Sorry that this one is a bit more Karley friendship than Ryley, but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless.

"I'm telling you, I haven't moved in!"

PLOT: Kitty and Marley are best friends and live in an apartment together in the depths of New York City. Marley has been dating her boyfriend, Ryder, for a few years now and she is constantly at his apartment, to the point where half of the girl's stuff is at his place rather than her own. Despite this (and Kitty's claims), however, Marley refuses to admit she has almost completely, subconsciously, moved in with him. Marley claims that she "hasn't moved in until she has a permanent toothbrush there", and is constantly ridiculed by Kitty.

"Kitty, I'm back!" Marley Rose called through their cosy but respectable apartment. The brunette had her arms occupied with paper bags that were filled to the brim with groceries, and she was pleased when she could finally untangle her finger to let the key she was holding out of her grasp and onto the table nearby the door, which she had shut with her back tiredly. Hobbling to the kitchen, she sighed in relief as she finally released the brown paper bags onto the kitchen counter.

As the brunette unpacked her groceries, Kitty yawned and swayed into the kitchen in her sleepy state. Marley looked at the clock nearby: 12pm. Typical of Kitty Wilde to have a lie in on a Saturday morning. "What things did you get?"

"Just what we were running out of." Marley sighed as she eventually finished unpacking and tucking every item into the cupboards or the fridge. "So, did you have a pleasant slumber, Sleeping Beauty?"

"Shut up," the blonde whacked Marley's arm playfully (though not much energy went into it anyway due to her drowsiness). "I had a wonderful slumber, Miss Rose."

"Good. Hey, listen. I can't stay and chat for too long – I need to get ready. Ryder's taking me out to lunch." Marley grinned, earning an eye roll from Kitty.

"Of course he is. And, thinking of Bieber, you still have my curling iron at his place – along with the other fifty per cent of this apartment."

"Kitty," Marley whimpered. "That is so not true."

"But it is! If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were secretly trying to move out and live with him." Kitty guffawed.

"Crap, you got me." Marley joked with her hands up in surrender, smirking. She sighed. "I promise you, Kit. I haven't moved in with him."

"You so have! Marley, this apartment used to be packed with your clothes and makeup and hair things… now look. All you can see around here is my stuff. I swear, you are definitely pulling a Phoebe on me." Kitty and Marley were both experts on 'Friends' to the extent where they referenced it in conversations consistently. In this particular scenario, Kitty was referring to the episode where Phoebe had moved out of her and Monica's apartment without Monica knowing; she would creep out at night to sleep over at her new place, then come back every morning so Monica wouldn't suspect anything. It was this reference that coaxed a suppressed giggle out of Marley.

"I promise I would do no such thing." Marley breathed, but, upon seeing the clock, her voice was far less than easy-going. "I need to start getting ready, pronto. Sorry, hun – I'll catch up with you later, okay?"

Kitty sighed. "Okay. Have fun with Donkey Teeth." She smirked.

"He does not h-" Marley started, but decided soon after that quarrelling would make her even later. "Will do, thanks."

That afternoon, the ocean-eyed girl sauntered back through the door of her apartment in downtown Manhattan, the biggest possible smile on her face. Kitty, who was watching reruns of a dated game show, looked up from her sluggish seat on the fabric sofa and drew her attention away from her nail file to watch her roommate's entrance. "Wow, you're back late. You look like you've slept with a hanger in your mouth too… did Little Miss Marley get lucky?"

That comment snapped the girl in question out of her trance slightly as her eyebrows knitted together (although she was still grinning). "What? No, no. We just had lunch."

"Sure." The blonde sneered. "Then what took you so long?"

"Oh, we just talked and talked and talked and… he walked me home. It was awesome – he even offered to pay, but I still insisted that I took my half." Marley replied in a giddy, dreamy tone.

"What, Care Bear didn't want to stop by and pay a visit to his favourite blonde?"

