“My mom once told me that the best things in life are the unexpected ones. As a 7 year old, I never really cared about what that meant – I mean, the best things then came from my mother’s shopping bags when she came home from the mall. . .”

Blake sighed, re-read the paragraph, and pressed down on the backspace key. She leaned back in her hard wooden seat and pressed her fingers against her temples trying to massage the pounding headache forming behind her eyes. Hours had been spent on the beginning of this  paper for her stupid graduate class and somehow she still found herself on the first paragraph.

“That’s it! I’m just going to fail the damn paper and fail the whole class and end up with the homeless person on Park Avenue!” Blake cried hopelessly and shot up from her chair, nearly knocking it over with her sudden movement, and marched through her living room and down the small hallway that led to her tiny purple bathroom.

She clamped her hands on either side of the cold ceramic sink and stared at her reflection in the mirror. Bags under her eyes, yesterday’s mascara smudged everywhere, and her hair like a rat’s nest piled on top of her head.

“Jeez, I look like a hot mess!” Blake scolded herself and looked at the little clock on top of her toilet and shrugged her shoulders, it was almost 8:45 pm. “Too late now!”

Blake slowly opened her face wash and splashed her face with warm water. When she finished drying herself she left her bathroom and ambled down the remainder of the hallway, stopping in the doorway of her to bedroom to survey the pale white walls and light blue accents of her room that looked especially dark now that the sun had gone down, the only lighting in her room being the  fluorescent street lamps lining the busy New York City street below. She strode over to her closet and pulled out her pajamas; a large menswear button down and a pair of tight boxer briefs.

After changing, Blake turned down her bed, but not after wishing she had a maid to do it for her, and then went back to her kitchen, where she put a pot of water on the old burner, and grabbed her laptop to put back in her room. When she had almost reached her room, mug of tea in hand, when she heard an unexpected knock on her front door.

“Who the hell is that?” Blake wondered aloud, annoyed at this late night call, but hurriedly put her tea and computer on her side table and rushed back down the hallway to the front door. She unlocked it and cracked it open, peaking out to see who was in the hallway.

“Yeah?” Blake asked and opened the door wider to get a better look at her visitor. “Can I help you?” she asked in an annoyed voice.

“Uh – oh yeah! Hi! Yes I’m a little lost – uh – is Apartment 221 on this floor?” the visitor asked quickly and then slid his eyes indiscreetly down to Blake’s legs.  Blake glanced down and was harshly reminded that she was only wearing her underwear. Suddenly, she felt as though her thighs expanded to the size of tree trunks. She pulled down her blouse and felt her cheeks warm up.

“Yes, down the hall on the left,” Blake answered, her cheeks still bright red, and leaned out of her room to point down the hall.

“Great thanks,” the guy said gratefully and flashed Blake a smile. He picked up his worn suitcase and started walking down the hall. “I’m Adam, by the way, Adam Foster,” he said and turned back to look at Blake. She nodded, gave him a tight lipped grin and closed her door. Blake stood, her back pressed against the heavy door of her apartment, and groaned. She quickly shook her head and walked back to her room.

-

Blake found herself sitting again at her kitchen table the next day, desperately trying to type her paper, the New York City bustle outside her window acting as her soundtrack. She finally closed her computer in satisfaction when she had three paragraphs and looked around her apartment. The giant windows that looked down onto the bustling city street let in a cheery mid-day glow that lit up her living room. She had stacks of fashion magazines on her coffee table and an old mug from a long gone cup of tea. Her bookshelves were piled with all sorts of books, and the walls were filled with black and white photos of Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Brigitte Bardot, and Marilyn Monroe – some of her idols. Blake’s kitchen was a tiny rectangular room that was off the living room, by her kitchen table, which was only big enough to fit her, her old refrigerator and even older oven.

Blake stood up and went into her kitchen, determined to find lunch and heard someone knocking loudly on her door. She closed  her refrigerator in aggravation and went to open the door, annoyed that someone had interrupted her search for food.

When she opened her door she was surprised to be met with the steely gray eyes of none other than Adam Foster. His floppy brown hair fell into his face, which he hastily brushed out of the way when the door opened.

