The Dramatic Spiel of Arthur and Chardonnay~ (7,135 views)

”Just because you grew up with that rule doesn’t mean I have to listen to it. Besides. In case you didn’t notice, nothing got cooked.” He pointed out. If it was just a smear or two of chocolate on the counter while the pancakes cooked Arthur wouldn’t mind taking care of that. But this was literally the entirety of the bowls of mix and filling spilled out between both him and Chardonnay. He still didn’t understand why he let this escalate like it had. Honestly he should have smeared a little mix on Chardonnay’s face and just left it as that. But instead, here he’d gone and started a full on food war with her. It was stupid, and ridiculous, and would be a bitch to clean. But seeing her face lit up like that in excitement while they were lobbing crap at each other was definitely worth it.

He rolled his eyes at her comment about him retaliating and was about to refute when, again, she brought up the fact that she thought he had been acting different. He was suddenly more conscious then of the way his hand felt on her waist, and the way his shirt was melding to his skin. It was still so odd that she was the one to notice something was wrong. He paused for a few seconds, staring at her face in confusion, as he tried to think of what to say. No way was he going to mention it was because he bought the theater – she’d just make fun of him – but what else could he say? And he didn’t like lying to her, especially not when they had the occasional... nice moment like this. When she was smirking over at him playfully, held close to him but not because they were having sex, he just didn’t like to lie to her. So he just awkwardly cleared his throat, looked away from her for a second, and mumbled out a ”I didn’t think you of all people would notice anything,” to her. She hit him again and that got him to look back over at her with a half-smirk on his face. ”But, thanks. I guess.”

Stubbornly she insisted her hair wasn’t thin, and maybe it wasn’t super thin. He’d only run his fingers through it a few times before. When it came to sex, he noticed that she loved to touch his hair and he loved the feeling of her fingers netting through the strands. When they were going slower the touches were gentle and when they were more aggressive the touches sometimes turned to almost be pulls – but Arthur liked either way, honestly, as long as her fingers were in his hair. But when it came to her hair he usually only touched it when they were making out, not usually trusting himself not to pull too hard if he went for it during sex, unless it was oral, but even then he usually tried not to grip it tightly. He felt like that would definitely be a mood killer, especially since Chardonnay cared so much about her appearance. He snorted when she drew her fingers away from his eyebrow and called them caterpillars. ”Oh come on, don’t leave me a cold shower. I’ll get sick, and then you’ll get sick because you’re still living here,” he pointed out. He guessed her concern only went so far... but that was to be expected. Still. He really wished she wasn’t opposed to shower sex, in this moment, or at least sharing a damn shower so they could both get clean without dealing with cold water. But that might get... distracting. Really fast. And then how was he going to clean the kitchen in time if once they got out of the shower they wound up on his bed?

His revenge for her statement was when he rubbed his forehead against hers and she insulted him in response, but her voice didn’t sound angry. It sounded annoyed and mirthful. She was looking him in the eyes now and he got distracted for a second, because they were so close and her eyes were staring into his. It was something... different but he couldn’t put his finger on it, even as she spoke. For a second, he didn’t say anything. But then he cracked a grin. ”you know, I went a few minutes before you called me in here. And I’m insisting. You’re not going to get clean until you agree to help.” that made him think of just licking her clean, which made him think of them moving to his bedroom, which also would make it impossible to clean the kitchen in a timely manner. He just hoped she caved soon.

Arthur rolled his eyes at that. Just because she made the mixes didn’t mean she cooked anything. Salad was completely different. That wasn’t supposed to be cooked like pancakes were. You weren’t supposed to eat the mix raw like they had been doing, like he saw her doing as she licked her lips. Watching her do that made him want to lick them, too, to taste the ridiculous amount of mix she had smeared all across her face. But he wasn’t going to convince her so he just snorted out, ”you didn’t cook the batter, so it classifies as a failed attempt,” but he knew she was ridiculously stubborn. She wasn’t going to listen to him.

But, still, that stubbornness was something that drew him to her. When they first met and throughout high school it was just annoying, because it meant she just always assumed she was right and didn’t listen to anyone else, except her father who he could gather even from that first meeting that she loved so much. Her eye roll and threat to do this kind of thing tomorrow made his smirk tilt down into a frown. ”I’m fine. Don’t do this again tomorrow, it’s only cute once,” he chided. Sure he liked this food fight thing, but if it happened too frequently it’d get really annoying really fast – especially since she refused to clean. ”but you know, I’d feel way better if you’d help me clean,” he pointed out, knowing she wasn’t going to help him anyway. She was so stubborn... like a bull. A very attractive, hotheaded bull. ”A warm shower would help me way more than a cold shower could.” Hell, he’d even take a lukewarm shower or a room temperature one, but not a cold one. And of course Chardonnay would leave him with just the icy water after she got her hair washed out. So stubborn. Sometimes he admired it, but sometimes it was annoying, like now, when it infringed on him getting certain things.

