“Slow down or I’ll fall” you shouted at Rodrick holding the other side of his bed, trying to stay as calm as possible, secretly regretting that you came over in the first place.

It was a Saturday afternoon, a day you should be relaxing in, enjoying your free time off school, maybe even enjoying the last rays of sunshine this year. But instead, you’ve got the brilliant idea to

spend the day with Rodrick, coming over, ending up carrying his bed down the basement, since he decided to get his life together today. Right at the moment you walked through the door of the

Heffley’s house. He told you he meant to move for a long time already, which you’ve expected. All his furniture, including his wardrobe, was down there for a long time now, but apparently he never really found the motivation to do so. I mean who would? It's a basement after all.

“You know what this reminds me of?” he started after a second, smiling at himself like he was about to say something extremely funny. “Remember that scene in Friends? Season 5 I think it was. The

one where Rachel, Chandler, and Ross were carrying the couch up to his apartment? The one where he screamed ‘Pivot’ all the time? I love that scene” he added, unable to suppress a quiet huckle

making you laugh, nearly dropping the bed.

“I didn’t know you liked ‘Friends’” you’ve said quietly, looking down, trying to stay focused on carrying that damn bed down these steep stairs as Rodrick raised his brows. “It’s the best show I’ve

ever watched. It’s perfect, from the first episode until the last one. When I’m telling you that this is a cinematic masterpiece, I mean it” he answered enthusiastically, sounding as passionate as when he’s talking about that talent show he’s attending with his band next weekend – Plainview’s most talented.

They were practicing for months now, convinced that this is their huge chance. Maddie and you helped them as best as you could, your job mainly being helping Chris with the bass.

“Who’s your favorite character?” he asked, finally stepping down the last stairs, giving you a seriously expectant look.

“You can’t just ask me that” you answered quickly, turning left dragging the bed to the corner of the room. “All characters are unique and special in their own ways, you can’t just choose one of them. Phoebe and Joe” you added, eventually putting the bed on the floor,

flopping down on it right next to Rodrick. You quickly snatched the pillow away from him resting your head on it before he had a chance to. You let out a relieved sigh. This is it, enough physical activity for at least the next two months.

“Kind of expected that,” he said calmly, rolling over to you, pushing you playfully so you made some room, now resting his head on the pillow as well. “I liked that she ended up with Mike, you know?” he added quietly. “He was pretty vanilla but they were great together. But the real question that remains is, were Ross and Rachel really on a break?” he asked.

You let out an amused huff. “They were, of course, they were” you answered tiredly. “Still, I don’t blame Rachel for

reacting the way she did. I mean come on, they were on a break for what? 2 hours? And he just went out and fucked

another woman. I’d feel betrayed and hurt as well. Also I cannot remember a break being a break up” you added quickly as Rodrick nodded his head in

agreement.

“Anyways, what else needs to be taken from your room?” you asked wanting to get this over with as quick as possible.

“Everything that is left” he answered tiredly rubbing his eyes. “The pile of clothes, the nightstand, the posters and that’s it I think” he added standing back up, dragging you with him.

But walking upstairs a genius idea hit you out of the blue. “Wanna make this day spa day when we’re done with

your room?” you asked making Rodrick turn around to face you, a mix of amusement and confusion covering his face.

“A spa day?” he repeated, his brows raised as you nodded your head in

confirmation. “Yeah, a spa day” you answered calmly. “You know, facemasks, movies, snacks and all that stuff, just to chill out a bit. What do you think?” you asked facing Rodrick’s still unconvinced face expression.

“I know what you’re gonna say. ‘Isn’t that for girls only?’ No, it’s not Rodrick. Please don't come at me with that gender stereotypes bullshit again. I can assure you that a face mask will not threaten your masculinity. In fact, self-care and hygiene are attractive and you might use a long bath, I can tell” you added jocking as Rodrick rolled his eyes.

“Shut up, I am showering every day. At least since you moved in” he answered laughing. “Smell!” he added dragging you closer to his shirt. You shook your head, running further upstairs.

