A/N: Set when Katie goes back to New York for her sophomore year of college after the end of the summer. I hope you all enjoy :)
Katie blinked to stay awake as she drove down the familiar street to pull into the parking lot for her apartment building, while Ned who was in his truck behind her found a spot to park on the street. She pulled into her allowed parking space and parked. She shut her car off and then made sure the parking pass was stuck to her windshield before she grabbed her purse, keys, and phone and opened her door to get out.
Once, she stepped out she noticed Ned was already walking toward her to help her bring her stuff upstairs. She popped her trunk as he approached and closed her door.
Katie had been elated Ned told her he had decided to come up with her, driving separate so he could go back to Grandview after the weekend.
"Should we just grab your clothes for now and grab the rest tomorrow?" Ned asked, grabbing her duffle bag and suitcase from the trunk.
"Yeah. I have two things I'm gonna grab from my car, but the rest is fine until tomorrow." She said, going around to the passenger door where she collected her laptop bag and a backpack. She slid the backpack on and the strap of the laptop bag over her shoulder before she collected her purse off the seat and made sure she'd put her phone inside. She grabbed her keys and purse and closed the door, locking her car as she came over to the trunk and grabbed the last suitcase and closed the trunk. "Thanks for helping me."
"Yeah, of course. Plus this is probably one of the last weekends I'll get off for a while." He sighed, shaking his head. "Someone said that the Chief is being pressured to retire and doesn't want to yet, so he's taking it out on all us rookies by tightening the ropes, so we're all on desk duty."
"That sucks. He'll probably let up soon," she sighed. She could sense there was something more he was holding back from her. She wasn't sure what it was, but she wasn't convinced she was wrong either, but she left it alone for now. "I've got a pretty packed schedule too once school starts. I have a meeting with the manager at the diner about work in a few days too."
"We'll figure it out, babe. Don't worry," he said, reassuring her.
She shrugged as they began to walk toward the front of the building and as Katie went to open the door, it slammed into her face knocking her back into Ned.
"Oh fuck," she winced, clutching her nose as it began to bleed and tilted her head back.
"Holy crap, I am so sorry!" Someone gasped as Ned took her purse out of her hands and looked through it to find her a tissue to press against her nose.
Once Ned found her something, she looked back at the man who'd hit her with the door and was greeted with warm blue eyes and a handsome face staring down at her.
"That could've been a lot worse," he said in a quiet voice.
Katie's eyes look to bloodied napkin she was holding to her face. "I think you might've broken my nose," she responded and as he stepped toward her with a look of concern, she shook her head laughing. "I'm just kidding. You scared me more then you hurt me. I think it's just a bloody nose."
He chuckled at her words and his hand reached to grab her suitcase. "You're funny," the man told her. "What's your name? The least I can do after hitting you with a door is bring your suitcase up."
She was still a little disoriented from the door and followed him inside, Ned right behind her. She couldn't hel[ but study the handsome new person she'd just met. She hadn't ever seen him around the building last year. He must be new or one of the few people she hadn't seen over the last year. This man's hair was dirty blond, much light than Ned's and his sculpted face drew down to a strong chin that cradled his smile.
"I'm Katie in 7B." She said, stepping off to the side to throw away the napkin and use the second one Ned had given her to clean up her face in the mirror off to the side in the lobby of the building. Her nose had stopped bleeding, thankfully and was only a little swollen and bruised where the door had actually had contact. "And my nose is a little bruised, but fine, nothing makeup won't fix."
"I'm really sorry about that,' the man said. "I'm Andrew. I moved in right next to you actually. 7A."
"Oh, I didn't hear that someone new had moved in yet," she shrugged. "Nice to meet you, Andrew. This is my boyfriend, Ned." She gestured to the man who was right behind her with a smile. "We just got back into town and I think we got the bags now. Thank you for helping me get that big thing in here though."
"Nice to meet you both," Andrew shook Ned's hand and then Katie's before turning toward the door. "I'll see you around, I suppose."
She nodded and then turned to Ned, who was already looking at her nose to make sure it wasn't more hurt than she'd realized.
"Are you sure you're okay?" Ned asked, leaning forward to kiss her forehead.
She nodded. "A little disoriented, but I'm fine." She said. "I wanna go take a nap once we get upstairs."
