So from the cliffs and highest hills, yeah, we would gladly get our fill

Go-karting was more fun than Nick had been expecting. Frankly, he could have been content just ending their date right then and there. But he still had a little bit of time left before he had to say goodbye to Gina and meet up with his stepmother to spend the afternoon together.

They could have gone to get lunch, but when he suggested they find somewhere to eat, Gina overruled him with a shake of her head.

“I’m not hungry yet,” she said firmly, looking him deeply in the eyes. A crooked smile touched her lips. “Come on- you must have some other plans we could do for our date, right?”

Nick understood what Gina was driving at. His punk friend didn’t want this date to end yet- she wanted to spend more time with him.

He was genuinely touched. And why wouldn’t he be? Gina seemed intent on the two of them having fun together, which was a stark contrast to her initial response when he proposed this idea the other day. She’d gone from not being sure about this date and thinking that she wasn’t worthy of a “genuine” date with him, to actually enjoying herself and wanting to spend more time connecting with him in a real way.

Nick wanted to spend more time connecting with her, as well.

So he was willing to postpone lunch for a little bit longer, and proposed something quick and simple that they could do together.

“I know I said I’d leave it to you to decide, but are you sure about this?” Gina asked, feeling a little weird about the whole thing. “I know we were cracking jokes before about how you had a bunch of childish stuff planned, but this, I mean…”

“There’s nothing childish about playing video games,” Nick replied. “Dani and I do this on our dates sometimes, too.”

He’d brought her up to the Master’s Suite. This was a little unusual, coming up this early, but it’s not like they’d be staying. He was just here so they could make use of the television.

Gina understood that, but she wasn’t sold on the idea just yet.

“Well, you’re not trying to look attractive to Dani,” Gina pointed out, smirking. “So why would you care if the two of you played video games on your date?”

“Are you saying you’re not attracted to someone who plays video games?” Nick fired back as he loaded up the fighting game for the two of them to play.

Gina made a sour face. “No, you know… that’s… that’s not what I meant,” she mumbled, shaking her head. Nick could see the way her face turned red and **** himself not to smile. It was cute, seeing her get embarrassed like that, especially when he knew that it was her own fault.

“…I just had something else in mind when you said we were coming up here, that’s all,” she said with an exasperated sigh.

Nick looked at her. “You mean you thought we were going to have a quickie together?” He asked.

Her cheeks pinkened again and she bit her lip, nodding slowly. “Maybe I got my hopes up, just a little,” she said. Her throat was feeling particularly dry and scratchy right now, thanks to the influence of her patches. She’d been able to ignore her addiction to Nick’s semen for most of the day, but once the door was opened to the possibility, it was hard to shut it again.

“Well, I’m sorry for misleading you,” Nick apologized sincerely. “But I told you when we started, Gina, that I didn’t want today to be about sex. I wanted the two of us to get to know each other and have fun, without sexual stuff distracting us.”

“I know,” Gina groaned, nodding in acknowledgment of his position. She didn’t have to like the idea, but she understood why Nick was so focused on it.

This date today had made things abundantly clear to her. He wasn’t trying to undo the circumstances that had occurred between the two of them, but he was trying to show her that there could be more to their relationship than just sexual desire.

For someone like Gina whose interactions with men had been relegated solely to fucking, that was uncharted territory for her. And she was grateful to Nick for his patience in that regard, given how complicated and difficult it was for her to genuinely, sincerely enjoy herself.

“…I’m okay with it,” she said, looking Nick in the eyes. “If you’re okay with it, Nick. Because… you’re right. I don’t want our relationship to be purely defined by sex either.”

Nick looked at her, surprised. Had he actually gotten through to Gina, then? The look in her eyes told him that maybe it was alright for him to get his hopes up- something he never would have imagined before now.

Gina bit her lip hesitantly. “Today… has been so much fun,” she said, reaching out a tentative hand towards him before stopping herself.

Nick went the rest of the way and took her hand in his. They sat on the golden couch together, looking into each other’s eyes as they just embraced the presence of one another and enjoyed the fact that they could be together like this.

He wanted Gina to see that there was more out there for her. And it seemed like he was finally getting through to her.

“Really, thank you,” Gina murmured, fighting back the tears welling up in her eyes. “You don’t know how much this means to me. That you… that you were willing to go this far, for someone like me… really.”

Nick looked at her in surprise, his eyes widening. “Gina… what are you saying?” He asked, shaking his head. “Of course I would… what do you mean ‘someone like you’? You’re a great woman, Gina, that’s not-”

“I don’t feel so great,” Gina said, taking her hand back. She shifted slightly on the couch, feeling like she had to put some distance between herself and Nick even though she really didn’t want to. “I feel like… like I’m just… just some…”

She couldn’t get the words out. It was strange- almost like her mouth refused to listen to her.

