For Cookie Caliao. I promised you this years ago. Enjoy:D
January 17 2016: I changed names. Sorry.
---
Adam Thomas just went to where his feet were taking him. Actually, his feet were taking him to where Cooper is pulling him to. Most of his brain is running on her, just as his eyes ran from where her black, high-cut Doc Martens' ended to reveal the skin of her legs until her thighs and hips, clad in dark denim shorts. A small part of his consciousness, remains to think about Mia, who's probably waiting for him to come home. The rest of his thoughts were how he just hates himself for being a fucking liar or lying fucker, whatever.
But he also wants Cooper, who's leading him down this apartment building’s third floor corridor, and she is very aware of that. She also knows how badly he's craving for her. Both are aware that what they have is completely wrong, but what Mia doesn't know can't harm her.
When they reached her unit, Cooper quickly unlocked the door and pulled Adam in. As soon as he closed the door and not even bothering to turn on the lights, she took his jacket off him, dropping it to the floor, and pushed him against the wall. She placed a hand behind his neck to lessen the distance between their faces. She closed her eyes and started kissing him.
Almost as a reflex, he responded by kissing her as well. Adam’s hands made their way on Cooper's waist as he pulled her towards himself. He had started ignoring his own conscience the moment her lips met his. But there was a voice in his head that still kept saying, "Mia is at home waiting for you, you bastard."
“Coop.” He half-whispered in between the kisses.
“Hmm?” she responded, moving down to his neck, which she kissed a few times more before looking up to meet his gaze.
"You know that I can't stay here for too long." he said almost with caution. "Mia's waiting for me."
Cooper just stared at him blankly. This was the first time Adam had rejected her since they started this affair three months ago. He usually never lets anything get in the way of their 'meetings'. He even puts aside consultations with his clients in the tattoo shop.
When he looked into her light brown eyes, the fire that was in them just a few seconds ago completely vanished. Even with only the faint strips of moonlight that got through the voids of the window's curtains, it was obvious that she wasn't expecting him to cut their little affair short.
Cooper tried to look down on the floor, just to see anything but Adam's face, but he gently pushed her chin up. Still, she was looking at something else and not at him. Her lips were slightly pouted in disappointment.
This is great. Another kind guilt trip, Adam thought. "I'm sorry, Coop." he continued, kissing her mouth one last time before letting her go.
Sourly accepting defeat, Cooper sighed and reached to finally switch on the lights. She then walked towards the direction of her kitchen, leaving Adam just standing near the door.
Adam watched her walk away and reached down for his jacket. He made his way for the kitchen, too, and saw Cooper taking a bottle of Evian from the refrigerator. She opened the bottle and took a sip before sitting down on one of the four wooden dining chairs. Adam seated himself across her, placing his jacket on top of the table.
"I really am sorry." Adam repeated.
Cooper looked at him as she ran her fingers through her black hair that barely reached her shoulders. He isn't supposed to be apologizing. He isn't obligated to stay with me, to say the least, she thought to herself. It's part of our unspoken agreement of being able to use each other. But of all the people who know that he isn't mine and I'm not his, why do I want him apologizing to me like this?
"Don't be." Cooper finally replied. "I know that there's someone waiting for you. We can freely do whatever we want. I completely understand where you're speaking from."
“You’re amazing, you know.” Adam said with a smile, reaching across the table to put his hand on hers.
Cooper took a moment to look at how his hand was around hers and pushed all her questions at the back of her mind. She took another sip of water to take her hand away from his. “No, I’m not amazing. I’m Cooper.” She joked.
Adam grinned. Who would’ve known that he was going to risk his 3-year relationship with Mia just for Cooper? He first thought of Cooper as just another client at Love Crime, just another patch of blank skin waiting for a tattoo, and he'd be lying if he didn't say that he also thought of her as just another girl wanting to show off her high pain tolerance to pick up maybe a tattoo artist. He knew Mia doesn’t deserve to be treated like this, she was an amazing girl, but again, what she doesn’t know can’t harm her.
To the Adam Thomas that his mother raised, it didn’t make sense. But to the Adam Thomas who never made any sense when it came to things that didn’t involve canvas, paint, and ink, it was something like cigarettes; you keep on having it despite the sure fact that it’s going to mess you up big time.
He pushed back his chair and Cooper took this as a sign that he was leaving. She followed suit and lead him towards the door. “Drive safely, Thomas.” She said.
“Will do, Coop.” he replied. “I’ll see you tomorrow at the shop, then?”
Cooper suddenly remembered that she has an appointment with him at Love Crime for another tattoo. “I almost forgot about that. I’ll be there by three. Tony wants something done in the studio.”
Adam almost flinched at that. Cooper and Tony are “business partners”. It was the two of them, in fact, who covered the photography for Dean and Cassandra when they renewed their vows. “Do you have any ideas on what you’re getting?” he asked her, trying to avoid talking about Tony.
“Well, yeah.” Cooper started. “What do you think about the watercolor-y stuff?”
Adam raised his eyebrows at her.
She looked back. “What?”
Adam took her right wrist and brought her arm to their eye level. From the wrist to just before her elbow, a geometric design of a deer with antlers grey and blue. “You're going for trendy again?”
“Hey," Cooper pulled her wrist away. “Leave Graham alone. I’m the client and I get what I want."
“Graham?” Chris held back the laughter. “You named your tattoo? Don’t you want to get koi fish or something else? How about a pirate ship? Or that handgun design you saw in the shop a couple of days ago?”
“If I wanted a koi fish, I would be talking to Fitz now.” She retorted.
“You don't even like Fitz.” He started putting his jacket back on.
“Whatever. I’m the one paying for the tattoo.” Cooper opened the door for him. “Now, if you excuse me, I have an early day at the studio tomorrow and Mia’s waiting for you.”
“Fine. I’ll see you tomorrow then.” Cooper watched him walkout of the door. But as she was closing it, he pushed the door back open. He leaned close to her and whispered, “Lock up well, sweetheart. If somebody had seen you pouting your lips like that, they’d be breaking doors down to taste what I’ve tasted.”
It took Cooper a good couple of seconds to process Adam’s whispers. She couldn’t say any form of retort. She wasn’t able to do anything but stare as Adam finally left with a smirk on his face. When it finally got to her, her hands were tightly fisted. “What an asshole.” She muttered and locked her door with chain link and deadbolt. She made her way into her bedroom and changed into her sleep clothes, a loose white shirt and boxer shorts. She went into the bathroom and started brushing her teeth.
Lock up, sweetheart. Adam's voice sounded in her head. It was repeating and overlapping in her head that she didn’t even notice how she was smiling until she saw her reflection in the medicine cabinet’s mirror smiling back at her. “Fuck you, Adam Thomas.” She said angrily out loud as she spat the toothpaste foam out and rinsed her mouth. She hastily washed her face and then almost jumped into bed. She pushed her face into her pillow hoping that she would soon fall asleep.
No. Never. I won’t give in. Cooper thought to drown out Adam’s voice. The last thing I need is to fall for him.
*To be continued. Never.*
