5 - Laughter

On Saturday, Hailey spent the morning cleaning her apartment. Cleaning was another method of escape for her, she enjoyed it. She'd just plug in her earphones and start cleaning, shutting the world out and her negative thoughts.

Around two in the afternoon, she was finished with laundry and housework and decided to take a much needed bubble bath.

Closing her eyes, she relaxed in her tub, bobbing her head to her favourite R&B song: Too close by Next.

"Baby when we're grinding, I get so excited. Ooh, how I like it, I try but I can't fight it. Oh, your dancing real close. Plus it's real real slow. You're making it hard for me." She sang, moving her hips to the rhythm of the song.

Her phone chimed and she opened her eyes to read a whatsapp message from an unknown number,

Hey.

She furrowed her brows slightly as she stared at the unsaved number. Checking the profile, she noticed there wasn't a display picture. Skeptically, she replied,

Hi, who's this, please?

Her phone beeped less than a minute later with a single-worded message that made her heart skip a beat,

Romeo.

Biting her lower lip, she contemplated a reply. How does she answer a message from her boss? Usually, if he needed her, he'd just call her from his office phone. She could tell this was a cellphone number. His private number. This wasn't a business message.

Hailey: Hi.

Romeo: Lol. Is this weird?

Yeah, she thought.

Hailey: No.

What did he want? Why was he texting her? Didn't he have a wife?

Romeo: Yeah, it is. Sorry, I'm a little bored. My wife is in Georgia for a show. She's a runway model.

Oh, he texted her because he was bored. Ha. And, of course an attractive man like him would have a wife who's a model.

Hailey: Oh, nice. I'm just here chilling.

Romeo: Where?

She contemplated telling her boss that she was laying in her bathtub. Would that be inappropriate? With a sigh, she gave up overthinking and just sent him a text.

Hailey: In my bathtub.

He responded with the eye emoji.

Yep, it was definitely inappropriate, she thought. Why would she send that? What was wrong with her?

Her phone sounded with another message and she nervously peeked at the screen,

That's really nice.

A sheepish smile spread across her lips.

Hailey: How are you doing apart from being bored?

Romeo: I'm ok. A little tired. Been working on a project since last night. Barely got any sleep.

Hailey: That's not a healthy practice. It's recommended to get at least eight hours of sleep each night.

Romeo: I know, but I have trouble sleeping.

Hailey: Insomnia?

Romeo: I think so.

Hailey: Think? You should see a doctor.

Romeo: Thanks, I will.

The rest of the day was spent texting him. It was quite fun as they talked about anything that came to their minds. At one point, she forgot he was her boss and she just relaxed in bed, texting him like a friend. Their chat was filled with innocent jokes and laughter. She couldn't recall the last time she'd laugh so much. She was grateful for a little enjoyment on her day off even if it was just over the phone with her boss.

---

Sunday went by smoothly. They spent the entire day texting again that she forgot to get up and have a shower.

Her eyes widened in surprise when he unexpectedly facetimed her. Rushing to the bathroom with her ringing phone in hand, she quickly washed her face and combed through her hair with her fingers.

When she looked decent enough, she swiftly returned to her bed and answered the call, forcing a smile onto her face,

"Hi!"

He was wearing a white Tee-shirt, exposing a few sections of his tattoos.

He stared at her with a knowing grin, "You're still in bed, aren't you?"

She nodded with a laugh, covering her face in embarrassment, "Yeah!"

"And when I called, you rushed to the bathroom." He continued with a chuckle.

She gasped in awe and surprise, "How did you know?"

"We were just texting, so I know you had your phone. But when I called, you took a long while to pick up."

She rolled her eyes, facepalming herself with a sheepish smile, "You're good."

"Ha ha ha!" He laughed, with an amused shake of his head.

She smiled as she listened to his laugh. The sound of his laugh wasn't vulgar. It was low and a little soft which she found oddly attractive. As she stared at his enlightened face, she noticed how attractive this man really was.

Her mind involuntarily started to compare herself to him. There was no way men as handsome as he would be interested in a woman like her. To her, she wasn't gorgeous or sexy. She was just easy to look at. She wasn't tall or thick. She didn't have a big boobs or a fat ass. She was short, barely five feet two inches tall. She had a small bum and small curves. Her smile faltered slightly. Maybe that's why she was still single.

"Are you okay?" He questioned, pulling her out of her negative thoughts.

She smiled, "Yeah. I just zoned out a little."

He nodded, "I noticed."

"Did you sleep well?"

A tired sigh left his lips, "No."

She pouted, "That's sad."

He chuckled before playing with the stubble on his chin, "Yeah, I know."

Panther quietly entered her room before jumping onto the bed and crawling into her lap.

She smiled at him, "Good morning, buddy, you hungry?"

He gave her a meow in response and she laughed, stroking his head.

"Is that your cat?" Romeo questioned with a slight look of disgust on his face.

"Yeah. Do you like cats?"

"No, I'm more of a dog person." He responded and she gasped in horror,

"How can you not like cats? They're so sweet and extremely affectionate. I mean dogs are nice too but cats are just great."

He shrugged casually, "I don't know. They attack you for absolutely nothing at all, and I just think cats are too clingy and thieving."

"Thieving?" She playfully scoffed.

He nodded, "Yeah, they're thieves!"

"Not if you train them."

"Well, that's true. But, I just prefer dogs."

She rolled her eyes with a wry smile, "Whatever."

"Aww, did I make the cat girl mad?" He teased.

"I ought a slap you through the phone." She laughed.

"I'd prefer if you kissed me through the phone." He replied blatantly.

Her smile dropped and she stared at him, "What?"

"Hmm?" He replied, unaware of the words that just left his mouth.

"You said you would prefer if I-"

Realizing what he had said with wide eyes, he quickly cut her off with a nervous laugh, "Oh, um, I was just kidding. Don't you know that Soulja Boy song?"

An uncertain chuckle left her lips as she continued to stare at him. Did he actually wish for her to kiss him or was he really joking around? He must have been joking. Considering the fun-filled messages they sent to each other during the weekend, she took his word for it and assumed he was joking. He had to be.

"Yeah. Anyway, it was great talking to you. I have to go now. My son and I are making dinner." He responded with a small, anxious smile.

"Okay, talk to you later."

"Sure, and, please go have a shower. It's almost four in the afternoon." He chuckled, making her giggle.

When the call ended, his words played through her mind again. Deep down, she wondered what it'd be like to taste his lips.