Chapter 7 – Girlfriend

(Outside of the dome)

Julia sat at the high-top table, her legs dangling from the stool. She looked around the bar, waiting for Barbie to return with their drinks. It was just past nine o'clock on a Saturday night and the bar was beginning to get crowded. It was the first night Julia was going to meet some of Barbie's army buddies. She couldn't help but be a little nervous. She wanted them to like her. They had managed to escape the dome only weeks earlier. It had been difficult adjusting to normal life after the dome had come down, but she and Barbie were determined to make a life together.

"Hi," a voice said to Julia's right. She turned and saw a good-looking man, probably in his early thirties, standing beside her table.

"Hello," she replied.

"Can I buy you a drink?" He asked.

"No, thank you."

"Oh, come on."

"I'm flattered, but I'm going to have to pass."

"I'm beautiful, you're beautiful. I think we could have a fun night. A night that could start with a drink," the man stated over-confidently.

Julia scoffed at him. She had never heard anyone give her quite such a proposition.

"She said she's not interested," Barbie stated, walking up behind Julia.

"Get lost, man, I saw her first," the man said.

Barbie put their beers down on the table before stepping right up to the stranger, putting his face in the man's face. He wanted to make sure he was very clear.

"Actually, I saw her first. She's here with me. If you have a problem with that, we can take this outside."

Julia put her hand on Barbie's arm. "Barbie..."

"Fine," the man said. "Your loss, sweetheart."

Barbie opened his mouth to speak, but Julia beat him to it. "I'm not your sweetheart."

The stranger finally walked away. Barbie slid onto his stool.

"What an asshole," he said.

"You can say that again," she replied, taking a sip of her beer.

"Can't blame him, though. You are hot," Barbie said with a smirk.

As Barbie picked up his own beer, he saw his friends coming into the bar out of the corner of his eye. He hopped off the stool and went over to meet them. After some loud hellos and quick hugs, Barbie led the three men over to the table. Julia got down off the stool to greet them.

"Guys, this is my…" he paused. He didn't know what to call her. In all their time in the dome, they hadn't exactly discussed what they were to each other. It hadn't really come up after the dome either.

"This is Julia," he finally finished. "Julia, these are the guys. Ray, Steve, and Isaac."

"Nice to meet you," Julia said, noticing Barbie's hesitation in introducing her.

"Damn, Barbie, you did good," Steve said, looking Julia up and down.

"Yeah, yeah, hand's off, fellas," Barbie responded with a smile.

He put his arm around Julia and they slid back on their stools. As Barbie's friends joined them around the table, Julia couldn't help but think about the one word he hadn't used - girlfriend.

"So, Julia, how do you put up with Barbie's incessant cockiness?" Ray asked.

"I am not cocky," Barbie insisted.

"Hell yes you are," Steve replied.

Barbie put his arm around Julia's shoulder. "What do you think, babe?"

"I think your friends know you better than you know yourself."

Barbie's friends laughed. Julia managed a smile, but wasn't quite in the laughing mood.

As soon as Barbie had the door to their apartment open, Julia made her way down the hallway and into their bedroom. Barbie shrugged off his jacket and threw it on the couch. He could tell something was bothering Julia. She had been pleasant and friendly with his friends, but towards him, she was cold and distant. He entered the bedroom. She was just changing into a more comfortable pair of sweatpants and a tank top. Barbie noticed that she wasn't changing into one of his T-Shirts as she normally did. He couldn't help but watch her as she changed, though. Even if she was angry with him for some reason, she was still beautiful.

"I think the guys really liked you," he said.

"Glad I could impress them," she replied. She grabbed her book off the bedside table. "I'm going to go read in the living room."

As she walked by Barbie, he grabbed her arm, stopping her.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"Nothing, I'm fine."

"It's not nothing. Tell me what's wrong."

"I said it was nothing."

He wasn't about to let it go that quickly. "Was it my friends? Did one of them say something to you? I know they can be a little...rough around the edges, but they're good guys."

"It isn't about your friends."

"Then what?"

"What am I to you?"

"What?"

"What are we doing together, you and me?"

"I thought we were living our lives together."

"As what?"

Finally, it hit him. The reason she was giving him the cold shoulder all night at the bar.

"You're mad because I didn't introduce me as your girlfriend."

"You made it sound like we're having a casual fling. Like I'm no one...special." Barbie couldn't help but laugh. "It's not funny. If you think we're nothing special, maybe I should have just let that guy buy me a drink."

He immediately stopped smiling. "Julia, the only reason I didn't introduce you as my girlfriend is because we never talked about it."

"So...we lived together under the dome and then we immediately got an apartment together outside of the dome, but you didn't think that constituted as me being your girlfriend? What did you think we were then? Roommates with benefits?"

"That's not fair. Look, I don't care about labels. I know how I feel about you. I know how important you are to me. I don't need the label of girlfriend and boyfriend to prove that."

"Well maybe I do."

"Fine. Will you be my girlfriend?"

"Yes."

"Good," he said.

"Good."

She was looking at him sternly, but she finally cracked a smile. Barbie wrapped his arms around her, enveloping her in a hug.

"I love you," he whispered into her hair.

"I love you too."

"And for what it's worth, I've known from the minute we met that you'd be my girlfriend."

"Your friends were right. You are cocky."

"Damn right," he said, kissing her hard.

Author's Note: Not going to lie – I struggled a bit with this chapter. I hope you liked it, though!