Endless || Jonah Marais ✓

♪ ONE ♪

With Jonah's hoodie currently in the dryer, Aurora sits on the couch in her shared apartment, snacking on Cheez-its while season eight of her favorite show, Grey's Anatomy, plays on the television.

It was one of her rare days off, and with her best friend and roommate, Mark, still at work, it left her alone and rather bored.

Aurora met Mark when she was seven, and the two instantly clicked. They became attached at the hip, and quite frankly, threw tantrums when they had to do anything separately. Many people often thought they were dating, which came in handy when random people would try to hit on one of them. So, it came as no surprise to anyone that knew them when they announced they were moving away from the small town in Virginia and to the heart of California.

Aurora quickly made a name and reputation for herself as Los Angeles's currently best photographer. Mark enrolled in online classes to get a degree in journalism and soon found a job working for an important publicist. The two were content with their lives, and even had plans to buy a house together if neither we're married or dating when they're twenty-eight.

The best friends were a dynamic duo. With Aurora not willing to take any crap from anyone and Mark's ability to buy items impulsively, Los Angeles didn't stand a chance.

The brunette's phone vibrates, signaling the arrival of a text and startling her out of her thoughts.

Hey, it's Jonah from the bookstore. This is Aurora, right?

Aurora can't help but to smile, not having expected him to actually text her, let alone do it do soon.

Yep, I didn't give you a fake number. But I am holding your hoodie hostage ;)

His reply is instant, as though he knew exactly what she was going to say.

You can keep it if you go on a date with me at 5.

Deal.

As soon as the text sends, a flood of nerves hit her. Pausing the tv, the girl sends a text to Mark as well before moving to her bedroom.

××××

Thirty minutes later, the front door is thrown open and Mark falls through it, a worried expression on his face.

"Aurora?" He calls out, wandering down the hall. "Are you okay? What's wrong? I got your text."

He pauses in her bedroom doorway, his worried look melting into one of annoyance. Every article of clothing the girl owns is strewn everywhere, from the bed to the floor and even on her desk. She could practically see his OCD dying right before her.

"I have nothing to wear," she wails dramatically, throwing herself onto the floor. Her next words come out muffled as she burrows her face into a sweater that was most likely Mark's. "Please help."

"Where are you going?" He questions, picking his way through the mess and sitting on the floor next to her. "I thought you didn't have any appointments today."

"I kind of, sort of, might have accidentally thrown coffee on this cute guy today and now he wants me to go on a date with him."

Without saying a word, her best friend stands up and walks out of her room, laughing to himself as he does so and leaving her utterly confused. The front door closes behind him, and moments later, opens again.

He reappears, this time holding a box stamped with a fancy 'SC', and hauls Aurora to her feet.

"I guess it's a good thing this came in today, then," he announces smugly, dropping it into her lap. "It was going to be your birthday present but since this is obviously a fashion emergency, and I'm a nice person, you can have it now."

Aurora furrows her eyebrows together, half expecting the box to explode as she takes the lid off. Instead, neatly folded, is a rose gold romper better than any she had ever seen in stores.

"I feel like I'm too broke to even be allowed to touch this," she jokes, staring in awe as she pulls it out of the box. "Where did you find this?"

"Online," Mark shrugs nonchalantly. "This girl named Saoirse Carnaghan made it."

"I owe her my life," Aurora states solemnly, before quickly ruining the serious effect by tackling the teen into a hug. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"You're welcome. Just remember this when Christmas comes around," he chuckles, hugging her back. "Now go get ready!"

As Aurora dashes off to the bathroom, Mark's hopeful expression immediately falls as he begins to pick up the mess she made.

He wanted to give this guy the benefit of the doubt, but at the same time, he still wanted to look out for his best friend. Despite her reputation at their high school  and her rather outgoing tendencies, the girl had never been taken on a proper date.

Every boy that would ask her out only wanted to hook up. After every 'date', Aurora would always end up in Mark's bed, a sulking mess. He's always been the one there for her, and seeing her get hurt would hurt him just as badly. She deserved the world and he'd be damned if she ended up with a guy that didn't treat her like she does.

He wasn't about to say anything against whoever is taking her out tonight, though. He didn't have a reason to dislike her date yet, and she seemed beyond excited to see him later. Anyone that made Aurora happy was instantly a friend in Mark's books.

If she came home crying, however, that's a different story.

"What do you think?" Aurora asks, walking out of the bathroom and spinning to give off the full effect of her romper.

"I think you look amazing," Mark says."And that I'm the greatest friend ever for getting you such an amazing gift."

"Damn straight," she agrees, sliding into a pair of black ankle boots. "Where would I be without you?"

"Jail, most likely."

Before she can retort, a knock at the door resonates through the apartment.