Matt paced the floor, repeating the same thing over and over. Eventually he plopped down on the edge of his bed, his head in his hands. "Ugh," he sighed. "Just do it." He moved his fingers so he could see the door with one eye. It was still closed, good. He couldn't imagine what would happen if Karen walked in.
He stood up again, cracking the door open a tad, making sure his roommate wasn't about to knock on his bedroom door. She was nowhere to be seen, so he let out a breath and repeated what he was saying before.
Karen, will you go out with me?
His nerves had definitely gotten the best of him. It was seven words. Seven simple words. But then again, he had to say them to the most beautiful creature on the planet. Part of Matt knew that if Karen knew that he thought she was the most beautiful creature on the planet, she would probably agree to going out on a date. But the rest of him was pessimistic and he could only think about how he would deal with rejection.
Meanwhile, Karen was struggling to open the front door. She was holding lots of grocery bags, and her hair was in her face. Matt heard the door open and peeked his head out into the corridor, and upon seeing Karen, he ran to help her get to the pantry. "Hey, Kaz," he smiled. Karen plopped down in a chair and smiled back. "What'd you buy?" Her roommate was plowing through the grocery bags. Kaz slapped his hand playfully.
"Stop it," she said as Matt pulled his hand away, wincing. "I'm making dinner tonight."
He sighed with relief. "Thanks, Kazza," he said. "You know I'm a terrible cook."
"I know. That's why I'm making dinner tonight. And probably tomorrow."
Matt laughed. "So I'm doing the dishes tonight? And tomorrow?" He frowned.
Kaz had a sympathetic look on her face. "No, I'll help. You better thank me, though."
"Aw, Kazza! You're a lifesaver." Matt walked closer to her and kissed her on the cheek, impulsively. Karen's eyes went wide. The second his lips touched her smooth, pale skin, he pulled away. His face was red. "Um -" He was stuttering, running a hand through his hair and looking down. "Sorry. I'll, uh... I'm going to go now."
Karen opened her mouth to speak, but Matt had already shut the door of his bedroom. She sighed, and lightly touched the spot where he kissed her.
Matt was sitting on the edge of his bed, with his head in his hands. Idiot, idiot, he was thinking, letting out a breath. He had completely ruined his chances of getting a date with Karen. She would probably avoid looking him in the eye for a while. Matt knew that he was overreacting, over thinking, but he cared about Karen much more than she knew.
While Matt was thinking about Karen, she was trying not to think about him. She had never felt like she had when he kissed her, and that was only on the cheek. A kiss is a kiss. She should feel free to think about him, because it was painfully obvious that he had feelings for her, given the kiss. But Karen didn't want to embarrass him. She thought it was cute, the way he blushed and looked away like a child. She smiled when she thought of him, his face turning pink and his words being mixed up and mumbled. She shook away the thought, smiling. She needed to focus on dinner. Karen entered the kitchen with the groceries, and from there she could hear Matt watching television. She started on dinner. She was planning on making tacos, because she knew it was Matt's favorite. It was hers, too. Both of them loved tacos. Matt and Karen were also having a guest for dinner, Arthur was going to come over for a few hours. The three of them were very close friends. Karen was pretty sure Arthur Darvill liked tacos, too.
She cut avocado and tomatoes. She made Mexican rice and beans. She pulled some sour cream, salsa and lettuce out of the fridge. She put the taco shells, the good ones, in the oven, and shredded cheese and beef. When she finished, Karen called out Matt's name.
"Matt? I made dinner, can you help me set the table?"
There was a pause, and Karen heard Matt get up from wherever he was and walk towards the kitchen. The moment he walked in, the two heard the doorbell chime.
"I'll get it!" Karen scooted past Matt into the corridor, where she saw Arthur standing at the doorway. She opened the door, grinning. "Arthur, hi! How are you?" The two hugged and Arthur kissed Karen on the cheek. Kaz admired how nonchalantly he did it. She wished Matt was more like that.
"God, Karen, you look great," Arthur said, grasping Karen's arms and looking at her. Karen knew that he didn't think about her in a romantic way, he loved her and Matt both like siblings. "I'm doing well, thanks." He lifted his gaze. "What's that? It smells amazing."
"Tacos," Karen said, leading him down the corridor to the kitchen. Matt was setting down some plates. "I just made them."
Matt and Arthur hugged as well. "Hey, man, how are you?" Matt asked. They slapped hands. They greeted and talked for a few minutes. Karen cleared her throat.
"Um, hello? Delicious tacos getting cold here. You want to eat or not? Because if you want to order a pizza, do it before I make a huge dinner." She rolled her eyes, but smiled, and took a seat. Arthur sat beside her, and Matt on the other side of the table.
