Roman stood outside on the front porch, with his keys inside the lock. He'd gotten back from running a few errands and decided to spend the rest of his night at home. Leaning his head forward, he pressed his forehead to the cool door and groaned. Being home wasn't exactly where he wanted to be, although he very much missed his bed... and cat. Over the past few days, the lingering smell of cocoa butter was all he smelled every time he walked through the front door and it was starting to drive him insane.

Hell, the damn cocoa butter was so strong he was beginning to smell it even when he wasn't home. It was as if he was being haunted... haunted by Zadia and her fucking cocoa butter.

"Get a fucking grip, Roman." He muttered to himself. It was two in the morning. There was no way he was gonna let Zadia or fucking cocoa butter for that matter, fuck with his peace of mind any longer. It was bad enough he'd been avoiding spending time at home to avoid being around her ass altogether.

Huffing hard, Roman unlocked the door and twisted the doorknob, before walking inside. Of course, the first thing that he smelled was, in fact, cocoa butter. "Fuck my life." He said lowly, seeing the lamplight and the television in the living room on. He thought everyone would be asleep by now. Locking the door, he placed his keys on the pin and quietly made his way to the stairs.

"Oh, you're back," Zadia said before he could even make it up the steps. The sound of her voice was so annoying he could practically slap himself.

Slowly he turned, and the first thing that caught his eyes was both her legs, and as his vision trailed up, they stopped right on the baby who was sitting in between them, with only a pamper on.

"That is obvious," Roman spoke, looking at her. Something seemed sorta different about her, but he couldn't put his finger on it. She had a white shirt over her head using it as a cap and her face seemed... fresh.

Zadia rolled her eyes at him, before looking back at the television. Tino woke up in the middle of the night and to get him to fall back asleep, she put on some movie about some snail being fast. The movie seemed stupid to her, but Tino looked to be enjoying it. "Still a prick, I see." She stated.

"Aren't you supposed to be asleep?" He questioned, placing the duffel bag on his shoulders on the staircase. He took a step into the living, noticing all the piles of baby clothes around. "You're turning my sofa into a mess."

"I don't recall having a bedtime." She remarked. "Draya turned your sofa into a mess after she bled on it five days ago. Adam and I still can't take the blood out." She put one of Tino's folded onesies into a basket with his other folded clothes. "Your snob of a friend was hogging both washer and dryer today. So here I am, doing some night washing because Tino doesn't have anything clean to wear."

Walking towards them, Roman lifted his arms, and Tino went crawling his way, completely ignoring the television. "Look at you trying to pull an all-nighter." He said to his nephew, gently rocking him around. "He couldn't sleep?" He asked Zadia.

"Yup, he's been having trouble sleeping at night." She yawned and folded another shirt. "I think it's because of the teething, but I'm not entirely sure. I read it could be his digestive system too, his poop seems more solid these days."

"We most likely need to start blending him some fruits and greens to see if it helps. I'll get some lavender the next time I'm out, it helps with the sleep."

"Got it." She mumbled, giving him a side glance. "We're running low on baby blankets, your cat keeps taking them for some odd reason. I can't get her fur off of them, so I've just been letting her keep them."

Roman shook his head, walking into the kitchen. "That's one weird-ass cat." He flicked the light on and walked to the fridge. Moments later after gathering the needed foods, Roman shut the fridge and turned on the stove. "Don't touch that." He warned Tino as he switched him to his other arm and pulled out a frying pan. Tino babbled, his little hands reaching for anything he could grab, despite his uncle's warning.

Roman decided it was best to put him on the floor, so he wouldn't get hurt in the process of cutting up the bell peppers. "Don't put anything in your mouth Santino." He told him and began chopping some of the chicken breasts that were left in a bowl. He made sure to season it and then let it marinate, moving on to opening a can of corn.

Zadia rubbed her eyes and continued to fold Tino's clothes. She was nearly finished, but still had her clothes to fold in the dryer. "I don't get paid for this." She grumbled tiredly, rolling her eyes at the movie that was still on. "I don't get paid at all." She'd been in a mood the entire day, because of how much her ankle hurt. Not wanting to rely on the painkillers any longer, Zadia thought it was best to stop taking them. The last thing she wanted to become was an addict and those painkillers were tempting.

