Listen (Patrick Stump / Fall Out Boy Fanfic)

Chapter 13 - I Don't Do Too Well On My Own

            A week later, we were all on our way home. Pete and I were headed for Chicago, and Andy and Joe were headed for New York City, just for a short break before we started on another video. All week, I've nervously put off talking to Aria about moving in with me. I figured I'd be more apt to do it once we were back home, so on our first night back in Chicago, I was planning to finally just do it and get it over with. I had asked her to come over for a bit before I took her home to help her unpack from the trip, and she accepted. We ordered a pizza for the two of us, and once we were finished eating, we simply laid back on the couch for a while, snuggling up together and enjoying the peace and quiet. Well, I was enjoying the quiet, at least.

She was lying with her head on my chest, while I played with her hair. Eventually, she lifted her head to smile at me, then shifted a bit so she could press her lips to mine. I was just getting nervous about asking her again, when she propped herself up on her elbows to hover over me and sign to me. "I love you, Patrick," she said, smiling at me and blushing a bit.

I bit my lip and smiled back at her. "I love you too," I told her, immediately returning my hands to her sides, as if I couldn't stand not touching her. The thought that I could hold her like this every day and every single night gave me a newfound sense of courage.

"I almost don't want to go home," Aria signed, blushing slightly as she folded her arms over my chest and rested her chin on them, looking at me with a far-off, dreamy sort of expression.

She had literally set me up to finally ask her, and I knew it was now or never. I had to ask. "So don't," I signed, shrugging my shoulders.

Aria quickly lifted her head again, giggling slightly because she didn't realize how serious I was. "Patrick, I have to go home eventually."

"You don't have to," I told her, "You could stay here...with me."

Aria stared at me for a moment, a nervous smile pulling at the corners of her lips. She hesitated, but I knew she wasn't unsure about anything. I already knew what she was going to say, she was just trying to calm herself before she said it. "Are you asking me to move in with you?" Rather than signing anything, I just nodded my head, watching her happily as she finally let that smile take up a majority of her face and light up her eyes. "Okay," She finally signed.

I chuckled and grabbed her waist, pulling her closer to me on the couch. "Okay?" I laughed, my heart thundering in my chest.

"Okay," She signed again, nodding her head enthusiastically as tears began to fill her eyes. She leaned down and kissed me, positioning herself so that she was straddling my waist, and I could feel her smiling against my lips. I was smiling too, despite myself, because as I moved my hands to her hips, I could imagine being able to wake up to her every morning, and spending every day with her when I'm home. I started to imagine a little more than just sleeping beside her, and I had to stop myself as my hands began to journey their way downwards. I gently pulled away and stilled my hands back on her hips. I looked up at her and smirked, blushing slightly, and she smiled back, her eyes shining with the excitement that I was feeling.

***

The next morning, I was standing in Aria's bedroom at the house she shared with Meagan, surrounded by boxes and with half of her closet hanging in my arms. Pete was here too, helping us pack her things into boxes, while I stood there objectively wondering how this was all going to fit into my house. I knew I would have to make a few adjustments, and maybe pack away a few of my own things, but honestly, it was making me a little nervous. Truthfully, I'd never actually lived with a woman before. I'd lived with the guys way back when, and I'd stayed with Pete for prolonged periods of time now and again, but with Aria I knew it was going to be different. I was a little scared.