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Post by Roland Ferrera on Dec 28, 2009 16:38:47 GMT -5
After two days and nights in Portugal, the majority of which were spent in the hotel room, Roland and Riley returned home. Despite the fact that they had not actually seen very much of the town where Riley grew up, it had been a very good trip for them. There was now an engagement ring on Riley's finger, and the smiles on both of their faces seemed permanently stuck there.
Apparating into the hallway in front of their room, Roland stopped to kiss Riley. "It feels good to be home," he said, glancing over in the direction of Arthur's apartment. "We should probably get Phoenix before we get too comfortable."
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Post by Riley Neves on Dec 30, 2009 13:37:39 GMT -5
Riley wasn't as sure she was glad to be home. Things were always the same, though, and it didn't matter whether she was in Portugal or London.... when Roland was with her, she was home. It was such a sentimental feeling, but she couldn't complain about it.
She kissed him back, deeply to show him just how much she loved him, but was already turning towards Arthur's apartment when he suggested it. "The Dork probably thinks we abandoned him. And I bet we'll be surprised by how big he's gotten in just two days." She turned back and kissed him again. "I love you," she told him, smiling brightly and taking Roland's hand, and then knocked on Arthur's door.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Dec 30, 2009 22:07:19 GMT -5
He still shivered every time she said that. It was so strange how three little words could mean so much. He never would have believed it before, but now he understood.
"I love you, too," he said, smiling as she slipped her hand in his. He could feel the engagement ring on her finger, and unconsciously he squeezed her hand a little tighter. They were going to have to decide how they were going to make the announcement, but he figured they had a little time to talk about that.
"I just hope Phoenix hasn't decided he likes Arthur better," he joked. "I still feel bad that we had to leave him, but I'm sure he wouldn't have been allowed in the hotel."
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 3, 2010 19:09:47 GMT -5
Waiting for Arthur to answer the door, Riley kept her hand in Roland's. One day, they would settle into a routine, and Riley wondered if either of them could really survive that. They weren't exactly the types for monotony.
"Phoenix would have destroyed the hotel. But I'm sure he doesn't hate us for leaving him. I just hope he behaved for Arthur. We'll have to do something nice for him to say thanks, of course."
She leaned against the door jam for a moment, her smile seeming to never disappear. "Roland, promise me you'll never stop looking at me the way you do."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 3, 2010 23:25:38 GMT -5
Although things might eventually settle down, Roland didn't think it was an entirely unappealing concept. Yes, they would have their routines, but the truth was, nothing could be completely routine when a child was involved. Their baby was going to change everything. His only real worry was that they would be so busy caring for the baby that they would just collapse at night, too tired to get lost in each other. He hoped they could adjust to that well enough, because he couldn't imagine a time when he wouldn't be aching for her touch.
"I promise," he told her, squeezing her hand. "You know... I think I used to look at you the same way, even before we were together. Whenever people weren't looking... I would look at you and just notice how beautiful you were. Now that I think about it, I'm sure that's why most people figured out how I felt about you, even before I did."
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 3, 2010 23:47:13 GMT -5
Riley only shook her head slightly. "I never noticed," she told him, her voice verging on a whisper. "I mean, Geoff tried to tell me... I just didn't see it. I was so convinced that we hated each other."
She was getting better about apologizing to him, or she would have said 'sorry' for taking so long to see that they were perfect together. So she only smiled again and pressed a quick kiss to his lips.
"I think Arthur is ignoring us and has kidnapped our dog." She changed the subject so that poor Arthur wouldn't open the door to them being all lovey again, though it had to be better than listening to them argue constantly.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 4, 2010 0:08:31 GMT -5
"I never hated you," he assured her. "I tried to tell myself that I did, but I didn't. But I was convinced you hated me."
He'd been so convinced, that sometimes he still wondered if he had somehow convinced her to love him. He had intended to back off of his feelings for her, because he never wanted to "force" her to fall for him. And although deep down, he knew he hadn't forced her to do anything (as if he could have), he still sometimes worried that she would realize what a mistake this was and leave him. The idea terrified him.
