The Quiet Friend Pt. 02

Rowan looked up to see Denny standing between him and Greg, his voice raised and his body threatening as he kept Greg where he stood. Greg had his hands up, shaking his head with an expression of what was obviously regret though at the moment Rowan wasn't sure he'd accept it so readily. Then Kara's face appeared above him, full of concern and with her hand out to help him up.

"Rowan? Hey, are you okay?" Kara was asking.

He stood up, feeling slightly dizzy, more from shock than any injury. He brushed Kara away, stating he was fine and he just wanted to be alone and with a final glance at Greg, he walked out of the bar to find somewhere to sit down. He settled on a bench a few yards away and stared into space, prodding at his lip. It felt wet. He looked down at his hand and found it was covered in blood. He groaned and shook some of it off, causing a spatter pattern to appear on the pavement in front of him.

What was he supposed to do now? Greg clearly hadn't reacted favourably, Sarah was still at Katarina's waiting for him and he couldn't see any way in which this situation could resolve in an amicable manner.

Rowan groaned with pain. Did he even care anymore about how it ended? There only seemed to be one clear goal in his mind, and that was Sarah. Katarina was right. Sarah was right. He never went for what he wanted, like so many other people around him. Perhaps now it was time he did.

"Rowan? Where the fuck are-- Oh. There you are."

Rowan turned to his right to see Greg walking toward him slowly, holding something in his hand. He looked up and saw the full moon was out, before looking to his right again as Greg sat down, offering the ice pack in his hands.

Rowan took it, almost grudgingly and put it to the swelling cut on his lip.

"I hit you hard, didn't I?" Greg asked, looking at Rowan's mouth.

Rowan grunted and shrugged. "Certainly did the job. Fucking hurts."

"Sorry about that."

Rowan looked at him. "Really?"

Greg scowled. "Of course. But don't expect me to apologise again. That's all you're getting out of me."

Rowan looked at the pavement again, his eyes tracing the lines of the spatter of blood spread out in front of them.

For a short while there was silence between the two of them, neither being sure of what to say. Then Greg asked a question that took Rowan by surprise. "So how long has it been going on with you and her?"

"What?"

Greg looked him in the eye. "I said, how long--"

"Yeah. I heard. What kind of a stupid question is that?"

Greg looked insulted. "Hang on, you come into the pub earlier and tell me you two kissed and you're asking what kind of question that is?"

"Yeah. Because that's all that's happened. I've done nothing with her. I don't know if you've noticed, Greg, but I've spent as much time as I could avoiding all of you altogether. That includes her."

Greg was silent for a moment. "So that's why you haven't been around as much?"

"I'm not you, Greg. I didn't do anything."

"I resent that remark," Greg said with a roll of his eyes.

Rowan, however, ignored that movement with a look bordering on a glare. "Of course you do. But you know as well as I do, nothing would stop you from getting it on with someone already taken. Don't forget, I know you slept with a couple of girls that time in uni when you and her were broken up for a couple of months."

"We weren't together at the time!"

"I know, but one of those girls was not single."

Greg sighed, ignoring that statement and instead, said, "So nothing happened."

"Nothing. I've never said anything to her and even when she found out about my feelings, I pretty much ignored her after that. I wouldn't do anything like that to you."

"... I know."

"Then why the fuck did you punch me? I'm assuming that's the reason you did."

"I lost control, okay? I shouldn't have done that. I just... I don't know."

"Hmm. I don't know why you care anyway. You said you were heading towards breaking up with her."

"..."

"Or is it the fact she did it first?"

Greg looked at Rowan. "What is this? Are you deliberately trying to make me feel worse or something?"

Rowan shrugged. "Maybe. I've got every right to."

"Okay, so things weren't going great with me and her. I still didn't need to hear that you two kissed on the night after we broke up."

"Would you have preferred that I kept the truth from you?"

"... No. I suppose not."

"At least I'm honest. I can think of a dozen different people who wouldn't give you the same courtesy."

Greg said nothing, already thinking of the uncomfortable truth that he probably fit quite easily into the same category of that dozen or so different people.

There was another long pause as Rowan's thoughts rushed through his head, slowing down bit by bit until he realised there were things he wanted to say, to make sure that Greg knew; things that suddenly held no fear for him. He'd already been punched and things were now going better than he would have expected. He took a deep breath.

