“You slept with him?!”

Covering Lainey’s mouth and darting your eyes around the coffee shop you sat in the following day, you then silently implored your best friend for some tact. She nodded, and you let go of .

“Y/N! Oh my God.”

“It was amazing,” you admitted, trying to gnaw away the smile threatening to cross your lips.

“I never thought Brian would be the type to fall for you so quickly. I guess he’s not the only charming one.”

This comment wiped the smile away. “Uh yeah. I don’t quite think he’s smitten like that with me.”

“What do you mean? You just told me that you—oh no, you’re not?!”

“Lainey, please.”

“Y/N, tell me the thought I have in my head right now is wrong,” Lainey urged, and you didn’t respond, a noisy gasp leaving your best friend a moment later. “You’re now adding that to the contract?!”

“It’s not a bad thing. We’re adults who have needs.”

“You’re sleeping with the guy you’ve loved forever, but he sees it as , Y/N! This isn’t good!”

“I see it as too, you know,” you countered, and Lainey shot you a knowing look. “It’s not something any person should turn down. He’s really-”

“I know I said I wanted the details, but right now, I don’t. Y/N, you should turn this down. Fast.”

“Why?”

“Oh, I don’t know, perhaps because you’re going to misconstrue your feelings over this!”

“So what? I’m getting something in return too.”

“False hope?” Lainey offered, and you rolled your eyes.

“I like our arrangement. I’ve not felt this good in ages.”

“Wait until some girl tempts him away. You’ll feel like then.”

You shook your head. “No. I know there will be an expiry date to all of this. How many girls that crushed on Brian get to say they ended up sleeping with him? Or be introduced to his family?”

“How many of them were deluded enough to step into a contract with the man who will destroy their heart, either? Face it. You’re going to lose track of reality and end up hurt.”

“Let me cross that bridge if and when I get to it,” you concluded.

The truth was you had a strange sense of hope bubbling under the surface. You knew it was too early for it, but you couldn’t help but think you might become more than just friends with benefits. And there would be no need to apologise to his family for fooling them because you would actually fall in love.

The romantic in you was certain Brian didn’t just have mind-blowing with anyone.

Those thoughts grew mixed over the next few weeks, however. At the office, he was his usual professional self, barely spending more than a minute with you. As soon as you were off work though, you were either heading back to his apartment or off doing something with his family.

Your life was beginning to feel like a rollercoaster, riding a whole lot of highs and then crashing when he didn’t acknowledge you at work in the way you hoped. He was incredibly attentive to you when it was just the two of you or around his family, but at work, it was as it always used to be.

Cordial.

It’s his way of protecting this relationship, you thought to yourself, trying to cheer yourself up from watching him converse with his co-workers happily across the cafeteria. Office relationships were frowned upon in your building, even though you knew of several happy couples.

But it was better that you kept your private life just that – private.

Your phone vibrated with a message on the tabletop, and you reached out for it, seeing Brian’s name flash across the screen.

Hey, tonight’s been cancelled. I’m going to head out with some mates instead. Have a good night. We’re still on for the weekend, though, so I’ll pick you up at 10 on Sunday for brunch.

Feeling deflated momentarily, you then smiled and shook yourself off, sending him a short reply and then looked on Netflix for some new releases to binge once home. You hadn’t spent much time over the last month at home, given how active you were becoming with Brian. And with Lainey back at her own apartment after the repairs had been completed, you were looking forward to a little personal time.

Heading to the apartment entrance once you had walked home from work, you saw a man up ahead struggling with a couple of boxes and attempting to open the door. Dashing forward, you hit the button for him, though this surprised him greatly.

“Don’t fall boxes!” he cried, and as he tried to secure them, your own hands shifted to balance the top one out.

Between you both, you managed to stabilise the stack, and the man soon chuckled. “Thank you.”

“No problem. Can you even see?”

“Admittedly, not well. But then again, I wasn’t blessed with the greatest eyesight in life either.”

You laughed and reached out for the top box. “Here, allow me to assist then.”

“Is this the type of service I can come to expect from this place?” he wondered with a lopsided grin, and you couldn’t help but laugh once more.

“Of course! No box will hit the ground unintentionally here.”

“Here I was hoping you’d say everyone’s super helpful.”

“Nope, it’s all about the boxes,” you replied with feigned seriousness, watching as the taller man’s face lit up with another smile.

“I’m Jae.”

“Y/N.” You had arrived outside the elevator and reached to push the button. Once inside, you looked to the newcomer, and he scratched at his head.

“The number. Level four? No. Level five.”

“How about we hit level five, and you can go back down if it’s not the right one.”

“Sounds fair.”

“Oh, wait. Are you moving into the empty apartment on level five? It’s right across from mine. Five-oh-eight.”

“Hey, that’s it!” he enthused, and you grinned. “So, you’re not only rescuing my boxes, but also my neighbour? Wait… did that sound weird?”

You shook your head, laughing once again. “It’s good to know I won’t be the only one up on the far side anymore.”

“You might want to take that back when you realise what I’m like.”

You peered at Jae, curious for more information. When he didn’t hand it over, you nudged him. “What are you like?”

“Oh, that would mean you’d have to get to know more than just my boxes, Y/N.”

“I’m not sure I’m ready for that kind of commitment,” you teased, and Jae smirked.

“Who knows, you might change your mind.”

“I might.”

Stepping out and travelling together down the hallway, you eventually ended up outside adjacent doors. “Well, Five-Oh-Seven, thank you for the help.”

“You’re welcome, Five-Oh-Eight.”

Jae grinned, shuffling back towards his door to unlock it. You gently placed the box just inside his door and then turned for your apartment. Jae stepped out and cleared his throat. “Just to confirm, it’s totally okay if I run out of things like sugar and ask for them, right?”

“So long as you can come over and help me if any spiders try to occupy my apartment.”

“Bugs, huh? I think we can agree on those terms. I’ll stock up on bug spray.”

You laughed. “Excellent. I’ll have the sugar on the ready.”

Jae nodded and bit his lip before giving you a wave and letting out another chuckle. You followed suit before stepping into your own apartment.

You didn’t mind one bit about not meeting with Brian now.