Roland chuckled at her comment. "Yeah, maybe. I mean, Phoenix is a pretty great dog. But hey, maybe he took the dog for a walk and isn't even in there right now. I'm sure Phoenix would be barking if he was in there."
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 4, 2010 0:13:39 GMT -5
"I know you won't believe me when I tell you this," Riley said, her eyes never leaving his. "But I never hated you, either. I was extremely frustrated by you... but that can be a good thing too, sometimes. I was always just sort of in awe of you, and that irritated me."
She was a girl.. she didn't really need to explain more than that. Roland had been her equal in many areas, and she wasn't used to having such a combative match.
Chuckling, she nodded. "That's a good point. Unless Arthur's some kind of dog whisperer... Phoenix doesn't know how to be quiet. Ever. I don't know... should we keep waiting?"
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 4, 2010 0:35:34 GMT -5
"Really?" he said, breaking into a crooked grin. "It's a good thing you never told me that before, because my ego would have been more inflated than ever." He laughed, even as he pulled her closer to him. "I always felt... almost inept around you. I kept saying and doing everything all wrong..."
Thank Merlin they were past all of that now. It had been a very frustrating time for both of them. But now that they were together, it was all worth it. They were perfect together.
He kissed her gently, then glanced between their door and Arthur's. "I think we'd better wait here," he said. "If we go in to our apartment, I think we both know where we're going to end up."
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 4, 2010 13:35:15 GMT -5
"Yeah, well, no garauntees it won't end up there anyway," Riley teased, a twinkle in her eye as she leaned more of her weight against the door frame.
"You know, I was thinking."
The way she said it, the calculating, measured tone, obviously meant she'd put some serious thought into whatever she was about to say, but there was still a smile on her face. At least it meant Roland wasn't in trouble.
"I mean, we're engaged. And we've vacationed together... but I don't think we've ever been on a proper date, and I was just thinking that I would really like it if you took me out to dinner."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 4, 2010 18:54:45 GMT -5
He chuckled lightly as he leaned in and kissed her. "I wonder if we'd get thrown out if we started making out in the hallway," he said, only half-joking.
When she leaned in with that sort of mischievous smile on her face, he pulled back slightly, watching her. He didn't quite know what to expect, but he wasn't terribly surprised about her suggestion for a date. They had never managed to make it to the restaurant in Portugal, and he had really been thinking that he owed it to her to give her a night on the town, to spoil her and make her feel like a princess.
"We kind of skipped over the whole dating thing, didn't we?" he said. "The closest we've had to a date was Christmas dinner at my parents' house. In fact... to tell you the truth... I've never been on an actual date. But we'll do it. And we should do it right... you can get ready in your apartment, and I'll get ready in mine, and I'll pick you up. I think that's the only way we're actually going to get anywhere. What do you think?"
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 4, 2010 19:13:32 GMT -5
"Oh, be quiet. You're such a liar." Riley didn't actually believe him that he'd never been on a date. Not that she thought he was lying to her, she just didn't believe him. Women loved him... Riley knew it. And he said he'd seriously dated a girl back in school, hadn't he?
"How did you romance a girl if you never took her out? I know you didn't fake your death that often." She was smiling again, and then shrugged as he described how to "do it right."
"I thought my apartment was your apartment. But I know what you mean." Her smile grew a little softer as she considered it, him coming to 'pick her up' and all of that... it sounded so very... adolescent. But she never had that experience before, and it actually sounded really nice. Besides, sometimes she had to keep reminding herself, she and Roland were still very young. Her eyes met his again and that mischievous grin was back. "You should probably ask me when I'm free for this date."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 4, 2010 19:37:22 GMT -5
There was a time when he probably would have argued at the use of the term "romance" for his previous liaisons. But as he thought of it, that was probably more accurate than he'd been willing to admit at the time. It was sort of like a one night love affair... sweet and sexy and over too soon.
Lisa, on the other hand, was another story. She had wanted to do the whole dinner and dancing thing... she wanted flowers and candy and romance. And he couldn't give her that, because he didn't feel it. He didn't love her.
"I had my ways," he simply said, raising his eyebrows mysteriously.
Reaching out to twirl a lock of her hair around his finger, he continued, "I was hoping you could find some time in your busy schedule to go out with me tonight? At, say, 7:00?"
