A/N : hey all! So happy to see some of you checking out this story, it makes my heart melt knowing that y'all are enjoying so far! And because y'all have been so nice & great about it, I'm going to put up this chapter which is a little longer and hopefully you all enjoy & let me know what you think!
. III .
Her day had gone by rather slowly, a few stragglers trickled in mainly because they wanted to warm up as they braced the beginning of the Canadian cold. Eva had interrogated her before she'd left, wanting to know all about the guy who walked Blaire to work. She'd assured her friend he was temporary, just a roommate until Toronto Life called her back. Eva on the other hand thought completely different. Kept mumbling things about how handsome he was, and being jealous that she always got that handsome boys. To which Blaire assured her that Adam was handsome and much more decent than Dean was. For the most part, of course.
Dean, didn't fail on his word had sent her messages constantly throughout her day. Messages about the rules of their arrangement or just random facts that she'd probably never need to know. Perhaps she'd save those facts for when a date started to go bad.
Since the day had gone slow she'd started rough notes on the rules to her new living arrangements. She jotted most of them down on the back of an order form. Most of the rules were simply things too, like;
- Respect the other person's privacy.
- Whoever eats the last of everything should buy groceries for the week. Groceries will be split between us – buy on alternating weeks
- Clean up after yourself, the other person shouldn't be doing all the cleaning.
- Laundry should be done by both people – preferable doing our own laundry.
- No bringing home one-night stands when the other person is home. And if they are home, kindly ask them to leave. – or to join.
Blaire looked at the last rule and shook her head. Dean felt the need to add that to their list. She'd sent him pictures of the list throughout the day for him to approve. After all it was his apartment. They talked about splitting the rent too, and surprisingly it wasn't as bad as she thought it was. That made the decision of moving into Dean's apartment a lot easier.
She found it crucial to tell herself it was only temporary, because that's what it was. Blaire barely knew the guy, yet here she was picking up and moving into his apartment because the rent was affordable. She shook her head at that. Blaire knew better. She wasn't like this. She played things safe, and when they got tough she'd call up her parents and ask them what to do. She hadn't even thought to call her parents to tell them what was going on in her life right now. She added that to her rules list, just in the margin that she had to call her mom and dad.
Blaire glanced at the clock just as it landed on 3:55. She smiled as she stepped away from the desk and started to put the books left lying on the tables away.
The bell on the door rang as she glanced over her shoulder. "Welcome to B&E's Bookstore." She said to the person who walked in. "We'll be closing soon, but feel free to grab whatever you'd like." She added for good measure.
"Good thing I came just in time." The person said to her.
She turned around. "Dean, you're early." She said looking at him.
"I texted you to tell you I was coming early." He said to her.
"I haven't exactly been hanging over my phone waiting for your texts, I do have other things to do." She said pointedly to him.
Dean smiled. "Well I'm here, so whenever you're ready to go we can." He said to her.
"In five minutes, okay?" she said to him.
Dean looked around and nodded. "Okay." He said as he walked over to the desk. "So, I made a list of my own." He said with a smile.
Blaire lifted a brow as she put the books away before following him over to the desk. "You did?" she asked him.
Dean nodded as he pulled a crumpled piece of paper out of his pocket. "I did." He said with a smile. He laid the page flat on the countertop.
Blaire glanced at the paper carefully and the two rules he'd written on it.
- If we're having problems (work, life or us) we need to talk to each other about them.
- If we want to sleep together, both of us should want it. Don't make the other person feel awkward because you want them and they don't want you. (Plus, no strings attached if we sleep together)
She lifted a brow at the last rule. "That's it?" she asked him. "That's all you came up with?"
Dean smiled and nodded. "What more is there?" he asked her. "We're both mature young people, who are living together, aspiring to have great jobs and just living life. We don't need any more rules. The only rules we need are that we need to be able to talk to each other and it's okay to sleep together." He said to her.
"You've got it all figured out then huh?" Blaire asked him.
Dean nodded. "I always have this kind of thing figured out." He said to her.
She nodded softly as she glanced at the clock. Blaire moved away from him as she headed to the door, locking it as she turned to sign from open to close. She closed the curtains as she headed back to the counter. Dean watched her carefully as he stood by the counter. He spotted her set of rules as he grabbed that sheet and stapled it to his own set. Blaire grabbed the cash box as she brought it to the back locking it up before walking back to him.
"Ready to go?" she asked looking over at him. Blaire grabbed her coat and her bag from behind the desk as she put them on.
Dean nodded. "Are you?" he asked.
Blaire nodded. "Yeah, I am." She said with a soft smile.
Dean smiled. "Then let's go." He said to her as he walked with her out of the bookstore.
Blaire shook her head as she followed him out of the bookstore. He opened the door for them as she stepped outside carefully. Dean stepped out carefully after her as he let the door close. Blaire took a key out of her pocket, locking the door to the bookstore with a small smile on her face. Once the door locked she looked over at him. "Where to now?" she asked him.
