SiaKlynn
Walk with me?
- Joined
- May 14, 2009
- Posts
- 4,873
(Closed for Jack80 and myself)
Lilah Monroe
Puuuuuuuuuurrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr Puuuurrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr Puuuuurrrrrrrrrrrr Puuurrrrrrrrrrrrr
The thrumming of a happy, or in this case a naughty, tabby cat sits with his paws tucked beneath him on the pillow next to a sleeping woman’s head staring at her and waiting for her to wake up. The minutes tick by and the auburn hair woman barely moves, so the cat tilts his head to the side and lets out a quiet “meow” which causes only a slight stir. Another “meow” this time a little louder and then another. It’s enough and the woman’s brow furrows before blinking open her eyes, “Stanley… “
Rolling onto her back Lilah looks to the window which she left partially open and is sporting a substantial hole in the corner of the screen. Turning her head back to look at the cat, he lets out another meow, “You owe me a new screen.”
Sitting up she runs her fingers through shoulder length hair and shakes out the layers to smooth out the bed head before getting out of bed and pulling on the robe lying over the base of her bed frame. Stanley, the tabby, is now on his feet and walking to the edge of the bed, but before he can jump to the wood floors she scoops him up and gives him a squeeze. “I’m serious… you have to stop breaking into my apartment. If you don’t I’m getting a restraining order against you.”
She only half smiles at her joke as she walks out of her bedroom and across her apartment to the front door, a quick turn of the locks and she’s in the hallway walking two doors down. Raising her hand she knocks and waits, giving Stanley ear scratches and a squeeze. “I’m going to have to cut you off… no more saucers of milk…”
Movement behind the door cuts off her sentence and she looks up to smile at her neighbor Darren as he appears in the doorway, shirtless and wearing pajama bottoms with his model good looks he nearly causes her to blush. Instead Lilah smirks meeting the man’s gaze, “Stanley broke in… again… I’m beginning to wonder if he even likes you.”
The man chuckles and reaches out to take the cat from her arms scratching him under his chin, “Sure he does. He just has a hard time staying away from beautiful women, especially those who will give him a saucer of milk.”
Lilah rolls her eyes and laughs, “I admit I encouraged him when I first moved in, but this is the third screen he’s destroyed in a month.”
“I’m sorry… why don’t I make it up to you over dinner tonight? There’s this great sushi place two blocks away or we can order take out and I’ll fix your screen. I could even invest in a pet door for your window like mine.”
Darren had been asking her out to dinner since the first week she moved into the building, but she wasn’t able to say yes to him or to anyone for that matter. Even now she hesitates. It’s not that she’s not attracted to the six foot tall man with the lean muscled body, light brown hair and green eyes; in fact she’s quite drawn to his strong jaw and high cheek bones. Let’s not forget that he’s six years younger and likely not going to want anything serious. A little fun, a fling might be what she needs. Then again they’re neighbors and that could make passing each other in the hall awkward.
“Lilah, what do you say?”
“Oh… ah.” This time she does blush as her thoughts come back to the present. “Sure… you fix my screen and then we’ll go for sushi.”
“Great.” He smiles, “Look, I don’t have to work today, so why don’t you leave your apartment unlocked and I’ll fix your screen, so when you get home from work we can walk down to the restaurant. I promise I’ll lock up once I’m done.”
Lilah opens her mouth to agree, but hesitates, feeling a sudden wave of panic though she’s unsure why Darren is only attempting to be nice. So, forcing that step forward to put her past behind her she nods and smiles “Sounds like a plan. I’ll be home around 6pm.”
“See you then. Have a good day.”
With a wave good-bye she returns to her apartment to get ready for work. First things first though and she quickly detours to the kitchen to press the brew button the coffee pot. She missed her morning trips to the coffee house near where she works, but ever since her break up with Bobby she had to avoid the place if she didn’t want to see him. In fact, she had also had to move to a new apartment across town with a doorman to feel a sense of privacy again. Thankfully her boss was sympathetic to her situation, not to mention tired of Bobby showing up unexpectedly or continuously calling and didn’t fire her, but instead helped her by pretending to have laid her off and allowed her to work at home for two weeks. Yes, it was a lot of trouble to avoid seeing her ex, but he hadn’t wanted to let go and since he hadn’t physically threatened her she failed to prove the necessity for a restraining order. They lived within two miles of each other, so the court failed to see how they could avoid running into other.
