𝙁𝙤𝙧𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙙𝙤𝙚𝙨𝙣'𝙩 𝙚𝙭𝙞𝙨𝙩 - 𝙍𝙖𝙮 𝙭 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧

𝐟𝐢𝐯𝐞, 𝐨𝐟 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟏. - 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐥

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" I swear I'm going to repay you for this someday, whether you like it or not. "

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her

          I've always loved waking to the sound of birds chirping in the early sunshine... I don't, however, love waking to the sound of honking cars and machinery. I mean, seriously. Does Ray find the chaos relaxing, somehow? It shocks me how he remains sleeping like a baby while I was rudely scared from my slumber.
The man's arms are relaxed over me, and for a moment I questioned whether or not what happened last night was as I remember. I only remember cuddling, I hope that's just as it was.
I slowly and carefully attempt to brush his arms away but he only pulls me closer to his chest. I relax slightly, finding comfort in the warmness of his embrace. I know that I can't stay like this, though. I shake his arms off me quickly without waking him, making my way slowly into the kitchen. He surprised me (somewhat) with food yesterday morning, so today I'll surprise him.
I look around the kitchen, trying to find something to make. Ray doesn't have much groceries, so I just go with plain bacon and eggs. It doesn't look like he cooks very much, which is a shock. It doesn't take very long to finish preparing the food. Once I'm done, I carefully split the food onto two separate plates and set them on the counter. I'm starving so I ate fairly quickly.
I glance up at the clock. It's nearly 1:30? shit, I have an appointment to look at housing options in an hour. I rush over to the coffee maker and flick the switch to on. I don't want Ray to sleep in, and I don't want his food to get cold; meaning my only option is to wake him up. I groan quietly. He's always been the one who wakes me up, he may turn into Godzilla when he first opens his eyes.
I creep quietly into the bedroom, gently sitting on the mattress beside him. I lean down near his face. brushing a raven curl behind his ear. "Ray," I whisper. "Wake up."
His eyebrows furrow as he lets out a loud groan, wrapping his arms around my waist and burying his head in my lap. "I'm tired."
I chuckle to myself and tap him on the head, "Ray."
"My head hurts." He lets out another groan.
"No wonder," I mutter.
"5 more minutes," he whines.
"I made bacon," I sing with a smirk.
He pauses, his eyes jolting open.
"Either now or never." I push his head off me and walk to the kitchen pouring the coffee into two mugs.
Surely enough, there stumbles Ray into the kitchen. It doesn't take him long to sit down and dig into the food.
I softly place the cup of fresh coffee in front of him. "Hungry?" I ask.
He nods, "you're a saint y/n, honestly."
"I know." I hide my smirk behind the mug. I'm still in my clothes from last night, I'll have to just wear this to— oh, this shirt is too slutty for a meeting with a realtor. I'll have to go home then, I have to shower anyway. "I have to go," I say abruptly, placing the cup on the counter.
          The ravenette's gaze darts to me. "What? Why?"
          I tie my hair up quickly. "I have an appointment with the realtor. I'm going to look at apartments today and I'm a mess."
          "Can't you just wear that?" He questions.
          "Too slutty," I respond. "I'm trying to find a house, not a stalker."
          "Just wear one of my hoodies, those are just  leggings." He shrugs.
          "I need to shower."
          "You do know I have a shower, right?"
          "I need to do my makeup."
          "y/n," he lets out a sigh. "I know for a fact you keep extra makeup in your purse."
          I open my mouth, but close it when I realise I have nothing else to argue with. "You're right. Are you sure it's okay?"
          He nods, "I don't mind one bit."
          "Should I really just wear leggings and a hoodie to go look at houses? Is that appropriate?"
          "Unless you have a rats nest on your head and makeup running down your face, it's fine. Nobody really gives a shit as to how you dress in that business unless you're buying a mansion."
          I laugh, "okay then. Grab me a hoodie that won't make me look I was at a party last night and had to take care of my hungover friend."
          A chuckle escapes his lips, "you got it. Anything else?"
          "Two things. One, where's your shower? And two, do you want to come help me look at places? I think it would be good to have a close friend check to make sure the place is safe." I bite my lip, hoping he'll agree.
          "One, it's the first door down the hall on your right. Two, I'd love too. However, I do need to get a shower. So unless you want me to get in with you, you better hurry up. I'm fine with either one." He winks at me playfully.
          I shake my head and roll my eyes, "in your dreams."

