Storm Warning

The sheer volume of ads on Craigslist is intimidating.

She had hoped finding a place to live would be easy, but with each and every posting, she's becoming less and less optimistic. Every single one of them sounds like some creep who could possibly steal her skin and wear it as a suit and she is so not down for that. There's always the option of renting her own place, but she's always tried to keep from doing that because having a roommate makes her feel a little less lonely.

After one final ad posted by some pervert who's just looking for a live-in fuck buddy, Lyla officially gives up the search for the day and closes her laptop to get dressed. She trades her white towel for some burgundy jeans and a too big sweater and after she's slipped her feet into her boots, she grabs some essentials from the nightstand (room key, cash, phone) and heads out to do some more exploring.

It's Friday so the streets are slightly more populated and the traffic is a little bit worse, but she sets out in the opposite direction from the way she went yesterday. After walking around for about an hour, her stomach starts to growl so she decides to search for someplace to grab some lunch. She's already passed a Chinese restaurant that smelled incredible, but she's seriously craving a burger so she keeps walking until she finds the first place that serves them.

She stops outside a storefront, all faded brick with a glowing neon open sign in the window. It's a sports bar, that much is obvious from the numerous televisions lining the walls inside, but the outside wouldn't give it away. It's simply dubbed Coop's and it's way too tempting.

She can't help herself and before she realizes what she's doing, she's opening the door and walking inside. Every huge plasma television is playing some type of sports coverage or news but the tvs up front behind the bar are the ones playing hockey highlights from last night's games so she opts to grab a seat up there instead of at one of the empty tables scattered around. She slides onto one of the bar stools, her eyes fixated on the screen directly in front of her and a face she immediately recognizes. Jeff had told her they'd been on a losing streak, but she still winces as last night's final score pops up over the footage.

"Hockey fan?" someone asks and when she tears her eyes away from the television, there's a man standing behind the bar in front of her. He's tall and broad shouldered with bright green eyes and a beanie pulled over his dark hair.

"Not really," she shrugs.

A friendly smile stretches across his scruffy face and his fingers tap out a rhythm on the hard wooden surface where his hands are planted. "Can I get you something to drink?"

"Coke please."

He nods as he turns away from her and she takes a moment to look around more. There's only one other person sitting at the bar, three stools down from hers, and he looks mildly irritated. He's young, probably around her age, and looks kind of similar to the man currently filling a glass with Coca-Cola for her. He too has a beanie covering his hair but even though it's February, he's only wearing a short sleeve tee shirt, exposing the bottoms of some pretty massive tattoos.

The first man sets her drink down in front of her, along with a leather-bound menu and says he'll be back in a minute before he heads back toward the kitchen, but Lyla sees him reach out to smack the boy at the bar on his way. He scowls while the other laughs and disappears through the double doors. Lyla scans the menu while he's gone and when he returns she orders then hands it back over.

"So, you new around here?" he asks casually, taking the menu from her hands. She must make a face at him because he chuckles and adds, "Your accent."

"Oh," she says, more to herself than to him, because she keeps forgetting that apparently she sounds much different than everyone else around here. It's just not something that she ever realizes until people point it out to her. "Yeah, I just got into town on Wednesday."

"Visiting?"

"No, moving."

"Oh, nice. You living uptown?"

"Don't know yet. Right now I'm at a hotel."

"What kind of place you looking for?"

"I'm not really picky, I guess. It'd be nice to have a roommate, but after seeing what's out there on Craigslist, that doesn't seem too promising."

He hums his agreement and glances down to the only other person at the bar. "Kyle, come 'ere."

"What?" Kyle grumbles, not even bothering to look away from the television in front of him.

"What's your name?" the guy behind the bar asks her softly.

"Lyla."

"That's pretty. I'm Cash," he smiles before looking back at Kyle. "Hey assface, this is Lyla and she's new in town. Looking for a new place."

They have Kyle's attention now. He moves down from his seat to the one next to her, offering his hand to her as he introduces himself, and she smiles as she shakes it. "So you're looking for a place to live?"

"I am, yeah. Know any?"

"Before I say yes, tell me, are you an ax murderer?"

"Will it disappoint you if I say no?"

He cracks a smile at her while Cash barks out a laugh, declaring that he likes her already. Kyle nods his head in agreement but he still has more questions for her. She is still a stranger, after all.

"Are you a drug dealer?"

"Why, is there something you need?" She watches his eyes widen slightly, unsure of whether or not she's kidding, but she just laughs. "That was a joke. I'm not a drug dealer, I promise."

"Running from the cops?"

"Nope."

"Crazy?"

"Nope."

"Messy?"

"God, no. I can't stand a mess."

"Do you cook?"

"I've been known to from time to time."

"Smoke?"

"Rarely."

"Drink?"

"Less rarely."

Kyle looks over at Cash, seemingly satisfied with her answers, and Cash shrugs, giving him a grin in return. Lyla eyes the two of them, unimpressed by their nonverbal but obvious communication. "Are you two brothers?"

