I uncover my face from my pillow as I hear the shower turn off in the hallway. I remember that I didnt put Roman's clothes in the washer yet and I sneak, as quickly as possible, into the spare bedroom and pick up  his wet clothes from the floor. I hear the bathroom door close and I curse under my breath. I turn around as I am running into... chest. It's a covered chest. He's still wearing the robe I gave him and a towel underneath, but, still... chest.

I take a deep breath and back up.

"Im sorry. I-I forgot to put your clothes in the washing machine and.." I got nothing left.

Roman chuckles. "You dont  have to apologize. This isnt even my room. Or my house. Im not about to walk around naked. No need to be embarassed." He walks past me, drying his hair off and sits on the bed. I cant help but turn around and observe his drenched state. 

"You have really long hair. It's nice. I mean.. it's pretty.." I can feel my face getting hot at my attempt to compliment this man that gets compliments every time he's around another human being.

He stops wringing out his hair and smirks. "You're way too cute. I appreciate the compliments. You can see why I tie it up. Your hair is pretty gorgeous too. (mumbles) Bet it's soft." 

I twirl a curl from behind my ear, blushing yet again. "Thanks. You dont ever.. think of cutting it?" I ask curiously.

He makes a face that almost makes me laugh. "Do you see this mane? Im not tootin my own horn but I got some good lookin hair."

I giggle and he smiles. "Nah but seriously. My hair grows so fast it's pointless to try and cut it. I look terrible with a crew cut so might as well keep it long."

I nod and watch him finger comb his dripping wet hair. I throw my head back, trying to refocus my mind so I can wash his clothes, realizing that Ive been holding his clothes so long that my clothes are now damp. The cold sensation makes me make a face and I dangle his clothes from the tip of my finger.

"I'll be right back." I tell him as I am making my way into the laundry room.

I check on Mom to make sure we didnt disturb her and Im happy to see that she is still sound asleep on her new favorite recliner. I sneak past her quietly and go into the laundry room. I throw his clothes in the washing machine and start it up. I look out the window and it is raining lightly. Wow. Took a storm to get me to talk to him like a normal person. I lean on the washing machine, feeling the vibrations and looking out of the window. Maybe now that it is raining there will be more greenery and people will have to wear clothes that fit them and... they will be less annoying. I feel a tap on my shoulder and I jump, almost jumping out of my skin as Roman raises his eyebrows.

"You're just easily startled huh?"

I close my eyes and hold my chest. "I was daydreaming. You just... did you need something?" I say, turning to him.

"Just your company." He leans on the washer next to me and I feel my heart start to race a little.

We sit in silence.

"We can keep talking about my hair if that will get you to talk." He says, breaking the silence.

I look over at him. "What?"

He throws his hands up. "You're the shyest person Ive ever met. Granted, you're not from here, but.. wow. It's like pulling teeth to get you to talk to me." 

I stare at my hands as Im picking some dead skin off of them. "I... I dont like to talk just to talk.. I dont know. What do you wanna talk about?"

He shrugs. "I dont know. Just, that noise this dryer is making is going to to drive me insane."

I smile and look down. "Umm. Are you training for something? The olympics or..?"

"Nope. I used to play football and you need a little bit of muscle to be a defensive tackle. Once I graduated from college I was pretty much done with football and I came here. Thus, the leftover muscles."

I resist the urge to stare at his 'leftover muscles'. The washer starts beeping and I take his clean clothes out and put them in the dryer. As the cycle starts I think about how creepy this new place is. So instutitionalized and technological. It's almost like brainwashing everyone to live a certain way and be okay with it.

"I- I dont hate this place. I mean, I havent given it much of a chance, but it's just something about it that makes me feel uneasy. I dont know.." I start rambling, wondering if Roman is even listening.

"You and me both sweetheart." He shakes his head.

I look over at him and he looks down at me and his lip curls up one one side. I smirk and fold my arms, looking at the stone ground. 

"They're hiring at Bed and Bath." He says slyly.

I cut my eye at him. "How did you-"

He turns and faces me, biting his lip slightly. "I saw you before you saw me at the library. I saw you filling out applicatons. Thought I'd help you find a job. It's not bad at all there."

I nod. "Oh! Do you have to work tomorrow?" I say, hoping he will be able to get his situation with his power together before tomorrow morning.

"Nah. Im off for two days. It's gonna make me lazy as hell." He says, slumping on the washing machine.

I giggle and turn to check the time on the dryer.

10 minutes.

I tap my fingernails on the dryer. Roman taps his foot on the stone ground.

I point towards the kitchen. "Umm, there is dinner on the table, I dont know if you saw it."

"Already full. Thank you." He stares at me, waiting for another question.

I twindle my thumbs and drop my gaze. I cant just keep talking to him. Im gonna say something stupid. Plus, I have to keep wiping the sweat off of my hands. Im barely controlling my heart rate and I have to sleep in the room next to him. 