“Okay, okay,” you said putting your hands up in defense walking inside of his now almost empty room, nearly tripping over the huge pile of clothes laying on the floor. “So, are you in or not?” you asked impatiently, throwing everything into the laundry basket, while Rodrick took down all the posters, finally nodding his head in approval.

A sudden flare of joy and excitement filled your chest. “Now this is going to be fun” you squealed excitedly, running

downstairs throwing all the clothes into the washing machine while he carried the last piece of furniture and decoration down the basement.

“Alright, what are we doing first?” he asked curiously as you met up in the now empty room again.

“We’re going shopping” you answered excitedly throwing your hands up in the air, him letting out an entertained laugh.

“Right, let me just grab my keys and we’re good to go” he replied softly, walking downstairs, turning around abruptly after a second.

“Shit,” he said frustrated. “I forgot that I

borrowed the van to Chris and Mads. They’re getting their tattoos today. Remember?” he added, nervously rubbing the back of his neck. “What are we doing now?” he asked irritated. Dramatic much. The nearest store was only two miles away, meaning that you could hypothetically just go by foot.

“That’s fine, I’ll drive us” you answered pacifically, passing him, leaving the house followed by him right behind you.

“That’s funny,” he said after a moment as you both headed to your house. “You really make it seem like you’re actually going to drive us” he added amused as you turned around confused, tilting your head quizzically.

“You know, we don’t have a car Y/N” he explained quickly. “You can’t just drive us” he added as you raised your eyebrows.

“But we do,” you said after some time. “We still have my car, you know, right?” you asked, uncertain whether he was being serious or messing with you, visual surprise covering his face. “Eh” being the only sound coming out of his

mouth followed by one, simple question. “What?”

“Wait right here” you said quickly turning away, slipping inside of your house for a brief moment, just to come back holding the keys to your car in your hand, waving them right in front of his face, his confused look doubling instead of disappearing.

“You’ve had a car all this time?” he asked after a moment of silence passed, heading towards the garage as you nodded your head.

“Why did I always drive you from school and back for the last 3 months then?” he asked again as you shrugged your

shoulders nonchalantly.

“Didn’t you enjoy it?” you asked turning to him, your daring look making him nervous, his cheeks turning all red.

“I did but that’s not the point right now” he answered, still stunned. “The point is that you have a car. Tell me which one” he added demanding as you opened the garage letting him see himself, his jaw dropping at the sight of your black Mercedes G55 AMG.

“Holy fucking shit” he said excitedly, looking like an amazed kid that just got the toy he’s been asking for months on Christmas, entering the passenger seat as you started the engineer.

“This baby is a monster, I am in love” he added making you laugh. “You know, I don’t care, but from today on you are taking us to school every day, whether you want to or not” he stated as you rolled your eyes yet unable to suppress the smile forming on your face answering with a simple “fine”.

“Now how the hell did you afford this?” he asked still amazed. “Are you like a secret mafia boss or sum?” he asked

dead serious. “You can tell me, I won’t tell anyone” he added as you tried your best to hold back your laughter.

“I didn’t” you answered calmly. “It’s mommy and daddy’s money” you added giving him a short look before turning your gaze back on the road, turning left.

“But didn’t you say they were two crazy

hippies?” he asked confused making you smile.

“Yeah” you answered shortly. “Two crazy hippies that are both lawyers. Medical lawyer and IP Attorney. Ironic, isn’t it?” you answered, instantly

regretting the bitter-sweet tone you’ve used, grateful that Rodrick didn’t notice it.

You loved your parents, they were funny and understanding and were there for you when you needed them the most. You were sure grateful for living such a privileged life due to their jobs. But the truth is that it’s taking a lot of time from them, working overtime gradually becoming part of their daily life. Sometimes you went days without seeing either your mom or dad, them leaving for work before you woke up, coming back to you being asleep already. But I guess that’s the price you pay for money and wealth, and when there was someone in the position to complain, then it was definitely not you.

“Do you think that your parents would be down to adopt me maybe?” Rodrick asked bringing you back to reality.

