Overcast

Part 1: Heavy Rain

Romance/Suspense/Drama

Randall x Celia

Rated T - M - mild sexual themes

They were both wet.

By the rain.

The carpet beneath their feet was drenched. Celia recalled lizard fingers pressing at least twice against a number five as the elevator doors closed. No words were shared on the way up only shoulders touching in an attempt to keep warm. A dracaena plant stood alone outside the elevator doors. The rattling of keys now the only sound echoing the fifth floor in the six-story building.

She shivered detesting the air conditioning as she watched the other monster curse under his breath. Attempts to unlock apartment number 39 was all for naught by wet, slippery hands. Celia inhaled another icy breath giving thought to how much the foyer air tasted of cigarettes. Her snake hair winced as a shiver ran through them. Another plant sat to the right of them attempting to give life to the otherwise stale environment. The other monster still shivering finally got a grip on the door key and the door was open.

She found herself sitting on the end of a bed. Randall's bed. It was a double with one pillow; sheets seemed old and rough to touch. The apartment was small and smelt of old mahogany and cleaning products. The air was stale apparently from lack of open windows but it still felt warmer than outside. The room where she sat seemed to be the main. A small kitchen in the corner. The bathroom to the right of her that Randall had entered and not yet left, and a door behind her seemed to be the only extra rooms.

A display shelf aligned with jars; unlabeled. Scattered mugs varying in size. Coffee beans. Flour and sugar bowls. One chair. One loaf of bread. No TV. An open book lined with pencil shavings. Another small plant. No photo frames. It was nothing like Mike and Sulley's place. Celia found herself staring at the dripping tap recalling memories of the last seven hours.

The phone just wouldn't stop ringing today at Monsters Inc. She had gotten very behind in her paperwork and decided to stay behind to catch up. Mike had given her a pity hug before leaving with Sulley. It was now seven in the evening and she was finally finishing up. She was surprised to see that she wasn't alone after the workday had ended. Randall had appeared seemingly out of nowhere looking as surprised to see her as she to him.

"Do you usually stay behind this late?" She had asked him. He had given a nervous cough before mentioning Waternoose and how he'd been on his back about a few things that he didn't particularly want to talk about.

They left Monsters Inc together.

They waited at the bus stop together.

They caught the same bus together.

It was overcast.

It wasn't until they got off at the same stop that they eyed each other. One joked about being followed and the other laughed. They walked. A small conversation started mainly about the weather; how the sky had darkened.

"What are you doing now?" Randall had asked out of nowhere.

Celia stopped walking to ponder this. Mike apparently was busy tonight so she was just planning on going home to read her novel till she fell asleep.

Randall explained that he was headed to one of his favourite bars. Alone.

"Did you want to join me?"

They drank ciders. They chatted about work. What they hated about it, Randall of course had said Sullivan, and what they liked about it. He agreed with Celia that this was the first time they had actually spoken properly. They played poker. They shared a pot of vodka sunrise. Celia had salad, Randall had steak. They made friends. They played drinking games with said friends. They took shots. Celia danced, Randall didn't. Celia watched Randall hit on another monster before being rejected quite swiftly. Celia laughed. Celia laughed a lot. And Randall paid for everything.

At this stage Celia had dismissed everything the other employees at MI had said about Randall. He was nice. To her.

By the time they left it was raining and the buses had stopped running. Tripping over each other's feet they walked the wet pavement for half an hour before sobering and noticing that they were lost. Randall found his bearings at a local gas station whilst Celia decided she needed the restrooms for a while. After a few more stops that Celia insisted on they made it to Randall's apartment block.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the smell of the weave of a heavy coat being placed over her shoulders.

"But don't you need this?" she looked to him their eyes meeting for a second before he left again. Celia couldn't help but feel concerned. She was certain that Randall was cold-blooded.

"I'll be fine," came the eventual reply from the room behind her, "I'm turning the heater on."

"Are you sure?" She replied softly, speaking to the air in front of her more than anything.

"Positive."

Celia gripped the sides of the coat letting the warmth engulf her. Peering over her left shoulder she noticed an alarm clock's red glow. 2:14am. It was very late. She appreciated Randall letting her dry off in his apartment but she had work tomorrow. They had work tomorrow. She had a good night with him but decided that it was time to end it.