Gina was quite familiar with self-deprecation. She may have hidden her low self-esteem behind snarky wit and a detached, “Who-gives-a-fuck?” attitude towards others, but if you scratched beneath the surface you would see her for who she really was, a woman with a huge chip on her shoulder, and a self-image so poor that it disgusted her.

That wasn’t at all how she wanted to be, of course. But she’d always felt trapped in that quagmire, holding herself responsible for all the bad things that happened in her life while telling herself it was what she deserved.

But Nick clearly didn’t feel the same way. With how he was looking at her, how he always treated her, it made her feel like for once, she actually had someone who was there for her.

And as always she was trying to sabotage it.

Gina’s tongue slid past her lips and she licked them, feeling how thirsty she was. “Actually, Nick… let’s just forget the video games,” she said in a husky voice, leaning in closer. “I don’t think that’s really why you brought me up here.”

“What? Yes it is,” Nick replied, sensing what Gina was getting at and not about to indulge her. “Quit playing around Gina, let’s focus on playing.”

“Well, which is it?” Gina smirked. “Playing a game? Or playing around? Hmm, I wonder…”

If only she wasn’t wearing this pink dress. It was hard to seduce a man when your clothes looked so modest, at least the way Gina seduced men. But she could work with what she had if she needed to. And right now…

She felt like she needed to.

“Gina… come on. You don’t have to do this,” Nick said, placing his hand over hers again and giving it a tender squeeze. “I know what you’re trying to do, but you don’t need to. Come on. We’ve been having a good date so far.”

His tone was gentle, but firm. The sort of statement that someone with a stronger will may have been able to argue him out of, but Gina’s natural submissiveness was messing with her resolve.

What am I doing? Gina asked herself, as she stared into Nick’s eyes, seeing the hesitation in them. It was clear how much he cared for her, and how he didn’t want to discourage her feelings, while at the same time she could see he was adamant about not going down this path.

Of course, Gina knew the answer to her question.

What was she doing?

She was sabotaging herself, that was what she was doing.

That was what she always did.

“…Look at you, Mr. Chastity all of a sudden,” she said, intending her words to come out as scathing but her voice just sounded pathetic and dejected. She looked somberly up at him, her lip quivering as she struggled to maintain her composure. “Nick… come on. You know what I want… so stop… stop trying to be so…”

“Gina, I don’t even think you know what you want right now,” Nick said firmly, squeezing her hand again. If she did know, then she wouldn’t be behaving like this, would she? “Come on. We’ve had a fun date today. And I get it. You’re scared because you’re seriously thinking about the possibilities for real, aren’t you? The idea that you really could have something deeper and more meaningful with me than just sex.”

Gina’s heart quivered. Nick wasn’t wrong. That notion frightened her terribly. But she held on, and tried not to let Nick see how shaken she really was.

“It wouldn’t matter if you just…” She didn’t even know how to finish that sentence. Her voice just trailed off into nothingness as she sat there, staring at him.

Nick was absolutely right. Gina had no idea what she really wanted.

And acknowledging that stung.

“…I just… I just want… I just want…” What did Gina want?

“I don’t know what you want,” Nick admitted, removing his hand from hers and lifting it up to caress her cheek. “But I know that you were having fun on our date today, weren’t you?”

Gina couldn’t verbally acknowledge that truth, so she just gave him a shaky nod.

He nodded back. “Even though it brought you out of your comfort zone?” Nick prodded.

“…Y-yeah…” Gina’s voice cracked. She averted her eyes and pulled away from him, scooting all the way to the other side of the couch. It looked like she was trying to get away from him, and if you asked her, that was absolutely what she was doing.

But… she still stayed on that couch, in the end. And the way she kept looking at him, the desperation in her eyes…

She didn’t want him to give up on her. Even though she had given up on herself.

Well… that didn’t work for Nick.

“I want to have a real relationship with you, Gina,” Nick said firmly. “But I’m not going to put in all the work. If this is going to be real, if you and I are ever going to be more than what we are right now, it can’t just be me who puts in the effort, you know? You’ve got to make an effort yourself. That means you need to meet me halfway.

He pated the middle section of the couch.

“I know you’re scared,” he said. “But-”

“I’m not scared!” Gina blatantly lied, her face heating up. “I just… I… I don’t…”

She didn’t know how to do any of this. She didn’t know how to be someone’s sweet and innocent girlfriend. That was so far out of her wheelhouse it felt like she was becoming someone she wasn’t! And that…

…Okay…

…Maybe she was a little scared.

“I care about you, Gina,” Nick said, seeing the doubt in Gina’s eyes. He could feel it, one more big push and he might just be able to get through to her. “I know that you’re dealing with a lot right now, and it’s hard for you to be in this position. But… you and I, we had a lot of fun today, didn’t we? And personally, I’d like more dates that fun in the future. Don’t you want that too?”

Gina winced. She nodded hesitantly, and then looked away. Because… Nick was right.

