No Place Like Home

[James Lawrence]

Moving places was a difficult process.

James and Ella had loaded up his car with the last of the boxes from her former room at the school, the place where they had found themselves since the beginning of their relationship. The process had been gradual; a few of his staples ended up in her place, until eventually neither one of them found it necessary to leave except for work matters. But they were moving onto greater things. She would be starting as a powers trainer at Bellefonte come the new year, which meant it was no longer necessary for them to stay on school grounds 24/7.

The idea came up naturally in conversation, of the two of them getting their own apartment to share. They were already living together; it wasn't that big of a deal. Even better, the suggestion that Ella move into his abandoned apartment came up. The thought was enough to shift the tempo of his pulse, of the adrenaline that she could feel running through his veins. This wasn't due to nerves, but excitement. Excited with the future possibilities James had with her. Still a big deal.

It had been a time consuming afternoon. There wasn't much left to do, only transporting the last of the details in cardboard boxes, marked accordingly. The new furniture was already in place, having been sorted out as of late last night. James held a few boxes, stacked high in front of him as they waited for the elevator to reach floor level.

"You know, it's at times like these where I regret choosing the fifth floor." He casually mentioned to Ella. 

[Ella Robbinson]

Living in a dorm monitor's apartment was barely enough space for one person. Sure, it had everything a person needed, but it also had a myriad of high school students just on the other side. Most days, it was just like being in high school herself, especially when someone did slowly end up moving in with her. The very small space clearly wasn't made for two people, but honestly, she had always been happy for the excuse to be around him. It took so long for Ella to understand that he actually genuinely wanted to live with her; by that time, he already was.

But this was better. A new job and therefore, a new start. This year marked ten years in Kalispell, and at least she finally had a reason to be happy about that. She was happy she stayed.

All Ella could offer him was a sidelong glance. He was difficult to see properly with the boxes in her arms, and it wasn't exactly like hers were empty either. Helping with the last of their belongings meant they didn't need to go anywhere else, and that was all she wanted.

"I'm just grateful it has an elevator." Ella replied, the tone to her voice clear of anything remotely suggestive. After all, they had a relatively important history with elevators, and it wasn't so easily forgotten.

[James Lawrence]

Although her room at the school offered little in terms of space and comfort, it provided enough. It had worked for the months they shared the apartment. For James, there always was the option to return to his apartment off school grounds. Ella did not have that same opportunity given her role as dorm monitor. It was necessary for her to stay during the nights. But he didn't want to, because what was the point in returning to an empty apartment when that time could have easily been spent with her?

Living together wasn't something new, but having a place of their own was nice.

It was hard to make eye contact; he settled with using peripheral vision to look at her. The last trip on the way up to their apartment. Then, they would have to deal with all of the boxes and sort everything out. It was a lot of work but it'd be all worth it in the end.

At the mention of elevators, James tried to maintain his composure, difficult as it was. The word alone had the capability to change the rhythm of his heart. With the connotations that elevators carried, it was difficult to ignore. "That's true." He agreed with a nod, "That would've been a pain."

[Ella Robbinson]

Ella maintained a relatively cool exterior. It was never difficult for someone who could literally keep the beat of her own heart stable. In instances like these, her attention was completely drawn to the way in which the rhythm of his heart could shift. And sure enough, she could feel the change in the natural beat of his pulse. It was enough to force the corner of her mouth to twitch upwards; she nearly laughed, but she kept it to herself to the best of her ability.

Still, the breath she offered harboured the slightest hint of amusement. And if anyone would hear it, it would absolutely be him.

"I would've still helped you." She reassured him, leaning over and offering a slight nudge of his arm with her own. But she had to keep her stability all the same, else she might completely lose hold of everything she kept in her arms. As the floor beneath their feet leveled out, a light enough sound coincided with the way those doors opened. "You're worth it."

[James Lawrence]

Futile as it was, James tried not to give away the obvious change of his heart's state. He knew that she would feel the natural change; and maybe that was why she had said it in the first place. There was no way to be certain, given the stacked boxes between that hid the smile on her face.

What he did hear was the short breath that followed, that gave away the underlying undertones of Ella's statement. Now he was sure that she had said that intentionally, and a smile of his own appeared. He could have said something but that would ruin the dynamic of the conversation.