"Do you have enough blankets and pillows?" I ask, cutting the tension.

"Yes I do. I usually sleep with one blanket and pillow, but Im sure three will do." He says sarcastically.

I roll my eyes playfully. "Im just making sure you're warm and.. covered." 

"Im warm all of the time. It's even warmer now from the humidity. A bag of ice would be great." 

"Ice is in the freezer." I say simply.

He leaves finally and I can take a breath without thinking if Im breathing too heavily. I wipe some sweat forming on my forehead and I look back at the dryer to see how much time is left.

5 minutes.

Roman comes back with a homemade bag of ice and pops an ice cube in his mouth. I take another quick look at his tattoo before staring at the breaker box across from us, looking like it should have been replaced a few years back.

"How long did that take? The tattoo?" I ask, trying to sound as calm as possible.

"17 hours." he says nonchalantly.

I look at him, raising my eyebrows. "Whoa."

He shrugs. "I was not about to have a half finished tattoo. My artist was willing to sit there for the time so I could take it. Hurt like hell, but it was worth it."

I nod and now I have some kind of unspoken permission to stare at his tattoo for a few more moments. It's very intricate. Like his body was the canvas for his tattoo artist. Very nice.

"You have beautiful eyes." I hear him say, but cant really believe he said it.

I put my hair behind my ear, blushing. "Thanks."

I glance at the dryer.

1 minute.

One minute to freedom from this small talk. Dont get me wrong, I could talk to him all day if I wasnt so shy and if he actually wanted to talk to me outside of being stuck in a laundry room with me, but small talk is torture. The dryer jingle plays and I couldnt be more relieved to take out some clothes. I open the dryer and the lights suddenly shut off. I drop the clothes and stand there, in shock. I try to adjust my gaze when I feel a hand and I swat it away.

"Angel. It's Roman. Im right behind you. Do you have any flashlights?" He says calmly.

"I think.. in the cabinets in the kitchen." I say, nervous because I cant see anything.

"Dont be alarmed. Im going to hold your hand, so we can stay together. Try your best to lead me to the kitchen." 

I feel him snake his hand into mine. My heart rate jumps, but I grip his hand tightly as I try to make my way through the corridor, feeling on walls and openings. I finally feel on the countertop. I circle around, bringing Roman with me, and I open the drawer, feeling around slowly and carefully so I dont cut myself, and I grab the flashlight. I shine it in front of us and lead the way to the rooms. Im glad Mom is in a deep sleep. I dont know what she would think if she woke up and saw me and half naked Roman walking in the dark, shining a flashlight. We get to the hallway and I lead him to the spare bedroom.

"Dont worry about my clothes. I will just sleep in this robe. I do need a flashlight of my own though. Do you have one over here?" He asks.

I remember Mom put one in my dresser.

"Yeah. Right over here." 

I lead him to my room, still holding his hand, not as tightly as before, and I release his hand, searching for the flashlight while he is shining the other one in front of me. I find it and test it out, shining it on the ceiling.

"There we go. Thank you for walking up here with me. It makes me feel safer." I say to him as he is still shining the light on me.

"Not a problem. But.. I just.. I just want you to do one more thing for me. Just, one last favor." He says as if its real important.

"Sure Roman. What do you need?" I ask willingly.

He shines the light on his face slightly, illuminating his features.

"Kiss me."

My eyes get wide. Is this a joke? I cant even respond because I dont know if he's serious or..

"Excuse me?" I ask, hoping he laughs it off.

He walks closer to me and I back up a little, but not enough to make him believe Im trying to reject him. 

"KISS me." He says, this time deepening his voice. 

He is close enough to me that he puts his finger between my pants and my underwear and pulls at the elastic in them, beckoning me to come closer to him. I obey, almost robotically, and come closer to him, being engulfed in his aura, and he is looking down on me as he turns his flashlight off. I smell a hint of cherry on his breath as he leans in so closely I cannot even breathe. 

He whispers, seductively, but almost sounding sinister. "Learn to hold your breath with me." 

He wraps his fingers around mine, grasping the flashlight and turning it off.

~~~.~~~

I hit the ground and look up, refocusing my vision on my surroundings. I squint and realize that its just my room. I can feel the pain from hitting the ground and I groan. I get up slowly, climbing into my bed. I feel the heat from the sun smacking me in the face. It's morning? I yawn and stretch, apparently having a hard night. Wow the power went out and.. wait.. which of that was a dream.. and which part of that was reality? I pout feeling like one part was obviously too good to be true. I get up, sore, and make my way to the hallway bathroom and wash my face. I dry my face with a towel and frown when I see a paper attached to the mirror with my name on it. I take it off and open it.

Thank you for letting me stay the night. I really appreciate it. - Roman

~~~.~~~