"No, he had to pick up his niece from the airport. But he did get you a present…" The brunette beamed, dangling a device in front of the smaller girl's eyes as she sneakily stood behind the couch.

"About time!" Kitty spoke in fake annoyance as she grasped her curling iron from Marley's hand. "I needed this for a date tonight. And now all that's left is for you to bring back the rest of our living space which has mysteriously crept over to Bieber's…"

"Kiiiiittyyyy…" Marley whined, but soon found a way to switch the topic of the conversation as she took of her coat. "A date, huh?"

"Yeah, it's with this guy from the coffee place down the street." The smaller girl dismissed, before breaking Marley's cover entirely. "But don't think I've forgotten about that conversation we had before you sauntered off to your lovey-dovey lunch, Miss Rose."

"I'm not moving in with Ryder, okay?" The girl tried to brush the matter off as she spoke with an exhausted tone. "We're not in that stage of our relationship yet."

"Mar, you've been going out with this guy for two years, it's bound to happen." Kitty sighed as she returned to her manicuring.

"I have a rule." The blue-eyed young adult countered as if it needed no more explanation.

Kitty turned around to Marley, who stood in their kitchen/dining room area. "A rule?"

"Yep. I'm not moved in with a guy unless I have a toothbrush at his place." Marley crossed her arms and spoke simply, trying not to burst out laughing at Kitty's confused expression. Frankly, the blonde considered that to be the dumbest, stupidest, weirdest rule ever – and, now that she thought about it, Marley had already broken that rule. She had sleepovers at Ryder's all the time, and had to bring her toothbrush. Opening her mouth to say something, she was soon silenced as Marley corrected herself. "A permanent toothbrush."

Now that the matter was verified, the smaller girl considered Marley's rule to be decent enough, and projected this thought with a shrug as she returned to the programme she was watching on their small TV. The brunette's response was a satisfied smile as she watched Kitty lounge in acceptance, before calling back: "I'm gonna take a shower. Want to order pizza for tonight; have a movie night or something?"

"Sure."

A few months later, after several more of Kitty's remarks, Marley was in a completely different situation. Her body strewn across Ryder's leather couch in the living room of his apartment (which was a few minutes away from her own), stealing breaths in between heavy kisses with Ryder, and the girl had long since forgotten exactly how the event had occurred. She sighed in content as he began his journey down her neck, running fingers through her boyfriend's hair, before the boy shuffled his body back up and planted kisses on her lips once more. "What time is it?" She just about managed to speak.

The brown-haired boy tore away from her in reluctance to check his phone, which was in his pocket. "Almost 7, why?"

The comment triggered a long groan from between Marley's lips as she hit her head against the arm of the couch in frustration. "Crap, we can't."

"Why? You have plans tonight?" Ryder asked, confused albeit deeply concerned about his girlfriend.

Marley nodded in reply. "Kitty got us on the list for this club opening near Macy's. She wanted me to be her wingman type thing." She giggled, then sighed in defeat as she looked Ryder up and down, winding her arms around his neck. "I'm sorry, baby."

"Hey, it's okay." Ryder exonerated as his hands caressed her waist softly once more.

"I just really owe her this, after these past few months. I'm sorry." She excused herself.

"How come?"

His question suppressed a small giggle from the girl. "Well…" she began, trying to think how she would explain the matter to him. "She's got this whole suspicion going on that I'm moving in with you. Like, soon. Or even right now, behind her back… I don't know."

"Oh," Ryder chuckled, then lapsed into silence again as he looked at her lovingly, before moving closer to her slightly. "Would that… be so terrible?" He suggested, failing subtlety somewhat as he pressed an ardent kiss against her cheek. Marley, initially surprised, soon softened at the gesture as her face fell into concern.

"Perhaps not for us… but I'm not too sure about her. She'd have nowhere else to go and no one else to live with – I mean, sure, she has other friends, but they're all settled in by themselves." The brunette bit her lip as she looked into her boyfriend's gaze.

