Work Text:
~
The building was beautiful. Ariadne was lucky to have secured the lease and was happy that she got a good deal on the rent. Her father stood next to her and put his arm around her shoulders.
“C’est tres belle, ma Cherie. You have a beautiful home. I am very proud of you.”
“Merci, papa. Thank you, for everything.”
Ariadne’s father looked on with pride as they carried the last boxes into his daughter’s new home.
~
Ariadne was hurrying out the door and barely remembered to lock her apartment when she ran into someone just outside “Oof—Oh! I’m so sorry. I wasn’t looking where I was going.”
“That’s all right. Are you okay?” The young man held a hand out to her and helped her up.
“I’m not the one that had a crazy person barrel into them, but I’m fine thank you. I haven’t hurt you at all have I?” She could only imagine what an impression she was making on her next door neighbor.
“Not at all, I’m fine, just heading home. You’re the new tenant, right?” Ariadne nodded her head and shook his hand.
“Ariadne Portier, pleased to meet you.”
“Arthur Evans. It’s been nice to meet you. I’ll let you get on your way.”
Ariadne nodded and flashed him a quick smile before she went on her way. She didn’t notice Arthur staring after her as she went by.
~
Knock knock
“I’m coming!” Ariadne ran for the door holding a spatula and her apron tied tightly around her waist. The knocking stopped and she rushed to open it, being mildly surprised to see Arthur standing at her door, but mostly excited. “Arthur! Hey, what can I do for you?”
Arthur was dressed similarly in a black apron. He looked as if he had been making dinner himself and the thought gave Ariadne a kind of pleasurable flutter in her stomach just then.
Arthur gave her a sheepish smile before answering, “This is really old school of me, but do you happen to have some red wine I could borrow?”
Ariadne quirked a smile at him pleasantly and nodded, opening her front door wider for him to follow her inside. “Thanks, I really appreciate it.”
Her back disappeared into the kitchen as he stood by the small dining area, surreptitiously taking a peek at the rest of her home. “It’s not a problem,” she called out from the kitchen, “what do you need it for, if you don’t mind me asking?”
She came back with a measuring cup full to two cups and carefully handed it to him, “an extra cup. Just in case.” She offered the cup with a wink and it brought a wide grin to Arthur’s face.
“Thank you,” he said, taking the cup. “It’s for a marinade. I’m making steaks and the fancy-shmancy recipe calls for red wine and I don’t think it’ll taste as good with a cup or two of rum or whiskey.” Arthur smiled again and Ariadne found herself wanting to act coy, but not knowing how.
“Well, when a kitchen-adept man presents himself to my door, I can’t help but help a guy out,” she gave her best attempt at a flirtatious smile but probably only ended up flushing her cheeks with nervous heat.
“Adept—I may not be. Literate—I am. Believe me, if there is anything I have learned by being an American in France it’s that paying careful attention to directions and details pays off.” It was the first bit of personal information they had exchanged since the last time they’d met at the mailboxes. Their first meeting in front of their doors had gone with a literal bang, and Ariadne made sure to apologize again when she next saw Arthur retrieving his mail. He had been polite and told her that it was quite all right. His job as a research manager for a private firm made him alert for anything—especially for a cute little thing like her (his words, not hers).
“Well, I hope the steaks turn out well then,” she offered with another smile. Arthur lightly bowed his head in thanks and moved for the door. In walking past the kitchen he caught a whiff of her lasagna and had to ask, “And what is the mademoiselle making tonight?”
She looked back into the kitchen and caught his glance over her shoulder. “Lasagna, it’s about the only thing I can really make well.” She paused and looked at him, maybe a beat of two longer than was normal, before she decided she could at least attempt to flirt. “Bring yourself by if you end up with a dry steak. I’ll have plenty leftover.”
Arthur quickly bowed his head and his demeanor changed, even if imperceptibly. His shoulders straightened and he offered his most polite smile. “Thank you, Ariadne. I’ll see you around. Don’t hesitate to ask for a return favor.” They had made it to the door by now and she nodded and turned to close the door after he stepped out. Far be it for her to assume, but she quickly regretted offering. Come to think of it, why would a man make a steak dinner for just one—and then—she realized. Of course, he was expecting someone.
Disappointed at the thought of her handsome neighbor on a date, Ariadne returned to her kitchen to finish making her lasagna—which she undersold in order to potentially impress him even more if he did come by later—she always made fantastic pasta.
Next door
“Are you hungry Grand-père?”
“Oui, mon fils, merci beaucoup.”
