking like a clone of David. "I haven't heard of it," he said. "I don't follow drag shows. But that sounds impressive." Monotone.
"You know Tom, I'm starting to think you're right," Cha-Cha joked, hoping she remembered his name right. She winked at Ed, to let him know she was just playing around. If it weren't for Ed though, she thought she'd probably go for Tom. What, he was cute! If there was no Ed. Only if. "It's okay hun, Ed didn't recognize me either."
((*is totally picturing Tom as Collins* XD))
((*is totally thinking you're right*))
Ed glared at her, but all in good fun. Tom jokingly put his arm around her shoulders before sticking his tongue out at Ed. "Mature." His friend snickered and let go. "I take you to Virginia Beach, he buys you one drink. I can see how I would fall short."
"Hey, whoa! I didn't get Virginia Beach!" Jackson wasn't really insulted, but he looked questioningly to Ed. "What gives?"
He didn't know what to say. He forgot he had an ex at the table. Though still a good friend, he tried not to talk about current lovers around him. "Well...Dad called and-"
Mark forgot he was being difficult long enough to interrupt with, "No parent talk tonight!"
Cha-Cha wasn't sitting beside Ed, but he was close enough that she could touch his foot with hers under the table. "Listen to your friend, baby," she suggested. He got too tense when talking about his father. Too depressed. She wanted him to be relaxed with them, and to have a good time. She was having one. She hadn't yet made the connetion that Jackson was Ed's ex. "Thank you, Marky," she added to the blonde.
((*is really picturing Mark as , too *))
Mark remembered himself and looked to someone else. Cha-Cha was informed that 'Tommy' and 'Stevie' were acceptable names.
Ed was still looking at Jackson. The two exchanged a few looks. Ed shrugged apologetically. Nothing he could do about it now, right? Brent sensed the awkward silence coming and smoothly asked Jackson if he'd dance.
"Cha-Cha, do you want to?" he asked, wanting to before someone else did. They'd never gone out dancing before, was it so wrong to want to be the first of the group to be with her?
Cha-Cha beamed. "I was hoping you'd ask sometime," she admitted. Promising Tommy and Stevie their turns would come soon too, she pushed her chair out. A fast paced song was playing, and she couldn't help but wonder if Ed Green would be a good dancer. He didn't seem like the type who would be, but he always seemed to be surprising her.
Another good surprise. Ed Green could dance. And very well. He chose a spot on the floor a good distance from his ex. "So, you seem to be enjoying yourself," he said with a smile over the music. He had known at least a few would fall over themselves to talk to her. The others, well, could be worse. Could have been a Grace.
"I love your friends!" Cha-Cha gushed. She kept close to him, but let him lead them as well as you could lead with club dancing. He seemed to know what he was doing, surprisingly. Pleasantly surprisingly. "And y'know, I think they like me," she added. She could barely breath, they were getting so close.
Ed kept his hands on her at all times. Particularly her hips. Wordlessly saying 'Mine'. "It's obvious Steve and Tom love you," he laughed. Seen that coming. Group charmer and group flirt. "Brent and Jackson are probably tied for second." David and Mark...they'd work on them after the dance. Maybe.
"Don't get jealous, now," Cha-Cha teased. She kept very close to him, closer than most people would be. But they were together, they were allowed. "What's the deal with Jackson?" she had to ask. She'd noticed the quiet moments between him and Ed.
"He and I dated a few years ago." Ended on friendly terms, but...it wasn't really the same. Never date good friends. Ed had said that they seemed more like friends than lovers. Jackson had agreed, but not convincingly.
"Oh," Cha-Cha hadn't realized he'd dated any of the men. How were they still friends? That seemed like an impossible feat to her. "Is he gonna get jealous?" she had her hands on Ed's shoulders, and brought them down a bit. "How long did you two date for?" if he said over a year, she was gonna feel a little threatened.
"No, he's fine," Ed assumed. "And we didn't see each other that long. Three months, maybe. It just seemed more like friends hanging out." With sex still involved....But still. No deep feelings. On Ed's side for sure. He could only assume Jackson honestly agreed.
Cha-Cha nodded, understanding. Sort of. She didn't have any male friends that she would ever sleep with. That was the problem, if the possibility was there, one way or another she would end up sleeping with them. Boom, ruined friendship. "So out of curiosity, is Jackson the one you don't like?"
"No, it's-" ah, wait. "I'm not telling you." Narrowed it down to six though.
"Hey Ed, switch partners?" Steve and Tom were between them in seconds. Ed had no idea how Tom had ended up in his arms. Hadn't Cha-Cha been pressed up against him? The two were magical it seemed, it also wasn't unusual for the two to be partners in crime, and off danced a triumphant Steve.
Cha-Cha wanted to feel bad for her lover. But...it was just hard when the situation was so funny, and when so many people were vying to dance with her. There was nothing unsavoury about that. She kept close to Steve, though not as close as she'd been to Ed. "So how did you meet Ed?" she asked to make conversation.
"College. It's how most of us met each other. 'Cept he and Vaughn. High school sweethearts." He laughed and added, "Completely joking. Vaughn's straight."
Ed was fine with Tom, he'd wanted to catch up anyway. After each updated the other on their lives they watched Steve and Cha-Cha, both amused. "Should we have put the two flirts together?" he asked.
"What, you worried Steve will go after her?"
Ed shook his head, laughing a little. "No I'm more worried she'll go after Steve." His friend did a double take, and he just chuckled and said "Just kidding."
"Aw, Vaughn's straight? He's the cute one though!" Cha-Cha giggled, shaking her head. "Just kidding hun, you're adorable too," she assured the disappointed Steve. Not that it would matter anyway. But it didn't hurt that her boyfriend's friends were all amazing themselves. Date-worthy, even. Though she wouldn't date them.
"How long do you think we have before I lose you?" Steve asked with a grin, eyeing Tom.
"Yeah. Can't tell, can you? We all forget until his wife shows up." He grinned at 'adorable'. While Ed insisted that detectives like himself weren't 'cute' or 'adorable', Steve was an accountant. And they were allowed to be adorable, in his opinion.
Tom meant to just say one last thing to Ed before heading over, but it reminded him of something else, that lead to another...and Brent drifted away from Jackson to Cha-Cha. Hey, every man for himself. Tom threw his hands in the air annoyed when he realized his turn was stolen, and he went to join David at the table. He'd work on the irritable friend before the couple even had time.
Ed looked at Jackson. Normally being together wasn't awkward, but then normally he didn't have a date with him. "Do you wanna join them at the table or stay and dance."
"I'm thirsty, so...table..." They walked off together to sit with the rest.
Cha-Cha was quickly danced away by Brent, laughing again. She liked Brent, too. Part of her was still wondering which one to look out for, though. She really hoped it wasn't Steve. Steve was a sweetheart. So was Tom, who finally got his turn after a couple rounds. So was Brent. Maybe...Mark? He seemed sort of jerk-ish. So did David, who'd barely said two words. Finally the dance with Tom was up, the two of them returning to the table.
Ed was in the middle of retelling one of his most dangerous cases. Although, in his friend's opinions, it was considered one of the coolest. "Lennie and I are behind the car trying to figure out where the shots are coming from...." Ended with no one hurt, but their car filled with holes.
"Another squad car bites the dust!" laughed one of them.
Ed hardly discussed anything involving his life being in jeopardy with Cha-Cha. She'd worry. The guys though would joke and wish they could have been there to see it.
Cha-Cha only heard the last bit of the story. 'Another squad car bites the dust'? More men had sat down, so she took her spot in Ed's lap."What are we talking about?" she asked, kissing his cheek quickly. Oh, disappointed faces, really. She was dating him, she had to spend at least some of the evening with him.
Ed smirked. Ha. Finally acting like she was his. As for her question, he forgot about censoring his stories for a moment and summed it up. It wasn't the long and exaggerated version, but the gun fight stayed in. His friends shook their heads, still entertained by the story. "You have all the fun," complained Steve. "I catch accounting mistakes, you catch murderers."
"Caught," Ed reminded him. "Not anymore." It sounded like a great time if you weren't the one being shot at.
Cha-Cha wasn't quite as impressed. It wasn't a threat anymore, she knew, but it was still a little to hear about her lover participating in a gunfight. "Sounds dangerous," she responded softly, her arms wrapping around his neck.
"Oh, it would be," Tom responded excitingly, quite taken with the idea. He didn't note how uncomfortable it made Cha-Cha. Typical man. "I wouldn't mind trading some of my students for that sort of life."
"Aww," cooed a few of them jokingly at her worried tone. Ed resisted the urge to roll his eyes at them, afraid it'd insult her. He settled for sighing and wrapping his arms around her waist.
Ignoring Tom's comment Mark raised an eyebrow. "Just realizing that now?"
"Hey," Ed warned.
"No!" Cha-Cha replied defensively. "But no matter when I realized it, it doesn't stop being dangerous." Good save. To be fair she had sort of realized it was dangerous...she just didn't really make the connection that death was a risk. Not till she found the scar, anyway.
"Detective work isn't easy, honey," David reminded her, with an undertone of nastiness. "It's not dancing or anything."
"Watch it," Ed said, trying to keep his voice neutral and not angry. Didn't want to get into a fight over this, and especially not his second night back with them all. He'd seen attitude from David coming. But if he was annoyed Cha-Cha was taking up too much time, upsetting the two of them wasn't the way to get Ed back.
Cha-Cha frowned, really not liking that tone on David. Yeah, she had a job that was alot easier. Alot less risky. Did that somehow put her below Ed? "Don't worry, hun, I know about danger. I'm a drag queen. Can't say I know much about gun fights, but I'm not free and easy either. Walking down the street at night, are you kidding me?" Much like the gun fights, it was something she didn't like to tell Ed. But they seemed to think she'd never faced a day's trauma, which wasn't really true.
