A/N: Hola. :) Well, this is a one-shot, and um... yeah. June 21st is sooo long away... I can't wait for the eleventh book. Like, at all. Doesn't really matter when this takes place. Just go with me... okay:) Um... this may not make sense, so if it doesn't, keep in mind I wrote this at three AM, all right...? And this is my first fic, like, ever.
By the way... reviews make me happy. ;)
My tea's gone cold, I'm wondering why
I got out of bed at all
The morning rain clouds up my window
And I can't see at all
And even if I could it'd all be grey
But your picture on my wall
It reminds me that it's not so bad
It's not so bad
It was four in the morning, and I'd woken up early; for whatever reason, I didn't know. I couldn't sleep, really. My tea had gone cold a half hour ago, and the rain was beating on my window as hard as it could. I had the eerie feeling that I was all alone in the world.
Actually, it'd really gotten to me that I was alone because I'd hadn't heard from either Morelli or Ranger in a few weeks and it was really kind of depressing. I was okay; I had my girls – Connie, Lula, and Mary Lou had gotten me through everything I'd needed – but I still missed the two of them.
Joe and I had ended in an argument, about something stupid that wasn't important, and I'd told him to get out of my apartment and my life and not to call me. I was kind of offended that he'd actually listened to me.
And Ranger... well, no one knew where the hell Ranger was, but really, how was that any different than usual?
I figured since I hadn't seen any lightening, I should go shower and be early to work for once, and as I passed the hallway to my bathroom, a picture hanging on the wall caught my eye.
It was me and Joe, in happier times. I wasn't sure where we were or when the picture had been taken, but I knew that I had icing on my nose – he'd put it there – and that the two of us were laughing. I think he was laughing at me more than at the situation, but... whatever.
The picture made me smile instead of feel nostalgic, and I stepped into the bathroom, looking at the mirror. For God's sake, I said. Why don't you call one of them?
That was actually a good suggestion. I gave myself a mental pat on the back and started up the water, knowing that when I got out of the shower, I was calling Morelli. Before I convinced myself not to.
I drank too much last night, got bills to pay
My head just feels in pain
I missed the bus and there'll be hell today
I'm late for work again
And even if I'm there
They'll all imply I might not last the day
And then you call me and
It's not so bad
It's not so bad and
I sat with the phone in hand, debating whether or not to call.
I had a killer headache from drinking too much last night, and the stack of bills on my table just kept growing and growing. I glanced at them. They were evil. I stuffed them in my salad bowl, hoping that they'd just disappear.
Somehow, I'd wound up late for work. I didn't know how it was. Maybe I'd fallen asleep on the couch after I'd showered. Yeah, that's more like it.
All the sudden, as I was debating whether or not to put the salad bowl in the oven (the further away from me, the better), and the phone rang.
"Hello?" I said, wondering who would call at eight in the morning. Other than me, of course, as I'd just been about to do the same thing.
A beat of silence went by, and I said hello again, and I could feel the guy on the other end smile. "Cupcake?"
Hee-hee. Be still, my fast-beating heart. "Hi," I said. "I haven't heard from you in awhile."
"Oh, well. When you said not to call you, I took it to heart. Is that wrong?"
"No, I guess not," I said. "Absence makes the heart grow fonder."
He laughed a little. "I've missed you."
I nodded. "I missed you too."
The whole phone call had me wanting to rush over to his house and smile. I wanted to tell him that I loved him, but I couldn't. Too scared, I guess. Instead, we made plans for lunch. Well, I do express emotions through food, so...
"Thank you," I whispered, before he hung up. "You always make me feel better."
I want to thank you for giving me the best day of my life
Oh just to be with you is having the best day of my life
Push the door, I'm home at last and
I'm soaking through and through
Then you handed me a towel and all I see is you
And even if my house falls down now
I wouldn't have a clue
Because you're near me
I walked through the door to my apartment, feeling as if lunch had been the best meal ever. So I didn't have any FTAs and so I had no money and so I would probably be evicted soon. It didn't matter. Joe had made my day much better just by calling.
I threw my keys on the table, shrugging my rain-soaked coat off and let it drip into puddles on the floor. I was so soaked, so cold...
Yet I was in such a good mood. I was on air, and I wanted to sing songs from musicals like The Sound of Music. I wanted to dance on a hill. I twirled into my foyer, arrived in a flourish, and...
Someone was in my apartment. Oh, my God, somebody was in my apartment.
"Hello?" I asked nervously, no longer feeling so high on happiness. "Who's here?"
Joe stepped out of my bathroom, holding a towel out to me. "Guess who?"
Eek. Seeing Morelli in your apartment was enough to make me melt. "Why're you here?" I asked, figuring I didn't want to ruin this by not asking questions. Hell, I wanted to know why he'd just walked out of my life and then all the sudden chose today to come back.
He shrugged and wrapped me in a towel, then in his arms. "I figured you'd had a bad day," he said. "I mean, other than seeing me, right?"
He was kidding, but it actually wasn't a joke. He gave me a kiss and held me tighter, whispering in my ear. "You know what today is?"
I didn't.
"Remember that day in Tasty Pastry?"
Oh, that day. "It's a weird, twisted kind of anniversary," I said, laughing. Then, realizing I'd probably soaked him, I asked, "Don't you mind that I'm getting you wet?"
He shook his head. "Not really."
Okey-dokey. I didn't really want to let go, so if he didn't mind, I didn't mind. "So you realized what today was and decided to call me?"
"No, I missed you like hell. But the fact that today is, well, what it is doesn't really hurt any, you know?"
Actually, today wasn't really a fond memory of mine. He'd left and hadn't called, and it had kinda hurt me a little bit, but still. It was sweet of him to make the gesture.
I took my wet shoes off and started to smile. "Thank you," I said, "for everything. Every single day with you is the best day of my life."
"No, cupcake," he said, giving me a huge grin, "thank you."