“I don’t think they would, considering the fact that they still think we’re dating” you’ve answered entertained. “But honestly, I don’t know. Wouldn’t be surprised if they were actually down. So, as long as you’re not a 100% sure that that's what you want you better keep your mouth shut, cause when it comes to my parents you never know” you answered seriously pulling into the target parking lot.

--------------------

“Alright, so what do we need?” Rodrick asked walking into the store, slowly pulling the shopping cart, looking down at you expectantly.

“Oh, I don’t know” you answered shrugging, looking around the store. “This is mostly about relaxing, making yourself feel good. You just add whatever you want” you added softly. “Of course, there are some basics we need like candles for the atmosphere,

snacks of course, face and hair masks” you added as he nodded his head slowly.

And before you knew, you ended up with a fully filled cart, including Rodrick inside it, racing down the now empty parking lot, having the best time of your life. Followed by a private concert he gave to Taylor Swift’s songs on the car ride back home.

--------------------

“Alright, so, what do we do first? Are there any rules or instructions?” he asked as you sat down on his bed, looking genuinely excited.

“Rules?” you repeated raising a brow, “Even if there were any you wouldn’t follow them, I know you” you answered making him smile. “But no, there aren’t” you continued before he had a chance to say something else. “I propose we start off with a bubble bath though” you added looking down, reading the headlines on one of the gossip magazines you bought, basically feeling the cocky grin building up on his face.

“Separately. You go first” you said throwing a pillow at him, hitting him right in the face.

“You’re no fun” he murmured mocking, following you to the bathroom where you turned on the water, letting it fill the bathtub before throwing in two blue,

glittery bath bombs, Rodrick’s eyes growing immediately as he watched the sensation.

“This is unreal, how the fuck does that work?” he mumbled.

“It’s nothing special, just a simple

chemical reaction. When a bath bomb comes in contact with water, the baking soda and citric acid react. And boom, it creates carbon dioxide bubbles” you explained casually, placing two gossip

magazines on the edge of the tub as Rodrick watched you amazed.

“Nerd” he commented joking, watching you lighting up a couple of candles, placing them on the shelves right next to the salt lamp Maddie gifted him one day.

“A little over the top, but sweet” he said as you turned on some quiet piano music for background noise, music both of you usually didn’t listen to, which seemed oddly relaxing in moments like these though.

“Now take as much time as you want, there’s absolutely no hurry. If you need something else just call me, I’m in your room” you said quietly before slipping out of the bathroom, leaving the guy all to himself.

And while Rodrick was in the bathroom, you decided to go take a quick bath at your own house, leaving a small note on his bed so he wouldn’t have to worry about where you were when he left the

bathroom.

But washing your hair, you suddenly remembered, or more explicitly, your rumbling stomach reminded you that you haven’t had anything for lunch today.

Rinsing the foam out of your hair, you stepped out of the bathtub, throwing on a comfortable black tank top and a pair of grey basketball shorts, drying your hair with a towel only, letting the warm summer night air do its job.

After a ten minutes drive you stopped at the nearest restaurant ordering two pizzas, waffles and two big fruit smoothies - so you didn’t feel too bad for eating unhealthy all day.

By the time the food was made and you finally arrived back at the Heffley's house, over an hour had passed, leaving you convinced that Rodrick was already waiting impatiently for you. But stepping inside the basement a big surprise awaited you, he wasn’t there.

Was this man who said, and may I quote, ‘I won’t take long anyway, relaxing in bathtubs is more of a girls thing to do’, seriously still in there?

Hesitantly you approached the bathroom, carefully dropping the bag with the food on his bed, quietly knocking at the door. “Rod, are you okay?” you asked nervously, not hearing a single sound from inside.

“I’m great” he said after a moment, a relieved sigh escaping your mouth.

“Come in actually” he added seriously, making you laugh, thinking he was joking, “I’m all covered in foam,

don’t be silly, now come in” he commanded, panic filling you in waves. For a heartbeat or two you breathed in, holding the air in your lungs, before slowly letting it out in a shaky breath.

