[Next Day] [At the mall]
The credits had rolled ten minutes ago, but Rosa was still fuming. She stood in front of the big Robocop Reboot poster by the exit, arms crossed, eyes burning holes through the glossy PG-13 logo.
"PG-13. Robocop. Two things that should never be in the same sentence," she said, voice full of disgust.
Ray nodded beside her, equally unimpressed. "I kept waiting for the blood, the bite, the grit. Instead, we got a discount Iron Man with a cop badge."
Rosa scoffed. "I swear, if Paul Verhoeven saw that, he'd rise from his chair just to slap the director."
They started walking toward the food court. Rosa's anger was still simmering, and she muttered, "They cut all the violence. All of it. Robocop without gore is like Die Hard without Bruce Willis."
Ray smirked. "Want to burn down the theater?"
"Don't tempt me," she said, glaring back at the poster one last time.
They reached the food court, grabbed a couple of mocktails, and sat down. Rosa sipped her drink and sighed. "At least the mocktail's got a kick."
"That's because they accidentally used two shots of syrup," Ray said, stirring his. "You're basically drinking liquefied candy."
Rosa shrugged. "Good."
Just then, a familiar voice shouted across the food court. "RAY! ROSA!"
They turned to see Jake and Terry—wearing mall security uniforms.
Rosa blinked. "No way."
Jake jogged over, grinning like a kid caught in the world's dumbest undercover op. "Well, look who it is. What are you two doing here? You didn't happen to watch the Robocop first show, did you?"
Rosa deadpanned. "We did. And it sucked."
Jake's grin faded instantly. "No. Don't say that. Don't spoil it. Don't crush my dreams. I've been waiting years for that reboot."
Terry sighed, adjusting his badge that read 'Security Officer Jeff.' "See, it's bad, Jake. I told you it would be bad. You can't sanitize Robocop. It's like putting broccoli on a donut. Terry hates vegan donuts."
Jake looked surprised and pointed his finger at Terry. "You take that back. Broccoli donuts could be revolutionary."
Rosa rolled her eyes. "You two look ridiculous. Why are you dressed like that? Undercover ops?"
Jake puffed his chest. "Yep. Someone's been stealing phones from the tech shop near Macy's. We're posing as mall security to catch the perp."
Ray chuckled. "So you're basically Paul Blart: Nine-Nine Edition."
Jake pointed dramatically. "Exactly! Except cooler, sharper, and with more emotional depth. Also, Terry's scooter is faster."
Terry gave him a flat look. "It's not a scooter, it's a 'mobility patrol vehicle.'"
Rosa crossed her arms. "You mean scooter."
Terry groaned. "You people have no respect for mall law."
Ray leaned back in his chair, eyeing Jake and Terry's uniforms. "I don't get it. Wouldn't it make more sense to disguise yourselves as customers or, I don't know, the guy behind the counter instead of cosplaying as mall cops?"
Jake grinned, adjusting his plastic badge like it was made of gold. "That's the beauty of it, my friend. We think one or two of the actual mall security guards are in on the thefts. The manager said the phones started disappearing right after he hired some new recruits. So, we infiltrate the ranks, gain their trust, boom, expose the whole operation from the inside. Call it Operation: Mall and Order."
Ray blinked. "Catchy. In a terrible way."
Terry noticed how they were kinda interrupting Ray and Rosa. So, he decided to focus on the job and let the couple alone. "C'mon, Jake." He looked at his wrist watch. "We got five minutes to get there, and if we are lucky, we might catch them red-handed."
Jake gave them a mock salute. "Alright, lovebirds, duty calls. Time to bring justice to the mall. If you hear someone yell 'Stop! NYPD!' followed by the sound of a guy crashing into a pretzel stand, that's just me doing my thing."
Ray took another sip of his drink. "So, a normal Tuesday."
"Exactly," Jake said proudly. "Wish us luck! If we don't make it, tell Captain Holt my badge is hidden in the second drawer of my desk, under the emergency Twix."
