Redefine Me, Redesign Me

The next morning Ellie was slow to wake up. She knew that she wasn’t in her bed and quite frankly she was afraid to see where exactly she had ended up. She opened her eyes and found that she had successfully made it home last night, however she had not made it to her room. She sat up on one of the couches in the living room finding her jeans still on but her shirt nowhere to be found.

A faint breathing sound caused her to look over to the other couch where she found a nearly naked man. Ellie chewed on her bottom lip thinking over the events of last night searching for his name.

She remembered Lisa introducing her to several people but he had not been one of them. Ellie remembered meeting him in a kitchen but couldn’t for the life of her remember what his name was. She looked over the back of the couch finding a button up shirt that she remembered to be the nameless man’s strewn across the back. The dark gray t-shirt he had been wearing was on the floor in front of her. She didn’t see what it would hurt to put it on so she pulled the shirt over her head and stuffed her arms through the holes feeling slow and foggy.

She pushed herself up off the couch and walked past the sleeping half naked stranger and into the kitchen where she switched on her coffee pot. She walked back through the kitchen and into the living room and that’s when his name came back to her. Alex. How could she have forgotten?

Ellie walked over to the couch that had been her bed last night and grabbed the shirt only to throw it at Alex’s face as she sat down in one of the breakfast bar’s chairs.

“Put some clothes on,” she said scolding him as she picked up her phone to find that Mallory had called her several times the previous night.

“That is not what you were saying last night,” Alex said pulling his jeans up his legs.

“I’m pretty sure I wasn’t telling you to take them off,” Ellie shot back surprising herself at how comfortable she was with a complete stranger.

Alex scoffed from the couch standing and sliding his arms through the sleeves of his button up but not bothering to mess with the buttons. He passed Ellie and walked into the kitchen as the coffee maker sounded indicating the coffee was ready.

Ellie propped her elbow on the granite countertop of the breakfast bar resting her chin in her hand. She watched Alex completely unashamed and that was strange for her.

“Mugs?” Alex asked looking to Ellie with his thick eyebrows raised. She smirked and pointed to the cabinet right above the coffee pot. She watched as Alex reached up in the cabinet pulling out two mugs. His shirt was still hanging open leaving his chest and stomach fully exposed. He hadn’t bothered to zip or button his jeans either making it rather difficult for her to look away.

When her eyes roamed back up to his face she found him grinning. “Are you a sugar and milk kind of girl or do you have creamer?” he asked clearly satisfied that he had caught her staring.

Ellie was surprisingly unfazed by being caught. She pointed to the refrigerator, “Creamer is on the door,” she told him smiling easily.

Alex waltzed over to the refrigerator then gave the door a strange look. “Carmel or Mocha?” he asked eyeing the two bottles in front of him.

She had forgotten that she had bought the Mocha flavored creamer. “Carmel,” she answered him frowning at herself. Why on earth would she have bought Mocha flavored creamer? It has never been a flavor she really cared for and she knew exactly who had, and that bothered her even more.

“So tell me, Elle,” Alex said pouring coffee into the mugs, “When are you going to tell me about yourself?”

“I’m not,” she said taking the coffee cup from Alex murmuring her thanks.

Alex narrowed his eyes at her and leaned back on the island sipping his own coffee. “You will eventually,” he promised her.

Ellie was just about to send him a sarcastic retort when her phone started ringing and Lisa’s silly picture lit up the screen. She sent Alex and apologetic smile before she picked up her phone.

“Hel-“ she hadn’t even finished her greeting before Alex was snatching the phone out of her hand.

“Hello?” he said into the receiver.

“Would you give that back?” Ellie asked frowning at Alex.

He smirked at her as Lisa replied, “Alex?” she sounded confused, “I thought I called Ellie.”

“You did,” Alex replied easily moving around the counter to stand in front of Ellie.

She reached for her phone but Alex caught her hand in his easily.

“Oh so you met Ellie, I take it,” Lisa said clearly pleased that the two had managed to find each other at the party.

Alex pulled Ellie’s hand up pressing his lips lightly to the back of her hand. She quickly pulled it away from him but that didn’t faze Alex. He brushed her hair over her shoulder revealing the line of light hickeys that he had left there the previous night.

“That I did,” he told Lisa smirking and admiring his handy work.

Ellie smacked Alex’s hand away when he pressed his fingers to the bruises sending a dull throb through her neck. She took the phone from his hands and smacked his hand when he tried to take it back.

