ELECTRIC FEEL ↝ Schmidt

CHAPTER SIX

  AFTER NINE HOURS of good, peaceful sleep in Jess' room, on a mattress set out on the floor just for her, Elise felt rested and ready for a new day. Perhaps the fact that Nick tried to make tea for her also helped, but even better was when Jess fixed the mess that was Nick trying to do something as challenging as boiling some water, and Elise actually got a cup of delicious tea to kick off the morning. Winston had offered a jog with him, but kindly, Elise had passed the opportunity, as she wasn't that into exercise, and had other plans anyway.

  She wasn't joking when she promised to teach Schmidt about rock the previous night, in fact, she was quite serious despite laughing it off afterwards, and as Jess and Nick left for work, Elise stayed behind and waited for Schmidt to arrive from wherever he was so they could get started. It seemed he usually woke in the early hours, which explained his absence and the silence in the apartment, as Elise sat on the couch alone, with a notebook resting on her crossed legs. She was taking her mission seriously, and therefore, she had created a couple of lists to help Schmidt separate rock bands and understand which was which, but knowing him, he would most likely learn quickly no matter what methods they'd use.

  It was lonely and quiet in the loft for a fair while, but Jess had assured that Schmidt would come back soon from work, where he had visited for a project Elise hadn't learned of yet, and she hadn't been lying. Eventually, the front door opened and was immediately shut, drawing Elise's attention from her notebook to Schmidt, her gaze falling upon the sight that would never cease to take her breath away. Loosening his tie, and shrugging off his jacket, Schmidt grunted in annoyance, and gave off such a powerful vibe, it sent shivers down Elise's spine as she bit on her pen and looked at the man from the couch.

  "Good Lord, I can't believe the idiots I must work with, I am so—", Schmidt began ranting, until he turned to face Elise, and his mind went completely blank at the sight of her. There she was, so naturally beautiful, with her glasses hanging on her nose and a faint smile tugging up her lips as they stared into each other's eyes. "And... and... wow", Schmidt finished, though not quite bringing clarity to the situation. However, he didn't care to elaborate, and quickly found a seat on the couch, right next to Elise so their thighs were slightly touching, something they both noted but tried to ignore.

  Elise pushed her glasses up, and gave a compassionate look to her friend, wondering whether she should place a hand on his shoulder or knee or not, and then settling for the latter. "Everything okay at work?", she asked carefully, and as a response Schmidt rapidly nodded his head and added a thick swallow as his eyes drifted elsewhere from Else, and landed on the notebook she had placed on the coffee table. With a few insincerely spoken words Schmidt attempted to assure that everything was just peachy, though Elise couldn't help but doubt. Nevertheless, she dropped the subject, believing that it was none of her business, and Schmidt would open up about it if he needed to. Right now, they had other stuff to work on.

  Schmidt grabbed the notebook, and Elise cleared her throat as she pointed at the titles she had scribbled down to the paper. "I, uh, I like to make lists", she admitted with blush rising to her cheeks. "So, I divided the bands and singers into sections so it'll be easier to learn them", Elise added, and then placed her hands on her lap, fingers entwining as Schmidt read through the bands she had written down for them to listen to. Anxiety washed upon her as she waited for a response, and to direct her thoughts elsewhere, she took out her laptop, which she had brought from the comic store and opened Spotify where she had one big playlist of rock songs.

  "You're really into this, aren't you?", Schmidt flashed a charming grin at Elise, who forced an awkward nod, and then turned over to her laptop to avoid such intent eye contact, which frankly turned her brain into a mess of thoughts she wasn't brave enough to voice, and her heart into a puddle of feelings, all of them for or because of Schmidt. He coughed to fill the silence, and faced the list once again whilst his teeth gently bit into his bottom lip. "I know maybe one or two of these bands. AC/DC and Metallica, probably", Schmidt shrugged, and Elise almost gasped in disbelief and shock.