"Unfortunately," Cash snorts. "He's two years younger and a hell of a lot more annoying."

"Fuck off," Kyle grumbles in return, and Cash disappears into the kitchen again but only because her food should be ready. "So, to answer your question, I may know a place."

"Oh yeah?" she asks, sipping her drink. "Where is it?"

"Upstairs, actually. Want to go check it out?"

"Really?"

"Yeah," he chuckles.

"Then hell yeah!" she exclaims, but as soon as Cash returns carrying a large plate, she licks her lips in anticipation. "But first, I'm gonna obliterate this."

The three of them talk the whole time she's eating, mostly the two guys making fun of her for doing 'weird shit' to her burger, like smothering it in ranch sauce and honey mustard. She just shrugs them off because that's how she's eaten it for as long as she can remember. It was the brainchild of her father. She pays for her meal when she's done and says goodbye to Cash, letting Kyle lead the way up to his apartment.

They have to walk outside the restaurant and over to the heavy black metal door right next to it in order to get to the elevator that takes them up to the second floor of the building. Kyle informs her as they step off the elevator and into the hallway that his is the only one on this floor and that Cash lives on the next floor up. It's convenient for both of them to live above the bar, but they each have their own space. He slides his key into the lock of the teal front door and then pushes it open, letting her walk inside first.

The loft is gorgeous. It has restored honey colored wood floors and exposed faded brick walls that match the exterior of the building. The far wall is nothing but windows, which makes it bright and sunny all throughout. The living room is furnished with a huge brown leather sectional, a few arm chairs, and a flat screen television. It's open to the kitchen, all industrial looking with stainless steel appliances and cabinets and wooden counter tops, only a long glass and wrought iron table fit for ten separating the two spaces. She understands now why he asked if she was messy, because the entire loft is immaculate. It's hard to believe a guy in his early twenties lives there. Kyle leads her through the open areas until they come to a set of three doors on the left, next to the dining table.

The first one is his bedroom, the bigger of the two, with its tall windows and sleek designer furniture straight from the pages of a magazine. The middle door is a very spacious bathroom that continues the industrial-slash-rustic feel of the place with its exposed brick wall but clashes beautifully with the modern style of the rest of it. There's not only a spacious glass and marble shower, but also a claw foot tub and she already can't wait to take a bath in it. The bedroom, her bedroom, is perfect. The same brick walls and wood flooring continue there and the windows let in tons of light. There's a comfy-looking queen size bed decked out in nice linens and stacked with plush pillows with a little night stand. A small metal lamp sits atop a long white wooden dresser on the opposite wall from the bed next to a gray arm chair.

"What do you think?" Kyle asks once she's been staring at her new abode in awe for a few minutes.

"Can I move in tomorrow?"

He chuckles at her enthusiasm. "Actually, yeah, that works. I can help if you need me to?"

"I don't have that much stuff," she replies, shaking her head. "But thanks."

"Alright. But if you change your mind...."

"Oh, and not that it matters what you say at this point because I'm so not living anywhere else, but what about rent? And do you need like a security deposit or anything? A few months upfront?" She pulls her phone from her pocket, momentarily ignoring a text from Erica as she checks the time. "If you do, I need to go find an ATM."

"To be honest, I don't really need any. I mean, my family owns the building so Cash and I live her for free. The only thing we have to pay for is like water, power, cable, stuff like that. We already split the wifi every month so that's taken care of but if you wanted to chip in with the utilities, that's pretty much it. And food too, I guess. I eat a lot and I'm pretty stingy with my food. Just a heads up."

Lyla laughs. "Okay, fair enough. Are you sure though? I mean, I hate not to pay anything."

"I'm sure," he shrugs. "I'm just glad to have a roommate again. A normal one. You wouldn't believe the freaks out there."

"Oh, I was on Craigslist this morning. I do believe it."

He laughs, nodding his head, and looks over at the large steel clock on the wall. "So, tomorrow. Any specific time?"

"Whenever's convenient for you."

"I help Cash downstairs all day on Saturdays, but I'll be able to duck out when it's slow. So I'd say sometime after 2 if that works for you."

"Yeah, that's fine."

"Alright. I'll get you a key made this afternoon."

"Sounds good. See you tomorrow then?"

"Yep. Around 2."

"Around 2," she repeats, nodding in confirmation. "Okay. Well thank you so much!"

He's surprised when she throws her arms around him in a hug but he just laughs and returns it for a moment before letting her go. She grins and waves goodbye as she slips out the door and waits until she gets into the elevator to finally read Erica's text.

Pizza. Movies. Our room. 8pm.

It's a date!

-

"Do you have any threes?"

"Uhh...go fish."

Jillian groans, tossing her cards onto the bed and flopping over into Lyla's lap dramatically. "I'm so hungry. Where's that frickin' pizza?"

Lyla laughs at her but Erica only rolls her eyes. "God, stop whining. If you had gotten your butt out of bed to go eat lunch like the rest of us, you wouldn't be dying of starvation right now."