“You know this thing?” Ellie said into the phone as she frowned at Alex.

Lisa’s laugh floated through the phone. “How was last night?” Lisa asked her tone suggestive.

“Nothing happened,” Ellie said watching Alex make his way back around the breakfast bar and to his coffee, “Or for me nothing happened, Alex was barely clothed this morning he clearly was having more fun than I was.”

“Always the overachiever, that one,” Lisa said a smirk evident in her tone.

Alex faked a laugh over dramatically leaning back on his heels. Ellie couldn’t help but grin at him.

“You two seem to be getting along pretty well,” Lisa commented sounding excited.

“He’s mean,” Ellie said leaning on her elbow and resting her chin on her fist, “I don’t think I like him,” she added looking over to Alex who was wearing a face of mock offense.

“She adores me Lisa!” Alex shouted.

“Right well I’ll let the two of you hang out then,” Lisa said, “Call me later okay?”

Ellie shrugged her shoulders despite the fact that Lisa couldn’t see her, “I’ll think about it,” she teased.

Lisa laughed before they said their goodbyes hanging up the phone.

“So what are we doing today?” Alex asked after taking a gulp of his coffee.

Ellie did not know this guy very well but something told her that wouldn’t last for long with the way they were acting already. She knew that it wouldn’t bother her a bit to never see this guy again but something told her that making that apparent would only make Alex try harder.

“I have furniture shopping to do,” she said before taking a long drink from her mug.

Alex seemed confused looking around the place it seemed pretty furnished to him. “Really?” he asked wondering how many rooms the modest looking home had.

She nodded setting down her nearly empty mug, “Yeah two bedrooms,” she replied, “You wouldn’t happen to know of any thrift stores around here would you?” Having a local tag along wouldn’t be so bad right?

He nodded, “There are a few around,” he said shrugging, “So you’re looking for pre-owned furniture?”

She chewed on the inside of her cheek having a hard time putting together a coherent sentence with Alex strutting around the place baring everything in the open. She hopped off of her stool and made her way around the counter so that she was standing in front of Alex. He smirked down at her clearly glad that she was in close proximity but he wasn’t expecting her to reach up and begin buttoning the buttons of his shirt.

“I need used furniture because I like to make it my own but I’d like for it to have a little bit of character as well,” she told him as she finished buttoning up his shirt. She looked up to offer him a smile which he returned gladly despite how unhappy he was with her for buttoning up his shirt. His fingers went back to her neck where he brushed the hair away again.

“What is it with you and my neck?” she asked frowning at Alex.

He chuckled pulling out his phone and snapping a picture of the pink and purple skin and then showing her the photo. Ellie’s eyes bulged a little at the sight and she quickly pulled her hair back over her shoulder.

“Did you do that?” she asked looking up at Alex completely bewildered.

He chuckled pulling down the collar of his shirt she stole, Alex couldn’t say he minded, to revile more of his handy work. “I did,” he answered her nodding his head.

“I guess I’m not going shopping now,” Ellie said rolling her eyes. She had never been comfortable going out in public with such private marks on her body. “And zip up your pants,” she said taking a step away from him and pulling her collar away from Alex’s probing finger.

He smirked doing as he was told, he would probably do anything Ellie asked of him; though he would most likely give her a hard time about it. Alex may not have known this girl for long but he definitely knew that he wanted to spend more time with her.

“Nice shirt,” he complimented hoping to gain some sort of reaction out of her.

But Ellie simply shrugged her shoulders, “I have no idea what happed to mine,” she admitted still unable to remember small details from the night before.

“Elle?” he called her attention away from her coffee as she attempted to finish it off. Ellie raised an eyebrow in response unexpectedly finding herself growing fonder of the nickname. “Can I take you out next Friday?” Alex asked feeling his hands get clammy, which was weird because clammy hands meant one was nervous and Alex was never nervous around women.

Ellie rolled her eyes, “No,” she said shaking her head from side to side. She did not move to Baltimore just to get caught up in a relationship that was based off of one night at a party. Not to mention Ellie wasn’t sure that he was attractive because well he was or if it was because she knew how much her parents wouldn’t like him.

When she looked to his face she couldn’t help but feel bad, “Look, Alex,” she said sighing, “I barely know you, I barely know Baltimore.”

Alex scratched the back of his neck smiling to himself. “I’ll change your mind,” he promised leaning over and placing a kiss softly on Ellie’s cheek before moving past her and towards the door picking up his shoes as he went.

“Where are you going?” she asked trailing after him.

