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Lockwood never intended to end up in this situation when he asked George to book an accommodation for him and Lucy, but he also found himself unable to complain. The outcome ended up being far more enjoyable than he could’ve predicted.
Lucy and him had been hired to deal with a haunting in a small town. They had found plenty of information regarding the old house, so figuring out what the source was hadn’t been difficult at all. The ghost turned out to be a Type One.
However, their luck was short-lived. They were making their way through the cobblestoned roads towards the inn where George had booked their rooms, when it suddenly started to rain. And by rain he meant a terrific downpour. He could barely see properly in front of him.
He heard Lucy cursing next to him. The situation was not ideal. By the time they reached the inn, they were both shivering from the rain. He couldn’t help but notice that despite her flushed cheeks and mascara stains underneath her eyes, Lucy still looked gorgeous. Not the time, Lockwood, he chided himself.
He walked up to the receptionist’s desk. Behind it stood a woman, about forty years old with blonde hair and light blue eyes. She smiled warmly at him.
“Hello!” Lockwood greeted. “I believe I have a reservation.”
“May I ask what your name is?” Asked the receptionist.
“Anthony Lockwood.”
The woman’s eyes lit up in recognition. “Ah, yes. Follow me! I’ll lead you to your room.”
She grabbed the key from a drawer and started going up the stairs. Noticing the way Lucy trembled, Lockwood shouldered both her and his bag and took her shaking hand in his. The receptionist led them to a room on the second floor and handed him the key, shooting him a knowing look.
He quickly opened the door and pulled Lucy inside. He let the bags drop by the door with a thud. The clock on the wall ticked loudly in the silent room. It was around one in the morning. Not too bad, Lockwood thought.
Suddenly, he felt Lucy tense up next to him.
“Lockwood…” She mumbled.
“What’s wrong, Luce?”
“It seems that there’s only one bed.” Lucy whispered.
Lockwood froze. He never should’ve trusted George with this.
“Go take a shower, Luce. You must be freezing. We’ll solve this somehow.”
Too worn out to protest, Lucy opened her backpack and reached for a pair of shorts and an old t-shirt. Soon, the bathroom door clicked shut behind her.
Lucy stared at her reflection in the mirror. Her face was damp and flushed from her shower. Despite the steam still coming off from her skin, the shower didn’t warm her.
She really, really hoped she wasn’t coming down with something. Deep down, she knew that her rosy cheeks weren’t caused by illness. She had to share a room with Lockwood. Her employer. Her landlord. Her best friend. Her crush. The love of her life. Nope, she was certainly not spiraling. No, not at all. Worse than that, she knew that he didn’t feel the same about her. Just an associate, that’s what he always called her. Oh god, he probably hated the fact that he had to share a room with her.
Her train of thought got interrupted by Lockwood’s voice coming from outside the bathroom.
In the meantime, Lockwood was actively panicking. He knew, logically, that he had no reason to panic. After all, Lucy and him had slept in the same room before. Of course, that room was the library back at Portland Row. Often, after difficult cases, they sat on the sofa reading or talking. On several occasions, they did wake up cuddling, but that felt different. For one thing, George was usually with them in the library. But now, they were alone. He was alone with Lucy. His crush. The love of his life. He knew she didn’t like him back. That much was obvious. And he didn’t want to make her uncomfortable. If he couldn’t have her in a romanic way, he’d be just as grateful to be by her side as a friend, for he will always be hers.
He started rummaging through the wooden cabinet beneath the room’s window, where he thankfully found a couple of spare blankets and pillows. He laid them out next to the bed. One blanket was placed on the floor and he kept the other one so he could cover himself with it. While Lucy was in the shower, Lockwood quickly changed out of his suit into a pair of sweatpants and a white cotton t-shirt.
Suddenly, he felt a piece of paper in his pocket. He had definitely not placed it there. He unfolded it and recognised George’s scrawl.
You’ll thank me later. – George
Lockwood felt his heart drop. George had purposefully book a room with only one bed. Lockwood didn’t know how to feel about that. Did George know about his crush? Was it really that obvious?
He was starting to worry after Lucy didn’t come out of the bathroom twenty minutes later.
“Luce, are you ready?” He called.
No reply came, but the door opened swiftly and out came Lucy. She blinked owlishly, staring at the makeshift sleeping space.
“You can take the bed.” Lockwood explained. “I’ll sleep there.”
Lucy looked like she wanted to say something, but decided against it. “Alright. Okay, that is fine with me.”
“Oh, okay, Luce.”
They sat in awkward silence, gazing into eachothers’ eyes until Lucy cleared her throat and climbed in the bed.
“I’ll take a quick shower. I’ll be right back.” Lockwood informed her.
That spot on the floor surely can’t be comfortable, Lucy thought.
Sure, sharing a bed with Lockwood would be incredibly inappropriate, but he also should not sleep on the floor, right? That couldn’t possibly be good for his back and neck. Soon enough, Lockwood came out of the bathroom and shot her a warm smile.
“Can I turn the lights off, Luce?”
“Yeah, of course.”
They both got settled in, yet Lucy still couldn’t stop shivering.
Lockwood sighed. “Are you cold?”
“Maybe.”
“Luce, I want you to be comfortable. Do you want my blanket?”
Lucy shook her head, even though he couldn’t see her. “You’ll be cold without it.”
“You’re still not answering my question.”
Lucy huffed. “Yes, Lockwood, I am freezing. What can you possibly do about that?”
“I might have and idea. Just know that you can tell me to stop whenever you feel uncomfortable.”
To Lucy’s surprise, the bed dipped with Lockwood’s weight as he sat on it. Slowly, he reached his arms towards her.
Lockwood swallowed heavily. “May I?”
Not trusting herself to speak, Lucy nodded.
They were both underneath the same blanket and Lockwood wrapped his arms about her. At first, Lucy tensed, but seconds later she melted into him. She never felt more comfortable, yet her heart was racing. This probably means nothing. This is a normal, platonic thing that best friends do , right?
As if hearing her thoughts, Lockwood cleared his throat.
“I love you, Lucy!” He blurted out. His eyes widened. “I have loved you for a very long time and I will love you forever, I think. I don’t love you the same way I love George. No, I see him like a brother. You, Luce, are so much more to me. I don’t want this to put a strain on our friendship and I totally understand if you don’t feel the same way. This was extremely unprofessional for me to do and I –”
Lucy cut him off, pressing her lips to his. Lockwood wasted no time reciprocating the kiss.
Lucy pushed away and looked Lockwood in the eyes. “I love you too, Anthony Lockwood.”
A blush crept up the boy’s cheeks. He never felt so happy before. “Will you be my girlfriend, Lucy?”
“I will always be yours, Lockwood.”