It all started with Earl Gray

The rain fell around me faster now as I slowly walked down the street and I paused in front of the old book shop staring at my reflection in the window. I sighed and looked myself over. Lightening flashed. My pale skin stood out the most against the dark that fell around me. It made me seem weak and frail. My horribly frizzy brown hair was flat now and drooped around my shoulders as the rain fell harder. The eyeliner I used to make my dull eyes stand out was now smudged and streaking down my cheeks; I looked as horrible as I felt.
I was in love and lonely.
I sighed, wrapping my arms around my thin form; like I did every night in my cold bed where I would dream about him. Where I dreamt what it would be like to have his warmth around me. I turned when I heard footsteps approaching me and slowly I faced the direction of the sound; feeling my chest tighten and my arms fell to my sides. ‘Was it really him?’
I smiled slightly as I watched him walk slowly towards me, head tucked down, hat pulled tight over his head. He looked cold.
Our eyes met and I could have died. It was him.

*Bam’s POV*

My God he was…. Beautiful. The way his hair fell around his slender shoulders, clumps of it clinging to his pink cheeks. His large emerald eyes seeming to glow against his flawless skin; streaks of eyeliner ran down his cheeks. Was he crying? It had to just be the rain; either way he was the most enchanting creature alive. His red dress shirt clung to his chest, drenched with rain; showing almost every dip and curve of his lean torso. Reminding me of every dream I had ever had of him…
I wanted to speak. I tried to force the words out, but the only sound that made it through my lips was a little squeak. Inwardly I cursed at myself, ‘You’re such a girl, Margera.’
I smiled nudging the ground with my foot. Here I was face to face with the man and I still couldn’t say hi. Then something happened that chased the chill away and warmed me from the inside; I heard him speak.
“Hello… Bam.”
It was all he said, but it made butterflies flutter to life inside me. Did he just say my name? He did. He knew my name and that was a good thing, right?. Then I remembered the note; he knew my name and had given me his.
“H- hello… Ville.” I did it! I said hello! If I could have patted myself on the back I would have. It took me three months to say two words and now that I did I was shyer than ever.
I smiled and tried to ignore the fact that my cheeks were on fire; chewing my lip before he spoke again.
“So… Uh.. You look cold. W-would you like to come in and… get out of the rain?”
‘Did he just ask me into his place?’ I looked at him again and he smiled. Oh, that smile. Such perfect lips… How I would love to… I shook the thoughts from my head and looked at the old book store; eyeing our reflections for a moment. I never realized he was taller than me, then again I only saw him when one of us were sitting.
I should say no… I should just be happy with the ‘Hi’ and be on my way…Or should I?
I turned to him and shrugged, “Sure. How far is your place? I could go get my car...?”
He tipped his head slightly and looked at me before smiling. “I live here.” He pointed to the bookshop.
“You live in a book store?” I asked, looking back at the window.
“No.” He giggled and the sound went straight to my heart. “I live up there.” He pointed once more; only above the book store this time. “I own the shop though.”
“That would explain the different book every week.” I said, looking back at him. Again he looked at me like he was trying to read me. It made me feel uneasy and nervous… that was, until he smiled. Slowly he pulled a set of keys from his pocket and unlocked the front door to the shop before moving aside. “Go on in.” He urged, still smiling. “The stairs are in the back; I have to lock back up.”
I stepped to the side and slid past him. For a split second I could feel the warmth from his body while we made eye contact; and I wanted desperately to stay there.
“Umm.. Yeah.” He cleared his throat and pointed to the back. “It’s back around that bookshelf there.”
“Yeah. Ok.” I squeaked, slowly walking towards the back. The only light seeped in through the front windows. I walked slowly because all I needed to do was knock something over. I turn and looked over my shoulder.
There he stood bolting the door before he walked to the windows and pulled the shades down. The way he moved was poetry in motion; I could watch him for hours. Maybe even for the rest of my… life?
He turned and looked at me, smiling, as he walked past and pulled open a door I hadn’t even see before he started up the stairs. A second later his head popped out. “You coming or are you going to stay down there?”
‘Oh, how I would love to cum...’ Damn it! Stop thinking like that!
I followed him up the small stairway and paused behind him as he unlocked yet another door. His little ass wiggled in front of me as he tugged on the handle and shouldered the door.
“It gets stuck when it rains; the wood swells” He laughed and rammed the door again with a groan.
“Here, let me try.” I chuckled and started to move past him on the steps. Our bodies were flushed as we squeezed around each other and his hand went to my hip as he pushed past. It was like fire, like being touch by God himself. My body tingled and my heart slammed against my ribs, but it was gone just as quick. He was past me.
“Just turn the key and break the door down if you have to.” He said laughing. “I don’t want to spend all night on the stairwell.”
I felt a twinge crawl up my spine; I thought that his giggle was cute. His laughter sent me crashing into the abyss and there was no coming out. Not without him. I was so in love.
"I just might.” I laughed back, not really sure why I felt so comfortable around him already, but I was glad the nervousness was gone.
I turned the key and rammed my shoulder into the door. With a loud crack it flung open; the top hinge pulled away from the wall and I fell hard to the floor.
I moaned, rolling slightly on the floor as Ville took the last few steps and stood over me, laughing. “Are you okay, Bam?”