"I'll call a cab soon," Celia still speaking softly scanned the room for any sign of phone.

"A cab? Celia no, do you know how much that would cost from here? At least 60 dollars," Randall spoke still in the other room, "And besides I don't have a phone."

Celia scrunched up her face at the last comment but decided not to ask. She would have used her cell but it ran out of battery hours ago. Randall finally emerged from the back room closing the door as he went. Celia squinted. He was holding a tall bottle of liquor though she couldn't make out the brand. He made his way to the bench in front of her setting down the bottle and grabbing two glasses.

"Oh Randall, please, I'd really rather not," Celia hoped she didn't sound irritated, because she really wasn't; memories of the gas station bathroom just seemed to appear automatically. She was quite sensitive to alcohol and still wasn't feeling her best. She flicked a piece of hair, or rather snake, away from her eye.

"This stuff is really good," Randall commented with his back to her, his rough voice sounding gentle, "It was actually a gift from a family member."

There was silence where Randall wasn't sure what Celia was doing behind him.

"But you know, living alone," he watched as he started to pour the liquor, his hands still shaking a little, "I've never had anyone to share it with."

Celia remained silent staring intently at the blue scales on the back of the purple monster from the bed where she sat. There wasn't much space between them. Celia wasn't quite sure why she noticed this; her mind still so very unfocused. The apartment was so small and so very still. The air felt thin. The sound of pouring alcohol was soothing; the soft rain aiding the ambience. All of her snakes had fallen asleep now and Celia felt unnaturally calm.

The clinking of glass interrupted her trance. Randall had turned around. With him standing and her still sitting they were now eye to eye. She blinked at the glass cups in his hands.

"Randall, I appreciate what you're doing, I really do," she took a breath in and held it, "but I'm tired."

She looked to Randall who seemed to frown a little. His pupils flickered slightly then rested on the space on the bed next to Celia. She exhaled slowly as Randall climbed onto the bed space to the right of her awkwardly attempting to sit, still holding both drinks in his upper hands.

The gap between them now lessened.

"Tonight was great Randall but work today was just so stressful, and I'm worried about tomorrow, I'm still behind with some things you see," she seemed to trail off and her voice became hushed, "I don't want to risk being fired."

At this she seemed to slump, the coat on her back falling off her shoulders; her eye on the carpet now. Randall could see her fear; her worry.

"Hey I understand," he took a sip of his drink, "I've messed up at MI before. I haven't told anyone but I was close to being fired once. Waternoose let me off for a number of reasons. I guess I was lucky."

Celia's shoulders began to rise as a frown settled upon her brow. She didn't reply. Randall's eyes searched her again.

"You look so tense," he blurted out which granted him a small glimpse of Celia's gaze.

Randall looked as if he was hesitating to do something.

Then he was gone.

"Randall?!" Celia darted upright; her eye wide open. Randall had fully blended; he was completely invisible, "Where are you?"

She began to stand up but was pulled back down by two hands on her shoulders from behind.

"No, no, stay where you are."

Randall's voice seemed oily and very close to her head. Celia shifted a little, she didn't like not seeing Randall. She didn't like it. She really didn't. She began to retaliate and pulled against his hold. The coat that had once cradled her shoulders had fallen.

"Look just calm down," his voice, now raised a little, seemed to be right beside Celia's face. She felt a second pair of hands grab her waist, which in return made her shriek.

She was about to yell at him but suddenly stopped. She took a deep breath in.

Two hands on her shoulders. Two hands on her lower back. Three fingers on each began to move slowly in a circular motion, kneading into her back through her dress. Randall began to slowly re-appear. He was sitting upright directly behind her, his head leaning over her left shoulder. He was massaging her.

She sighed deeply, the panic subsiding. It was a nice sensation. Randall's fingers were so rounded and soft feeling. She felt awful though; she really hoped her reaction didn't anger him. Celia attempted to apologise but was interrupted.

"Just take this," Randall snarled handing her the drink he had poured earlier for her from behind her.

She now accepted the drink and brought it up to her mouth. She swore she could feel Randall's scowl burning the back of her head. There was almost a minute silence before Randall spoke again.