By the time ten minutes had passed, Arthur stayed where he was, not tired though kind of bored from just standing around. It didn’t help, too, that the kitchen was still gross and he was itching to get it cleaned up. He was used to standing around and he could tell Chardonnay was getting antsy. Absently, he drummed his fingers lightly on her tank top, watching as the colors stained her chest. She should probably take that thing off so that it wouldn’t stick to her skin. He definitely wouldn’t mind keeping her here if she was only clad in her bra. Or take her somewhere else. Either way. He wouldn’t object.

Chardonnay finally moved, and he thought she was getting bored and about to give up. Except instead of that she moved her face so that it was against his neck and she started to kiss his skin. It felt different than the sugary mix on his body, but in a pleasant way. This was definitely the way he’d rather get cleaned up than having to take a shower (even though he knew that a shower was the more practical way to go about getting clean). When she moved her lips back to the underside of his ear he gripped her waist a little tighter and felt a chill go down his body at the feeling. He probably shouldn’t let her keep touching him like this if he wanted to get any cleaning done, because all this was doing was make him want to make more of a mess of the counter by banging her against it. Which was definitely not sanitary and not happening. Still, though, the mental image was kind of distracting, especially when she slid her hand down his body and up his shirt.

He glared over at her, though there was something obviously distracted about his expression. ”you’re not fair,” he growled, under his breath, but if she wanted to play that game he could play it, too. He leaned closer to her and brought his lips to her neck, kissing where the mixture had splattered. He moved his lips up her neck to her face and cheek, running his mouth just above her lips where the splatter gave her a fake mustache. He opened his eyes, which looked at her half-lidded. It was rare he got to be this close to her, close enough to see the blue flecks in her eyes, when they weren’t moving fast to get undressed. ”if you help me, it’ll get cleaned up faster,” he said, though as he felt her hand underneath his shirt, he wished he could just take it off. It was uncomfortable, and he’d rather feel her hands on his skin when they weren’t sandwiched between him and his shirt.

When Chardonnay’s ministrations on his skin finally slackened, Arthur thought he was making progress. He hadn’t ever done this so sensually to her before, but it seemed to be having some kind of an effect. She wasn’t shoving him away or getting angry – she was just continuing to banter with him about whether or not she should clean the kitchen. He was still very much conscious of the way her hands were moving up the loose material of his tee shirt. God, he wanted the shirt off. Especially when he felt her hands slide up his torso towards his nipples. He had been in the middle of kissing along her cheek, just beside her mouth, and couldn’t help but moan against her skin at the feeling. This wasn’t good for him. Even if his ministrations were having an effect on her it would be way more notable if he got bothered. He thought about different things, thinks that killed his arousal before it formed, but that was hard to maintain when all he was thinking about was kissing her and dragging her to his shower. He knew she said she wasn’t crazy about shower sex, but that was years ago. Maybe she’d be willing to try again. He could probably hold her up better this time, now that he knew what to expect. His mind was already racing with those kinds of thoughts as he pulled away again and she teased him by suggesting they take a shower together. Damn it... she knew he wanted that. She knew he wanted it and so that little smirk of hers meant she knew it and she was just trying to get him to agree with her.

But he wasn’t that easy. As much as her hands on his body were distracting him, he wasn’t going to give up here. ”you’re a sadist,” he muttered against the skin of her cheek, which tasted like chocolate and banana. It wasn’t too sweet a scent and seemed to be balanced with the taste of her skin, and the scent of her perfume, which he could barely pick out behind the strong odor of chocolate and bananas. ”we could both fit in my shower if we wanted to, I also have a bath,” he muttered. Though, technically, his bath was only supposed to fit one person so they probably couldn’t even have much water... then what was the point of doing it in the bath? To not get any mix on his bed, he guessed.

As he spoke he moved the hands on her waist to slide down lower, pushing the thin fabric of her tank top out of his way as he slid his hands up her body. He was fully aware that he was getting sauce all over her torso but he didn’t care, her skin felt so warm against his hand, which was coated in the cool mixture. After sliding his hands up towards her chest, he slowly started to slide them down farther, until they were teasing the skin just above her pants. When she stepped her body closer to his he took the chance to grind his lower body against hers. Oh, it took all of his control not to just start stripping here and initiating sex right now. But instead, he grinned against her skin, and looked into her eyes again.