"That sounds like a great idea to me." He smiled, leaning in to kiss her lips then. "I knew there was a reason I was dating you. It was for all the naps we take."
She giggled and then kissed his lips briefly again. "Shut up. Let's get upstairs," she snickered, going to grab her suitcase as they walked toward the elevator. "Hey look, it's working. Thank God. I feel like it was out forever."
They both stepped inside with their things and Katie pressed the number seven button. She laid her head on his chest and closed her eyes until the doors opened and she straightened up and pulled her suitcase as she walked toward her apartment door.
Ned's tender, warm lips caressed Katie's neck and a moan escaped her mouth. Slowly, Katie opened her eyes and remembered that she and Ned had fallen asleep after getting all her stuff into her room.
They didn't even bother changing out of their clothes they'd driven in all afternoon. They'd just kicked their shoes off and crawled into bed together for a nap.
"What time is it?" She smacked her lips, as Ned nipped on the soft flesh of her ear. Pressing against him as she stretched, she felt him hard against the thin cloth of her leggings. "Mmm, hello there,"
"9:30, I think," he responded as his hand wandered to her stomach and under her shirt. His fingers were seeking under her bra and her lower half twisted, fully awakened and aching to be touched by her boyfriend.
She turned toward him, throwing a leg over his hip to draw him closer. "Is Hannah here? I didn't see her car when I pulled in." She whispered.
"I haven't heard anything since I woke up," he said, groaning and thrusting against her. His hand cradled her neck as his lips peppered across her collarbone. "You feel so warm."
"We should be quiet just in case…" She bit her lip, smiling at him.
Ned grinned and laid back so she could fully straddle him. His hands went to her hips and she shifted to feel his erection straining in his jeans. She looked up at him before she kissed him, smiling.
She loved this man. She really did.
"How's your nose?" He asked, at the moment, touching the bruise there.
"It doesn't hurt too bad," she said. After her nap, she'd pretty much forgotten about the door colliding with her face earlier.
"That's good," he smiled, his hand brushing against her cheek as he pulled her face closer to his. "I was worried for a second there when the door hit you."
"Yeah. It was out of nowhere," she whispered and then leaned in to kiss him. They kissed briefly and she hooked her arm around his neck as she ground against him. Ned groaned and she felt him pulsing against her leg, making her gasp. "Oh, Ned."
Then there was a knock on the bedroom door. "Katie? Are you here?" Hannah's voice called out from outside the door. I got home early from my shift. My phone died so I couldn't text you, but I saw your car. You down to go grab a late dinner?"
Her boyfriend met her eyes as she smiled at him and he nodded in acceptance as she leaned in to kiss his lips. "I'll make it up to you when I get back," she whispered.
"Have fun with Han," he winked. "I'm gonna shower and probably whip up something that you guys can eat as leftovers."
"Okay," she nodded and got off of him. Katie turned back to the door. "Give me five minutes! Ned's here too, but he's staying while we go."
"Ooh, la la. Hi Ned. I'll be in the living room." Hannah giggled and the floor creaked as she walked away.
"Hi Han," Ned laughed and laid back against the pillow.
"You don't think that she heard us, do you?" She asked as she reached for one of her suitcases and laid it down to pull out a pair of jeans.
"No, we're fine. Nothing she hasn't heard before probably anyway." He laughed, sitting up and leaning in to kiss her neck again. "Don't worry. Just have a fun night with Han. Go out for as long as you two want, okay?"
She smiled at him, rolling her eyes. "We won't be gone too long," she laughed. "But I guess we just have to get used to having a roommate again, sweetheart," she said to him.
"Yeah," he nodded, leaning back to lie in the bed.
She fished out a cute top and pulled her graphic tee off. She pulled the other blouse on, fixing the neckline before turning to Ned. "How do I look?" She asked.
"Pretty as ever," he winked. "Have fun."
She stood up, leaning down to kiss him briefly again before she left. "I will. Don't miss me too much." She joked.
"I already do," he grinned, rubbing his eyes as he stood up. "Love you."
"Love you too," she said, blowing him a kiss as she closed her bedroom door behind her.
