When You & I Collide

Evie woke with optimism the next morning. Her head was still foggy and her stomach felt sensitive but it didn't dampen her spirits. She recalled last nights events in her head as she got ready that morning. The grey sky looming outside her window decided her dress code for the day; a grey thick tunic with opaque tights and knee high flat boots. She wore her hair down in soft chocolate curls and pulled out her make up bag. She smiled to herself in the mirror as she applied a thick layer of mascara. Tom had kissed her. Well, it could of been more had her stomach not regurgitated the 5 odd bottle of wine. She blushed, imagining what it would feel like to trace the lines of his abs, that never went unnoticed under his usual attire of thin cotton tops. She wanted to run her hands up his back, trace her lips across his chiseled jaw line, bite his soft plump top lip, wrap her legs around...
A soft knock at the door interrupted Evie's thoughts and she coughed loudly as if she were caught doing a criminal act. She opened the door and grinned broadly- if not a little cheesy- at tom.
'How you feelin?' Tom asked, a devilish smile playing at the corner of his mouth.
'Fine, great!' Evie stepped aside, motioning tom in to her room. He stepped in cautiously, looking around for a while before settling on the edge of her unkept bed.
'Good. Great' he mimicked her tone. Light, happy.
'So are you sure you're going to be ok here for the next two weeks? You got everything you need? I mean I can always book you a room or something closer if you need to?'
Evie racked her brain, trying to make sense of what tom was saying. She wasn't exactly hungover but the foggyness was still slowing her reaction times. She suddenly remembered a conversation from last week. Tom was going to Birmingham for the next two weeks to finish filming the final scenes of his latest movie. She swapped her pouty expression for another sheepish grin and replied.
'Oh right if course! Yeah, no that's fine. Great! It will give me some time to catch up on my diary and make some space free for your bookings. Plus I can start briefing Casey for her return. And I need to find somewhere to live...' Evie wished she hadn't said that last part. It made her sound so pathetic. She inwardly kicked herself, but was suprised by Toms sad expression. It was quickly replaced with his well known smirk.
'Well, at least you get peace from me eh?' He winked and picked up his suitcase, brushing past her, deliberately stopping a few inches from her, making her cheeks heat. Their faces were both serious at that moment, both looking for some kind of signal from the other, waiting for a response. Evie looked down, breaking eye contact ' look tom , last night I just wanted to say thank you, but I don't want you to think in some sort of charity case that needs to be made to feel good- ' toms phone started ringing at that point and their conversation was cut short by his taxi waiting outside. He continued talking on the phone whilst mimicking goodbye to Evie and closing the door behind him, leaving her in a deflated mood in an empty apartment.

******

Evie had long since changed back in to her sweats. She was reading a cecelia ahern novel, lying across the sofa with the TV on in the background. She had kept herself busy the rest of the day by doing some food shopping, stopping by Casey and Leo's place, and picking up a copy of Londons property newsletter but now she was chilling out. Her phone buzzed on the coffee table, and she lazily picked it up, not quite ready to drag her eyes from we book. It was about a woman that lived across the road from a guy she hated. But their angst for each other soon turns to an unlikely friendship. Evie could relate to that, she thought as she read the text message from tom.

'You are far from a charity case x'

Evie read the message over an over trying not to over interpret it. She tapped our her reply.

'No? In that case can I have your house?'

Good, she thought. Avoiding the elephant in the room.
She didn't have to wait long for a reply:

'You can stay as long as you like. I'm bored already on my own x'

Evie grinned, butterflies forming in her stomach. How had she not found him attractive right from the get go? Oh that's right, he was still a smarmy jackass, but at the moment she was victim to his charm.

'Well I'm having a blast here. Might ransack your hot tub and give you a nice water bill when your back x'

Evie placed her phone down and kicked herself off the sofa to make dinner. Once cooked, she brought her plate back to living room and picked her phone back up. She had a new message but her jacket potato stuck in her throat when she read the sender as Sam.

' it was great seeing you the other day eve. I miss you. Let me know when we can catch up again xxxx'

Her eyes widened in disbelief. Was he mental?! Evie shuddered as realised the answer to that question was already tracing along the bottom of her back. She thought she had made it quite clear she wouldn't be seeing him again. She pushed the thought to the back of her mind and spent the rest of the night checking her phone intermittently for a sign of Tom.

It was long after she had drifted off that night when she got a reply.

'Thanks for giving me something other than your lips to dream about tonight x' ....