Once the hammock arrived, Keeley spent hours in it each day, soaking up the sun throughout August. It quickly became her favorite pastime. Whenever Aaron couldn't find her, he checked the highest terrace.

He rearranged the furniture on his three terraces. The lowest held a table, chairs, and a grill. The middle terrace featured a sectional couch surrounding a fire pit. The top terrace contained the original lawn chair and the hammock.

Wanting to maximize her outdoor time before the semester started, Keeley taught Aaron to use the grill. They subsequently enjoyed many steak and chicken dinners at the lower terrace's table.

She also introduced him to the fine art of s'mores, a skill he initially struggled with. Melted marshmallow repeatedly coated his fingers, eliciting disgusted faces from him. Keeley tried hard not to laugh, but his expressions were too comical.

"No, no," she explained, demonstrating on her own s'more, "you have to squish the other graham cracker half on top first, then pull out the stick. See? The marshmallow only gets on my face, not my hands."

"This is very messy."

"Yeah, that's kind of the point. Isn't it good, though?"

Aaron nodded, his mouth full, making her laugh again. He was actually kind of cute sometimes, once you got past his initially reserved demeanor. In a past life, she never would have considered him cute. Ever.

She contentedly finished her s'more and started another. Spending time with him after work was surprisingly nice. The silences were no longer awkward.

"Oh hey, before I forget, I'm going to Maryland this weekend. Can you watch Molly for me?" she asked.

Even though they lived together, they each remained responsible for their own pet's feeding and litter box cleaning—an unspoken rule.

"Sure. Why Maryland?"

Keeley turned her marshmallow to check the underside. It wasn't quite golden brown yet; she gave it another minute.

"Remember my friend Jeffrey? I'm visiting him and his girlfriend—oh wait, she's his fiancée now. They got engaged last week."

"Vaguely. Wasn't he the one you went to the Valentine's Day dance with? I think he was afraid of me," Aaron said ruefully.

She laughed, patting his shoulder. "Everyone was afraid of you back then. You're much more approachable now."

He scowled. "I know, it's annoying. People think they can just chat with me at work."

Small talk—an introvert's worst nightmare. Poor thing. Although, she couldn't imagine just anyone approaching him for a casual conversation.

"Are you referring to Cameron and Aiden?"

"Mostly, but it's not just them. After my fake engagement, people wouldn't stop," he shuddered.

Keeley snickered. "That's your own fault. People get excited about that sort of thing."

For someone so meticulous, Aaron often lacked foresight. This frequently put him at a disadvantage, though it wouldn't be apparent unless you knew him well.

She wondered if anyone truly did. His coworkers spent the most time with him, but did they understand him? It was nearly impossible to get inside his head.

Aaron's expression turned serious. "Keeley, do you like it here?"

Did he mean New York, or his apartment? Probably the latter.

She shrugged, answering casually, "Of course. The mattress is great, I have almost complete control of the TV remote, and I get to do fun things like this because you have the coolest terraces ever. Why do you ask?"

He set down his roasting stick, the marshmallow falling unnoticed into the fire.

"Do you really have to leave in January?"

Oh. A pit formed in her stomach. The past few weeks had felt like a vacation; she'd done nothing school-related except buy her final textbooks—a sobering experience. But after Maryland, school would resume, and the threat of post-graduation unemployment would become very real. She needed to speak to Dr. Kim about staying on, but didn't want to seem pushy.

"I'm not sure yet," she admitted. "It depends on finding a job."

"Do you have to work at a university? What if there was a lab researching what you want to study?"

Keeley scoffed. "Yeah, like that would ever happen. Too perfect."

Aaron cleared his throat, fiddling nervously. She'd never seen him this nervous. What was he thinking?

"Umwhat if I funded it? So you could stay in the city. I looked into it a littlelabs always need backers. I could help you continue your research. I know how much it means to you. Wouldn't that be ideal? You could stay in the city you love, researching what you want, and Iwouldn't be alone," he finished lamely.

She blinked, shocked. She never expected him to offer funding her research. Every scientist dreamed of a rich patron! But it felt unfair if he was only doing it to keep her with him.

"I'm not sure what to say," she said honestly.

He interlocked his fingers, finally meeting her gaze. "You don't have to answer now. You still don't know about NYU. Just know it's an option. You don't have to leave the city if you don't want to."

With that, Aaron speared another marshmallow and resumed roasting, as if nothing had happened.

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