~
“Ariadne—wait do you have a moment?” Ariadne heard Arthur calling after her as she was leaving the building. She turned to see him walking towards her and wondered why she hadn’t already noticed him standing at the mail boxes.
“Hey Arthur, how’s it going?” She was holding her day planner and her cell phone to her chest as she leaned her body to one side to balance her messenger bag. Arthur came to stand in front of her as he mirrored her position with his own messenger bag.
“Hey, I may be a terrible neighbor by asking you for so many favors, but I was hoping you could do me another one?”
She smirked and felt a little smug at having him in so much debt and tilted her head to the side coyly. “Well, I may have to start repossessing your assets, soon enough. But sure, ask away.”
His smile was wide enough to crinkle the skin around his eyes. “I guess I could handle you owning some of my things,” Oh hello, Freud. Speaking of my heart? “But really, my best friend Nic is dropping something off and the only time he can come by is when I have to be at a meeting later today. If you’re around at five, do you think you could accept the package for me and hold on to it?”
She nodded, for it seemed simple enough, “Sure, I get off work at four and I should be around by then. Will he know to knock on my door?
“Yeah I’ll let him know. I really appreciate this, Ariadne.” And with that Arthur leaned forward to kiss her on the cheek. “I’ll be by later to pick it up after my meeting, is that okay?” She nodded, still processing that Arthur kissed her cheek.
She hadn’t said anything to him in a few minutes and quickly tried to recover. “I’ll see you later then.”
He nodded and they proceeded to walk out of the building together, but headed in opposite directions outside the door. “I’ll see you later Ariadne.” She nodded and turned quickly to walk away. She didn’t notice Arthur watching after her with his cute smile tugging at his lips.
She ended up staying at work late and missed a train, so when she walked up to her apartment with cardboard tubes full to the brim of work she couldn’t finish at the office. There was a tall, blond man standing at her door, not seeming angry at her tardiness, but anxious. When he saw her his eyes brightened and he offered a polite smile. “Ariadne?”
“Yes—hi! You must be Nic, Arthur’s friend right?”
He nodded, “Yeah. He asked me to bring this by but he’s at a meeting. He said I could give it to you in the meantime.”
She nodded as she tried to unlock her front door, trying very hard not to drop her tubes. She succeeded and motioned for him to follow her in.
“It’s just a little thing but it’s not the kind of thing I would leave at his doorstep.”
She dropped her tubes on the couch and left her bag next to the table. “It’s not a problem. Arthur is really the only person outside of work that I’ve met who isn’t an obnoxious French person who hates Americans.”
“You’re American? I mean you have a pretty convincing accent, but…”
“I like to call it French-American. My father is a Parisian and my mother grew up in New York. When they got divorced when I was a kid I got shuffled around twice a year across the Atlantic.”
“It’s always nice to have bonds of solidarity when it comes to Americans in Paris.” He smiled and looked at his watch—the universal sign for having to leave without seeming impolite. “Well I better get going. It was nice to meet you Ariadne.”
“Likewise, Nic—is that Nicholas?” she asked.
“Dominic actually, Dominic Cobb. Arthur and I have been friends since we were kids. If it weren’t for him I would be in America with the rest of the Americans.”
“You work together I assume?”
“Yeah, pathological research keeps us busy. It was very nice to meet you Ariadne, thanks for helping us out with the package.” She nodded and moved to get the door for him. Before he turned the corner, he turned and looked at her curiously She raised an eye brow. “Arthur was right about you. You’re very nice—nicer than the lady that used to live here. And you’re very pretty.”
“…Arthur thinks I’m pretty?” She didn’t think to censor herself and she almost slapped her hand to her mouth.
Nic laughed quietly, thinking to himself they’re made for each other. But said, “Well, not in so many words but his exact words were, ‘Don’t hit on her, okay? I saw her first.’ I can assume his attraction is implied.” Nic saw her jaw slacken and turned to give her one last farewell.
But he couldn’t resist getting in one last word for Arthur, “Don’t make him fall too fast, Ariadne. He’s one of the good ones.” Then he walked away.
Ariadne could barely remember to close the door before she could wipe the surprise off her face.
Later that night
“Nic, what the hell did you do? She couldn’t even look at me when I went by her apartment!” An angry Arthur calling Nic was only par to what was expected for the two friends. “You hit on her didn’t you? You couldn’t help yourself!”
“Whoa—listen to me for one second. Damn, man, you assume the worst of your best friend?”
Arthur’s nonchalance could almost be felt over the phone line. “You’re my best friend; of course I assume the worst of you. I’m the only one who’s seen your worst.”
