A/N: Hello again! Here is chapter three, and hopefully it starts getting a bit cute now. This chapter is dedicated to 24peach24, for being the first person to sub my story. You rock my socks!(which is extra cool since I'm currently wearing two pairs) Enjoy! :)

Disclaimer: I don't own the IT Crowd. I know, it's disappointing, right?

I spent half an hour tidying the spare room for Richmond. He tried to help, but he would get distracted by the stuff I was passing to him to put in a bag.

"Are those Doc Martens under the bed?" he asked.

"Yeah, they belonged to my ex. I hadn't the heart to throw them out, they're such nice boots. You can have them if they fit."

"Really?"

"Yep. They won't fit me, so…"

"Thanks."

"It's cool." We lapsed back into silence for a while, until he said:

"You aren't going to throw all this stuff out, are you?"

"No, I don't think so. Why?"

"Because there's a black velvet dress in here. I bet it would really suit you."

"Is there? I don't remember that."

"Look." He pulled it out of the bag and held it up. It was calf length and had thin straps.

"Oh, yeah. That's from when I went through my Goth phase. A couple of years ago."

"You were a Goth too?"

"For a while. Two years or so. Then I decided that being a Goth wouldn't help me get a job. So I changed."

"You should have come to me."

"I should. Anyway, I was too happy. That's what other Goths told me. I think you helped prove that today."

"Yes. I think how you are now suits you."

"Thanks. Come on, let's finish up. Then I'll get you a notebook and a pen, and I might try that dress on, actually."

"Okay." We put the last few things in the bag and I put it in the loft. I left the dress out, though. I found Richmond a pen and notebook, before making a cup of tea. I put his down on the table in the dining room where he was writing, and sat down next to him.

"Are you finished?" I asked. He nodded and slid the notebook towards me. He had dated the page, written down each comment that had been said to him, and the things he would have said back.

17/6/10

Alright, Goth?

Goth is a subculture, not an insult.

Where's your fangs, Dracula?

Where's your idea of a good insult? Because that isn't a very good one.

Shouldn't you be dead? Oh, wait, you already look like you are!

At least I don't have to have my hood up permanently to hide my face.

Oi, your bird looks more my type than yours. Can I have her?

Of course she's my type. She made me happy.

I tried not to smile at the last one, even if I wasn't sure what to do about it just yet. I read through his proposed comebacks twice, then said:

"Well done. Pretty good."

"I don't know if the comebacks are actually decent, are they?"

"They are, actually. They're intelligent. When I do them, I mostly use profanities. Yours are more considered."

"Thank you, McKenna."

"Don't thank me. You did this. You're helping yourself."

"Am I?"

"Yeah. Now, I'm gonna go and try this dress on, see if it still fits. Drink your tea, before it gets cold."

"I will." I left him there with his tea, and went to the bathroom to change into the dress. It was a little small, and took a bit of breathing in to get into, but I did it in the end. It was fairly comfortable, and I nodded to myself. Now to show Richmond.

"Wow." He said as I stood in the dining room. "Give us a twirl then." I did so, and his smile came back, a bit bigger this time.

"That really suits you, McKenna."

"Thank you. But I still think I should stick with my current style."

"Yes, you do fit in better that way."

"And that's the main thing at the moment. I need to pay my rent."

"We're both in sticky situations, aren't we?"

"That we are, Richmond. That we are. I'm going to go and put my pyjamas on."

"Okay. What should I sleep in?"

"Oh, I don't know. I didn't think of that."

"It's okay. I'll sleep like this. I normally have to."

"Don't you have other clothes?"

"Yes, they're in a box behind the red door. I wish I'd thought to bring them with me. Never mind."

"We'll fetch them tomorrow."

"But... I'll be going back there tomorrow."

"Yeah, but you can come back here tomorrow too. If you want to."

"I would like to."

"Then we'll fetch them tomorrow. I'll be back in a minute." I left him again, this time writing something else in the back of his notebook.

That night, before I went to bed, I looked in on Richmond. He was in the spare room, sitting at the desk, still writing, occasionally looking up to stare out of the window. I knocked gently on the door, and he jumped up out of his seat.

"It's okay. I'm going to bed now." I said softly. He nodded.

"Goodnight, Kenna." I smiled again. My nickname.

"Goodnight, Richmond. Oh, and I have a tip for you to use tomorrow."

"What's that?"

"Don't put the make up on."

"Oh. Will that help me be accepted?"

"Yeah, it will."

"Oh. Can I keep the eyeliner, at least?" I sighed and relented.

"Yeah, okay. It probably won't make a difference."

"Thanks. Goodnight."

"Goodnight. Sweet dreams." He smiled slightly, and sat back down at the desk, picking up his pen again. I smiled back, and closed the door behind myself. I sighed, not quite sure of what to make of him, and went to bed.

The next morning, we left my house to go back to Reynholm Industries again. Richmond was still wearing his rose, but it had wilted a bit, so I got him a fresh one, a red one this time.

"Oh, thank you." He said. I smiled at him and we left my garden behind. I noticed Richmond had taken off his make-up.

"That suits you, you know." I said. "Not having the make-up on, I mean."

"Does it really?" he asked.

"Yeah, it really does. And your eyeliner looks neater now, too."

"Yes, it normally gets smudged during the day. And I don't have a mirror in my little room."

