Someone's Ass is Gunna Get Kicked!! (Private Me and Lani)

The American southwest, as Nik found out, is an extremely boring area to drive through. The scenery off the the highway hadn't changed in the few hours that he and Rogue had been driving, and yet, Nik couldn't care less. He was practically giddy that Rogue had accepted his invitation to drive down to Phoenix for the weekend to play paintball and see the city. Nik had wanted to see some of the larger cities in this country and the two closest ones from Death City were Las Vegas and Phoenix, and he had no desire to visit Vegas. It was about a 6 hour drive from Death City, but the drive was justified because they were spending four days down there. Four days where he would just be alone with Rogue. It was enough to make Nik both extremely nervous and extremely excited. Nik peeked away from the road for a second to glance at Rogue. The man was relaxed with his arm out the open window. Really, it wasn't fair that he had such an effect on Nik, but the Dane worked hard to make sure he didn't go all giddy like some secondary school girl. Still, the road was abandoned except for them, so he took one hand off the wheel and casually poked him in the ribs, hoping to earn a jump from him.

The meister's hand flew towards the other man's before he could hardly remove it from his side. Strange, swirling eyes angled lazily towards him, red brow raising as a smirk began to pull and play at his lips. "You wanted something, Nik?" The teasing tone of his expression carried into his words, and he slowly loosened and released his grip on the weapon's hand. Nik hadn't learned it yet, but there were remarkably few places that Jarek was at all ticklish, and none of them he would tell, willingly or otherwise. Still, it was a pleasant drive, and it was far better to be able to vacation with someone such as Nik than it was to pine away in his room and suffer from personal anxiety over whether or not he was pushing the poor man away. Obviously, he had not come on too strong --- or weak --- and that pleased him greatly.

Nik chuckled at the lack of reaction from the man. Since Rogue had told him that would never tell Nik where he was ticklish at, the Nord had taken to randomly poking in random locations in order to try and find a spot. So far he hadn't been successful, but Nik was also keeping it to the obvious places in respect. "Come on, even I jump when you poke my ribs. That is not an invitation, either." Nik told the man, adding the second part almost immediately after the first sentence. The ninja seemed to find his trickster side when it came to Nik, and, while it was definitely enjoyable, Nik had to stay on guard so he didn't get on over him. "You excited?" Nik asked, opening for some conversation. The last hour had been comfortable silence, but just the radio was getting annoying.

"Maybe I am," Rogue said, light smirk gleaming as his eyes began to sparkle. "I mean, it's not like we have been on the road already for over an hour after a week's worth of preparation and I think three nervous phone calls where you had to remind me that everything was okay." Nervous laughter followed in hot pursuit of his words, but he shrugged them off nonetheless, taking the moment to reach over and dance his fingers at the nape of Nik's neck.

"I couldn't have my incredibly adorable boyfriend anxious over what is supposed to be a fun trip. This is the first major American city I'll get to see, so I'm excited. Plus paintball is fun, and all sorts of other fun things we can do." Nik said. He had been worried about how anxious Rogue got over the entire ordeal, and he had done his very best to reassure him that all would be well, and that it would be a fun trip. It was a chance to finally get some alone time away from Tony or the others. Since Scadia moved in with Nik, even his place wasn't as private as it used to be. Four days of just spending time together was something Nik had really been looking forward to, and he made sure Rogue understood that.

Jarek, of course, was far out of practice as far as dating was concerned, though it helped immensely that he was with a man rather than a woman; submission and awkwardness became drastically amplified otherwise. Still,the calm collection he now held was a mask, veiling what his soul would conspicuously portray should he fall to his meditations, wavering both his throatt and abdominal chakras. Even now, however, his boyfriend's words were calming, and he retrieved Nik's hand once again to place a light kiss to the palm, an intimacy the ninja seemed to favor rather highly. "You sure you want combat against an assassin?"

Nik shuttered at Rogue's action and regretted that there was still hours ahead on the road, but he pulled himself together. They hadn't been dating very long, and Nik didn't really feel comfortable going too far, but making out was definitely on the menu. The mix of vibes Nik got from Rogue would normally annoy people, but it only attracted Nik more. He liked that Rogue could be dominating and take charge, but also shy and even submissive. It just made him more interested in the assassin. "Are you sure you want to fight a viking?" Nik asked, moving his hand so it was situated on the back of Rogue's neck and massaging gently. He'd found that doing that was apparently a turn on for the man, so Nik enjoyed pulling that little ace in the hole every once in a while.