Dean grinned at the question. "I'm glad you asked." He said to her. He started walking down the street, towards a black motorcycle that was parked on the side of the street. Blaire followed him curiously.
"You want me to ride on that?" she asked him with wide eyes.
Dean smiled at her and nodded. "Yeah, how else are we going to get to our apartment?" he asked her.
Blaire looked at him. "Right, sure." She said carefully as she looked the bike over. "You sure that thing is safe to ride down here?"
Dean nodded. "Yes Blaire, it's safe." He said. "Just grab a helmet and get on." As he spoke, Dean grabbed the second helmet, handing it to her. Blaire took it a little reluctantly as Dean got his own helmet on. Blaire slowly started to put the helmet on her head. She let out a shaky breath.
"You're sure this is safe?" she asked him again.
Dean looked at her through the helmet. "Yes Blaire. I promise." He said to her.
Blaire nodded slowly. "Right." She said slowly.
Dean got onto the bike as he looked over at her. "You know, you're going to have to get on the bike." He said to her, in a gentle tone.
Blaire nodded. "I know." She said to him slowly as she walked closer to the bike. Dean watched her carefully, as he rested his forearms on the bike handles. Blaire slowly got onto the bike, sitting carefully behind Dean.
"I don't have cooties." He said to her with a grin.
Blaire gave him a look as she got as comfortable as she could on the motorcycle.
"You're going to have to hold on Blaire." Dean said as he started up the bike.
Blaire let out a breath as she wrapped her arms around Dean's jacket clad upper body. She looked at him. "Happy?" she asked.
"Very." Dean said with a grin as he kicked the motorcycle up as started driving down the road.
Blaire felt her stomach flip when he started driving. A wave of uneasiness flooded her system as her grip got tighter, and her eyes closed shut. Dean must have felt her whole-body tense, because after a few moments he said, "Just try to relax, and trust me." he said softly.
If she hadn't been so nervous, she might have actually listened to that piece of advice but she couldn't help the uneasiness of the situation. She relaxed slightly to appease Dean, but in her mind thousands of possibilities raced through her head. Dean drove down the road, taking a few turns to get to what Blaire assumed was the apartment building he talked so fondly of.
Dean pulled into the parking lot as he parked in the spot carefully. He turned the bike off as he put up the brake. He looked over his shoulder at her. "See not so bad." He said with a smile.
Blaire gave him a look as she got off the bike on shaky legs. "I don't want to do that again." She said to him as she took off the helmet.
"It's fun Blaire, you'll love it in no time." Dean said as he got his helmet off. Taking the helmet from her he started walking to the building. Blaire let out a breath as she followed him to the building. He opened the door for her as he smiled a little wider. She looked around as she took a step inside the apartment building. Dean followed in behind her as he looked at Blaire.
"Ready to go see your new apartment Blaire?" he asked her as he walked to the elevators.
Blaire nodded softly. "Yeah, I think so." She said as she walked with him to the elevators. Dean grinned as he hit the button that indicated up. They waited for the elevator to open as Blaire clasped her hands together in front of her body.
The door opened to the elevator and Dean gestured for her to go in first. Blaire stepped onto the elevator as Dean stepped in after her. The door closed as Dean hit the second floor. He looked at her. "Pretty nice huh?" he asked her with a smile.
Blaire looked at him. "I've seen the lobby and the elevator so far." She said to him.
Dean chuckled lightly. "Nice lobby and elevator though, right?"
Blaire smiled softly and nodded. "Yes Dean, it's pretty nice so far." She said to him.
He smiled as the elevator dinged and the doors opened. "This is our floor." He said as he stepped off the elevator.
Blaire nodded as she stepped off the elevator with him. "Right." She said as she looked around the second floor. Dean smiled as he led her to the furthest door on the left side. On the door, the numbers 245 lined the top of it.
"This is us."
Blaire nodded. "I figured that much." She said to him.
He smiled as he opened the door for her to go in first. Blaire took a slow step inside. She looked around, the surprisingly modernized apartment.
Dean grinned at her reaction. "Pretty nice now, isn't it?" he asked her with a smile.
Blaire gave him a look. Even though she gave the look she nodded slowly. "Yeah, it's pretty nice." She said softly.
Dean grinned as he brushed past her, heading into the apartment. "So, this is the kitchen." He said as he led her through the apartment on a small tour. He pointed out the island in the kitchen that had two bar stools. "And the living room." He pointed to the area with a couch and rather large size TV. Blaire nodded softly as she followed him through the apartment. Dean lead her to the hall. "and this is your room." He pointed to the door on the right side. Blaire offered a smile. "Great." She said softly. Dean chuckled as he looked at her. "And my room is just across the hall, past the bathroom." He said to her.
Blaire smiled and nodded. "Awesome." She said to him.
Dean laughed lightly as he opened the door to the bedroom. "Pretty spacious no?" he asked as they stepped inside the bedroom.
Blaire looked around as she looked at the furniture pieces in the bedroom. "You decorate this all yourself?" she asked him.
Dean smiled and shook his head. "My mom helped with the decorating. Something about always having a nice-looking room for your guests." He said to her.