"Not to mention some of the men in your audiences." It was a wonder Ed let her go. And he hadn't even heard the details. One of the reasons he'd never gone to her club, even with all the free time he had now, was that he didn't want to know what the crowd did. He'd enjoy her dancing just fine, not so much some of the reactions to it.
Ed wouldn't like it. Some men got too drunk, got too close. Some men didn't need to be drunk to be abusive. "Poor thing," Mark commented, and it was hard to tell if he was patrionizing her or not. Most likely, but he tried to hide it.
"Speaking of dancing though, do you want to again, I didn't get a very long turn with you." He was asking her, but still eying David warily. Some of the others were looking at him and Mark curiously too.
"I didn't at all," commented Vaughn.
"Yeah, but, you're straight."
"So I get left out?"
Ed laughed. "Maybe after. If I'm getting a chance now, that is."
"I'd love to, baby," Cha-Cha nodded, getting up off his lap. It was funny, before she felt great around his friends. Now she had the distinct feeling she was unwanted. Maybe that was just how his friends were? She'd have to ask him when they were alone together.
Ed held her tightly, safely away from the rest. Well, Jackson grabbed Vaughn to dance as a joke, but they were quite a good distance away too. It didn't last long before the straight one laughed and walked back to the table. "Think you could give Vaughn a minute or two later? He's been dying to meet you but for some reason is shy tonight." He'd expected him to latch on faster than Steve.
"Sure," Cha-Cha beamed. She liked Vaughn so far. She had no reason to dislike Vaughn. But, some of his other friends... "I think I'm starting to figure out which ones you don't like," she admitted with a frown. She kept even closer to him, showing off a little, reminding them who Ed was in love with.
"David and Mark? They'll be fine after awhile." Ed kissed her quickly. "Focus on the rest." The group had gotten a little quiet, unsure what to do when David and Mark started on Cha-Cha. Side with the cute drag queen, their friend, or just watch? Watching seemed good. "I'm sorry about those two," he added.
Cha-Cha nodded, kissing him a bit deeper than he'd kissed her, but keeping it friend-friendly. Maybe trying to keep them aware a little, that he loved her and all, but nothing crazy. "The rest of them are amazing," she assured him. "I love Steve, Tom, Brent..."
"Good. Not too overwhelming, with the seven of them? I thought we'd start slow, but someone mentioned you'd be here." Ed glanced over her shoulder to the table. He grinned. David had Steve and Tom on either side, both talking quickly, brows furrowed and looking determined. "Your fan club is already starting in on David."
"What's his problem?" Cha-Cha asked with a sigh, shaking her head. What did she ever do to him? She was making his friend happy, you'd think that would be a point in her favour. "I can't figure out why he doesn't like me. Did I say something to offend him?" she couldn't think of what that would be, but...
"No, you didn't do anything. Like I said on the way here, he's been acting weird lately. Annoyed that I spend every second with you. Or at least that's what he hinted at. If I get back into the habit of seeing them weekly maybe he'll be himself again." He thought for anything else it might be. "I'm the only one who's dated a drag queen," he admitted. "Maybe he's not used to...having a girl around."
"But I'm barely..." Cha-Cha shrugged. Yes, she saw herself as a girl, and she acted like one. But she was used to people seeing her as a male. Even though Ed didn't. "You think that's what it is?"
"I think it's more the first issue than that, actually," Ed said. Even if it weren't, that's what he was going to insist. They were all told if they were going to have an issue to back off. If they didn't like it, wait to hang out with him when he was solo.
Cha-Cha didn't see how that was her fault. It wasn't like she made him spend all his time with her. Not that she minded it, either...but if he wanted to spend time with David, he would have. "What, does he think I'm forcing you not to see them or something?" she asked with a frown. She saw her friends enough times over the week, it wouldn't make sense for her to try to...ban him from seeing his.
"I don't know what's going on. Maybe he doesn't like your shoes. It could be anything. He could be mad at me for something I haven't figured out yet and be taking it out on you. Just don't let him ruin the evening."
Vaughn tapped Ed's shoulder. "My turn?" Ed didn't feel like talking to Mark and David, and the only one currently away from the table was Jackson. Well...sure. He'd go with that. He kissed Cha-Cha on the cheek and left her with his best friend.
Cha-Cha's POV:: Vaughn was cute, she had to admit that much. "This is the first time I ever danced with a straight guy," she admitted with a giggle, putting her hands on his shoulders. Pause. "Well, the second time, but that first guy wasn't that straight. He said he was, but..." Cha-Cha had her doubts.
"This is the first time in a while I've danced with a woman who wasn't my wife." Vaughn told himself to act like he was dancing with his wife. He never lasted long when one of the men grabbed him for a song, but he could do this. "So are we what you expected?" he asked.
Ed's POV:: Ed had planned on dancing near Jackson, but arms looped around him. Loosely, thank goodness. "What do you think of Cha-Cha?" he asked quickly. An obvious reminded he was taken, and when Jackson looked insulted he regretted it. They'd never been weird before, why start now? "Honestly, I want your opinion."
Cha-Cha's POV:: "You're a little better to be honest. Most of you," Cha-Cha added. Save for one or two. But like Ed said, they'd get used to her, right? It was just one of those things. "Does it get weird around so many gay guys?" she had to know. He was the first straight men she'd met who was friends primarily with gay men. Usually they seemed to stick with their own kind.
"Not really. I look at them and see friends, not just gay guys. I forget they are, they forget I'm not. Unless, you know, we come somewhere like here and I'm stuck at the table." His wife never came, so he'd sit solo, or they'd take turns talking with him. "But Ed can pull off straight easily, so it's just like any other friendship, I'd assume. No weirdness."
Ed's POV:: "Did David or Mark say anything while she and I were dancing?" Ed said, after his friend assured him Cha-Cha seemed great so far.
"Yeah," Jackson answered. "But don't worry about it."
Cha-Cha's POV:: "That's true. I'm not used to being around gay guys who arent..." Cha-Cha paused, thinking of a word. "Beyond flaming. I thought Ed was straight before he started hitting on me and asked me out and everything," she grinned. Very plesant surprise. "Guys like Ed are usually like....Gay Republicans. But really, who cares about Gay Republicans?" she giggled.
"It's hard to believe there's such a thing. Seems like they're voting against themselves..." Baffled him, but whatever floats your boat. "I thought Ed said you found him in the Life?" Did Ed hit on her first? "Doesn't seem like him to come up to you. During lunch, anyway."
"Well no, I invited him to have lunch with me. But he flirted back, and he asked me out," Cha-Cha giggled. She didn't know if that was characteristic of Ed or not. "In fact, come to think of it, he's made most of the moves between us. First kiss was his....first 'I love you'..." she thought back.
"That I can see. But I just can't imagine him sitting with you knowing Lennie could have shown up for lunch. Ed really risked it there. And for a complete stranger? What was he thinking? No offense," he hurried to add. "Obviously it ended up being a great decision."
Ed's POV:: "No what'd they say?" Ed insisted.
His friend glanced at the two. "They're not thrilled with her. Why wasn't reallyt both of them...you know how they are. They don't need a reason to hate someone they-"
"Hate?"
"No, they didn't say that, I just meant they don't need a reason to dislike someone."
"Mhmm..."
Cha-Cha's POV:: "Obviously," Cha-Cha agreed with a laugh. Not many people could deny that. Well, not many unbiased people. She thought about what to say, looking for conversation topics? "Oh, Ed said you had a daughter?" she hoped Vaughn wasn't the type who'd pull fifty pictures out of his wallet. She couldn't stand those people.
"I do," he nodded. "Nadia." He actually didn't even have a wallet on him, so no overload of pictures. "She's almost eight. Ed's great with her. I gotta drag them away from each other or they'd play twenty four seven."
"Does Ed like kids?" Cha-Cha asked with a grin. That was pretty cute. And hey, she liked kids too. Kids that weren't hers. Not that she'd ever met any kids that were hers, but...she'd be an awful parent.
"Well I've only seen him with Nadia. Going off that I'd have to say yes. He sat through the Teletubbies, Barney, and Rugrats phases. If that's not love, I don't know what is. Thank god she's finally old enough for Disney and Cartoon Network." The song ended and a slower one began. "Can I get one more?" he asked hopefully.
Ed's POV:: Ed automatically returned Jackson's embrace now. It's just what you did for slow songs. He'd changed the topic off David but still felt apprehensive.
Cha-Cha's POV:: "Wow. Yeah, he does like kids," Cha-Cha shook her head. She drew the line at Barney. There was something creepy about that purple dinosaur. Got just a little too close to the kiddies, if you caight her drift. And did anyone notice how the kids change every few years? Where were they going, hmm? Where was Barney keeping them? All she knew was, she would not want to cross that purple dinosaur when he was hungry.
Cha-Cha looked back towards her man. "Apparently so," she admitted with a soft smile. After a few moments she asked, "So what's with Ed and Jackson? I mean...I know they were together. That is over now though, right?" she was just making sure.
"Absolutely. Ed said it was too weird dating a close friend. He ended it early to avoid a breakup that would ruin the friendship. I can see why it might seem like a good idea, 'cause you like each other and have a lot in common and all, but... They shouldn't have tried it, in my opinion." For situations like these. "Sorry, anyway, Ed just considers him a friend. I assume Jack feels the same way." Vaughn didn't get detailed stories from the others like with Ed.
"Okay," Cha-Cha nodded. She put it out of her mind, though admittedly stoled glances at them every so often. She hoped another slow song would come on. She'd never slow danced with Ed before. "So have you known Ed the longest? College, right?"
"High school," he corrected. They went way back. "So yes I have. Which reminds me, I heard you talked to Lennie about him. My dear," Vaughn said as he twirled her into a dip, grinning. "I am the one to come to. I've held best friend confident status for over twenty years." That was double Lennie plus a little.
