Rose 4: A Paradox

    I put up Rose and Pedro's bios on the Rose tab, but I'll go ahead and put em here too. Rose: flirty, gatherer, excitable, bookworm, artistic and her lifetime wish is lvl 10 in both painting and writing. At the end of the last chapter she had these thingies: no jealousy, attractive, observant. Okay, now Pedro: brave, virtuoso, family-oriented, handy, ambitious (if he had a 6th one it would be nurturing... then again maybe unlucky lol tho he'd disagree. I'm so tempted to drop the brave trait since I'm not doing anything with it.) and his lifetime want is to be a professional author. When he moved in with Rose, he brought no money, but he was quite skilled: 7 athletic, 6 fishing, 9 guitar, 4 logic, 10 mixology (tho that one is no surprise). By the end of the last chapter, he got the professional simoleon booster thing. 

      Pedro had told Rose that his book had sold. Well, it did... kinda... as a flop. He only gets $13 a week and didn't get a hundred even for the up-front payment. I anticipate this getting better. I plan on him being a well-known SciFi writer. It suits him.

      Rose keeps painting, and I want to keep way too many pictures... but you'll see that.

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This chapter will be told from Pedro's p.o.v. just for the fun of it. It's always neat to know what the other characters are thinking, and I want y'all to understand better how he thinks. The beginning of this starts out as a quick summary for him, and then it gets moving from where the last chapter left off.

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     The first time I saw Rose, I was stunned. I could hardly find my voice to ask her what she wanted when she sat down at the bar. She looked a little forlorn as she gave her drink order to me, and I hoped that I might get a chance to help her with whatever was bothering her, maybe fix it, somehow, whatever it was.

    Rose is ... adorable. That's the perfect word to describe her. No wait... there's another one. Target. Yes, I said target, and it scared me. I worried about what went on when she wasn't at the bar because judging from what went on right under my nose, she attracted a lot of attention. I feared she'd find the wrong kind of attention and she'd not be able to defend herself. At least I could see that she didn't trust everyone, and she could judge whom not to encourage... like that Carlo or the mayor.

   Somehow I managed to get her phone number so I could call her and not chase her while I worked. I didn't want to be filed away as one of 'them' -- the ones that hit on her in a bar -- in her head. So, I called her, and she got back at me for calling so early by putting me on speaker and taking a bubble bath. That tortured the hell out of me, and she knew it. I think my voice hid the fact that I was trying not to pull my hair out as I paced around the room like a caged animal. I couldn't help but wonder that if she's like this with me.. someone she hardly knew, was she like this with everyone? What if I was a dangerous criminal? She did not take her safety seriously.
     Then I had the day from hell that actually turned out pretty good. She said for me to move in with her, and I felt a little awkward. I'd only intended to ask if I could crash on her couch for the night. She just trusted me right away! Not smart! But then, I was incredibly attracted to her, so I couldn't resist the offer. I did, however, resist sleeping with her. I didn't want whatever relationship we were starting to begin that way. I had a difficult time trying to define our relationship in my head come to think of it. I made the decision that since the bathroom was downstairs, there was no reason for me to even climb the stairs... even though I more than once stood at the bottom of them with my hand on the railing, fighting with myself.

    I couldn't believe it when she told me she was only nineteen, even though it shouldn't have surprised me. That explained a lot. I remember nineteen. I thought I knew everything. Let's see... I'd been kicked out of my mom's house by my step-dad, and then I met up with my 'friends' who still haven't grown up.
    Life was about to get real hard real fast for her if I didn't do something. She wasn't making anywhere near enough to support herself from her paintings. It scares me to think that what might've happened is that she lose her house and wind up moving in with some guy that would treat her bad... like Ron Frey.
     I became frantic when my boss kept cutting my hours. I was trying to help Rose and that bastard was only making it harder! So, every available second, I wrote. The book turned out to be a piece of crap, but it made us a little money.
    Money woes aside, I still didn't know where I stood with her other than her room/housemate. Sure, we made out frequently -- on the couch, but I also knew she still got attention from some of the other men in town. The mayor (bastard) made a few weak attempts that she shut down almost rudely. I heard her talking to him on her phone. The walls in this house aren't very thick, and neither is the floor. However, it was that Giacomo that had me the most worried. He was persistent. Still is. What was I to think? I had to ask, and it turned out that she already thought we were in a committed relationship!