There was a great burger joint just five blocks down from the apartment building that Hannah and Katie loved. On their way there, Hannah pointed out there was a new hole-in-the-wall patisserie that had opened two blocks down that was fantastic and they'd have to go there sometime.
"I think that the scones are fantastic," Hannah said, smiling. Katie shook her head, she'd never been a fan. "But I knew you might make that face." The blonde laughed as they got closer to their destination. "I missed you. It's been like three weeks since I last saw you."
"I know," she sighed, squeezing her arm. "I'm so glad to be just hanging out with you, not that I don't love my family and Ned, but I'm happy to be back."
Hannah nodded, understanding what Katie meant. "I'm happy to have you back too. You can start helping me dress, you look so cute."
She changed out of her comfy driving clothes and was now in a purple blouse and jeans with a black leather jacket. "Oh, thanks." She smiled. "You look cute too, so how has the rest of your summer been beside what you've told me already?"
"Oh, thanks this dress is like so old though. Just something in the back of my closet, but not much has gone on here in the city lately," Hannah told her. "I just tried to sock as much money into my savings for the wedding as I could this summer. Brandon and I have been taking dancing lessons like I told you, but we decided to push the wedding back a few months. We just don't have enough for everything yet."
"That totally makes sense. You guys should do everything on your timetable with Brandon and make sure you guys get what you both want," she said, agreeing with her.
Entering the bar, several voices shout out to the girls and they wave to everyone before going to their usual booth off to the side of the bar.
A tall, dark-haired man wearing a button up shirt came up to the table. "Usual drinks, ladies?" He asked.
Katie glanced at the back of the menu. "I think I'll try the new peach tea," she said.
"I'll stick with my tap root beer," Hannah said, looking at the menu for what she wanted to eat.
"Alright. I'll be right back with those," the man said.
"Thanks, Logan," Katie said, relaxing into the booth. "What kind of appetizer are you feeling tonight?"
"Wanna get some hot wings?" Hannah asked with a smirk.
"Hmm, not feeling hot wings tonight. What about cheese curds?" She suggested. "I think I'm just gonna get the caesar wrap and fries."
"Caesar wrap and fries?" Logan set down their drinks and pulled out his pad.
"Yeah," Katie nodded.
"And for you, Hannah?" Logan asked.
"I'm gonna get the chicken burger, extra mayo, and lettuce on the side, please. With fries." Hannah said. "And can we get an order of cheese curds to come out first. Ranch and blue cheese on the side."
"Sure thing," Logan smiled, taking their menus. "Wave me over if you need anything else."
They both nodded before turning to look at each other.
"How are things with Ned? You've asked enough questions about me." Hannah laughed, sipping her drink.
"We're good," she twisted her straw around their drink. "This year is gonna be a test for us, for sure. I can feel it in my bones. My schedule is packed and so is his."
"You'll work through it." Hannah laid her hand on top of hers, squeezing it. "If you can handle him last summer, you can handle him now."
She rolled her eyes and laughed. "Yeah, I guess." She took a drink of her iced tea and sat back in the booth as she saw Logan walking closer with their appetizer.
"Here's the cheese curds," Logan set the food in front of them with the dipping sauces. "Is there anything else I can get for you two?"
"No, thank you." They both said and reached for a cheese curd at the same time.
Katie then looked back up at Hannah as she finished it eating it. "I guess it's just my whole life I grew up with my parents being in love and a unit." She explained, shrugging her shoulders. "I want to make sure Ned is the right person to have a family with. I want our kids to know their parents love them and each other more than anything."
"Well, do you think he is the right person?" Hannah asked.
"He could be," she nodded. "I know he could be a great father, Hannah. I just don't know if we can be as good of a unit unless I know more about him. I feel like we're not as connected as we could be after nine months."
"Then tell him that, Katie," Hannah said softly. "He'll understand."
"I hope so," she whispered, grabbing another cheese curd.
Katie bid a goodnight to her best friend before she slipped into her bedroom, where Ned was lying in her bed on his side, shirtless and asleep. It was late, almost midnight as she closed the door behind her and breathed in the silent, dark room.
Ned rolled onto his stomach, still fast asleep as he groaned and she smiled. He was so cute when he slept.
She walked toward her side of the bed and wiggled out of her jeans before pulling her blouse over her head. She pulled her bra off a moment later and picked up Ned's discarded shirt on the edge of the bed.
