Tyler Posey as Ramiro 'Valentin' Vega.

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Fighting Temptation: Capítulo Ventisei

"Shit."

I realized that I didn't have time to change as I got into my car, my first destination already in mind. While I didn't smell like a straight cat who had just got done rolling around in a dumpster for approximately 64 hours, I knew that I didn't smell as fresh and clean, and full of cologne like I just got done modeling on a runaway for Giorgio Armani. I didn't smell bad but my shower would have to wait.

Besides, it wasn't like Antonio hadn't seen me on worse days.

It was a fucking fact.

First and foremost, I was going to go to his apartment. There was literally no other place that he could have been but there. I was sure of it. As I pulled out onto the street, my heart was flying, my blood running through my veins faster than ever. I felt excited, rejuvenated even. I should have felt mad and pissed because here it was, I was the one who wasn't even in the wrong but I was going to be the bigger person and make the first move.

The things that you do for someone you desperately love.

It was only a short drive to his apartment in Beaucomp Heights, a prestigious condo arena. It was beautiful, made of all brick, but each condo was designed to the owner's preference. I had only been inside Antonio's condo two times, each time with the lights off because we weren't doing anything that required the lights being on, if you can understand where I'm going with this.

Heh.

But in all seriousness, I missed Antonio.

I missed his laugh, the way he threw his head back whenever he found something to be remotely amusing, the way he rubbed the inside of my hand whenever he felt nervous, something that took me a while to pin together. How he called me every night to make sure I went to sleep before he did, how adorable he looked when he was angry, pouting like a little kid. It was the little things about him that made him whole and I loved every single one.

Even if he didn't.

It was all a blur as I sped through the streets of Manhattan, turning every corner smoothly, and it took no time for me to arrive at Beaucomp Heights. There was a gate around the community but as I pulled up to the site where the security guard sat, a bored look on his face, I opened my mouth to state my name and who I was going to see. All of a sudden, his eyebrows rose up as he put up a hand to halt me in speech. "Go ahead." He nodded in familiarity as he hit a button and the gate raised up to let me pass through and I gave him a thumbs up as I proceeded to fly through. I guess I had been here enough for him to know who I was.

Luckily, Antonio's apartment wasn't far from the main entrance so I made in there in no time. Please, just wait for me. I had no plan of action, no time to think, but I immediately parked and got out. I was this close to seeing my baby, to have in my arms once again. So fucking close. I zoomed through the lobby, not taking in the people or the surroundings around, seeing nothing but the elevator in sight. I was too focused but I saw a swish of blonde hair fly past me but I didn't pay too much attention to it. I merely pressed the button on the elevator and stepped on. "What floor are you going to, sweetie?" An older woman asked me and I replied, "6th floor, please."

It took too damn long for the elevator to reach the designated floor and I was about to get out and climb the fucking stairs when it stopped. "There you go, sweetheart." I bade my goodbye to the lady before dashing down the hall to where I knew Antonio's door was, where I knew he was waiting. "Antonio!" I breathed out, knocking on the door, more like banging. I stopped, listening for the sound of footsteps but there wasn't any. "Tony!" I called out once again, knocking. Still nothing. He wasn't in.

There was literally no other place that he could have been. He only came to his house, to his base and to work. I didn't think that he would have been at the base considering the time, but who knew? Where could he have been? Where, god damn it, where? I could feel my heart rising in anticipation and in fear, unsure of what to do.

Where was it?

Was this it?

It couldn't be.

"No." I shook my head, refusing to believe. "No." This couldn't be the last resort. I knew there was more. I hopped back on the elevator, having a place in mind, one that we both shared.

That was how I found myself flying through the streets, eager to get to my destination. It took so little time but I eventually made it. It felt as if time stood still as I dashed through the halls of the hospital, ignoring the faces of the fellow people that I worked with. I knew I was out of my element, looking like a pile of shit, but who cared? I ran up the stairs, trying to reach and strive for the roof, the end in sight. Please be there. There was no other way. There was no other way at all.

I reached the familiar blue door and I bum rushed outside, pushing through the door like I was Thanos with my infinite amount of strength and it felt as if all of the air in me had been sucked out and I was pushed into space. When had he arrived? Time immediately vanished as I drunk in his appearance, him looking like he was dressed to kill in his blue button-down and grey slacks, looking like sin. He looked so awesome and then there was me. It felt as if all the life had been taken out of me and then pushed back into me in one moment. "You..." I trailed off, hating myself for letting my eyes water instantly. There he was, I saw him standing there. My mind went blank instantly as my hands starting to shake, my heart beating a thousand miles. He turned around and looked at me in surprise, a grin coming to his lips and it was clear that he was looking for me too.

"Hey," He spoke first and I could not help the joy, the tear that slid out, the way my body all but relaxed when I familiarized myself with the sound of his voice. That voice that I had been longing to hear, that same voice. God damn it. That same voice tinged with Russian, that exotic accent doused with his Spanish and rolled up into a deep baritone and it hit me like a sledgehammer.

Crazy how much I missed it.

