One Shots

Toxicity

"I love you," Adrian mumbled into Rena's neck.

Rena, whose mind was all over the place, pretended she didn't hear him. Instead, her hand cupped his jaw, guiding his head up. She pulled him into another kiss.

Their making out continued, so Rena was able to get lost in her thoughts.

She couldn't understand how Adrian could tell her that after only dating for a few weeks. She liked him well enough; she wouldn't be dating him if she didn't. But, she knew she didn't love him yet.

The L word didn't come up the rest of the night, but that didn't mean Rena wasn't thinking about it.

///

About a week later, Rena and Adrian were hanging out on campus. They were outside, sitting on a bench. Adrian was on Rena's left side and had his arm around her shoulders. She didn't hesitate to lean into his side.

At some point, she rested her head on his shoulder. He smiled a little at the gesture. To express his joy, Adrian kissed the side of her head and said, "I love you."

It took everything Rena had to not tense at his words. She still wasn't at that point, but she couldn't tell him that, so she whispered a weary, "Love you, too."

They sat quietly after that, people-watching and enjoying the fresh air.

///

Sometimes when they weren't with each other in person, Adrian and Rena would text.

Adrian had a habit of telling his girlfriend he loved her in those messages.

Not wanting to tell him that it was mutual until it really was, Rena would respond to those texts with ily or ly2. It was easier than saying she really liked him, and it was definitely easier than confessing her feelings weren't that strong yet.

///

A bit over three months into their relationship, Rena finally told Adrian she loved him after he told her. He was practically beaming when she did.

He eagerly leaned in to kiss her, and Rena allowed him to do so easily.

They both felt content in the moment.

///

It was about four and a half months into their relationship, and they haven't had sex. It wasn't from a lack of trying on Adrian's end.

Rena had never been one for sex. In high school, she thought something was wrong with her. Sometime after starting college, she became aware of asexuality and realized that she most likely was asexual.

She thinks given the right person and relationship, she would be okay with trying it out. So, maybe it was a sign that she didn't feel comfortable to do it with Adrian.

Whenever Adrian would bring the subject up or try to escalate things, Rena would say, "I'm not that kind of person" or "I'm just not into that kind of thing." She never directly told him she was asexual. She had a feeling he wouldn't understand. She figured it was easier this way.

///

A little more than five months of them dating, Rena started hearing rumors about Adrian.

She ignored them for the most part. She wasn't one to blindly believe what other people say without some sort of evidence.

Yes, they had their downs. There have been a couple arguments. But what couple doesn't argue?

Most of the time, they were happy. They got along, and they loved each other. Things were going well.