Nic thought for a moment, and then sighed in resignation. “True, but you are wrong this time. I didn’t hit on her, I even told her I wasn’t hitting on her. What happened?”
Arthur thought back on the awkward conversation he couldn’t even attempt when he went to Ariadne’s door after getting back from a business dinner. She opened the door, saw that it was him, and allowed a stricken look of panic to fly across her face before she turned on her heel so fast Arthur thought she didn’t know who he was. “Here Arthur,” she said as she shoved his package into his hands. “Have a good night,” she said as she moved to close the door before Arthur caught it with his hand.
“Ariadne are you all right? Did something happen? Did Nic say something to you?”
She looked up—maybe in misery? Embarrassment? He couldn’t tell. “No! He was nice, and no he didn’t say anything at all. It was good to see you. Bye!” And with that she shut the door and Arthur was too confused to stop her.
“So what the hell did you say?”
“Nothing… much, I just put in a good word for you.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
“I told her that you called dibs.” Arthur closed his eyes, but only so they wouldn’t pop out of his head.
“Nic… you’re an idiot.”
“What? It’s not like it could have been a surprise. She knew you liked her right Arthur?” Arthur sat in silence, partly out of frustration at his idiot best friend for dropping the bomb to Ariadne before he could say anything to her, and partly out of embarrassment for not having manned up enough to have said it already.
“Oh I’m sorry Arthur… did I just trip over the landmine that is you letting another good thing slip through your fingers? Oh, I do believe that is what I tripped over, my apologies.”
“Dominic?”
“Yes, Arthur?”
“Shut up.” Nic’s laughter was only met by a dead dial tone.
~
Ariadne stood outside of Arthur’s door, grappling with the fear of facing the man she fantasized over, and that she suspected fantasized over her. She hadn’t spoken more than a few words to him since he came for his package and threw shy smiles at him whenever they crossed paths at their doors. Arthur always gave everything into smiling at her and she could barely keep it together when he presented her with one.
But she was going out of town to visit her mother for a week in New York and she needed someone to feed her pet rabbit, Earnest. Besides figuring out how to ask him this favor, she couldn’t tell if she would offer to let him inside her apartment every day, or if it would be better to hope that he would keep the cage in his apartment. Before she could decide, fate intervened and thus Arthur’s door opened as if he could hear her thinking.
“Oh, Ariadne, how are you? I didn’t hear you knock.”
“I’m good Arthur, thanks, and I was just about to.”
“Oh, well, I was just going to get my mail. What did you need?”
She shifted her weight from one foot to the other and kept her head bowed. Sensing her hesitancy, and anxious for something more than conversation to happen,
Arthur took fate by its reigns and put a finger under her chin to tilt her head up to meet his eyes. “Hey, you okay?”
He was still touching her chin when she nodded and smiled a small smile for him. “Yeah, sorry. I’m just here to collect on one of those favors you owe me.”
Arthur chuckled and dropped his arms to his sides. “Why of course, we are Americans aren’t we? Democracy still applies. Come on in,” he said as he moved further inside the foyer and let her some space to walk through.
“I’m going out of town next week and I need someone to feed Earnest.”
“Where are you heading off to? And Earnest?”
“New York for a visit and Earnest is my pet rabbit.” Quick thoughts of rabbits filled Arthur’s mind, before they diverted into vibrators and female stimulation and…
“Arthur? You’re not allergic are you?”
He shook his head partly to clear his head and partly to assure her he wasn’t. “No, I’m not and I’d be happy to look over Earnest. Does he have a big cage?”
“A bit, he’s pretty big and he likes hopping around. You wouldn’t mind taking him in your apartment would you?”
“No, that’s fine. Does he need to be… walked or something?”
Ariadne couldn’t help but laugh because Arthur looked too cute when he was confused and it was a silly question. “No, he’s a rabbit. He just needs some space to hop around. He doesn’t go too far, so if you wouldn’t mind letting him out and just letting him hop around?” Arthur nodded. “I do suggest you do that before you feed him so he doesn’t leave behind evidence on your floors.”
Arthur cracked a smile and nodded, “Noted.”
“Well… um, that’s all. Thanks, I really appreciate it. I’ll leave him here tomorrow morning and I’ll be back on Friday, is that all right?”
“It’s fine. I’m happy to help.”
“Thanks, Arthur. I’d say I owed you one, but I think you still owe me one anyway.
Arthur smiled that brilliant smile and nodded. “I am but your humble servant, Miss,” with garnered a laugh from Ariadne.
“Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow then. Bye.”