"God, Karen, I didn't know you could cook." Arthur was eating taco after taco, nonstop.
"Well, I sure can't, so all her practice made her a pro," Matt laughed. He was enjoying the meal as well.
"Aw, thanks, Matt. At least washing dishes isn't a skill." All three of them laughed. Matt was skilled at many things, excluding bowling of course, but cooking was a mile away from the list. But Karen really appreciated that he washed the dishes and set the table, that he vacuumed the rug and even cleaned the windows sometimes; Karen often thought about how well they fit together. Like two puzzle pieces. They just clicked, like they were meant to be together, as cliché as it is.
Matt could hardly stop looking at Karen during the meal. When all three of them were together, himself, Arthur, and Karen, that is, they were all so happy. And Matt loved to see Karen smile. She had such a beautiful smile. He had worked up the confidence to ask her out on a date after seeing how easy that sort of thing was from Arthur. Even though he didn't love her in a romantic way. Matt sometimes talked to him about how he felt about their best friend. Arthur always encouraged him, but Matt was still nervous. But he had to wait until Arthur had gone before he asked Kaz. Obviously, he would still encourage Matt, but Arthur being there gawking at the scene would put pressure on him. And probably embarrass him. So after they said their goodbyes, and Arthur closed the door to his car, Matt and Karen went back in the kitchen. They started clearing the table, but it was silent except for the soft clink of plates colliding in the sink. The roommates didn't like to use the dishwasher because if you used it at the same time as the oven the power went out.
Karen slapped her hand down on the counter. "I can't take this anymore," she said, looking intently at Matt. He was confused for a minute. "We need music." Karen left the room to get the speakers and her iPod, while Matt laughed. Both of them loved music. They both had a mix of tastes, like they both liked all kinds of rock. Matt and Karen both liked indie and alternative, and surprisingly, Matt even liked a little bit of pop music. Karen was searching through her music library while Matt washed the dishes. Her hair fell in front of her face perfectly, and her lips were pursed in concentration. Matt could only wonder what it would be like to kiss them. Matt's gaze stayed fixed on Karen until she looked up, satisfied, and began playing a song. It was a Beatles song, Your Mother Should Know. They both loved that song. Karen pushed up the sleeves of her red sweater again and joined Matt at the sink, helping him scrub the plates clean. As the song played, she moved her arms and hips to the beat. Matt laughed and she smiled. After the Beatles song ended, another upbeat song played, and Matt took Karen's hand. She whipped her head up, and he spun her around; he was dancing with her. They held both hands up in front of each other, spinning around and moving back and forth. They laughed and smiled the whole time, neither of them could really dance. But eventually the cheerful song ended, and the pair stopped dancing, panting slightly, but laughing. They were still holding hands. There was a bit of a long pause at the end of the song, but when the first few notes of a new song played, Karen lifted her head.
"Hold on a minute. I know this song," She said, looking at Matt like she was asking him what it was.
Matt raised his eyebrows. "You don't remember?" He exclaimed, staring at her as she bit her lip, as if apologizing. "The ultimate ginger..." He prompted.
Karen had a look of realization on her face. "Oh, right! I loved filming that episode." She put her hand on Matt's shoulder, the other taking his hand. His free hand was placed on her hip, and they danced, slowly, to the song that both meant so much to them. Karen laughed softly when Matt spun her, and as the song slowed to a finish, she gasped as he dipped her. He was smiling devilishly, like he knew that she would react this way. After the song ended, and Matt lifted her back up, he let go of her hand. He ran it through his short hair.
"Um, Karen..." He looked down. "I was wondering, um, I was wondering if... maybe you'd like to..." Matt had a hard time saying it, but Karen knew exactly what he was trying to ask.
"Oh, shut up, stupid face," She breathed, grabbing him and pulling him forward into a kiss. At first Matt was surprised, but his hands slowly moved to her back and her smooth and pale cheek. They kissed for a long time, and when she finally pulled away, Karen smiled.
"Wow, Kazza," Matt breathed, still surprised and a little out of breath. "I didn't think you would do that." His hand had moved down to her hand and his thumb rubbed against her palm.
"I guess you don't really know me that well, then," She replied, their faces just inches apart. She pulled away, but still held his hand, towards the living room.
"What about dishes?" Matt said, but really he didn't give a damn about the dishes.
"Who cares about the dishes?" Karen rolled her eyes playfully. She tugged on his arm until they collapsed on the grey living room couch. Matt turned on the television to Netflix, where he selected a past Doctor Who episode, season 4, back in the Tennant days. They were curled up under a red blanket. Karen's head rested on Matt's shoulder, but occasionally she would lift it and look at Matt before kissing him and grinning her beautiful grin that spread across her beautiful face, and Matt could only think about how lucky he was to have her there with him.