"Sorry if this comes out rude, but… why can't she live by herself? I mean, I do – it's not too bad." Ryder proposed, shrugging.

"I don't know, I'd feel like… like no matter how many times she said it was okay, I'd feel like I'd abandoned her or something." Marley admitted. "Besides, she's the type of person that needs to be with company, which is why this whole singleness thing is so hard for her, and… her job at that boutique isn't always steady money, so she kind of needs someone to split the rent with so that it isn't too much of an ask. I think the best thing to do is to wait until she's back on her feet more, and then maybe we can consider it." She finalised her reasoning by lifting her head up to kiss Ryder's nose reassuringly. "I mean… is that okay with you?"

Ryder smiled. "Hey, that sounds perfect." His comment meant that Marley beamed with satisfaction and relief. "So, do you have to go to this club opening thing right away?"

The brunette sighed. "I guess I could spend a few more minutes here before I really have to go… wanna cuddle until then?"

The boy's mud-brown eyes lit up at the fact that she could stay longer. "Sure."

A week or so later, and Marley found herself making her way to her apartment's small kitchen with a groan as she clutched her head – a night out with an old friend from high school who was in town had triggered a hangover. She fumbled with utensils and the kettle as she attempted to make coffee, looking at the time: almost noon. Her mind wandered over to thoughts about Kitty, who, Marley recalled, was meeting up for coffee with some guy she had met at the club opening the two had been to. Marley had chatted up Kitty to all the attractive, straight men in the club, and the blonde herself had exchanged numbers with almost all of them. Her and this guy – Derek, Marley recalled – had instantly hit it off (Marley guessed, at least, from the rather carnal noises she had heard from the other side of the apartment as she attempted to sleep). It had been exactly 7 days since that night, and after a few more meet-ups, Kitty was going to greet him for coffee and brunch in a café nearby – Marley only hoped this one would work out. Derek ticked all the tedious boxes which being Kitty Wilde's boyfriend required; he was attractive and funny, too. It had been a long time coming for the blonde, as apparently, no one in New York thought she was girlfriend material. Marley considered that to be ridiculous – despite her frequent snarky personality, the blonde was lovely and, of course, beautiful, and her best friend hated seeing her so alone and upset.

A slam of the door silenced Marley's thoughts and sent new ones racing to her brain as the blonde herself entered hastily. "Oh, great! How was it?" She asked cheerfully, in spite of her hangover.

Kitty then turned to her friend and gave her an opportunity to fully take her appearance in. Her blonde hair was tousled and messy, her body was hunched as she clung onto a paper bag. Most importantly, her face dripped with run mascara, as her eyes were damp and red. It was then, after a few seconds, that the blonde choked out some words between sniffles. "Walgreens didn't have any Kit-Kat bars. Can you believe that?! No Kit-Kat bars! So, instead, I had to spend $10 worth of Reece's Peanut Butter Cups! I mean, they're great, but you know Kit-Kats are my favourite!" She sobbed as she showed Marley the candy bars and shuffled to the couch. "Derek broke up with me, by the way."

Marley's blood ran cold as she walked over to Kitty – who had her head in her hands and was now violently sobbing – abandoning her coffee completely. "No, honey…"

"I'm so stupid! I'm so stupid!"

"No, you're not, Kit…"

"Yes, I am!" She snapped as her head rose from where it was in her lap to look at Marley. "I should know by now that, apparently, every guy in this stupid city is a sick bastard who only wants a hook up, or a one night stand or something! I mean, am I so unlikeable that I haven't been able to be in a serious relationship for a year and a half?"

"Kitty…"

"And one of the worst things is their excuses. Bullshit! "Oh, Kitty, you're great, I'm just not ready yet" "Oh Kitty, you're hot, but the chemistry isn't right" "Oh Kitty, you're full of charisma but I'm just not that into you" "Oh Kitty, it was more of a one-time thing, maybe we can just be friends" Oh Kitty, Oh Kitty, Oh Kitty! Over and over again! Every! Single! Week!" She screeched as she opened her first pack of Reece's. "And every time I think: I'm so sick of men, I'm done with dating. And then, guess what, I'm in bed with another guy who doesn't even give a damn about my feelings or anything!"

