Lauren Adams woke up suddenly to the sound of glass hitting a wall, and jumped under her covers. She heard the familiar voice screaming, and rolled her light green eyes as she rolled onto her back to stretch and check the clock. It was just past two a.m., and she sighed as she listened to the argument between her roommate Nick and his girlfriend Tory. In the six months they had been together, they had fought several times. It always sounded like she was the main participant, and he slowly withdrew into himself and didn't talk about it as the months passed. Lauren looked up at her ceiling, brightened by the full moon, and giggled to herself as she wondered if that was the cause. She glanced at her window to see the lights of Seattle right outside, and got lost in the view for a moment as the fight continued. She had moved here with her family from Maryland, and met Nick three years ago in her senior year of high school. They had become close friends right away, though never anything more, and she chose to stay when her family suddenly had to move back. Nick had suggested they get this apartment to share bills while they both attended the local university, and she had agreed happily.
That was just over a year ago. Lauren stretched as she thought about the first time that she had met Tory there. The blankets slid down and she welcomed the cool air against her skin clothed only in a thin tank top. Tory had come off to her right away as a bit off, but Nick seemed to be trapped in the blond curls and pretty blue eyes too much to notice. He had been smitten right away, and Lauren sighed. She had heard the good and the bad of that, and wrinkled her nose at the memories of the moans she had heard through the wall. She had been single for most of the time she had lived in Seattle, aside from a few casual dates here and there. It had been hard for her to start over, and she had clung to Nick a lot for the past three years. It had hurt when he had given himself entirely to Tory, and she sighed as she heard him respond to something she said. She frowned as she thought it was that they were over, and sat up slowly as she heard Tory scream back "Fine, Nick. It is over then. I am getting the fuck out of here!" Lauren heard the door slam, and she looked at her bedroom door as she listened to the quiet that took over the apartment. She brought her knees to her chest and rested her chin on them, letting her chestnut curls rest on her shoulder as she continued to listen. She wondered if she should go to him, and sighed again.
Lauren stood up after a few moments of him cussing and yelling in his room alone, and pulled a pair of cotton shorts over her thong. She brushed through her messy hair with one hand and opened the door, looking down the long hallway to listen and look. Still quiet. She walked slowly to his door, right next to hers, and stood for a moment as she listened to him. Lauren raised her hand to tap on the door, and tapped two times as she winced slightly. "Come in, Laur." Nick said softly, and she opened the door slowly. He was sitting on his bed, staring at the floor, and she stepped over the mess on his floor to sit at the end of the bed. He was only dressed in work out shorts, and she let her eyes trace his lean but muscular torso slowly as she looked at him. The crush that she had on him flared, and she blinked as she focused up to his face. His brown eyes were clouded, and his curly brown hair was messy and tousled as he lifted his face to glance at her. "Sorry. I guess you were asleep."
Lauren glanced around the room, seeing the picture that had been thrown that woke her up. It was of him and Tory, and she bit her full lip. "It's OK, Nick. I am more concerned about you and how you are doing." Lauren told him, curling her legs under her as she saw his gaze rake over her for a long moment.
"I told her to get out. I told her that it is over." Nick said, his voice resigned. "How long can I go on fighting with her like that?"
"I guess not anymore?" Lauren answered, and met his eyes met hers. "I'm sorry, Nick."
"I have pushed you away a lot, Laur. I hate that." Nick told her, shaking his head. "She just tore me up so much over the last few months. She would draw me in so much and be great for awhile, and then shit like this happens."
"I understand." Lauren said, though she didn't completely understand. They had been so close before that, and she didn't see how one girl could change that. None of her casual flings had changed her feelings, but she blushed as she thought about that. Of course not. She had always had a crush on him.
"You're pretty when you blush like that." Nick told her, and she shook her head. "What was that for?"
"It's nothing." Lauren assured him, dropping her gaze to the messy green comforter as her hair fell forward. "Will you be okay?"