"That looks good on you," Ned groaned, rubbing his eyes as he laid his head on his pillow. A lazy smile came across his lips as his tongue wet them and he reached out to her. "Come to bed, baby."
She slipped into bed and laid her head near his, feeling his hand run through her hair. "Hi," she smiled.
"Hi," he leaned in to kiss her lips and she pulled back just before he could.
"Not yet," she whispered, her hand running up his side. "We need to talk."
"About what?" He asked, laying back in bed.
Katie was silent at first, studying Ned as they laid in bed together. It was only a minute or so before she knew what she needed to say. It wasn't going to be easy, but she knew if she didn't speak up now she would only regret it in the long run.
"I'm worried that you're not as open to me as I am to you," she said, rolling onto her back. "It's just... you know everything about me, Ned. I've told you everything, but when I think about everything you've told me it doesn't feel like we've connected as much as we could."
"It's hard to be open," he shrugged. "I've never really been open with anyone before."
She nodded. "I understand," she whispered. "I just want to be the same person to you that you are for me."
He smiled, rolling closer to her and pressing a kiss to her forehead as his arms wrapped around her. "What's one thing you wanna know? Ask me anything." He whispered, rubbing his hands up and down her back.
She relaxed into his chest, breathing in his smell as he overloaded her senses. She rubbed her hands up his chest an moved back. "This," she whispered, touching the scar on his right side. There was bruising around it like it was recent, but it had scabbed over by now. "What happened?"
"Work," he sighed, bringing her hand there to his mouth, pressing a kiss to each of her fingers. "There was this one routine pull-over for a broken taillight last month. The guy had a warrant and when he ran, I took off after him and he pulled a knife. He got me pretty good, but I wasn't worse than anything that's happened before."
"You got him though, right?" She asked, her eyes wracked with worry. She wanted to know more, everything that had happened to him and she wondered if this is why he didn't tell her everything that happened at work.
"Yeah. He's in jail awaiting trial," he said, leaning in to kiss her forehead. "Don't worry. What else do you wanna know?"
"What about a story?" She asked, smiling up at him.
"Hmm… a story?" He rubbed his hand against her hip and smiled. "Okay, there was this one time when I was over at your parent's house. I don't remember why, but my mother had dragged me over with her and I ended up playing video games with Aaron downstairs after she went upstairs." He laughed, blushing a little as he looked down at her. "And then you came down the stairs and I realized my mom must've been helping Melinda get you ready for your Senior Prom. I was really happy I'd come then because you looked so beautiful."
"You told me I looked rad," she laughed, shaking her head at him.
"I didn't know what else to say," he laughed with her, shaking his head too. He remembered the dress, the brilliant green material that clung to her hips and bosom. "All I remember was my mind going blank at how much skin was showing." He touched her shoulders, imagining the small straps that sat on her shoulders. "It had an open back, right?"
She nodded and he smirked. "Why didn't you just say I looked pretty?" She asked.
"I thought my mom or someone would hear me," he sighed, shaking his head. "And I was so immature back then. I was going to come to talk to you outside, but I saw that kid kiss you before I even opened the door, so I didn't. I didn't want to ruin your entire night and I had a tendency of doing that back then."
She nodded, rolling her eyes at him. "You wanna know what happened that night?" She asked.
"What happened that night?" He asked.
"The dance went fine, we even kissed again in his car once we pulled up in front of the house, but then he'd said something about Henry telling him I was good blowjobs." She rolled her eyes, laughing at the thought of the facial reaction that kid must've seen.
"What did you do?" He asked. "I would've kicked the crap out of him if you'd told me."
"I just got out of the car without another word," she said. "My mom and dad were waiting on the porch anyway. I just marched inside and they came after me. It was a long night, but I got through it. I didn't need you to kick the crap out of him for me, trust me."
"If you say so," he scoffed, winking at her. "I would've been so grateful to have a prom date as pretty as you looked that night."
"You're just a smooth talker, Ned Banks," she chuckled, rolling her eyes.
"If you say so," he laughed, leaning in to kiss her as she pulled him on top of her. "I'd say it's working out pretty well for me."
"Yeah, yeah." She giggled.