Marley was overwhelmed, and instead of speaking, decided that actions would be a better fit, and instead, she decided to simply rub the poor girl's back as she continued to rant, only quieter and in more of a whimper.

"One of these days, Mar…" She inhaled deeply, "One of these days I'm going to finally have what you have with Bieber. And I'm gonna be all happy and in love and shit, and you're gonna be all happy and in love and shit – like you are now – and we can just be all happy together. That's all I ever wanted. But, it's like, now, that dream is just drifting further and further away and I'm just thinking of me in, like, 30 years, and I'm this 50-something year old cougar who's still trying to bag a guy that isn't repulsed by my wrinkly skin and my bingo wings and I- I just- I can't-"

It was towards the end when Kitty began to break down again and Marley couldn't quite decode her dog-like whimpers into words, so she just continued to rub her back and say "I know, I know", whilst pretending that the blonde's screeches didn't encourage her already-large headache due to her hangover.

"I just don't get why I can't have what you and Ryder have." Kitty whined, now returning to a more reasonable pitch – Marley was shocked, frankly, that the blonde had used her boyfriend's real name for once. "And now, all I'm doing is standing in the way of your perfect little romance, because you probably feel all compelled to take care of me and stuff, so you're still living with me out of pity when you and Ryder should be settling down at his place, and... because I have no other friends and the boutique sucks with money right now, and because of this: all the guys in the world think that I suck. So if that's true, go ahead and live with Ryder, because I feel awful by holding you guys back." She whinged.

"Kitty, that isn't true…" Marley insisted.

"But it's okay if you want to." Kitty claimed in reply.

Marley sighed. "I'd rather stay here with you for a while. You're not too shabby a roommate." Marley grinned as she nudged her playfully, earning a small smile to form at the corners of Kitty's mouth. "And besides: no permanent toothbrush there yet, remember?" She joked, receiving a small, sad giggle from her friend. It wasn't much, but it was progress at least.

A year had passed since that momentous day, and Marley sat on the same fabric sofa, reading the newspaper and highlighting good reviews of local restaurants – a chore she didn't desire to take part in, but she had promised her best friend that she would do so. The blonde herself, meanwhile, was having dinner with her current boyfriend, named Alex. He was, admittedly, not the perfect guy. He could get very immature one second, and very sophisticated the next. But he was nice, and never a jerk, and he was good for the blonde. In all truth, the girl had been a thousand times happier with him and he had unleashed a side of her that no one had seen before – a good side. He was caring, and at least that was perfect to her. He also enjoyed getting to know the people in Kitty's life; the two had even gone on a few double dates with Marley and Ryder.

Kitty walked through the door to her and Marley's apartment with a sizeable smile across her complexion as she took her elegant fur coat off and stepped out of her winter black leather boots, revealing a tight but modest black dress and tights. She looked very fancy for early afternoon on a Tuesday.

Marley noticed. "Where were you, all dolled up?"

"I went out to lunch with Alex." She explained. "He said he wants me to meet his parents."

"Wow…" Marley guffawed as she placed the newspaper down and instead traipsed to the kitchen, settling down on the kitchen counter and opening a book. "Big step for Kitty and Alex."

"Yeah, I'm kind of freaking out. I mean, I'm happy, just… very nervous." The blonde breathed apprehensively, settling at one of the high chairs in front of where Marley sat, reading on the kitchen counter. "I mean… what was it like when you met Bieber's parents?"