Cha-Cha giggled as he dipped her, arms around his neck. She liked dancing with a straight guy. Could get as close as possible without all that tension. "So you're better than Lennie?" she teased. "I like him, though. He's crusty and cranky. Just my type," she laughed. "So...you knew about this Starr thing?" she guessed.
"Yeah. Ed needed someone to rant to and he couldn't go to Lennie. Didn't take any of my advice, not surprising. But he wasn't looking for help, just someone to explain his side to. I'm glad that's finally over, he was scared to death you'd leave. He hated lying to you. Or hiding something from you, I don't think he lied..." Vaughn had gotten lost halfway through the story.
Cha-Cha wanted to say that she almost did, but she knew that would be a lie. "It would be hard to leave him," she admitted. Even then she loved him too much to say goodbye. "Even though he gave me enough reason." Sigh. "But that's over and done with. We're better than we ever were," she beamed.
He nodded. "I believe it." A few moments passed quietly. "So I know everything there is to know about him. Can I know something about you?" He didn't care if it was her first love or just her shoe size. Anything was acceptable.
Ed's POV:: Ed had been away from her only ten minutes and wanted her back again. It wasn't the same dancing with a friend. But he also wanted to give Vaughn a chance to bond with her, so he traded Jackson for Steve for a change of pace and stayed put.
Cha-Cha POV:: "Well, I dance. And sing. Three times Miss Flawless winner, natural blonde..." she wondered if he'd question that. Well, why shouldn't it be true? "Um...what else do you want to know?"
Vaughn smirked but didn't question her hair color. "Whatever you feel okay with me knowing. If that's it, that's fine." He could always get more out of Ed. "I'm glad you finally came to one of these. The fact Ed is letting us all dance with you is really surprising."
Ed's POV:: "Eddie, please, please tell me she has friends." Steve was begging, and Ed couldn't help but laugh. He nodded.
"She does, but they aren't exactly like her. And don't exactly like me."
Steve pouted pathetically. "You ruin everything."
"I know," Ed said.
Cha-Cha's POV:: Cha-Cha nodded, "I'm glad I came." Thinking, she continued. "I'm in my early to mid twenties. Been with Ed for almost a year, but you knew that. Err...smoke and drink sometimes, hate science fiction..." she could think of lots more to tell him, but wasn't sure what was most important.
He nodded. That was good for now. He'd have to think of a more specific question later. Just wondered what would come off the top of her head. Vaughn checked his watch. He'd had her for a while. Yes, fifteen minutes was a while for Ed. Was he busy or was he actually letting them have her for the night? It was so unlike him.
Ed's POV:: "What did you do?" Steve asked.
"The Bunny thing."
His friend rolled his eyes. "That's it? I could handle getting around that." As Steve plotted a way to present himself as Ed's friend without getting tied up in the Bunny drama, Ed wondered if he'd accidentally started a drag queen craze among his friends. Cha-Cha was amazing, yes, but seriously...this was weird.
Cha-Cha's POV:: Cha-Cha tried not to laugh as Vaughn checked his watch. She was wondering where her man had gotten to as well, but really. "Getting bored already, are we?" she teased. Hey, she wouldn't mind to get Ed back. Vaughn was sweet though, and she wouldn't mind if he took a bit longer.
"Oh, no, sorry," he said, realizing it looked that way. "This is just a new record time for Ed to be away from whoever he came with. Only with me, too. Add in your time with the others and it's really something." Vaughn would only give her up if someone asked to cut in. Otherwise, he was content where he was. This was also the longest he'd lasted on the dance floor. Two records in one night.
"Really?" Cha-Cha asked, her forehead creasing slightly. So he could bear to be away from her when he couldn't others? Or...did he just trust her more? Or had he just stopped paying attention? Cha-Cha told herself not to read too much into it. "Well who cares about him anyway. I've got Vaughn," she laughed.
Vaughn thought he might have made a mistake saying that. "I'm glad I'm a good substitute, but do you want me to elaborate?" He didn't mean to imply Ed would rather dance with someone else. Or just leave her, uninterested. It actually was a good thing, in a weird way, because yes it did mean he trusted her.
"On what, him letting me dance with you?" Cha-Cha asked. "As long as it doesn't mean I've bored him already, I'm happy," she smiled softly. Somehow she doubted that was the case. She wasn't a very boring person.
Vaughn decided to continue anyway. Didn't have anything else to talk about. "You aren't boring him," he assured her. "What I meant by it being surprising is that normally he won't let go for more than five minutes. I don't mean to imply he's possessive or anything, it's just he's been dumped for a friend one too many times." He twirled her. "Not that any of us would date the jerk who left him, so he ends up alone, but so does Ed. Well, they wouldn't. I say 'us' but I'm not really included in that area." But still, the fact Ed let her go with anyone who asked showed he'd lightened up.
As cute as Ed's friends were, it wouldn't happen. She already had who she wanted. "He must trust me more," she though out loud, smiling softly. Well that was a good sign.
"Absolutely." Vaughn had her until the rest of the song. Brent wanted a second turn, but Ed interupted and insisted he get her for a while.
Ed happily linked his arms around her. "So I'm guessing that if you didn't run away after three songs, you got along with Vaugn alright?"
"He's great," Cha-Cha answered honestly, her arms around his neck. "Though I feel like I've barely seen you all night. Not that I'm complaining of course," she winked. What was to complain about? He had cute friends who liked her, and he trusted her with them. He got her everyday, they could share.
Ed kissed her forehead. "I didn't think you would." Although since he wasn't getting showered with attention like her, he was getting a little bored without her. He'd be with her for a while. "You need a rest soon?"
"In a bit." Cha-Cha leaned up to kiss him properly, the way she'd wanted to all night. She didn't care too awfully much who was watching. His friends would need to get used to it. It didn't look like things were going to change too much too fast between them.
Ed returned it enthusiastically. Showing off in front of strangers was one thing. Friends, so much sweeter. He tightened his hold of her waist as he leaned back to see her. "Do I get to sit with you if we go to the table? Because if not, we're dancing for another hour."
Cha-Cha laughed, pressing her forehead against his gently. "You can have both if you want," she offered as a slower dance came on. "Y'know, Vaughn dipped me. That was pretty...gentlemanly. Can you beat that?" she teased. Or at least match it.
"If you ask for it, it's not the same," he said. No element of surprise. But he would have to think of something, definitely. Even if it was just repeating it. Couldn't be left one upped by the best friend.
"I guess," Cha-Cha giggled, leaning in close to him. She tried not to laugh as she noticed Tom and Steve over his shoulder, getting ready to pounce. "You've got competition," she whispered in his ear with a smirk, resting her head on his shoulder.
Ed turned his head to see them. Oh brother. He just got her back. Did they have to move in already? Might as well start scheduling turns at this rate. And he was still trying to think of something to be Vaughn! He linked his fingers together and held her close. She was not getting pried away again.
"Hey Ed, mind if I cut in..." Steve started towards them with big eyes. It was very hard for Cha-Cha to let him down.
"Can I get you on the next song? It's just I haven't slow danced with Ed before and I wanna make sure he doesn't suck," she laughed, hoping that would be enough.
"Yeah but." Tom couldn't think of a reason he deserved her quickly.
"But?" Ed asked. Nothing. "I want time with her too," he laughed.
"You're going home with her, we aren't!" Tom smiled. An idea! "Can we go with you guys?"
Ed rolled his eyes. "No."
Cha-Cha laughed, shaking her head. "I just need a little more time with Ed. Then you, okay?" she asked. She sort of liked having so many admirers. She needed a dance card or something. Keep it straight without any moans, keep things in an orderly fashion.
Sort of? He knew she loved it. As the two men walked away, backwards so they could see the moment she stepped away, Ed sighed. "It's like talking to children," he sighed. Well, Ed was older... But seriously, like trying to negotiate with a needy kid.
"Yeah, but I like these children," Cha-Cha admitted with a laugh. She kept her head against his shoulder, turning it to kiss the skin on his neck a few times. "...do you think they would mind if I stayed with you for the next dance too?" she asked softly. Yeah, she knew they would. But as fun as it was dancing with them, it was twice as good with Ed. She felt more comfortable with him, could get alot closer.
"They probably won't even notice. And I'd like you to." They were watched by jealous eyes until Brent distracted the group by declaring a drinking contest. Just what Ed needed. A bunch of drunk friends trying to steal her. He smiled anyway. Gotta love'em.
Cha-Cha laughed, kissing him again softly. "Drinking contests? Are these often with your friends?" she asked with a laugh. Vaugely she wondered what sort of drunk he'd be. If he even let himself get drunk. Hey, somebody had to drive.
"Occasionally. Not every week. Just looking for something to do until I give you back to them, I guess. But now you might be stuck with me." If his friends wanted to make a good impression, saying something stupid while drunk might not be the way to go. The two of them would be amused, but his friends would be embarrassed whenever they were told what had happened. Ed would try to help them out by making sure they weren't too far gone before letting them dance with her again.
It was almost like Ed was a kid with a shiny new toy. All the other kids wanted a chance to play with it, and the more he insisted "It's mine, I had it first!" the more they others would cry. Not that he considered her a toy or 'it' or anything. Not even something like a drag equivalent to a trophy wife. But he did have to argue to dance with her.
"What a tragedy," Cha-Cha teased, her arms moving around his waist so she could get even tighter against him. Her head went back on his shoulder both to watch the men drink, and to feel closer. "Haven't they ever seen a pretty girl before? I mean, didn't they flock around Starr when you dated her? Or was she before their time?"
Cha-Cha bringing up Starr? Finally it wasn't him! "That was almost ten years ago. It's new again. Besides, don't you like being the center of attention?" She hadn't stopped smiling all evening.
"I do," Cha-Cha assured him. Like it was any big secret. "But I like dancing with you sometimes too. There's a reason I'm dating you and not them," she pointed out. Not that she didn't like dancing with all Ed's friends, she did. But she missed him when she kept getting pulled away.
