Elizabeth sighs softly, relieved as she strips herself of her work clothes. She drops her clothes into the laundry and hastily moves to her bedroom in search of something to keep her warm. Buying a heater would really do some wonders…
She removes her bra, a soft exhale escaping her. Then, she opens her dresser, grabbing the first thing that seems suitable enough to wear to sleep.
"Are you hungry, Ellie?" Diane calls from the other side of her door. "I brought King's food. I forgot to text you, but we had homemade pizza tonight! Are you okay with eating that? I could totally grab some fast food or something or cook you something else!" She then worries, and Elizabeth finds herself smiling.
The woman in question strides over to her door, pulling it open to reveal her best friend standing just before the threshold. She holds a plate with the said pizza, and Elizabeth takes it.
"I'm not a picky eater, Di," Elizabeth giggles, leaving the door open to turn around and place the pizza on her desk. "You know this."
Diane lets herself into the silver haired woman's room. "Mmhmm. Well, how was work?" She asks, flopping down onto her bed. "Same old, same old, or did something interesting happen for once?"
Elizabeth's mind instantly wanders to Meliodas and how persistent he was in getting her to tutor him. She blushes, embarrassed as she remembers how he brought up Mael - how he seemed a bit too enthusiastic to help her with getting with Mael. But he's already willing to pay her almost a hundred bucks an hour; why would he waste more time and energy with something so silly?
"Nothing," Elizabeth replies, moving to sit at her desk to eat her food. "Same old, same old, just like you said."
"Boring!" Diane groans. "Okay, well, are you up to hanging out tomorrow? It'll be me, King and a few friends. Or are you gonna stay here and insist you keep studying?"
A giggle. She takes a bite of the pizza before responding to her best friend. "I would be," she says, "but I'm busy tomorrow. I have class and then I have to tutor someone for a few hours. Where are you guys gonna go?"
Diane laughs, sitting up on Elizabeth's bed. "Oh my God, I forgot you're a tutor! We're going to a bar, I think. I'm not too sure."
Elizabeth continues to eat, a chuckle leaving her. "Of course you forgot. With work and school, I don't have time to take so many people at once. But my rates are fourty an hour, so I understand why people wouldn't go for me. I'm getting paid eighty for this one, though. So I can't really complain." Ah, but she has so much to complain about Meliodas being the one she has to teach. If he requests they study at his house or his dorm, she wouldn't be surprised if his room smells like six different women and other… interesting odors.
"Damn, eighty?! Why don't you just commit to tutoring and quit your job at that restaurant?"
"Well, it's always nice to have a failsafe, right?" Elizabeth shrugs. "I make good money regardless; what's the harm in a little more?"
A sigh leaves her best friend. She comes to a stand, stretching with a yawn. "I guess you're right. I'm gonna head to bed though, okay Elizabeth? Don't sleep too late!"
Elizabeth only grins in return, listening to the click of her door as Diane shuts it. The silverette finishes eating her food, quickly deciding to bring the plate into the kitchen to leave it in the sink. Drowsiness tugs at her body but if she leaves the plate here, she knows the smell of the food will get to her in the middle of the night.
When her skin is met with the comfort of her bed after she deposits the dirty dish into the kitchen sink, she sighs softly in content.
Although her body is tired, begging her to shut her eyes to allow herself to drift into a deep slumber, her mind is wide awake. She really can't believe she's going to start tutoring Meliodas of all people… Why did he have to beg her for help? Couldn't he have just found someone else to help him? Why her?
She sighs again, but this one is more heavy than the others. Elizabeth lifts herself up a bit, reaching over her nightstand to grab her phone. She squints from the harsh brightness of the screen but her eyes quickly adjust.
Elizabeth unconsciously scrolls through her contacts, stopping when she sees Meliodas' self-imported contact. Biting her lip, she decides it would probably be a good idea to ask him what exactly he needs help with and what time he wants to get started.
Clicking on his name, she taps on the option to send him a text.
-It's Elizabeth, starts off her message. -Just wondering, so neither one of us wastes time, what subject do you need help with? Where do you want to do this? And what time should I expect to see you?
She waits a few minutes, occasionally glancing at the time. It's nearly one in the morning and she isn't really shocked when he doesn't reply.
