Request: Can you do one where a girl is reunited with Kit after she comes home from college?
Reaching into his front pocket, Kit concentrated on balancing the bag of groceries in his arm as he searched for his keys. Unlocking the stairwell door, he paused as a voice floated towards him.
“Hold the door please!”
Remaining where he was, Kit rested his back against the door before glancing out the door to see the woman calling out to him. He found himself doing a double take as he took her in.
Her dark brown hair was much shorter than he remembered, her green eyes unmistakable.
She hadn’t noticed him yet, her attempts to ensure she didn’t drop any clothes spilling over the edges of her hamper distracting her.
“Thanks” she sighed in relief as she reached the front steps. “Oh, hey.”
“Hey…”
“How are you?” Meghan asked as she took in the aviators and his hair.
“Good…You’re back?”
“Yeah, I’m actually staying with my mom. I just finished school.”
“Brown right?” Realizing his quick response probably wasn’t the best move, Kit found himself removing his sunglasses nervously before slipping them in his shirt pocket.
“Yeah.”
Smiling she brushed her hair out of her face, gasping “shit” as she nearly dropped her basket.
“Here, let me help.”
Offering her his bag, Kit watched as she remained where she was her eyes on his instead.
“You grew your hair out” she replied as she sat her basket down before taking the bag from his hands. “I like it.”
“The washers still broken?” he asked, stopping to grab the basket as she started her way upstairs.
“Yeah,” she sighed. “Apparently they’re to be fixed in a few days, had to walk to the laundromat because my mom needed the car for work.”
“You could’ve just asked me for a ride.”
“I thought about it” she admitted, the truth was she’d thought about it more than once. The idea of whether or not his number was still the same crossing her mind as she waited for her clothes to dry. “But I wasn’t sure if you were still here. I didn’t see the Cutlass outside.”
“Yeah, I sold it.”
“Too bad” she smiled. “I liked that car.”
The last time she was in that car was four and a half years ago before she moved cross country to attend Brown University. Meghan never came back for holidays, her mom never asked her to. Instead she stayed on campus, or went home with friends. The night before she went off to college, her mom was off doing her usual thing hopping bars to find a guy to bring home which meant Meghan needed a ride to the airport. The only person she could think to ask was her neighbor Kit. Living directly beneath her, Kit had always been friendly unlike his girlfriend Sara. The last time they were in a car together, she’d crossed a line she knew probably wasn’t the best. A kiss led to an awkward departure, and an even more awkward reunion.
“Me too.”
Stopping outside his door, Meghan sat his bag of groceries on his mat before reaching for her basket.
“I’m meeting up some friends later” she smiled as she watched him unlock the door. “Having a little reunion. You can tag along if you want, maybe get a few drinks. You seem a little…tense.”
Taking in her hopeful look, Kit found himself wanting to say yes but shook his head.
“I’m fine.”
“Come on Kit” she pouted “Don’t tell me you’re still a hard ass.”
“I’m not” he chuckled. “I just have a deadline to meet.”
“Alright” shrugging off the wall, Meghan gave him one last smile before turning to start up the steps. “I’m leaving at ten if you change your mind.”
Removing his glasses from his nose, Kit sat them aside before leaning back in his chair and letting out a deep breath. He’d been working for nearly seven hours straight, typing, highlighting then deleting and starting over again. He knew he had a deadline to meet, and he told his editor he’d meet it but the way things were going he might not keep his promise.
“What you have is good Kit” Jake, his editor, had sighed three weeks earlier after finishing his latest manuscript. “But it’s not great man. You and I both know you can do way better than this.”
He was right, and Kit knew it, but that didn’t mean he’d managed to prove it yet. But they both knew why. The world had high expectations for his next project. His first novel had done better than he’d expected, which meant that everyone was expecting his next to just be as great. If not better. Problem was, he couldn’t make it great, and the thought of getting up and just crashing on the sofa was looking like a better idea with each second that passed.
Just as he made a move to shut his laptop a knock came at the door causing him to glance at the time. It was nearly four in the morning, the list of people who would even show up at this time nearly non-existent. Getting up he crossed the room before unlocking the door and pulling it open to find Meghan standing in front of him.
She had let her hair down, the fact she was still dressed in the outfit he saw her leave in through his window earlier letting him know she had just made it back to the complex; though she didn’t seem as though she’d had too much to drink.
"Brought you a gift" she smiled as she offered up a bottle of whiskey. Resting against the door she bit her lip as he took her in. "Figured it’d help you relax."