Filling her travel mug, she grabs her purse and is off to catch the bus to Union Station so she can ride the Redline into beautiful Downtown Los Angeles; fifty minutes later she’s walking through the doors of Cowley Marketing and Advertising agency. Dropping into the chair at her desk with a sigh she sets her empty mug aside and turns on the computer. Sure, the last month her physical life had been Bobby free, but he still occupies her thoughts and dreams. And her dreams are the worse because they more often than naught recalled their happy times and the fantastic sex. Those are the mornings she wakes up depressed and wishing things were different and in the early days of the break-up had her considering going back to him. She misses him even now, but his angry outbursts, jealousy and possessiveness went from charming to overbearing and he refused to acknowledge her concerns or pleas to get help. At first she only wanted a break, a little bit of time, but when it was clear he couldn’t give her that she broke it off.
Answering emails, talking to clients and consumed by a proposal the day moves by quickly and helps her not to dwell on him or even her date with Darren later, which she’s decided will only be as friends. When she finally looks up from her computer it’s four o’clock and she realizes she’s not eaten a thing all day. Funny how that happens when her friend Shelia has the day off; she always makes sure she eats and takes a break or two during the work day. It’s too late to eat now, but a snack wouldn’t spoil her appetite for dinner. Leaving the office she heads down the block to the Kelly’s her favorite place for coffee and sweets or a quick snack; it was also where she and Bobby had met ten months ago on New Year’s Day. She is taking a chance of running into him and ruining all her hard work, but he should be working at this time of day. The visit doesn’t take more than five minutes leaving with a toasted bagel and latte its back to the office.
Precisely at six in the evening Lilah walks through the door of her apartment and makes a bee line for the bathroom to freshen up. She walks into the bedroom to see that her screen has been fixed with a post-it on the window with the words, “Don’t feed the animals” written in bold black letters. She laughs and peels off her work clothes to change into a green tank top and jeans. Just as she’s sliding her feet into a pair of sandals the doorbell buzzes. “Coming!”
Opening the door she greets Darren with a smile before picking up her purse and heading out. Dinner is pleasant, they laugh and talk and she manages to not say a word about her most recent troubles. They share a small bottle of warm sake and as the hour stretches into two they become a little flirty. Excusing herself to the ladies room Lilah takes a time out and reminds herself that this isn’t going beyond a brief hug good-night. As she returns to their table she looks out the window and stops quickly, feeling her heart stop and the blood drain from her face as she sees Bobby walking by. He didn’t appear to have seen her; if he had she’s sure he would walk inside.
“I have to go…” She whispers quickly sitting down before her knees give out, “I’m …. I’m suddenly not feeling very well.”
Darren looks at her with concern and noticing how pale she suddenly looks, “Yeah, okay… let me just grab the check.”
She doesn’t want to wait, but she knows it’d be suspicious if she leaves and runs down the street. Once the check is paid Lilah walks a little close to Darren attempting to partially hide from those passing by and he responds her to closeness by putting an arm around her. The walk back to their building feels like two miles instead of two blocks, but thankfully she doesn’t see Bobby again. When they reach the third floor she stops him at his door and thanks him for dinner. He seems a little confused by her quick brush off, but her urge to be safely locked into her apartment is stronger than soothing his bruised ego.
Four days later Lilah still hadn’t responded to Darren’s phone calls knowing it was terrible to avoid him, but she doesn’t feel ready. She needs have an adult conversation even if it means telling him about Bobby. When she saw him the other night a series of memories, good and bad surfaced and played out in her dreams. She had never been in love until she met him and though he had never threatened harm his temper frightened her. If he had seen her the other night what would he had done? She’d worked hard to erase her presence from his life.