Ed watched as the guys continued their game. "We're walking home if you want to join them," he said. Though she wouldn't be driving anyway. He'd never seen what too much alcohol did to her.
Cha-Cha laughed shrugging. "Maybe in a couple minutes. They're distracted now, better make the most of it," she kissed his jaw, closing her eyes. "You're a good dancer," she added.
"Thank you. You're not bad yourself." Ed wanted to sit, but also didn't want to risk Cha-Cha being dragged off. He also wasn't sure if he'd get away with only one drink right now. Probably have five thrown at him if he joined the table.
"Well I'd hope not," Cha-Cha laughed. It would be like him...being bad at chasing people. "Did you just pick it up here?" she couldn't imagine Ed had ever taken dance classes. Too girly. Though it would be funny to see him in the leotard.
"Yeah. Here and other spots. Wherever the group ends up." They changed locations every now and then. Whenever the men at the club started getting too familiar. Too been there danced that.
Cha-Cha understood. "Well, it doesnt really matter anymore, hmm? You've got somebody to dance with everywhere," she giggled, twirling herself in his arms. "Or will I become old news too?" she added, and laughed because she knew she wouldn't.
"You're always doing something surprising." She could never get old. Except maybe in the whining department. What, who said that?
"Ed!" Brent called, waving as he did so. "Stop hogging her! Come back over here!"
"I can't hear you!" Ed lied, pretending the music was drowning him out.
Cha-Cha laughed, pretending as though she wasn't even aware Brent was calling them."Do you need a distraction?" she smirked, leaning up to kiss him slowly. The boys couldn't expect them to be listening now, right? Their minds were in another place.
Again, amused by his friends pain. No he would not return to them until he was good and ready. "I knew you were good for something."
"You can so hear us!" shouted Tom.
Cha-Cha slapped his arm playfully. "You're mean," she joked, making no move to get away from him. He was mean, but he made her happy. "I'm sure Tom would appreciate me more. Or Steve, or any of your friends. Maybe I made the wrong choice..." she pretended to consider it.
"You wouldn't be the first to think that." No he wasn't annoyed, just not entirely happy either. But he smiled like he found it amusing. She was teasing and he knew that. Didn't have to worry about her straying.
Cha-Cha laughed, shaking her head. "Good thing I love you too much, hmm?" she reminded him. Even if Steve or Tom or Brent were nicer, she was already spoken for. Besides, it was hard to be nicer than Ed. He just liked to play grumpy. Or at least, she was pretty sure he was playing...
"Mhmm." He kissed her briefly again.
Personally, Ed thought being followed around twenty-four seven would get insanely annoying after a while. And he doubted they'd be so fascinated after a month. And they'd be less interesting too. The new would wear off and they old would shine through.
Besides, one of the other men would have been able to take her out freely in public from the start. Ed hadn't. Therefore Ed had felt more obligated to provide more romantic surprises and gifts. Beat that.
Cha-Cha had no problem with the romantic surprises or gifts. None whatsoever. "How many more drinks do you think they need before they leave us alone?" she asked, looking over. He knew his friends better, and had probably seen them drunk before. Cha-Cha couldn't handle her liquor that well, and was gone after two or three. Some people she knew could go on forever.
"Well, actually, unless I firmly tell them to back off, I don't think leaving us alone is what's going to happen." But in his friends interests, he'd stop them from making fools of themselves. Or he'd try.
Cha-Cha rose her eyebrows. "What do you think is going to happen?" People could be goofy when drunk. And mean sometimes, and suggestive. Everybody was different. She'd never had a flock of drunk men going after her--well. Unless you counted the shows, but that was different somehow.
"They'll double their efforts. Nothing to worry about. But by the end of the night at least one will swear he's in love with you, I guarantee it." He found it quite funny. The poor guys.
Cha-Cha rose her eyebrows, shaking her head. "They are like me then!" She'd been known to do the same thing once or twice when she had one too many. Only, it was usually to whoever she was dating at the moment. And once or twice the guy returned it, leading to one big awkward in the morning.
"You mean that's all I had to do to get you to say it? So much time could have been saved," he teased. Although he kind of liked how it ended up happening. Not the best circumstance, but more honest than a drunk confession.
Cha-Cha laughed shrugging. "How much time?" It had come at such a stressed moment between them, but was also completely unexpected. It made her wonder how long he'd been holding it in. How long he'd knew. She hadn't known that long, but she was pretty sure she loved him before he even realized, too.
"A while," he said. It was in the past, but he wasn't sure if past moving too fast counted for scaring her. Not much she could do now though, right? Yes yes he wasn't supposed to focus on that. But he wasn't worried she'd cheat, just worried she'd feel uncomfortable. "You know I have been wrapped around your finger since the first time we went out."
Cha-Cha smirked, not the least bit uncomfortable. In fact, it made her happy beyond anything else. "I hadn't noticed," she mumbled, keeping even closer to him. Good luck, boys, getting her away from him now. She was even more determined to stay in his arms.
"Good, you weren't supposed to." She would have definitely taken advantage of that, more than she already did. Worse than using her legs to get what she wanted. He wouldn't have had any free will!
Cha-Cha laughed, her cheek against his as they danced. "I think I figured it out when we watched You've Got Mail, that night? And you slept over at my place and weren't mad at all. Some guys might've been pissed," she laughed. "But you seemed to enjoy getting a crick in your neck and being stiff all day."
"It might have been worth it." He smiled shyly out of view. So he fell easily. Don't rub it in.
Cha-Cha closed her eyes, another smile appearing on her face. "I love you, Ed," she mumbled. Yeah, his friends could stay back for awhile. Just for a few minutes more. She felt too comfortable to let go of him.
"Love you too, hun." Ed fell hard and fast. That's just how he was. He didn't do it for everyone he dated of course, you can't find love every single time you go out. But when he did sometimes he tended to be a little too intense for lovers.
Cha-Cha hummed softly to the music, letting herself sway against him. If she didn't love him as early as their second date, it wasn't long after. And she certainly did now. "When did ou tell your friends about me?" she asked out of curiosuty. She'd held back bit with her girls, in case of a negative reaction. Smart move.
"Not all at once. I told Lennie the afternoon I met you. Vaughn not long after. The rest of them whenever I had time. I was busy trying to see you. Even though it didn't really seem like I saw you that often in the beginning, it was the best I could do." Work, sleep, Cha-Cha. Boys got time only if she wasn't home.
"You told Lennie first?" Cha-Cha asked, confused. Obviously not all the details, right? "I know. It wasn't nearly enough," she assured him, "but I know it was the best you could do. Hey, I did see you...every four or five days," she laughed softly. Impossible to conceive now.
"Well...Lennie only got 'I met a girl at the Life this afternoon' and a few other things. But that sort of counts." Drag queen definitely wasn't mentioned.
Almost a week between dates. "Let's not go back to that."
Cha-Cha grinned, bringing her hand up to her head. "A 'this tall' hispanic named Cha-Cha? She's funny, she's beautiful?" she teased, remembering the things she'd overheard from Lennie. That day wasn't all bad. "Let's not. Believe it or not, but I sort of like seeing you every day," she admitted.
"So I exaggerated," Ed said jokingly. "Sue me." In all seriousness though, that description was drastically understating it. "And I could probably do every other day. So, you know, you don't get boring or anything."
Cha-Cha rolled her eyes, laughing. "Yeah, yeah. Ed doesn't love me. That joke was never funny, babe. You don't fool me," she leaned back in his arms, getting a good look at him. "Nope. You love me. No question."
He nodded. "You got me." Ignoring a shout or two from the distant table he looked right back at her. "Not exactly new news," Ed smiled.
"No, I suppose not," Cha-Cha preteded not to hear the other boys. Not yet, she wasn't ready to break away from him yet. Just a little longer. "It's an oldie but a goodie."
He nodded as a new song began. "One more than go sit for a bit?" Ed suggested. He could use a drink. He just hoped the guys weren't too far gone.
Cha-Cha sighed, nodding. "Okay. But can we dance again before we leave? Or at least come back sometime?" she pleaded. Now that she knew he could dance, they'd have to take advantage of it. She loved dancing, and she was loving dancing with him even more. He made her feel safe.
"Yes. To both. But maybe just you and me? We can come back next week to see the group if you want, there's still a few you haven't met yet. But one night before that I'd like to have you with no interruptions." As amusing as it was to watch his friends trip over themselves.
Cha-Cha beamed, keeping even closer to him than before. "I'd like that," she agreed, dancing with him slowly. It was a fast song, but she wanted to keep it slow this time. As silly as they probably looked.
Ed didn't mind. They were off to the side of the dance floor anyway. When the song ended they returned to the table, his friends perking up and grinning. A little tipsy, but not bad.
Cha-Cha sat herself in Ed's lap again. There was an empty chair, but it all the way on the other side of the table. She didn't want to sit there.
"Is it my turn yet?" Brent asked loudly.
"I just sat down," Cha-Cha whined, giggling.
"Yeah, give her a chance to relax," Ed laughed. She'd been on her feet for an hour. Maybe they were fine but she had her heels.
Steve and Tom had done what Ed had predicted, doubled their efforts to charm her. Some compliments were so extravagant they stopped making sense. Ed elbowed Tom a few times, discreetly trying to stop him from carrying on sounding ridiculous.
Cha-Cha didn't even know you could compare eyes to flowers. She'd go with it...? "Why don't you ever tell me my smile is like a thousand suns?" she teased Ed, trying to remain serious. It was hard to do. Ed's friends were fun drunks!
There was always one to ruin it. "Because apparently you were easy enough to bed without that shit." Had to be that obnoxious one, huh?
Ed really did not want to argue about her the first time she was there. Way to make her feel welcome. He hoped ignoring him would bore him enough to make him shut up. "Because I haven't found anything that compares to you, sweetheart. A thousand suns doesn't come close." A loud, drunk, "Awww" from the guys followed. Ed didn't care what he sounded like, no one would remember
Cha-Cha's head snapped toward David, the smile fading a bit. She knew they were all drunk. But what was that supposed to mean...? She wasn't easy! Not...not really really easy... She shifted up a bit closer to Ed. "Thank you, honey," she replied, trying to smile for him. As long as she remembered the guy was drunk and stupid, she could fake it okay.
