It was chaos.
Matt looked around the room. Boxes. Boxes everywhere - of which many he did not know the contents.
How could she possibly have this much stuff? His full-to-the-brim suitcase, box of keepsakes and the clothing on his back felt like a lot to him. And yet, they'd needed two car trips and extra hands to manoeuvre all of her possessions.
In the three hours that they'd spent tackling this mountain of unpacking, Kate had barely gotten through one box. Every new item that left its temporary confinement, she'd spend half an hour inspecting, checking for damage or recalling childhood memories involving said item.
"Oh this little thing! I'm surprised it even survived the ordeal!" She looked fondly on a small ornate box, opening and closing the lid delicately to check the working of the hinges. "Father gifted it to me as an earring box, but I found it far more useful as a residence for the insects I found in the garden."
Matt focused his attention on the fifth box of the afternoon. He bent down to lift it. "I'm sure he loved your ingenuity, Kate," he said through gritted teeth as his back throbbed in complaint.
He was tired. Exhausted even. The ocean of unpacked luggage only seemed to grow in his eyes and his back muscles had already aged to that of an old man. That morning, he had felt fluttering in his stomach, anticipating this new and exciting step in his life; A place of his own. Not the tiny, porthole-windowed cabin on the Aurora, nor the four bland walls of the Airship Academy's dorm room. But an apartment. His and Kate's; A place for just the two of them.
His disbelief and awe had seen him through the morning. He'd whistled his way through the unpacking of his own belongings and felt nothing but joyous energy as he'd cleaned every room from top to bottom. He hadn't even felt a tinge of annoyance when Kate arrived two hours later than planned. He just couldn't wait to welcome her home.
A low rumble brought him back to reality. He realised he hadn't eaten since the early morning and it was already two in the afternoon. He turned to Kate, who was still opening and closing the lid of the little box.
"Shall we have a break and eat lunch?" he asked. A surprised expression broke out on Kate's face, almost like she'd forgotten Matt's presence.
"Shall we?" She placed the object back into the box and Matt wondered how long it would take her to finally select a place for it in the apartment. "Have you unpacked any of the clothes yet? I will need to change."
"Change? Why? We're not going anywhere." Matt cautiously manoeuvred around the boxes, taking care not to stumble.
"You said we should eat lunch. I can't go out in this-", Kate gestured at her dress, "not after unpacking all of that dust!". Matt looked at her incredulously. Every item he had come across looked polished to within an inch of its life. No doubt, the de Vries' domestic help would have made sure everything was neatly and perfectly packed for the big move before Kate had even shed one thought on the matter.
"We can eat lunch here. I bought fresh bread from the bakery and meat and cheese from the deli this morning." Kate watched as Matt made his way to the kitchen, taking out said food from a paper bag.
"Why ever do we need to prepare our own when there are plenty of restaurants in the area?" Matt could see by the way her eyebrows pulled closer together, that Kate was genuinely confused as to why he had bought food.
He set about cutting slices from the loaf of bread, inhaling the intoxicating scent that pertained to it being freshly baked. Kate's expression was light, gazing as he constructed a platter of bread, cheese and meat. Matt felt relieved that she hadn't protested. He honestly couldn't say he had ever witnessed Kate chow down on a sandwich before.
"I rather like this." Kate gestured to the assortment of food. "It's very rustic, like an indoor picnic." She bit into her sandwich and made a noise of contentment. Relieved at her approval, Matt took a bite of his own.
"I'm sure the novelty will wear off after this becomes a regular meal."
Kate's face contorted slightly with confusion as she reached for a cup of tea that Matt had made earlier.
"Why would it become a regular meal? There's a great variety of cuisines nearby. We could even have a different taste of the world each evening of the week." She sipped from the cup and her expression transformed from confusion to distaste. It must have become cold with all the time spent examining her belongings.
"Because we're on a budget. We can't really afford to dine at a restaurant every day." He shrugged his shoulders as he constructed another sandwich.
"A budget? What are we saving for?"
Matt stopped mid-chew. He realised the topic of money had never been discussed between them and quite honestly, he was afraid to even discover how little Kate understood about finances as a wealthy family's daughter.
"We're saving to survive. You know, pay rent and feed ourselves?" Kate's confusion only grew.
"Why would we pay rent? We've bought the apartment."
Matt had been disillusioned enough to look into renting an apartment in the centre of Lionsgate city, but he certainly hadn't fooled himself into thinking he could buy one outright. He had settled on abandoning the idea of a central apartment and chose one on the outskirts to give them leftover savings. Still, he had expected their combined earnings from the space mission to cover a few extra months of rent. He had given half to his mother and sisters but Miss Simpkins failed to give reason to the meagre amount of Kate's that she reluctantly relinquished to their joint account. What had she spent so much money on before they had even begun this trial? Matt's hope for success flagged slightly.
"I'll give the exact figures later but let's just say that we both need jobs if we want to cover next month's rent."
He silently made a note to himself to make a list of expenses and explain them to Kate, lest she ended up buying needlessly luxurious toilet paper as he had no doubt, she wouldn't have ever been required to buy such everyday commodities.
