Since Emily and James had already bought all of her belongings from her apartment, they only had to unwrap them. However, the real trouble came at night, when they had to figure out their sleeping arrangement. 

Although James' apartment had two rooms, Justin's old room was reduced to a storage closet. James still had to figure out a way to clean that room. He assumed he'd take the couch and let Emily sleep in his bed, but Emily was not through with this idea.

He tried to convince her that he was more than fine with taking the couch, but she didn’t feel comfortable with it. So, after much deliberation from both sides, they agreed to share the room, particularly after seeing the current state of the extra space, where she could have easily settled in.

Presently, she was appalled at the condition of Justin's old room.

"I can explain." James defended himself.

"Explain? At first, I was shocked that your place looked well-organized for a guy, but this room is garbage. You have literally dumped everything here." Emily was exasperated.  

"I am organized. It is just that this room was spare and served as an excellent storage room. So why bother arranging it when, in the end, it is for extra items?" James tried to defend himself.

"You are a mess," Emily stated.

"I am a bachelor who lives alone in this house. Give me some credit, at the very least. And for the record, this room is still clean. It is just not organized systematically." James told her.

"We are going to clean this room as and when we get time." Emily declared.

"What? Why?" He whined.

"First, because there will be a lot more space once everything is in its proper place. Second, you can use this room as a guest bedroom. And last, you only told me I could re-decorate it as per my wish." Emily smirked.

"Fine," James said grumpily.

"Even after having a spare room, there is no extra bedroom. What did you do when your parents or sister came to visit you?" She asked him.

"I used to sleep on the couch and gave them my own room." He gave a casual shrug.

"Impossible." 

"It is no big deal. But I am surprised that CC Grams has actually told us that she will pre-inform us if they decided to come." James said.

"Me too. At least this gives us time to prepare. Moreover, we can get used to sharing beds when they do come. There is no telling what is cooking in their heads. But I won't be shocked if they do give us a surprise visit." Emily said.

"Yup, I do agree with that. But I really hope you are okay with sharing the bed. I am still telling you, I don’t mind taking the couch." James said. 

He didn’t want to push his luck by making her uncomfortable.

"You're way too sentimental for a guy, James. Relax, okay? You can take the floor unless you have any reservations about sharing a bed with me." Emily suggested with a cheeky smile. 

It was really sweet of him to make sure of her comfort level.

"My home, my bed, and yet I have to sleep on the floor. Chivalry is no longer alive." James gave her a blank stare.

"I am a girl. You should gladly sacrifice your bed to me." Emily pointed out.

"I have nothing further to say. There is no winning from you." James gave up and headed to the kitchen to gather all of Emily's edibles to keep them in their appropriate place.

"Why do you even try?" Emily smirked, but when she saw James continue walking, she exclaimed, "Hey! I am not done talking." 

"But I was. Now get yourself into the kitchen and help me." James said loudly.

"Fine. But this is not over."

Emily had brought three big cartons full of edible items. 

"How much more food do you have?" James asked her while he tossed the second box aside. 

Emily had already finished wrapping food items in the box when James offered to help her pack her bags.

"This is the final one." She was looking adoringly at the last box.

"You got to be kidding me," James told her after opening the last brown box. It was stuffed to the brim with Cheerios.

"Nope," she said simply.

"Where am I even supposed to keep this?" He asked her.

"Anywhere, but make sure it is kept safely," Emily instructed him. 

James was thinking hard. All his cabinets were full. There was no more room to store anything else. Where the hell is he going to keep her cheerios safe? Then an idea struck him.

"Our so-called guest bedroom will be perfect." He told her.

"Don’t you even dare." She said this with a glare.

"Em, it will be safe and secure there. It is perfect." James tried to convince her.

"No. My cheerios will not be confined to the dumping area." 

Emily snatched the box from him and cradled it against her chest. She then rushed to his bedroom to safeguard it.

"Emily, where are you taking this?" He asked, following her.

"To your room. We will keep it there. It will be within my reach. Plus, if and when I am hungry at night, it won't be miles away from me." She told him while placing her treasure next to her bags.

"Don’t be crazy. Nothing is miles away in my home. It is a small house and not a mansion." James told her, but then she was looking at him with her adorable blue eyes.

"Please James. I know it's your house. Even though you told me I could change it according to my liking, I still don’t have the right. But please, can we keep it here for the time being? Pretty please." 

‘Dam you, Emily.’ He thought. 

Why does he have to like her? Just as he begins to think of her as a friend, that notion is tossed out the window at the very next moment.

"Okay." He said, giving up.

"Really?" Emily asked him with wide eyes. 

She didn't expect him to agree with her this quickly.

"Yeah," he told her softly.

"Thank you, James," Emily exclaimed to him with glee. 

She hugged him right away. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. He was truly caught off guard, but he embraced her once he regained his composure. His heart felt good, having her this close to him physically.

They were in the same position for a few long moments until Emily realized their proximity. She gently let go of him and nervously scratched her cheek, which was flushed with her actions. 

James was still holding her loosely, unwilling to let her go. But, at the same time, he was content from within because they would now be living together.