"Even if we were on the top floor?" James asked, tilting his head in a way to make his smile more accessible for her. It was all for her. Shifting his weight, James gave a slight nudge in response because anything more would threaten to send all the boxes tumbling down. "I'm lucky to have someone so generous." He took a step forward to stand in the elevator door frame, allowing Ella to go first.

[Ella Robbinson]

Tilting back a fraction, Ella worked to catch the expression on his face in tandem with the way he tried to make himself more accessible. Though she kept a relatively tight lid on the fact, she knew she was still nervous. It was one thing to live in a dorm together - practically like children, in some respects - but to move away from that world and into the greater heights of their future was something new entirely. This was the kind of thing that could make or break a couple, and a little part of her was always afraid of the latter.

"A view of the city outside my window is much better than a view of the school grounds." She replied in turn, shrugging her shoulders at the fact. And even then, she had to laugh lightly at the evident luck he perceived.

Stepping out, she had a brief moment where she stumbled through the hallway and cradled the boxes in one hand. Just a few seconds to fish a set of keys from her pocket. Newly cut, completely fresh. She could only hope such a place would really feel like her own in the end. "Are we really going to unpack all this tonight?" She asked genuinely, unable to look back as she pressed the right key correctly between her thumb and forefinger.

[James Lawrence]

A small part of James was nervous about moving in together, but not because he doubted himself or their capabilities of handling their future life, but because of his lack of experience in dealing with relationships. Then again, their relationship had always been a little unconventional and he had no doubts that they couldn't handle whatever the future brought. But that could have been overconfidence on his part.

"Fair enough. Hard to disagree there." He agreed empathetically. "Not as many children running around here either." James added, which had to be a plus. Everything in comparison to a dorm monitor's room was better.

Following behind Ella, James relied on sound over sight. The sound of her keys was enough to prevent him from running into her, stopping just beside the door. He was grateful that she had the means to dig out the keys; his own hands were too full. The silent, unspeaking way that they worked together never failed to amaze James. How he was able to fully connect to someone so perfectly and without effort.

"Hm." He mused on an exhale, "No, probably not, to be honest. Unless you want to. We can find the necessary items and do the rest tomorrow." James suggested. They had already gone through a lot over the course of the past couple of days.

[Ella Robbinson]

Though technically that small room at the school was their first, Ella was doing her best not to look at it that way. She felt obvious relief to the fact that they wouldn't be settled around kids. The last thing she needed was to get caught up in the thought of eventual children. Babies. Right.

They were talking about moving.

"It's one of those things, isn't it?" She asked then, practically irked by the fact that she couldn't properly look at him. "It mightn't ever get done if you don't make a start on it, but..." The slow draw of the word carried her attention to the door. A few spare seconds and she was working to unlock it, forcing it open with her foot more than her hand. "Moving is exhausting." She practically pleaded, "The last thing I want to do is move stuff around."

Stepping through the distance, she proved her own point by placing the boxes in hand on the floor the second she had clearance.

[James Lawrence]

The thought of children was a side tangent. James was reminded everyday through the school how nice it was to not be responsible for a child's life. He was a trainer though, so technically in his own right he was.

Did she want children?

Allowing the thought to fade, a grin returned to his features. She was right; if they left the boxes for tomorrow, they would be saying the same thing every day. "Yeah it's probably the worst part of moving." He said. Maybe if they left some important things in the boxes, it would motivate them to come back tomorrow and sort out the last minor details.

Following her through the door, James stepped further inside and set his own set of boxes next to hers on the ground. Turning to face her, his eyes searched for the familiarity of her own after what felt like too long. "We at least deserve a break right now." Because the process had been exhausting and the last thing James wanted to do was organize everything.

[Ella Robbinson]

Free hands and the last of her belongings in them meant there was finally room to stop thinking about moving everything around. Ella couldn't remember what it was like to move into the dorms in the first place; that was four years ago, and even now, it wasn't as if she owned a lot of stuff. There was no big pieces of furniture to call her own. Nothing overtly sentimental ever really clouded her walls.

Eyes lit up a fraction when he denoted that they deserved a break. It wasn't for the sake of being lazy. For her, it was for the fact that she hadn't properly seen him all day despite the fact that they spent all day together.

"It shouldn't take too long. I can always start when you're working." She reasoned further, giving just the excuse for the break they seemed to need. She didn't need to worry about being back at the school until next year; really, responsibility fell on the hemokinetic's shoulders first, and she hardly seemed to mind. Her eyes settled on him completely, the thought of unpacking slipping slowly from her mind. It was nice to be home, really. And it was nice to be home with him.