"I have numerous events asking for my appearance in the coming weeks, I'm sure we'll be able to afford more than sandwiches after those," Kate replied nonchalantly. Matt wasn't aware of said 'events'.
"What events are you-"
"Speaking of, I'm not sure that all of my equipment will fit in such a small room. I shall need more space to prepare for the events…" Kate's voice trailed off as she stared distractedly behind Matt's head. He knew she was somewhere he wasn't and a sense of loneliness began to creep up from within. He shook off the feeling and turned to look at the small room near the front door. It wasn't even big enough to fit a single bed, so it was only suitable for a tiny, cramped office or even a nursery.
Wait. Did he just-?
Matt's cheeks flooded with liquid heat as he realised what he had just imagined. He was embarrassed that his mind had sped so far into the future and he quickly emptied his thoughts of small feet pattering across the floor and the blur of a small, auburn head bobbing around their cosy apartment. He refocused his gaze on his fiancé, knowing this was a topic for a distant time.
"It's small but I suppose it is just a storage room. We'll have to look for a solution. Maybe even put some things into external storage but that will also cost…" Matt slipped into another reverie, his worries slowly all boiling down to money; something he'd had experience with for most of his life.
"Storage room? Are you talking about the walk-in wardrobe?" Kate was looking in the same direction as Matt. He turned back to look at her, confused.
"We don't have a walk-in wardrobe." Matt wasn't even sure he'd ever seen one.
"I suppose if I disposed of some of my clothes, we could make room for a few pieces of my equipment in there, and then it would be a storage room of sorts. My study should be sufficient in size if we do so." She smiled at Matt as though she had solved a great conundrum but his ears only captured one word.
"Study? What are you talking about?" The beginnings of a conflict was starting to rear its ugly head and Matt braced himself. This was part of the trial; accepting and surrendering to each other's ways. Matt could only hope that Kate was prepared to do the same.
"Of course, the larger room shall be my study and the room by the front door will be a walk-in wardrobe or as you say, a 'storage room'."
"What about the guest room?" Matt asked.
"Why would we need a guest room? We've no guests." Kate sat up straight in one of their dining room chairs. At least Matt liked to think of it as a dining room, but it was more so a moderately sized kitchen with a table and two chairs squashed into a corner.
"Don't you think it would be nice to welcome guests and have them stay over? In fact, I was going to invite my mother and sisters to stay with us next week." He was carefully gauging her expression whilst explaining, looking for signs of an eruption in a dormant volcano.
"They can stay in a hotel nearby. I'm sure they would appreciate the privacy." Kate's illuminated expression would make anyone think she had untangled another troubling complication, but Matt could only feel a bubbling magma begin to rise within himself.
"That's ridiculous." Her nostrils retracted into that tell-tale slit of anger. "Kate, the whole point of inviting my family here is to let them see where I will be living and to show them our place. I'm not going to force them out and into some cheap hotel."
"I didn't say to force them into a cheap hotel! We can find a comfortable and expensive one for them. Father has associates in the hotel business, I'm sure he could help us select the best one."
"Kate, my family don't care about five star hotels! They care about me and you, my fiancé. So why would they come all the way to our apartment, just for us to tell them that they're staying in some fancy hotel?"
Matt felt himself begin to gesture wildly with his hands as he spoke, evidence that his frustration was only becoming more severe. He was angry that Kate didn't appear to want the hassle of hosting his mother and sisters and he could sense the dream of proudly welcoming them to his home slipping further away.
But before he let his irritation overflow, he took a breath, relaxed his shoulders and captured the sight before him within a picture frame in his memory. He reminded himself to take in the beauty of the moment, one they may not have had if their journey beyond the sky hadn't ended in a miracle. They were alive and well, about to set out on uncharted territory in the next chapter of their lives, but what were they to achieve if they only raged at each other?
"Please, Kate. I would like for them to stay with us." He reached across the small table to touch her hand. Her body released its tension and she suddenly paused to study Matt's expression. She was no longer alone in this journey and she sighed at her own obstinacy. A soft hand tightened around Matt's outstretched digits.
"Then it will be a guest room," she breathed. Matt held the hand in his and brushed a thumb over the back of it. "But where will I do my work?" Kate pondered and gestured to the table they were sitting at. "This will surely not suffice."
Matt snorted at her tone. He had won one small battle in a life-long war. But he smiled in spite of it, cherishing the warmth of the hand in his.
"It surely will not," he answered with mirth. "But we'll find a solution."
~ Later that night ~
He was out of his depth.
Whilst exploring unmarked territory, he had unknowingly walked straight off a cliff and was barely hanging on to the edge.
Did she know what she was doing to him?
The sheets rustled and pulled behind him, alerting his already frayed nerves. He had to pull himself back from the precipice otherwise he was without a doubt, going to fall into an inescapable chasm.
"Are you asleep?" A soft voice whispered in the dark. Why did every sound either have a terrifying or erotic edge to it in the dead of night? The owner of the voice shifted closer to him and he felt warm digits wrap around his upper arm.
Please don't, he thought desperately. Not like this, not on the first day of the trial. Kate's father would never forgive him if he discovered that Matt had betrayed his word.