Remaining where he was, Kit took in the bottle in her hand before faintly smiling, “are you even old enough to drink that?”
Rolling her eyes, Meghan pressed the bottle against his chest before laughing, “you and I both know you know the answer to that.”
He knew, but that still didn’t make him curious. The woman standing in front of him wasn’t supposed to be standing in his doorway in the middle of the night, at least not in reality.
Part of him wanted to turn her away, tell her that he didn’t need the company or the alcohol but the truth was he wasn’t sure which he needed most. But the smile on her face let him know she wasn’t going to back down easily, the confidence that oozed off of her making him nervously glance down at the bottle.
Once he didn’t respond, she stopped to take in his ruffled hair, white t-shirt and boxers. Judging from his get up he wasn’t asleep when she arrived, the action of him pushing his glasses up his nose making him smile.
"You look cute" she smiled as she watched him brush his hair from his face. "You should wear them more often."
Opening the door more for her, Kit stepped aside before letting her in.
Stopping to slip off her heels, Meghan looked around the cramped room. Taking in the books and scripts stacked in the corners of the room she found herself wondering how many he’d written. There was a blanket thrown across one of the sofas, the empty beer bottles and boxes of takeout making her wonder more about his situation.
“Where’s Mrs. Harington?” she asked as she crossed the room.
“I’ll let you know when I find her.”
Remaining in his place by the door, Kit nervously watched as she made her way around the room stopping to take in the few pictures he had.
It had been a long time since a woman had stepped foot inside his place, the last one to be exact had been his last girlfriend nearly two years ago. His last girlfriend, Sara, had left without telling him but surprisingly he didn’t try and follow her. After all the time with her he realized he liked being alone.
Realizing it was best to at least attempt to do something other than watch her, Kit headed to the kitchen to retrieve a set of glasses. Pouring the drinks, he watched as she stopped at the printer and picked up the stack of paper waiting to be retrieved from the tray.
“It’s not done” he objected as she removed the cover page before taking a seat in his computer chair. “Which means it’s probably just a pile of shit-“
Starting to read, Meghan continued as he took a sip of his drink.
He watched her, his nervousness causing him to stop talking before trailing off.
Taking in the first line, she found herself unable able to move forward. The question on her mind needing to be answered first.
“I highly doubt that” she smiled glancing up at him over the top of the pages. “Your first book was incredible.”
“No” he laughed before glancing down at his already empty glass. “Incredible is the last word I’d use to describe any of my work.”
“I’m being serious.”
She couldn’t help but laugh as she took in his look of disbelief. Carefully sitting the pages aside, she stood up before brushing aside a crumpled up piece of paper with her foot.
“I read your first book-I have your first book” she corrected as she crossed the room. “Upstairs, if you don’t believe me.”
Refilling his glass, Kit let his eyes search her face for any signs of deception but couldn’t find any. He’d always wondered if she’d bothered to actually read his work. The fact she was the walking inspiration making him more anxious than curious. Anyone who knew him knew his girlfriend at the time could have never inspired the words he’d written. Part of him always knew Sara had figured it out as well, leaving Kit to wonder if that was one of the reasons she had broke it off with him.
“Don’t tell me you want me to go and get it.”
“No,” he smiled. “I believe you.”
Allowing himself to meet her gaze fully for the first time, he couldn’t help but let his smile grow as she closed the distance between them.
“Can I ask you a question?”
“Depends…”
“On what?”
Trying her best to hide her smile, Meghan watched as Kit nervously shifted as he watched her slip his glass from his grip before taking a sip.
He’d planned on pushing out a clever remark, but the closeness of their bodies was making it harder for him to process any other thought than the one of bending her over his kitchen table.
“How come you never kissed me back?” she asked setting the glass aside. “That night you took me to the airport, you never kissed me back.”
“I had Sara” was his immediate response, both of them knowing that wasn’t what stopped him.
“She’s not here anymore.”
Feeling his hand instinctively find her waist as she rested against him, Meghan stood on her toes bringing her lips to his. Leaving less than an inch between them, she watched as his eyes dropped down to her lips. The way he let his arm wrap around her waist to pull her closer to ensure that she didn’t pull away, and his free hand traced its way up her curves before slipping under her hair pulled her up onto her toes. Kissing his bottom lip, she burst into giggles as his body quickly reacted and her feet left the ground.
"Besides, maybe you need some more inspiration for your book" she said quietly, trying her best to suppress her giggles as he sat her on the table. Pulling at the belt around his waist, she brought a smile to his face as she met his gaze. "I have a whole summers worth."