"I don't know how you feel about her, Greg, but the fact is, I'm crazy about her. I really am. And I think she feels the same way. And I haven't done anything to betray you. Unless all of this right now counts. But I don't care anymore. I'm sick of holding back. I'm not letting this go, whatever you say or however you feel. I deserve that much," Rowan said quietly.

To his surprise, Greg let out a short laugh.

"What?"

"Nothing. I was just thinking," Greg said, looking up at the sky. "Do you know what the lot at school would call you when you weren't around?"

Rowan shifted position, feeling a momentary discomfort. "What?"

"The quiet friend. My quiet friend. The one who'd just go along with everything. Who never said anything. If only they could hear you now."

Rowan thought about this for a moment.

"I'm sorry for punching you," Greg said, with a deep serious tone to his voice this time.

"It's okay."

"Hmm." He looked as if he was about to say more, but decided against it, opting instead for a meaningful look of regret.

"I know," Rowan said. He realised Greg was doing his best.

"I know you didn't do anything. And I'm glad you told me."

Rowan felt even more uncomfortable now. It was rare to hear anything so serious come out of Greg's mouth.

"And you're right. It wasn't headed anywhere. I really did like her though, for a while."

"Well. We all figured. You were with her for a long time."

"Yeah... Just don't expect me to feel comfortable about this for a while; if it's all the same to you."

"I won't," Rowan said seriously. Then he added, "Everything has its time."

"Like you finally growing a pair of bollocks?"

"Fuck off," Rowan said shortly, though he couldn't quite suppress the small smile on his face, and the small grimace of pain as his split lip moved.

Greg grinned. "How's your lip?"

"Hurts."

"Hmm. So what now?"

"I don't know. You already know where I stand."

Greg nodded. "Yeah. I do. I guess this night is pointless. You might as well go back to her. I've got all those ladies in the bar waiting for me anyway. I could always go back in and tell them you stole my girlfriend, see if that gets me anywhere."

Rowan looked at him, wide eyed at first. "You mean, you're okay with... well... you know."

Greg shrugged. "Like I can stop you." Rowan was about to speak when suddenly Greg put his head in his hands and mumbled, "Oh God, here she comes."

Rowan raised an eyebrow, looking to his left and saw Katarina walking rapidly toward them. "What? How is she--"

"Kara rang her up right after you walked out of the bar. She said Katarina would sort us out. I swear, people don't give me enough credit sometimes," Greg said quietly so that Katarina wouldn't hear.

She stopped right in front of them with a bewildered look on her face. She looked down at the blood spatter, then at Rowan, before finally turning to Greg and proceeding to slap his head and crying out, "You absolute, fucking prat!"

Greg stood up immediately, moving away and keeping his hands between her stinging slaps and his head. "God, Kat, just stop! I've already said sorry to him!"

She stopped and looked at Rowan. "Are you okay?"

Rowan, who was laughing quietly by now, half wincing from the pain, simply nodded his head.

"Let me see what he did."

"It's fine, Katarina, honestly."

"Rowan, show me your lip before I punch the other side of your mouth."

Rowan moved the ice pack away to reveal a swollen lip and the flesh underneath already turning darker.

"You're bruised and bleeding," Katarina announced.

"Hardly surprising."

She looked at Greg, who still stood cautiously out of her reach. "I can't believe you hit him."

"We've sorted it out," Greg said, though he made no movement toward her.

She raised an eyebrow and looked at Rowan, who nodded in confirmation. "Why did you hit him anyway?" Katarina asked, looking at Greg again.

"No reason, really."

She narrowed her eyes at him.

"I told him that Sarah kissed me," Rowan sighed.

Katarina spun around in fake surprise. "What? She did?" She looked between the two of them.

"It's fine!" Greg said. "Can I sit down now? Or are you going to hit me again?"

"... Sit down, if you want."

Greg moved to the bench again, keeping his eyes on Katarina and she sat down on the other side of Rowan. There was a long pause where none of them said anything, all thinking of different things.

"She kissed you," Katarina said eventually, trying to maintain a certain modicum of surprise. As far as she was concerned, revealing she had already spoken to Sarah and knew about this was not going to go down well with Greg.

"She did."

"And you're fine with this," She said to Greg.

Greg shrugged. "I wouldn't say I'm fine with it. But whatever. If that's how things go."

