When the phone rang on a Friday night, Nicci was surprised. They wanted to hire her as a programmer for the city council. She knew the town, though. It was really small. She couldn’t really imagine, cost-wise, why they asked for her of all people.
The job paid well, she learned quickly. She might even take it, considering business being, all in all, just slow. They wanted to have her in-house though. That might prove to be an issue. She asked the nice lady that was the communications department, if she could find her a place to stay. Not 5 minutes later, she received an email, stating that Zachory Clarke was willing to have her over for the duration of the project.
She had no idea who he was or what he was like, but it was an interesting project to do, so she decided to accept the job and drive down first thing Monday.
She parked the rust-bucket that was supposed to be her car in front of the address stated in the email. She looked for a parking meter before she remembered where she was, exactly. There would be none, of course. She opened the trunk to get her suitcase and her laptop. The thought of looking like a mule with all the equipment, handbag and suitcase, crossed her mind. She was a bit nervous, going to live with someone she never met before, as well.
She took a deep breath and walked up to the front door. The bell made a loud ringing noise; it startled her. She took a step back to regain her balance.
The door was opened by a man she had seen before, only once, years ago. They never spoke a word. The sight of him took her breath away as she tried wriggling a hand free to introduce herself. “Hi lady Nicci”, he said, did you have a good trip? Come in, come in. I’m Zachory, but you already knew that, right?
He knew her name, but word travelled fast in a community like this. It didn’t have to mean he was way ahead of her. She walked through the door he was holding open for her, happy to be able to put the bags down. She looked at him. My god, she thought, he was even more gorgeous than before. She brushed against him by accident, when she walked into the living room. A shock went through her body at the touch.
That wasn’t what she was here for, though. She had always been business first and today was no different. She had to push hard to get the images that creeped up on her out of her head, but she did.
“would like?” was what she heard. She guessed she missed the first part of the question, getting her head straight. Another guess led her to answer “Well, if you have, I wouldn’t say no to a good cup of coffee”.
“I don’t know about good, will this do?” he asked, holding up a pack of Senseo. Well, it wasn’t great and she missed the office machine already, but it was okay enough, considering the drive she had. Her meeting was tomorrow and she was glad she took an extra day. There had been an accident on the highway ad she had been stuck in traffic jams for hours. It was way past lunchtime and she didn’t even have breakfast yet…
“So, Zachory, how do we do this? Is there a plan for today?” She ventured, sitting down on the couch a little uneasily. “And where would I be able to set up my system?”
“All bite and no bark, this one” he replied teasingly “we could get to know each other first, we are going to be living together for a few months, you know”. He smiled while he said it though. She couldn’t pull her gaze away from his face. The strong, wide jaw, the stubble. This man looked to be a testosterone warehouse. She reprimanded herself firmly for being so unprofessional, before her first day had even begun especially.
“I was kind of surprised to find out that the programmer was a woman, and one that looked vaguely familiar at that. I found out I had seen you before when I got your details” he ventured. “Oh, really? You had no idea who would come over when you offered residence for this project?” “No, not really” he said “just thought it would be fun to have someone around that actually likes computers or… well… knows what they are. No one here does understand why I like spending time online”. “Well, it can be hard, in this town not many people go with the times and computers are these magical boxes that never do what you want”. She had to stifle a laugh.
She sipped her coffee while she waited for him to give her some direction. This was his place, after all. He smirked when he spoke again “So, Nicci, would you like to have the ‘Grand Tour’ of the house?”
She looked the place over and smiled to herself, remembering the SATC episode showing the difference between the 20-something and 30-something apartment. He had made a real effort, but she definitely found herself in the 20-something place. There was a big TV, game consoles, stacks of dvd’s and furniture that was functional but had seen many days already and did not exactly match. The couch was gigantic and seemed to come straight from an 80s movie. It was comfy, though. And, bonus points, he did actually have coffee.
In the back was a small, but clean kitchen and a washing room. She was ushered up the stairs, though. He followed her, carrying the suitcase. “The guest room, or should I say, your room, is the one on the right” he said. “I know it’s kind of small, but at least it has closet. Judging from the weight of this suitcase, you might appreciate that.”
She opened the door and walked in. He followed suit. They ended up standing very close together in the small space between the bed and the desk in the corner. A little too close, for her comfort. She couldn’t help but smell his presence. It was a mix of a light cologne as well as a bit of sweat. He smelled so… arousing and comforting at the same time, she had to stop breathing for a second.
“Is this ok for you?” He gently asked. “Yes, yes, thank you Zachory, it’s fine.” She rushed. He needed to get out, before she put her forehead to his broad chest and put her hands on his well toned upper arms. He was just wearing jeans, a fitted shirt and a big hoodie. She had missed that look, she missed it a lot. She dealt with businessmen every day now. Somehow that didn’t do it for her; when sex was on her mind, she found herself wandering into the IT department much rather than into the bosses office. Sex was just hard to find on a man in a suit.
“Alright, alright, I will leave you to unpacking. I will see you downstairs when you’re done” He smiled at her, before he walked out and closed the door behind him.
She unpacked her clothes and put them on hangers. She was going to need her wardrobe in the next few days. She lined her pairs of shoes up on the windowsill and put her favourite red soled little devils on the desk. Not yet the right time for these, she felt.
She put out the mirror and placed it on the desk. There was a lamp, thank goodness, she thought. Men don’t ever think about what a lady needs, but she could make do with the light there was. She opened her make-up bag and found a way to order her products without immediately making a mess.
She tossed her plain black yoga pants and a black racerback top on the chair for later. She worried about being able to sleep. She never wore anything in bed, and now she had to, like she was a little girl again. It felt really weird.
