Good morning, roommate

Sara, Josh's ever pretty roommate, walked in and saw him watching TV on the couch.

"Hey Josh," she greeted happily.

"Hey Sara." Josh turned to talk to her and realized she was on her own phone. He let her speak.

As she walked to the kitchen, Josh eyed her body. She had apparently already quickly changed into some clothes, wearing a grey tanktop and dolphin shorts that displayed her smooth legs. His throat felt a little dry as he watched her lithe limbs move under the daylight. Usually she preferred to wear her sweats, so this was a welcome change.

Josh quickly turned away as her face turned from the cupboard and she placed a bowl and cereal box on the table, her shoulder-length brown hair elegantly swishing over her cheek.

Restraint, Mr. West, he silently thought to himself. Remember what you said when you two first decided to room together. And remember all those times you hoped, somewhere deep down, that it would be something maybe a little more... until you got friend-zoned.

Irritated with himself, Josh waved the thoughts away. Sara was an old friend of his from high school; in spite of what he may have wanted, he also had to respect the boundary. That's just how things worked. If she didn't want anything beyond casual conversation and an ear to listen, that was her call.

He remembered the first few times he got caught staring at her. Her reprimands were gentle but firm enough, and he vowed to value their relationship as platonic mates. Ever since then they remained as amicable as could be, and appreciation was mutual.

Despite this his eyes darted in Sara's direction once again. This time, however, to his surprise, she was looking back at him. Once their eyes met, he was about to dash them back down. Then she beat him to it, looking away quickly. She stammered something into her phone as she grabbed her bowl.

"Shut up," she spoke into it, probably a little louder than she intended to.

Josh looked at her questionably as she sat down on the couch, on the other end.

"Yeah, alright, girl. See you there." She ended the call, putting the phone on the table. While sticking a spoonful of milky oats into her mouth, Josh cleared his throat.

"That Kaylee?"

"Yeah," Sara nodded. "Gonna go shopping later. You know."

"Nice, nice."

"You're off too right?"

"Yep."

After an extra minute of small talk Josh slapped his knees and stood up, deciding to 'take that shower'. He picked up his phone. It slipped out of his hands and fell to the floor. Cursing to himself, he bent down to pick it up. It had unfortunately found its way down under the couch, and he had to wiggle like a human worm to get it. Once he finally clutched it, he turned his head back to Sara.

"Man," he said mirthfully, "don't you hate it when--"

Once again her eyes seemed to flash away. She was clearing her throat, and sat up abruptly. This caused milk to suddenly spill over the bowl and on her legs. Looking down disdainfully, she interjected, "Shit!"

"You okay?" he asked, straightening his back.

"Yeah, I'll, just, er... go wipe myself really quick."

Giving a cryptic sideways glance in Josh's direction, she set down the bowl and whisked herself away to the kitchen. Josh looked on, puzzled. Phone in hand and standing back up, he looked down at himself. Just usual 'ol him, with his decently muscular self and a short-sleeved white shirt and, oh yeah, his trusty pair of boxers. But she didn't mind that; though she wasn't comfortable enough to wear hers around, they came to an understanding with his pretty easily. As long as nothing 'private' on his part was rolling into view, he was mostly good.

"Maybe I got a stain on them," he thought in horror. After a quick look in the front and back, though, he didn't see anything that would serve as compromising, at least not on first glance. He eventually shrugged. "Who knows, maybe she's just jumpy today or something."

He turned his sights down the hallway and to the door of the bathroom.