Ed kissed her in hopes of cheering her up, missing her mouth for a moment due to the weird angle. Aw well, cheeks need love too, right? He smirked when some of his friends cheered him on, as if he ever would need encouragement.
Cha-Cha smiled against his lips, the hollers from his friends making her feel a bit better. See? Not all of them thought so. Minority opinion, David. David rose a hand at them while Cha-Cha wasn't watching, as though the display proved his point.
Ed rested his chin on her shoulder, looking across the table at his annoyed friend. "Hey, I had to work hard to get where I am." Wasn't all sunshine and daisies. David scoffed. "I'm sorry, your boyfriend is where?" Ed asked. Normally the guys would have stayed quietly off to the side, but instead there was a chorus of 'Ooo'.
Cha-Cha would've given Ed a high five if it wouldn't annoy David more. Instead she laughed, biting her lip in an attempt to stop. A half-hearted attempt.
"Good question. Where's yours?" David snapped back.
Another round of 'Ooo'. That wasn't helping. Ed glared at David. He wasn't sure if acknowledging he technically had a boyfriend on his lap would offend the girl there. "Knock it off," Ed warned.
"That wasn't an answer."
Somewhere beneath the sparkle and makeup, Cha-Cha was aware, and accepted that she was a boy. "Uh, hi," she put up her hand, waving slightly. "It's more than you got," she added. Not a boy boy or anything, but...Ed didn't seem to mind.
"It's more than I want," David grumbled.
"More like more than you deserve," Ed mumbled in reply.
David hadn't been able to hear over the music. "Excuse me?" he asked, having seen Ed's mouth move.
"Nothing."
"No, what'd you say?" his friend demanded.
Ed was still glaring. "I didn't say anything."
"I agree, Eddie," Cha-Cha commented, placing her arm around his shoulders. David still didn't know what Ed had said, or what Cha-Cha was agreeing to. He could guess though, and it only pissed him off further.
"Gee, thanks Ed. After six years of friendship...you choose that?" he rose his eyebrows. One or two of the more sober men were beginning to realize what was going on, stopping their hooting immediately.
"What the hell is your problem? I'm not choosing her over you. Or any of you," he added, taking a moment to glance at Mark, who he could tell an hour ago had sided with David. "There is no all or nothing decision being made."
"Really?" David crossed his arms. "You disappearing for months at a time says different."
Ed couldn't believe he was going over this again. "I explained that to you how many times? A murder charge can't be put on the back burner for a night out."
"Before that. What were you doing three months ago? Five months ago?"
"You know how hard it is...was for me to find someone and keep them for longer than a month or two with that schedule. I had to bend over backwards to find time to see her."
"Thanks for not putting even a fraction of that effort into seeing us." Ed squeezed the tabletop with one hand, afraid he'd hurt Cha-Cha if he continued to squeeze her. "Bros before hoes, man."
"Steve! I need you to dance with Cha-Cha."
Cha-Cha was beginning to wonder how drunk David really was. He seemed to be thinking pretty clearly. Then again, maybe him being drunk was why he was being such a jerk? "What's that supposed to mean?" she asked, her butt not leaving Ed's lap despite Steve's insistance. She'd dance with him when she was good and ready.
Ed was thinking the same thing. There were plenty of empty bottles around, but who knew which man they belonged to. Was his plan to blame being drunk for what he said?
"It's a figure of speech, kid." Mark had finally joined in.
"Similar to chicks before dicks?" asked Ed. As tense a moment as it was, Vaughn couldn't help snickering quietly. "If you knew we were coming why didn't you just stay home?"
"I wasn't gonna ditch the guys like you did."
"I didn-and you wonder why I stopped coming? Listen to yourself! And alright, Sam couldn't make it. Roy's out of town. Who knows where Kyle is tonight. Are they gonna get this same welcome if they show up next week?" It wasn't like Ed was the only one to have ever missed a night. Plenty didn't come a few in a row. "I don't think so." Was him missing a few nights really what this was about? Did he just have a problem with Cha-Cha? Some fun, relaxing night this ended up being. Ed sighed, "God, I'd take Grace over this anytime."
"Huh?" they both asked. Ed just shook his head angrily.
She knew it was a figure of speech, thanks. She also knew she wasn't a hoe. Figure of speech or not, she could tell David believed every word he was saying.
Cha-Cha could whole-heartedly agree with Ed. As bad as Grace seemed to be, she really wasn't this bad, when you figured. Even if they wanted to see Cha-Cha more, they understood. They didn't blame Ed for taking her time. They'd do the same thing if it were them. "I'd say Grace and David would get along, actually," she spoke as though David wasn't in the room. It pissed people off, as she'd learned in the past. "Except he's a dick. I wouldn't wish him on my best friend." The men had learned better now not to 'oooh' after every insult.
The group hadn't known what to do and had just watched, but Vaughn was getting as tired of this as Ed was. "David, Mark, just suck it up and deal. I'm sick of this bullshit."
"Typical. Ed can do no wrong, right?" David asked sarcastically. "It's sad how you two trip over yourselves to keep the other one happy-" both of them tensed and began protesting but he continued louder "-and yet you deny there's anything going on. I'm sick of that."
Something going on? What...he didn't mean...like that, did he? How dumb could this man get? Vaughn was straight. Ed was gay. Both were very much taken. It just didn't work that way. "Don't get all hurt because they like each other better than you," Cha-Cha pouted, sighing. What a stupid thing to suggest. Like she'd fall for that? Besides, the way they were acting, couldn't they say the same thing about him and Mark?
With Vaughn involved, Ed's other friends were less hesitant to say something. "You're going to have more than Ed and Cha-Cha mad at you if you aren't careful," Jackson commented.
"Oh you would join in. You who-"
"Shut up," Ed snapped. He was tired of the Ed and Jackson are still pining after each other theory.
Cha-Cha didn't even know what to make of this anymore. Was he jealous of Ed? She didn't know what he was going to say to Jackson, but it wasn't hard to figure out. "I don't know what's sadder," she commented, trying to hide how angry she was. That wasn't always a strength of her's. "That your think Ed's screwing the whole group behind my back...or that you're jealous of that, when it's not even true," her teeth clenched in her mouth, and she gently began prying Ed's hand off the table. Trying to, anyway. She needed something comforting.
Ed was relieved the lies didn't phase her for a second.
"You think it's such a far fetched idea? He had every Tuesday off. Ask him what he was doing."
Ed hesitated for several seconds. "If I had a Tuesday off I was with her." But that pause was all David needed to smile sourly.
"Oh sure," David nodded.
Ed was with her, though. Most of the time. He was when they started getting really serious anyway. Couldn't expect him to drop everything when they barely knew each other. "Why do you think I'd believe you over Ed?" she asked, readjusting herself on his lap. Steve finally sat down awkwardly, seeing that the lady's mind was made up. "He was with me alot of the time. And even when he wasn't--hell, they're friends! I go out and see mine all the time, but I'm pretty sure I'm not sleeping with Ivana!"
That Tuesday thing had been an obvious attempt to unsettle Cha-Cha. Ed had no idea what he'd been talking about. Clearly David was trying to mess this relationship up. Ed was ready to just leave.
"I heard the likes of you travel in packs."
Mark nodded. "Female impersonators in packs like dogs. There's a term for that, isn't there?"
Did they just imply she was a bitch? Ed let go of the table, picked Cha-Cha up and set her on her feet and stood in one second. "This conversation is over. Leave." He changed his mind about being the one to go home.
"You can't order us out of here."
"You can take it somewhere else or we can take it outside."
David scoffed, but was visibly surprised and not prepared for that reaction. "You think this is worth the effort of fighting?"
"Apparently you do." Ed had told him several times to cool it.
Cha-Cha's stomach was hurting a bit, and she didn't protest when Ed set her on her feet. Not like she could if she'd tried. Not like he'd listen, not like she'd want to stop him. The last comment had stung, but she'd had worse. Stormy and her crew were never worth getting upset about, and she was trying to convince herself that David and Mark weren't either. But no matter what she thought, they did matter more than some tired old queens. What reason did they have to hate her?
"Ed, they are not worth fighting," she forced out through clenched teeth. Ed could rip them apart if he wanted to, for all she cared. But how much satisfaction would they be getting from that? "I hear worse every day, baby, let's just head home, okay?" she added, in an attempt to calm both of them down.
The rest of the men were confused with what to do, shocked that this could be happening on such a good night. David's opinion seemed to be the minority, however, most of the men already taken with Ed's new girlfriend. "I think you should do what he says, Dave," Tom suggested with wide eyes, not wanting to see his friends tear each other apart.
It wasn't the worst insult in the world. But they'd just been asking for it all night. Yeah she'd heard worse but it wasn't supposed to be coming from someone they knew. Not a friend. He sighed and agreed with Cha-Cha.
"Ed, you don't ha-" He held a hand up to stop Brent. He wanted away from Mark and David. He said goodbye to those who still deserved it. At the door he apologized to Cha-Cha for his friends and for overreacting.
"It's okay, honey," Cha-Cha promised him, sighing deeply. Through the throngs of dancers, you could see the party was breaking up anyway. Steve was standing with jacket in hand, Tom ready to follow after. Brent seemed to be finishing off his drink as quickly as possible, while Jackson was already half way across the floor. Only David and Mark remained, looking just as pleasant as they had all night. Jackson was headed towards them, and she closed her eyes. "If it's okay with you, I think I wanna head home anyway," she added. To comfort him and to work on feeling better.
"It's late," he said, unsure of the time. But that would be their excuse.