Her body was healing of course, but it was taking longer than needed. She couldn't even use the bathroom without wincing and then there were the annoying headaches that kept going and coming.

Zadia sniffed the air as the smell of food began waffling through the house. Her eyebrows scrunched up curiously, and she reached for her crutches. As she stood, her hoodie draped and she could feel the cold air against her bare legs. She'd very much rather have on sweatpants, but because of her cast, the shorts were more suitable.

Moving into the kitchen, Zadia watched Roman turn down the burner temperature and stir. "Whatcha cookin?" She questioned, then looked over at Tino who was crawling across from them.

Roman stopped stirring, pulling his gaze away to look down at his watch. "Quesadillas."

She frowned. "Around two in the morning?" Her frown deepened. "Wait, you can cook?"

Roman glared at her, clearly offended by her question. "I'm a grown-ass man, of course, I can cook." He said, then paused. "Do you want some?"

Zadia was stunned as she stood there looking at him. She wasn't expecting him to offer her some. "Umm... sure." She stuttered, debating with herself. "Yeah."

He raised an eyebrow, confused by her reaction. "You don't have to eat if you don't want to..."

"No, no, no." She quickly said. "I love late-night snacks. I can eat. Fuck my diet." Roman scoffed at that last part. "What? I was doing well up until now. I even made sure that Adam cooked with the good oil."

Roman shook his head. "We were stranded off the face of the earth only a couple of weeks ago, and now you're on a diet that you don't need to be on." He summed up. "Sounds stupid to me."

"Everything sounds stupid to you."

"Not everything." He said while glancing at her. "Pass me chili powder." He pointed at the cabinet to their left. "It's supposed to be in there." Using her crutches, Zadia got to the cabinet easily. Opening it, she reached inside and grabbed the chili powder. Moving closer to Roman's right side, she began pouring the powder into the pan. "That's enough."

"No, it's not, I barely put any in there." She told him, adding some more. She backed away to grab some black pepper and began pouring. She added a few more other seasonings to it, then finished. "This will make the flavor pop out."

Roman rolled his eyes. "The flavor was already popping out, you most likely fucked it up." He argued but kept stirring regardless.

Zadia scoffed, paying attention to Tino who was using the table to try and stand. "I come from a long line of family who knows how to cook and I'm not talking about cooking like how the Americans cook, I mean real cooking. One thing about me, I know how to throw it down in the kitchen." She pushed some of the things on the counter back and laid the churches against the wall while keeping her balance. When she was ready, she counted to three and lifted herself on top of the counter, sitting down.

"Hate to break it to ya, but you can't cook." He told her.

"Taste it then." She offered.

Roman raised the hot spoon to his lips and gently blew, before chewing the food on it. He felt his taste buds run wild. She did know how to cook... but he wasn't going to tell her that. "It tastes average." He lied, something he didn't do often.

Zadia frowned instantly. "What? No, it doesn't, let me taste it." She commanded, wanting to see if he were right.

Roman stirred again and picked up the spoon and blew. He turned towards Zadia and with his hand under the spoon, directed it towards her mouth. She parted her lips without second-guessing and tasted the food. "You're a damn liar, it tastes good."

"If you say so," Roman mumbled. "It tastes like it's missing something."

"That I can agree with. Did you add some cumin powder or lime?"

"I already added some cumin to it, I forgot the line." He grumbled, walking away from the stove to grab some lime juice from the fridge. He poured a cap fill in and Zadia leaned forward to stir for him. "Come here." She instructed, raising the spoon the same way he had done just seconds ago, and blew on it. She aimed it towards his lips and let him taste. "What do you think?"

Roman rolled his eyes, not able to contain the small smile that sneaked onto his face. "It's good." He whispered, watching Zadia break out into a wide, goofy grin.

"Told you." She gloated. "Cooking is my specialty."

"How come you didn't go to school for it then?"

She pointed a finger at him. "That's a good question." She shrugged, watching him add cheese to the Quesadillas wraps. "Art is my passion, and cooking... well it's... cooking is cooking." She said, not knowing how to answer the question. "I don't know." She admitted. "My parents... they wanted me to attend school... but that's not what I wanted. What I wanted was art, because for the longest it's been my passion and cooking, although I love it, I can't see myself having a career in it."