     I could no longer convince myself to sleep downstairs. I did, somehow, resist taking it any farther than that. It bothered me that she wanted to move so fast.
     I didn't get much sleep that first night. Parts of my anatomy furious with me aside, I couldn't help but think how awful it would be if Rose ended up with someone else. Sometimes I worried that she thought of life as one big game. The crazy part was that this was one of the things I loved about her. Sexy little minx though she may have been, she was also very innocent - a paradox with which I'd fallen madly in love. Once I finally figured that out that night, I could relax and sleep soundly with her in my arms.

      Yesterday, I could no longer stand it. She just had to wear a miniskirt under that coat! Before I'd gone out and made the igloo, I'd stuck a condom in my back pocket, thinking that now that I knew we were committed, maybe. Certainly the most fun I've ever had in an igloo, so it was well worth the effort to make the thing.
      I'd made up my mind. I wanted to ask her to marry me; it was the decent thing to do. Thing is, I couldn't afford a diamond ring. The salesperson at the store was great. When she asked me what color her eyes were and I told her, she recommended blue topaz. After I looked at her dubiously, she said I could always upgrade later if Rose wanted, and this way I had more of a selection in my [pathetic] price range. I took a risk and got one of them. I hoped that Rose wouldn't scoff at it and be furious with me that it wasn't a diamond. Cruel diamond companies making every woman think that that's the only kind of engagement ring out there.
  

     I hardly slept last night. After sneaking off to the jeweler's and tree lot plus forcing myself to be able to wake up in time to plan my surprise, there just wasn't any time left for sleep. My adrenaline rush prevented it anyway. I'd only just barely gotten the smaller package wrapped before she came down the stairs. I'd almost forgotten to wrap it, and I panicked after coming down from the bedroom after I told her I made pancakes.
     I was a nervous wreck all day, trying to spoil her rotten and at the same time figure out if what I was about to do was a good idea.

      It was.

     Still, I worry this might still all be a game to her. However, the worry isn't strong enough to make me want to hold off. I also have the worry about all the single men in town -- okay, well maybe not all but too many for my peace of mind -- wondering why she chose me and how they might steal her. Who knows? Maybe she could do better. I noticed that she didn't mention to her parents that she and I live together earlier today. That's okay I guess. I'm going to make it right.

     After I reluctantly release her from my arms, I start apologizing about the ring. She looks at me like I'm crazy and tells me she loves it. She's just being nice. Once she sees other women's rings, she'll change her mind.
    "You don't believe me, do you?" she asks me. I don't answer. It kills me that I couldn't get her what she deserves. "Nobody else will have one just like it. Who says it has to be a diamond anyway?" She looks at the ring again and says, "Still, what made you pick this one?"
    "It um, matches your eyes." I say quietly. This is awkward, and I feel ridiculous.
    All of a sudden, her arms fly around my neck and she kisses me.

    I respond immediately, happy the awkward moment is over. I can't hold her tight enough, kiss her long enough, or ever feel as lucky as I do now.

    I think this picture speaks for itself. Oh yeah.

     It's Christmas morning, and I wake up to my phone ringing. Behind me, Rose hops up out of bed to look out the window and start singing "I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas". Meanwhile, I find it's my boss who's called me. He tells me that the new girl breaks a lot less bottles that I do (liar!), is more devoted to the job, he's dating her, and she has no problem with working today. He's letting me go. What?!