Vaughn appeared suddenly from the right. He looked to David, then rolled his eyes. Ed shrugged, and that was enough to get their points across. "It was great meeting you," he said to Cha-Cha. "I hope next time we see you it's a smaller crowd so I can get an extra dance in." In other words, let's do this again without those two.
Cha-Cha smiled tiredly, nodding her head. "You too. Definitely," she agreed. Sleeping would be good right now, but she wanted to take Ed home first. Make sure he was okay. This was probably even worse on him. Obviously he must've cared about David and Mark at some point. Probably still did. She didn't want to end the night before making sure he felt better.
Vaughn gave her a quick hug goodbye, Jackson waved, and Ed didn't feel like waiting for the rest. They'd all say the same thing anyway. He held the door open for her. After looping an arm around her waist and muttering a few things to himself he didn't talk much during the walk home. He was torn between fuming and feeling humiliated. His friends really let him down.
Cha-Cha didn't try to make conversation yet, even though she could tell he was hurting. Before long they were back home, and she held onto his waist on the elevator ride. "I really like Vaughn," she commented finally, hoping it would cheer him up in some way. "And Tom and Steve and Brent. And Jackson."
"Yeah it's a pretty good group for the most part." They arrived at their floor. "Normally the night would go a lot smoother." Jammed his key into the lock to let themselves into their apartment. Of course for the first time in the eight or nine years he'd lived there it decided to be finicky tonight. If he had his gun he'd just shoot the damn thing. But he took the key out and tried again. Worked the second time.
Cha-Cha watched him, rubbing his back as he worked on the key. She closed the door with a soft click once they were finally in, approaching him slowly. She stood in front of him, watching his face. "Whatcha thinking, baby?" she asked. "If you want to tell me."
He was going over the conversation in his head and getting himself worked up the more he tried to put it out of his mind. "I'm thinking...I owe you an apology." He felt a little responsible. He had had a feeling that David might say something. No idea it'd turn into what it did though. Plus, "I encouraged him. I should have just gone for another dance the moment he started."
Cha-Cha sighed, shaking her head. "It's not your fault, honey. Don't apologize." She took a step towards him, putting a hand on his cheek, before sliding it down to wrap her arms around his neck. "It's not your fault, what your friends do. And it wasn't even that bad, I promise."
"It's just...embarrassing. At least your girls were subtle." She was the one insulted, and she was making him feel better? That made him feel selfish. He held her hips as he kissed her. "I think the Tuesday thing is what got me. I have no idea what that was about." That and his last comment about her. But still, he was utterly lost as to what that could be referencing, and had to conclude it was a stupid ploy to upset them.
"I know. But...just for the record, I take your word over David and Mark's. You've spent tons of Tuesdays with me, and even still...you're allowed to see your friends," she shook her head with a frown. "They must be pretty lonely if they think that's uncommon," she added with a smirk.
"Implying where I was wasn't the only thing though. I didn't even get every Tuesday off. He might have been misunderstanding how I spent my time, but that..." He sighed. "Anyway. I love you, like I promised." Whether his friends liked her or not.
"I know you do, honey. I love you too," Cha-Cha whispered, her arms tight around him. She couldn't think of any reason for David and Mark's reaction, but it didn't matter. It was time to put them out of their minds. "Do you want to sit down?" she asked softly. She wouldn't make him talk if he didn't want to, but she wanted him to be comfortable.
"I'd rather lay down," he laughed. "I haven't moved that much in weeks." Ed wasn't really exhausted but laying down would still be nice. He'd gone from angry to that 'I just don't get it' phase. Be quiet for a while and then question something. He felt bad and wondered if he was getting annoying, but he couldn't help thinking about it.
Cha-Cha nodded, leading him toward the bedroom gently. She'd still suggest the couch, seeing as the bedroom could lead to other, even more tiring activities, but she wanted room to spread out if he wanted it. Not that she was expecting him to want it, though. This was the first time she'd ever really seen him upset, and hadn't felt guilty in any part.
No he didn't want to spread out. Ed hugged her close against him. Mark and David didn't have anything like this waiting for them at home. Maybe Ed was the one who retreated but he really felt like he was the winner. He kissed her softly, not the kind that would lead to more for the moment. "I swear next time I see Grace I'm giving her a hug and thanking her for being such a good friend to you," he laughed, knowing he probably wouldn't actually touch her.
Cha-Cha laughed, just picturing it. "And she'd think you'd finally gone nuts," she added, shaking her head, arms tight around him. Though to be honest, Grace would probably return the hug. It would still be Edward Green with his arms around her, something that not many people would pass up. "I think they are getting used to you though, in some way. Rusty always asks how you're doing. Grace...well she doesn't frown when I mention you anymore. We're getting there," she cheered softly, taking his hands.
"Yes we are. And I'm happy with how she reacted now. Obviously things could have been worse with her." He sighed. "I'll have the rest come here next time. Watch who we run into for a while."
Cha-Cha nodded. "Well, like I said, I really did like alot of your friends. Vaughn's a sweetheart," she assured him. He didn't even ask any stupid straight person questions, like Ed had worried about. "Just those two. And you said you didn't even like David anyway..." she added, wondering how he actually felt about those two.
"Well yeah but I was expecting him to just ignore you," he admitted. "Or have a Grace-ish attitude and just dance you away from him. Actually Vaughn and I thought he'd at least pretend to be fine." Frustrating. "I'm surprised Tom didn't follow us home."
"Tom is also amazing," Cha-Cha added, jumping onto happy topics. Trying to cheer him up. Had they had enough David and Mark for one night? "I like Vaughn's idea from earlier. Another get together, but you make the guest list."
"Why don't you make it," he suggested. Whoever she felt comfortable around. "Although I have a feeling what it would be anyway. Although a few weren't there tonight that I think would like you." He'd call and ask a few questions first this time.
Cha-cha nodded, an idea striking her. "I could even invite the girls, too. Make it a big party-like thing. All the guest stars of the Ed and Cha-Cha show," she laughed, shaking her head. If there was an Ed and Cha-Cha show. "Actually..." a thought struck her, and she pushed it off to the side. "Never mind."
"What?" he asked. Anything that got a 'never mind' was always worth hearing. Even if it was a crazy idea, they were worth hearing.
Cha-Cha's lips were sealed, but she was smiling through it anyway. "No Eddie," she refused, placing a hand over her mouth. This never worked out well. "Let's just say I usually have a party in August. Around the Nineteenth," she got out before she could stop herself. Who would actually want to tell the world they were turning twenty-six, she didn't know, but it was an anti-depressant.
That wasn't hard to get out of her at all, he thought amused. "Cha-Cha you're supposed to be happy when days like that come around. You get stuff." And she could be the center of attention without any question or complaint.
"I know I get stuff. I get wrinkles and grey hairs and flab, Ed," Cha-Cha protested. And jewellery sometimes too when she was dating somebody. But that wasn't part of the big picture. "I'm getting older, Eddie. I won't even get to have birthday cake this year cause the metabolism's slowin down and it would go straight to my thighs," she ran a hand through her hair. Drama queen, much. As if a silly thing like that would seperate Cha-Cha and cake.
"Sweetheart that's what I'm here for. I'll help you work it off." Always willing to help her out. "And you're still young, you know. I'd kill to be your age again. Though if that were so you'd be around twelve..."
"Thirteen," Cha-Cha reminded him. Of course, she'd probably still find him attractive, even at that young an age. "Don't get me wrong; I like seeing my friends and I love getting presents. But...I'm past the mid-way mark now, Ed. And once you turn thirty, there's no turning back. You're a geezer," she sighed pathetically.
"There's still four years until you turn thirty. That's a really long time." He'd given up trying to explain how reaching forty was much worse. "And you don't just age over night," he smiled. "You'll still look the twenty one for a while." Maybe she looked more like twenty four, but he'd stick with twenty one. That's not a lie, that's love.
"That's not true, mister. My mami aged right overnight. One day she could pass for early fourties, next day boom, she was all of her fifty years," she informed him. Of course, the dark circles and grey hairs happened right around the time she caught her son in drag. Nevermind. Cha-Cha sighed, the topic of age depressing her. "Will you still love me when I'm...thirty two?" she asked hopefully. And when she was sixty four? And ninety-six?
"Of course babe. I'm in this for your personality. The fact you're hot is just a bonus." He was the one who'd fall apart first. But his dad aged well, so he was hoping he would too.
Cha-Cha sighed, nodding. If she weren't so worried, she'd blush. "When do you think I'll stop being hot?" she asked. Just so she had an approxamate. She was banking on thirty five being the cutoff, herself, leaving her with...a bit less than ten years.
"You'll always be attractive." The word 'hot' didn't usually apply to older people, but she'd still be beautiful. "Compared to me you'll be amazing."
That one made Cha-Cha blush. "Aw, baby. You're not so bad," she promised. A total understatement, but she had a feeling he knew. How could he not know he was gorgeous? "And you know something else?" she added, a new thought coming to her. It had nothing to do with aging, really, or being attractive, but it was just as pleasant a thought.
"You promise to visit when I'm in assisted living?" She'd be fine and he'd be some little old man. Okay did she see how she had the better end of this deal yet?
Cha-Cha wouldn't just visit him, she'd probably serve him the mushy peaches herself. "Mmhmm," she got out between laughs. "And also...I can see myself still knowing you when we're that old...and still, you know...being together when we're that old," she was still smiling softly.
He touched his nose to hers. "I should hope so. How am I supposed to get to shuffleboard on time without you?" He was teasing her, but on the inside he was jumping for joy. She said it, not him!
Cha-Cha giggled, pressing her forehead to his. This wasn't a promise. Things changed everyday, and somethings you just couldn't foresee. But in the grand scheme of things...if she were going to be with someone ten years from them, she saw no reason why it wouldn't be him. Twenty, thirty, hell, even fourty years ahead, there was no reason why it shouldn't be him. It wasn't a promise, but it was a more than she'd ever thought about any other man. "I'll be there," she whispered.