Roman looked at her, slightly confused. "Why not just do both?"

She chuckled. "Because it's too much work, one would have to come before the other. Besides, I've already chosen art."

"Yet, you don't have a career in either." He stated the obvious. "If I was you... I would've gone to culinary school, used my folks' names to open a restaurant and display my art around the place. Sometimes too much work is required for having the best outcome."

"You sound like my father." She groaned but took what he said to heart. She glanced at Tino to make sure he was okay. "That sounds like a good idea. I may take your advice someday." She placed her hand in her lap. "How come you didn't go to school for... whatever it is that you do?"

He shrugged. "Because there's not a school for it." He stated obviously.

"Okayyyy." She dragged out. "How come you didn't go to college in general?"

"My mentor, he needed someone to take on his job and since my brother refused and Eliśa was young, I had to step up and take over." He explained. "Food is done." He said abruptly, shutting the burner. Putting two quesadillas on separate plates, he set them at the table and picked up Tino.

He was getting ready to sit down, but Zadia stopped him.

"Wait, help me down first. I don't wanna fall and hit my face."

"Why'd you get up there anyway? You could've just pulled a chair." With his free hand, he grabbed her by the waist and pulled her towards him as her hands wrapped around his biceps. He picked her up and set her to the ground before she could even blink. She looked at him as he looked at her and then cleared her throat. "What would you have gone to school for, if you had the chance?" She asked, and took a step back to grab her crunches.

The both of them sat down at the same time. Roman took a small bite of his quesadilla, while Zadia took a huge bite out of hers. Tino looked at Roman's plate, trying to get ahold of one of them. They were silent for a while, their mouths too busy chewing. "Teaching." Roman finally answered. "I would most likely teach English... and become a professor."

Zadia's eyes widened with surprise. "A professor?" She repeated. "I can see you doing that. Especially since you don't have any patience." She joked and nodded at the food, her face filled with amazement. "This seriously tastes good."

"I do have patience," Roman told her, breaking off a piece of his quesadilla for Tino to eat by himself.

"Roman, he barely has any teeth, and eww he was just on the floor. You didn't even wash his hands."

"You do know that kids need germs right?" He asked. "It's beneficial to them, he'll be alright." He was going to say something else but stopped as he saw Adam.

"Well look at the three of you," Adam stated, walking into the kitchen with his Harry Potter pajamas on. He looked between the two, smiling. "Are those quesadillas, I smell?"

"They are. Here, have one." Roman offered, picking up the one he bit off of and passing it to Adam.

Adam stared at him, then back at the plate. The two of them seemed like they were having some type of silent conversation. Adam cleared his throat, pushed the plate back towards Roman. "Nope, it's yours. The only thing I desire to eat tonight is my fruit cup." He walked to the fridge and grabbed one. "I'll take my leave now, you two have fun." He began walking away but stopped midway. "Roman, make sure you finish it... all of it, I'll know if you give it to the cat." He took his leave.

"What was that about?" Zadia asked, already taking a bite of her second wrap. Roman was still on his first, he'd taken two bites. "You're not hungry anymore?"

"It's nothing." He brushed off, taking another small bite of his wrap and giving Tino another piece.

Zadia eyed him suspiciously but decides to drop it. She glanced at him, every once in a while seeing him take more small bites. Her eyebrows knitted together in confusion as she remembered the way he reacted in the woods when it came down to the berries. She also thought back to the other several times when Adam cooked, and how Roman would take a few bites and just leave.

She'd never witnessed him finish a meal.

"You know." She started as she finished eating. "You never told me how exactly you knew me, before this whole thing." She brought it up. "You said it was a funny story and that you'd tell me, after we survived the wilderness and look," She pointed at the two of them. "We survived."

Roman smirked and stood up with Tino in his arm and the plate in his hand. "You remembered that." He said, covering his leftovers with another plate before putting it in the fridge. He walked her way and put her empty plate in the sink. Washing dishes would be the first thing on his list for the morning, he was sorta tired to do them now.

"Yeah, it wasn't that long ago." She lifted herself with her crutches. "Do you want some wine?" She asked him. "Adam brought me some... I still have a bottle left since Lynn stole my other one."