~
The two stared into each other’s eyes. Neither moved and it seemed that their gazes were locked for an eternity. Arthur wondered how Ariadne ever left her apartment for it seemed Earnest’s stare was so hypnotic he may not have even noticed if the animal was trying to distract him for attack.
“Earnest?”
The rabbit of course said nothing.
“Earnest… can I ask you something?”
Sure, Arthur.
“Does Ariadne ever talk about me?”
If Earnest could speak he would have said, Yes, obsessively.
“I hope she talks about me, because I’m pretty sure she’s interested in me and I know I sure as hell want to marry her. I haven’t spoken to her enough but there’s something there… every time I’m even on the same floor as her”—which is any time you’re both in your apartments, right Arthur?—“I just feel like we could be sitting next to one another and…fuck, I don’t know. It would just be enough to just be with her.”
Arthur, Ariadne is falling for you so quickly, it’s amazing she hasn’t jumped in your lap and begged you to take her against the door to one of your apartments. I can guarantee that if you have one ten-second conversation with her she will most certainly give you her hand in marriage. So the two of you need to get your heads out of your asses and go out for coffee.
“You know what Earnest? I am going to ask Ariadne out for dinner and if she says yes I am going to woo her so far into love, we’ll have to get married that very weekend. Thanks for listening Earnest, please don’t tell Ariadne that I’m a crazy fucking man that had a heartfelt—well, not really heartfelt—conversation with a rabbit.”
And with that, Arthur scooped Earnest up off his carpet, checked for any rabbit “presents” and swung him back into his cage.
The only thing going through Earnest’s mind? Thank God.
~
“He wasn’t any trouble, was he?” Ariadne inquired after returning from her trip.
“As much trouble as rabbits get into, he was a gem. He’s a great listener, by the way.”
Ariadne looked up, confused but also amused. “What do you mean by that?”
“In not so many words he basically told me what I should do.”
“And what would that be, Mr. Evans?”
“Ask if you would like to spend dinner and an evening movie with me.”
“…Oh, Arthur… are you sure?”
Her uncertainty almost discouraged him until he heard the words come out of her mouth. “I haven’t been so sure of any decision since the day I asked Nic if he would be my research partner. And believe me, if you knew Nic in high school, you wouldn’t even ask him to hold your place in line for the bathroom.”
Ariadne laughed and nodded her head at the same time. “I would love to spend the evening with you Arthur.”
Arthur’s smile was rivaled by Earnest’s, for he was still nestled in the corner of his cage observing the entire exchange. Well aren’t I the perfect matchmaker?
~
It had been weeks since that first date. The night went wrong the very minute Arthur woke up that day. His alarm was late, he was late for work, Nic psyched him out for the date—almost to the point where he gathered Ariadne deserved better and thought seriously about cancelling the date—his favorite tie had a stain on it from the red wine he borrowed from her, et cetera, et cetera.
But the date itself—from the rude waiter who took appreciative glances at Ariadne’s décolletage, to the spilled glass of water, and up until the awkward end of the night door kiss, Ariadne couldn’t remember a better night spent in a very long time, and her appreciation was only made better because Arthur was the most considerate—even when he was flustered and pissed off—inhumanly perfect man with a heart of gold that made dinner for his grandfather on Sunday nights after they attended Sunday service together and who complimented the dress she changed out of four times and who mentioned he liked her perfume even though she forgot to spritz herself on the way out of the door that evening.
Ariadne and Arthur even had a day when their emotions took the better of them and forced them into isolating themselves from one another. He—thinking she was not being wooed and was getting bored—bashfully asked her the next morning if a “thing” between them actually existed. She—thinking Arthur was probably more interested in finding someone who didn’t bore him as much as she thought she did—replied by kissing him on the cheek and telling him without a doubt that the only thing between her and him was her heart. His response to that was to kiss her passionately and fit her perfectly into his embrace far off the floor so that he could carry her into his apartment and they could consummate their relationship into the officially in love category.
~
It was three years later that Arthur purchased a ring, planned a special evening—that of course was ruined by misfortune and bad luck, but saved because Ariadne could care less if they had reservations or if they were late to the opera (she only cared that Arthur proffered his elbow for her to hold and gave her his jacket when she shivered in the slightest.) Despite the luckless night, Arthur bent down on one knee in front of their old apartment building (they’ve since moved to a bigger and shared apartment in the next arrondissment over) and proposed to her in the very spot where it all began. It was on the steps of that building that night Ariadne emphatically told Arthur she would have every blessing in life by marrying him and that with everything in her heart, she was promised only to him.