“Yes?” Blake asked, surprised but not necessarily disappointed that Adam was standing in her doorway once again.

“Hey – um – funny story but last night I forgot to take my key out with me and I – uh – can’t get in my – room,” Adam spit out. Blake guffawed.

“You’re just getting home?” she chuckled. Adam nodded and rubbed his tired eyes. Blake noticed his clothes were rumpled and she got an unpleasantly strong whiff of B.O.

“Can you let me in?” Adam asked and Blake stepped back into her room, opened the small drawer of the wooden table next to her door, and pulled out the set of keys she had for every door on her floor, given to her by the previous owner of the apartment. When Adam saw them his eyes lit up and Blake smirked.

“C’mon, I’ll let you in,” she said and started towards Adam’s apartment. When he was finally let in she walked back to her room, closed her door tightly and went back to her search for lunch.

-

Adam’s first order of business was to take a shower. He had seen the look of disgust on her face when she caught the scent of his natural manly odor. He went to his bathroom and ran the hot water, stripped off his dirty clothes, and hopped in the steamy shower.

After he had put on new clothes, Adam went to his refrigerator and peered inside. Nothing to eat. Adam sighed, annoyed at his own immaturity.

“Who doesn’t buy groceries when they move somewhere?” he asked himself. “You don’t Adam, because you’re a stupid, stupid boy who believes he will never get hungry.” Adam slammed his fridge door shut and looked around his sparsely furnished apartment in search of his jacket.

Finally he found it, slid it on and left his apartment, heading for the cafe down the road. On his way down the corridor towards the elevator, he pulled out his phone and texted his friends to meet him. As Adam was finally leaving he noticed a wave of auburn curls and turned to see the familiar figure of his new neighbor rushing to catch an elevator. Before he could say anything, she had disappeared behind the rapidly closing doors. Adam’s heart squeezed and he felt a pang of disappointment. Before he could dwell on it, however, he shrugged and headed for the cafe for lunch.

“Hey, my man!” a loud voice with a heavy Brooklyn accent cried out. Adam smiled at Vince, who was sitting together at a small table with Adam’s friends, Mark and Jake.

“Hey guys,” Adam responded and went to go sit with them. Vince scooted closer to Mark to make room for Adam.

“So, how’s the new building?” Mark asked and slyly looked at Vince and Jake.

“Fine,” Adam answered, confused by the sly glances that were being exchanged.

“Have you met any . . . Ladies?” Jake mused and leaned over the table towards Adam. Adam blushed and shrugged.

“So you did meet someone?” Vince asked and playfully elbowed Adam. “Don’t leave out the details!”

“No it’s nothing,” Adam tried to say, and quickly busied himself with the food that had been placed in front of him.

“Adam I am a man of many talents and I know when you’re lying,” Vince persisted and Jake and Mark nodded in agreement.

“Ok! Fine! There is this one girl,” Adam trailed off and thought about the one girl he had met. Her auburn curls, beautiful green eyes, and her caramel colored legs.

“And her name is?” Mark persisted, eager to hear more of the story.

Adam started to say something but stopped – he never thought to ask for her name. “I never got her name,” he said, embarrassed at his ignorance.

“Oh! So a one-night stand kind of thing! I can respect that,” Vince said and clapped his hand down on Adam’s shoulder, causing him to flinch. “You have absolutely no furniture in your apartment though, did you go to her place?” Vince continued, his accented voice thick with curiosity.

“What? No! Vince I just met her we didn’t hook up!” Adam quickly clarified and the group groaned in disappointment.
“Where did we go wrong?” Jake muttered dramatically to Mark and Vince grumbled about not teaching the ways of a man to Adam.

“Hey guys, she just lives a few doors down from me!” Adam declared.

-

Adam rested his head against the plush side of the elevator as it rose to the fifth floor of his building. Finally he could just focus on cleaning up his apartment and getting everything organized. When the thick metal doors of the elevator finally slid open, Adam stepped into the dimly lit hallway of his floor. The lights on the walls shed a golden haze on the scarlet walls and dark carpet. Adam ambled towards his door. He grasped the metal handle firmly and tried to open it. To his dismay, it wouldn’t budge.

