Samantha Daniels walked into work on a bright, sunny Tuesday morning. She expected to see her manager sitting at his desk, as well as expecting to smell that coffee bean fragrance that hit her face walking through the backdoor. These things were consistent, and that’s why she knew to expect it. She walked to her locker, grabbing her brown apron from the metal box and tied it around her waist. So there stood Samantha, in front of the cash register, in her mind, begging someone to walk through that door: although she’d regret it later.

Samantha went and wiped down the tables for a fifth time in a row, when unexpectedly, the bell above the door rang. A customer! She quickly threw the towel over her shoulder, pretending it never happened, and greeting the tall man. He wore his hood over his head, just barely getting a glimpse of his pure black curls underneath. Unexpectedly, she was taken aback. 

“Wow this place is empty, what happened?” He said, “it used to be bustling with people.”

Although, all the man did was order his coffee and scone, and sit down at a booth near the door; it seemed to be that he was examining her movements. After a couple minutes, the order was finished and Samantha handed the man his drink; and that’s when she realized. 

“Emmett Hansen?” She spoke, hoping she didn’t just misidentify the customer. He looked at her, sliding down his hood and smiling.

“Hey Sam,” He answered. The two had dated over a year and a half ago, but split when they had graduated highschool. 

“How’s the party scene?” Sam snorted. 

“Wow, did you finish your bachelors?” Emmett retorted. An awkward silence fell upon the two.

“I haven’t seen you since we separated in high school, you look the same,” Sam responded, trying to hold in her laughs. 

“How are ya?” he asked, with the arrogant smirk Samantha expected him to make. She scoffed, going back to wipe down the tables. As expected, he followed trying to get her attention.

“Sam, can we please just talk?” he asked desperately. Samantha thought about it for a mere second, before turning away and laughing. Emmett, being the persistent person Sam remembered him to be, continued. 

“You’re still as stubborn as you used to be,” he chuckled.

“Is that supposed to make me want to talk to you?” 

“I just wanna explain and talk about why I acted the way I did, I just wanna figure out who I am!” he spoke quicker, like every breath of air was painful for him. 

“No,” 

“Please!” he started to speak louder. Samantha thought about it for a moment. She hadn’t had any around for a while, and she missed that feeling of not having to worry about being a woman in an apartment all alone. She missed human interaction, thanks to the disease that spread across the planet, and she figured this was an easy way of getting it. 

“If you leave me alone, since I am quite literally at work,” she barked, “we can go back to my apartment.” He perked up, smiled ecstatically, and walked over to the nearest booth to the door. He sat, his knee bouncing with anticipation, until the end of Sam’s shift. 

At the end of Samantha’s shift, she put her apron away, walked to the front and left as she usually did. The unusual part was that Emmett had stayed and was now entering her car with her. 

“So-”

“No,” Samantha spoke quickly.

“What?” Emmett asked.

“No, I agreed to talk but it is going to be on my terms. We can talk after we get to my apartment and shower, I have had a long day,” Sam knew she had an easy day at work, but she would do anything to not be in her situation right now. Emmett huffed, before springing back up like a puppy.

“Can I at least have the aux?” 

When the two arrived at Samantha’s apartment, she immediately sprinted into her room and started the hot water. 

“Let’s get this over with,” She stomped into the living room. She went to speak again, when Emmetts phone began to ring. She rolled her eyes, telling him to answer. A few seconds later, his eyes widened like a deer in headlights.

“Okay, well thank you doctor,” he said, hanging up the phone. 

“What was that all about?”

“Sam don’t freak out,” Emmett began, “but I have Covid.” She sat, a feeling of anger starting to bubble in her lungs.

“You what?” She said brassily, her voice sounding like metal.

“I uh,” he rubbed the back of his head, “I went to the doctor earlier today and I got tested for covid.”

“And you came to my work and talked to me? Do you know how irresponsible that is? You could get everyone at my job sick including customers! What were you thinking?” her words stung like nail polish remover on a hangnail.

“I just need help.”

“You are still as selfish as you were in high school! You only care about yourself! How am I even supposed to help you? You’re helpless!” she yelled. 

“Well I kinda can’t go home, '' he said, “I got kicked out.” 

“And why should I care?” she scoffed. 

“Because somewhere beneath all that anger I know you will always do the right thing,” he joked.