She’d barely left her apartment the last few days having taken the first day off work to hide in her apartment; she made an excuse about eating some bad sushi. The next day she went into the office, but was looking over her shoulder the entire time. She feels as if she’s stepped back into her prison even though she had not seen him since. At work she confided in Shelia what had happened and her main focus was that she’d gone out on a date. Since she hadn’t seen Bobby since what was there to worry about? She was being paranoid for nothing. Perhaps she was right.
This morning she was running late her alarm hadn’t gone off and she’s rushing to make her bus. Travel mug in hand she grabs her purse and runs out the door only to be stopped by Darren leaving his apartment too. He barely glances her way and she feels a fresh wave of shame for how she’s acted and now she’ll ride the elevator with him this is why you don’t potentially almost date your neighbor. “Hey Darren.”
She walks a little faster to catch up with him at the elevator, “Look, I owe you an apology.”
“It’s okay I got the hint.”
“It’s not the hint I was trying to give…” Stepping into the elevator with him, “things are just a little complicated.”
“They always are.” He mutters, but doesn’t look at her.
“I’m sorry I’ve been avoiding you. I had a good time with you and there is a reason I freaked out, which I’ll tell you, but I’m running late, so how about you come over for dinner tonight?”
Darren turns to look Lilah for a couple of seconds and then the elevator stops on the ground floor. “Alright… I’ll stop by.”
“Great… stop by anytime after seven.” She says stepping out of the elevator with him and then spies her bus pulling up across the street. “Shit… I have to go! See you tonight!”
Lilah runs off Darren’s good-bye lost in her mad rush for the doors and the immediate jay walking across the busy street. It’s a wonder she didn’t get run over. Waving to the bus she’s grateful the driver recognizes her and pauses an extra twenty seconds so she can climb aboard.
“Thank you!” she breathes and carefully walks down the center aisle to an empty seat three rows back next to another daily commuter, a tall middle aged dark skinned man dressed in a suit with a briefcase at his feet. “Morning Gerald.”
“Good morning, Lilah.” His strong baritone voice replies with a smile, “Running a little late this morning?”
“Overslept… my alarm didn’t go off.”
The bus continues down the street for a few blocks making a series of stops before it has a stretch of road to gain speed. Lilah feels her phone buzz in her purse and fishing it out she sees a text message from Darren.
You ran off before I could tell you to have a good day. See you tonight.
A smile breaks across her lips and she taps the screen to type a reply; before she can type a full word there is a terrible screeching of tires as two cars attempt to keep from colliding, but within seconds the crunching of metal is heard. Lilah looks up as the bus driver slams on the brakes, metal squealing and smoking as the large vehicle struggles to come to a stop. Inertia pulls objects and people forward, but Lilah is caught by Gerald’s outstretched arm having braced himself using the seat in front them, but it’s not enough to keep her phone from flying out of her hand and clattering to the floor. The rest of the events happen so fast as the bus veers sideways and slams into several park cars before turning over on its on side. The sound of metal scrapping against metal and people’s screams fill the air. Lilah can feel the scream on her lips, but she doesn’t hear it as she’s thrown from her seat and against the row across the aisle. A sharp pain floods her right side before her head slams against something metal, a pole perhaps and everything goes black.
The next time Lilah opens her eyes it takes her several seconds to focus her head is throbbing and the sound of a heart monitor beeps every other second. Hospital. Why is she in the hospital? Turning her head she looks around the room, but most is blocked by the dividing curtain. She can hear the shallows breaths of a person in the second bed. She tries to recall the events before waking up and there is nothing but a blank. She becomes aware of a tube in mouth which travels down her throat, both are dry and sore. A constricting sense of panic tightens her chest and a sharp pain follows from trying to breath, and yet she feels increasingly groggy. Before the panic can settle in she feels a warm hand take hers and her gaze shifts to focus on a man. His face is familiar, kind and handsome and she can see the lines of worry around his eyes, which look at her with strong affection. She means something to him and she has a sense that he also means a great deal to her. His lips begin to move, but she can’t hear him. With some effort her fingers squeezes around his hand to reassure him and she gives him a small nod before sleep claims her once more.