The man's strange eyes closed lazily, languidly, at the contact. The clever retort he would have had was instantly dispersed, and he found himself responding with little more than a shrug, almost, almost no longer caring about the light competition. "I'm sorry, but vikings aren't exactly common place for a reason, nord."

"Ninja are no more common either. I think we have equal footing. You're faster and I'm stronger. It should be an interesting encounter." Nik said, shifting his hand down to where it was situated on the assassin's left thigh. The small talk continued for a while before the drive shifted back to more comfortable silence with just the radio. They managed to make it to the city around 4 PM. Nik had reserved a room at a hotel in the middle of downtown. It was a bit pricey, but Nik had earned some extra money from his overtime at the warehouse, and his dad had sent him a little something to field the trip. His family was really excited to hear that he was dating again.

Nik found parking and got out the car, going to the trunk to grab his and Rogue's luggage. He motioned for the ninja to follow him so they could check in. Nik got the room keys, making sure to give one to Rogue, before giving their things to the luggage guy so he could take it up to their room. Nik made sure to give the guy a tip before moving their things into their room. It wasn't anything special; it was just one double bed with a bathroom, a tv, a chair, and some closet space. Nik didn't plan on really unpacking his stuff. "Well, it isn't much, but it'll do." Nik said aloud.

Rogue offered him a gentle, open smile, most of the light of it coming from his eyes themselves. He had only recently begun to entirely forgo his mask in public, more comfortable with himself and those around him, now, to not feel as though he needed to hide so much of the time. Even still, the mask was, in fact, undoubtedly packed in his would-be carry on, alongside his bathroom essentials. Unpacking wasn't much on his mind, either, though he did withdraw a rolled sleeve containing his melee weaponry, sliding it into one of the bedside tables. Shaking his hair out, he looked back at him, smiling. "I feel like we've not used our legs in a week," it was an obvious enough statement, as he had wobbled just the slightest bit upon departing the car, a sign that his circulation and gone confused and needed to be reoriented. Now, it seemed to have settled back into return, though he was slowly becoming almost restless.

"Six hours sure did feel like awhile. It's nice to finally stretch a little bit." Nik said, grabbing his bathroom supplies out of his pack and moving them to the bathroom. The stuff the hotel provided was never enough for him, so bringing his own stuff just made his life a while lot easier. He came back into the main room and, feeling a little mischievous, came up behind Rogue and wrapped his arms around the smaller man. He leaned down and nuzzled the shorter man's neck, nipping playfully. The car ride had been really restricting, but now had had the freedom to mess with his boyfriend as much as he wanted.

Rogue smirked, biting back any verbal response as he tilted his head to the side, reaching back to carefully grab at and squeeze the man's hip. "What," he said, voice just the slightest bit deeper than normal, "Did we come all this way just so that you could get me alone...?"

"Well, being alone has gotten harder since I got a roommate, and I don't hear you complaining too much." Nik murmured. He really hadn't thought about anything like.....that when he had invited Rogue on this trip. True, the thought had crossed his mind since they would be sharing a hotel room, but Nik was still nervous about crossing that line. He was far from a virgin, but he hadn't had sex with someone he cared about since Svenja. The two had really only gotten to second base with each other since they had started dating and Nik was okay with that, but he didn't really know how Rogue felt the situation. Nik had told him about his past and he had been understanding, but Nik couldn't help feel that his own baggage was hindering himself and Rogue. The thoughts in his head grew clouded and his didn't want them to hinder this trip, so he banished them and held on to his boyfriend a bit tighter.

Rogue leaned back against him relaxing easily, though she tensed for the briefest of moments as an instinctual, though not afraid, reaction to the tightening. "True enough." He responded, lips teasing a smile-turning-smirk as he, himself, contemplated the trip. It had been a while since he had gotten a vacation that hadn't had some sort of connection to a party, and even longer since Tony had not been involved. Though a pleasant change of pace, there was an uncanny weirdness to it that he would have to re-acclimate himself to. In many ways, he had become almost socially dependent upon his roommate, a fact that he was hesitant to admit but nonetheless somehow quick to accept, if only for the sake of solving the issue and moving past it.

"So, what do you want to do today. Our session at the field isn't until tomorrow, so we can see the city. That, or we can just chill here and order something to eat." Nik suggested, letting go of Rogue and taking a seat on the bed. They hadn't had anything to eat in a few hours and Nik was starting to feel it. A burger would hit the spot quite nicely right now. A nap would also be nice to, but Nik didn't want to spend a second missing out on this trip. What he saw of the city when he was driving here was so exciting and beautiful. It was amazing that people could build something so vast in a place so devoid of life.