Elizabeth puts her phone face down on her nightstand, turning to her side and closing her eyes. Needless to say, sleep overwhelms her and she falls into a restful slumber.
ooo
The room is quiet and mostly empty as Elizabeth takes a seat toward the middle of the room.
Her professor is late - though she anticipated as much. Almost every single one of her professors would be late to class. They always give the material and topics needed for upcoming tests, so Elizabeth couldn't give any protests. It was all she needed to pass her exams.
Though, the silence doesn't last long as people begin to fill the room, some laughing and some giggling as they file in through the doors. Elizabeth sinks a bit into her seat, pulling out her laptop from her bag. She supposes that while she waits she can most definitely get some work done. She hopes, anyway.
Bodies encircle her - not specifically her, not really - but she can certainly feel their presences mingle around her.
Her phone suddenly vibrates in her pocket. A groan dares to escape her.
She pulls out her phone, sort of surprised to find that Meliodas texted. Elizabeth forgot she had even texted him during the night. There's a sentence she never thought she would say, outloud or in her own head.
-Sorry, I was dead asleep when you messaged me, he writes in his text. -I need help in pretty much every core subject? I wouldn't have been so desperate to get your attention if I didn't need so much help. How does six tonight sound? Would I be able to come over? I think my buddies are throwing a party at my place tonight.
Oh good, Elizabeth chants in her mind sarcastically. Well… she definitely doesn't want to tutor him in a house full of jocks drinking and yelling. And Diane won't be home for a majority of the day—maybe it'll work out in her favor.
-Sure, six works, she responds. -I live with my roommate in the dorms outside campus but she won't be there tonight. I'll send you the address if you need it.
His reply is instantaneous; -If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were inviting me for something else entirely. Are you already that bored of Mael?
-Don't make me regret agreeing to help you, you pervert. Do you want the address or not?
-Fine, fine. I surrender. Yes, send me the address. I'll let you know when I'm on my way. Just as she's about to put her phone down to check if she has work to do, she sees those three little dots at the bottom of her screen. -Are you busy right now?
Elizabeth frowns and tightens her grip on her phone, her eyes rereading his text hundreds of times. Is he trying to get into her pants right now? -Yes, she responds, but wracks her brain for the next words she should say. -But I'm not having you come over with the idea of sex or something in that tiny brain of yours. I refuse to be a booty call for you.
-And you have the nerve to call me the pervert. I was going to ask if you wanted to grab a bite or something and get started earlier than six, but you're busy atm.
-What was I supposed to think, Meliodas? You're aware of your own reputation right? You can't blame me for thinking you would want something more than a few hours a day of my time to tutor you.
-Ok, fair point. I'm not trying to sleep with you, Elizabeth. I may be an idiot sometimes, but I wouldn't put a damper so early in our relationship.
-There is no relationship between us. You're the guy I'm tutoring and I'm just the girl you have to put up with until your grades get better and you're let back on the team. And for the record, you are a moron.
-Is that how you see it?
Elizabeth feels herself bite her bottom lip. Just as she's about to respond, she glances up and notices her professor walk in. And much to her shock, Mael walks in behind the professor. Though she piques it odd; he doesn't have this class - at least not with her. Maybe he transferred?
She turns her phone off, not feeling exactly up to dealing with Meliodas' spammy nature while she's in class.
In the back of her mind, the silverette silently wishes Mael would look at her, or at the very least glance in her direction. But her heart sinks in her chest when he doesn't meet her gaze, instead moving to the back of the classroom for the professor's oncoming lecture. Elizabeth tries her best to not feel defeated or deflated, but she supposes it's already a bit too late.
She sees Mael as a kind man - one whose smile lights up the room regardless of how the atmosphere feels. Elizabeth sincerely doubts he views her as the same.
Her professor is dismissing them before she knows it. She panics in trying to stuff her laptop back into her bag. Thankfully though, she doesn't have too much trouble.
As she walks out of the class, trying to forget that Mael is somewhere behind her, she turns her phone back on and she is not in the slightest bit surprised to find dozens of notifications from Meliodas.
-Elizabeth?
-Are you so busy that you can't respond?
-Did you seriously turn your phone off? I would've stopped texting if you asked me to!
-Ok that's a lie. Can you send the address though? I really don't wanna be lost when I come over.
Elizabeth sighs and sends him her address. She notes the time - it's 3:00 - and she decides she should probably go back to her dorm she shares with Diane and tidy up the place a bit before Meliodas shows up.