"Honey, am I really the person to ask about meeting parents?" The cerulean-eyed girl raised an eyebrow, giggling as she looked up from her book, initiating a chuckle from Kitty as she shook her head, recalling Marley's frequent stories about the fateful night when she met Ryder's parents. Overcome with nerves, the girl had blurted things out instantaneously and had embarrassed herself, to say the least. Ever since, Ryder's parents had looked down on her and repeatedly attempted to get Ryder attracted to someone else – of course, their attempts were to no avail. "Listen, just be yourself and remember that they're just people. That's exactly what I didn't do, and you don't want a repeat of my experiences, so…"

"Okay, I'll keep that in mind when the time comes." Kitty giggled, then sighed and got up, strolling over to the fridge. "Hey, do you have any spare dollar bills you wanna get rid of? We ran out of milk this morning."

Marley absent-mindedly shook her head as she read her book. "No, sorry. I used all my spares up for a toothbrush for Ryder's place." She explained, completely unaware of the milestone which she had just hit, simply by explaining her recent purchase.

Kitty, unknowing at first, sniggered. "What kind of toothbrush is worth-" Halfway through her sentence she recalled the girl's rule, spoken of a year or so ago, maybe even less, and her hand impulsively flew up to her mouth in surprise. "Oh my God…" she spoke in-between her fingers, still gazing into the fridge.

"What, has something gone past its sell-by date? Just throw it in the trash, Kit, I'll take out the trash before I go over to Ryder's tonight." Marley yawned, still trying to concentrate on her book, completely unaware of what actually triggered the blonde's actions.

"I cannot believe this…" Kitty shook her head, turning around and shutting the refrigerator, staring at the back of Marley's head in disbelief.

"Jesus, relax, it's just a bit of mouldy junk…" Marley said, a little bit aggravated about Kitty's diva attitude.

Kitty couldn't hold it in anymore. "You're moving out?!" She exclaimed, torn between utter excitement for her friend and betrayal.

Marley froze. "What?" She spoke confusedly, turning around to her best friend.

Kitty rolled her eyes. "You broke your rule, dumbass!"

"What rule?" Marley knitted her eyebrows together in utter confusion.

Kitty crossed her arms. "How do you not remember?"

"I don't know – I don't remember a lot of things!" Marley giggled. "You've lost me."

The blonde sighed before trying to jog her memory. "You bought a toothbrush for Ryder's apartment."

The brunette was lost for words, frozen in her path, like a deer in the midst of headlights. Finally, after agonisingly long seconds, she spoke. "Kitty…"

"So… are you?" Kitty asked, emotionless.

"I… I mean, he offered again last week, and I said I'd have to think about it – the whole toothbrush thing was subconscious. I completely forgot about the whole thing." Marley admitted.

Kitty nodded, then persisted with her question. "Well, are you going to?"

Marley hesitated, then sighed heavily as she raked a hand through her hair. "Not if you're not okay with it, or if you're not happy, or if you won't be able to pay rent. I love living here, and although living with Ryder would be awesome too, I want you to be okay."

Then, Kitty began to do the unimaginable: she smiled. The brunette predicted that when this moment came, the blonde would be anything but smiling. "Of course I'll be okay, Marley." She whispered, soon walking over to the brunette and hugging her softly. The girl reciprocated the hug in surprise. "I mean, the money is so much better now that I got promoted a few months ago, and hey, it's not goodbye forever, right? You can visit, and I can visit, and we can hang out just as much as we used to. We just won't live together, that's all."

"Aren't you sad?" Marley asked once the hug was complete, looking at her with concern for the both of them.

Kitty bit her lip, before finally replying. "Of course I'm sad. I mean, it's like the end of an era. We've lived together for five years, ever since we first came to Manhattan for college and I put that ad out in the newspaper, remember?"

And Marley did remember. The two were 18, having just graduated separate high schools. Marley had a fringe. Kitty had hair that reached her bellybutton. She needed a decent place to stay and the blonde was looking for a girl roommate, preferably of the same age, so soon met a younger Marley Rose; the two had hit it off instantly. That September was a warm one, if she recalled correctly.

