Chapter 1
You huffed as you slid one of the last of your moving boxes down the hall. The movers had helped out only halfway, leaving your boxes at the wrong apartment door. Their mistake had given you and your best friend, who had volunteered to help you, an unexpected cardio workout this evening in carrying them down the hall to the correct apartment.
When the last box decided it no longer wanted to move you kicked it in frustration. Your felt it was safe there in the hall since it was so heavy, and no one could just grab it and run away.
You walked the rest of the way back to your new apartment and leaned against the doorway, breathing heavily. Your best friend laughed as you looked up at her. She was sat on the couch, already unpacking some of the lighter items.
“Thanks for all the help with the heavy lifting.” You said sarcastically.
“I’m decorating!” She smirked holding up a framed photo of the two of you as kids, standing side by side, grinning brightly in your soccer uniforms.
“Oh gosh, put that away! I don’t want that in the living room!” You laughed, lunging for the photo.
She quickly moved it out of your reach. “Hey! This is adorable!” She gingerly set it down on the side table beside her. “Now anyone you bring home will see how cute you were!”
“Were?”
“You still are bug, only joking.” She said, going back to digging through the box on her lap. “Was that the last box?”
“No,” You stood and stretched. “Just one more, but I left it out there in the hall cause I can’t lift the damn thing.”
“It can’t stay out there all night, bug.” She replied, studying another picture frame she pulled from the box on her lap.You padded out into the hallway again, quickly squatting to attempt to lift the tall box. This was the biggest one, hence why you left it for last. You struggled to fully grasp it, lifting it off the ground just slightly before it fell back down again.
“Need some help with that?” A voice called out.
You peeked over the top of the box and immediately lost your grip on it. A beautiful man, tall, tanned skin, and broad shoulders. You stood slowly and once he fully saw you; he stopped moving, eyes widening slightly. He was much taller than you. So tall you had to tilt your head up slightly just so your eyes could meet his. The man shook away whatever had come over him and moved.
“Sorry, I’m Miguel. I live in that apartment there.” He gestured to the door down the hall, directly across from yours. He shifted the grocery bags he was holding and outstretched his hand to you.
“I’m Y/N, I just moved in today.” You said shaking his hand.
“Yeah, Jimmy mentioned that someone new was coming in.”
You nodded in response. Jimmy was the nice doorman you’d met a couple weeks ago when you were finalizing everything before your move in date.
He shifted his groceries again and then gestured to the box still sat on the floor.
“Well, did you want any help with that?”
“Oh, yeah that’d be great.”
You went to warn him as he bent down to pick up the box. “Now be careful with this one. It’s pretty heavy, I could barely-“
He cut you off as he lifted the box with ease with only one hand. Your lips parted in surprise, and he looked at you as if it was nothing. All the while still holding the three other grocery bags in his other hand.
“Do you have a spot where you want it?”
“Oh, yeah. Um-“ you led him down the hall and into the apartment. “You can set it right here on this table.” You pointed to a table in the kitchen area. Saff’s eyes met yours and exchanged a look as Miguel wandered over to your dining area. The large over his shoulder box blocked her from his point of view.
You quickly mouthed “neighbor” to her, and her eyebrows shot up mischievously. “HE’S HOT” she quickly mouthed back. You rolled your eyes and put your finger to your lips, urging her to stay quiet.
“Anything else you need help bringing in?” He turned to you after setting down the box.
“No, that was the last of them. I’m officially moved in.”
As the two of you round the corner of the kitchen it brought you in full view of your roommate on the couch.
“Oh, I’m sorry I didn’t see you there.” He remarked upon seeing her.
“Saff this is my neighbor from across the hall.” You gestured to him.
“Miguel.” He said simply, reaching forward to shake her hand. She took it and shook his hand dramatically.
“Miguel.” She put on her most flirtatious voice. “That’s a firm grip you have there.”
“Oh my gosh.” You tried to bury your face in your hands.