[James Lawrence]

This time around, James was grateful that he had an extra set of hands to help with the moving process. When he had returned to Kalispell, it had just been him, which meant the apartment was kept in a very minimalist state. New furniture was not just an idea, but a necessity considering the state the apartment was in before. New furniture to mark the significance of this day.

A break was necessary. He was too tired to even think about unpacking and finding a place for everything. The details could be sorted out later; all James could focus on was her and the fact that this was really happening.

A smile easily formed on his lips. "Yeah, that sounds good to me. And I can always help out too when I'm done." James agreed, as most days he got home mid-afternoon. He slid his boxes off to the side, out of the way until required to deal with. Plans for another day. Standing upright, his gaze landed completely on her, settling on her features as he forgot about everything else. He began to close the distance in-between them, his hands reaching out to hold onto her waist. "But we're at home now, and that's the important thing."

[Ella Robbinson]

Relief washed over Ella's features the second James was breaching the distance between them. Hands at her waist dragged her in just that little bit further, leaving nothing between them with good reason. She had missed being able to reach out to him. His hands had been busy carrying the heavier boxes from one place to the other. Or he was driving. To be the first thing he searched for when he had the time was everything.

"You owe me half a closet." Ella said then, her tone as light as the idea seemed. Surely he couldn't own such a myriad of leather jackets that he couldn't save a little space. After all, most of his clothes had been at her place anyway. Really, a majority of his work was just shifting such things back to where they belonged.

A small hum passed her lips then, hands running across his arms before settling at his shoulders. "And half the storage in the bathroom." She added, raising her eyebrows as her attention turned to the nature of his hair.

[James Lawrence]

Any distance left between them felt like too much; especially considering the fact that they never had the chance to properly maintain some sort of physical connection throughout the moving process. Hands were kept occupied all day, but now James could hold onto the most important person in the room. She was all he could focus on. His hands settled, pulling closer. He could never be close enough.

The corners of his lips curled up into a smile. "Deal." He agreed quickly; even if it was a joke, it was an easy enough idea to agree with. Before, James never used up the entire space anyway. Even with two people now living in the apartment, there was plenty of space in the closet.

At Ella's next comment, he frowned. Eyes instinctively turned upwards to peek at his hair, perfectly combed into place and held together with gel. "Awww, come on now." He replied, "Do you know much care goes into my hair?" Afterall, James had moved in with her and had seen just how many hair products he kept at his disposal. Sure it was vain, but it was his staple.

[Ella Robbinson]

Half a closet shouldn't have been too hard. Ella expected him to agree to it as quickly as he had. After all, it was pretty much the rule that coincided with living with someone. He seemed very willing to give whatever it was he needed to. That was, until she bordered the subject of his hair products. She had been tentative within reason; it might have actually been the first thing they needed to compromise on.

Following the natural trajectory, fingertips tracked to the collar of his shirt, favouring skin to skin contact until her hands were secured around his neck. Because the second Ella was able to make a connection, she was definitely going to. James Lawrence was one of the most taxing people to try to ignore; she learnt that a long time ago. And she was incredibly aware of just how good it was to give into his obvious sense of charm.

"Can't you just pick one and use it?" She asked genuinely. But then, this was coming from the women who took less time than he did to get ready of a morning.

[James Lawrence]

The moment her hands made a connection with the bare skin of his neck, James felt the momentary drop of his heart struggling to keep a steady tune. Even after their time together, she still had the capability to drive his heart crazy by existence alone. He wanted to give her everything he could, but valuable shelf space in the bathroom? That was harder to agree to, for the man whose love for his own hair fell second only to her.

Hands moved downwards, down her sides onto the curve of her hips where he held on. Tilting his head down slightly, James' eyes searched to meet her eyes. He breached the distance between them, unable to resist against the natural calling of Ella's touch, as his lips moved to brush against hers. Once, then twice.

He pulled back, only enough so he could reply after the momentary distraction. The very best form of a distraction. "They all serve a different purpose, though. It depends on what look I want to go for." He explained. Though he probably could narrow it down to the bare essentials, that didn't necessarily mean that he wanted to.

"How about if you get more closet space, I get more bathroom space?" James suggested, unsure if the compromise was something that Ella was interested in. If not, he would have to find another way to negotiate. He leaned in closer once more, and had there been any space between them, it would have disappeared.