God knows he'll probably throw her in for a loop and tease her for having a messy dorm.
ooo
"Mel," Ban cries into the phone, "why didn't you stay at the party tonight, man? I got off work early just for the occasion and you're not even here!"
Meliodas runs a hand through his hair, pulling on the strap of his bag. His eyes skim the numbers on the plaques in Elizabeth's dorm building. She doesn't live too far a distance from him - something he thanked his lucky stars for. If he had to drive twenty miles a day just to get tutored by her, he would really had to have considered a different alternative.
Thankfully though, he doesn't have to.
He noticed that she was in a similar situation; he also lived in the dorms outside of campus. Only he lived in an actual house, since he's the captain of the basketball team and he has the money to pay rent and all that jazz.
The blonde continues to walk, shoving his free hand into his pocket. "Ban, I'm being suspended from the team. Not permanently, but I really need to focus on getting good grades and shit, okay?" Meliodas informs his best friend, not missing the gasp that elicited on the receiver. "For the next few weeks maybe, I'm gonna be tutored. I can't have distractions and people begging me to go to parties."
"Shit," his friend curses. "I didn't know all that! My bad, man. So who's your tutor? Gilthunder?"
Meliodas laughs, "No. It's actually Elizabeth Liones. I'm sure you've heard of her?"
"No shit! How'd you manage that?" Ban sounds more astonished than anything, causing the blonde to hold back his laughter. "She gets the best scores in the fuckin' country. I thought she didn't tutor anymore?"
"Where'd you hear that?" He raises a brow, still scanning numbers and plaques, turning corners and pressing his phone to his ear.
Ban sighs, loud noises sounding out in the background. Guess the party must be starting. "Pendragon told me she couldn't help him out with that shit 'cus she didn't tutor anymore. But then I heard from Howzer that she was fully booked and couldn't offer to help anyone else. Don't you think it's a little weird she's helping you out and not them two?"
"Maybe she just couldn't resist my charm." Oh how glad he is that Elizabeth can't hear him. If she heard him say that, she would definitely refuse to help him and he would be absolutely screwed. But he did mention Mael, so he does have that over her if anything… He can't really understand what she sees in him though. He's a big guy, he's smart and yeah, maybe he seems nice and genuine, but he isn't.
Meliodas has had to deal with that guy for years - they've attended the same schools since junior high. Maybe it's the hair…
"That's a wad of bullshit and you know it, Cap'n," Ban laughs, humor lacing the sound. Shouts and screams fill the background noise - Meliodas draws a sigh. The place better be clean by the time he gets back. "She don't seem like the typa girl to swoon for a guy like you."
"Oh, really? How can you be so sure?"
"Uh, 'cus?" His friend's tone is sarcastic now. "You have sex with every other girl you look at; did ya really think that a pretty girl like Elizabeth Liones is gonna throw herself at you with the amount of bodies you have? She ain't desperate like some of the girls you fuck, Mel."
Meliodas stays quiet for a minute. He gathered that Elizabeth isn't like some of the girls he's met; she's definitely intelligent beyond words can say; she doesn't really seem to wear her heart on her sleeve, which is something he can admire. She isn't vulnerable, and he guesses perhaps that makes her strong, too. Alas, he doesn't know her well enough to even confirm all that - but he knows at the very least something about all that is true.
"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" Meliodas says, mockingly offended. "And how do you know so much about Elizabeth?"
The only thing that lets Meliodas know that the call hasn't disconnected are the shouts and giggles and laughter on Ban's end. Knowing his friend, he's probably drinking, not really caring if Meliodas is waiting for a response. "My girl is friends with her. We've hung out a couple times - she's pretty damn cool, lemme tell ya!"
"Yeah?" Meliodas snickers. "I doubt it."
"Bah, you're just a sore loser," Ban insists. "Wait 'til ya see her drunk! Oh, she's a real treat when she has her guard down."
"...In what way do you mean that?"
"Not in the way you're thinkin', you fuckin' creep," Ban responds quickly. Disgust or something along the lines thereof laces his words. "I just meant she's like a different person when she doesn't have her walls up. She's a lot more… honest, but not any less genuine, ya know?"
