Miles tugs me steadily toward it, pauses to open it, and then places a hand on my lower back, ushering me inside.
Miles keeps pushing until he can close the door behind me.
I stand rooted where I am, and he lets go of my hand.
“I’m going to take a shower if you want to jump in with me,” he says loudly.
My eyes bulge, and I make a little gurgling sound.
Miles laughs and points at the door behind me. Mouthing the word,Grandma.
I relax and nod. I’m sure my face is flushing a bright red tomato color.
“Sure! Warm up the water, and I’ll be right there,” I reply as loudly as I can. But my voice is cracking, so I don’t know if it was even loud enough to carry through the door.
Miles is enjoying this way too much; his shoulders are shaking as he tries to laugh quietly.
Watching him laugh uncontrollably helps me get over my embarrassment, and I walk over to poke him in the shoulder. Our relationship has taken a physical turn tonight. “On second thought, I’ll start the shower since you like it so cold. I can’t trust you.”
He’s still laughing, so I give him one more good poke before I walk to the bathroom. I swing open the door and step inside. I freeze when I spot the pile of dirty clothes on the floor. And then the counter with a couple of different water bottles, deodorant, toothpaste, and just… clutter.
“Wait, don’t go in there yet!” he says from behind me.
One hand lands on my shoulder, and he tries to pull me out of the bathroom. His other hand covers my eyes, and I stumble backward against his chest.
I flail my arms, but he holds tight, dragging me backward.
“Let me fix the bathroom real quick.” He tries to release me and sneak into the bathroom, but I grasp the back of his shirt and hang on tight as he walks through the door.
“Lucy!” he exclaims.
“Miles!” I say back with a laugh, and I duck under his arm and hurry to stand in front of the shower. I look down at my feet. I’m standing on a pair of athletic shorts.
Mr. Never Leave a Dirty Dish is a secret slob. Mr. Give Me a Hard Time About My Messy Room is secretly as bad as me.
I grin at him as he groans.
“I’m onto you.”
He grimaces. “I forgot the bathroom looked like this.”
“Oh, I don’t know. I think I like it.”
“What?!”
“Yeah, I definitely do.”
Miles eyes me suspiciously. “And why is that?”
I study the bathroom counter and spy a box of granola bars next to the water bottles. “Because I was beginning to think you had everything figured out and that you were perfect. I think I like this version of you better.”
His lips twitch as they turn upward. “You can’t be serious…”
“Of course I am!” I point at the floor. “Look, you leave your underwear on the floor too! This makes me happy.”
He leaps forward and snatches up the briefs as though he’s embarrassed about them.
“Were those Spider-Man underwear?” I tease as he tosses the red underwear into the basket sitting in the corner.