”You help me clean this shit up, and I’ll help you get off later.” He said, before he moved his lips to her ear, his fingers teasing the waistband of her pants as he slid them a bit lower. He was glad he wasn’t still looking at Chardonnay when he half-moaned out ”there’s other parts of you I’d rather be licking than your face Chardonnay,” against her ear, because once the words were out of his mouth he blinked rapidly and tried to will the blush down.

Wait. Since when did he say shit like that? Jesus fuck. He needed to clean this kitchen. He knew he needed to. And as much as he wanted Chardonnay to help him, he liked this – teasing and touching her – way more than cleaning. ”How about we make... a trade for you helping me clean?”

He muttered some half-believing grumble against her skin when she denied being a sadist, continuing to touch her and taste the mix on her skin. It was sweet, and by the time he looked at Chardonnay’s face when he pulled away slightly, he realized most of the splotches of mix were gone from her face. It was very... weird, though, that he still found her attractive even though there were odd tufts of mix on her cheeks and forehead, and littered in her hair. He was still distracted by the look in her eyes as they darkened and focused on him, and the way her voice sounded when she couldn’t really put together a complete thought due to what he was doing... that made him want to touch her even more. He connected his lips to her cheek again and continued sliding his hands up her body, only half-listening to her trying to answer his offer of using the shower. He found a lot of things attractive about Chardonnay, but the most enticing thing about fucking her was the way he could get her to forget how to speak when he did the right things. He’d been screwing her so much he practically knew her body better than his own – what she liked him touching and what left her gasping for words between moans came second nature to him.

Finally she seemed to regain some focus though, and at that, he paused.

”Well if you make me take a cold shower, I’m not going to be feeling like this anymore,” he pointed out. A cold shower would clean him off, but it would also probably kill the desire he felt beginning to stir in his body. Well, maybe if he walked back into his room and saw her sprawled out on his bed he could get the mood back, but the coldness would throw him for a loop and he didn’t want to tell Chardonnay that he could get back in the mood after. ”We can both stand in the tub under the shower head. So someone doesn’t hog the damn hot water,” he said against her skin, as he pulled away from it to tease the lower half of her body. He could hear her breath growing shallower, and after she swore and he pulled back to look at her face he couldn’t help but bite his lip at the sight.

He was trying to one-up her here, but the way she looked in his arms right now was really distracting him and almost let him let her win. Her hands were on his body again and he shouldn’t have been surprised when she ground against him back, and his breathing hitched when she said his name and agreed with him. Crap. He wanted to just say fuck it, lift her up onto the table, and get those pants off of her so he could move his kisses down lower and get her to moan his name again. When the hell was the last time he wanted her this badly? He wasn’t entirely sure. But they usually didn’t do this much teasing and dirty talk. Usually one of them just wanted to be touched so they kissed the other, and clothes came off and they initiated sex almost right away. But this waiting for it, while sexually frustrating, was also fun. Really fun. And as much as he wanted to take her up on that offer, say fuck it and clean the kitchen himself so that he could hear her moans coming out louder and more frequently, he had his pride. He wasn’t her servant.

But her doing anything he wanted? Shit. The mental images needed to stop, before he went and popped a goddamn boner. He disconnected his lips from her skin and looked at her face for a second, his brows raising slightly as though he was considering this offer. But then he shook his head.

”If you don’t help me clean up, that wait you’re complaining about is going to be a long one.” He said. As much as he didn’t want to, he disentangled himself from her and pulled his hands from her body. He wanted to keep her in place until she agreed to help him clean, but that wasn’t happening, and if he wasn’t fast, the floor would stain. So he moved away from her and turned on the sink, aware of how stiff his shirt felt on his body. He reached down and pulled it off over his head – and then flung it over at Chardonnay. ”At least put that in my laundry basket for me, Princess. You can go touch yourself if you’re too self-entitled to help me clean.”

It seemed to have worked, Arthur thought, as he heard Chardonnay protest where he left her. He missed her touches on his body, definitely, and he wished he didn’t have to clean the kitchen. If he didn’t have to clean the kitchen, he would have dragged Chardonnay somewhere. Maybe he would have even just used his bed and washed his sheets immediately after. But he couldn’t do that. He was just glad he hadn’t kissed her, because he knew if he tried to do that he would have just started undoing her pants and he would have forgotten his plan.

But then, her reaction as he pulled away and turned the sink on was the one he wanted. She was flustered, sexually frustrated, and angry. As she should be. As he wanted her to be. He snorted and shook his head.