     Merry Christmas, Pedro. You're fired.
     How in the world am I going to explain this to Rose?
     "It's so pretty outside." she says dreamily.
     "Yeah." I respond, distracted.
     "Who was that?" she asks.
     "My boss." Ex-boss. "I um, don't have to go in to work today." I say. I'm still staring at my phone like it's its fault that I got fired.
      I hear Rose let out one of her little girlie squeals as she talks about how wonderful it is that I don't have to work today. She runs around the bed and hugs me.
      I can't tell her today. Not today.

     I go downstairs, intending to make breakfast, but I seem to have forgotten where everything is.
     "Everything okay?" she asks.
     "Where's the mixing spoon?"
     She gives me a strange look as she walks over, opens the drawer it's always in, pulls it out, and hands it to me.
      We eat breakfast, watch a little TV, and then I recommend we go hang out at the park again for a little while.
     

      At least I can still build a fire. I'm not totally useless.

    I go to the concession stand (I feel bad for them having to work today) and buy us some marshmallows. Chairs appear magically for us to sit on. That's nice.
      My gaze drifts down the length of my marshmallow stick to Rose's knees. She's still not wearing any pants but a skirt again. At least she put on stockings. ... stockings with roses on them. I start staring at the pattern on her legs, letting my gaze drift northward when...

     Why does stuff like this always happen to me? My marshmallow caught fire. I think I let the stick droop too much while I wasn't paying attention to it. Rose giggles and then makes a sympathetic noise. She offers me one of hers, and as I watch her slowly pull it off of the stick, my pants get tighter.
     I quickly stuff the thing into my mouth, reach for her... um, well I practically lift her out of the chair and pull her in the direction of the photo booth.

     At first, I worry that she'll protest and I'll have to wait until we get home, but then I remember that this is Rose: my wild, untamed fiancee. We share the second marshmallow.

     We also used the photo booth for its intended purpose:

     I didn't really expect to be pro this early in my efforts at snowboarding. However, I should've expected something like this to happen.
       I get up and go looking to see where Rose has gotten herself to.

     I find her in a snowball fight. Jayden (I remember this jackass from school) is her partner, and he points to the other side of the barricades and says with a smirk that they have a spot open if I want to join. Rose doesn't say that she'd rather I be on her team, and I get the feeling that Jayden enjoyed that.
     Alright then. Bring it. I aim my first snowball at his face. Only after I hit him do I start having fun
.

    Ow. At least it's already ice. She nailed me in another sense.
    She comes running over, and Jayden starts up on her crossing into enemy territory. She ignores him and starts apologizing and asking me if I'm okay. Then I surprise her by grabbing her and pulling her down into the snow. Jayden and the other girl both groan that I just ruined their game when I roll her over and start kissing her as we lie on the ground. I don't think she minds that Jayden's upset that I stole his partner.

    We stand up eventually, dust ourselves off, and kiss a little more before she finally admits that she's freezing.

    She tells me she's going to warm herself up in the bathtub, and I tell her that's fine.
    What am I going to do? I think as more thoughts of being fired hit again. I guess it's time to write that next idea I have. I have a great idea for a science fiction novel. I still don't know how I'm going to tell Rose I got fired.
     She comes out of the bathroom and says the toilet is messed up again. We're lucky I'm good at fixing stuff like this or it'd cost a fortune to hire someone.

      I... hate.... this.... toilet! I hate this house! Everything breaks! I'm exhausted trying to fix everything all the time! I'd love to move into something bigger, but obviously, we can't yet because I lost my effing job!

    I finally make it to bed about two a.m. Having gotten almost no sleep the night before, I'm beat. Still, after everything that's gone wrong, I can't help but think how wonderful my life has become since Rose has been a part of it.

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So, obviously, Pedro didn't actually get fired from his job as a mixologist. He lost it when he moved in, but the storyteller in me had to make it drawn out and woven into this in a more logical manner.