Tasha was madly in love with the guy who lived in number 201, the apartment across from her own. The only problem was, she’d never seen him.
She only knew a few things:
Every morning he went running bright and early because, by the time she picked up her paper, his dirty running sneakers were resting against the wall outside of his door.
He’d had the same little potted plant in his window for a year, somehow managing to keep it alive all this time.
He had curly hair. She’d spotted him leaving his apartment and walking down the stairs as she closed her door one day. She hadn’t looked fast enough, only seeing the gentle bounce of the curls as he walked.
He came home drunk at least once per weekend. He was never belligerent, never caused any trouble. He’d just had a little too much to drink, was a little giggly, a little tired.
She sat in her apartment, drinking her wine and wishing she had a reason to go and knock on his door. She wracked her brain but couldn’t think of any excuse.
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Jay was madly in love with the girl who lived in number 202, the apartment across from his own. The only problem was, he’d never seen her.
He only knew a few things:
She loved Chinese food. He’d heard the delivery man knocking on her door most Sunday nights and every time he thought about how it would be the perfect end to a weekend. He would be sitting on the couch, a plate of rice in his hand and her feet in his lap. They’d laugh, they’d drink wine…
Speaking of wine, that was another thing she loved. Every Tuesday they would have to put out their recycling bins. And hers always contained one of two wine bottles. That was another thing he’d like to share with her…
She had a dog. He was a pretty little golden retriever that went by the name of Sawyer and Jay would hear the tag on his collar jingling through the hallway when they came back from their walks.
He knew that she didn’t go out drinking often but, when she did, her giggle would be ringing through the hallway when she came home.
He sat in his apartment, drinking his guinness and wishing he had a reason to go and knock on his door. He wracked his brain but couldn’t think of any excuse.
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Tasha walked down the stairs, laundry basket in hand. It was Valentine’s Day and, as usual, she was alone. She didn’t mind it as much as most people did, but no one really liked sleeping alone.
She walked into the laundry room and plopped her basket down in front of a washing machine. She pulled out her clothing, separating the whites and darks. She had to do a separate delicates wash for her underwear, which was hidden in the bottom of the basket.
As she was placing a few sweaters into the washer, the door to the laundry room opened. She nearly dropped the clothes on the floor when she realized who it was. It had to be him, it just had to be. She could recognize that curly hair anywhere.
She felt her cheeks flush as their eyes met and she turned back to her clothing. He moved to stand next to her, setting his hamper down and opening a washing machine door. She heard him let out a sigh and saw him turn towards her in her peripheral vision.
“Um...I’m sorry, could I possibly borrow some detergent? I guess I ran out…” he said quietly. Nice one, Jay, he thought to himself. He had a full bottle of detergent sitting in his basket but she didn’t need to know that, did she? Now if only he could be smoother about this whole thing.
“Oh! Of course!” she managed to say, voice shaking. She reached down to grab her detergent and his gaze followed her, landing on her basket. He blushed and looked away until she handed him the bottle, muttering his thanks.
What…? Dammit, she thought to herself. She looked back down at her basket and realized that all of the clothes had been emptied out, leaving only a pile of bras and panties. She let out a silent “thank you” when she saw the ones on top were cute and lacy but was still absolutely mortified.
They stayed silent for a while, filling their respective washers. Tasha tried but failed to think of something to say to him. Jay went through his mental catalogue of pick-up lines but realized that she deserved better than that. He was startled when he heard her voice again.
“I’m sorry and...oh my god this is going to sound so creepy but...do you live in apartment 201?”
He couldn’t help it, he smiled. “Yeah. You’re in number 202, aren’t you?”
She nodded, turning back to her laundry. She put in her quarters, poured some detergent in, and let the washer start. He did the same and, as she was leaving, she turned back towards him, her laundry basket resting on her hip.
“Our laundry won’t be ready to go into the dryer for another hour. I have to take my dog for a walk. Would you like to...come with me?”
“I’d love to,” he replied with a smile. They walked up the stairs together and went into their apartments. Jay grabbed his jacket, placing his keys in the pocket and looking in the mirror before he left again. Tasha put Sawyer on his leash and walked back into the hallway.
“Ready to go?” Jay asked.
I guess I have a date for Valentine’s Day after all, Tasha thought to herself as she nodded and Sawyer ran up to Jay and jumped on him.