"But… you've been dating this guy for three years, Marley. That's more than most people have in a lifetime, and I don't want to stand in the way of things. I mean, I have Alex now. Who knows, I might move in with him soon if I play my cards right." Kitty smirked, triggering a chuckle from her friend. "As long as you promise that you'll still be my best friend, I have no problem with you going off to live with Bieber. He's a good guy."

Marley looked at her for a while, then struggled to fight the grin that was rapidly spreading across her facial features as she nodded and gave Kitty another hug. "You know I love you, right? And you're, like, the sweetest person ever."

"Yeah, I hate that." Kitty groaned as she still beamed, hugging her friend. "I just hate that the end of Casa De Karley is nigh."

"Me too." Marley admitted, pulling away from the hug. "Hey, I'm not leaving just yet, though. Let's spend the rest of my time here just hanging out like always, right? I mean, we're gonna do that even after I'm gone."

Kitty grinned, agreeing to the request. "Sure."

"Here, I think this is the last flight of stairs."

"Thank the Lord. I still can't believe you made me carry all the heavy boxes."

"I was only using logic, the box filled with books was closest to you and the box filled with pillows was closest to me."

"Yeah, I guess. Why do you have so many books, though? I mean, Jesus, you're not exactly going to be doing a lot of reading if you're in the same apartment as your boyfriend twenty-four-seven, are you?"

"Kitty!"

The two girls continued to bicker as they travelled up the last staircase. Obviously, the world had decided to make that day even harder for them, as the elevator of the building was out of order, meaning Marley and Kitty would have to carry the girl's boxes up the six flights of stairs to get to Ryder's apartment. Surprisingly, Marley still had more stuff at the girls' apartment than Kitty had thought, because it took several trips before this one – thankfully the last one – to plant all the boxes in Ryder's apartment. The boy himself was unable to help the girls, as he had work, but luckily, he would be able to join them in just a few minutes.

Planting the last box on the wooden floor of the apartment, Kitty let out a deep exhale of relief and exhaustion as she leant on the frame of the front door. Marley, having put down her own box, did the same on the other side of the door.

"How the hell are you tired? You didn't even carry anything!" Kitty exclaimed, somewhat annoyed.

"Hey! Some of us don't do two hours of cardio and weight lifting, like you." Marley tried to reason. "Some of us prefer yoga."

"Well then, Miss Rose," Kitty sighed, straightening her back out and placing her palms together, mimicking the relaxing exercise. "How about we Namaste on your leather couch until Bieber gets back?" The girl suggested with a smirk, gesturing towards Ryder's (and, now, Marley's) leather couch in the middle of his living space.

"That's not what Namaste means…" Marley pointed out – a point ignored by Kitty as the girl instead welcomed herself in more to the apartment as she began reclining on the sofa. Marley followed.

"I can't believe this is where I live now." Marley said quietly, looking around the apartment. "It's gonna be so weird not living with you."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm gonna miss you a lot – I thought we went through all this last night?" Kitty said in exasperation – snapping was the girl's way of dealing with difficult or sad situations.

Marley knew that about the girl, so she simply giggled. "Alright, you. Do you want a drink?"

"Nah, better not. I'm meeting Alex later for drinks." Kitty dismissed in reply.

A few minutes later marked the return of Ryder, as he side-stepped past the boxes in the doorway and soon cast his soft glare across his apartment, before landing his gaze on the blonde and the brunette. He grinned, glad that this day had finally come. "Good afternoon, ladies."

Marley turned her head to see her boyfriend settling himself into his apartment by tearing off his coat and opening the fridge to get some orange juice, causing her to grin as she got up from the leather couch and walked over to him. "Hey, you." She greeted upon finally reaching him, running her palms up his chest – an action which triggered them to lean closer in unison, capturing their lips together in a kiss flooded with soft ardency.

Kitty, having arisen from her seat and seen the event, pulled a disgusted face. "Hey, maybe you guys could do that stuff after I've left?"

That comment prompted the two to finally pull away; Ryder, realising his manners, turned to her and smiled. "Hey, Kitty. How are you?"

