Title: Settle Down

Summary: Persuasion can take many forms.

Disclaimer: I don't own D. Gray-Man. What I do own is Miss Arden and the plot.

IV. Settle Down

"So you're telling me you have never slept in this room. Never? Not one single time?" Kimbra asked him, rising from his chest to prop herself onto an elbow and look at him with a shocked expression. She ran a hand through her strawberry blonde hair to make sure it was not ruined after their very intense 'massage session'.

Well, it started as a massage session in his office until she started worrying that Fey will catch them, so Komui suggested that they go to her room like they usually did. She deadpanned the fact that Miranda shared her room because hers somehow didn't have a door anymore and practically dragged him to his bedroom. When the blonde opened the door to his chamber and saw nothing but an unmade bed and sealed boxes everywhere her jaw almost hit the floor in shock. In her frenzy to make his room livable, somewhere between making the bed and searching for a pair of pillows, they went completely off-track.

"Nope, not a night has been spent here. I fall asleep in the office, then go here in the morning to change clothes and shower," Komui explained with a tired voice and buried his head further into a pillow. "I almost forgot how good a bed felt like."

"It's no wonder you were tired all the time," Kimbra chuckled lightly and settled back into the warmth of his embrace, nose nuzzling the crook of his neck. Komui instinctively wrapped an arm around her, letting his hand rest on her naked hip.

He could get used to this- a comfortable bed, warm covers, her soft breathing against his skin. More so, if they shared a room there would be no more waking up an hour earlier than everyone to sneak out of her room so nobody could see him. And that meant getting up before Kanda, who usually started his day at five in the morning to meditate.

"Do you want to move in with me?" Komui suddenly blurted, the instinct to slap himself surfacing.

They had been together for six months, not including another two before that, during which they somehow managed to end up sleeping with each other. Komui didn't want to make her think he wanted to rush things. Hell, people didn't even have a clue they were together, except for Lenalee and Reever.

"Really?" she inquired, rising again from the coziness of their cuddle to give him a questioning look.

"Y-Yes,' was his stuttered response as he turned to look at her, black meeting green, with anticipation.

Kimbra couldn't contain the goofy grin plastered on her face. "Of course I'll move in with you, silly man," the blonde squealed and jumped on top to kiss the daylights out of him and straddling his hips in the process. "But, you know, there's only one problem," she murmured into the kiss as she nibbled at his lower lip, hot breath ghosting against his skin.

"What?" he barely croaked out the question. His senses were going haywire; he could smell her perfume, feel her skin against his, their bodies grinding against each other.

"People don't know about us," she whispered in his ear and moved her body in a way that made him groan. Why did she have to be such a tease only when she wanted something?

"Then we'll just have to tell them," Komui sharply resolved, not before taking hold of her hips and turning them around so that he was on top.

He could solve a lot of problems very fast, given the right incentive.

Later that day, in the cafeteria everyone seemed to wait in line for their food. Jerry, God bless him, was actually not at his post because of a nasty cold he got, which meant someone else was temporarily making the food. And whoever that someone was, they were painfully slow.

Komui glanced around him. Anticipating his order, Lavi waited for his French fries as he gripped the wooden counter to lean on it in case he fell asleep. A dozen persons behind him stood Kanda, who kept shooting curses at the cook, and Allen, who was about to pass out from hunger as he tried leaning on the wall to his right. Unfortunately, the white haired boy gripped the back of Kanda's shirt instead of the wall, which pissed off the Japanese even more.

"Aren't they a lively bunch?" Kimbra asked, one of her hands gripping the tray there was supposed to be food on.

"Yeah, they are," he acknowledged, a smile tugging at his lips as he watched the teenagers.

"By the way, when are we going to go public?"

"I don't know. Later, but not now."

A good thing about Kimbra standing before him in line was the part where he got to see her slim legs, followed by the good view he had of her bottom, especially in that pair of black pants and-

"Stop staring at my ass," she whispered, eyes looking over her shoulder to see him blush.

He coughed in his fist to get the red away from his cheeks.

"How about we turn later into now?" Kimbra suddenly asked, turning around to face him.

"But-"

"No 'buts'," she told him, determined to get her point across.

And so, she let the tray fall to the ground, her hands gripping the front of his coat to pull him closer and slap a kiss onto his lips, under the shocked eyes of half the European Branch.

They weren't a secret anymore.

…

We can settle at a table

A table for two

Won't you wine and dine with me?

Settle down

The End.

This chapter is dedicated to Prunella7, faithful reader and reviewer. You know I love you! *hugs*

Well I hope you enjoyed, 'cause I had a great time writing this collection. And please review to let me know if you liked it. :D