”I have plenty of experience hiding when I’m bothered. Probably more than you. So I can get over it.” He said. He grabbed the sponge off of the counter and wrung it out, the warm water flowing off of his hands. The material of the sponge was squishier than Chardonnay’s skin, and less warm even with the hot water cascading around it. Once the sponge was wrung out, he bent over and picked up both the bowls and spoons off the floor, dumping those into the sink. He grabbed the sponge, again, and began wiping the counters down. The mixture was thick and sticky, and he was thankful his counters and floor were a speckled grey marble rather than a solid white. He grinned a little to himself as he went along the counter. She had yet to storm off. So, either she’d help him clean to get him to go with her faster or go take a shower first. He’d probably be more annoyed with her if she just went to take a shower, but even if she did that he probably would still want her after he took care of himself. Maybe the cold shower would help him keep calm so he could property ignore her after for making him clean alone. Maybe. Chardonnay had a way of getting him to want her even when he was trying to ignore her. ”As much as I’d love to fuck you, I’m not letting my kitchen get stained. So either help me so we can go at it later, or go do something else and see if I’m even in the mood later.”

He heard his shirt flop around as Chardonnay flailed her arms and gave her a smirk, looked her sticky and mix-covered body over once, before he turned back to the counter to continue wipig the goop. It sloshed into the sink, where he was directing most of the mix. As he moved haround, he was conscious of the squishing liquid beneath his toes. Crap. He’d definitely have to find his mop... thinking about how messy this kitchen had gotten was definitely enough to start and subdue his desire. Especially when he thought of it staining and Susan asking why it was so messy.

When she stomped her foot on the ground, Arthur frowned at the splatter it left on his cabinets. He looked back over at her flushed face as she told him that she could get over her arousal and that he shouldn’t expect anything later on. His eyes trailed down her neck to her cleavage, which was accented when she folded her arms over her chest. Somehow, he doubted that she wouldn’t still want him later. After this kitchen was cleaned and he finished cleaning up he was pretty sure Chardonnay would still want him – he’d be surprised if she didn’t jump his bones then when he saw the way she was flushed and shifting on her feet in the puddle. ”maybe later, princess” he said in response to her ‘fuck you’, humming a response to her saying he wouldn’t be getting any later. Somehow, he didn’t believe that, not with the way Chardonnay was flushed.

He rolled his eyes and was about halfway through cleaning one of the counters when she didn’t leave and instead spoke up, asking for him to get her something to help clean with. Now that was somewhat surprising and made him pause, and turn back towards her as she explained that this was something her parents always drilled into her head – to clean up after herself. From what he’d met of her parents they were decent people. When he first met Chardonnay and maybe even in the early stages of their screwing, he wondered how such decent people could make such a rotten apple. But the more time he spent with her, the more he found that idea questioned. Maybe underneath her walls, she was actually a decent person. She sure was interesting, in every sense of the word. And beautiful when she smiled.

”My mop’s in the bathroom closet. Wipe your feet before you leave the kitchen.” He said. He finished wiping up the counter on his side of the kitchen, which put him closer to Chardonnay again. He reached over until his mouth was a few inches away from his ear. ”If you decide to help me, I’ll thank you later,” He spoke in a low voice. He knew in the back of his mind that he shouldn’t be so lenient – he should demand she help him, he should expect it. But instead he found it hotter to just promise her some kind of a reward for doing so. He pulled away and went back to wiping the counter, almost done this side, about to navigate through the sticky gunk on the ground to get to the other side.

Cleaning the kitchen, even with Chardonnay’s help, was a very unpleasant experience. Typically Arthur never let any room in his house get this messy and he was there for nearly two hours scrubbing the cabinets and walls to get rid of all the mix that Chardonnay had gotten over everything. She came back with the mop and told him off before he could even make any smart quips about her knowing how to mop. But, to his surprise, she actually did a really through job at cleaning his kitchen. She got the floor and lower extremities while Arthur cleaned the counters, fridge door, and climbed up on a chair to wipe the tops of the cabinets. It was a good process and by the end of it the kitchen was cleaner than it had been that morning, devoid of any dust that had accumulated. Arthur exhaled and looked at the walls. They were a little damp, but spotless. It still smelt faintly like banana and chocolate, but Arthur opened the window in the kitchen to air out the scent. As he did so a warm California breeze wafted into the window and he suddenly became very aware that he was covered in dry mix. He needed to get changed, and out of these jeans, which had gone so stiff he was surprised he could walk without snapping them.

