Abby Maitland had been picking up around her flat, the new arrival who was currently occupying her shower having left the couch and surrounding area a mess. It wasn't that Abby didn't like Connor, she did as a matter of fact, it was simply the fact that he could be a bit of a pain in the rear end. She stopped her tidying as she noticed a photo sitting in one of the cubbyholes on the side of the television. She picked the photo frame up and studied the three faces grinning back at her like school boys. Well, they were school boys, weren't they? Connor was in between his two friends, a grin she hadn't seen in too long in place. Tom and Duncan were on either side but Abby barely knew them and her previous encounters with the former had left her a bit on edge. Duncan, on the other hand, Stephen had taken to referring to him as 'the stupid one', much to Connor's dismay.
Connor had been, well, not Connor lately. He had been quiet, for Connor standards, and hadn't made a sarcastic remark or lame joke in days. Abby had even began intentionally setting him up. He had smiled, of course, but it hadn't been the same. Not a real Connor smile, anyway. One would think a quiet Connor would make Abby's day, not in this case though. Nothing had been the same since the day Tom died.
"Sorry about that." Abby jumped at the voice behind and nearly dropped the picture. She turned to face Connor, his hair still wet but he was fully dressed. Well, as dressed as the pair of them ever were around her flat.
"What?" Her eyebrows furrowed as she moved to return the picture to its original position.
"I meant to put that back in my bag. I probably shouldn't take over your flat like this," Connor grabbed the picture from her hand gently and Abby wondered if he just didn't want her to know she had overstepped some sort of personal boundary in picking the picture up. She quickly dismissed it, though, as Connor had never been the best at being subtle. She watched him study the picture himself but reached for it again before he could put it somewhere else.
"No, leave it." He gave her a questioning look. "It makes the place look homey." She gave him a comforting smile before placing the picture back where she found it.
"Thanks." It was so quiet Abby almost thought she had imagined it, she would have thought so, too, if she hadn't seen his lips move. She nodded before remembering what she had previously been doing.
"You're laundry scattered across my floor, however, makes the place look like a dump," she gave him a serious look but couldn't hide the small smile that overtook her features. She felt it grow a bit as he returned the smile, even though it still wasn't his normal grin.
"I'll help."
"You better." She pushed the clothes in her arm into his before moving in the direction of the kitchen. "I'm going to make some tea, would you like any?"
"Sure, tea sounds great." Abby could hear the volume of his voice fluctuate as he moved about the room, picking things from the floor. She filled the kettle with water and placed it atop the stove. As she waited for the water to boil, Abby moved into the doorway and leaned against the wall that also held the thermostat.
"Any plans for tonight, then?" She asked as Connor picked up the last of the clothes and dumped them into the hamper she had set off to the side for him to use. In fact, she was surprised he even knew what it was for. He gave one fingerless glove a confused look as he plucked it from the wood floor and Abby wondered if he knew where the other was.
"No, just spending the night in," he answered as he placed the glove on the end tabled next to the couch. "You?"
"Nope, same as you. Night in." She watched as he nodded, picking a fedora from the ground, and moved towards the banister hanging it from the end. He gave her a raised eyebrow look, pointing to the hat 'is this okay?' She nodded before watching him move around a few more of his things. She glanced at the picture once again and a sudden thought struck her.
"It's Thursday," she noted. Connor looked over at her curiously.
"Well spotted," he commented a slight smirk on his face that made Abby roll her eyes.
"I mean," she hesitated, unsure of how to phrase the question, "Connor do you want to order in a pizza and watch some telly with me?" He tilted his head to the side as if trying to figure out if she was messing with him.
"Is there something on?" He asked cautiously, afraid of ending up pulled into a chick flick of some sort.
"I was thinking you could introduce me to Battlestar Glactica." She had said it as if it were the most normal thing in the world and Connor had to take a moment to realize he had in fact heard her right. Once he had, however, he realized what she was trying to do and smiled gratefully.
"If you think you're up for it."
A few hours later, Abby found herself spread out on the couch, a paper plate with a piece of pizza on it resting on her stomach, and Connor sitting on the floor in front of her.
"It's not that complicated, Abby," he all but whined and Abby could tell he was slightly annoyed by the fact that she just wasn't getting the show.
"Maybe I just need to see more of the show," she shrugged, moving the plate and half eaten slice of pepperoni pizza from her abdomen to the table. Connor shook his head, wiping his hands with his napkin before dropping it on his own plate.
"Maybe so," he agreed, "We could do this every week." He hadn't meant it as an innuendo or an invitation to do anything more than exactly what they were doing at that very moment, and that made Abby smile.
"Yeah," she nodded, "We could." She watched as Connor stood up, flipping the pizza box closed, and pushed her feet off the couch. She gave him a mock glare as she adjusted her position so that her feet were tucked underneath her and her back was against the armrest. Connor plopped down in the spot that her feet had previously occupied and looked at her. Abby was surprised at the warmth and sincerity in his look but even more so as it was transferred through his voice.
"Thanks for this." She knew exactly what he meant and nodded.
"Anytime, Con."
A/N: Okay, so, basically, this can be a two-shot but only if the feedback for it is good. So, if you'd like to see one more chapter, leave it in the comments. : )