He kissed her briefly. "Good." Even if they downgraded to friends eventually, he'd be happy. Not as happy, but he didn't want them to split and never talk again like some of his past lovers. Most of them, actually. "But back to this moment, is there anything I can say to convince you you're not going to change much next month?"
Cha-Cha sighed dramatically. "Sure. Make me twenty again." Was that so much to ask? Surely she could be granted that one little wish. God had to owe her some type of favour, right?
"Something humanly possible, maybe?" he asked. "Besides then I'd be almost twenty years older and my sister would really want to kill me." She hadn't been happy with what it was now.
Cha-Cha laughed, shrugging. "She doesn't like the age difference?" she guessed. It wasn't that big. But then again, she was used to dating older men. Most of them older than Ed. Some over twice her age.
"She doesn't complain about it a lot. And she's fine for the most part now. But when I initially told her she was shocked. I don't normally go this far off from my age. Personally I think it's more out of concern for you than me," he admitted, rolling his eyes.
"It's not that far off," Cha-Cha reminded him. She didn't know she was a rarity for him. Aside from the drag queen factor. "Why?" she asked with a giggle. So what if Ed was older? If anything, she'd be safer with him. Younger guys could be so immature sometimes.
"I don't know. Just thinks you'd be better off with someone closer to you. More stuff in common I guess. But I like how you're so different from me. I've dated carbon copies of myself. It was too...predictable." Not boring! Okay it sort of was...
"Yeah, you are pretty predictable," Cha-Cha teased. Not really. Well, not for her, seeing as he was so different from her. She didn't know what he'd do next. But if he could say it, she could say it. "But that's okay. I like a little predictability in my life." For as crazy as her personality was, she liked having someone who could balance her out a bit. Ed was that person.
In his opinion it had felt predictable because like he said, it was himself. You would know what you would do. It wasn't just him.
"I try not to be too bad." The necklace had surprised her. A few times in the early months he got closer to her outside their apartment than he should have.
"And you're not, I guess. But I like you a little predictable," Cha-Cha said truthfully, kissing his cheek. If he still stayed amazing in ninety years, she'd still want to be close to him. See, predictability wasn't really such a bad thing!
"I like you the way you are, I guess," he said jokingly. Ed knew what she meant. He sobered a little. "So a year isn't asking too much?"
"How do you mean?" Cha-Cha asked softly. They'd been together...almost a year. That was more than anybody had ever gotten before. But she didn't mind giving it to him. A year. That sounded like a long time, but it had gone amazingly fast.
"In August I'll have known you a year. In...was in October when we decided we were actually dating? Soon it'll have been a year of seeing each other. We up for round two?" Dreaming being together until they fell apart was nice, but in reality they needed to go one step at a time.
Cha-Cha thought back, agreeing with his numbers. It was around October. Maybe early November. And it seemed like they had gone ridiculously slowly. Maybe that was why they'd lasted so long. And they showed no sign of stopping. Cha-Cha looked at him, entwining her fingers with his slowly. "Ready if you are," she said honestly, a hint of a smile on her lips.
Ed grinned, squeezing her affectionately. "Exactly what I wanted to hear." This was turning out to be a pretty good night after all.
Cha-Cha returned the smile, trailing her hand up to rest on the back of his neck. "You don't even have to ask, baby," she promised, leaning up to kiss him. If she wanted to leave, she'd leave. That didn't seem like a big possibility with him. She'd stay by him as long as he wanted her.
Ed returned the kiss happily but didn't try to deepen in. Not yet anyway. Instead he shifted onto his side. "But if I do, you get the illusion you're in control."
Cha-Cha rose an eyebrow, giggling. "Oh, it's an illusion, is it?" she teased. "You just keep thinking that, poor baby." As if he were in control. He may have been the bigger person, but there was no question who wore the proverbial pants in the relationship.
He could resist her if he tried. Be the dominant one if he really wanted to. His career had been based on his ability to intimidate and command. But he enjoyed how they were. And if he one day started bossing her around he could only imagine how that would go over. "Are you tired at all?" he asked, knowing it was off topic.
"Yeah, sort of," Cha-Cha replied. Tired from the fighting, if anything. She was used to dancing the night away. Stretching out a bit, she wondered if it would rain again that night. She hadn't gotten to look at the skies before it'd gotten dark. Ed was pretty distracting all day.
"Do you wanna take a nap?" Although it was late enough that if they went to sleep they probably wouldn't get up until tomorrow. "Or can you think of something to talk about?" Anything aside from tonight.
Cha-Cha thought about it, shrugging. "Wouldn't be much of a nap at....eleven o clock at night," she leaned up slightly to check the time. "But it's too early to go to sleep, too. So...you think a birthday party would be good? Or do you think it'd be better to have something on your birthday?" she paused. "When is your birthday?" she asked, shocked she didn't know.
"I think we should do something for you. It'd be fun. And what else are we going to do? Would you want my friends there? Because one of them asked if you had single friends," he laughed. "My birthday isn't important darling, we're focusing on you."
"Of course they would. Well...my dad usually sees my around then too. Don't think I'd want him to come to a party involving my girls and alchohal, though," Cha-Cha giggled, shaking her head. They freaked him out enough when they were sober. "I know we're focusing on me, we always do that. But when is it, so I know?"
"January 18th," he answered. "We've got a while to go until we start thinking of me. So would you want people here, or go out and do something?"
"January eighteenth?" Cha-Cha's eyes narrowed. Wait a minute. "I knew you on January eighteenth of this year. We were dating then," she reminded him. And he didn't tell her? She slapped his arm gently, annoyed. "I dunno. Where would we go? We could do something at the club," she thought. Maybe after a show one night? Or at a show?
He'd gone out with friends. Accidentally. He'd worked that day and stopped in a bar for a drink and ran into some people. He really didn't have an excuse for not telling her. "Yeah, well..." Think of something! "We could do whatever you want. Your day, after all."
Cha-Cha huffed. "Did I see you on that day? I can't remember. I can't believe that, Ed. So how old are you actually, thirty eight or thirty nine?" He said thirty eight on their first date, but some people rounded up if their birthday was soon enough. Why they would do that, Cha-Cha would never know.
"Of course you saw me that day, sweetheart." Love of my life who never gets angry. "But I didn't feel like doing much, I'd had a hard case that week." That was true. He and Lennie had had a triple homicide. Not a very nice present.
Cha-Cha sighed, rolling ino her stomach, still facing him. "So how old are you?" she asked again. She was turning twenty six that year. If there was a thirteen year age gap...he'd be thirty nine. Which was a year older than she'd always thought he was!
"Thirty nine." Though look who was talking. No one really knew how old she was. She'd been twenty one for five years.
"Thirty nine?" Cha-Cha sighed, annoyed. "All along I thought you were thirty eight. Do you know what this means, Ed? You're going to be fourty in...four months!!" she exclaimed. In case he hadn't figured that out for himself. "That's huge!"
Ed fell face first into a pillow. "I don't want to think about it any more than you want to think about turning twenty six," he said, voice muffled. "I refuse to be over the hill. Over the hill and unemployed. And I don't even get a good midlife crisis! I've already had it! Because as far as I'm considered you can't get much worse than last month." Why couldn't he be the type to splurge on a car he didn't need?
Cha-Cha rolled her eyes, rolling onto her side again. "Honey," she coaxed, putting a hand on the back of his neck, stroking the back of his hair. "You're not going over-the-hill. You already are," she snickered to herself before realizing that was mean. "No seriously though. Over-the-hill is like...fifty-five, at least. You're still the youngest guy I've been with in a while." Not totally true, but that wasn't a lie, that was love
!
"It's forty. Any Hallmark store will tell you the same." If she even thought about getting him a card that referenced that... He turned his face toward her. "And I appreciate that," he said about being the youngest she'd dated, "but that doesn't really make me feel better." He might be young in her opinion, but in his he was still old.
Cha-Cha huffed. "I don't get that. You're standing on the hill, if anything. You're Maria, Ed!" she added, hoping to make him feel better. And equating him to Julie Andrews would do that? Yes. Yes it would. Hey, he admitted to loving the Sound of Music on their first date. If he was Maria, he got to kiss Christopher Plummer. Good tidings all around.
Ed looked at her, utterly lost. He hadn't followed the jump from his miserable existence to happy go lucky musical. "What are you talking about?" he asked. Maria? Cha-Cha really was crazy.
"Cause Maria's on the hill...the hill that's alive with the sound of music. She's not over that hill, she's on it. Twirling and singing. Like you are," Cha-Cha explained. How long had he known her again? She had odd logic. What else was new?
Ed was able to piece together the analogy. Strange. Since when did he twirl and sing? The point was lost on him, unable to see how that had any relevance to his situation. Instead of relieved he felt annoyed that she wasn't making sense, in his opinion, and settled for wordlessly draping an arm over her as he rolled to lay on his stomach.
Cha-Cha sighed, moving in closer to him. "You don't get it. The point is, you're not that old yet. I don't think you are, and you shouldn't think you are. You've got no wrinkles, I can't even find a grey hair," she paused and ran a finger through his hair gently. There may have been one or two, but he didn't need to know that yet. "And you're in the best shape of your life. Trust me, you might feel like an old man, but you don't look it," that wasn't a lie. "And...you don't even act like an old man. So how about, you're not old till I say so? Cause I know you best, Ed, and you're not old."
She'd told him several times she thought he was. He hadn't forgotten that. But... "Okay." Not really convinced, but she wouldn't give up any time soon, that he knew. "If you insist, I'll take your word for it." He kissed her neck, always good to get his mind off talking.