He turned towards Chardonnay as she finished the last object she’d cleaned. They stuck out even more against the now clean kitchen. He still couldn’t believe she’d initiated this fight. It was hard to picture Chardonnay getting enjoyment out of today. Though she’d bene in an obviously great mood earlier the cleaning had taken a lot out of the both of them. While cleaning Arthur was extremely focused, so he didn’t really flirt aside from the time he told her to go get the mop. Even when Chardonnay playfully hit his leg with the damp mop, he just gave her a glare before he went back to business. Arthur washed off his hands in the sink, getting those clean, before he heard Chardonnay start talking. He rolled his eyes.

”Why did I let this happen? You started it, Princess. I don’t get why you decided to start a food fight with me instead of just ask me if something was wrong.” He said. Not that he would have answered her, but still. He rolled his eyes again when she said this was the last time she was cleaning the kitchen. ”It was only so bad to clean up because you made a mess.”

He walked away from the kitchen and headed into his bedroom, not watching if Chardonnay was following him. Frankly, he wouldn’t be surprised. Despite what he’d said to Chardonnay before the cleaned he wasn’t as bothered as he had been before two hours of cleaning. He definitely would desire her again, probably soon, but not right now. First he had to get clean. Arthur started to undo the fly of his jeans and stepped out of them, left only in his boxers. He made a face at his jeans, before he flung them to the laundry basket. He had to do a load tonight. ”I’m taking a shower first!” He said, trying to move fast, but knowing his luck Chardonnay had already bolted for the door. God, he hoped not. He was sick of being so sticky!

Arthur should have known she was going to bolt for the damn shower! He barely got hi pants off before Chardonnay brought up the shower herself and ran towards it. ”Damn it!” He spat, but he was too late. He shook his head and tried to think about what to do. She thought he was something else? Obviously she hadn’t ever met herself. And he still had no intention of telling her what he was thinking about lately... though when he peeked into the living room and saw his laptop still open (but long since asleep) he remembered he had more work to get done later. He sighed.

He heard the shower start and groaned in anger. What the hell. She of course wouldn’t even try to make room for him, he knew. He walked towards the bathroom door and grabbed the knob, expecting it to be locked. He swore again, but when he could twist the knob, he paused. Wait. She didn’t lock the door?

Arthur didn’t bother hesitating before he opened the door, ignoring the woman in the shower beside him now. The room was steamy and the mirror was starting to fog, a fog that dissipated when he opened the door and let the steam mix with the rest of his apartment. He shut the door behind him and went to the sink. Chardonnay didn’t want to share the shower with him? Fine. He was going to use the sink.

”You want to hog the shower, fine. But I’m using the sink!” Arthur informed her, as he cleared some fog off of the mirror and turned the hot water on. Once it was warm, he grabbed a facecloth and dabbed it with water, then began to clean out the batter from his eyebrows. Shit, it really was thick, and he looked like a fucking mess. He saw, out of the corner of his eyes, Chardonnay’ dirty clothing and tried not to think about how it looked on her, and how now that meant she was completely naked beside him in the shower. He also tried not to get distracted and try to peek in through the curtains – he had his damn eyebrows to clean! After a lot of dabbing, he decided to just wipe all of his face. Once he did that he saw how smeared his torso and chest were from Chardonnay’s touches, and when he saw the skin around his nipples was especially smeared from her teasing him, he flushed and quickly wiped the chocolate off. That brought back thoughts he didn’t want to think about right now.

Arthur remained in the bathroom, trying to get the gunk and crap out of his hair and off of his body. He was aware that the water he has rubbing along his torso and body was dripping into a puddle on the floor. He wasn’t a fan of that, but he couldn’t really object. He didn’t exactly have the option of using his own shower of course. At Chardonnay’s reaction, he snorted.

”Uh, the door?” He asked in response to her question. He wasn’t too surprised she was flustered and angry at the fact he was here, though. Despite the fact that they screwed each other so often that it wasn’t weird for them to see each other naked, there was still something about them seeing each other naked when they weren’t having sex that was just... awkward to both of them. And honestly Arthur didn’t blame her, but he needed to get this clean, and besides, it wasn’t like he was in there with her! Though he wanted to be. Not only because despite the awkwardness he felt about himself, seeing her naked was definitely a view he liked, but also because it would just be easier than trying to wash his thick hair in the sink. He was jealous of the waves of water he could hear cascading down Chardonnay’s body. There was a gross puddle of mix and sludge on the bottom of his sink now from his brows and hair, but there was still so much crap to go. Damn her for stealing the shower. ”...look, if I didn’t think you’d kill me, I would have gone in the shower with you. And shut up. I need this hot water to get myself clean. I’m not stewing around in chocolate mix until you’re done in there. If you see the hot water getting lower in there maybe you should just let me go in there with you!”