Lilah Monroe
Puuuuuuuuuurrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr Puuuurrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr Puuuuurrrrrrrrrrrr Puuurrrrrrrrrrrrr
The thrumming of a happy, or in this case a naughty, tabby cat sits with his paws tucked beneath him on the pillow next to a sleeping woman’s head staring at her and waiting for her to wake up. The minutes tick by and the auburn hair woman barely moves, so the cat tilts his head to the side and lets out a quiet “meow” which causes only a slight stir. Another “meow” this time a little louder and then another. It’s enough and the woman’s brow furrows before blinking open her eyes, “Stanley… “
Rolling onto her back Lilah looks to the window which she left partially open and is sporting a substantial hole in the corner of the screen. Turning her head back to look at the cat, he lets out another meow, “You owe me a new screen.”
Sitting up she runs her fingers through shoulder length hair and shakes out the layers to smooth out the bed head before getting out of bed and pulling on the robe lying over the base of her bed frame. Stanley, the tabby, is now on his feet and walking to the edge of the bed, but before he can jump to the wood floors she scoops him up and gives him a squeeze. “I’m serious… you have to stop breaking into my apartment. If you don’t I’m getting a restraining order against you.”
She only half smiles at her joke as she walks out of her bedroom and across her apartment to the front door, a quick turn of the locks and she’s in the hallway walking two doors down. Raising her hand she knocks and waits, giving Stanley ear scratches and a squeeze. “I’m going to have to cut you off… no more saucers of milk…”
Movement behind the door cuts off her sentence and she looks up to smile at her neighbor Darren as he appears in the doorway, shirtless and wearing pajama bottoms with his model good looks he nearly causes her to blush. Instead Lilah smirks meeting the man’s gaze, “Stanley broke in… again… I’m beginning to wonder if he even likes you.”
The man chuckles and reaches out to take the cat from her arms scratching him under his chin, “Sure he does. He just has a hard time staying away from beautiful women, especially those who will give him a saucer of milk.”
Lilah rolls her eyes and laughs, “I admit I encouraged him when I first moved in, but this is the third screen he’s destroyed in a month.”
“I’m sorry… why don’t I make it up to you over dinner tonight? There’s this great sushi place two blocks away or we can order take out and I’ll fix your screen. I could even invest in a pet door for your window like mine.”
Darren had been asking her out to dinner since the first week she moved into the building, but she wasn’t able to say yes to him or to anyone for that matter. Even now she hesitates. It’s not that she’s not attracted to the six foot tall man with the lean muscled body, light brown hair and green eyes; in fact she’s quite drawn to his strong jaw and high cheek bones. Let’s not forget that he’s six years younger and likely not going to want anything serious. A little fun, a fling might be what she needs. Then again they’re neighbors and that could make passing each other in the hall awkward.
“Lilah, what do you say?”
“Oh… ah.” This time she does blush as her thoughts come back to the present. “Sure… you fix my screen and then we’ll go for sushi.”
“Great.” He smiles, “Look, I don’t have to work today, so why don’t you leave your apartment unlocked and I’ll fix your screen, so when you get home from work we can walk down to the restaurant. I promise I’ll lock up once I’m done.”
Lilah opens her mouth to agree, but hesitates, feeling a sudden wave of panic though she’s unsure why Darren is only attempting to be nice. So, forcing that step forward to put her past behind her she nods and smiles “Sounds like a plan. I’ll be home around 6pm.”
“See you then. Have a good day.”
With a wave good-bye she returns to her apartment to get ready for work. First things first though and she quickly detours to the kitchen to press the brew button the coffee pot. She missed her morning trips to the coffee house near where she works, but ever since her break up with Bobby she had to avoid the place if she didn’t want to see him. In fact, she had also had to move to a new apartment across town with a doorman to feel a sense of privacy again. Thankfully her boss was sympathetic to her situation, not to mention tired of Bobby showing up unexpectedly or continuously calling and didn’t fire her, but instead helped her by pretending to have laid her off and allowed her to work at home for two weeks. Yes, it was a lot of trouble to avoid seeing her ex, but he hadn’t wanted to let go and since he hadn’t physically threatened her she failed to prove the necessity for a restraining order. They lived within two miles of each other, so the court failed to see how they could avoid running into other.
