The Mover

She moved from the door allowing him to pass as she motioned to his tools. "I am sorry I didn't notice before you left."

"Ah, its alright." He said with a wink as he picked it up. "I had one of the guys use it today so they may have just overlooked it as they left." He sat it on the armrest of the couch as he checked for any missing tools.

Julia softly closed the door.

"Mind if I look around? I am missing a phillips." He said with concern.

"Of course." She said, staying by the door as she watched him move about the home.

It didn't take long before he emerged from the hall, tool in hand. "Found it" He laughed.

Her body tensed at his return. She watched him return to his tool box, pulling out a section to place the phillips under. His eyes trailed the apartment. "You sure you don't want assistance unpacking?" He offered with a raised brow.

"I couldn't ask you to do that." She said, staring down at her feet, still by the door.

Jaz was staring into the kitchen at the two mugs sitting at the table. He had just walked through the home and they were the only ones there. "You, expecting someone then?" He asked, his southern accent seeming more noticeable the more he spoke.

Julia's head lifted in confusion as he motioned to the table. "Oh..." She said leaning off the wall and locked the door before moving into the kitchen. "Old habit." She grabbed the mugs, turning back to him. "I was about to pour them out..."

Her eyes trailed him as she watched the flex in his arms at the pressure needed to fully close the box. Her heart raced. "Unless you would like a cup... It's green tea." She smiled, lifting them up.

Jaz smiled as he sat the box on the floor. "Green tea, huh?" He stepped towards the kitchen.

He was so much like him that Julia couldn't move, being drawn to him since she saw him. Jaz was the reason she fell into the old habits of Adonis. He made her feel small, but looked at her like she was the world.

She nodded, sitting down and placing the mug on the table in front of him.

Her eyes never left his as he moved to sit down next to her. He drank the tea slowly, placing it back down on the table as he licked his lips to cool them as the drink was still hot.

Julia crossed her legs and leaned back in her chair. The warmth of the mug seemed to move from her hands to the rest of her body.

"Do you like it?" She asked.

"I was hoping to taste something a little sweeter." He said as he sat back comfortably, opening his legs.

"I haven't unpacked the sugar yet." She replied almost in a daze.

"Your company works just as well." He smirks.

"You find me sweet?"

He nods.

"You don't know me."

"Do you want me to know you, Sweetness?"

Julia sat still in her chair as she watched his free hand tap the edge of his seat between his legs like Morse code. Sending a signal to her. An invitation.

"Why would I?" She asked almost defensively.

"I have a taste for something more than just tea." His middle finger stopped taping his seat. "Something a little... hotter." Jaz's voice trailed off to a whisper as he watched her chest rise and fall. He sat the mug down onto the table. "Interested?"

"No expectations." She stated coldly, her lids low as she watched his hand move to trace the top of the mug.

"None at all." His voice was deeper now.

Julia nodded to him, sitting down her own mug. She hated green tea.

***

The apartment around them seemed to disappear as Julia laid back in her bed, staring at the smooth ceiling once more as her body relaxed into the mattress. Jaz's shoulders pressed into hers.

A stranger.

Her eyes closed. Everything was quiet and peaceful until she felt him roll over and wrap his arms around her. The action caused her to jump, bumping the table against the wall and knocking over the lamp and stray items onto the hard floor.

"You okay?" Asked Jaz.

The ring of the doorbell caused them both to lift in confusion. Jaz ran a hand over his mouth and smiled. "You expecting someone else, Sweetness?"

"No." She said softly, lifting to a sitting position.

He watched as she climbed out of bed and left for the hall. He didn't seem to care to follow her.

Julia looked around in confusion as she passed the kitchen, pulling a blanket off the couch and wrapping it around herself.

The doorbell repeated impatiently as she looked out the peephole. The man at the door was unfamiliar.

"Can I help you?" She asked through the door.

"Yeah." Said the familiar voice of the man from earlier. "Maybe try not to destroy your apartment while everyone is sleeping."

"I apologize." She called back. "I dropped some things while unpacking."

There wasn't any movement outside, causing her to look through the peephole again. The man stared at the door unimpressed, hands in his pockets. "Yeah, well, tell him to finish unpacking you so we all can get some sleep." He hissed, turning his back to the door and entering the apartment next to her.

Julia sighed and leaned back against the door in thought. A neighbor. What a pain.

Jaz laughed out loud. "Did he just say, 'finish unpacking you'?"

Julia threw down the sheet and made her way back to the room.

"Packing you would have made more sense," Jaz added as she walked in. He was sitting up now, arms behind his head, as he leaned against the headboard.

He was getting too comfortable.

"That's cute," she replied as she began picking up his clothes and tossing them to him. "You should head out. I have work in the morning."