He snapped that mostly just to refute her point, but the thought of being in the shower with her again just got him blushing again. He glared at his reflection in the mirror, tilted his head to the side, and saw the glint of his earrings in the light. There was chocolate there and he made a face before he reached up and unfastened them, putting them on the counter, as he thoroughly washed his ears and the small pieces of silver.

Once they were washed he fastened them back in his ear, and let the washcloth travel down his neck. It made him shiver because the warmth from the washcloth reminded him of the warmth of Chardonnay’s lips against his skin. He stopped running the washcloth down his body then, glared at himself, and then pulled a comb from the cabinet and got it wet, running it through the strands of his hair. What came off of the comb were chunks of pancake mix and chocolate syrup. He groaned. ”this is going to take hours.” He said, shooting another glare at the silhouette of Chardonnay he could see in his shower. It would take hours... or, at least, until Chardonnay was done and let him use the damn shower himself.

Arthur washed his face, which now looked realitively clean. His hair, still, was gross. As he listened to the shower run and Chardonnay shift underneath the head, he spared another glance to the curtains. That day he first met her when they were on that fieldtrip to the woods for Susan, he never imagined he’d be in a situation remotely close to this one. He never pictured her using his shower, nor did he ever picture them frequently having sex with each other. He never thought he’d want to see her smile or touch her in the ways he got to now. Sure, even when he was in High School, he could acknowledge that she was attractive and that she had a very nice figure, but it was like how he felt with all the other women he saw with that figure now. He could acknowledge them as attractive, but he didn’t desire anyone other than Chardonnay. It was more than her curves – it was the way she challenged him and made him think. She was so different from him and it made him want to know more about her.

She shifted in the shower and Arthur caught himself staring, blushed, and looked away to try and get the goop out of his hair. But when she spoke up, his eyes widened, as though he didn’t realize what she’d said. And he didn’t. She actually said he could get in with her? Arthur’s cheeks peppered pink as he stuttered, turning away from the sink to look at the curtains.

”What? Are you sure?” He asked, and contrary to the attitude he’d given her before he didn’t just jump on the chance. He gave her a hard time about not letting him in there with her in the beginning, but he didn’t expect her to relent. His throat felt tighter and he swallowed a lump in his throat. She said he wasn’t going to be getting anything and he hoped that if that was the case, he didn’t get too distracted by the way she looked. ”I mean – uh. Okay. It’s faster that way, I guess.”

Somewhat awkwardly, he removed his boxers and pushed aside one of the curtains. She was facing away from him, and he was distracted by the water as it slid down her hair and the curve of her completely exposed ass. He blinked a few times before he glanced over at the back of her head and slowly stepped into the shower with her. The warm water bouncing off of his skin was refreshing, as it got the mix to liquefy again and slid down his scalp and back. He no longer felt crusty and sticky. He reached out to touch her skin and brush aside some of her hair. It was more cramped than he thought, and Arthur had to step so close to her he could practically feel them touching. This was... crap... this was way different than the time they had sex in the shower because they weren’t having sex. Or any time they were together, really. It was more... prolonged.

”Where do you need help getting to?’ he asked.

He watched her as she ran her fingers through her hair to get the mixture out of it, spotting a few strands of hair that still had a bit of food in them. He was slightly distracted by the curve of her breasts as she moved her arms, watching as they shifted slightly. Her hair looked darker when it was wet and sticking to her body like this, and he only tore his eyes away from her skin when she turned around to look at him. The smile on her face was natural, kind of like the ones she’d given him after they laughed together during their food fight, except now her face was clean so he could see the way it lit up her face. Though the smile was cute on her before, it was more enticing now because her face wasn’t comically done up in mixture. He didn’t even realize he’d smiled back at her until she turned around and he turned his focus onto her hair again. He saw the bits of mix she’d missed and reached his hands up to lace them through the strands, keeping his touch softer than he usually did because he didn’t know how tangled her hair was. It didn’t feel too terribly tangled, though – just a bit from the mess they’d gotten themselves in before.

”It’s not like it matters either way. You let me come in here with you and I would have let you come in here with me.” Arthur said, though he glanced to the side of the tub and saw his own shampoo, conditioner, soap, and body wash sitting on the side. ”You should just leave your shit in here like I do. You can use my shampoo if you want. Just once,” he added the last part, though he had a feeling she either would reject it because his shampoo wasn’t her special type or because she assumed it was cheap like she assumed everything he owned was.

As he laced his fingers through her hair, he got the chunks of mixture out, and saw a few spots on her back that contained the mixture too. He brought his hands to the spots and wiped at the skin, getting the dried bits to fall to the bathtub floor and swim towards the drain. He was very aware of how close they were to one another, but even though he could feel his heart racing in nervousness, he liked it. He rarely got a chance to be this close to her and all it made him want to do was reach down and kiss her skin, but he knew that would just distract them from getting cleaned up. He wished she was willing to shower together more often – not only because of the closeness, but this would also mean the both of them got a nice, warm shower.

