It took the composer a few seconds before realization eventually dawned on him - he’d met this young woman a handful of times prior as a result of run-ins down in the mail room, but shame and embarrassment quickly washed over him as he also realized that he’d never properly introduced himself before. Being the hermit that he was that was always a possibility; meeting people and never reacting in a normal way, much preferring to brush them off as quickly as possible so as to get back to the musical world in his head, but now it was even worse with someone confronting him - albeit rather politely - about his racket and he didn’t even know her name. God, Roland’s mother would be so disappointed in him if she could see her awkward mess of a son now.
“Well, I do hope you’re not just saying that for my benefit, miss,” the man replied, only for his awkward smile to turn into a grimace as his puppy continued to bark. “My apologies for the music and now this little munchkin,” the composer went on as he bent down to pick the Corgi up in the hopes that might calm it down some. “The name’s Roland, by the way, and this hyper little pup is Chopin, who seems hellbent on saying hello now. Seems I still need to work on teaching him some manners, so I’m sorry if he ever starts bothering you too.” And finally a proper, warm smile graced Roland’s lips as he ruffled Chopin’s head with his free hand, his typical stoic demeanor melting away in mere moments just from looking at the puppy.
“Hm? Oh, right, the ruckus you came to confront me about.” For a handful of seconds his pet had distracted him so completely that he’d actually forgotten what he’d been doing before his neighbor had come over, but a quick glance over his shoulder to see where she indicated brought his work right back to the front of his mind. “I was trying to work on some music for a project that was commissioned to me - I’m a composer, you see, and I do a lot of the music for the smaller indie projects that can’t afford the price tag that comes with someone like, say, John Williams for instance. The problem is I’ve just had the worst time coming up with anything the last few days, as you well know now.” Roland returned his attention to the young woman before him again, an apologetic smile lining his lips once more as he just couldn’t stop feeling a little awful as he was sure he’d disrupted her night. “Are you sure I didn’t mess up your evening? Is there anything I can do to make it up to you at least regardless?”
Perhaps instinct drove her in a wrong direction, but Eliot’s lips curled into a smile when the corgi was pulled into the arms of her neighbor. Roland, he had said. “Well, Roland. It’s a pleasure to meet you. My name’s Eliot,” she managed to say before the topic shifted. Her hand extended gingerly to Chopin while Roland explained the ruckus from earlier, resisting a laugh when he had begun to lick her hand. Eliot could not withhold the amusement at his seriousness and attempt at an apology for what she had heard - though it had not disturbed her in the slightest - while his puppy seemed far more focused on making a new friend amidst the conversation. Just as she had seen Roland’s demeanor shift dramatically with the puppy in hand, she knew hers had certainly shifted away from one of concern.
She drew her hand away when his attention returned to her with a sheepish grin. “I can tell you with certainty that you did not mess up anything,” she said. Eliot gave a reassuring smile with a shrug. The next thing out of her mouth had been unexpected even to her and maybe it was the puppy’s energy rubbing off on her, but she couldn’t hold it back once it began. “Well... if you really want to make it up, how about allowing me to hear some of this music?” A blush crept on her cheeks at the suddenness of the request, though her shouldered rolled back and she cocked her head to the side. Eliot had just planned to stay in for the night to relax; this seemed far more worthy of her time.
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