"I'm fine. But no need to suck up to the ex-roommate – I'll be but a memory tomorrow." Kitty smirked, crossing her arms, triggering a whine from Marley.

"Kitty, don't say that, please…" She begged, holding Ryder by the waist as he stood next to her, drinking his juice.

To this comment, the blonde simply chuckled. "Relax, babe. You didn't think you'd get rid of me that easily, did you?" She said as if it was the stupidest thing in the world, pulling her fur coat on from its previous position on the coat-hanger next to the door (she had shed it previously when carrying boxes up the stairs). "Anyway, I better get back to my lonesome old apartment…"

"Kiiiittyyyy…" Marley inevitably groaned.

"You're ridiculous. Ryder, good luck living with this one, she can be a handful sometimes." Kitty said, upon retrieving her purse.

Ryder sneered. "I'll keep that in mind." And, upon saying these words, he earned a playful poke in the ribs from his girlfriend as she mumbled a 'shut up' under her breath, before walking over to her blonde friend at the door and engulfing her in a long, comfortable hug.

"Are you sure you're gonna be okay?" The cerulean-eyed girl said after their hug was complete, caring as ever as she looked at her smaller friend.

After a while, Kitty flashed a smile and nodded. "I'm gonna be fine, hun. We're still meeting each other for lunch tomorrow, right? I mean, if you dare leave your boyfriend?" She said mockingly, instigating a chuckle from Marley.

"I'm sure that would be possible - Ryder has the lunch shift tomorrow. And I'd never miss an opportunity to be with Kitty Wilde herself." She grinned, brushing a strand of hair out of her face.

"Okay, then." Kitty confirmed the deal, but made no move. After several seconds, she found herself hugging her friend again. "Oh, God, this is stupid – I'm gonna see you tomorrow!"

"Hey, I'm not the one who initiated the second hug." Marley said pointedly with a raise of her eyebrow, before her face relaxed into a smile. "See ya."

"See ya, kid." Kitty said as she opened the door. "Bye Ryder!" She called out as an afterthought.

"See you soon!" Ryder called back.

And then, she was gone.

Upon hearing the door close, Marley shuddered lightly and wrapped her arms around herself, defending her figure from the after-chill of the door's wind. After a few seconds, she managed to pick up the sound of footsteps creeping towards her, and soon, she was overwhelmed by the glorious sensation of Ryder's arms around her waist from behind, as he began kissing down her face. "You okay?" He queried.

Marley nodded, leaning into his touch more. "Yeah, I am. It just hasn't really sunken in that I'm not living with her anymore… until now." She sighed, but then cheered up. "But now, we can finally live together, and it's gonna be amazing, so… I think you were worth it."

The boy grinned against her cheek, planting a final kiss there before turning her around, only possible because of the soft grip he had on her waist. "I love you."

"I love you too." Marley beamed, before going up on her tiptoes to plant a loving, short kiss on his lips. "Thank you."

"No problem, roomie." He teased, earning a giggle and another longer kiss in return. Then, he sighed. "So, our apartment is kind of filled with boxes right now…"

The brunette groaned. "Can we, like, do that tomorrow? I think I've already done my workout for today with the amount of times Kitty and I climbed up the stairs."

"Why couldn't you use the elevator?" Ryder asked confusedly.

"Kitty told me it was out of order while I was collecting boxes from the truck." Marley explained, furrowing her eyebrows together.

Now, Ryder was really confused. "Uh… no it's not… I used it to get up here, like, ten minutes ago."

"What?!" Marley exclaimed. "But Kitty told me-" And then, she realised. The blonde had wanted to be sly one last time, so that they could spend more time together before she had to leave. Her new discovery initiated a dry chuckle from Marley's mouth. "I swear to God, I'm gonna kill her."

Done! Thanks for reading. I had this idea in my head for a long time and I'm glad that it's finally complete. Again, sorry there wasn't too much Ryley in it.

Beth :-)