Alana opened her eyes and found herself spooned against Gino, her back molded to his warm muscular chest. She shivered and huddled closer beneath the soft sheets, goose bumps rising all over her arms.
Why is it so cold? Didn't we turn on the heater earlier?
Gino must've shut it off before he got back into bed with her.
She yawned and rubbed her eyes before turning around in his arms to face him, smiling. He was still asleep. Alana observed his face for a moment, noting the scruff along his jawline and the gentle rise and fall of his chest. An occasional snore would come out of his mouth.
She smiled again before cuddling closer to him and closing her eyes once again. It was far too warm, comfortable and peaceful to stay awake on a Sunday. Especially after all the sex they had last night.
When she awoke again after dozing off, a pair of deep blue eyes wandering over her face greeted her.
"Morning babe." Gino said huskily with a lazy smile. Alana noted that he sounded rather sleepy.
"Morning."
He reached up to lightly caress her cheek and gave her a quick kiss on the forehead before rolling away and yawning. He sighed before pushing the warm blankets off of his body. He inadvertently pulled some of the warm comfort away from Alana, who squealed and promptly gathered the sheets around her again.
Gino turned to her and raised an eyebrow. "Wasn't it too hot?"
"No," Alana said, her voice slightly muffled since she had pulled the covers up and over her nose and mouth. "I get cold easily, remember?"
He grinned and moved towards her, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulled her against his chest. It was amazing how fast she felt his body heat spread throughout her. "I thought that you'd be okay after all we did last night," Gino's deep voice rumbled. He pressed his face into her neck and sighed.
Alana made a soft noise of contentment, relishing the warmth and the fact that she could feel his powerful muscle pressed against her even through the softness of the blankets and the large shirt she had borrowed from him.
Gino looked up and stared at her intently for a moment. "What was that?"
"What?"
"That sound."
"What sound?"
"It sounded like you... purred or something."
She blushed. "Well, I'm happy that I'm here with you." She paused for a moment before finishing, "And you're really warm."
He smiled gently and kissed her lightly on the nose. Then a grin spread across his face as he teased, "Of course I'm warm. I'm a man. We have more testosterone, which increases muscle mass. That increases metabolism, and higher metabolism increases temperature."
"Ohh, how scientific," Alana said, raising her eyebrows and feigning an impressed expression.
"I know the basics," Gino grinned again. "And I know a lot about sexual health too."
"Oh?" Her heart beat quicker at his words.
"I took biology freshman year, and one of the chapters was on sexual health. Not just STDs and safe sex, but the chapter also taught us the benefits of sex. Stuff like relieving stress, easing depression, making people happier, losing weight and boosting cardiovascular health... Everyone paid attention when we studied that chapter and everyone aced the exams too. Having sex is a great 'excuse' to keep your lovers healthy."
"Well, thank you. And you're welcome for keeping you healthy," Alana joked.
He laughed. "You're welcome, and thank you too."
Gino winked and moved away from her. He slipped off of the mattress and stretched; his muscles stood out in sharp relief. A faint blush colored her cheeks as she took in the sight of her boyfriend's broad shoulders, muscular chest and chiseled abdomen. Her gaze dipped to his lean waist and long legs, and her blush deepened when she noticed how low his pajama pants were riding on his hips, remembering how those same hips were moving against hers last night.
"You wanna take a shower?" he asked, smirking knowingly in her direction and running a hand through his disheveled golden hair.
"Yeah." Alana felt her face redden. She squeaked as she hopped out of the bed, goose bumps covering her body. She hugged herself; pressing her fingers tighter into the large cotton shirt she wore in an attempt to feel warmer.
Apparently she didn't need to because Gino swept her up in his arms and the heat that enveloped her then made her breathless.
"Mmm, I love it when you wear my shirts," he murmured into her shoulder as he stalked over to the bathroom.
By the time they had emerged from the shower, they had managed to put on bathrobes, but could not seem to stop themselves from kissing each other passionately.
