She slowly traced around the rim of her coffee mug as she looked down at her nearly finished sketch. Before picking up her charcoal pencil she took a sip fo her now cold coffee, remembering that she needed to make a new pot soon. The of her pencil were  in a very familiar pattern. She had sketched this image too many times in the past few months. The tousled locks of hair, the hidden glint in the eyes, the coy lips. As she finished she sighed and pushed the sketchbook farther away from her.

She was so tired of drawing him. Every feature that was sketched of his face was etched into her mind. Whenever her mind wandered he was there in her thoughts to happily greet her. She had so many wonderful memories of him. But it wasn't healthy to think about him. Just an imaginary man that had entered her day dreams months ago.

 

"Ummm, excuse me. I think you grabbed my coffee."

She looked up to see him, strikingly smiling down at her. Parting her lips from the coffee cup she was drinking from she looked at the name that was written on it. Rome. Her name was definitely not Rome.

"I am so sorry," She apologized, looking back up to the still smiling man, whose name she now knew was Rome. "I must've been really wrapped up in my thoughts not to taste a difference," she paused, unsure if to give the half emptied drink to its rightful owner.

"It's alright. There's only a slight difference in our coffees anyways. Can barely taste the difference," he said before taking a sip of what was to be her drink. He swallowed before adding, "I think it's a good change of taste."

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She hated how quiet it was alone in the apartment. She popped a few goldfish into before turning to cut some celery for her dinner for one. It was such a mindless motion.

 

"Why is it so quiet in here?" Rome said while wrapping his arms around her body. As he pulled her closer she could feel the rise and fall of his chest on her back. He rested his chin on her shoulder. "Why are you so beautiful even when you wash dishes?"

She stopped scrubbing the pan she was holding. Whenever he said these things she couldn't help but freeze up. He took the items out of her hands and spun her around to face him.

"Why don't you answer any of my questions?" He said jokingly.

"I.." she was cut off.

"They were rhetorical questions silly," he leaned in.

She waited for the warm kiss, closing her eyes. Instead he just pulled her into a hug. She laughed. 

"What? Were you expecting something else?" he chuckled.

 

Looking down at the celery she could certainly say it was very well minced now. She wised she would stop thinking of him.

In her day dreams she was loved, cared for, and complete, but every time she fell back down to reality she was hit with the aching lonliness that was her day-to-day life. As much as she was comforted by her imagination it was never enough to cover up her real world.

______________________

"I love you," Rome whispered to her. For some reason they were laying face to face on the carpet of her living room floor.

She sat up, surprised.

"What?" he sat up slowly beside her.

"Rome..." She paused, unsure of how to continue.

"It's okay if you don't love me yet," he sincerely looked into her eyes. "I can wait."

He softly kissed her. 

"I love you," he repeated before kissing her again.

She was so relieved. So relieved that he understood; that he loved her enough to stay with her. He was too perfect.

 

She woke up crying. Her mind wasn't fair. It wasn't fair.