Alex laughed remembering that this exact conversation happened last night only reversed. “Home,” he answered her.

“Something tells me it’s not within walking distance,” Ellie said watching Alex open the front door.
Alex chuckled and shook his head, “Not really,” he said making a face.

She couldn’t keep herself from smiling at him. “Chill out for a second I’ll go get my shoes,” she said running up the stairs. Ellie slipped her feet into a random pair of flats.

When she came down stairs she grabbed her phone and wallet and found Alex standing by the door with his shoes on. She shook her head at him as he opened the door for her.

“You have good taste,” Alex commented as they slid into the leather interior of Ellie’s car.

“What do you mean?” she asked starting up the car and handing Alex her phone and wallet.

“Optima?” he said gesturing at the car in general, “It’s nice,” he added when she gave him a face.

“It was a gift,” she said bitterly pulling out of the driveway.

“Loaded family?” Alex asked as he messed with her phone getting the passcode wrong for the second time.

“I don’t talk about my family,” Ellie said, “and if you lock me out of my phone I will murder you.” She could see the smirk on Alex’s face as she came to a stop at the end of her street.

“You don’t talk about a lot of things,” he observed pointing to the right and punching in some random numbers on her phone and was just about to hit the ok button when Ellie snatched it from his hands erasing what he put in and entered her actual code handing it back to him. She turned right as he began snooping through her phone.

“You know no boundaries,” she commented seeing that he was looking through her pictures.

“Very true,” he said a smile evident in his voice, “Turn onto this road up here,” he said pointing to a road sign in the distance. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a picture of herself with Milo and Mallory. “Your dog?” he asked putting the photo in better view for her.

She shrugged her shoulders, “Family dog,” she answered feeling slightly uncomfortable.

“She’s definitely related to you,” he commented, “Sister?” he asked.

“I’m not answering that,” she said evading the question.

“Definitely sister,” he said nodding and still looking at the picture studying it. “She’s your younger sister right?” he asked. Ellie didn’t answer him instead she turned onto the road he had pointed at earlier. “She looks up to you, so either she sees you as stronger than her or you’re older,” he rattled off.

“You’re getting all of this from a picture?” she asked him waiting at another stop sign for him to tell her which way to go.

Alex smiled over at her pointing to the left, “A photo is worth a thousand words, Elle,” he told her.

“She’s my little sister, and the only reason I stayed in that town for as long as I did,” she said giving him more information than she had intended.

“Family issues but not with younger sister,” Alex said thinking out loud causing Ellie to chew on her lip.

“Can we not talk about my family?” she begged feeling her eyebrows pull together she sunk further into her seat taking one hand off the wheel to rub her temple.

Alex reached over taking her hand away from her head and holding it in between his much larger hands. Ellie chuckled to herself at how much more comfortable that action made her feel despite how awkward it should have been.

“How do you know Lisa?” he asked still messing with her phone.

She sighed feeling better about this subject. “Work,” she said honestly, “She’s pretty much the only person there that I could ever see myself being friends with.”

“I thought you were already friends,” he said sounding confused his thumb rubbing circles into the back of her hand.

Ellie shrugged turning where Alex nodded his head into a neighborhood. “I guess we are, I’ve only known her for three-ish weeks,” She hadn’t really thought about the friendship that had grown so easily between herself and Lisa. “I guess we spend a lot of time together,” she added thinking of how they go to lunch together every day and trying to count up the number of times they had been to each other’s houses since they’d met.

“That’s my house,” he said pointing to a very pretty stone front two story house that could have been three stories, for all she knew it could have a basement. Ellie pulled into his driveway almost sad that the car ride was over. “I’m glad you met her, by the way,” Alex said locking Ellie’s phone and putting it into one of her cup holders with her wallet.

Ellie chuckled at how absolutely carefree Alex was, saying anything he wanted. “Get out of my car,” she said attempting to pull her hand out of his, but Alex held it tighter. She was just about to say something sarcastic when Alex leaned over the middle console kissing her on the cheek.

For the first time all morning Ellie felt the heat of a blush rising up to her cheeks. Alex smiled letting go of her hand and climbing out of the car. “I’ll see you later,” he said holding the door open.

“I doubt it,” Ellie said smirking at the surprised look that flashed across his features.

“I hope you don’t mind being wrong,” he said smirking back as he shut the door.

Ellie shook her head pulling out of the driveway trying to avoid looking at Alex as he stood back sliding his hands in his pockets and watching her go.