Katarina sighed. "So I came all the way out here for nothing."

"The pleasure of our company isn't enough?" Greg asked.

Katarina ignored that and looked lost in thought before glancing at Rowan. "... She's at my place right now, Rowan."

"I know," Rowan nodded. Then he looked at her. "If she's there, then why are you asking about--"

"She didn't say anything to me. So, if she's there; what are you doing here?

Rowan stared. "That is a brilliant question." Without another moment's thought, he stood up and began to walk toward Katarina's flat until one last thing occurred to him.

He turned around to look at Greg. "You're not really going to go in there and tell them I stole your girlfriend, are you?"

"Of course I am. How else do you expect me to justify the fact I punched you?"

"That's disgusting."

Greg smiled. "No. It's me being consistent. Now fuck off, will you?"

Rowan nodded. "Thanks."

"I'll see you next week?"

Hardly believing he was still willing to maintain the friendship, Rowan simply nodded and without saying anything else, he left them both to it.

They watched him walk away. Greg sighed and looked at the bar. "You coming in, Kat? I could do with a wingman. Or should that be wingwoman?"

She gave him a serious look in reply and said, "That was a good thing you did. He was really worried about what you'd think."

Greg returned that look. "I know I'm an arsehole, but it doesn't mean I don't recognise good people."

"Evidently so."

"Anyway, there's a beautiful woman waiting inside who was obviously giving me the eye. So, I'm going back in," Greg told her, standing up. "You coming?"

Katarina glanced down the street, all too aware that Rowan would want time alone with Sarah. She stood up and began walking toward the bar. "Come on, let's go get drunk."

... ... ...

He winced when he touched his lip again. The cut didn't seem so bad now that he was more focused on the fact he was standing outside Katarina's flat.

The front door opened and Sarah came out slowly, looking at him. His heart was rocketing and his body felt warm already. She was frowning at him as she walked along the pathway from the door leading to the pavement.

"Rowan? What the hell happened to your lip?"

Rowan smiled. "Greg punched me."

"What?!" She moved right up to him and looked at his lip, frowning. "The bastard."

"It's okay--"

"Don't defend him, Rowan. This is beyond the pale."

Rowan wasn't even listening. She was right up close to him, her head tilted as she studied his lip closely. It exposed one side of her long neck to him. She said something about the cut not looking too bad, but he didn't really register it because he was staring at her neck and then, he was moving toward it.

He kissed it. It was such a brief, light kiss and he froze. She froze too, unsure of what had just happened. Rowan's lips were still near her skin and he was sure she could feel his breathing on her neck.

She moved forward slowly, her neck making contact with his mouth and he kissed it again while her head came to rest against his cheek. His kisses were light and brief to stop it from hurting his lip, though Rowan probably wouldn't have noticed too much. Even just having her neck so close was intoxicating.

"Ohhh, Rowan..." Her arms were around his neck now and for a few moments, they were just holding each other, swaying ever so slightly.

Then she moved back and put her hands on either side of his jaw. Before either of them had time to think, they were kissing again. Rowan could feel his pulse pounding in his neck while he dived into the sensation of her full bodied lips on his, her mouth hungrily seeking him out as she pulled him against her body, only breaking the kiss when they could no longer breathe. He winced overtly enough for her to notice, the pain only noticeable now that she had moved back. The ache was a pulse in his lip and the area around it, but strangely it seemed as though during the kiss it had become mingled with pleasure.

Breathing hard, she looked worried for a moment. "Oh shit, Rowan. Sorry! It's still pretty painful, huh?"

"A little. We'll just have to be... softer."

She grinned and in way of an apology, touched her lips to his again, like a brushing feather ending with a bit of pressure that only left him wanting more.

Moving back, she asked, "What happened? What about Greg?"

Rowan grinned in a way he was sure made him look silly, but feeling so ecstatic, he didn't care. "Who cares? You're mine."

That provoked a more powerful reaction in her than he was prepared for. She grabbed his shirt and pulled his body toward her, kissing him deeply again, before moving back when hearing his moans.

"Fuck, I keep forgetting."

He laughed.

She looked around at the cars parked on the side of the road. "How did you get here?" She asked.

"Walked."

"Oh. Shit. Well. You can drive Katarina's car, right?"

"I'm not on her insurance. We could just walk--"

Sarah shook her head. "No. Do you have any idea how much I've been wanting you to come back?"