*Ville’s POV*

He rolled on the floor, vigorously rubbing his elbow. I couldn’t tell if he was whining or laughing. He looked so cute.
“Damn! Why do they call it a funny bone when it hurts so much?” He sat up and stretched his arm out a few times before looking up at the door.
“Oh man I’m sorry.”
I looked up at the door and shrugged. “It’s ok. Not the first time something around here has broken.” I looked back at him, giving him my hand to help him to his feet. “ I can fix it tomorrow.”
He gazed into my eyes as he took my hand and found his feet. His hand was strong and his skin rough. I felt a pulse run through me at his touch and I didn’t want to let go. Then his hand slipped from mine as he brushed himself off.
“I’ll pay for it.” he said, pushing the door back into placed and locking it. “I broke it. I’ll fix it.”
“No. it’s okay.” I replied. “I have parts for it here; I have to fix a lot of things in this old building.” I moved past him and into the kitchen. My apartment wasn’t anything great, rather small really. I had a kitchen, a bathroom, and one room that served as a living room and bedroom. I couldn’t complain though; it was free with the rent of the building. I looked over my shoulder, not seeing him behind me.
“You coming in or do you plan on staying in the door way all night?”
I peaked around the corner and saw him bent over, taking off his shoes. His perfect little round ass was sticking out at me as he slipped his socks off and laid them over his boots. I rolled my eyes. I really have to stop thinking like that.
I smiled when he looked back at me and stood up. His hair had already started to dry and fell into his eyes.
“Just taking my shoes off. Don’t want to track water and dirt inside”
I chuckled and stuck out my foot still encased in my boot. “Does it look like I care?”
“Well, it’s not my place.” He said simply, slipping his coat off. “Where can I put this?”
I took his coat from him and draped it over the heater. “ I’ll be right back. When I walked back to the kitchen he was standing in front of the fridge looking at all the pictures I had plastered on it; photos of me and my friends, maybe even an ex or two. I was taken aback by his smile; it grew brighter as he moved form picture to picture. I wonder if he knew how beautiful he was… His hair was a mop of dark curls and framed his handsome face perfectly. As I stood there I realized how much shorted he was than me and how tan is skin was; much darker than mine.
Silently I walked up behind him and small giggles erupted from his chest. I was sure it was over the picture of me on my friends shoulders. I was so close now, an inch or two more and our bodies would be touching. I wished I had the right to close that gap between us. He jumped when my hand shot past him and pointed to the picture.
”Oh Shit! I was… uh… Just looking.”
“It’s okay.” I smiled. “That is what they are there for.”
“So…Whose is this in the picture with you?“
He had pointed out a picture of me and my old boyfriend. It was a really cute picture of us; he had jumped on my back and kissed my cheek.
“Oh… Well… Um… That’s…”
“He’s very cute.“ Bam said softly. “ Where is he?“
I sighed and moved over to the table setting the towels down.
“That is your boyfriend… right?”
“Was my boyfriend; we broke up a year ago.“ I leaned over the heater, hands out, soaking up the warmth. He turned and slowly approached me. The closer he got the more nervous I became.
“Here.” He said, wrapping a towel around my shoulders. “I’m sorry, Ville. I didn’t mean to…”
”It’s okay.. I’m over it.” I sighed. Though really I wasn’t over him yet. He was once the most important thing in my life and, at one time, when we broke up I couldn’t handle seeing him with the boy he left me for. That was how I ended up here owning this shop. It was all to get away from him and yet every morning I looked at that picture. I tortured myself. I turned from the heater and moved over to the stove, grabbed the kettle . “Would you like some tea?”
“So you’re single now?”
