Match Made in Quarantine

14. Day Four

I'd been skulking outside of his room for an hour now, and the irony of that situation weighed on me like a ton of bricks.

I glanced at my phone for the fifth time in a row. The time showed 00:07 which was two minutes later than the last time I'd checked. I knew he was still awake by the dimmed sound of music and the occasional shuffling I heard inside.

My hands tightened around the two cold bottles of beer I was holding. Drops of water slipped over my fingers. I didn't mind the sensation. My nerves were making my hands sweat anyway, at least this way I could blame it on the beer.

Honestly, it was the only peace offering I could think of though I wouldn't blame him if he just spilled it all over my head. I didn't exactly know what he liked or disliked other than Cheetos and beer. So, I had no idea how I could possibly cheer him up or make up for that word vomit I'd spewed on him.

But, that didn't mean I wasn't going to try.

Taking both bottles into one hand and hoping I won't drop them, I took a deep breath. My heart was thrumming, erratic inside of my chest as I raised my hand and knocked.

I tried to steel my nerves expecting to hear just a fuck off.

The seconds felt like hours until he finally spoke and I let out the breath I'd been holding in anticipation.

"Come in." My heart skipped a beat at his words. His voice was tired and slightly muffled through the door but the words were a clear invitation.

He was willing to see me which was a good sign, right?

I opened the door cautiously, and took a step into his room. My eyes were wide and I carefully observed my surroundings as if I was about to approach some dangerous wild animal. Which, technically, wasn't that far from the truth.

Maddox was lying across his bed, two empty beer bottles on the bedside table next to him. His right forearm was covering his eyes and the room itself was barely lit, so I couldn't exactly gauge his expression. Perhaps that was for the best.

Instead of focusing on him I quickly surveilled his room. This was the first time I'd actually stepped within the natural habitat of one Maddox Carter, and it was... surprisingly normal.

I wasn't sure what I expected to find. Probably something that looked more like a sex dungeon, with at least one sex swing and several whips strewn about.

In contrast, his room was disturbingly normal. His desk was tidy, and organized — another reminder that Maddox clearly took his work and study seriously. There was an electric guitar next to his desk which I hadn't even known he played. There were a few socks tossed on the floor along with one pair of pants, but that was it. It wasn't even as messy as I had expected. The only sign of his booming sex life was an unopened box of condoms on the bedside table.

At least he was staying safe, I guess....

It unsettled me, knowing how wrong my prediction of his room had been. It brought up questions on how much else had I wrongly assumed about him. Questions that I then quickly buried.

The silence in the room was becoming deafening.

I racked my brain for words, unsure of how to start this conversation.

"I thought there was no running away during an argument." The words came out of me in a torrent and I bit my tongue. This probably wasn't a good time to bring up one of the two rules he'd made, but to my surprise the corners of his lips turned up ever so slightly.

"Yeah, my bad," he muttered but made no other move. Soon, even the slight smile had disappeared from his lips.

"I-I bring a peace offering." I tried again, feeling an intense urge to scream and punch something. Most likely myself.