Welcome Home [Monroe]

[Eloise Eaton]

Eloise was so incredibly excited to have a space to call her own... even if she was agreeing to share it. She had found the apartment in an online ad, and it only took her one visit to the place to get everything settled. The landlord turned a three story townhome into apartments, and the third story was vacant.

The apartment was somewhat small... for a family. For one person it was more space than one needed. Even Eloise, who had already made arrangements to turn one of the three bedrooms into a closet and workspace, with shelves and racks and a sewing machine and manaquins. It would likely be the most chaotic, crammed room in the house, but Eloise thought it pretty necessary.

Eloise had it arranged for the house to be furnished, and she wasn't disappointed with the results. She kept things simple - creme colored leather couches and recliners with chocolate brown end tables and pillows. A television, and a desk with the computer in the corner near the window that faced the small back yard that was shared among the residents. The kitchen was painted yellow and had hardwood floors, and was stocked with plenty of kitchenware, pots, pans... food. It was nice to be able to make a few calls and make magic happen. Overnight the space was turned into something completely livable. No boxes to unpack.

Though there was the matter of the third bedroom. Eloise contemplated expanding her closet project, but then decided a guest room would be more appropriate. And while trying to decide what color she wanted to focus on, her answer as to what to do with the room came to her. Turned out Monroe was trying to find somewhere he could live... cheap.

Eloise had offered the room for free, not because she desperately wanted Monroe to live with her (it was quite the opposite really)but because she didn't really need him to. He didn't agree to any of it at first, but eventually realized he wasn't going to find a better offer anywhere else and agreed to move in - and he would pay the utility bill until he could afford to make rent. And Eloise was fine with that, seeing as otherwise she'd probably forget to pay the extra bills on time anyway.

Monroe was supposed to move in today. His room was ready, complete with a bed and a dresser and a desk and sheets - everything grey or navy blue. Honestly, there was never really much for Eloise to do in the moving process, so she was simply lounging on the couch in her purple skinny jeans and a black and white tribal-print tank top, flipping through the channels on the plasma screen TV that was mounted on the wall. And when there was a buzz from the doorbell, she hopped up off the couch, and over the window facing the front of the house.

Eloise slid the window up, and leaned out, looking down at the person below. Just as expected, Monroe stood waiting, with hands full of bags, ready to settle in to his (supposedly temporary) home. "Hey!" Eloise called down, wind blowing her hair into her face, "It's open! Come on up!" she offered, not wanting to scurry down two flights of steps just to run back up. That was the one downside of the apartment... so many steps!

[Thomas "Monroe" Montgomery]

When Eloise offered Monroe a place to live, he brushed it off at first and kept looking, but nothing was cheap and as someone who had just gotten a part time job working overnights at a diner, there wasn't much he could afford, so when Eloise told him that if he paid the utility bill, all was well, Monroe packed up his things and was all set to move in.

The hardest part of the whole arrangement was explaining to Adaryn that it wasn't what it looked like, which was a phrase he hoped he'd never have to use. But it truly wasn't what it looked like. He'd told her it was just the best offer he could find and that he needed a place to live and she was being a good friend, if you could even call their relationship a friendship. All he could do was hope that she would understand. He wanted to be with her and he wondered how long it would take for Seb's vision to come true so he could understand the context.

He parked his car along the curb, unsure of really where he was supposed to park and looked up, all the way up at a head of blonde hair poking through a window. "Yeah, I'm working on it! Might take me a few trips though!" Was she not going to offer to help carry his things? It wasn't as if he had a lot, but still, he supposed he wasn't the strongest person around.

He grabbed a few boxes out of his car only to stack them on top of one another and make his way into the building, taking one step at a time up to the third floor.

[Eloise Eaton]

By the time Monroe reached the top step with his arms full of boxes, Eloise was leaning in the doorway, holding the wooden door open with her foot. "Welcome home," she said simply, taking the top box off of the stack of things Monroe was carrying. "You do realize I could have called some people to move in your stuff right?" Eloise noted, taking the box toward the room that was made up for Monroe, leaving him to look around the space.