Cha-Cha smiled, tilting her head. "I make fun of you all I want Ed, but I'm not kidding. You've got a whole lotta life ahead of you." She closed her eyes, rubbing the back of his neck. "And besides. I already decided I'm gonna love you anyway. Even when you're so old....you can't even kiss me, cause the lack of air suffocates you. And forget about alone time, cause the senior's home has a strict curfew," she giggled, imagining it. Their time would be up before anything else would be. And speaking of that...nothing else would be. "But I'd still love you so much, I'd probably move in with you at the old folk's home," that, and because they'd run her life better than she herself could do it. Imagine waking up and having all your activities planned for you? Not to mention getting jello at the end of the day? Hello, retirement.
Ed didn't say what he was thinking. He was already being moody, he knew when to cool it. "I know I've got a lot of life ahead and stuff, I'm just happy you have to get older while you live. It went too fast."
He sighed. "I'm sorry I'm ruining what was supposed to be your birthday brainstorming moment. It's just it wouldn't be so bad if...well, I mean it wouldn't feel so over if I had my career to focus on. I can't go through the motions of living and enjoying days with Lennie. I can only go 'remember when'. And you aren't supposed to 'remember when' until you're old and retire. And I know I should be used to this by now," he hadn't worked in how long now?, "but it's hard to let go."
It was harder for Cha-Cha to understand. She'd never really focused on a career before, and couldn't relate to the pain of losing it. But at the same time, she could get losing something huge like that. She imagined it would be like a breakup. It took her forever to get over Scott, and that had been only after three months together. This was nine years. Maybe more. "I know it is," she sighed, rubbing his back gently. "Maybe...I dunno. Maybe you've gotta focus on something else. Like...a hobby, or...something else that regular people do." She loved Ed to death, but maybe he needed to focus on something else now. She didn't believe in signs and all that...but maybe this marked some sort of...transition in his life?
A transition into what though, she didn't know. What did other normal people do, besides a career? Friends, he had. Lover, he had. Family?
"I've got you to focus on," he said, chuckling at last. "Can I count you as a hobby?" By definition it was something you did regularly. "Seriously though, I'd like to just live with you full time. Not worry about working and getting attached to anything." He didn't consider it giving up. Just...not carrying on... "But I can only lie around for so long and then we lose the apartment." The annoying thing about life needing money. But if they didn't do anything but stay home, he could actually afford quiet a while.
"You should get paid for living with me. You work enough," Cha-Cha decided, giggling. Physical labour, as well as mental problems, like figuring out her logic. And it even tested his acting skills, when she asked if she looked fat for the fiftieth time. "So what are you gonna do?" she asked finally. Yes, he needed a job unless they won the lottery. But she didn't want to see him get consumed with working, either. He'd feely admitted to her that he didn't do much of anything before he met her, besides work. She didn't want to see that happen to him.
For Ed though, he was used to all or nothing. 'Part time' and any words near the same meaning were foreign. It gave him something to do all day. Normally he had nothing better planned. "I don't know. There's always the easy way out of this problem." Dad in Virginia. She shot the idea down whenever he brought it up, but really it was the easiest solution.
It took her a minute to remember what that was. "Oh Ed, not Virginia," she groaned, curling in a bit closer to him. She liked New York, and didn't want to move. She also liked him, and didn't want to get left alone. "Why do you want to work for him anyway? You know he'll only treat you like crap."
"I know Cha-Cha, and I don't want to, but I'm running out of options. It's been a few months. I can't find anything here." Up to his standards. He knew he was being too picky, but he couldn't help it. Him, have a gopher job? No way. He already did years starting at the bottom with a pitiful pay and bad hours. "It's been a month since we got back and they still hound me about it. Apparently they'd really give me what they offered." Twice what an inexperienced beginner ought to receive. "If mom's guilt tripping him into it why not take advantage of it?" Yes he felt absolutely fine with that. "You wouldn't have to move down there."
"I don't want to go to Virginia," Cha-Cha told him. "But I don't want you to go, either." Couldn't they just stay in New York for awhile? There had to be something he could do. Even if it was outside the city, it was better than having to go to Virginia. "I know, but...that's basically telling your parent you can't survive without them. When you did that just fine for ten years."
"Over ten years. I've already proved I can do it." But he knew what she meant, and wasn't really dying to go home. "Well then can you give me something more to go off of than 'No Virginia, find something else'? Because I feel stuck." He was stubborn and wasn't impressed by what he'd found so far.
Cha-Cha sighed, leaning in to kiss his neck. What? If he could do it to get out of talking, so could she. "I don't know," she admitted, nuzzling just below his ear. "But there's gotta be something in this state that would be acceptable. Or at least...not ten hours away."
They kept saying that, yet he always ended up the same way. Home with nothing. But he welcomed this distraction ploy. Talk about work could slowly fade away. "Why don't we just see how long we can keep the apartment at our current rate?" he said, not a serious suggestion at all. "We could make it to the next guilt Christmas check without a problem. I think one of the biggest reasons I can't fine a job is that they want me to actually show up. Which means I couldn't be laying here with you. And where's the fun in that?" Why couldn't they hire him and pay him to stay home? That would be so much easier.
Hold on. "It's possible to work from home..."
Cha-Cha paused with her lips against his skin, smiling slowly. "I like that idea," she nodded. Why not? He had a computer. He could probably, hopefully resist her for a couple hours during the day. "What could you do from home?"
"I could find something." It had just popped into his head. He'd have to look into before seriously considering it. But being paid to stay home with her was very appealing. There had to be one online job he could live with, right?
Cha-Cha nodded, thinking about it. "And you know, if you got one of those...lapped top computers, you could use it right here," she pointed out, and curled up to his side to illustrate her point. He could make money while cuddling with her. Was she a genius or what?
"Would you really let me work?" He was doubtful. One of them wouldn't let it last long. Though if he just stayed there all day, little by little something would get done, right? "But you know we'd never leave the apartment. I mean look at us now. It'd be worse, if possible." Somehow the threat of their laziness doubling didn't really cancel out working with her on his lap or laying beside him or...
"I might. Sometimes. If I was sleeping," Cha-Cha grinned. She heard was he was saying about increased laziness. She didn't see what was so wrong with that. "What's your point?" she asked, rubbing his stomach gently and staying close to him. Working at home was looking like a very good option.
"This is exactly my point," he said, pointing to her hand. Ed let out an amused sigh and got his arms around her waist. "I'd probably have to do it at the table. Nothing would get down if I were here." He smiled and kissed her shortly. "But being paid to be with you...I'll have to look into this."
"...your tummy is the point?" Cha-Cha asked with a giggle. "Yeah, I guess it would get bigger if you stayed in with me all day. But I'd help you work it off," she reminded him with a grin. Okay, so he needed to get out and have some sort of life. But he had her! They could be losers together! Laughing, she kissed his neck gently and rested her head against his shoulder. "I think you should. It's better than having to move to Virginia, to work with a man you hate."
"I meant you on me as the point," he laughed. "I can't concentrate when you're around. But yes, I'd need help exercising. And about Virginia, do you really hate the idea that much?"
"It's not that I hate it," Cha-Cha conditioned. "I just...really really don't like it. It's too far away, and it's your dad. And I just moved in with you here. It just...seems like too far to go and too much trouble, when there are other options here." Of course, Virginia would pay better, but like he said, another guilt check would be coming in just a few months. Unless he wanted to spend the time with his parents...
"Well how about we see if this new idea works out, but not entirely drop Virginia? I really don't like it either. I'm hoping for anything but that." He wanted her to keep talking him out of it. Long enough to see if he could actually work from home.
Cha-Cha sighed, but nodded slowly. As a compromise, it worked. But she really didn't want him to move to Virginia. "I like this idea, though," she said, in case she hadn't already.
"Me too. I'll check it out in the morning." Ed made his final shifts for now, getting ready to fall asleep soon. After he yawned he kissed her. "Time for bed?"
Cha-Cha nodded, climbing out to get ready. "Did the dancing wear you out?" she asked with a grin, grabbing her PJs. He was a good dancer, though. They'd definitely have to go again. It would have been nice to that night, but obviously they were too busy on their way out. It wouldn't have been wise to stick around any longer.
"It was one of a few things. I didn't get a lot of sleep the night before, busy all day with you..." To name a few. Though several were enjoyable and he wouldn't mind being worn out from them again. He didn't bother climbing out after her. He was comfortable and staying put.
Cha-Cha paused as she remembered the day's events, and rolled her eyes. "Oh right. No wonder I'm beat. I barely got any sleep last night," she reminded him. She still couldn't believe he'd woken her up at 3AM. Or was that the storm that did that? Whichever it was, he kept her up, which was even worse. Sure, the hour of lost sleep was worth it, but he didn't need to know that. "I don't know about you, but I'm good for a couple days now. I won't need to jump you till...like, next week sometime," she smirked to herself. That would be the day.
"Hey, we made a deal in Virginia remember? I got permission to pounce on you whenever I wanted." He hadn't forgotten that. Or failed to take advantage since then.
"No we didn't," Cha-Cha responded quickly. He wasn't supposed to remember that. He wasn't supposed to take that seriously. Itr was said in the heat of the moment, she would've said anything at that point! That was hardly fair! "I have no recollection of what you're talking about. Whatsoever. But if I did, it sounds like something I would have said, but not meant. Therefore you were just...taking advantage of me while I was vulnerable." She could always turn it back on him.
He watched her go off to get ready, calling after with, "That's not what I remember. You were dragging me off the beautiful beach, practically running back to the room. And you absolutely promised me sex whenever I wanted. A dumb thing to do, but I'm glad you did. Lucky for you, I feel like sleeping tonight."
Cha-Cha pretended not to hear him, brushing her teeth quickly and shutting off the bathroom light. Maybe if she stopped bringing it up, he'd forget. "Well, I don't do dumb things," she reminded him, climbing into bed beside him. "So you're obviously making it up. Nice try, baby," she kissed his cheek, grinning.
Ed chuckled and wrapped his arms around her. "Whatever you say, hun." She would pretend to forget. "Good night."
Author Note: We know sex won't be mind blowing every time in real life. Luckily in fiction it can be!