"You're not sleeping. Why didn't you answer me?" Kate questioned, peering down at him from her propped up position in bed.
Matt didn't have the courage to tell her the kind of thoughts that were flooding his head. Thoughts of pleasure and skin-on-skin. He pinched himself painfully, feeling like a predator. But what could be expected of him? He was a healthy, young man sharing a bed with his beautiful fiancé for the first time.
"I wanted you to know that, I don't care what my father said..." Kate's soft tones filled the dark room and echoed endlessly through Matt's mind.
She didn't care? But it was the most important rule, the one they must not break if they were to succeed. The one that Matt was too embarrassed to fail on. But under the warm bed sheets, her heat radiating onto his own body, his addled mind was losing all restraint. No, the most important thing was Kate's consent and that he had just received, right?
"Your father seemed really adamant about not… you know… is it really okay if we…?"
He turned over in her direction, his heart pounding violently in anticipation of what was to come. He began to reach out blindly for his love.
"What are you talking about?"
He stilled, hand floating in mid-air. He couldn't see Kate's expression, but her tone hinted annoyance that he wasn't on the same page.
"What are you talking about?"
"This ridiculous trial, of course." Kate's eyes were undoubtedly narrowed at him, in suspicion or because of the poor lightning, he couldn't tell. All he was certain of was that his body was on the verge of combustion.
"Oh… yeah that's- that's what I was talking about… as well… yeah…" He had to pinch his leg to stop himself from talking.
There was a long pause of silence that was so palpable, Matt could have reached out and grabbed it. He felt Kate shift and press her back against the head board. He hesitated for just a moment, before sitting up next to her.
"I don't want you to think that I'm testing you or…us. Regardless of what my father dictates that I should do… I know what is best for me…" Matt had never heard Kate pause so much between her words. They were usually filled with conviction, maybe hastily declared without care for the hearer but nevertheless, they were honest and without modification. On this occasion, in the darkness of their bedroom and listening to her weighted silences, he could sense that she truly wanted to alleviate any worries he had.
Despite poor vision, he reached out a hand and it accurately found hers.
"And I know that you're the one who is best for me." She squeezed his hand and his heart squeezed back.
"Not James Sanderson?"
"Not James Sanderson. Or George Sanderson, or any other Sanderson for that matter."
"Good." She laughed as he intertwined their fingers and he revelled in the rare shyness in her voice. The silence that was once so heavy became a comforting blanket as it settled around them. Matt was tempted to pinch himself for whole different reason; to ensure that this moment wasn't a dream.
"So… about what you were thinking earlier…" Kate had turned her head and whispered close to his ear. The warmth of her breath brushed against his skin and a fire ignited within him.
"I also don't care what my father says about that."
Matt's head snapped in her direction and he met her smirking expression mere centimetres away from his face. He swallowed thickly.
"B-b-but-" His words fell away as Kate leaned in close and pressed soft lips against his own. A shiver danced along his skin as he turned his body to face her, releasing her hand and guiding an arm around her waist.
He no longer cared whether this was dream, he would happily choose to remain asleep.
Without breaking contact, he gently pulled on her waist, sliding her down the bed to lay flush against the mattress. A sound of surprise escaped her mouth at the movement and he pulled back to gauge her expression. Kate's cheeks were dusted pink, visible even in the low light. Her eyes were bright and warm, holding Matt's own gaze hostage. He barely managed to tear them away to catch the soft smile that gave her approval to keep going.
But just as he was about to once again capture her inviting lips…
*BANG!*
Matt jumped into the air like a startled cat, his head erratically swivelling around the room to locate the source of the sound. He shot a look at Kate who was still lying in bed, her expression amused.
"I think it was the neighbour." She stated matter of factly, not even a hint of concern in her voice. He looked in the offending direction, understanding that something had struck the wall connecting their own and next door's apartment. Questions suddenly bombarded Matt's thoughts: Did they hear us? Do they know what we were doing or about to do? Who was the neighbour? Would they tell Kate's father? Is the neighbour…?
"Is your father our neighbour?!" Matt was ready to get on his knees right there and then to beg for forgiveness. Kate laughed as she pulled on his arm, causing him to fall flat on his back against the bed.
"I don't think so, Matt."
"You don't know for sure? Maybe he moved in before we did, so we didn't see him!" He was already debating sleeping in the guest room to repent for his sins.
"Matt." Kate's voice cut through the turmoil raging inside of him. She extended his arm and rested her head on his shoulder, her arm laying across his torso.
"My father does not live next door to us, okay?" Her resolute tone settled his nerves slightly and he folded his arm across her back, pulling her closer to his chest.
"If it bothers you this much, then we will just sleep." Her voice was muffled slightly as she spoke into his neck. The shivers from before reawakened and began their journey along his body but this time he wouldn't succumb to the temptation, the cost of extreme anxiety being too high.
"Yeah… let's just sleep," he muttered into the dark expanse. A sudden feeling of exhaustion swept over him after a long day of unpacking. He marvelled at the feeling of fullness, his arms and heart overflowing with the presence of one girl.
And suddenly, he couldn't imagine being without her.