When he finished, he turned me around, saw tears on my face and held me close. He didn't know right away however, that they were tears of joy and release not sorrow. One of his arms had wrapped around me holding me tighter than I ever had been before, and the other stroked my hair soothingly. He murmured against my hair, "Whoa, Whoa, baby, It's ok. I'm not mad. I enjoyed your show, but I've known you for longer than I can remember and I couldn't resist appealing to your naughty side," he said teasingly, "If I overstepped my boundaries, I am truly sorry. It will never happen again."
I could hear the intimate concern in his voice and couldn't help but laugh. "Raph, I think we need to work on our communication," I stated matter-of-factly, "I'm not crying because I am upset. There are tears because it felt so good that I didn't want you to stop. You made it about me, for me, not you, and I don't know how I am ever going to repay you." A smile slowly spread across his face as he registered the significance of the moment. He laughed against my hair as he said, "I'm sure I can come up with some way for you to work off your debts."
We stood there for a few more minutes until Raphael felt me shiver against him. At this point he led me inside and allowed me to go find some clothes. I heard the shower in his room start and after wandering around for a few minutes, settled in on the couch.
I started to ponder over the events that had so recently transpired. We had been friends for a really long time, but I noticed that the passion of our first kiss seemed to surprise us both. I couldn't believe that he had kissed me, but at the same time, nothing had ever felt more right. With Raphael, I felt safe, cared for and protected. I never felt as though I had to worry about whether or not he would try things I didn't want him to or if I would find myself compromising my dreams just to appease him.