”Hey, we’re fine. It’s not that cramped and besides, we’ve been closer together than this before.” He said. He finished wiping the spot on her back that had stuck and trailed his hands lower, towards her hips, going over the same spots on her body he’d touched in the kitchen when he was sliding his hands up the tank top. Now his clean hands didn’t leave a trail of mixture. Her skin felt amazing underneath the hot water, though. He was curious of she’d let him double-check she’d gotten everywhere on her front side, too. He had a feeling she wouldn’t. Still, he wasn’t going to object to the view of her back, one he rarely got to see unless it was clothed. ”By the way, your back’s clean.”

He took the motions of her leaning into his touches as signs he was doing something right. Her hair was smooth, and it made him wish he got to do this more often. Occasionally the tips of his figners touched hers and it sent a spark throughout his body, one that let him know he was eager to have her hands on him just as much as he was eager to have his hands on her. He shook his head at her comment. ”I was the one who suggested we share a shower anyway. It saves hot water, and it’s easier to clean up this way,” of course, it also made him want to do other things with her but honestly, even if they didn’t have sex after this, he was fine just touching her like this and existing in the same space as her. The water was still warm, and when she said she might use his body wash he rose a brow. ”you’ve never complained about my smell before,” he pointed out. Though that made him wonder if she didn’t like his usual scent. He bought body wash that was realitively cheap, and though he liked the smell, he never asked what Chardonnay liked. Well, she never complained about the smell. So he figured he was doing something right. ”just don’t spray too much perfume unless you’re by a window,” he said, always paranoid that someone would come to his place and smell... something. He told both Maxine and his sister not to come over his place for a few weeks, because it was messy and he was doing massive cleaning, but whatever. Couldn’t be too careful, right?

God, her body felt so... smooth underneath his fingers. Even smoother than usual, it was because of the water cascading down her. He grinned a little to himself when she mentioned the last time they were in a shower. ”Yeah, the last time we were in a shower we had sex and you weren’t a fan. You never let me forget it either,” he said, ”...but even if you don’t like sex in the shower, being in the shower is different. And if we want to have sex, the bed’s a room over,” he pointed out, casually, though that thought got him thinking about getting out of the shower and not even getting dressed – which made him blush a little as he cleared his throat. ”not that I want to have sex every time, but I mean, showering together isn’t bad.”

When she turned around after wringing out her hair Arthur couldn’t help but let his eyes trail down her exposed body, which made him bite his lip as he slowly brought his eyes up to look at Chardonnay. When he saw her looking at him, completely unashamed, his blush grew severe and he was about to hide his face when he felt her hands travel into his hair. His expression stopped squirming as he looked over at her and tried to focus on her eyes boring into his.

”Uh, okay,” he said, and he turned around. He felt weirder with his own back to Chardonnay, more self-conscious, as he stood there and tried to clean the muck out of his hair. He couldn’t help but wonder what she thought of him – he knew she found him attractive, but being naked with her in bed and naked with her here were two entirely different things. He took a deep breath and tried to act like nothing was wrong, leaning his head back to let the water pepper it more.

He felt her hands rubbing against his scalp and leaned into the feeling slightly. Feeling her hands on his shoulders as she gently pulled him closer towards her was nice, too. If she wanted to she could glide her hands down his back and rub the skin he could never seem to reach. But at the same time he wanted her to do that to him, his nervous blush didn’t fade and he still felt... weird, even as her hands navigated up his neck and into his hair to wring out the mixture from it. They were the same height and she didn’t have to bend much to reach the top of his head – just the same amount as she would have to do to reach the top of her own. Sometimes he didn’t let it bother him, most of the time he didn’t, but he wondered if she cared that he was short. If they ever stood side by side, she’d probably be wearing heels, and would be taller than him. That would bother her, wouldn’t it? Though it wasn’t like she’d ever want to do anything in public with him, anyway. They weren’t public and he knew that. But for some reason that thought stuck out in his head and it was sobering enough a thought to will his desire away, so it didn’t come back even as he felt her breast gently brush against his back. His ass was pale, he wasn’t rich, and he was the same height as her.

He shouldn’t even care. She wanted him for sex, and judging by the look she’d given him before he turned, she liked his dick well enough – and that was the only part of him she actually needed to like. But there was something about being touched like this that just made him... think about that. He stared at the water and ran one of his hands over his arm to wash off some particularly stubborn gunk. He liked the way her fingers pulled and prodded at his head, and he could feel the bits of mixture leaving his body as he stood there and felt her breasts shift with every motion she made.

