Chapter Text
It wasn’t as if Kate considered herself a prude.
Far from it, in fact, which was why she often spent her late nights and weekends pattering around her one-bedroom flat wearing nothing at all, or leaving her plush, plum-colored purple robe open after taking a shower. And there was really nothing as relieving as taking off her bra after a long work day.
She lived in a corner unit of a U-shaped building, facing a blessedly empty window on the other side of the building. The people below and to the side of the empty unit always kept their curtains closed, so she knew she wasn’t giving anyone a show. There was no harm in it.
Therefore, she never thought twice about shedding her robe as she sat on her couch, or dusting her shelf or coffee table without a stitch of clothing on her body. (She always sneezed around dust; she figured it was best if she didn’t give the stuff a chance to cling to her clothes at all!)
Tonight, however, gave Kate a shock. And she didn’t know if it was an entirely unwelcome one.
She’d settled onto her couch with a bowl of popcorn and a glass of wine, allowing her robe to fall open around her as she sank into the cushions and shrugged the robe off of her arms. Newton was nodding off to sleep in his dog bed in the corner, blissfully unaware of his owner surfing through Netflix for something to watch on an ordinary Friday night.
Finally, Kate settled on a classic: The Notebook.
The combination of her wine and the movie’s premise would probably make her cry, but that was a chance she was willing to take in order to see Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams engage in a steamy makeout session in the rain, as the film’s cover photo promised.
Kate figured she should probably get kissed sooner rather than later. She loved her dog, but his sloppy, wet kisses, if a person could even call them that, left much to be desired. She needed a man to kiss her, not a corgi.
She found herself so engrossed in the movie, her thoughts drifting between envying Allie’s vivid lipstick and wondering what happened to Ryan Gosling’s face in the last twenty years, that she barely noticed that Newton had woken up and was now laying near the flat’s large floor-to-ceiling windows.
As Allie and Noah prepared to lay down in the middle of the street (They better hope a car doesn’t come through that junction, Kate thought, shoving a piece of popcorn into her mouth), she was suddenly shaken out of her reverie by Newton’s loud bark.
“Newton!”
Her dog nearly never barked, especially not while inside, and in the rare instance he did, his yaps were reserved for the birds and squirrels he saw in the park. So this certainly came as a surprise.
Kate sighed, pausing the movie and getting up to collect her dog from his spot near the window. However, as she did so, she noticed the light in the unit across from her was on.
And, in rather quick succession, Kate noticed three more things.
One, the curtains were open, allowing her a clear look into the flat that mirrored her own.
Two, there was a man there, sitting at his kitchen island with his back facing her.
Three, he was completely naked.
Kate stopped in her tracks as she took in the scene before her. He was eating, she could see, his muscular back and wide shoulders contorting as he brought a utensil full of food to his mouth. His dark brown hair was fluffy, his arms strong and sculpted, and his bottom looked especially nice from where it was seated on a black stool.
She hummed in appreciation, her eyebrows raising as she bent to urge Newton to join her on the couch.
Then, the man got up from his stool, grabbing his empty plate, and Kate’s jaw dropped.
If she’d thought the back was good, the man’s front was even better.
A shockingly perfect, nearly god-like being stood across from her, separated by glass, a courtyard, and yet another infuriating pane of glass. His chest was just as muscular as his back, with - as far as she could tell, from her vantage point - defined abs and just enough body hair to make her long to run her hands through it and down his chest. She blushed furiously as her eyes traveled further down to his sinewy thighs and large -
Damn. Her eyes snapped upwards as she took in his face, which, to no one’s surprise, was just as perfect as the rest of him. He was licking at his thumb to rid it of a crumb, or maybe some sauce, for Kate had no idea what he’d eaten, and it was then that her biggest, newest, most unfortunate fear came true.
Their eyes locked.
Her, bending to grab her dog. Him, with his finger in his mouth. Both completely naked.
For a moment, Kate was incredibly glad that her light was not on, and the only light in the room was from her TV. But she realized that she was illuminated by it, for it was dark outside, and the man could see her. All of her. There was no way he couldn’t.
He blinked, and then moved away, rounding his island so that his bottom half was unfortunately no longer in view, and Kate panicked.
“Oh, fuck, fuck, fuck,” She swore, pushing Newton towards the couch and making a beeline for her robe, nearly jostling her bowl of popcorn in the process.
