Hands-On Education | Aria/RhysH

The Room had produced what appeared to be a bedroom, though the door had discreetly vanished upon their entering. Various garments were strewn about. Though rumpled, the bedding covered the two people lying beneath it.

Aria lay on her back, gazing thoughtfully at the ceiling. She understood a whole bunch of things a lot more, now. The touching thing and... other stuff. The whole experience had not only been pleasurable, but all around enlightening.

She just hadn't anticipated the current awkwardness that she felt.

Rolling to her side, Aria rested her chin on Rhys' chest, offering him a shy smile. "Well," she began, only to trail off. She had absolutely no idea what to say. Should she say anything? Perhaps, this ought to have been a little better thought out...

Sighing, she laid her ear against the boy's chest, her fingers tracing circles across his collar.

Rhys was slowly drifting off to sleep when Aria's touch pulled him out of his state. He watched her with drowsy eyes, instinctively running a hand through his hair in the silence.

"Well," He repeated, draping an arm over her. Even though he wasn't usually a "touchy" person, Rhys let her rest against him as he ran fingers along her spine.

This vaguely reminded him of the party and Karma, but he tried to forget that. Karma had left him and he, her. It was something meant to be forgotten.

If he could figure out how to forget, anyway.

Aria shivered as Rhys' fingers trailed her spine.

"I... never knew touch could mean so much," she said quietly, "could be so much. It..." Words failed her. Were there even words to describe it? An entire part of the world she had never realized existed had just opened up to her - how did anyone describe such a thing?

Aria wriggled to get more comfortable, the result being that she snuggled closer against him. Head still resting on his chest, she listened to his heartbeat. "I had no idea," she murmured.

Seeing her shiver, Rhys traced slow, careful patterns into her back. He knew he shouldn't be getting so comfortable with her; it would be a pain to break her heart later on. For now, he'd let her relax. It was... pleasant to have someone close to him again anyway.

"It's a hard concept, I guess," he said, a smile creeping over his features, "Some people think this stuff is... sacred and others think it's just fun. It's complicated,"

Aria frowned thoughtfully. "That doesn't make sense to me," she stated. "Aren't pleasurable things meant to be enjoyed? Why then would it be sacred? I think people are strange. It's like kissing. It means so much to some, but not to others. Why is that?"

Rhys propped himself onto his elbows, licking his lips in thought.

"Well, some people think only married couples should enjoy sex because it's meant for procreation and things," he stated, "But others, like me, think it's more like a game.

"Kissing is more of a show of affection. Like Dame and Iva at the party, they use it as a 'I really like you' message. Karma, on the other hand," Rhys said her name bitterly, "Thinks of kissing as a merely physical thing and believe it means nothing,"

Rhys shrugged and laid down again. "At least, that's what I think,"

Aria raised up on one of her elbows as Rhys propped himself up on both of his. She listened intently, giving a small nod.

"I think I do, too," she agreed. "I would hate to have waited until I am married. It seems rather stupid."

The blonde tilted her head, as he lay back down, mismatched gaze studying him curiously as she looked down at him. She placed the hand of the arm not propping her up on his chest.

"So, you do think kissing means something?" Aria asked. "But sex does not? It would seem either they both have meaning or they're both just for pleasure. Is that wrong?"

Rhys chuckled, closing his eyes for a second.

"You ask a lot of questions, you know that?" he ran a hand through her hair, "Sometimes, for things like that, you gotta find the answers yourself,"

Rhys ran his fingers across her jaw line, leaning over and giving her a long, sloppy kiss. As he pulled away, he grinned.

"Did that mean anything to you?"

"How am I to understand anything if I don't ask questions?" Aria countered with a smirk.

Her eyes fluttered shut as he ran a hand through her hair. He pressed his lips to hers and kissed her in a manner far different from the brief kiss she had shared with J.J. She felt her heart stutter in her chest, though, she was certain it was at least partially surprise.

"That was..." she murmured breathlessly. "I can see how that might mean something..."

"See?" Rhys brought his lips down to her neck, ghosting over the nape, "You're learning,"

He pulled away and planted one large kiss on her forehead before throwing back the covers. He looked around for his clothes, lazily cocking his head.

"Do you see my pants?"

Aria shivered again. "I like this sort of learning," she declared quietly.

She studied him intently as he searched for his clothing. "You are the first boy I've seen naked," the girl stated off-handedly. Aria inclined her head, gaze appreciative. "You're very attractive to look at."

The girl sat up, throwing the covers back from herself to get off the bed on the other side. Stooping, she picked up the garment in question.

"Here they are."

Rhys looked down at himself as he stood. "Why, thank you," he teased, striking an overdrawn pose, "I find you nice to look at as well,"

Rhys took his pants for her, slowly slipping them over his underwear. He found his shirt and hers near his side, so he picked them up, throwing the smaller at Aria.

She had located her undergarments and put them back in place, shooting him an appreciative smile when he tossed her shirt over. Finding her own pants, she pulled them on.

"We should do this again, sometime," she suggested as she searched for her other shoe.

Rhys buttoned up his shirt, nodding. "Totally," He agreed, not sure if it ever would. He picked up her shoe and walked it over to us.

"I'm curious," he said, handing it to her, "Does this make us friends with benefits or what?"

"Thank you," Aria said. Putting one hand on his shoulder to keep her balance, she pulled it on with the other. She looked up to meet his gaze.

"Friends with..." she rolled the unfamiliar phrase through her mind before attaching the proper meeting to it. Moving her hand to the back of his neck, she raised up on her tiptoes to press her lips to his, displaying with a single kiss just how quickly she learned.

Pulling back, she gave him a smirk that was decidedly not innocent. "Only if you want it to, Rhys," Aria murmured. Turning, she started towards the door, which appeared as obligingly as it had vanished.

Rhys, who had enjoyed the kiss a bit too much, walked after her, enveloping her into another hug. He dotted kisses up her neck before pulling away.

"Oh, I know what I want," he replied, "I need to keep teaching you,"

Aria gave a surprised squeak as Rhys' arms enveloped her. She found she rather liked the feel of his lips against her skin as he kissed her neck. When he pulled away, the blonde grinned up at him.

"I'll call you 'professor', then," she said.

"That's Professor Haines, to you," Rhys joked, slipping on his shoes. He winked at the girl, patted her bum before walking out the door.

"See ya, hot stuff!" He called back, a content smile on his face.

Aria watched him go, biting her lip even as a pleased smile pulled at the corners of her mouth. Exiting the room, she started down an adjacent hallway. The door vanished behind her.