"I don't drink, you know that." He was quick to say. Turning on the faucet, he washed Tino's hand then dried it with the paper towels.

"Right..." she said awkwardly. Gripping onto her crutches, she shrugged. "Well, back to folding clothes for me." She started to walk out of the kitchen.

Roman rolled his eyes, then looked to Tino then back at her. "Need some help?"

Zadia looked back at him and nodded. "Yeah... I can use some help." They both walked back to the living room and plopped down on the same sofa.

Roman put Tino in the middle of them and grabbed some clothes from the basket and began folding. Zadia did the same. "I worked for your father at some point in time." Roman suddenly said, getting Zadia's attention.

"Really? You worked for my father?" She asked, surprised. "I don't remember seeing you around?"

"That's because you weren't around when I was working for him." He explained. "I only saw you once... the day you were moving out. You were struggling to tie your mattress to your car and you were also a crying mess."

Her eyes widened. "That's the day my parents kicked me out." She confessed. "Wait, you saw me struggling and having a meltdown, and you didn't help?"

Roman shrugged. "I was in a meeting with your father, I couldn't exactly just walk away..." he paused. "At least you got it together... eventually."

She gave him a look. "I had to leave my mattress behind and sleep in my car for three months because I couldn't yet find an apartment." She expressed. "One of the worst moments of my life." Zadia turned her whole body towards him. "What'd my dad hire you for? Was he involved in something shady?"

He sighed, folding some more clothes. "I can't go into details, but I was secretly in town during that time and he needed help taking out the competition... and I helped do that because the people I work for recommended me."

"Can I ask you something? Without you getting mad?"

"No, definitely not Zadia. You're always trying to annoy me."

"I'm honestly not, you just get mad all the time when I speak the truth."

"You mean when you nag?" He clarified.

Zadia slapped his shoulder, but it didn't hurt him one bit. "It's not nagging, I'm not a nagger."

Roman chuckled. "You are and you know it."

Zadia pouted, looking over at Tino. "You think I'm a nagger buddy?" Tino giggled at her, while he used his hands to play with his mouth. His baby belly poked out, spit dripping from his mouth.

"He agrees."

"Shut up, Roman." She rolled her eyes at him. They were just finishing up with the clothes. "You're just mad that you need a haircut. You look dusty."

Roman instinctively touched his hair. "I do need a haircut, but there's no way in hell I look dusty." He stood up and stretched his arms, Zadia could see his abs as his shirt lifted. "You know how to cut hair?" Usually, he'd just go to his barber, but he knew he wouldn't have the time this week. He was booked all week with hitman stuff.

"I'm not exactly a professional or anything, but I do." She wasn't going to tell him that she learned from YouTube. "Why? Want me to cut yours?"

"Since you're offering, yeah. Can you do it tonight? Want anything in return?" He asked, grabbing the basket of clean clothes and picking up Tino.

"I can do it tonight, I'll have to think about what I want in return though."

"Fine with me." He said. "I'll put this in your room and get Tino ready for bed. You can head up to my room, the door should be open. Clippers are in the bathroom."

Zadia nodded, turning off the television and then the lamp. "Alright, grab my toothbrush while you're up there. It's in the first draw of the nightstand."

"Mmh," Roman mumbled, disappearing up the steps.

Grabbing her crutches, Zadia walked up to the stairs. After much practice, she realized walking up the steps with just one of the crutches was easier than two. So she made sure to leave at least one of them downstairs. Wrapping her hand around the doorknob, Zadia pushed open the door and stepped inside Roman's room.

Like usual it was dark, his room smelling like cologne and pumpkin spice. Zadia plugged in the night light like she saw Roman do before.

His cat at the corner of the room meowed at her, watching intently as Zadia took some of the blankets and pillow, and laid them on the ground for Tino and Roman. Moving to the bathroom she opened the light and grabbed the clippers off the counter. She plugged it into the electric socket near the toilet.

Once Roman got done with dressing up Tino, he quietly exited the room, making sure not to wake up Abel. His footsteps sounded through the hall as he walked into his room. "You've gotta go to bed, Santino," Roman grumbled, shutting the door to the room. "Binx." He acknowledged his cat and walked into the bathroom, finding Zadia leaned up against the counter, flossing. "Here." He said, passing her the toothbrush and tongue scraper.

