Priorities

Wasn't that just a great first impression, Fitz thought to himself as he shook his head back and forth and rolled his eyes. He was alone in the second story of the beach house and mentally going over everything he had said or done to Liv that surely had come across as rude. He could be such a moron sometimes.

The thought crossed his mind to go downstairs and apologize to her, but before his hand could turn the doorknob, her comment about him constantly apologizing had him stopping in his tracks and let go of it. She'd give him shit for it if he did, and then he'd say something else he shouldn't. Oh well.

Instead, he went to search out the sole bedroom, dragging his suitcase behind him. Propping it up on the only chair in the room, Fitz unzipped it and began putting his clothes away. Some were put into the tan dresser and some were hung up in the nearby closet. Immediately putting away his clothes whenever he travelled had been a long standing tradition for him. It felt good knowing things were in their place. In much the same way, he kept his dirty clothes together while away too. The whole idea of being tidy was to make packing up to go home easier.

Once his suitcase had been emptied and placed inside the closet to be stored until he left, he wanted to take a look at the kitchen. Liv's comment about it being nicer than the one downstairs had piqued his curiosity, and even though he had no idea what hers looked like, he wanted to know what he'd be dealing with.

A loud yawn escaped his lips as he entered the now darkened room. Placing his hand flat on the wall, he moved it around until he felt the switch plate and flipped the rectangular knob up. The room filled with soft light. It was a great space, well designed and furnished with high end appliances all around. The owner had spared no expense with the kitchen, and Fitz found himself excited about that more than anything else.

The yearning to poke through cabinets and learn the layout of where everything was kept was of utmost interest to Fitz. However, the long drive coupled with meeting his peppy housemate had his eyes feeling heavy. He tried to tell himself that it was far too early to go to bed, but the repetitive yawns signaled his body for immediate sleep.

He was on vacation anyway. There is no such thing as a sleep schedule when you're on vacation.

On a shrug, he gave in to the need to close his eyes. He wished he had stopped and bought some water on the way. Thoughts of going to ask Liv for a bottle wafted through his mind, but since he had already canceled interacting with her again tonight, he trudged to the refrigerator instead. Praying for some glimpse of kindness or miracle, he opened the metal door and found that it was stocked with a few basics. Six bottles of water, a dozen eggs, a quart of milk, some butter, and a couple of other things sat on the shelves, facing him like perfect little soldiers.

A loud groan of appreciation to whoever had left these items behind filled the room. Grabbing one of the waters, he made quick work of ridding the plastic cap and took long gulps of the cold clear drink. He stopped long enough to take a deep breath, shut the refrigerator door, flipped off the light, and trudged back toward the bedroom.

By the time he got there, the water was gone. The empty plastic bottle and lid were thrown into the small trashcan seconds before Fitz flopped his long body, belly first onto the prettily made up bed. He was sound asleep in seconds.

Seven hours later, Fitz stirred with the uncontrollable urge to pee. He forced one eye to open for a peek at the time. Groaning his displeasure at the ungodly hour of five a.m., he closed that eye in hopes of catching a little more sleep. His screaming bladder wouldn't allow it though.

On an unhappy grunt, he rolled off the bed and zombie walked into the adjoining bathroom. Feeling a little more human and a lot less irritated after washing and drying his hands, he stretched all the kinks out of his body and then headed to the kitchen.

Coffee was the top priority every morning and...shit.

Fully awake now, Fitz stopped in the doorway of the kitchen as the first wave of worry washed over him. He didn't bring any damn coffee! There was no way in hell he was going to be able to function today without it. It wasn't his first choice, but after a short debate in his mind, he decided he'd just go buy some at a fast food joint. Later on, he planned to hit up a grocery store for food and he'd buy coffee then.

As he was leaving, his hand reached for the doorknob that led to the floor below inside the house. Even though she told him he could use that door anytime he wanted, Fitz reasoned that it was too early to be tromping through the house of a complete stranger. Besides, he wanted to avoid her for a bit longer. He found the door that led him outside and left from there.

A half hour later, he was back in his parking spot, walking towards the outside steps when he heard a familiar voice behind him. "Morning."

Whipping his head around, he saw Liv heading towards him from the beach. She was wearing a pair of khaki shorts and a white tank top, and her hair was blowing in the warm morning breeze. A coffee mug was in her hand, and knowing she was a morning caffeinator made him grin at her. He squinted and replied, "morning. You're up early."

"I like to watch the sunrise as many mornings as I can." She informed him.

"And are you a coffee or tea kinda gal?"

She shot him a judgmental look. "Tea is good here and there, but coffee is life."

"We are kindred spirits there." Fitz agreed.

She grimaced at the paper cup in his hand with the familiar logo on the side. "Is that where you usually get your coffee?"

"Hell no!" He stated firmly. Thinking he sounded like a crazy person, he said, "sorry."

"There's one."

Catching on that she was already beginning the apology counting game, he nodded at her with a widening grin and said, "I forgot to bring coffee so I was forced to buy this sludge until I go to the grocery store later on."

"Gross."

"You know...I don't even know if there is a coffee pot upstairs." He pondered. "I was too tired last night to look around really well."

"There is." She assured him. "But why didn't you just come down and ask me for some?"

"I didn't think you'd be awake this early and I didn't want to intrude."

She waved her hand in front of her face and opened the front door of the beach house. "Like I said, I like to watch the sunrise when I can. Come in and get something that at least tastes remotely like coffee."