Alana was the one who finally pulled away, her breathing erratic and shallow.
"I'm hungry. If we don't stop now, I'm never going to have breakfast."
"You mean brunch?" Gino smirked, nodding at the clock on the wall. It read 12:22.
She rolled her eyes as pink blossomed across her face again. "Well, we didn't finish until..."
"Two in the morning," he finished for her with a wolfish grin.
Alana smiled up at him. She untangled herself from his arms and sauntered over to the kitchen. "Please, Gino. Let's cook."
"Alright," he sighed and pouted playfully. "I guess I'm a little hungry too."
His statement was punctuated by an ominous growl from his stomach, and Alana burst out laughing and swiveled her head to look at him. She was surprised to see that his cheeks were pink and he looked rather sheepish.
"See? I'll make some juice."
She went over to the fruit basket and pulled out some oranges while Gino busied himself with the speaker system. She was just pressing the fruit into the juicer when lounge music began to play.
She looked at him over her shoulder when she felt a pair of strong arms slip around her waist.
Gino lowered his mouth to hers. Her tongue caressed his before she caught his bottom lip between her lips and sucked. He groaned, his grip around her waist loosening.
He reluctantly pulled away and asked, "You want some omelette? I can make some."
"Yes please."
After setting aside two glasses of fresh orange juice, Alana busied herself with making some French toast while the smell of egg and ham permeated the room.
Several times, the two of them would dance around the kitchen whenever one of their favorite parts of the song came up. It didn't take long for laughter and squeals to ring in the room as the couple pranced about through the living room. Gino amused himself by tickling and chasing after her.
Needless to say, it was lucky that Alana remembered they needed to take the eggs and toast out of the frying pans. It was also lucky none of the food was burnt.
They settled onto the bar stools and set the food out along the breakfast bar.
"Mmmm," Alana moaned with a mouthful of fluffy egg, ham, tomatoes and spinach. "This is good."
"Be careful, babe. If you don't stop making those noises, I could take you right here on this bar," Gino smirked at her.
"Oh, I wouldn't mind," she replied nonchalantly, blatantly ignoring the shocked countenance that replaced the previously playful one on her boyfriend's face. "But after we eat, because I'm starving."
"Your French toast is pretty good too," he said, popping a piece of it in his mouth. "Did you add peanut butter?"
"Yup."
Once they had finished, Gino washed the dishes and Alana cleaned the bar before helping him dry the silverware.
"So, do you want to watch The Dark Descent with us?" Gino was asking over the sound of rushing water. "I heard it's one of the scariest movies of the year so far. If you don't like scary movies, you don't need to. We could do something else if you want."
"I hate scary movies," Alana said.
"Stephanie hates them too, and she wants to watch it with Tristan. I think it's worth trying the first half hour."
"I guess. It won't be as scary if everyone else is there, right?"
"I think it's more fun with more people. But you don't have to force yourself to watch it with us if you don't want to."
"Okay, I'll watch it with you."
"Cool. Don't go saying that you regret watching it later. And don't say I didn't warn you, though," Gino teased.
~*~
Later that night, the potluck dinner that Alana and Gino had invited everyone over to their apartment for was finished. Alana, Gino and Daniela were putting the leftovers in the fridge while Jessica, Devon and Elli were cleaning up. David and Tyler were setting up the living room for the movie and Stephanie and Tristan were playfully bickering over whether or not Stephanie would be wetting her pants during the movie.
Once everything had been cleaned up and put away, popcorn and drinks were prepared and spare blankets and pillows were scattered all over the living room couches and floor.
Daniela turned off the lights while Tristan popped the movie into the DVD player. Everyone settled themselves onto the floor or couch, cuddling against the blankets.
Fifteen minutes into the movie and Alana's hand was tightly wrapped around Gino's with her body firmly pressed against his.
Nothing terribly frightening had happened yet, but the atmosphere and the music were making it scarier than it should have been. She watched with wide eyes as the main character had barely exited the corridor when the growl of a monster was heard.