"Well, you don't have to stay in there anymore. You can stay with me."

"I like your place. It's really nice. I haven't used the bed yet though."

"You mean you didn't sleep last night?"

"No. I was busy writing."

"What were you writing about?"

"That's a secret." I tutted.

"Shame. It looked really interesting."

"You can see it when I'm done. Give me a week or two to finish it off." He said.

"Okay. And speaking of which, do you have your notebook?" He nodded and held it up for me to see. "Good. I have a feeling you might need it today. You're going to have to confront Moss, Roy and Jen. I won't let them put you back in the room, but they might not be too welcoming."

"I know. I think I'm ready."

"That's good. Because we're going to have to go down there now." We walked into the offices and straight towards the lifts. A few people gave Richmond an odd look, but we ignored them and carried on. Once we were down in the basement, it was quiet and easier. We were half an hour early anyway, so that we didn't surprise the others too much. I told Richmond to sit down somewhere and not fiddle with anything while I tidied up a bit. He sat on the sofa with his legs crossed and his hands on his knee. I looked around for things which were out of place. My headphones were still on the desk from last night, so I put them into my bag. There were three spare screws from when we had put the desk together in the carpet, so I shoved them in the bottom drawer. I tidied up a few other things, going through the papers on Roy's desk and throwing the unnecessary ones in the bin. I put the rest in a heap with his comics and the daily newspaper from last week. I did the same with Moss's desk, and then sat down next to Richmond. It was eight twenty, and I knew it would only be about five minutes until Jen arrived. I put my hand on his.

"Are you ready for this?" I said. He turned his startling eyes on me and shook his head.

"No, I'm not. What if they shut me behind the door again?"

"I told you, I won't let them do that. If they can't accept you, that's their problem."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. I'm sure." I paused, still with my hand on his. Then I picked it up and held it properly. "You're shaking again." I said.

"I know. I can't stop it." He looked down at the floor.

"Come here." He looked back up at me and I hugged him gently. He felt fragile, like he might break. But he hugged me back, and after a while his shaking decreased. It didn't stop entirely, but it was something. I let him go, and asked:

"Are you okay?" He nodded, but looked unsure. "It's alright, Richmond. Remember what I told you."

"Yes. I know." He took my hand again, and I didn't resist. I knew he needed comfort now, and if I was going to help him, then it was the least that I could do.

As Richmond fidgeted, I looked at my watch. Eight thirty. They'd be here any minute-

"Morning, McKenna." Jen breezed past us to her office. She breezed back again.

"Oh, my god!" she shouted. "Richmond? But you're dead!"

"Well, actually, I'm not. Look. I'm alive."

"But… you disappeared. Then you came back. And then… Reynholm told us you were dead."

"I know. Douglas was never very accepting of Goths." He stared into space, reminiscing. "He wanted rid of me. But I couldn't keep up my job helping Goths. This was the only place I had left to go."

"Oh… okay… well, I ought to call and tell him you're back…" she wandered towards her office, but only got halfway before she collapsed face first on the carpet.

"Oh, god." I muttered. "Richmond, will you help me get her on the sofa?" He nodded, and we manhandled her over to it. Just as we put her down, Moss and Roy walked in.

"Oh, no!" Moss exclaimed. "It's Richmond's ghost! And he's killed Jen!"

"What?" Roy said. "Richmond? Aren't you dead?"

"No, I'm really not!" he said indignantly, still shaking. "And Jen's not dead either, she fainted."

"Oh, well that's alright then." Moss sat down behind his desk. "Hang on! That means… you opened the red door, didn't you?" he pointed dramatically at me. I shrugged.

"What can I say? Temptation plagues the best of us."

"Hold up a second." Roy burst out. "Why did you have to reintroduce him to us? He just brings us down!" Richmond hung his head, and I took his hand again.

"Roy, he does not get you down. You're just overly sensitive. Just because he's a Goth, doesn't mean he isn't a person!"

"What- You're holding his hand now!"

"So what?" I shouted. "He stayed at my bloody house last night, what does it matter?" Roy's eyebrows shot up, and I calmed down a bit. "I'm helping a friend in need, Roy. You know I'd do the same for you. Just forget about it." he sighed and frowned, but nodded. I nodded back, and led Richmond away through the red door. He cowered away, but I coaxed him through. I closed the door behind him and looked up at his face. He looked nervous and sad.

"Please don't shut me in here." He murmured. I closed my eyes, feeling his pain.

"I won't. I've promised you that, and I won't break that promise. At the end of the day, you can come out, and you don't have to come back here. Ever. I doubt you'd be on the payroll, so they wouldn't miss you if you left."

"But where would I go?"

"You can stay at mine during the day, providing you don't break anything. And we can carry on your 'social acceptance' lessons." His smile returned, and he said:

"I'd like that." I smiled back.

"So would I. Now, get all your stuff together for tonight, okay? Oh, and here. I have a book for you." I handed it to him, and he looked at it.

"Hmm. Dracula. I haven't read this before. Thank you."

"I'll see you later, Richmond."

"Bye, Kenna." He stepped forward and, to my surprise, hugged me. I didn't know what to say, so I just hugged him back, noticing his shaking had stopped. When he let go, I squeezed his hand by way of goodbye, and walked out, feeling guiltier than ever for leaving him.

Any feedback etc. is much appreciated. Much love x