You hesitated, deliberating possible consequences, finally swinging the door open, covering your eyes with your

hand. “Are you sure?” you asked anxious, now a hundred percent sure you did the wrong thing, as he chuckled a quiet ‘yes’.

“Okay, I’m opening my eyes now” you warned him, counting to three, your

eyes fluttering open, revealing an in fact covered with foam Rodrick, reading one of the gossip magazines you bought.

“Why would she do that? Cheat on him. I mean, is she insane?” he asked pointing at the magazine outraged as you admired the funny view of him, his hair now a foam afro.

“I mean he is so hot and talented and smart and an actor and rich and..” he interrupted himself as you looked at him amused, one brow raised. “And I should probably stop talking right now” he said slowly looking at you embarrassed.

"I mean, at least he’s single now” you answered shrugging, “Anyway, you planning on staying in here forever?” you asked eventually, still entertained by this whole situation, gaining a

confused look. “It’s been over an hour” you continued, his eyes growing wide open, “I mean I don’t mind, just asking” you added, casually leaning against the doorframe watching him.

“Give me ten minutes and I’m there,” he said quickly, putting his arm up before diving down, disappearing under

the coat of white froth as you turned around, leaving the bathroom, closing the door behind you.

--------------------

“Holy crap” he mumbled stepping out of the bathroom, wearing a grey shirt and black basketball shorts, his hair still dripping wet while his eyes roamed through his room amazed, eventually landing on you laying on his bed lazily, going through your phone.

“This looks amazing” he whispered

admiring the room you’ve decorated while he was in the bathroom with simple Christmas lights, candles and a bunch of lavender flowers refreshing the air.

“Where did you get all this from?” he

asked curiously turning to you.

“We bought the candles together, your mom gave me the lights and I

bought the flowers when I was on my way back home” you answered looking up from your phone, his dark confused eyes immediately locking with yours.

“I took a bath at mine since you took a little longer than expected and then left for around 40 minutes to get some food” you explained calmly, pointing to the two-course meal laying on his desk. “And on my way back home I stopped at a florist - a kind old lady – and bought these” you continued, now pointing to the slightly dried flowers as he nodded his head taking in all this information at once.

“So you took a bath at home?” he repeated, drying his hair with a towel as

best as he could, looking a little too good for a moment. His shirt hugging his body a little too tightly. The few drops of water still lingering on his hair and neck complimenting his face a little too much,

underlining his jaw.

You nodded in response, quickly turning away from him, a sudden wave of

nervousness washing over you. Don't you dare blush right now. “A bubble bath?” he asked again, shaping his hair a little, and once again you nodded your head.

“But like was it relaxing as well or was it that hectic ‘I-don't-have-much-time-left-bubble-bath’?” he questioned making you laugh.

“It was perfectly fine, really relaxing and most definitely not hectic” you reassured him while he looked down embarrassed, before putting the towel away in the bathroom.

“So I guess I’ve been in there for a while” he stated as you watched his sheepish face amused.

“An eternity” you answered joking, Rodrick hiding his face in the pillow uncomfortably.

"Anyways, wanna watch a movie?" you asked, standing up, handing him his pizza.

"Italian salami pizza with maize, mushrooms, jalapeño and extra cheese" you listed sitting down next to him

receiving a grateful smile, taking a bite of your own, vegetarian one.

"You're an angel" he said before

turning on the TV.

"Now, what movie are we watching? How about the Harry Potter movies?" he

asked turning to you eagerly nodding your head. You loved Harry Potter - the books and the movies - it was your comfort series.

"I mean as long as you don't mind me drooling over literally each character" you added as he looked at you surprised.

"There's no way you actually have a crush on someone from Harry Potter" he said, genuine disbelief filling his voice while you couldn't believe that he didn't.

"One would be good" you said smiling, taking a huge bite, nearly burning your tongue while Rodrick searched for the movies in his drawer.

"Yeah, like who for example?" he asked, finally finding the DVDs, inserting the first one into the player, plopping back down on the bed next to you, setting the

language.