I turned and looked at Bam; his cheeks were pink and he was chewing on his lip.
“Yeah.” I said with a sigh. “Been single for...” I thought for a moment and realized I had been single for a year… today. “ For a year now.”
“So how about you; do you have a girlfriend?” I asked in return.
I heard him move and turned to see him pulling his wet shirt over his shoulders. There was a load crash and I looked down to find the cup I had been holding shattered on the floor.
“Ville, you okay?” Bam asked rushing over. “What happened?”
I was still slightly dazed. I couldn’t tell him that the sight of his half naked body made my blood run hot. That just the sight of his back made me lose touch with reality and I had dropped the cup.
He bent down and started to pick up the pieces when I snapped out of it.
”I don’t know… I think I just knocked it off the counter.”
After the mess was cleaned up and I had drooled over the half naked man in my kitchen, I found myself digging through the cupboards.
”SHIT!” I yelled, slamming the cupboard shut.
Bam emerged from the bathroom, dry, and now, much to my disappointment, fully dressed.
“What’s wrong, Ville?”
I turned and leaned against the counter. “ I’m out of tea and I always have tea.”
Sighing, I turned the stove off and moved the kettle.
“Hey Ville?” Bam said softly.
I looked over at him and noticed him digging in his pocket, pulling his hand out and holding something in it.
“Here. The barkeeper asked me to give this to you.”
I held out my hand and watched as two tea bags dropped onto my palm.
I couldn’t help the smile that spread across my face. It wasn’t the fact that I now had tea; it was that he had given it to me.
“You had better have given this to me.“ I said trying to look as serious as I could with butterflies flittering around inside me. “I paid for it.”
Bam looked at me, eyebrow raised.
‘Oh, God, stop it Bam…You have no idea what you are doing to me.’
"Okay... You’re welcome?" He said, still looking a bit confused.
I couldn’t hold it. I laughed.
“No, no, thanks, Bam. Really, this is very sweet. Now, care for some tea?”
Bam sighed and grabbed his coat. “It stopped raining… I should really be going.”
I smiled running my fingers through my hair before looking back at him.
“Uh...Okay...Yeah. I’m sure you have things to do.”
He was gazing at me, head resting against the door frame.
“Thanks for letting me dry off and for some good conversation.” He held out his hand, waiting for me to shake it.
I looked away for a moment. Why did I feel like my heart was breaking? What did I think? That he would never leave? Move in tonight and hold me forever?
I cleared my throat and tuned to face him. “Hey, no problem, I’m sure you would have done the same.”
I reached out to take his hand, but he grabbed my wrist and pulled me swiftly to him. Chest to chest, I gazed into the deep blue pools before me.
His cheeks flushed and he looked so scared of what he just did. Slowly his arms wrapped around me; one hand gently holding the back of my head, tangled in my hair while the other snaked around my waist to pull me closer.
I froze; eyes wide. My cheek rested against his shoulder and I could feel our hearts beating against each other, our chests heaving in unison . I let my eyes close and melted into him. Gently I wrapped my arms around his waist. Not pulling, not pushing, just holding; letting his warmth surround me.
As soon as I got comfortable he was gone; he released me quickly and vanished out the door. I stood, dazed, and at a total loss for words. I knew I had to go back down stairs and lock up after he left, but I couldn’t move. His warmth still clung to my clothes. I could still feel his hand on my back, the smell of his hair. If I moved it would be gone all too soon and I wanted to hold on to it for as long as I could.
I jumped slightly when I heard the door downstairs close and rushed to the window. My heart leapt when he turned and looked up, before slowly walking away. Oh dear God... What was I going to do now?