Let's Make Up

Drive

Being stand off-ish wasn't as easy as John had hoped, even though he was still a little down from his shower thoughts. Molly was clingy with him and trying to stay affectionate. She poured him some coffee and told him to sit while serving him a plate of eggs and pan fried bread with fresh tomato slices. When she put it down, she quickly kissed his cheek and without thinking, he naturally reached his hand out to her jaw and pulled her chin close to kiss her lips again. They enjoyed each other quite a bit and she wouldn't let up. She kept teasing him and he knew he had to put a stop to it.

He inhaled sharply,

"Molly, I get it, you're really cute and I'm giving in a lot, but can we quit playing around now?"

She stopped and pulled back.

"Why do you sound so... upset?" She asked feeling a little jarred by him abruptly ending his involvement with her.

He started to gently push her away from him, so she stood up and looked at him with disappointment all over her face.

"Was I not good enough? You sure acted like you enjoyed it."

"That's not it, don't do this, you know that you're driving me crazy." He said in the same annoyed voice.

"What is it then?"

John looked past her to the time on the stove's blue-ly illuminated clock and said, "I've got to head out, I've got another meeting to attend."

Her chest tightened and she didn't know why she was suddenly so angry with him.

"Alright. Well, why don't you bring the person you're interviewing here too and we can all go to bed together next time."

John faced her and could recognize she was getting passive-aggressive, but it didn't help him to know that because he was all too familiar with that feeling as well. Her chaotic emotions were setting off his own, and he mirrored her deflected insecurities.

"Sure, why not then? I knew you'd hold my offer to stay here against me. Do you feel like begging us to touch you while we're at it or should I just ignore you and see if you'll start feeling something for me, besides getting me off."

Molly smiled cynically at him to keep herself strong.

"I see. Do you really think I don't like you?"

"No." John said, walking out of the room to put on his outer wear. "I think you're still way too attached to your ex and that you think engaging with someone else will get back at him somehow. Only, he won't know unless you tell him."

Her eyebrows knit.

"Why do you think that?"

"Please, Molly, things only escalated after we talked about our past relationships. I know you want attention, but the only person I am to you right now, is your boss. Why don't you use his real name when you talk about him? It's because you still have feelings there."

She could feel her eyes start to sting with the sensation of wanting to cry but she was able to hold off until he left the house. As much as Molly hated hearing him say that, she feared that he was partially right. She did worry about never being fully over Julien and that she was diving into a physical relationship with someone that she shouldn't be interested in, all because the treatment he gave her made her feel amazing. Molly liked John though-- she liked the way he talked and how he cared enough to let her stay. How calm he was with her antics and how he had his own personality quirks. She loved his smile and the dimples on his cheeks that she wouldn't have even known about if she hadn't gotten close with him earlier. He had a temper and a hard exterior but he loved sweets like chocolate and ice-cream just like she did. She thought about how comfortable and confident he was in his bedroom and wished she hadn't allowed it to get too far, thinking that at least if they hadn't gotten indulgent then she wouldn't have known any better.

Molly decided to apologize to him without any grand gestures as she usually would've had to with Julien. John was not the same as him and she had noticed early on that he was very straight forward. She took out her cell phone and texted him, hoping a simple sorry would help.

Molly: John, I'm sorry for this morning. All of it, not just before you left.

John: Dont be. I shouldn't have said what I did, I let myself get extremely unprofessional and I hope you're alright.

Molly: No, you had every right. I was being childish. I will only treat you as my boss from here on. I won't lie, I really enjoyed everything with you, even the ice cream last night, but I didn't mean to get this comfortable.

He didn't reply and his heart sank with her last message. He did tell himself it would be better if they didn't get entangled into a personal relationship, but with what she was saying, he felt that maybe she did care about him as more than just a person to beckon to her physical needs. He thought it wouldn't even be so bad if that were true, it wasn't like he didn't enjoy what they had going on as well. More than anything, John just felt torn but knew that since she'd actually messaged him, there was guilt, and if there was guilt, there was definite and undeniable emotion behind it. Having an HR and psychology background did him good when he was on his own to think about his life, but even with that knowledge, he would often find himself reflecting poorly on his own behavior and unable to act with unbiased thoughts during a heated moment.

He texted her back finally.

John: After my meeting I have to go to the bank. I can swing by and pick you up first if you'd want to go out for a drive with me?

Molly: Sure. I'd like that.

After his last message, Molly felt better. She knew she lashed out and was acting crazy. Going for a drive would be helpful since John would be able to show her the areas of town that would be affordable but still up to her standards of living. While trying to busy herself, she found herself thinking about his arm around her or how he already had some sort of habit where he tended to hold her cheek or chin while kissing her. She decided she was going to put on some makeup and feel good about herself, even if John didn't want her the way she thought or hoped he did.

Some time passed and Molly heard her phone chirp to let her know she had a message.

John: I'll be there in 5 minutes, there's an extra set of keys by the shoe bench so you can lock up.

She put on her boots and jacket, grabbed the keys and looked at herself in the mirror that was adjacent to the door. Immediately she felt silly for having put on the makeup she did, just for sitting in a car with someone. Giving herself one last check, she did like the way it turned out so she tried to push aside any thoughts about what John would think as well. Going out to the car, she still felt a little awkward and didn't look him in the eye when she got in, or even in his general direction for the first few minutes, but, when they stopped in front of the bank she'd nearly forgotten already since she was very used to how makeup felt. He got out and came back quickly as he only used an ATM machine since the rest of the building was closed otherwise on Sundays.

"You look really good and I don't even deserve it." John told her, having gotten strapped into the driver's seat again and finally allowing himself some time to look over at her. He liked the way the shadow she used accentuated her big eyes and the colour of her lipstick made his mouth water.

"You deserve a lot better than me." She replied, blushing a little at his fixated expression. "But we shouldn't talk like this, should we?"

Lifting her chin and using his familiar motion to bring her lips to his, he stopped just millimeters before them and sighed, saying, "God, just one more kiss, please."

Molly paid attention to how inviting his mouth looked and let them join together. One kiss inevitably turned into another and another. She could see her long mascara coated lashes blur and close over her vision, feeling that she could really fall for him if she hadn't already.