“Oh, thank you.” He let go of her hand awkwardly. “I should go, gotta put these away.” He says, gesturing to the grocery bags with a small laugh. “But, it was nice to meet you.” He gave Saff a small wave and she waved back enthusiastically.
You walked with him to the door, closing it slightly behind you.
“Well again thanks for bringing that last box in. Pretty sure you saved my back.”
“No problem. But, I’m sure your roommate would’ve have helped you out if I hadn’t come along.”
“Oh, Saff’s not my roommate. She just makes herself comfortable wherever she is.”
He chuckled softly, leaning back against his door. “Well, she seems nice.”
“Yeah, when she wants to be.” You said sarcastically and he gave a small laugh at that.
God, he was standing so close you could smell his cologne. “So, what about you? Any annoying roommates keeping you company in that apartment of yours?”
“No, it’s just me and my daughter.”
No wife? The thought came up unintentionally.
“But my daughter, Gabriella, she’s going through a phase with one of those cartoons. Won’t watch anything else.” He huffed a laugh. “So just let me know if it gets too loud.”
“Oh, I definitely will.” You jokingly retorted back.
“I think one of her old babysitters introduced her to it, but she just moved away for college. I put it on to keep her calm so, you may be hearing it more often.”
“Well, I work from home so if you ever need a babysitter or something I’d be happy to watch her.” You give him a bright smile.
He smiles back, shyly scratching the back of his head. “Thank you. Really. But… uh… I’m not sure that would be such a good idea.”
“Oh?”
“It’s just… Gabi is so young and uh… She lost her mother a while back.”
“Oh no, I-I’m so sorry I didn’t mean to overstep-“
“No, it's fine.” He waves away your worries. “It’s not that, its uh-“ He stops and looks at you for amoment his eyes seemingly roaming over every detail of your face.
“You look a lot like her mom.”
Your eyes widened and your lips softly parted. “I do?”
He nods and finally looks away from you. “I tried to explain to her that her mom is…you know. But I don’t think she understands. She still asks when she’s coming home.”
You stood there silently, not knowing what to say.
“And I think if she sees you…” he stops himself again. “I just don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“Of course, I totally understand.” You thought for a moment. “But, will it be awkward if we bump into each other in the hall again? What if she’s with you next time?”
He huffs a small sigh before responding. “Honestly, I hadn’t thought that far ahead.”
“Well, we’ll deal with it as it comes.” You shrugged . “Probably won’t even be a big deal.”
“Yeah, I guess we’ll see.” He adjusted his grip on his groceries and placed his free hand on his doorknob. “It was nice to meet you, Y/N.”
“You too, Miguel.”
He looks at you a moment longer before turning into his own apartment. You turn and go back into your own apartment soon after. Saff’s eyes met yours as you shut the door.
“Holy shit!” She said, a large grin on her face.
“Shh!” You shushed her. Not wanting Miguel to hear her somehow, through the door.
“You are so lucky.” Saff grumbled, pulling a table lamp from one of the boxes. “You have that living across the hall from you.”
“Stop it…” You tried not to smile. It was nice to have eye candy so close to home.
“If you don’t jump on that I will.”
“Well, he’s probably not looking. He said his wife died. And he has a daughter.”
Saff’s jaw dropped. “His wife died? What, like recently?” She started unwinding the cord of the small lamp.
“No, he said it was a while ago. And then he said-”
You stopped yourself. It was purely a coincidence. Probably not worth telling Saff right?
“What, bug?”
Screw it.
“He said... he said I looked like her.” You tried to shrug it off.
“Wait, seriously?” She stared to set the now empty box she was clearing aside. “You think he may have been hitting on you?”
“What like, ‘hey you look like my dead wife wanna go out some time?’. Not exactly a pickup line.”
Saff snorted, “Well, coming from him I’d say yes to anything he asked me.”
“Whatever, I’m focused on my new job right now. I’m not even thinking about dating or anything.”
“Good luck staying focused when you have that beautiful man in the same building as you.”