I tucked my bottom lip behind my teeth as I willed myself not to bawl like an idiot. I never knew what I had until it walked away from me. "Tony..." My hand fell to my side as I stared at him, taking in his beautiful presence. He was so perfect, so him, standing there with his blonde hair all tousled to the side as if he had been running his fingers through it, his hazel eyes that were shiny, rimmed with tears as they gazed at me, his tanned skin which I wanted to reach and touch, caressing it until I never forgot what it felt like.

All I saw was him.

He shuffled awkwardly as he placed a bag from Lombardi's, our favorite restaurant, on the ground next to him, a beautiful bouquet of assorted flowers in his arms. "I uh," Antonio began, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "I don't know how to do this but I'm just gonna do it, ¿sabes?" There was a deep blush on his cheeks as he got on both of knees, my eyes widened (you know). "Tony-" He held up a finger, cutting me off. "Escucha." (Listen.)

I walked closer and closer to him, my hand reaching out to almost touch him. Would I reach his back this time or would he get farther and farther away?

Who knew?

He looked up at me, his beautiful orbs twinkling as there was a small smile of regret on his lips. He never did look so beautiful. "Valentin," He began and I shook my head, not wanting to hear what he said. "No." I couldn't listen to him, knowing that was the same voice that I missed. "Escucha." He grabbed my hand, caressing it and I almost died on the spot. "I was wrong," He began. "I was wrong for leaving you. I was wrong for assuming things when you did nothing but have my back. I mean, how could someone who looked at me with those beautiful stars in his eyes ever do something to me like that?" He grinned softly and my breath hitched. "I'm sorry Valentin," His voice was dripping with sincerity and he looked utterly hopeless. "I love you more than anything else and I don't think I could ever imagine a life without you by my side. It was random how we met, but I can say that it was the best damn moment in my life. I remember lying awake at night, staring up at the stars and when I realized why I was smiling so fucking hard, I realized that I was thinking of you." The Adonis tilted his head up at me and my heart skipped several beats as he shuffled around, handing me the bouquet. He was so awkward but it was so perfect. He didn't know what to say but I could sense what he was trying to tell me.

"I got you some flowers. Didn't know what kind you liked so I got a different bunch." He began rubbing the back of his neck and looking away. "They all mean different things but they all say what I feel about you." There was a rose, a hyancith, a peony, a red chrysanthemum, a tulip, an orchid and a gardenia wrapped in a singular red ribbon and my breath stopped when I saw how beautiful they looked. They all spelled out the fact that he loved me as much as I loved him. "I hate flowers," I began and I watched as his face recoiled. "I really do," I brought the bouquet up to my nose. "But knowing that they're from you makes me want more than just these." I breathed, falling in love with Antonio Esposito all over again.

"Te amo, amorcito," He grunted out in that enriched accent of his and I had enough. How dare he make me feel like this? How dare he destroy the mere resolve that I had? 

"Get up, Tony," I murmured in a small voice and I watched as he complied, a look of unease on his face as he stared at me. "I hate you." I blubbered, trying so hard not to cry. I love you. He stood up with a small smile on his lips as he opened his arms, gesturing for me to come into his grasp and that was all it took for me to come running, tears falling somewhere along the way.

"I know."

I squeezed my arms around him tightly, my tears staining his shirt as I relished in his scent, trying to permeate it to my memory. I missed his warmth, the way his arms wrapped around my waist so tight, it was as if he thought I was going to disappear. God damn it, he made it hard not to swoon over him. "I can't stand you!" I blurted out, knowing that I was truly lying about it all.

"I know." He said in that same cool voice of his as if this was merely nothing to him, but I could feel his hands shaking as his words cracked inside of his mouth, his grasp tightening with every word. "You hurt me." I grumbled, my heart slowly picking up the pieces to itself as it started to beat heavenly again. I rubbed my cheek into his chest, savoring the feeling of him in my arms.

How long had it been? Too damn long. I had long since committed his warmth and smell to my mind and when I lost it, my body went haywire. Now that I have it, never would I let go.

"I know."

I couldn't stop sobbing into his shirt, all of the pain, three weeks worth, emptying out of my sockets. This was a new beginning and as we slid down the wall behind him, our bodies entangled with each other, I felt his tears too.

Then everything fell silent.

"You trust me?" I whispered, tracing his tie pattern, my tears seeping into his beautiful blue shirt but I didn't care. I wanted to know what he really felt, if our time away from each other meant something. "Of course." He replied in that smooth tone of his and I chuckled. "You still want to be with me?" I had to make sure my effort wasn't in vain, make sure that even after everything, it was still the same. "Always." I could sense the amusement in his tone and I fought the urge to look up, still tracing the pattern of his tie, lump in my throat. I continued on, sucking in how my body molded into his, a perfect match.

"You realize that you are worthy and beautiful the way you are?" He had to realize how truly perfect he was, how important he was to me. He was so worth everything and he needed to know how utterly lucky I was to have the honor of knowing him. "Now I do." It must have taken him realizing that I loved him despite every flaw he had, to know that he was the greatest. "You still love me?" I heard his heart jump a bit as his body stilled. He didn't speak for a while, rubbing circles into my back and I held my breath each second in anticipation.

"More than ever, Valentin."

I was worried because I was scared but truth was, we would be okay.

More than okay.