“No problem,”Adam muttered to himself, “I just have to get my . . .key.” Adam dug his hands into the pocket of his coat. Nothing. He reached into his jeans pocket and again, felt nothing.

“Crap. Oh crap, crap, crap!” Adam muttered frantically and looked around the hallway, hoping that his keys would magically appear in midair. He stomped his foot in frustration and let out another string of profanities. Then, an idea popped into his head. Adam looked down the hallway at the only other door he had stopped at on this floor. It was her room. Adam brushed his hair out of his eyes, took a breath, and started down the corridor. When he got to her door, he took a deep breath, folded his hand into a fist, and rapped on the door.

Adam stood helplessly in the hall for what seemed like ages before he heard the cheery clicks of a lock being pulled back. He sighed in relief when the door creaked open and the comforting mop of auburn curls appeared on the other side.

“Adam?” she said softly, obviously taken aback by his visit. Adam grinned and nodded.

“Yea - uh - funny story, I got locked out again,” Adam laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his neck with one hand while the other was stuffed in his pocket. The girl smirked and opened her side table to grab her keys.

“Let’s go,” she said and started walking towards Adam’s room. He followed her and grinned. She was wearing jeans and a billowing blouse with navy and white stripes. Her auburn curls were let loose and cascaded down her back.

“So, hey, I never got your name,” Adam prompted and the girl turned around to look at him.

“Blake,” she chirped and continued to walk down the hall, the keys jingling in her hand. They reached Adam’s door and she quickly inserted Adam’s key into the lock and pushed the door open.

“It’s a good idea to carry your key with you,” she remarked and held the door open for Adam.

“I’ll keep that in mind Blake,” Adam responded and stepped into his room. Blake quickly turned on her heel and strode back to her room. Adam smiled and closed his door once he heard the slam of Blake’s.

“Blake,” Adam mused and smiled again. For some reason, her presence sent Adam through a wave of emotions, mostly good, and some strange and unfamiliar. “Blake.”

-

When Blake had opened her door to see Adam standing there for the second time that day, her heart skipped a beat - no make it two beats. For what reason her heart decided to malfunction she had no clue, but what she did know was that Adam was probably the most pleasant surprise she had had happen to her in a while.

After getting back to her room, Blake quickly went back to her kitchen table where she had been packing her bag for school. It was 2 hours until her class began and she knew that she would have to hurry to catch the bus to get to the NYU campus in time. She packed up her things and left her apartment, heading down the hallway towards the elevator.

She rode to the first floor and promptly made her way out of the lobby and onto the busy avenue, heading to the bus stop. She reached the corner just in time, and hastily clambered up the stairs of the bus and looked around. She grinned when she saw the bright face of her friend Emily, sitting a few rows away, saving a seat for her.

Blake quickly climbed around the other passengers to get to the row and slid down next to Emily, who looked up from her phone to give Blake a grin.

“Well hello there beautiful,” Emily’s high-pitched voice greeted Blake as she placed her bag in between her feet.

“Hello lovely,” Blake responded and looked up at Emily. Her hair was braided in it’s usual fashion, and she was dressed in her usual attire - distressed jeans and a flannel top.

“So, why do you look so happy?” Emily asked and pointed to Blake’s cheeks. “You have the lovey dovey glow to your cheeks.”

“What do you mean?” Blake cried and pressed her cool hands against her cheeks.

“I’m just saying you look like you’ve met someone, that’s all,” Emily responded and held her hands up defensively.

“Oh. . . well . . . I guess that’s semi-true,” Blake trailed off and looked out the window at the street flying by.

“Tell me now!” Emily cried and jumped to the edge of her seat, eyes wide and expectant.

“It’s nothing! Just I met my new neighbor . . . and he happens to be a male,” Blake started and Emily nodded eagerly. “And he’s not completely ugly.”

“You’re totally into him,” Emily concluded with an air of absolution to her voice.

“I’ve met him, like, three times!”

“Love at first sight, that’s all I’m saying.”

“You’re crazy,” Blake finished and Emily leaned back in her seat, smirking.