"Uh. A lot?"

She kissed him on the lips again, lightly this time. Then holding onto his hand, she pulled him toward the open front door. As soon as they were inside, she shut the front door and pushed him against it, her lips playing along his mouth and along his jawline.

Rowan closed his eyes, feeling the softness drag along his flesh, her hands squeezing his fingers and her body pressed against him. Her hands came up to the sides of his neck and she nuzzled it, before dragging the tip of her tongue up to the underside of his jaw, ending it with a little nip. He half snorted-half chuckled at the sensation. She smiled suddenly, realising this was really happening. It was physically happening and soon she could just completely let go with him.

She closed her eyes for a few moments, simply leaning against him. Her face rested against his cheek and her fingers could not be still; she was stroking his neck.

"Sarah?"

"Yeah?"

"Everything okay?"

She opened her eyes and looked at him. First she had things to say, before she carried on. Katarina's words had weighed heavy on her mind after she was left alone in the flat.

"Rowan, at the club, when I made you tell me how you felt about me..."

"Yeah?" He asked, frowning slightly in confusion.

"I'm sorry. I spoke to Kat and she made me realise how hard that could've been for you. How hard I pushed you."

He shook his head. "It's okay. If you hadn't done that, for all I know, we wouldn't be here right now."

"I don't know about that... I did hear you and Kat, after all."

He shrugged. "It doesn't matter now, does it?"

"No. I guess not, but I had to say sorry at least."

"Don't be silly," Rowan said, leaning forward to kiss her, this time more of a touch on the corner of her mouth.

She said, "Don't ever be afraid to tell me something, okay? Ever. Your feelings, thoughts, whatever."

"Well, considering how you're so unable to pick up on how someone feels about you, that's pretty much a promise I won't have any trouble making."

She laughed and lightly hit him on the thigh. Then her hand was there again, but touching this time, slowly moving up his thigh towards his crotch.

His eyes locked onto hers and he simply watched, feeling her hand move ever closer to his hardening cock. She was fascinated by the look in his eyes and the way his breathing had obviously changed. He looked down briefly to see her other hand undo the side buttons of her skirt, letting it drop to the floor so she could step out of it and push it away with her foot.

A moment later and her hand was resting on his erection, slowly rubbing it through his jeans. He gulped and nodded nervously. "Uh. Do you want to move to the living room... or anything?"

She shook her head with a hard squeeze of his now erect cock and giggled as he let out a short moan. With quite the serious look on her face, she leaned forward and licked his lips in place of a kiss, making him look amused before that melted away into the pleasure of her palm cupping his bulge. Both her hands skilfully undid his jeans and let them drop to the floor with ease. Without even thinking about it, he toed off his shoes and stepped out of them as she moved back to pull his T-shirt off. Then her lips were on his again, but on the other side of his mouth and this time he was finding it hard to even think because her hands were slowly working on his cock through the very thin material of his boxer shorts. Part of him was already sure he would explode very soon; he'd been waiting for something like this for so long and now that it was happening, the reality was infinitely more intense than the fantasy.

She wondered momentarily, as she kissed him, how it was she had never realised what was in front of her the whole time. How she had never realised the comfort being with him brought her while still exciting her. Her body on fire, she was determined that all those months and months he'd waited, were going to be worth it and that he'd never forget this night.

Her lips travelled to his neck as she firmly pushed him back toward the front door and kept him there. "Close your eyes," She said with a tone that couldn't be disobeyed.

Almost amused, he complied. She kissed the front of his neck, the collarbone and the middle of his chest. Her hands were slowly clawing their way up his sides and she could tell he liked the feeling; he couldn't stop smiling. Without warning, she licked his nipple and suddenly sucked hard. He gasped and almost opened his eyes. Giggling, she did the same to the other nipple, using her fingers to scrape around it first. Then, using her fingers to play with both of his nipples, she lowered a little, letting her mouth drag kisses down the middle of his abdomen, until she was on her knees and kissing him right above the band of his boxer shorts.

She let her hands lower down, keeping them in contact with his body until they came to rest at the top of his boxer shorts. Her eyes were focused on his face. Rowan's chest was rising and falling a little quicker now and she could hear the shallow breathing and wondered how fast his heart was beating. He was very obviously hard, and the material of his boxers was straining against his erection.