Blaire smiled lightly and nodded. "Figures." She joked with a smile.
Dean looked at her, lifting a brow. "So, you can be funny!" he joked with a smile.
Blaire shrugged as she looked around. Dean looked at her before looking away. "I've got stuff for dinner in the fridge." Dean said to her, breaking her focus on the room.
Blaire looked at him. "Right." She said with a smile. "Lead the way."
Dean smiled as he walked out of the room, and back towards the kitchen. Blaire followed him out of the room back to the kitchen. She placed her bag on one of the stools before looking at him as he opened the fridge. "How can I help?" she asked him.
Dean looked at her. "You're a guest, sit down, have a beer and let me make us dinner." He said to her with a smile as he pulled two beers from the fridge.
Blaire took a seat on the second stool as she looked at him. Dean placed the open beer in front of her as he held his in his hand. Blaire took the beer from him as she looked at him.
"Cheers to new beginnings?" Dean said to her as he lifted his bottle.
Blaire chuckled lightly. "Cheers to new beginnings." She said lifting the beer.
Dean grinned as he took a swing of his beer before putting it down and walking back to the fridge. He grabbed a few things out of the fridge as Blaire watched closely. Dean pulled out take out boxes of Chinese food and Thai food.
"We've got the choice of Chinese and Thai today." He said to her with a smile.
Blaire looked at him. "Left over takeout food?" she asked carefully.
Dean nodded. "Uh, yeah. I don't do the whole make your own meals type thing." He said to her with a shrug.
Blaire looked at him. "You're joking, right?" she asked him.
He shook his head. "Not in the slightest." He said to her.
Blaire rubbed her face. "Right." She said slowly. "Maybe I should do some grocery shopping, so that there is some fresh food in the kitchen." She suggested to him.
Dean looked at her and nodded. "Whatever you want. Chinese is mine though." He said opening the takeout box of Chinese food. He grabbed a fork from the sink as he walked to the living room, plopping himself down on the couch as he started to eat out of the box. Blaire watched, shaking her head slightly as she stood from the stool. She walked into the kitchen as she opened the fridge looking in it. She laughed to herself when all she saw was beer and takeout boxes.
"Definitely doing some shopping." She said softly.
"Doll, while you're in the kitchen can you bring me my beer?" Dean called to her as the TV was turned on. The news blasting through the speakers. Blaire looked over her shoulder. She grabbed his beer and walked to the living room. Putting it on the table she looked at him. "Don't get used to me doing things for you." She said to him. "I'm just here temporarily."
"That's what you're saying now." Dean said to her with a grin. "Thanks doll."
"Blaire, it's Blaire." She said to him.
"Sure Blaire." Dean said with a smile.
Blaire shook her head as she went back into the kitchen. "I'm going to go, pack up my things at my old place and I'll pick up groceries on the way." She said to him.
"See you tomorrow morning than doll." Dean called as he was fixated on the TV screen. "There's a key on the counter for you."
Blaire shook her head as she grabbed her bag and the spare key off the counter. She walked to the door, opening it as she stepped out. "Bye Dean." She called as she closed the door.
Blaire rubbed her face, as she thought about how bad of a mistake this was. She couldn't live with someone she barely knew. That was beyond insane. She didn't even know this guy. She headed down the hall in distraction as she bumped into someone coming off from the elevator.
"Sorry." Blaire apologized quickly as she looked over at the person she bumped into.
A young man, dark hair and blue eyes looked at her. "It's okay." He said with a warm smile. "Happens all the time."
She looked at him. "Really?" she asked him.
He chuckled lightly, different than Deans' laugh. His was friendlier, warmer. "Not really, but I thought that might make you feel better." He said to her.
Blaire smiled softly. "Nice effort." She said to him.
He looked at her. "I'm James." He said offering a hand.
Blaire smiled softly as she took his hand. "Blaire." She said to him.
"Are you moving into one of the apartments here?" James asked her.
Blaire chuckled lightly. "Sort of. One of the guys I met offered me a room." She explained to him.
"Let me guess," James said as he crossed his arms. "Dean?"
Blaire nodded. "Uh, yeah." She said with a nod. "How'd you know?"
James nodded. "Dean always has someone living with him," he explained. "Don't take it the wrong way. Ever since his mom died, Dad went off his rocker and his brother abandoned him; Dean tends to have a lot of house guests. My guess is that he doesn't like the thought of being alone for more than a few days."
Blaire looked at him. "How do you know so much about him?" she asked him softly.
James let out a soft chuckle. "I live next door." He said. "We've lived here for the same amount of time. He moved in a few weeks after me. I was there when all that drama went down."
Blaire nodded softly as she bit her lower lip.
"Don't let me scare you." James said. "He's a great guy, kind of lazy but he's a killer musician. If you ever get the chance – check out his bar. He plays every night."
Blaire nodded and offered a soft smile. "I'll have to check out one of his concerts." She said to James.
James nodded. "See you around Blaire." He said to her as he got onto the elevator.
"See you James." She said to him with a soft smile as she headed to the door.