“Whatever you say,” was all Emily responded.

-

That night, Blake sat on her couch listening to the TV, sipping a steaming cup of tea and flipping through the latest Vogue issue when she heard a loud bang on her door. She jumped, nearly spilling her beverage,  and got up to step to her door.
She quickly straightened her shirt and brushed a piece of lint from her jeans. Blake took a quick breath and opened the door expecting to see the now familiar gray eyes of Adam. To her disappointment, she was greeted by a greasy man wearing a Taki’s Take Out baseball cap.

“Order for Blake?” the man asked with a faint Chinese accent. He held up the plastic bag full of takeout in his hand. Blake frowned with disappointment when she remembered that she had ordered food earlier.

“Oh, yea, uh, let me get my wallet,” Blake left the delivery guy standing in the hallway and ran to her purse, which was on her kitchen table, and took out her wallet. After she had paid, she sat down to eat her dinner. When she was finished, she packed up the rest of her food and went back to sit on the couch.
Soon after sitting down, Blake felt her phone vibrate as the screen lit up.

“Hey Em,” Blake said to Emily, her phone pressed against her ear.

“Ok, so guess what?” Emily said excitedly through the phone.

Blake smiled and answered, “What?”

“So I found this absolutely brilliant apartment closer to NYU! I think we should check it out! We can room together and totally cover the rent,” Emily breathed and asked, “What do you think?”

“Sounds great,” Blake responded and said goodbye to Emily. She put her phone back down and smiled. ‘A new apartment would be great,’ she thought and stood up to refill her mug. As she was walking to the kitchen, she heard loud voices coming down the hallway. She listened and groaned.

“Damn you non soundproof walls,” Blake cursed and went back to stand by the door, pressing her ear against the cold wood.
The voices grew louder as the anonymous group progressed down the hallway. Suddenly, they grew quieter as they passed by her door. Blake furrowed her brow, trying to listen to what was happening. The voices resumed their volume once they had passed and Blake could no longer hear them, as they were so far away.

Blake shrugged and went to her bathroom to start getting ready for bed. She had only brushed her teeth when she heard another knock on her door. Blake whipped around and quickly launched herself towards the front door. She took a deep breath, swept her flyaway hair from her face and opened to door, happy to be greeted by the steely eyes of Adam. Blake grinned but felt her smile falter as she noticed three other pairs of eyes looking at her.

“Hey, we’re locked out,” Adam explained and gestured to his friends.

“Of course you are,” Blake responded and grabbed her keys. She moved through the crowd of guys and led the way towards Adams door.

“She’s pretty,” Blake heard an accented voice say. She glanced back at the group of men following her and saw Adam elbow one of his friends.

“I agree with Vince,” another whispered and pointed at the guy who had first spoken.

“Shut up, all of you,” Adam whispered back, clearly annoyed.
Blake got to Adam’s door and unlocked it quickly, wanting only to get back to the safety of her own room. Adam smiled and held the door for his three friends. Before he went to follow them, Adam reached into his pocket to pull out his phone, as he did so, however, Blake saw a flash of silver fall out his pocket and onto the ground. Adam blushed furiously and Blake bent down to pick up the escaped keys that had fallen from Adam’s pocket.

“You were locked out?” Blake mused and handed back the keys.

“I - uh - didn’t know they were there,” Adam stuttered and shrugged. “I, uh, yea I don’t know.”

“Have a fine night,” Blake said, a hint of coldness in her voice, turned on her heel, and strutted back to her room.

-

Over the next few weeks, Blake and Adam fell into a daily schedule. Before Blake left for school, Adam would finally come home from wherever he was the night before and get locked out. Then, in the evening, after dinner, Adam would knock, and Blake would once again walk down to his room to unlock his door.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.

Blake looked up from her computer and smiled. ‘Right on time,’ she thought and before she opened the door of her apartment, she had her keys in hand, ready to see Adam.

“Morning,” Adam said hoarsely, and grinned.

“You smell terrible,” Blake noted primly and led the way down the corridor, keys jingling in her hand.

“I was out all night,” Adam said defensively, but smiled anyways.