She bit her lip and tightened her grip around Gino's hand. She heard him chuckle beside her on the couch but paid no heed.
The main character pressed himself against the wall, breathing heavily as the monster walked down a separate corridor. After a moment, the main character tentatively stepped out from his hiding place and was just about to continue down the opposite direction when his foot collided with a table.
"Shit!" Alana heard one of her friends say as the main character silently swore. The monster growled and emerged from the corridor.
"Oh my God! Run! Run!" Stephanie whispered and buried her face into Tristan's shoulder.
Alana squealed as a high-pitched terror meter began to play in the background, her heart beat spiking. The main character sprinted down one of the corridors and into a room, closing the door behind him. He quickly hid in one of the closets; his panting sounded exceedingly loud.
"If he doesn't breathe quietly, the monster will find him," Alana heard someone whisper. It sounded like Jessica.
She turned and pressed her face into Gino's chest. She felt his torso vibrate as he snickered and wrapped his arms around her waist. One of his hands gently ran up and down the length of her back. Alana inhaled in his scent of clean laundry and faint cologne, feeling slightly more relaxed since he was there with her.
The next hour and a half filled the living room with startled squeaks, shouts of shock and laughter amidst the movie's monsters, dark hallways and foreboding music and sound effects. By the time the movie was finally done, Alana felt exhausted. She never knew how much energy tensing throughout one sitting of a horror movie could use up.
Some of their friends were too tired to walk back to their dorms, and resolved to sleep on the floor and couch with the spare blankets and pillows. Alana didn't mind because after that movie, the extra company would be nice.
After brushing her teeth and washing her face, she collapsed onto her and Gino's bed with a sigh. Her boyfriend was still in the bathroom preparing for bed.
She bit her lip and closed her eyes. I hope I don't get nightmares.
After a couple of minutes of silence, Alana was startled by a voice that said, "Boo."
"Yeeekkk!" Her eyes shot open as she squealed. It was only Gino. "Gino! Don't do that!"
The amused look in his eyes quickly disappeared and his expression sobered.
"Sorry. Shouldn't have done that after the movie."
"No, you shouldn't have." Alana pouted and turned away, dragging the blankets around her body. She wasn't angry with him. But he should have known better than to do that.
She heard him sigh before feeling the bed dip under his weight. A pair of arms encircled her waist.
"I'm sorry babe. Don't be mad."
"I'm not mad. Just disappointed."
Gino sighed again and nuzzled her neck. "Well at least you weren't the only one freaking out," his tone sounded playful and Alana knew he was trying to lighten the mood.
Ah, it was hopeless. There was no way she could stay disappointed at him either. She turned to face him with a small smile. "Yeah, Stephanie's reactions were pretty funny to listen to. But Daniela and Jessica weren't scared at all."
He shrugged and brushed his lips against her cheek. "Everyone's different."
"I know."
There was a pause before Gino said, "I heard from one of my friends that girls are supposed to get aroused if they're afraid."
Alana crinkled her nose and looked up at him. "Who told you that?"
He shrugged again. "A friend."
"Hmm, well I can understand that. It's because of the whole protecting thing, isn't it?"
"Supposedly, yeah," Gino smirked down at her.
"Well, I'm not going to say he's completely wrong," Alana said, running her hands up his chest and into his soft thick hair.
His gaze darkened and one of his hands slid down to caress her backside while the other tangled in her silky hair as he pressed his mouth to hers. She pulled away after a moment, breathing heavily, and trailed her lips along his jawline. Gino bent his head to suck at her neck as he ground his pelvis against hers. Alana moaned softly, and decided to retaliate by running her tongue along the outer shell of his ear to his diamond stud earring before lightly nipping at his earlobe.
Gino rolled her beneath him with a growl and slipped his hands beneath her shirt, tugging it over her head. His mouth descended upon her breasts as they endeavored to a passionate coupling that made them breathless, even though they tried to keep it down considering some friends were sleeping over. The couple slept very well later that night.