day 8 Moody March Jily micro has turned into a @jilymicro-oops (ca 1050 words) || Uneasy
Read of Rats and Men on ao3 or under the cut.
Of Rats and Men
Lily did not need a man in her life, never mind what her sister might say and think about the matter.
She had her own place, a nice job, three good friends that made her feel appreciated, respected and loved. So really, what could a man possibly add to all that? For her physical needs she was also well set, the satisfyer pro 2 had never let her down. In fact, ever since she’d gifted it to herself her highs had reached peaks no boyfriend had ever managed.
So, no man needed.
Lily was not afraid to be alone, she also didn’t fear the dark. She didn’t like spiders, but they too provided no need for rescue, nor did a leaking tap. Over the years she’d learned a thing or two about the odd job around the house.
She’d just finished rewatching Pride and Prejudice, which always put her in a good satisfied mood. She wasn't a hater of romance, she just didn't believe in it much, outside of fiction.
Indulging herself, she found the part where Mr Darcy hands Elisabeth into the carriage, and watched it, again and again and again. She relished the tension that seemed to crackle from the screen. All fictional, of course, in real life a touch could never be so loaded.
With a sigh, she got up from the couch, the cold of the night air brushing her bare legs. Then she froze.
A dark something was in her room.
It didn’t move so she didn’t either, she held her breath. She clapped her hand in front of her mouth and her other over her heart that beated as if she was racing instead of standing stock still.
A rat. A rat in her house. She could make out its body, the long tail must be curled around it. Just thinking about its tail made her gag. It wasn’t rational. She might be small, but there was not a rat big enough in the world to really hurt her. That wasn’t the point. It was a bloody rat. With teeth and diseases and wriggly feet and a naked scaly tail and it was in her room.
With a scream she turned, fled through the door and rushed outside. She didn’t feel the cold, all she could think of was that she needed someone to help her.
This late the streets were empty, some rooms in the street still had lights on, but before she could decide which doorbell to ring, a man appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, into the beam of the streetlight.
He was tall, a mop of untamed black curls adding to his towering presence. He wore glasses that gave him a trustworthy look, and the way he moved was all confidence. Lily was so relieved to see someone oozing strength and confidence that she nearly jumped him, without a second thought she grabbed him by his arm.
“You’ve got to help me, there’s a rat in my house. Please, can you get rid of it for me?” she said with hardly a pause between her words, and then she was pulling him along. At first he didn’t move, he just opened and closed his mouth.
She never gave him a chance to say anything before she tugged at his arm again and said, “Please, help me. It’s in my living room and I can’t go to bed because I’m too scared to walk past it. I'll get you a broom or something, but can you please, please just come and chase it away?”
Rigidly the man started to move alongside her and once inside she pushed him into her living room, grabbed a broom from the cupboard and handed it to him.
She pointed to where the rat still sat and whispered, “There, it’s right there. It hasn’t moved. Please can you kill it?”
To his credit the man nodded in understanding and carefully took the broom out of her hands. He shrugged off his coat and loosened his tie as he stepped into her living room. Lily stared at his back, forgetting about the rat for a moment because he looked rather good in his perfectly fitted shirt.
She wondered if he had just come from some kind of fancy dinner, when he started to shake.
She frowned. Was he afraid? The man stepped closer to the rat, poked with the stick end of the broom and proceeded to lift something from the floor.
“I think you’re safe to come in now,” he said, and she could hear the laughter in his voice. Warily, she stepped closer and peered over his broad shoulder, when he turned around she gasped. At the broom’s end one of her black espadrilles was dangling in the air.
Right now would she'd give anything to be able to scroll back in time, to before she had grabbed a stranger from the street dressed in nothing more than an oversized t-shirt to save her from her footwear. Her sister was right, she was a freak.
Suddenly feeling very uneasy, she tugged at the edge of her shirt, which did exactly nothing, except draw attention to her state of undress. “I'm so, so sorry. You must think I’m a complete lunatic for…well… thinking there was a rat.”
“It's alright,” he said and stepped a little closer. With a solemn face he held out her shoe. “Here, best to face your fears head-on.”
Lily stared at him and when she saw his lips twitch began to giggle uncontrollably; she simply couldn't stop herself.
Her cheeks still burned with embarrassment, but she was now doubled over laughing with a complete stranger in her room.
Feeling still foolish but somewhat better she took her shoe, and her fingers brushed his hand. She looked into his eyes, still crinkling from laughing but she knew he felt the same shift in the air around them. The room was full with something like anticipation. She held her breath, not sure what was going on, not sure what it was she was waiting for.
He ruffled his hair and cleared his throat. Then he stuck out his hand.
“Hi, my name's James, and if it’s not too forward of me, I would like to give you my number. Just so you can call me in case you need help, erm, should you find the other one," he pointed at the shoe that was pressed against her chest, "scurrying around.”
Lily took his hand, “Hi, I’m Lily, and I’d like that very much.”
It was never wrong to reconsider the things you thought you could well do without, such as rats and men, after all.
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