All couples fight at some point. No two people, no matter how compatible they are, can ever agree about everything. Some disagree more than others.

Kase and Len hardly ever fight. They did have one bad one, right before the wedding, but I think that was just nerves. They know each other so well that they're pretty in tune with each other, and each other's needs.

Ian and I are just starting out. Though we've known each other for a long time, it's different being a couple. Plus I was still getting used to all these new feelings.

Our first real fight was in the bed and bath store, when we were picking out sheets for our new queen sized bed.

"Nothing frou-frou," I insisted. "No flowers or ruffles or anything like that. Something plain and simple."

"Okay," he said, but right away I could see he was drawn to the pretty stuff. I did my best to steer him away from that and towards the functional.

"How about this one?" I said, looking at a dark green pattern. "It goes with the room."

"Yeah, your half."

"I thought we agreed there wasn't gonna be a 'my half' and 'your half.' It's one room."

"This one's nice," he said, looking at the display set.

I came and took a look for myself. "That has flowers on it."

"No, it doesn't."

"Yeah, it does. Little tiny ones. Look." I held up the fabric so he could see. "It's nice from a distance, though."

"Can we get it?"

Sigh. "No, Ian, we're not getting it. Let's keep looking."

I could see a pout forming, so I added, "Maybe you'll see one you like better. Let's see what's on sale."

We then perused the clearance aisle, which was pretty sad-looking. Stuff was ripped open and thrown everywhere. When I did find something I liked, there was no price on it. And not a store employee in sight to help us.

"You stay here," I said to Ian. "Make sure no one takes this before I get back."

He looked down at the brown-and-white pattern. "Who would?" he muttered. "It's ugly."

"It is not! Just stay here, okay?"

"Okay, fine. I'll stay and guard the ugly bedspread for you."

I chose to ignore that last comment, and went up and down the aisles looking for someone to help us. The whole section of the store was deserted. I had to go all the way to the front of the store before I saw any signs of life.

I waited in the rather long line for what seemed like hours. Finally I got to the front of the line. And all the cashiers went on break simultaneously. The only person to survive the mass exodus was way down at the other end, taking a return. I waited for her to finish, and as soon as the customer left, headed down.

"Hi," I said. "I just needed a price on a quilt, but there was no one around. Then I get up here, and everyone takes off. Did my Right Guard stop working, or what?"

She laughed. "Oh, no. Change of shift. The night crew should be here any minute, so don't worry."

"Any chance one of them could come back to the comforter wall with me?"

"I'll see. Oh, good, here's Paul. He's our bedding specialist."

"I didn't know there was such a thing. Okay, thanks a lot."

"You're one of those Kamen Riders, aren't you?" she asked.

"Yes. Yes, I am."

"Could I have your phone number, or is that a matter of national security?"

I blinked. Did she think I was flirting with her? Was I? Void, this was confusing. "Um, I-" I leaned in closer. "I'm sort of here with my boyfriend."

Her eyes widened. "Oh. I'm sorry. I mean, not that you're - I'm sorry if I offended you."

"No problem. Thanks for all your help. Come on, Paul," I said to the guy, who was just standing there.

We went back to the aisle where the thing was, but it wasn't there any more. Neither was Ian. I looked around for him and finally found him in the section with dried flowers, of all places.

"What are you doing over here?" I demanded. "Where's the thing I told you to keep an eye on?"

"Some lady bought it," he said, picking up a bag of potpourri and sniffing it.

I ripped it out of his hands and threw it down. "I told you to watch it! Guard it with your life, I said! Why'd you let someone else walk off with it?"

He shrugged. "It was ugly."

"I don't care! I wanted that!"

"It's my bed, too!" Ian shouted. "Why can't I pick something out?"

"Cause I don't like your taste!"

He stared at me, open-mouthed. I couldn't believe I had just blurted out something like that. "Ian, I'm sorry! I didn't mean it!"

"I'll go wait outside," he snapped, and walked away.

I hadn't realized Paul was still there until he cleared his throat. "Oh, Void, I'm so sorry you had to see that. He's not usually like that."

"It's okay," Paul said. "Actually, my brother's gay. He and his partner fight like that all the time. 'Look out,' he says, 'Dylan's getting his bitch on.' They had a massive screaming match in Macy's one time that stopped traffic."

"Why do they stay together, then?"

"Stuff builds up, you know? Every couple needs a good fight every now and then, to clear the air. Besides, he says the making up is the best part."

"Hey, thanks a lot. You've been a great help."

"Anything else I can do for you?"

I thought about it. "Yeah, actually, there is." I walked him back over to the comforter section. "How much is this one with the flowers?"

Ian was waiting for me by the (borrowed) car.

"Listen," I said, "I'm sorry about what I said. I didn't mean it. So we don't have the same taste. So what? You like flowers, I like stripes. I like classic rock, you like doo-wop. Nothing wrong with that."

"What did you get?"

I opened the bag and showed him.

"I thought you said you hated the flowers."

"I never said that! Actually . . . I don't mind. You can't really tell they're flowers from far away. They just look like dots. Besides, who cares what we have on our bed, anyway? Who's gonna see it? You. Me."

"The maids."

"So what? None of their business."

"What color sheets did you get?"

"Just plain white. That way, the next time we change it, we won't need all new everything."

"We just got this thing, and already you want to change it?" He smirked at me.

"I'm learning to think long-term," I said. "Come on, let's go home."