Terry sighed. "We'll make it. Let's go, Peralta."
Jake turned to Ray and Rosa one last time, grinning. "Enjoy your date, you two. Try not to cause any explosions. That's our subplot."
They watched the two walk away, Jake already whispering into his walkie-talkie with unnecessary spy music sounds from his mouth. Terry looked like a man who regretted every life choice that brought him here.
Ray chuckled and took a slow sip of his mocktail. "You know," he said, setting the glass down, "since the movie spoiled the mood and we got the entire day just to ourselves, how about we do something fun?"
"Long drive?" She raised an eyebrow.
He took out his phone, opened an auction site, and slid the phone toward her. "Even more fun."
She took the phone and looked at the page. Her eyes widened at the vintage Harley-Davidson WLA that was in a bit banged-up condition. For someone who loves bikes and restoring old classics, that bike was like a gold mine to her.
"Auction starts in one hour, and we are thirty minutes away from the location. So...?" Ray said with a smile.
Rosa narrowed her eyes as she leaned in toward him, "I'm gonna suck you dry tonight. Then ride you till the morning."
Ray smirked. "I love you so much, Rosa."
With that, both of them got out of the mall and drove to the auction site.
...
[Evening] [Ray's House]
The truck dropped the bike and left.
Under the amber porch light was the vintage Harley-Davidson WLA, paint chipped, leather seat cracked, and years of wear showing on every inch of its frame.
Rosa and Ray stood side by side, hands in their pockets, staring at the bike in silence.
Rosa finally spoke, her voice low and a little awed. "That was eight grand."
Ray nodded. "Yeah."
She crouched down to run her hand along the tank, tracing the faded insignia. "You know this thing's basically a war relic, right? Built tough enough to survive battlefields, but right now it looks like it lost a few of them."
He chuckled. "That's the charm. Every scar's got a story."
Rosa stood again, brushing her hands off on her jeans. "Restoring it's gonna be hell. Getting original parts for this model? Almost impossible. The carburetor alone might take weeks to hunt down."
"Sounds like a challenge," Ray said, grinning. "You love challenges."
Rosa gave him a look somewhere between admiration and disbelief. "Yeah, but I can't believe you just dropped eight grand like it's pocket change. The other guy with a baseball cap nearly burst a vein when you yelled... 8 grand. That was hot."
Ray shrugged. "It's not about the money. I'm into vintage cars and bikes..." He looked at her. "...and so are you. So..." He wrapped his hand around her waist and pulled her closer. "How about we work on it together?"
Rosa wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him, slow at first, then deeper. The kind of kiss that said thank you, and I love you, and maybe a little, you drive me crazy, all at once.
When she finally pulled back, her breath brushed against his lips. "I'd love to get my hands dirty together with you, Mr. White," she whispered.
Ray's smile tugged wider. "You have no idea how dirty that sounds."
"Oh, I do," She smirked.
He kissed her again.
They stood there, kissing slowly for a few minutes before parting.
Rosa rested her forehead against his and glanced at the bike. "Tomorrow we start stripping her down. Frame first. Then we clean every inch, replace the bearings, rebuild the carb."
Ray raised an eyebrow. "You make that sound way sexier than it should."
"Because it is," she said. "Oil, metal, sweat—what's not to love?"
He chuckled softly. "Remind me never to underestimate your definition of foreplay."
Rosa grinned, tugging lightly at his shirt. "You already learned that lesson."
They put the bike in the garage before going inside.
[That night]
Ray lay naked on the bed. Rosa entered wearing her nurse costume with revealing cleavage and a short skirt, plus high-kneed white boots. She looked sexy and hot enough for Ray to get an instant boner. She leaned against the door and smirked at how he got hard almost instantly.
"Ready for your checkup, Mr. White?"
'OH MY GOD!' Ray grinned. "Always, Nurse Diaz. Please be gentle with me."
Rosa approached the bed, her sultry walk sending shivers down Ray's spine. When she was close enough, she straddled him, her body pressing against his. "I promise, Mr. White, I'll be gentle."
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