After a fifteen minute argument, the two decided that they would have to quarantine together. Samantha was dreading this even more. She called her job, letting them know she wouldn’t be there for the next two weeks due to health precautions. Afterwards, she went up to her room, calling it a night. 

On day one, she woke up to the sound of pots and pans clinking together. She ran to the kitchen where she was met with Emmett, and kitchen utensils everywhere. 

She rolled her eyes, going back to her room saying,“Leave me alone, I feel very fatigued.”

“I was just trying to make you food in bed!” She woke up later that day with a plate of food next to her; and if you asked her, even though she’d never admit it, it was really good. She walked downstairs to the sight of Emmett doing the dishes.

“You look awful,” he chuckled, as she sent a piercing gaze at him.

“Shut up.” 

“Sorry, I was just cleaning up from making you food,” he answered, his head down low. She was taken aback. Emmett Hansen being responsible? It was nothing she’d ever seen before. 

“You feel alright? You look pale,” he said, turning off the kitchen sink.

“Not really, I think I may have a fever and I can’t taste anything,” she spoke, sniffling every couple of seconds. He put one hand on her forehead, her temperature illuminating off her skin. 

“Go lay down,  I’ll bring you some water and ibuprofen in a minute,” he said, pulling away from her. She began to walk away, before turning and giving him a hug. She smelled the familiar scent of cedarwood, and took the embrace in. Eventually she let go, smiling, and heading back to her room. 

By day three, Samantha felt awful. Her fever hadn’t gone down in the slightest, and she was vomiting. She had sat in the bathroom for hours, not being able to move. 

“Let me help you,” Emmett knocked at the door.

“No,” she answered. She didn’t want to be seen looking like this.

“Open the door,” He sternly spoke. She unlocked it, leaning back against the towel and releasing the contents of her breakfast, again. He held her hair while rubbing her back while she groaned. She could tell the remaining days weren’t going to be fun. 

“I really don’t need your help,” She said in between hurling sessions. 

“You don’t need it but I am still helping,” he didn’t move. She huffed, sitting back against the tub. 

“Could you grab a towel from under the sink?” Emmett opened the cabinet, grabbing a towel when she saw an extensive collection of nail polish.

“Nail polish huh?” he laughed.

“I have to be girly sometimes,” she joked, grabbed the towel from him and cleaned herself up. 

By day 6, she had started to feel a little better, coming out of her room for the first time in almost a week. She walked into the living room, seeing something she’d never expected. 

“What are you doing?” She asked, as she walked in on Emmett.

“I wanted to try putting on nail polish,” He said, knowing he got caught. So she helped him.

“Since when did you ever wanna do anything feminine?” Sam chuckled, grabbing some red polish and his hand. She delicately traced his nail as he explained.

“Throughout high school I kinda didn’t focus on myself and just did whatever I thought was cool,” he said, “but I never really learned what I actually liked.” 

“Do you know what you like now?”

“I know I like jewelry, which apparently is becoming more popular with men so that’s dope,” he smiled, “and I really wanna try eyeliner.”

“Eyeliner? I could do it for you after!” She spoke happily. 

“I could never actually do it,” he admitted, as he looked defeated.

“Well I think being a man who paints his nails and does his makeup is honorable,” She smiled. The two sat while Sam painted Emmetts nails in a peaceful silence this time.

“This past week has given me a lot of time to learn about you,” Emmett said.

“Oh yeah?”

“I’ve learned that you don’t rely on others, you like to feel accomplished by completing tasks on your own,” He chuckled. 

“Is that a bad thing?” She asked.

“No, to be fair it’s probably why we didn’t work out. I was never there anyways and even if I was you wouldn’t have needed me,” He intelligently spoke. The two took in the nice, calm energy between them. It was nicer than completely ignoring each other.

“I’ve learned about you as well,” She began, “ I learned that you are reliable. You can help and think about other people other than yourself. I should’ve given you more credit.” The two continued to bond as she finished his nails. Sam could admit it looked great on him.

Over the next week together as they recovered, the two hung out more and more. They gave each other another chance, and it was for the best. They watched movies together, styled each other, and even talked about what they wanted for their own futures. And on the last day, they went back to the doctor to get tested.

“My results were negative!” Emmett said, waiting for Sam’s response.

“Mine as well,” She smiled. The two said their goodbyes, as they decided they still had lots to figure out for themselves, but they did stay in contact; they even became close friends.