“There is this really good thing called sleep, you know,” Blake retorted and turned to look at Adam after she had opened his door.

“Oh yeah?” Adam said quietly and took a step closer to Blake.

“Why don’t you tell me about it?” He was less than a foot away from her. She looked up into his fantastic gray eyes and bit her lip. Never had they been this close before. Blake’s fingers tingled and she urged them to stay down by her sides.

“Maybe after you take a shower,” Blake responded quietly and slowly moved away from Adam’s body and walked back down to her room. Once she had locked herself back in her room she looked around her apartment and started jumping up and down, squealing in delight. Although she had developed feelings for Adam, she had never acted on them. When she saw the time, she immediately stopped jumping and rushed to finish getting ready for school.

-

Adam stepped onto his floor and started down the corridor, heading immediately towards Blake’s room. He had stopped trying to remember his keys, preferring to see Blake instead. As he neared her room, he noticed a yellow sheet of paper taped to her door.

For Sale - Movers: 12:45 am
Last monthly payment due

Adam furrowed his brow and read the sheet a few more times. ‘Did this mean she was moving?’ Adam’s heart skipped a beat. ‘No, it couldn’t be true.’

He reached his hand up and banged frantically at the door, his heart pounding. He waited impatiently for a couple seconds before banging again against the door.

“Jeez, Adam, I’m coming,” Blake scolded when she finally opened the door.

“What is this,” Adam demanded, pointing at the flyer, his eyes blazing.

“Oh,” Blake stopped short. Adam shook his head angrily and pushed his way into Blake’s apartment, coming to stand in her living room.

“Hey!” Blake cried, surprised at his bold move.

“You’re not moving.”

“Yes I actually am,” Blake shot at Adam and crossed her arms.

“You can’t,” Adam responded and took a step closer to her, his eyes pleading.

“Why?” Blake peered at him, his eyes of steel, his messy hair, his lips.

-

Blake’s eyes lingered on Adam’s lips for a second too long before looking back to meet his gaze.

“Because -” Adam trailed off and looked down. Blake closed the door and took a step closer to him.

“Tell me why I can’t move,” Blake said, quieter now that she was closer to Adam. Adam glanced up at her and smiled sadly.

“I don’t know,” he said and started to walk back to the door.

Blake stepped in front of him with her arms crossed and looked up at him, “You do know why, otherwise you wouldn’t have stormed in here,” Blake’s voice sharpened. She could see his adam’s apple bob as he gulped and rubbed his hand behind his neck.

“I can’t say why.”

“Then I have no reason to stay?” Blake asked and hoped Adam would contradict her. All he did was shake his head.

“No.”

Blake nodded and could feel the faint tingle of tears forming in her eyes. She went over to her door and opened it for Adam, who stepped out into the hallway. Before she closed the door, she quickly got out her chain of keys and handed them to Adam.

“Here,” she said and dropped them into his outstretched palm, “I don’t need them.”

“Thanks,” Adam said and turned to head towards his room.

“Adam,” Blake called and Adam stopped quickly, turning back to look at Blake.

“There is no reason you can find for me to stay?”

Adam stood and thought for a minute. Then, ever so slowly, he moved towards Blake. She inhaled sharply, surprised at his choice. When he was close enough to touch Blake he stopped and she could see his eyes darken.

“No,” he whispered, his deep voice low and quiet. Adam looked as though he was about to say more but thought better of it. For the second time, he turned and started to move away. Blake reached for his arm and pulled him back to face her, his eyes widening with surprise.

Before she knew what she was doing, she reached around the back of his neck and pulled his face towards her, placing a kiss on his lips. Adam pulled away, surprised and looked at Blake with wide eyes.

“That’s my reason,” Blake whispered and Adam smiled, leaned closer and pressed his lips on hers. She held her hands on either side of Adam’s face, deepening the connection, and Adam tangled his hands through Blake’s soft curls.

When they broke away from each other, Adam said quietly, “You can’t leave.”

“Why?” Blake responded quietly, relishing the clean scent of Adam’s soap and laundry detergent.

“Because I love you,” Adam responded and kissed her again.