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          I finish up with some light makeup in the mirror in Ray's bedroom while he finishes up in the bathroom.
          "Ready?" He questions coming into the room. Thankfully he's already dressed. I swear, he looks like a whole new person now.
          I nod in his direction. "Yeah, let's go." He locks the door behind us as we head to his truck. "Are you okay to drive?" I ask.
          He nods, "I'll be okay. Just give me directions."
          I close the passenger door and put the first location into the gps. "Alrighty."

          I hold my breath as we approach the house. It's small, but nice. The realtor is super nice and bubbly. She mostly just let us look around on our own after giving us some information. Don't get me wrong, the house was nice, but it just didn't feel like a place I'd call home.
          The next place was even worse. It was just not my kind of style. I despised everything about it. It looked like something that would be the crime scene in a murder documentary.
          The next place, however, was an apartment. It was perfect. It only had one bedroom and one bathroom, but that was all I needed. I loved it, I could see myself living here the next little while. I smiled softly to myself as I traced my finger along the marble countertops.
          "Well?" The realtor slowly approaches me and Ray, her heels clicking against the wooden planks. "What do you think of this place?"
          I smile kindly at her, "I really really like this one. I think this is the one I want."
          She squeals quietly, "wonderful! This sort ment complex was just built, so you can have this place today if you want."
          I raise my eyebrows. "Really?"
          She nods, "mhm! I can go get the paperwork now. Will you be paying it all now or—"
          "Now." Ray cuts her off with a welcoming smile, "I'll be paying for it now."
          "Great! I'll go get the papers now." Before she walks away, she glanced at us both. "You two really make a lovely couple."
          I gasp slightly. "Oh— no we— we aren't a—" before I can finish my sentence she's already left the room. "—couple." I sigh and turn to Ray immediately. "What did you mean by 'I'll be paying'? This is my apartment, Ray. I'm paying."
          "No you're not." He shakes his head.
          My eyebrows furrow. "What are you getting at?"
          "I'm buying this apartment for you."
          "What?" I gasp and punch him in the arm lightly as if it would bring him back to reality. "You've gone mad. You're not buying me a house, Ray. This is an apartment, not a cup of coffee."
          He scoffs. "Not to brag, but it might as well be a cup of coffee coming out of my money. I don't think you understand just how much money my company brings in."
          "Ray," I groan out of frustration. "Seriously, you've already done so much for me. You cannot buy this place for me, seriously. I'll feel overwhelmed with guilt for the rest of my life."
          He approaches me slowly, taking my hands in his. "I don't think you understand how much I'm willing to do for you y/n. You've given me so much since we first met, please let me do this one thing."
          I gasp, "this- this one thing?" I blink, "shut up. You can't seriously do this. I don't care how rich you are, don't buy it. Please, I can afford this place."
          "Save it for furniture, please y/n. I'm buying this place whether you like it or not. It'll be under your name, but I'm paying."
          I inhale slowly. "Ray, don't."
          "How about this," he speaks softly.
          "Someday, I'll think of something big you can do to repay me. For now, you can just promise to be friends with me no matter what happens."
          "What if I commit a serious crime? What if I kill someone? hm?"
          "Unless it's me, we still have to be friends." He laughs quietly.
          I groan. "Ray, I swear I'm going to repay you for this someday, whether you like it or not."
          A smirk adorns his lips, "deal."

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