A/N: Hey everyone! I know I should be writing the next chapter to ABU, but I couldn't resist writing this. It's based off of a small clip from an episode of The Office, one of my favorite shows. Seriously, it's amazing. I love it. Anyways, I hope you all like it! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own anything. HM rights sadly aren't mine . . . but I'm working on it. Give me a year or two.
XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO
I'm not really sure what Miley was smirking about. She's the one who gets to leave early for some special cruise her boyfriend planned for her. No doubt she'll be engaged by the end of the night. She's putting her coat on as we speak. Tossing a note on my desk and giving me a wink, she walked out the door, humming a happy tune.
Have fun tonight, the note read in swirly, perfect letters. I don't know what she's so hooked on. So what if Lilly and I were the ones who had to lock up tonight? I mean, Lilly and I have hung out together before, just like I have with Miley. And yes, we've seen each other outside of work, but I've done that with Miley, too. So what's the big deal? Besides, I think Miley's missing something very important here.
Lilly's engaged.
It doesn't matter if Dandruff Danny is quite possibly the worst fiancé anyone could ask for and he doesn't get Lilly like I do, because she's engaged to him. And has been for the past two and a half years. And I really doubt I can change that.
I look to my left, and there she is, sneaking a few pieces of candy out of the jar, popping them in to her mouth quickly like a little kid that doesn't want to get caught. When she looks up and realizes I've been watching her, she smiles sheepishly. I smile back.
More people are filtering out of the office, one by one, and eventually it's just us two. After a few minutes of cleaning up and organizing and preparing things for the next day, she both start to leave as well. But just as she's about to close the door behind her, I say something.
"Lilly!" I call swiftly, just to be sure she hears me before the door closes. That stops her, and she pokes her head in to the nearly deserted office.
"Yes, Oliver?" She smiles at me and my heart melts. I doubt Danny could say the same thing.
"Uh, I was just wondering, you know, if we're already staying later, why not have a little picnic?" I was stuttering. So much for keeping it cool. "I mean, I know Miley keeps some actually edible food on the top shelf of the refrigerator, so why not have some? We can go sit up on the roof with folding chairs, and I can bring my iPod and we'll have a bit of fun. What do you say?"
She looked thoughtful. She wrinkled her nose in thought, and I started to panic. As much as I would like it do be a date, I really doubt she'd go for that kind of thing if she's already engaged. And now that I think about it, we'd have a great view, dinner, and music. Oh, god. It is a date. I just hope she doesn't recognize that.
She nods and smiles, showing all of her perfectly straight, white teeth. "Yeah, I'd like that."
So ten minutes later, we're camped out on the roof with some old beach chairs our boss had stored somewhere and we were snacking on juice boxes and grilled cheese sandwiches, made by yours truly. The sun in Malibu was just beginning to set and her favorite band was playing in the background.
Lilly took another bite, clearly liking the food. "I can't remember the last time someone made me dinner," she said. Wait, in all the years she's known Danny, he hasn't even tossed something in the microwave for the two of them? No TV dinners? No toast and butter? Not even when she's sick?
Jerk.
I decide not to comment on what she said, thinking it would only make it worse. "So, how's your writing coming along? I know you sent that short story to the newspaper a few weeks ago, how'd that go?"
Her grin widened significantly. "Great, actually. The head editor of the newspaper said he knew a guy that could get me a job in the magazine industry, writing articles for stuff. He said he's call me once they talked about it. I'm pretty stoked."
"Congrats!" The wind blows my shaggy brown hair across my face and her blonde hair covers her eyes. Is it normal to like someone this much? "I knew you could do it. You're destined for bigger and better things outside of Malibu. Just don't forget me when you're a famous novelist, touring the world, alright?"
"I promise," she laughed. "But you have to promise you won't forget me, either. These sandwiches are amazing. You should open a restaurant. I'd be your best customer," she stated proudly, still smiling.
I laughed. I couldn't help but think how perfect we were and how . . . lame Lilly and Danny were together. Deciding to take a risk, I casually changed the song to one of my favorite mellow ones. Pretending to be surprised this song came on, I set my food down and stood up, holding out my hand.
"Dance with me," I asked, praying she wouldn't turn me down.
Setting her plate down, she stood up, too. "I'd love to," she flashed her pearly whites at me again, and I nearly died right there. I held her close to me and we swayed lightly to the music, acting like a bit more than friends, but did I mind? Not one bit.
We stood there, dancing in the moonlight, for the entire length of the seven minute song, talking and laughing about anything and everything. I was just about to go out on a limb and tell her how much I really liked her when she caught a glimpse of her watch.
"It's that late already?" She pulled away and quickly gobbled up the rest of her sandwich. Knowing my time was up, I started to pack things up and put them in a cardboard box to carry them back down to the building. "Sorry, Oliver. I really had a great time, but I promised Danny that tonight we'd go see that new action movie that came out this weekend. I'm sorry," she apologized again, and started climbing down the ladder.
When we got back down to the main level and everything was put away, she smiled at me. Thanks for making me dinner, it was great. I loved every part of it."
"No problem," I answered, moving a strand of hair out of my eyes. "Anytime." I slid my coat on and followed her out the door and down to the parking lot. Just as I was about to climb in, Lilly started talking again.
"Bye, Oliver! See you tomorrow! Love you," she said. Pausing briefly after noticing exactly what she'd just said. I shrugged it off, knowing she probably said the same thing after talking to her mom on the phone or leaving after having a good time with friends.
"Bye, Lilly!" I climbed in to my car and drove off, heading towards home.
Her words were still ringing in my ears loud and clear, but I didn't mind. What she had said made butterflies erupt in my stomach and gave me hope. Maybe we had a chance after all. I went to bed with a smile on my face. I don't care what anyone else said, that was definitely the best date I've ever been on. We had dinner, watched the sunset, and danced in the moonlight. It was perfect. Her words were still echoing in my mind and I think they'd left their mark on my heart for good, but I didn't mind.
By the way, Lilly, I love you too.
XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO
So maybe it wasn't all based off of the episode, I did add my own things in there, but it was pretty close. I love that part of the episode so much. It's amazing. Jim and Pam rock. And so do Lilly and Oliver. Anyways, it wasn't my best, but I liked it. And I hope you did, too! Please drop a review and I'll respond! Thanks!
Parakeet17