He could have kissed her for her generosity, but instead followed her inside, shutting the door behind them. Liv led the way to the kitchen he had seen a partial view of the night before, and when they got there, he took a good look around. Her kitchen might be smaller, but it was just as gorgeous. All the newest appliances, just like his, but the kitchen she had access to had a pot rack overhead, where all of the pots and pans waited to be used. "This is beautiful. I thought you said the kitchen upstairs was nicer than this one?"

"I never said that." She corrected, as she grabbed a mug and began to fill it. "I said the one upstairs is bigger."

"Well, bigger isn't always better." He muttered, still in awe of the room.

"Amen to that."

Both of them chuckled like schoolkids. He took the mug from her and declined her offer of cream or sugar, taking a healthy sip of pure bliss. The sound that came from him sounded purely sexual.

"Do you need a minute alone with your coffee?" she teased.

He grinned at her. "I think we're past the embarrassing part of a new friendship. This is very good coffee though."

"Thank you." She said before refilling her own cup and taking a sip. She gestured to the tiny two chair table and sat across from him. "So. What's on your agenda for today? Other than grocery shopping?"

Fitz thought about it for a few minutes before answering her. "I'd like to go out and relax in the sun for a while before I go, and then later...who knows what I'll get into?"

"A man going off the grid for a while. How much are you freaking out about that?"

"A lot." He admitted with a laugh.

He had a great laugh. It was a deep rich sound that filled the room and made you want to laugh along. "It just so happens that I am pretty familiar with some of the local hot spots. Just something to keep in mind if you ever want to wander off with company."

"I don't think..."

There was that look again. "Fitz? It's an offer to show you around. I'm not asking you to move in with me."

The feeling of calmness came to him quicker this time. With a lopsided grin he teased, "too late. We're already living together."

"Ohhhh. Look at that! Fitz has a sense of humor." Liv said with a grin of her own. She held her hand up in the air and watched as he smacked his palm against hers.

Taking a deep breath, Fitz nodded and said, "how about a trade?"

Liv wore a mock look of panic and sassily replied, "I'm not sleeping with you."

He chuckled. "I'm not mildly interested in..."

"Ouch!" She exclaimed as her pride took a slight hit.

"...sleeping with you."

She leaned closer as a curious smile tugged the edges of her mouth. "Not even mildly?"

Fitz, who had leaned closer too for some reason, jerked his head back. She was teasing him. He was beginning to learn her tones and facial expressions, and he knew she was teasing. Moving his head back and forth while glancing up at the ceiling he said, "Okay. Maybe mildly."

The two of them grinned at each other, feeling the beginning of a friendship forming. A weird one, but friendship nonetheless. Since both of them were in a place of needing friendship and something new, they took it. "I'll accept mildly. Now, besides sex, what are you willing to trade?"

"If you will take me out tonight and get me drunk enough to forget..."

So there was something or someone to forget. "Yea?"

He cleared his throat, not quite ready to share everything with his new friend. "I'll cook you dinner."

There look of doubt on her face was legit. "You can cook?"

Fitz couldn't hide the smug look that covered his face. Putting his elbow on the table, Fitz rested his chin in his palm.

He seemed awfully proud of himself all of a sudden. Liv decided that she liked this side of Fitz and wanted to see more of it. "That's a new look for you."

"I can cook."

"Ice cubes aren't cooking, yanno." She said on a chuckle.

"How do you feel about..." He stopped and thought about what he'd like to make for her. She had been hospitable and kind, and she had given him space when he hadn't been comfortable enough to ask for it. She'd also been friendly when he didn't deserve it. He wanted to make her something special. "Grilled scallops over miso corn salad?"

Her mouth watered at the thought of such decadent food while her brain warned her the offer was too good to be true. "Shut up. You cannot cook that!"

"Can too." He chuckled at her and sipped his coffee.

She sat a little straighter in her chair. "Seriously?"

"Yea." He was getting a strange vibe from her. "Wait. Are you allergic to shellfish? Or are a weirdo who doesn't like it at all? Cause I can cook something else if you want?"

"Hell no! I love seafood. I'm just shocked that you can cook something so...adventurous. Yea. Adventurous is a good word."

"I don't come across as an adventurous kinda guy, Liv?"

His smile was growing on her, just as he was growing on her. Laughing, she went with honesty. "Not at all."

He laughed right along with her, and damn, it felt really good. "Really? How do I come across to you?"

Eyeing him for a long moment, she again went with honesty. "Like there's an elephant in the room with us that you don't want to talk about."

"Good observation." Fitz discovered it felt good to admit that too.

"Everyone has an elephant."

He thought about that for a second as he drained his mug. Getting to his feet, he carried it to the sink and rinsed it off. She was right. Everyone had their own baggage they carried around with them. Reminding himself of that fact was another thing that made him feel lighter. Maybe it was just Liv that was making him feel lighter? Whatever the reason, he liked spending time with her. Funny how the guilt didn't poke through his thoughts this morning. Keeping his back to her he said, "I've never thought about that before. Maybe I'll tell you about mine over dinner tonight?"

Keep it light, Liv silently told herself. "Yea. And then afterwards, I'll take you out and we'll forget elephants even exist?"

Now he turned to face her, wearing a big grin. "That sounds perfect. Dinner is at six in my kitchen."

"See you then, Fitz."