"The tour is pretty self-explanatory," Eloise said gesturing around the living and kitchen space. "The two doors on the right are my bedroom and closet-slash-workroom," Eloise said. "The two doors on the left are your room and a bathroom," Eloise continued, opening the door to Monroe's room, allowing him to take his stuff inside.

"You know, I honestly didn't think you'd take this offer and I'd be getting a second workroom out of the deal," Eloise said looking at Monroe as he entered his room - which was spacious and already furnished and painted. El put the box on the dresser that was on the opposite wall of the bed. She flipped some hair out of her face and gestured to the room, "You can do whatever you'd like to your room," she informed him. "And you have your own bathroom through... that door I think," Eloise pointed to the door on the right of the bed, not positive which was the closet and which was the bathroom.

"You like it?" she asked, already prepared to make renovations if need be.

[Thomas "Monroe" Montgomery]

Home. What a strange word. A dorm had been his 'home' for the past few years and home back in Maine seemed so far away and so long ago. And now this was his home? Why was he living with the girl who his best friend had a vision that he was going to fall in love with? He kept asking himself this question.

"Yeah," he said, heaving slightly from carrying his things up the stairs. He wasn't in the best of shape even if he was scrawny. "Thanks." Much to his surprise, she took one box from his pile and carried it down the hallway. He followed her until she came to a room, setting the boxes down so he could look at it. "No actually, I didn't realize people did that."

As he was looking around, his mouth was slightly agape. A bed, a dresser, sheets. Everything. Navy blue and gray. It was furnished and ready to move into. He should have expected this when his living arrangements were with Eloise, but it was still shocking. "Well, sorry. Didn't realize you needed one room for your closet." How much clothes did she own? He didn't want to know.

He wasn't sure what he'd do with the room. His main concern was getting everything he owned in there first. He opened the door she as pointing at. "Uhhh, this is a closet. I'm not sure I should shower in here." That was a lame thing to say. "But yeah....it's nice. Too nice, probably."

[Eloise Eaton]

"I don't need one room for my closet," Eloise retorted with a little roll of her eyes, detecting some judgement in his voice. She didn't care too much about what Monroe thought, but still felt like she should defend her honor or something. "It's just easier to find everything when its spread out. And it's a workroom. You know... to sew and stuff," Eloise explained - having the feeling that Monroe really had no idea how into clothing she really way. In that third room was a wall full of shelves stocked with shoes and purses, and jewlrey; rows and rows of racks filled with clothes both old and new; shelves stocked with fabric and thread and other sewing supplies; Three mannequins; A sewing machine; It was Eloise's paradise.

"Sorry I haven't exactly spent my time snooping around your room to figure out where the bathroom is," Eloise said with a laugh when Monroe opened the door to what was actually his closet. "Bathroom's over there then," she said, pointing to the other door - an obvious statement at that point.

Eloise shrugged when Monroe commented that it was 'too nice'. Eloise knew her tastes were expensive, and to most the apartment was not as modest as it was to her. It was comfortable to her, though. And not a far stretch to what her and her father might live in directly after a move while they waited for a bigger place to be set up. "It's homey... to me," Eloise admitted, turning to walk back out of Monroe's room. "It'll be more comfortable once it's broken in," she promised - knowing that while the apartment would never be as much of a mess as the boy may have let it become on his own, soon enough it would at least appear lived in.

[Thomas "Monroe" Montgomery]

"Are you sure? Because I've never seen you wear the same thing twice," Monroe pointed out. He, on the other hand, sometimes wore the same shirt twice in one week which was probably something that made Eloise cringe. She would soon find that out about him since she'd be seeing him nearly everyday now. "You sew? Do you make your own clothes? I thought you just bought them." He needed new clothes...he knew that, but he couldn't afford them at the moment and even when he could, he'd probably buy combat boots first....because that was his priorities.

Monroe looked at her with a facial expression that said 'Really?' when she'd then told him where the bathroom was after opening the wrong door. "Well, I'm coming from a two bedroom home with one bathroom in Maine, so this is....too nice for me." Although he did think what she said was true. He just had to make it his own.

