Been Thinking for a Long Time

“Yo, stop fucking yelling at the goddamn tv!” The raven-haired beauty yelled at the group of men. “Are you trying to get me evicted? Jesus Christ.”

The group of men instantly silenced and then began to bicker quietly. The group of men she called some of her closest friends were known collectively as Avenged Sevenfold, plus one. The new drummer but not official band member, Arin, was the plus one member of the band. They had come to her apartment to hang out together after being on tour for two and a half months.

Neche raised her hands and groaned in frustration as they increasingly got louder. She was sure she’d have a pink slip on her front door before next month’s rent was due because of her friends. Her eyes flickered over to the younger and smaller man, Arin, who was perched on the end of her couch.

Their eyes met for a split second as Neche turned her head away and Arin looked her short frame up and down. His eyes started at her shapely legs, going up to the roundness of her ample behind, up the curve of her spine, to the small pouch of her stomach under her t-shirt, and her bust which was emphasized in her v-neck. Her face was the most gorgeous to Arin; her body a close second.

Arin was infatuated with the reddish brown irises that could burn holes through someone’s head with her glare. Her sweetheart lips were almost always coated and glossed in a deep red lipstick. The liquid eyeliner on her eyelids was never smudged and angled perfectly.

Arin had a complicated like for Neche’s personality. She was everything he wasn’t. She was loud and outgoing, while he was shy and meek. He was merely just the drummer. He had been intimidated by her since day one. With the group he now called his friends and mentors, they introduced him to Neche for the first time when he first joined as their touring drummer.

“This the new kid? Do I get to haze him?”

Those were the exact words that she said, almost in a cruel tone. She looked him up and down, commenting on how thin and scrawny he was. He didn’t say anything back, because he’d never met anyone like her before. How do you respond to something you’re not used to?

Everyone knew that almost everything Neche said was a joke, even when it did come out as obnoxious and mean. The only things she did take seriously were threats. Even as a comedic person by nature, Neche still scared him. They only exchanged words when they needed to but otherwise, they didn’t communicate with each other at all.

“What are you looking at?” Neche sneered at Arin, flipping her dark hair over her shoulder to look at him more clearly.

“I… I was just checking out your new tattoo,” Arin lied, realizing that he must’ve been staring at her for a few minutes. He leaned forward and pretended to marvel at the fresh Red Hot Chili Peppers logo on her upper arm near her shoulder. He knew that they were one of her all-time favorite bands as he continued to gaze at the eight-sided figure.

“Whatever,” Neche rolled her eyes at him. She ignored him and glanced down at her phone, occupying herself with the screen until she could feel Arin’s eyes no longer on her.

Contrary to the popular belief among the group, Neche did not hate Arin or even dislike him in the slightest bit. If her friends were happy with him, then so was she, even if she didn’t show her enthusiasm all the time. When she’d first met Arin, she had to do a double take. She wondered if skinny, tattoo-less Arin would fit in with the band.

“Hey, Neche, is there anymore pizza or did you eat it all?” Johhny asked jokingly with his arm slung over the couch. “If there’s more, can you get me a slice?”

“No, I did not eat it all, and get your own fucking pizza,” Neche said harshly, getting up and walking out of the room. She made her way to the kitchen to get herself a cold bottle of water.

Arin noticed the instant frown on her face as she walked away. He got up from the couch stealthily, following her into her small kitchenette with his plastic cup in his hand. She turned around upon him entering.

“Just getting some more soda,” He said, clearing his throat and tilting the empty cup down to show her it was empty.

“Help yourself,” Neche mumbled, stepping aside from the fridge. She leaned against the counter, one arm crossed over her stomach and the other holding the water bottle to her lips.

“Are you- are you okay?” Arin asked her hesitantly, pausing in the middle of grabbing the two liter bottle of cola from the fridge.

“Johnny’s jokes are just getting old, you know,” She muttered, looking up at him.

“Tell me about it,” He said sarcastically with a roll of his eyes just to keep her talking.

This was his moment. She’d finally taken a break from being obnoxious and arrogant to being in a more vulnerable state. He truly did feel like something was wrong with her and he was going to help her out if she allowed him too. They normally didn’t talk to each other, so Arin imagined it would be hard to have an actual conversation. Still, this was the moment he had been waiting for. He just wanted to talk to her.

“Can I tell you something?” She asked, as if she needed permission.

Arin’s eyebrows nearly shot up to his hairline.

“Y-yeah, sure,” He sputtered, pretending to feel the burn of the acidic soda sliding down his throat.

“The jokes were funny at first, but now they’re not,” She started, biting the unpierced side of her lip.

“What do you mean?” Arin asked curiously.

“Did you eat the whole pizza, should we order extra food,” She said, wracking her brain for more examples of the several ongoing jokes her friends teased her with. “They’re always talking about me like I’m some fat ass cow. I know I’m not all that skinny, but still.”

“They obviously don’t know you feel that way because you’re beautiful,” Arin blurted out before he could stop himself.

“Excuse me, what?” Neche said quickly, jutting her hip out and putting a hand on her hip.

There it was. He blew his chance. He said something completely stupid and now she was pissed.

“I said, you’re beautiful,” Arin said louder and more courageously than before. “And you should tell the guys how you feel.”

“Did you just call me beautiful?” She asked, raising an arched eyebrow. “You and I never talk like, at all, and you think I’m beautiful?” She scoffed.

Arin nodded his head slowly, not wanting to seem too eager that she had repeated it and acknowledged him.

“You’re in on the joke, too, right?” She said in disbelief. “Unbelievable.”

“No! Neche, I’m serious!” Arin shouted loudly but not enough for the guys to hear him in the living room.

He reached out to her, grasping her wrist in his hand. Neche looked down at his hand around her hers, and then looked into his pleading eyes.

“I’m not kidding around like them,” He told her. “I know you’ve always hated me for whatever reason but I don’t want you to doubt yourself because of what they say. Neche, you are gorgeous. I think you are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met in my life and you’ve never even given me a chance.”

“How was I supposed to give you a chance? Why did you wait until now to say something?” Neche said exasperatedly.

“I was scared, alright? I just knew that something was wrong after what Johnny said to you,” Arin explained frantically.

“Scared of what, girls?” Neche said, her red lips forming into a curve. “I’ve never disliked you, Arin. You just assumed--”

Neche was cut off by Arin unexpectedly pressing his lips to hers after hearing that. After debating pulling back for a moment, she locked her lips with his, the ball of her lip piercing cooling the heated moment. He let go of her wrist, his arms snaking around her torso to pull her closer. Her hands came around the back of his neck, tangling her fingers in his curly hair.

The feeling was mutual between them as they made out in the middle of her kitchen a few feet away from their friends. Arin had finally gotten what he had been thinking about for a long time and got the closure he needed. Neche, for sure, did not hate him like she made it seem. He now understood why she always kept her guard up, and he would promise to be by her side all the time if she allowed him to.

When they finally broke apart, Neche couldn’t contain the blush that was rising on her cheeks and her wide grin. She lowered her eyes for a moment before focusing them on Arin’s face again. The typical confident Neche came back in a second.

“I was trying to say that you just assumed wrong; I’ve always liked you.”