She wrapped her robe around herself like it was some sort of safety blanket, quickly pressing play on the movie and squeezing her eyes shut in embarrassment for just a moment.
Kate let out a frustrated noise, grabbing her wine glass and settling back against the couch, trying to make herself as small as possible.
Allie and Noah were too busy falling in love for her to dwell on this.
She became conscious about wearing clothes when her blinds were open. Her new neighbor didn’t.
She tried to avert her eyes as much as possible when he ambled through his living room or settled back against his couch without a care in the world. Sometimes he became one of those people who watched TV while standing, leaning his weight on one leg, his delightfully tight ass on full display through his window.
It was incredibly distracting. Kate often retreated to her room to avoid seeing him, but the man often followed her into her dreams or cropped up in her daytime fantasies - for she’d long given up on dating apps.
She knew they were bound to run into each other one day. The complex was small; perhaps they’d see each other near the lift that led to the lobby. She just hoped that if, when she saw him outside of his flat, he wouldn’t recognize her.
Unfortunately, on one otherwise normal morning, her hopes were dashed. Kate had taken a walk and grabbed a coffee, and was coming in through the revolving doors to the lobby when she saw him.
Queuing for the lift. Alone.
Shit.
She contemplated taking the stairs, but she (they) lived on the 8th floor, and she knew her legs would burn like crazy once she reached her front door.
But then the lift doors opened, and the man, dressed impeccably in a button-down and slacks, went inside.
And Kate followed him.
As the lift doors closed, he pressed the button for the 8th floor, and then politely inquired about which floor she was on.
“Which one?” He asked, glancing at Kate as she took an unfortunately-timed sip of her coffee. She flushed, swallowing and clearing her throat quickly.
“Oh, same one.” She said, in a tone that she hoped and prayed was casual.
“Ah.” The man simply said in response, leaning against the wall. Kate looked down at her phone, trying not to attract attention.
But then he shifted, turning his body towards hers. “I’m sorry, do I know you?”
She looked up, her eyes widening in alarm on their own accord, and Kate schooled her face into what she thought was a casual expression instead of one that said I know what you look like naked. “No, I don’t think so. Why?”
He opened his mouth like he was going to say something, and then snapped it shut, clearly shoving whatever it was he was going to say towards the back of his mind. “Oh, I just thought… nevermind, it’s nothing.”
“Ah.” Kate was going to look down at her phone again, in an attempt not to rake her eyes across his chest in a way that made it obvious she knew what he looked like under his shirt, when the man opened his mouth again.
“So, uh, which flat do you live in?” He asked, and Kate saw him immediately cringe. “I’m sorry, that sounded incredibly creepy, but we’re on the same floor, so…” He drifted off, shrugging, and the lift dinged to let them know they’d arrived at their destination.
“No, it’s fine,” She assured him as they exited the lift and stood in the hallway. “I’m all the way at the end of the hallway on the left. Flat 15.”
His eyes widened, perhaps in either recognition or horror - probably both, Kate reasoned. “I’m in Flat 30.” He said, his voice strained as he held out his hand for her to shake. Then, as if seeing it for the first time, he stared at his hand and quickly pulled it back, his ears reddening in embarrassment.
“I’m Anthony,” he told her, offering her a polite, embarrassed smile. “And I sincerely apologize for all that you have seen.”
This time, it was Kate who offered her hand. “Kate,” She introduced herself, shaking his hand. “And it’s no trouble,” She reassured him, because, truly, she had no issue with seeing the long, hard planes of his body nearly every day. “I, um, I do it sometimes too.”
“Oh. Yeah.” The man - Anthony - said, clearly thinking back to that night when they locked eyes.
“I just try to make sure nobody’s watching.” Kate added, and he laughed. She giggled at his laughter, so unabashedly loud for such a quiet hallway.
“Right.” He said once they’d composed themselves. “I assume that’s working out for you?”
“Better than it is for you, I think.” She volleyed back, and he put his hands up in mock defeat, smiling.
“Oh, you wound me. But you’re right,” He grinned, before dropping the smile and pointing to her coffee. “What do you say I grab one of these and we continue talking?”
Kate took in his appearance. “Don’t you have work to do, since you’re dressed like that?” She asked, glancing at his button-up and slacks.
He looked down at his outfit. “Nope. But I can change.” She nodded, and Anthony paused. “Would you be opposed to watching?”
Kate nearly rolled her eyes at how forward he was, but she couldn’t keep the smile off of her face. “Not in the slightest.”