When she spoke up Arthur paused, then turned to get a look at her face. When she admitted to liking seeing him like this his cheeks flushed again and he turned away from her, with his ears so red the studs became more noticeable. ”uh... I, I mean. If you want to.” He half-grumbled. ”You don’t have to if you don’t like it. I mean – I – I like shower sex but,” he still blushed at the implications of what they did together, even after how many years of doing it...? Jesus Christ. ”I don’t mind if we just take showers together more often. I like seeing you in the shower, too. But I’d rather have sex with you if I know you’re uh, into it as much as I am. I’d be fine if we just took showers together and had sex after,” he started to blush darker at his next thought, ”I mean, there’s what we were doing earlier. I mean, we could do that in the shower and just get out and have sex somewhere else,” he was rambling now, but couldn’t shut up. ”Or we could just take showers, we wouldn’t do it every time, but, it’s less messy than the mixture earlier, but, it’s still kind of the same feeling? Like... we’d both still be covered in something warm and wet. It’s more of a compromise between shower sex and not shower sex, or, something. I don’t fucking know.”

He was very conscious of her hands in his hair now, of the way they felt and the way they rubbed his scalp. He was just glad he wasn’t looking at her face because he had only just convinced himself to shut the floodgates that were his mouth.

His embarrassment gave way to a more awkward feeling as he felt her tense behind him as well. He was more attuned to her body tensing now that they were this close. It was odd but he just... was. He was ruining this whole moment, wasn’t he? She was tense because he was tense and though he tried to say something to appease her obviously he hadn’t done much of a good job. He didn’t say anything in response to her saying she was going to get out of the shower – he felt the droplets beginning to turn lukewarm around him and he had a feeling this... probably wouldn’t happen again. He didn’t know why thinking that made his throat tighten, but it did. He listened to the curtains as they parted and Chardonnay as she stepped out of the shower, but he stood there in the cooler water.

Fuck, he was so stupid. He could have said anything – anything other than whatever the fuck tumbled out of his mouth there and he wouldn’t have killed the mood. He would have continued to feel her hands in his hair. But he couldn’t deny the sense of relief he felt when she wasn’t behind him anymore, staring at him, judging him like that mirror of hers did. She got over the awkwardness of being around him naked! So why the hell did it continue to bother him, especially when he was turned around and she was working on his hair? He called himself stupid again as he heard her go to his bedroom. He couldn’t stand to face her right now.

He hated himself for ruining what was once a good moment. Well. He knew it couldn’t last forever. He just felt a pang in his chest when he thought about the way she’d laughed, a pang that reminded him of the time his sister asked him to explain why he’d cried and he thought about her grinning beside him in bed. He didn’t know what the pang was or why he felt it – but it was there. And it bothered him but at the same time it just made him feel more stupid. Chardonnay obviously didn’t feel that pang, either. All they did was have sex. There were no feelings, not sentiments, just... if anything, maybe they were becoming friends. Nothing more. She’d never want him that way. Even though she said he wasn’t going to amount to anything anymore... she’d still always see him as beneath her.

The chances of a surprise boner happening where successfully killed by his awkwardness, Arthur stayed in the cold water and wrapped his arms around himself. He should have just played along and said sure, they could try sex in the shower again. He wanted to, didn’t he? He wanted to feel her slick body underneath his fingers as he held her up to the wall and thrust his body into hers. But when she was there, naked, behind him and he was naked it was just, weird to have a conversation. She’d seen him naked so many times but when they weren’t having sex it just – just – he didn’t know! It made his body tremble the way it was now, it made him want to squeeze himself like he was now, and it brought a stinging to his eyes as he stayed there for way longer than he probably should have, until the droplets around him started to turn icy and his skin started to prune.

The entire time he stayed in there the only thing he thought about was what the fuck was wrong with him.

He turned the water off and pushed the curtain aside, the steam that was once there gone now. He looked in the mirror at himself with a small frown, making sure he got the chocolate mix off of him. When he finished, he wrapped a towel around himself and headed into the bedroom, not looking for Chardonnay, just going to his drawers to pull out a change of clothes. It was only 1 in the afternoon now, so he didn’t put on pajamas – just a very baggy red tee shirt with a show’s logo on it. The shirt was long enough to cover his waist so he slipped on his boxers underneath, then jeans, and then fastened them up. Finally he turned to glance at Chardonnay. ”Thanks for getting that out of my hair.” He said, quieter than he normally spoke, before he swallowed and looked away.