Next Door Neighbor

CHAPTER 3: UNPACKING

STEPHANIE'S POV:

I have to be honest. I'm super relieved that Spencer offered to help me out, I was dreading having to unpack by myself. It would have taken forever. I don't have a ton of stuff, but with one person unpacking it would have taken at least two weeks. Maybe if I had friends who lived here I could get help, but I haven't had time to get to know anyone besides Spencer. It was pure luck I met him last night.

I unlock the door to my apartment and let Spencer in. There are boxes everywhere. "I would have cleaned up, but y'know..." I sigh, embarrassed. Spencer just smiles at me. "Where do we start?" He asks. I point to a random stack of boxes and get some scissors out. We cut open the boxes and look to see what's inside. The first box is all my kitchenware. The second box is some toiletries and whatnot. The third box is some of my paintings and posters. The fourth box is one of my many boxes of books.

We get to work, chatting along the way. He helps me reach the higher shelves to put my books up, helps tape up my posters, and puts some nails in the walls for my art. He takes a look at all my posters, a mixture of band posters, Dr. Who posters, and some inspirational posters. He points to my favorite Dr. Who poster, saying "Isn't that a limited edition one?" I nod my head. "I was lucky, I snagged it from a comic con I went to."

As we unpack more boxes, we chat about work and life. He tells me all about his team, and they all seem very nice. I ask about his cases and he tells me about a few, sparing me the especially gory details. We joke around and talk about different movies and TV shows. He asks me about some of the books I own, and when he gets to my favorite book, I go on a full on rant about it.

"It's the best book ever. The main character has a ton of depth, and though it does have romantic undertones, the main theme is of family and self discovery. There are a lot of references in there which are hard to catch, but when you see them, the book gets even better. I've re-read it almost twenty times and I'm still discovering new things about it." I stop once I realize I'm rambling. I blush a bit. "Sorry, I know I talk a lot. I just get excited sometimes."

"Me too. I share a lot of facts and statistics and sometimes people dislike it. Plus, I don't mind you talking about it. I like hearing you talk." Spencer tells me. My smile grows. I feel like I can really be myself around Spencer. Neither of us are what society considers 'normal'. We're both nerds, and I find that nerds tend to get along well together.

By the time we finish unpacking my apartment, it's late, almost nine. My apartment finally feels homey, more like me. I have color everywhere, posters, art, photos, books, souvenirs. Some people might think my house is chaotic. It is, but it's organized chaos. "Spencer, thanks so much for this. Seriously, I could never have done this without you." Spencer just shrugs. "No problem. I had fun hanging out with you. So, are you going to have a housewarming party or anything?" He asks. I bite my lip. "I have to be honest.... You're kind of the only friend I have here."

Spencer's eyes widen at this. "Really? There's no way you have no friends here. I mean, we met yesterday and we're already friends." I brush some loose hair behind my ear, a light tint on my cheeks. "Thanks. Can I interest you in some dinner, as a thank you?" I ask. Spencer nods, telling me about a good place to order in from. I call over the phone and pay for it when it's delivered.

We eat in front of the TV while watching episodes of Dr. Who. I feel so at ease around him, even though I've only known him for 48 hours. He's just so kind. There's something about him, something reassuring. He's also really cute, so that's a plus.