Filling her travel mug, she grabs her purse and is off to catch the bus to Union Station so she can ride the Redline into beautiful Downtown Los Angeles; fifty minutes later she’s walking through the doors of Cowley Marketing and Advertising agency. Dropping into the chair at her desk with a sigh she sets her empty mug aside and turns on the computer. Sure, the last month her physical life had been Bobby free, but he still occupies her thoughts and dreams. And her dreams are the worse because they more often than naught recalled their happy times and the fantastic sex. Those are the mornings she wakes up depressed and wishing things were different and in the early days of the break-up had her considering going back to him. She misses him even now, but his angry outbursts, jealousy and possessiveness went from charming to overbearing and he refused to acknowledge her concerns or pleas to get help. At first she only wanted a break, a little bit of time, but when it was clear he couldn’t give her that she broke it off.
Answering emails, talking to clients and consumed by a proposal the day moves by quickly and helps her not to dwell on him or even her date with Darren later, which she’s decided will only be as friends. When she finally looks up from her computer it’s four o’clock and she realizes she’s not eaten a thing all day. Funny how that happens when her friend Shelia has the day off; she always makes sure she eats and takes a break or two during the work day. It’s too late to eat now, but a snack wouldn’t spoil her appetite for dinner. Leaving the office she heads down the block to the Kelly’s her favorite place for coffee and sweets or a quick snack; it was also where she and Bobby had met ten months ago on New Year’s Day. She is taking a chance of running into him and ruining all her hard work, but he should be working at this time of day. The visit doesn’t take more than five minutes leaving with a toasted bagel and latte its back to the office.
Precisely at six in the evening Lilah walks through the door of her apartment and makes a bee line for the bathroom to freshen up. She walks into the bedroom to see that her screen has been fixed with a post-it on the window with the words, “Don’t feed the animals” written in bold black letters. She laughs and peels off her work clothes to change into a green tank top and jeans. Just as she’s sliding her feet into a pair of sandals the doorbell buzzes. “Coming!”
Opening the door she greets Darren with a smile before picking up her purse and heading out. Dinner is pleasant, they laugh and talk and she manages to not say a word about her most recent troubles. They share a small bottle of warm sake and as the hour stretches into two they become a little flirty. Excusing herself to the ladies room Lilah takes a time out and reminds herself that this isn’t going beyond a brief hug good-night. As she returns to their table she looks out the window and stops quickly, feeling her heart stop and the blood drain from her face as she sees Bobby walking by. He didn’t appear to have seen her; if he had she’s sure he would walk inside.
“I have to go…” She whispers quickly sitting down before her knees give out, “I’m …. I’m suddenly not feeling very well.”
Darren looks at her with concern and noticing how pale she suddenly looks, “Yeah, okay… let me just grab the check.”
She doesn’t want to wait, but she knows it’d be suspicious if she leaves and runs down the street. Once the check is paid Lilah walks a little close to Darren attempting to partially hide from those passing by and he responds her to closeness by putting an arm around her. The walk back to their building feels like two miles instead of two blocks, but thankfully she doesn’t see Bobby again. When they reach the third floor she stops him at his door and thanks him for dinner. He seems a little confused by her quick brush off, but her urge to be safely locked into her apartment is stronger than soothing his bruised ego.
Four days later Lilah still hadn’t responded to Darren’s phone calls knowing it was terrible to avoid him, but she doesn’t feel ready. She needs have an adult conversation even if it means telling him about Bobby. When she saw him the other night a series of memories, good and bad surfaced and played out in her dreams. She had never been in love until she met him and though he had never threatened harm his temper frightened her. If he had seen her the other night what would he had done? She’d worked hard to erase her presence from his life.
