Let Love In

The seconds slowly ticked by as Noah stared at the clock on the wall. Forty minutes until her shift was over, and then she could go home for the day. Time could not go by slow enough, the ticking of the clock mocked her as she concentrated on her work. The guys were going to be at her house in two hours, and she still had to clean up from her and Riley’s sleepover the night before. It was more of the past week or so’s worth of a sleepover, but regardless, she still needed to tidy up her room, put some extra blankets in the family room for anyone that chose to crash there, and also tidy up the guest bedroom. Noah made a list in her head of the things she still needed to do as she felt a tap on her shoulder from behind.

“Things are slowing down, and you seem anxious to get out of here. Clock out early and have a good weekend.” Her manager was smiling down at her, carrying a box, having stopped on his way to the back room.

“Oh yes, thank you, thank you, thank you! I will! You have a good weekend too!” Noah beamed as she made her way to the break room to gather her things and clock out. She raced home out of pure excitement and called Riley as soon as she shot through the door.

“Riley, I got off early so I just got home. How long until you get here? And have you heard from the guys yet? Call me!” Noah paused for a second to survey the house, taking out the garbage in the bathrooms and kitchen, pulling extra blankets from the hall closet to take downstairs, and Riley walked through the door right as she made her way to her room.

“Honeyyy, I’m homeeeee!” Riley stood in the hallway carrying a handful of shopping bags full of food and drinks.

“Oh Garrett, I’ve missed you so much!” Noah poked her head out into the hallway and rolled her eyes, taking the bags from Riley’s overfull arms. “Oh that’s funny Gare, when did you grow boobs and dye your hair blonde and get rid of your tattoos and look strangely like Riley? Oh that’s right, the guys aren’t here yet. Which means you still have time to clean up your half of the mess in my room.” Riley stuck her tongue out as she headed into the mess.

“Thanks for getting the food though! I appreciate it ‘cause I didn’t have time.” Noah dropped the bags on the counter and started unpacking everything. Her phone buzzed in her back pocket as she pulled various things out of the bags, putting things in the fridge or setting them aside on the counter for dinner. Garrett’s name flashed across the screen.

“Hey baby, are you almost here?” Noah continued to put a few things away as she answered, her face buried in the fridge to make room for the sodas.

“Knock knock…” Garrett poked his head through the kitchen doorway, a big grin spread across his face as he waited for her reaction.

“GARY!” Noah slammed the fridge door and ran straight into his arms, warranting an “oomf” from him after impact. The two stood engulfed in that bear hug and time stood still until Pat came around the corner. “H-hey Noah, um, sorry to uhh, bother you, but Riley said there was some soda in the fridge and pointed me this direction.”

Noah took a deep breath inhaling the tour smell emanating from Garrett’s body before she let go to respond. “Hi Pat, and yes. There’s plenty of soda in the fridge or on the counter. And Gary, you smell. You boys are welcome to use the showers, we have three bathrooms in this place. Oh, and also laundry too.” Garrett pulled her back into a hug, giving her a tight squeeze.

“I knew there was a reason I liked you. Thanks mom .” Noah playfully shoved him off and took a step back, following shortly behind Garrett as they made their way back toward the living room to join the rest of the group.

Tim pulled her aside as Garrett walked back outside to help unload things. “Hey Noah, thanks for letting us stay here. It was quite convenient for you to live here in SoCal. And I think the guys will benefit better from a home cooked meal and a house rather than a hotel.”

“Oh yeah, no problem. We’ve got three bathrooms for showers, a laundry room, which I’m sure you all could benefit from, a guest bedroom and a family room with lots of extra blankets, and a couple of different couches if people would rather crash here than at a hotel. I’m home virtually alone for two weeks, so this worked out almost perfectly time wise at least.”

“Ken and I are making a beer run, so get your requests and dollar bills in now!” John yelled as he shuffled through the front door, rolling his suitcase behind him. “Hey Noah, Riley said something about a-uh, guest room? Where is that exactly?”

“Right this way John, and here, I’ll carry that for you.” The two headed down the hallway, entering the guest room on the right. ”I assumed as much that Riley would be staying here and would call dibs on it for the two of you. Just promise me that you lock the door.”

“Thanks, and uhh, oh. Right. Will do.” His embarrassed chuckle brought a wave of relief to her that everything was going to be alright. Noah engulfed him in a hug after setting the suitcase down on the floor by the bed.

“What was that for?”

“She really loves you, y’know. You’re good for her. She’s happy, despite the whole long distance thing. Gives her something to really fight for.” John smiled down at her in response, sitting on the edge of the bed after letting go.

“Garrett loves you too. He might not always show it, and has a lot of baggage from his previous relationships, but he cares. A lot more than he lets on. He’s just not good at explaining his feelings sometimes. You’re good for him too.”

“Thanks John. I appreciate that, a lot. I’m glad you’re here and that you’re all safe.” Noah headed out the door and back down the hallway to sort out the mess of boys and luggage in her living room.