Meliodas' emerald eyes continue to dart from plaque to plaque and he finally stops when he sees Elizabeth's room number. He smiles, thankful he doesn't have to walk so much anymore. He tries his best to memorize where exactly her room is, just in case. He has a feeling this won't be the first time he'll be coming here for a tutoring lesson.
"Sorta," he replies. "I'm at her door right now, so I'll talk to you later, Ban. I'll probably be home before midnight."
He doesn't wait for Ban to say something else. He removes the phone from his ear and he hangs up the call, shoving his phone into one of the pockets of his thick jacket. He both loves and hates the winter time - the weather was perfect for warm drinks (even more perfect for– how can he put this lightly?– steamy sex?) - but at the same time the cold will always be the death of him. He's damn glad none of his games are outside.
The blonde brings a hand up to the door, rasping it with his knuckles before stepping back, waiting for Elizabeth to open.
When she does, he tries his damnedest to keep his expression even. She stands before him gripping the door's handle in a tank-top and shorts that stop at her mid thigh. Her hair is picked up in a bun and dear God - is this what she's going to wear every tutoring session? She wants him dead, he's sure of it.
"It's rude to stare, you know," she chides, stepping aside to let him in.
Meliodas scoffs, brushing past her, removing his bag from his back then jacket all the while. "I was not staring. Where should I sit?"
"Uh huh." Elizabeth does not sound convinced. "On the couch; you can put your bag on the coffee table. Do you want water or something? We'll be here for a bit and I would prefer it if you didn't complain about being thirsty or hungry."
He does as told and sits on the couch, leaning his bag against the closest leg of the table. He folds his jacket, pushing it off to the side. The blonde finds Elizabeth's warm gaze - he watches as she balances her weight on one leg as she leans against the wall by the door. "Nah," he says, "I'm good, I think. I ate before coming, so I think I'll be fine."
She shrugs before strolling over to the couch, keeping some space between the two. "Suit yourself. What do you wanna start on first?"
"Ahh," Meliodas ponders out loud, his hands finding his bag to pull out a textbook. "Math?" He grins as he plops the book onto the table. "I think it's probably my worst subject if I'm gonna be honest."
"Just my luck then," he hears her mutter under her breath. "Okay, let's get started."
The tutoring session so far, in short, is boring as all hell. Whenever he got stumped on a problem, he would ask for help and she would assist him. He half expected her to give some snarky remarks, but she didn't. In all honesty, he isn't really sure why he thought Elizabeth wouldn't be compliant.
Maybe it's all the money he's going to pay?
No… Elizabeth's only motive can't be money—she doesn't seem like the type. Although she did say she wanted him off her back. He didn't exactly make it easy for her to deny her tutoring services. No matter the amount of times she could've said no, he would've tried and tried again.
Meliodas glances at Elizabeth, noticing how oddly perfect her side profile is, her gaze fixated on his textbook. Her pearly silver hair falls from the bun at the top of her head and his breath is caught in his throat. He knows she's pretty - God, weirdly sexy even - but why the hell is he acting like this? It's just hair!
To distract himself, he turns his head, his eyes immediately finding a few picture frames hanging on the wall by the TV. Elizabeth is a few of the photos, but what really has him curious is the other girl in the same pictures. Her hair is dark brown, her eyes a bright violet and her smile seems kind.
And then it clicks - it's Diane! She used to have a bit of a crush on him a while ago, but he hears she's dating King. King's a good guy - though it's a shame he doesn't play on the team anymore.
"You're best friends with Diane?" Meliodas finds himself asking.
He can feel it - not physically - when she turns her head to him. Meliodas risks looking at her and when their eyes lock, her lips are parted and her gaze hardens. "How do you know Diane?" Elizabeth asks. "Please don't tell me you and her—"
"Nonono!" Meliodas laughs. "Not once. She liked me a while ago, but it didn't last that long. I heard she's going out with King. Is it true?"
She bites her lip and he finds himself watching her lips a bit too intently. "Yes. They're happy together and King's a great guy. I'm glad she's happy. She deserves it."
Meliodas hums. "Sounds to me like you're jealous!"
"Jealous?" Elizabeth parrots, clearly offended. "Absolutely not! I really am happy for her! Plus you know I like… Mael. Can we just get back to your work?"
The blonde chuckles, not saying another word. He hasn't known Elizabeth Liones for very long, but he can tell he's going to love teasing and poking fun at her in the future.