There's a knock on the door and Jillian gasps, springing up from the bed to be the first one there to answer it. It's unfortunate though because she appears around the corner only a few seconds later with a frown on her face. "It's not pizza," she informs the two girls sadly as she slumps back down into her previous spot. Lyla didn't see him there until Jillian had laid back down, but Jeff is standing at the foot of the bed with his hands stuffed into his coat pockets and a shy smile on his face.

"Jeffy!" Erica grins excitedly. "We didn't know you were coming by."

"Yeah, I know, sorry. I just-..."

"Come 'ere," she commands, pulling him over by his sleeve until he's standing between her and Lyla. "Sit. You can play Jillian's hand. She sucks anyway."

"Screw you, I'm hungry," Jillian retorts into her pillow.

Lyla chuckles once again at the youngest sibling and scoots over closer to her to make room for Jeff on the small double bed while he shrugs out of his jacket and tosses it into the empty chair. He tries not to focus on their vicinity as he plops down and picks up the cards Jillian had been holding, but it's impossible not to when he can smell her cherry blossom shampoo and literally feel the warmth radiating off of her.

They finish the game, but Jeff doesn't fare much better than Jillian would have. He's too busy trying to steal glances at the girl next to him and wondering how she could be so effortlessly beautiful in a sweater that's two sizes too big and a pair of shorts that are two sizes too small. Erica catches him in the act a few times, but she doesn't call him out on it. Instead, she just gives him a knowing smirk and he rolls his eyes in return, but his whole faces flushes in embarrassment.

Jillian couldn't be happier when the pizza finally arrives and as they're eating, Erica decides she's going to pull more information out of Lyla, if only for her brother's sake. She knows he's hopelessly smitten already, but he's not bold enough to ask her on his own so she decides to help him out.

"So, Lyla, have you started looking at places yet?"

"Mm, I meant to tell you already! I'm out of here tomorrow afternoon."

"What?" Jeff can't help but ask, a surge of panic rising up in him.

"Yeah, I actually found a place earlier this afternoon and my new roommate's letting me move in right away."

"That's great!" Jillian exclaims, throwing her brother a sideways glance and a grin. "So you're gonna be pretty close by?"

"Yep," Lyla nods, peeling a pepperoni off her slice and popping it into her mouth. "It's, like, a mile or two away? I'm not sure really. I kind of just stumbled upon it."

"Do you need help moving in?" Jeff asks her quietly, and he's surprised he actually had the courage to ask, as are both his sisters.

She smiles and shakes her head. "I dont have a lot of stuff, so it's not that big of a deal. But it's so sweet of you to offer." He blushes again and Lyla thinks it's absolutely adorable but she doesn't say anything because it'll only make him turn even redder. Instead, she turns to the girls. "When are you leaving?"

"Flight's Monday afternoon," Jillian answers because Erica's stuffing her face with pizza crust.

"You'll have to come check it out on Sunday then," she tells them and they both agree enthusiastically.

Once the pizza box is empty, Jillian puts the movie on and Lyla moves over to the second bed so that she can stretch out more and see the television, unobstructed. Erica's quick with an idea and she shoves her brother's shoulder. "Go sit over there. I wanna lay down and your giant ass is crowding me."

Jeff shoots her a look because he doesn't want Lyla to be suspicious and he also doesn't want to intrude on her personal space, but she just smiles when he gets up from his spot next to his sister so he walks around to sit on the empty side of the other bed. She leans her back against the headboard and stretches her legs out in front of her, crossing her ankles as the movie starts and that's pretty much the only thing he can focus on. Her legs are extremely long and perfectly toned and he finds himself staring at them for pretty much the entire movie. Every time she moves even the slightest bit, his eyes shift back to her.

By the second movie, she's slouched down a little and leaned her head back so he can't look at her as easily, but it isn't too long before she falls asleep and slumps against him, her head resting on his shoulder. He tenses at the contact; this isn't the first time she's touched him but it's more than a quick handshake. He can feel her warm breath through the material of his thin tee shirt, her long hair tickling his skin, and now that she's so close, he's practically engulfed in her scent. His roommate is definitely going to give him shit when he comes home smelling like her but the only thing he's focused on now is the beautiful girl lying on him.

Erica has to wave her hand in front of his face to get him to snap out of it, and when he does, he realizes that the movie is over and it's just past one in the morning. He isn't sure how he should try to wake Lyla up but eventually settles on gently squeezing her hand as he says her name. Her eyes flutter open instantly and she tilts her head up to look at him, finding that their faces are mere inches apart. She smiles sleepily and sits up, apologizing for falling asleep on him and then she yawns as she slowly climbs off the bed and stretches.

Jeff pulls his jacket back on as Lyla says goodbye to his sisters, deciding it's probably time for him to go too, and she grabs her room key from the table before following him out the door. He stops with her at her door to make sure she gets inside okay, but the last thing he expects is for her to place a hand on his chest and lean in to kiss his cheek. He freezes in surprise, blushing for the millionth time of the night, but she just smiles sleepily and says goodnight before slipping into her room.