After unpacking all the edibles, they decided to call it a night. There were still a lot of boxes that needed to be opened, but they could do it over time. 

Currently, both Emily and James are lying on the bed. Emily, a lot more uncomfortable than James. Her eyes were wide open, and her senses were much more intensified than ever. On the other hand, James had his eyes closed, waiting for sleep to come in.

"You okay there, Emily?" He asked her. 

Something told him she was wide-eyed, and her brain was beeping with red alarms.

"Yeah, I am perfectly okay." She told him. 

Her words, however, did not persuade any of them.

"Are you sure? I don’t mind sleeping on the couch." He told her, and he meant it. 

Even after knowing each other for almost a year, they were still strangers. 

Intimate strangers.

"No. We need to get used to it. Knowing CC Grams, they will undoubtedly spend at least one night here to put us to the test. Plus, I don't want you to sleep on the floor in your own room when this bed can fit both of us." She informed him.

"This is not a king-size bed. Just a double bed." James stated. 

The distance between those two was minimal. They'd be touching if they moved even an inch closer.

"James, are you comfortable?" Emily asked him the same question because it felt like it was he who was not comfortable.

"Yes, I am fine. I just wanted you to feel secure." He told her earnestly.

"I am fine." She told him as sincerely as she could.

"Okay, if you say so." He tried to believe her.

After a few minutes, she called him. "James, you awake?" 

"Yeah," he told her sleepily.

"Since I will be living with you, I wanted to pay my share of rent to you." She told him. 

This made him lose all his sleep within a few seconds.

"Hell, No."

"James, I really don't feel comfortable…." But he cut her off.

"Emily, I don't give a damn if you're uncomfortable. This isn't even up for debate. I'm not going to take any money from you. End of discussion." James was serious. 

He will not be taking any kind of payment from her.

"At least let me pay for the groceries. James, I really don't feel good staying with you for free, and I am asking you this as a friend. So, please don't say no." Emily told him softly.

James shot a sidelong glance at her and sighed. He was fully aware that Emily was not about to give up. She is a self-made woman.

"Okay, but this just applies to groceries, that to alternatively. That's all there is to it. So I don't want to have any more discussion on this subject." He still didn’t want her to pay anything, but he did understand and respect her.

Emily was relieved. "I can live with that. Thank you." 

She did appreciate what James was doing for her. He is definitely one of a kind.

"Good. Now go to sleep before you get any more bizarre ideas that will start making me uncomfortable. So, good night Emily." With that, he drifted off to sleep in a matter of a few seconds. 

On the other hand, Emily was still wide awake even after an hour. The presence of James was too much for her to ignore. She was becoming paranoid for no apparent reason.

Even though he was in deep slumber, James could sense Emily fidgeting, which irritated him. He couldn't say he blamed her, but she was far too obstinate for her own good. 

"That’s it, Emily. Stop moving around and tell me what's wrong?" 

"Nothing is wrong." She squeaked.

"Then what are you doing tossing and turning for?" He asked her sleepily.

"No, I am not." She told him stubbornly, although they both knew it was a lie.

"Emily, I am going into the living room. You'd better get some rest now." James was ready to stand up when Emily stopped him by placing her hand on his.

"Please, don’t leave. I am sorry." She told him.

"Em, there is nothing to apologize for. I don't expect you to be fully comfortable sleeping next to me. We are not intimately involved, nor have we known each other for long." He tried to assure his so-called fake girlfriend, but she was adamant.

"Then how the hell do you do it?" She asked her, annoyed.

"You think I am not uncomfortable?" He asked her.

"Yeah!" She said in a small voice.

"I am, but maybe not more than you. Guys, I believe, work in a different way. Plus, I trust you. As long as you are fine, I am also completely fine."

"Really?" She asked, looking at him.

"Yeah, and I'm exhausted, so I don't care about the concept of comfort right now. All I want to do is sleep." He said.

"I'm sorry you had to get up because of me." She apologized once more.

"You apologize a lot for being stubborn. But don't be concerned and don’t worry about me. But now, tell me honestly, are you perfectly fine with me sleeping here? I really don’t mind sleeping on the couch at all." James asked once again.

"Yes, I will be." She told him calmly and turned, so her back was facing him.

"Okay." James closed his eyes, but he could still feel Emily wide awake. 

He waited a few seconds for his feelings to subside, but they were still there. 

Damn this girl!

"Fuck it." He said it aloud, moved closer, and wrapped his arm around her.

Emily exclaimed in surprise. "James!"

"Relax. I am not trying to pull anything on. It is just plain, simple sleep. Take a breath, close your eyes and go to sleep." He told her, hoping that she would not push him away. 

It may have been imprudent of him to toss her comfort out the window so soon after bugging her about it. This, however, was necessary. They had created their own bed with this ruse, and it was possible that this would bring them closer together. He hoped that Emily would move a few inches closer to him emotionally, if not entirely.

"Okay, good night." She told him, surprising him. 

Emily then drifted off into a dreamless slumber, held protectively in James' arm in a matter of minutes.