[Eloise Eaton]

"I'm... 50% sure," Eloise admitted, turning back to Monroe with a 'ok you got me' look in her eyes, before moving further back into the living room, leaning her butt on the arm of the leather recliner, watching as Monroe looked around slightly... awestruck? Maybe. He was definitely out of his element in the space. "Yeah I sew," Eloise said with a nod. She'd been sewing for a while. She'd been sewing well for a few years now. "And I make some things... when I have time," Eloise explained, thinking about the pieces she'd made recently - happy to think now that she'd graduated she'd have much more time to make clothes for herself. "Usually I just refit clothes I buy to fit me better... but now that I have more free time who knows."

Picking up on a couple of Monroe's thoughts, Eloise's eyes narrowed. "If you even think about buying another pair of combat boots before you buy a nice date outfit for Addie, I'm going to kick you out before you're completely moved in," Eloise warned, pointing a finger in Monroe's direction. It was likely that absolutely no part of that statement would go over well with Eloise's new roommate, but the blonde often didn't think before she spoke. "And yes, I could probably make you some new clothes too, if you behave and don't leave dirty dishes in the sink," Eloise teased. "I've never really made men's before so it'd take a few tries but if you ever wanted something I'd take a swing at it," she offered, understanding that not everyone was in her financial situation where she could buy an entire new wardrobe every season.

Eloise looked around, trying to think of what a two bedroom home even looked like. "I grew up in penthouse apartments and countryside manors..." Eloise said in a tone that wasn't bragging or elitist, just factual. "A far strecth from this, really.... It's a nice change," she admitted, finally sliding off the arm of the chair and walking toward the door, kicking her heels off and walking out. "Are we going to get the rest of your stuff or what?" she asked with a bit of attitude - as if to say 'if you actually want me to help, we need to get this over with now.

[Thomas "Monroe" Montgomery]

Monroe rolled his eyes. Of course she was only fifty percent sure. "That's cool. A good talent to have I guess," he told her. Although it would probably be more useful if you weren't financially well off. But still, to each their own. "What do you mean to fit you better? You buy clothes that don't fit?" Okay, so he was a typical guy. He didn't realize that even if what you were wearing was your size, not everything was custom fit for your body type. He really didn't understand the need for it to be.

Suddenly her eyes narrowed at him and he looked confused for a split second before she spoke, practically scolding him for wanting a new pair of boots. "They're old, jeez," he commented. "And it wouldn't hurt to have a second pair. Despite what you think, combat boots are fashionable. I saw them in a magazine." When he was bored at Barnes and Noble with Adaryn, he picked up magazines every once in a while. "And why do I need a date outfit? What's up with that anyway? Adaryn liked me enough to want to date me when I'm not dressed up so why do I need to dress up now?" Besides, he would leave dirty dishes in the sink. "Knock yourself out. But I don't think you really know what I like in clothes..."

"Okay, okay, yeah. I was trying to catch my breath from the first trip up," he admitted in response, walking out of his room.

[Eloise Eaton]

"Yeah and I saw a guy wearing socks with sandals in a magazine and threw up a little," Eloise retorted, not knowing whether her argument would void Monroe's point. As far as she knew, the boy may have thought socks with sandals was perfectly acceptable. She rolled her eyes either way, laughing a bit at how Monroe really didn't have a clue as to how she functioned - how seriously she took clothing. How hard she worked at it. It seemed silly, but frankly for the longest time it was all Eloise had to keep herself busy.

She started down the stairs toward street level when Monroe claimed she had no idea what he liked in clothes. This provoked another eye roll (though this one unseen) and an response of, "You like old tee-shirts under long sleeved plaid, beanies, jeans that are just a bit loose around your legs - but tight enough to not need a belt, and I'm pretty sure the only shoes you own are those damn combat boots." She was running through the clothes Monroe wore through her head as she spoke, trying to think if there was anything else significant. "You stick to dull colors - blacks, greys, navys.... the occasional red or green," Eloise continued, finally looking back at Monroe as he followed her down the steps. "If there's one thing I notice about a person it's their taste in clothes," she stated, a sassy glimmer in her eye.