The truth was, she DID want that. Even if she was afraid to admit she wanted it.

“I had fun,” she admitted. “Really… I did. Even with the ideas that seemed stupid on paper, they were… really a lot of fun.”

Nick cracked a grin. “Well… thanks for that, I guess?” He said, not sure how to accept that “compliment” properly.

Gina gave him a weak smile.

“But… even though I had fun… I can’t help but think that I don’t deserve it.” She dug her fingers into the couch cushion and looked down. “Because I’m not…”

“We already talked about all that stuff!” Nick interrupted her. He moved to get closer to her but stopped himself. If this was going to work, he needed Gina to close the remaining distance between the two of them.

So instead, he just looked into her eyes and spoke with as much conviction as he could muster. “I know you’re doubting yourself right now, Gina, but you don’t need to. Alright? Because the way I feel about you, my feelings towards you, they’re the real thing. I know that you’re doubting yourself, and part of you doesn’t think you deserve this, but if you ask me, that’s a bunch of bullcrap.”

Gina’s eyes widened, stunned by the obvious curse to pass his lips. “Nick-!” She gasped in disbelief. “That’s… uh…”

“I’m serious,” Nick said. He would say it as many times as it took. “I get why you’re trying to use your body to seduce me, Gina. But that’s not going to work. Because as much as I agree that having sex with you right now would be amazing, I’m never going to go along with the idea of you using sex as a way to distract yourself from a genuine connection with me.”

Gina winced. “Nick…”

“So I want you to tell me how you really feel,” he said seriously, looking into her eyes. “No games, no excuses. Do you want to be in a relationship with me, Gina?” He asked her. “A real relationship, going on dates like the one we had today? Do you want that?”

Gina hesitated, her mouth opening but no words coming out. Finally, she choked out a hitched breath, “I-”

“And I don’t care if you think you deserve it or not,” Nick interrupted her before she could try and make an excuse. He looked firmly into her eyes. “This isn’t about what you ‘deserve’ Gina, it’s about what you want, right here.”

He placed his hand over his heart and looked her in the eyes. “So? What’s it going to be? You want to play some video games? Or do you want to have sex?”

Of course, there was no reason why Gina’s answer couldn’t also involve sex. Sex was a close, intimate action, if you were doing it with the right mindset. But right now, Nick doubted that Gina was anywhere close to that mindset.

No… he needed her to make a decision with a clear conscience, and not try to come up with any excuses.

If she couldn’t do that… if he couldn’t do that…

Then their relationship wouldn’t work for either of them.

And Nick could see in Gina’s eyes that she understood that as well.

“Nick…” Gina bit her lip, looking up at him with a shadow clouding her face. “You’re not very fair, are you?”

He couldn’t help but smile at the comment, even with the tension hanging in the air between the two of them.

“No, I guess I’m not,” he apologized, shaking his head. “But then, you weren’t being very fair yourself just now, either.”

“Huh!?” Gina gasped, looking at him in shock. “What… what are you talking about?” She demanded.

Nick shrugged. “Look at yourself, Gina. Trying to seduce me, when you’re that beautiful? How exactly is that supposed to be fair, huh?” He asked, knowing he was laying it on a little thick but also knowing how **** Gina was to compliments like that.

And just as he’d anticipated, her face lit up with embarrassment and her eyes widened with shock as she stared at him. “That-!” Her mouth refused to work properly again, flopping open and closed as her face grew enflamed.

She bit her lip finally and looked away. “You… will you just stop saying stuff like that?” She pleaded, looking furiously at him. “None of it… it’s just not fair!”

Again, Nick was happy to admit that he was being unfair. He knew he was putting Gina on the spot, forcing her to confront her feelings and her deepest fears.

But he knew Gina needed to be **** out of her comfort zone. That was her biggest issue, it always had been. If she got too comfortable with her standing, then there would be no reason for her to change. And he couldn’t allow that.

Even though Nick liked Gina for who she was, he also knew that several of her behaviors were too toxic to have a genuine relationship with her. The way she tended to sabotage herself, like she had just now, was just an extension of that.

He needed to bring that to an end.

“Gina, I care about you,” he said firmly, wanting to take her by the hand but knowing he couldn’t right now. “And because I care about you, I want to be in a relationship with you. I want to have more days like today, where we can just hang out and have fun without any pressure or expectation. Where we can just be two people who care about each other. That’s what I want. But if you don’t want that, I can’t **** you.”

He offered her his hand.

“So what is it going to be?” He asked. “Do you want a relationship where you can be happy, Gina? Because even if you don’t think you deserve it, I think you do.”

Gina bit her lip. She looked at Nick and saw the genuine care in his eyes, those same eyes that had been gazing at her with such affection all morning.

She had to answer him, but she couldn’t bring herself to make the words come out. Her voice was too scared, just like her heart.

So instead, she reached out, and took his hand into hers.

He smiled again. And she felt like she could smile back at him this time.