He left her some towels in the closet, that was thoughtful. It might not be as bad as she remembered from the various student-housing projects she had seen during her years in university. She was glad to be out of school, though.
She triple checked the room and her stuff, and when it really was all done, she knew she had to go back down.
She got back to the couch, where she found Zachory with his feet up on the table. She sat down, folding one leg under her. Not yet ready to get comfy, she sat up straight. Did he have that effect on her, or were her nerves acting up? She did not know.
“So, Zachory, tell me what it is that you do? Since you already checked out my profiles…” she found herself winking as she said it. He told her that we was in his last year of studying information technology and was dabbling with music as a DJ in his spare time.
Ok, so he really was a nerd, like her. It helped a bit, but she was still uneasy. Her wild days were quite behind her and she had no clue how having a roommate again would go down. She didn’t know how to find about more, without sounding like a total overly demanding bitch. He reminded her of some of the guys at university. She always wondered how those guys could be so relaxed without planning or organising anything. It seemed that to them and to the man next to her, anything and everything was ok.
“Well, music is a good way to get your head together. I remember studying hard always made me a little whacko…” she said, forcing a smile through the fussing in her head. He laughed. “You might be right about that. Well anyway, Nic, we are going to have to eat sooner or later, and the shops in the next town over close early. Would it be ok if we took your car? I had no idea what you liked, so I wanted you to come over first.”
“Do you have a license, Zachory? If you do, you are welcome to take the car when you need. Just fill the tank up now and then” she offered. Oh god. She had to get into her car with him. Very close together for quite a drive and nowhere to go. She had to call on her senses and tell herself it was just boring groceries. She never cared much for daily shopping, but somehow this was different.
“Actually, I just got my license. Are you sure I can borrow your car? My father won’t let me drive his…” he looked a bit taken back when he said it. “Zach, look at that thing. It doesn’t even have a stick shift. It’s almost a toy. Come, let me show you on the way, and you will drive back. How about that?”
They got in the car and she had to bend his way to put her bag down. Her hand lightly touched his leg. She looked up at him with a sly smile. Ugh. She cursed at herself. The car made her do it was a lame excuse and she knew it.
She showed him where the lights were, how to turn on the wiper and how to start the car. She waited. He didn’t speak. “Ehm, Zachory, I do not know the area all too well. Please tell me where to go?” He seemed to come from a distance when he answered. “Oh eh, left here, straight on and I’ll tell you the rest when we are close”
When they got to the supermarket, she could feel eyes prying in her back. She wasn’t from around here, and she could feel the unwelcome some of the women were giving her. Yes, she was shopping with the most attractive man in the whole parish and well, she wasn’t one of them. Either one or both of these issues could make having a life here for the time being pretty hard. She knew she was going to have to work really hard and everyone would be looking at the result.
He seemed totally oblivious to what was happening around her. While she could feel the change in the air, he sauntered quietly along the isles, picking up this and that, asking her what she would want. It seemed he didn’t even think about what being seen with her meant. Nothing bothered him at all. She heard her own steps echoing in the silence when he wasn’t talking to her. Apparently she was the only one in heels in here…
At the cash desk she handed the car keys over to him and paid before he could even get his wallet out. He was still studying, after all, and the option of being unobtrusive had passed the moment they entered the store.
He picked the bag up in one arm and walked next to her, still chatting. A gentleman he was; he opened the passenger door first, put the groceries in the car and walked around. She saw him taking a deep breath before he got in. Was he nervous about driving?
He fidgeted a little, but got the car running soon enough. He was hesitant, but not a bad driver, all in all. He just needed some practice to steady his hands on the wheel. She loved driving herself, but in a weird was, she had always had liked watching a man drive. There was something incredibly pleasant, almost soothing about it.
When they got in, she decided to try and let her hair down a bit. He gave her a place to stay and had been nothing but nice to her. It wasn’t his fault he was so fetching and it wasn’t his fault she had to keep forcing herself to behave. “What about some music, mister DJ?” it was the best she could think of.
“That might indeed help me distract you from the fact that I am not much of a cook” he was now grinning. “Would you mind helping me?” She liked cooking and she wasn’t too bad at it, but the idea of being crammed together in that very small kitchen made her panic. She ushered him out and fumbled around for the right kitchenware. She found some things that she could use and she got to work making a simple, tasty pasta. She would see about really cooking when she was settled in a little more.
They chatted over dinner and all seemed to go over smoothly.
After dinner, it was ok for her to set up her system on the desk in the living room. When she was done, she went upstairs to lay out her clothes for the meeting next day, reorganised her bag and took a long shower. She plucked her eyebrows, did her skin treatment ritual and put her phone in the charger.
She dressed in her yoga clothes, put her hair up in a bun and went back downstairs. She was a bit afraid to be friend-zoned immediately, but he didn’t seem affected by the pretty radical change in the looks department.
“want some coffee?” he asked her. “I’m afraid there is not much to do here, for a metropolitan girl like you. It probably does sound cheesy, but how about a game of Mario Kart?” She loved Mario Kart, so she tossed a pillow on the floor and waited for him to see who got the whoop-ass. She hadn’t played in ages, so she was probably the one going down. She didn’t care.
He dropped down next to her and the race was one. She always had this weird thing of not just moving the controller, but moving her whole body when going around the bent. She was quickly pretty much rolling all over the place. Startled, she realised she was not only lying on the floor, she was kind of sprawled all over him, trying to catch up with his Mario Kart. They tried bumping each others car off the road and each other off the pillow.
Really. Was she a teenager? Did she really act this way? She wasn’t about to let him win though, so she kept trying to drop bombs on the road and shoot him. She almost had him when he crossed the finish line…
He did not start a new game. She looked up. She was down on the floor, flat on her back and he was sitting up, looking at her, grinning.