She was a little annoyed, honestly, when people assumed she would force her own style upon them. That was far from the case. Eloise was aware that everyone had their own likes and dislikes when it came to clothing, and she believed that you could make any style fashionable - maybe even combat boots if it was paired with the right outfit. She liked to get people to try new things that fit in with their style, sure, but she always took their preference into consideration. "Do you own a leather jacket?" Eloise asked as she turned back around and started down the steps again, "You'd probably like that... it would actually look good with your combat boots... and a haircut," Eloise noted looking over her shoulder once more at Monroe whose hair was getting longer each time she saw him.

[Thomas "Monroe" Montgomery]

"What does that have to do with combat boots? I don't wear sandals anyway." Monroe was confused by her point, as if it was supposed to argue a point or something, but he was lost and his facial expression reflected that.

Then she'd launched into a complete list of what he liked to wear and he stared at her, as if he hadn't realized she'd been paying that much attention to what he was wearing or something. He felt slightly exposed. Everything she'd said was spot on. "I wore orange once," he pointed out, as if it mattered or made Eloise know his style less, but really he'd only worn that shirt that day because he couldn't find anything else clean. "Alright, I get it. You pay too much attention to what people wear." He followed her down the stairs.

"I do own a leather jacket," he replied. "I mean, it's not a super nice one, but yeah, it looks good with my combat boots. I thought you hated them and now you think they'd actually compliment--" He didn't finish, mostly because the last thing she'd said finally registered and he stood there frozen on the stairs for a moment as she continued down them, reaching the bottom.

"A haircut?" He was looking at her as if the idea was proposterous as he continued down the stairwell.

[Eloise Eaton]

"Well then I'll make you a super nice one!" Eloise said with a roll of her eyes when Monroe got defensive about his wardrobe. If he had a leather jacket, he really needed to wear it more. Especially since it would make his choice footwear make much more sense, in Eloise's eyes. She stepped off the bottom of the stairs, and out to the sidewalk as Monroe froze behind her. She heard his clunky footsteps stop, causing her to turn around to him just as he he uttered A haircut?.

Eloise crossed her arms across her chest, her stance falling into her right hip. "Yes... a haircut," she said. A look of confusion crossed Eloise's face, though it was more mocking than actually confused. "You know... that thing people do with scissors... so that they don't look like a too-tall butch 14 year old girl from behind," Eloise said, a smirk crossing her lips as she turned back around and continued walking to Monroe's car so she could help him with his things. She hoped they weren't too heavy. She looked back at Monroe quickly, studying his perplexed face momentarily "...and in profile."

[Thomas "Monroe" Montgomery]

"Are you implying that I look like that?" Monroe asked incredulously, eyes wide, but somehow still in disbelief. She had to be exaggerating. There was no way he looked like that. The length of his hair fit him. He'd finally reached the bottom of the stairs and followed Eloise to his car where he started to grab more boxes. "I'm not getting a haircut, Eloise." He wasn't sure why she was so set on 'improving' his style. Obviously Adaryn liked him well enough how he was and he did too. He didn't understand why he needed to change it.

[Eloise Eaton]

"I never told you to get a haircut," Eloise said smartly, reaching into his car to grab some of the smaller, lighter looking boxes - ones she felt she could carry up the steps without dropping. "I simply implied that getting a haircut could make you more... visually appealing," Eloise noted, staying away from any words that would imply she believed Monroe was or cold be 'hot', 'cute', or any similar adjective. She didn't see him like that. She was pretty sure she couldn't. She would admit he was good looking, sure, but in no sense other that 'I want to dress you up and make you pretty for Adaryn'.

"What you do with you life, and therefore you hair, is completely up to you," Eloise said, stacking two boxes and lifting them, glancing at Monroe before heading back over to the door they came from. "You don't need to do anything I tell you to. Or suggest," she reminded him, wondering why he took anything she said seriously in the first place. Half the time Monroe seemed to think Eloise was crazy and not worth listening to, and the other half of the time he seemed to care too much about her opinion and let her words cling to him like a wet blanket.