Lucky Coincidence // Stuart Twombly

IV

With trembling hands, Lara fiddled with her house keys as she walked up to her front door. She inserted the key in the door and twisted it until she noticed that it was already unlocked. With a slight frown, she pushed open the door, only to be ambushed immediately by her overactive Husky. 

"Stuart?" She called as she brushed her fingers through Tobi's fur. A smile appeared on her face as her boyfriend came up to her. Tobi jumped back down and greeted his male owner. "Hi there," Lara grinned as she wrapped her arms around Stuart's neck. 

"How was work?" A shiver ran down her spine and she forced a quick smile. 

"I-It was fine," She muttered and she mentally cursed herself for stuttering. "Why are you home so early?" She quickly changed the subject. 

Stuart shrugged. "Last period was canceled because they needed the classroom for the resits of the Freshmen." He stepped away from her. "I was thinking, since you haven't seen the new Avengers movie yet, I thought we could grab dinner and see it after?" 

Lara giggled and shook her head. Stuart had been begging her to see this movie for weeks now and she had come up with an excuse every time. It looked a lot like she couldn't talk herself out of it now. "Fine, but only because you're asking nicely." She pointed a joking finger at him and he chuckled. 

"You're lucky I love you." He grabbed her hand and pulled her close. 

"I love you too," She cooed before she kissed his lips and walked away. 

"Where are you going?" He pouted. 

"If you're taking me out for dinner, I gotta look presentable," She winked before she disappeared upstairs where she changed from her work attire to a pair of black jeans and a white blouse which she paired with a pair of heeled boots and her favorite purse. She added a little bit of makeup and loosely tied her hair up in a bun. A few front strands dropped and framed the sides of her face. 

She descended the stairs and found Stuart on the couch scrolling through his phone, his black glasses perched on his nose as his eyes quickly scanned the screen.

Lara noticed he was wearing a navy blue shirt and to be honest, it was the best shirt he owned apart from the dorky T-Shirts, several cardigans and jackets, and a few sweaters that he only wore when it was cold outside, and seeing that it was California and almost summer, those had disappeared in the closet a few months ago and wouldn't come out again any time soon.

But then again, he wore beanies even with 100 degrees outside so it wouldn't surprise Lara if he would come downstairs in a sweater any time this week.

"Ready to go?" She asked and his head shot up. He dropped his phone on the couch and scrambled to his feet, offering her a quick smile. Lara's brows etched in a frown. 

"Stu, are you okay?" She asked him slowly. 

"Y-Yeah, fine, I'm fine. Let's get going," He quickly rambled. Lara looked at him suspiciously for a few seconds before she moved to gather her things.

They exited the house and walked up to Lara's car. Stuart climbed onto the driver's seat and Lara took a seat next to him. She had an unsettling feeling in her stomach as she thought of the promotion, she'd have to tell him at some point if she truly wanted it.

Who was she kidding, she wanted this promotion more than anything. She was even willing to give up her vacation for it. The only thing that kept her from saying anything was the fact that Stuart was the one that was looking forward to it the most out of the two of them. 

She exhaled thickly and averted her eyes to her hand, which was holding Stuart's as it was resting on her thigh. She barely registered her surroundings as her eyes stayed focused on their hands and she didn't notice that they had arrived at the restaurant. Well, diner.