"Thanks." She said as he sat Tino down on the counter. He kept yawning, clearly now sleepy. The both of them began their night routine, brushing their teeth as they normally did. Zadia was the first to finish, so she took Tino and rocked him gently where she was. Tino eventually gave up his fight and fell asleep in her arms.

"I got him," Roman said, before taking the sleeping baby from her. He placed Tino on the blanket on the ground and then removed his shirt, throwing it on his bed. On his way back into the bathroom, he grabbed a towel. Zadia was already sitting on the closed toilet head, waiting for him. He set the towel on the ground and sat down on it, in between Zadia's legs. "Don't mess up."

"I won't." She insisted, somewhat nervous that she would. She placed her soft hands on his forehead and tilted his head back, before turning on the clippers.

Zadia started at the top, then began moving her way to the back. His hair fell to the ground as she moved to his side, making sure to cut properly. Starting at the nape, she went from the bottom to the top, cutting in multiple directions on the same spot to get all the hair. When she got done, she shut off the clippers and passed her hand through his hair to make sure it was uniform. "I'm done, go take a look at it." Standing up, Roman went to look at himself in the mirror. "You like it?" She asked, near his side, using the counter for support so she wouldn't fall.

"You did well." He simply said. She ran a hand through his butch cut, then slowly to his face, removing the fallen hair. Roman shut his eyes, feeling her fingertips brush against his shoulders. "Stop... stop doing that Zadia." He finally said, his eyes opening as he grabbed her wrist. That fucking cocoa butter smell was becoming insufferable.

She stared at him confused, her forehead creased. "Doing what?" She asked lowly.

"You know what." He said in the same tone, looking down at her face. "I'm gonna buy you new lotion."

"I don't care, as long as it's cocoa butter." She countered, her eyes falling to his eyes and then lips. They were pink and plump.

"It smells terrible, Zadia."

She looked back at his light brown eyes, just as he looked into her dark enchanting ones. She moved closer. "No, it doesn't, Roman."

He lowered his head an inch. "It really does."

She smiled affectionately and he felt his heart pound. The thought of watching her smile all day didn't seem quite bad. "Admit it." She said, face moving closer. She could see the lines against his healing face. "You like it more than I do and it bothers you."

"I don't." He said, but his voice quivered causing her smile to widen. The shirt on her head was ridiculous, but he liked it. "I'm gonna get all those fucking lotion bottles you have filled with fucking cocoa butter and I'm gonna fucking burn them myself." He threatened.

"You better fucking not." She said, seriously. Roman's lips parted to say something but his train of thought was elsewhere once Zadia's warm and soft lips pressed against his. He inhaled her breath, tasting the minty toothpaste in her mouth. Their lips moved hungrily and he gripped the side of her face, kissing her deeper. The palm of Zadia's hands fell on his naked chest as she felt him lift her and set her on the counter. One of his hands held onto her thigh, squeezing little by little.

Their kiss grew deeper, Zadia's hands wandering further. She liked the way his skin felt against hers and he liked the way she opened her mouth so his tongue could adventure. They both let out a moan, enjoying the sensation from their mingling.

Before Zadia's hand could slide into his jeans, Roman jumped back. "I... I... can't. We can't..." He breathed, slowly catching his breath. Heat rose to Zadia's face. "It's selfish, selfish of me to even..." he cleared his throat running a hand through freshly shaven hair. "I can't."

"I... I get it." Zadia said, getting herself off the counter. She winced at the pain she felt in her ankle as she landed. "I shouldn't have..." she grabbed her crutches, standing straight. "I'm... sorry." She nervously said, moving as fast as she could out of his room, forgetting her toothbrush and tongue scraper.

She was embarrassed, very embarrassed.

This whole thing was embarrassing.

"You don't have to lea—"

"I think I should." She interrupted him, her back facing him as she stepped out of his room finally. "Tino can stay here tonight."

Roman sighed, placing his hand on his hips. "Are you s—-" Zadia was gone before he could finish his sentence. He moved forward, shutting his door. "Fuck." He whispered. Binx's yellow eyes stared at him from her side of the room. "I don't know what the fuck that was." He huffed and he knew for certain he couldn't let it happen again.

Lightly edited. Point any errors out.

Enjoy ❤️‍🔥