She’d barely left her apartment the last few days having taken the first day off work to hide in her apartment; she made an excuse about eating some bad sushi. The next day she went into the office, but was looking over her shoulder the entire time. She feels as if she’s stepped back into her prison even though she had not seen him since. At work she confided in Shelia what had happened and her main focus was that she’d gone out on a date. Since she hadn’t seen Bobby since what was there to worry about? She was being paranoid for nothing. Perhaps she was right.
This morning she was running late her alarm hadn’t gone off and she’s rushing to make her bus. Travel mug in hand she grabs her purse and runs out the door only to be stopped by Darren leaving his apartment too. He barely glances her way and she feels a fresh wave of shame for how she’s acted and now she’ll ride the elevator with him this is why you don’t potentially almost date your neighbor. “Hey Darren.”
She walks a little faster to catch up with him at the elevator, “Look, I owe you an apology.”
“It’s okay I got the hint.”
“It’s not the hint I was trying to give…” Stepping into the elevator with him, “things are just a little complicated.”
“They always are.” He mutters, but doesn’t look at her.
“I’m sorry I’ve been avoiding you. I had a good time with you and there is a reason I freaked out, which I’ll tell you, but I’m running late, so how about you come over for dinner tonight?”
Darren turns to look Lilah for a couple of seconds and then the elevator stops on the ground floor. “Alright… I’ll stop by.”
“Great… stop by anytime after seven.” She says stepping out of the elevator with him and then spies her bus pulling up across the street. “Shit… I have to go! See you tonight!”
Lilah runs off Darren’s good-bye lost in her mad rush for the doors and the immediate jay walking across the busy street. It’s a wonder she didn’t get run over. Waving to the bus she’s grateful the driver recognizes her and pauses an extra twenty seconds so she can climb aboard.
“Thank you!” she breathes and carefully walks down the center aisle to an empty seat three rows back next to another daily commuter, a tall middle aged dark skinned man dressed in a suit with a briefcase at his feet. “Morning Gerald.”
“Good morning, Lilah.” His strong baritone voice replies with a smile, “Running a little late this morning?”
“Overslept… my alarm didn’t go off.”
The bus continues down the street for a few blocks making a series of stops before it has a stretch of road to gain speed. Lilah feels her phone buzz in her purse and fishing it out she sees a text message from Darren.
You ran off before I could tell you to have a good day. See you tonight.
A smile breaks across her lips and she taps the screen to type a reply; before she can type a full word there is a terrible screeching of tires as two cars attempt to keep from colliding, but within seconds the crunching of metal is heard. Lilah looks up as the bus driver slams on the brakes, metal squealing and smoking as the large vehicle struggles to come to a stop. Inertia pulls objects and people forward, but Lilah is caught by Gerald’s outstretched arm having braced himself using the seat in front them, but it’s not enough to keep her phone from flying out of her hand and clattering to the floor. The rest of the events happen so fast as the bus veers sideways and slams into several park cars before turning over on its on side. The sound of metal scrapping against metal and people’s screams fill the air. Lilah can feel the scream on her lips, but she doesn’t hear it as she’s thrown from her seat and against the row across the aisle. A sharp pain floods her right side before her head slams against something metal, a pole perhaps and everything goes black.
The next time Lilah opens her eyes it takes her several seconds to focus her head is throbbing and the sound of a heart monitor beeps every other second. Hospital. Why is she in the hospital? Turning her head she looks around the room, but most is blocked by the dividing curtain. She can hear the shallows breaths of a person in the second bed. She tries to recall the events before waking up and there is nothing but a blank. She becomes aware of a tube in mouth which travels down her throat, both are dry and sore. A constricting sense of panic tightens her chest and a sharp pain follows from trying to breath, and yet she feels increasingly groggy. Before the panic can settle in she feels a warm hand take hers and her gaze shifts to focus on a man. His face is familiar, kind and handsome and she can see the lines of worry around his eyes, which look at her with strong affection. She means something to him and she has a sense that he also means a great deal to her. His lips begin to move, but she can’t hear him. With some effort her fingers squeezes around his hand to reassure him and she gives him a small nod before sleep claims her once more.
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