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 4, 2010 19:55:54 GMT -5
Riley pursed her lips and looked to the side, pretending to go over the oh so busy schedule in her mind. "I don't know," she feigned innocently. "I might have a dinner with my other boyfriend tonight... I would have to move a few things around to pencil you in..."
Her eyes came back to his and she smiled again, shrugging. "But I think we can make that work."
She was actually really excited about it, and planned on going all out for him. Had he ever seen her really dressed up?
"Are you taking me somewhere nice? I need to know how to dress."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 4, 2010 21:43:33 GMT -5
Roland made an exaggerated face. "Your other boyfriend?" he teased. "I think I'm going to have to find this guy and have a little chat with him... I'm not all that keen on sharing."
He pressed a kiss to her nose, then smiled. "I'll take you somewhere nice," he said. "But it's a surprise, OK? You'll have to wait until we get there."
He was actually rather excited about this, too. After all she had done for him, he still felt the need to make it up to her, to take her out and make her feel special. After all, as much as he loved spending so much time in bed with her, they really needed to get out once in a while.
He pressed his lips to hers again in a slow, deep kiss. While they were kissing, they didn't even hear the sound of the lift doors opening, or the short bark that followed.
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Post by Arthur Weasley on Jan 4, 2010 23:02:11 GMT -5
Arthur had, indeed, been taking the dog for a walk. Phoenix had a lot of energy, and the best way to keep him from destroying the apartment was to take him for several walks a day. As soon as the elevator doors opened on his flor, Phoenix sniffed the air, then barked once before taking off at a run. The leash was yanked from Arthur's hand, and he had to chase after the dog. But as he saw why the dog was running, he slowed down. Roland and Rley were home. And apparently in the middle of a very intense kiss.
Phoenix, however, didn't care about that. He just barrelled forward and jumped up on their legs.
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 5, 2010 0:02:34 GMT -5
"Well, I'm going to dress for nice, so..." Riley shrugged, letting it go. "I'll wait. I like surprises. I'll have a surprise for you, too." It wouldn't be more than how pretty she was going to make herself for him, but she knew he would like it anyway.
She lost herself in his kiss, though when she heard the bark, she smiled into Roland's lips. Still, she didn't pull away until he was jumping on them.
Letting go of Roland, she bet down, scratching the dog behind his ears while he covered her in licks.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 5, 2010 0:20:26 GMT -5
He was really excited about the idea of seeing her all dressed up. In fact, he was even excited about dressing nicely for her. He had some nice clothes that he could wear, and he wanted her to see him in nice muggle clothes, rather than a bulky robe. He wasn't sure he would ever wear a robe again, except to work.
"Mmm, can't wait...." he had murmured against her lips. But as Phoenix bounded up to them, he pulled away reluctantly, and focused his attention on the puppy. He knelt down and began to pet the dog with Riley. "Good boy... I swear you've gotten bigger..."
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 5, 2010 12:39:04 GMT -5
"I told you he would seem bigger. We were only gone for two days."
She pet him a couple of more times, and then stood up to greet Arthur. "Hey Arthur... thank you so much for watching him. I hope he wasn't too much trouble. It doesn't look like he's mellowed out at all." It felt like they'd been gone so much longer, though, and she glanced back at Roland. "Can we tell him?" she mouthed, unable to hide her smile. She wanted to tell everybody, she just didn't know how... and Arthur seemed like a good place to start. He would keep it quiet if they asked him to.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 5, 2010 14:04:21 GMT -5
Merlin, when she smiled like that, it made his heart beat faster. She just took his breath away. He gave the dog an affectionate pat, then stood up next to Riley, wrapping his arm around her waist. He returned her smile and nodded. Arthur would be a good place to start. He was also thinking about telling Amandine, just because he knew she would be overjoyed, and because so many people were keeping secrets from her. He knew that if they asked her to keep it quiet for a while, she would. As much as she loved gossip, she was very capable of keeping secrets when necessary.
“Arthur, we have a little announcement, but we’d like you to keep it under wraps for a little while,” he began. Turning his head, he allowed Riley to finish.
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