Eddie Redmayne Imagines

The Little Things

You stand there staring at the coffee shop clock as it nears 8pm.  "Come on...come on..."  5...4...3...2...1!  "It's 8!"  Your manager rolls his eyes at you, and locks the front door.  You begin stacking the chairs on the tables thinking to yourself, "Finally!  The weekend!"  You throw on your coat, your gloves, and your favorite knit hat pushing the back door open with a cheerful, "See ya Joe!  Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas, Y/N," you hear behind you.

As you step into the back alley, you tilt your head up and close your eyes, taking in the winter air and letting the snow fall on your face.  You get a surge of excitement and can't help but let out a small squeal.  As you calm yourself again, you start to spin around...and around...and around...and around.  You slowly make your way up the alley to the empty sidewalk, still spinning peacefully.  You round the corner and hear a confused "woah!"  You feel an impact and a second later look up to find an attractive man picking himself off the ground before reaching his hand out to help you.

"I am SO sorry!"  You take his hand and he starts to bring you to your feet.

"Don't worry about it," he says in a smooth British accent that almost makes you fall down again, but luckily for you the handsome Brit grabs your elbow just in time.  "I mean, it takes two, right," he chuckles.

You stand up, allowing yourself to really focus on his face and...holy cow!  "Wait, aren't you..." you trail off before you can finish your question.

With a slight blush he finishes your sentence with a sort of sigh, "Eddie Redmayne, yeah..."

"Oh, wow, ummm...gosh, I really am sorry.  It was all my fault!  I should pay more attention to my surroundings!  I'm so sorry..." you babble on continuing to apologize.

"Hey," he interrupts you.  "Stop!  Please don't do that."  His voice softens, "really.  It's fine.  I mean, you're just enjoying life.  No one can blame you for that."  You begin to blush, feeling a little stupid.  "And by all means, NEVER apologize for getting lost in the little things.  I think everyone should stop paying so much attention to the sidewalk and a little more attention to the little things like snow..."

"Sorry, you're right."

"You're apologizing again," he states with a smirk.

"My bad, sorry..." you laugh as you catch yourself doing it again.

He reaches out a hand, taking hold of a strand of hair that was knocked into your face when you fell, and gently tucks it behind your ear.  He locks eyes with you and you start searching for ANYWHERE else to look, because you can feel your cheeks get hot and know they're flushing with color.  As he retrieves his hand, it ever so slightly grazes your cheek.  This contact makes you catch your breath and you're frozen for a second or two before letting out a nervous laugh.

You wait for a second as he just continues to look at you.  After a few seconds you slowly let out a "well...umm..."

"Right!  Sorry about that," he says.  "I guess I got lost in a little thing—your eyes are quite lovely..."  After a pause that felt like an eternity of your brain failing to find words, he continued.  "See?  Happens to everyone."

"I...uhhh—Thanks!"  At this point your brain is mush.  "Well, I should get going...ummm..."  You turn around only for him to tap you on the shoulder.  "Yes?"  You wiz around so fast he can't help but laugh at your eagerness.  

"I'm actually in town visiting a friend.  He lives a couple of blocks away, but...tomorrow I plan on walking by this exact spot again and, well, I wouldn't mind bumping into you again...so, is there a certain time that would heighten my chances or should I just walk up and down the road until I find you?"

"How does a Christmas Eve lunch work for you?"  You're DEFINITELY blushing now.

"Sounds exquisite.  So since I don't know where you live...I'll pick you up right here.  Noon sharp."  You nod trying not to come off overly excited.  "Well, until then..."  He leans down, kissing your cheek and walks away.