same song and dance.

another take.

i dragged marshall behind me, clutching his hand and growling with a lethal amount of conviction as we traversed the hallway leading up to my apartment. "i'm gonna be nice to you for the rest of this damn night, so help me god." i wasn't becoming infuriated with him. rather, i was acting hostile toward myself for my previous actions. i would whip myself into shape and make it up to him, come hell or high water. he didn't seem to be taking the matter nearly as seriously, commenting on my determination with a chuckle that i'd never admit made my knees weak.

"you're still tryna be all scary and shit. it don't fit what you're sayin'."

my vicious expression faltered, softening at the sound of his teasing. "y'know what the really scary thing is?" i playfully replied, releasing him from my vice grip and halting in front of my door, "i'm not even trying."

after i swung the door open with a creak, i stepped inside and quickly started to remove my high heels. "getting fuckin' sick of these," i whispered, internally scolding myself for wearing them when i already had to suffer at work. meanwhile, marshall strolled through the doorway, making himself at home in one of the chairs facing my kitchen's table and reminding me of our initial snark-tinged morning together. i shook my head slightly, attempting to banish the thought as the relief of the cold floor against my skin soothed my aching feet. this time would be different.

"ooh," i cooed when i discovered the exact type of alcohol i tasted during the kiss i'd initiated when we met inside of my modest fridge, behind some red wine. i pulled out the bottle of bacardi, rocking it back and forth and holding it out in his direction. "whatta coincidence, hm?" i prompted. his eyebrows furrowed a bit in confusion, so i explained, "i could tell you'd had some of this that night at the club." smugly, he grinned.

"this your little way of tellin' me you wanna relive somethin'?" he taunted as i set the bottle on the counter and reached upward into one of many tall cabinets for two glasses, neglecting to ask if he wanted any in the first place. "perhaps," i simply answered, eventually bringing our drinks to the table and sitting across from him. deja vu.

"how long you been workin' there, anyway?" he asked curiously, wrapping his fingers around the perspiring cup before him without taking so much as a sip. in contrast, my words followed several generous gulps. "few weeks now," i breathed, partially expecting another flirtatious remark to tumble out of him. my intuition was correct.

"had me fooled, the way you were movin'."

he managed to make me giggle and play with my hair like i was still in high school. "what can i say?" i murmured coyly, focusing on him intently as he finally partook in the beverage i'd prepared. i could hardly believe that this was the same man that demeaned me in the recent past, but rather than bewilder or irritate me, the fact was beginning to turn me on. my mind wandered, spiraling into a stream of thoughts regarding all of the possibilities that the remaining hours of darkness held. i desperately hoped that he didn't notice how much heavier my breathing grew. i realized that i must've been staring at him.

clearing my throat and standing after finishing off my glass, i declared, "i'm changing, and then we're watching a movie or something."