Chapter Text
Miorine could not even register how fast things had happened. One minute, she’s making her impersonation of a coloratura upon the realization of her nakedness. The next, she’s covered overhead with her towel and carried inside her home with several chants of “I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”
“You- You … We were outside and.. Then we’re here.” She says dumbly. She points at her door and then to the red hair.
“I know. I panicked. I’m sorry, I didn’t know what else to do.” Despite the sudden attack of tachycardia, she can’t help but appreciate the woman again, tall and lean in figure. “I went overboard and carried you back here.”
She drags her eyes up and down the woman, the muscles must probably be from all the manual labor she’s done. Miorine didn’t see her open her eyes, but when she did, she looks away from Miorine.
“Thank you.” Miorine says in a whisper. She can’t say anything else with her act of blunder. She moves to her drawers and finally has the decency to put on a bathrobe, tightening the sash in case another mishap happens.
“Anyway, let me check your shower heater.” Miorine feels more embarrassed when the woman sifts through her trash to get to the bathroom. She had forgotten to throw the full trash bags inside the chute again.
Miorine watches her work. Turning the shower knob on, then checking the heater. She repeats the process three times, “Is it okay if I open up your heater to check?”
“Uh, sure” Miorine doesn’t even know why she had t ask since she’s the professional employed here.
“I’m Suletta, by the way.” Her handywoman says without turning to her.
“Miorine.”
She sees a smile from the side of her face, “Nice to meet you.”
“You too.” Miorine unconsciously crosses her arms, watching in apt attention the smallest movements of Suletta’s fingers and hands that causes the muscles on her forearms to slightly bulge. She clenches her thighs.
“Looks like your thermostat needs replacing.” There’s a shyness in her tone and Miorine saw her turn away at the sight of her unblemished thighs.
“Okay, and..?” They share the same bemused look until Suletta shakes her head.
“I have a spare, let me just get it really quick.” She walks past Miorine and out of her apartment.
She didn’t have to wait long to hear a knock on her door. But it wasn’t Suletta. It was Irene, one of the security guards of the apartment’s lobby.
“Good evening, Ms. Rembran.” She tips her cap, “We were informed of a disturbance here on the third floor. Somebody cried out.”
Embarassment returning, she sighs, “It was me. Uhmm… I slipped.”
“Slipped?” Well, in Miorine’s defense, she can’t outright say that she laid herself bare in the hallway and in front of Suletta.
“I was wet because of the rain outside, and I slipped while going to my apartment.” Yes, she uses the sentence construction she learned from elementary to high school to lie herself out of this.
“I see I hope you’re alright, Ms. Rembran.” She sidles up to her left to let Suletta in, and sees an apparatus in her hand.
“Oh! You’ve met Ms. Mercury.”
“Huh?”
“Your neighbor.” Irene purses her lips, pointing it at Suletta’s direction.
“Isn’t she part of the maintenance crew here?” Apprehension starts to claw itself up her throat.
“No, Ma’am. She’s a tenant like you. Anyway, I have to get going. Can’t leave Ludwig to fend for himself.” She tips her cap again, then leaves Miorine.
She left Miorine to process that information by herself. Suletta isn’t the hot handywoman on call but her hot neighbor. And what an impression she left on Suletta.
She walks back to her bathroom to find Suletta open the knob again, then puts her hands under the running water “Hey, I got your heater working.” She says this with a goofy smile, and Miorine tries not to feel the sting of Cupid’s arrow.
“You’re not part of the maintenance crew here.” She says.
“I’m not part of the maintenance crew here.” Suletta echoes, tilting her head to the left.
“You’re my neighbor.”
“I am your neighbor.” She confirms, tilting her head to the right.
“Why didn’t you say anything?” Miorine says, skepticism written all over her face
“I- I th-thought you k-knew. I’m… I’m sorry!” Suletta flinches accompanied by a “Hiiiiee!”
“Then why do you have that thing on?” She points at Suletta’s tool belt. She feels her cheeks burn in humiliation. Really this day is turning into some shit show for her.
“I was fixing the latch on my door knob.”
“Why didn’t you just call the-“ She stops herself. Shame bubbling in her belly. Here she is reprimanding the person who helped her. “Sorry, I was just surprised. I’m actually thankful that you fixed my shower.”
Miorine watches her. Suletta gives her a kicked puppy look.
“How much does this cost me?” Miorine rubs the space between her two eyes. She definitely played herself today.
“A date.”
“Alright. A date it is-“ Miorine’s brows pinch closer, “What?”
“I want a chance to have a date with you.” Suletta explains. “I can cook us a meal then if you want we can watch some movies or have a walk to the nearby park. Even both after the meal.”
“Huh.” She raises a brow, making it look like she was pondering her answer. “Don’t expect me to kiss you on our first date.”
“Oh, so you think there’s another date that will follow?” There’s that smile again that makes Miorine’s heart beat faster and her thighs clench.
“We’ll see.” The heat simmering in her lower belly intensifies.