"It's not your fault," his voice softened, still rubbing Celia's back, "I'm sure you hear what other monsters at MI say about me…"

It was true though, Celia had heard a lot of awful things about Randall, but she was never sure if it was true. She didn't want to believe any of it, especially now that she was sitting in his apartment letting him touch her like this. They both took a sip of their drinks and Celia thought of Mike for the first time tonight.

"I try not to judge people by what others say," another sip, "I feel it's wrong. Mike hardly ever talks bad about you surprisingly. I guess that's where we're similar."

"Oh?" Randall's response was short and Celia wasn't sure how to respond.

The light bulb above them flickered for a few seconds making both monsters look to the ceiling until it stopped. The rain didn't seem to let up as they both took another sip of their drinks. Celia was starting to feel a bit absent-minded.

Randall hesitated a bit before speaking again, his words slowed, "How are… you and Mike?"

He felt her tense up at this.

Celia's brow furrowed at this odd question. She detected a slight smarminess to his voice but decided to ignore it. She was being paranoid about the way Randall spoke. She even considered the fact that he called Mike by his first name instead of the usual Wazowski. She was thinking too much and this was her problem. She needed to relax, that's what she told herself. Relax.

She took another sip of her drink, much bigger than the last, noticing the strength as it burned the back of her throat. She heard Randall take a sip of his own from behind her. What type of alcohol was this? Wanting to stay on topic on Mike she dismissed the question.

"Fine, and though we do have our ups and downs, that doesn't stop me from loving him," she breathed, "However I secretly wish he would ask me to move in with him, but living with Sulley as well; I think that would be awkward. I'd love it if he wanted to move in with me in my apartment instead, but for some reason I don't think he'd want to leave Sulley. That probably sounds weird to you, but I just need to know if he's serious about our relationship."

She felt herself blush. Was she rambling? Did she open up a little too much to Randall? It didn't matter. Randall blinked finding it hard to concentrate on her words. Instead he found himself more focused on the body he was feeling.

They both sipped their drinks. Again. Time passed.

"Randall this really does feels absolutely amazing, why don't you quit scaring and get a job as a masseuse?" She let loose a short giggle. Mike very rarely gave her massages and they were never as pleasing as what Randall was doing.

Randall gave a pathetic laugh but didn't respond.

Another sip of her drink.

Another sip of his.

It wasn't long before they had both finished their drinks and went for more. Celia actually had to help Randall stand and even offered to pour it for him. She only had another two and Randall spilled his fourth cup. It was at this point where Celia's vision started to blur. 3:34 the alarm clock flashed, but neither of the monsters cared.

Celia let Randall unzip the back of her dress just so she could feel his hands against her skin.

The gap between them didn't matter to her anymore.

She loved this. Her eye now fully shut she felt that familiar float-y feeling, the alcohol now gripping her hard. Randall shifted a little. She felt herself lean backwards into him letting his hands support her. His four hands were now moving to different areas of her back; his upper set especially moving to her sides under her arms and his lower set drifting even lower.

Randall's breathing changed.

Celia hardly noticed his warm breath quicken against her neck. He swallowed. His thoughts began to pool. New thoughts. This wasn't what he had intended to do. No...? His eyes lulled, now resting his belly against her back. Randall didn't notice but his colours were slightly changing. A strong urge was rising in him. He could feel her heart beat. It was fast and it beat in time with his.

The rain got heavier.

Dangerously close. Lower hands now down near hips. Upper hands nearing towards sides of breasts. Everything seemed darker.

Celia winced a little at the cold touch against her chest but said nothing. Randall's head was still over Celia's left shoulder but was now resting against her neck. He raised his head a bit and searched her face, almost as if he was looking for permission. Celia arched her back in the sitting position she was still in. Randall's tail coiled around her waist almost as if by accident. Celia finally opened her eye to find Randall's own staring back.

Then the gap between them was no more.

It was hard to tell who initiated the kiss, but it was happening. Celia grabbing at his scaly wrists then arms then body. She wasn't in the real world anymore and neither was Randall. Their bodies merged and the room spun.

The rain pelted.

It couldn't be undone.

No one said a thing; there was nothing to be said.

Gripped the sheets beneath her on the bed. Towering over her. On top of her.

In her.

Then the rain stopped.