'C'mon, Matt, please pick up,' I thought as I paced across my living room, cell phone pressed to my ear. Four rings in, and I was starting to lose hope.

"Hello?" a deep voice suddenly asked from the other line.

"Matt!" I said enthusiastically, not having expected him to pick up.

"What's up, Liz?" he asked with a small chuckle.

"Umm." I hesitated, a bit embarrassed now that I was actually about to ask, "I kind of have a silly question for you…"

He chuckled again. "Okay then, go for it."

"Would you be willing… to come over and spend the night with me? My roommate's gone, and my shady neighbors have come over banging on the door three separate times tonight, I don't know what they want but there's no way I'm opening the door, and I'm just kind of scared to be by myself at this point—"

"Liz," he said, effectively cutting me off and making me pause in my pacing, "of course I'll come over. I can be there in like, 30 minutes, does that sound okay?"

I let out a sigh of relief. "That'd be great, Matt. Thank you so much."

"No problem, I'll be there soon. See you then, Liz."

"Bye, Matt." I ended the call on my phone and placed in back on the kitchen table.

I sighed as I looked around the kitchen and the connecting living room in thought. I usually loved living out here outside of the city. Rent was cheap, so my roommate and I had actually been able to get a small house instead of an apartment. But considering that our only neighbors were a group of trouble-making, drug-dealing teenage boys—and not the likable kind I used to be friends with in high school—it got kind of creepy when I was here alone.

I'd been fine, actually, until they'd started knocking on my door and yelling, trying to twist the doorknob to get in. Being the way that I am, I normally would've just told them to go away, but they sounded even more drunk than usual, and I didn't want to take them on without my roommate here for backup.

So, who do I call when I'm at home alone and creeped out? Matt Sanders, apparently. Considering that he was my closest male friend, and also the most intimidating-looking guy I knew, I figured he'd be the perfect person to protect me from any thugs that night.

Not having anything else to do, I stretched out on the couch and turned on the television, whittling away the time until my friend arrived. Once the random cooking show I was watching had gone off, I glanced up at the clock and winced slightly. 11:00 PM. Even though I knew Matt always stayed up really late, I felt a little guilty for asking him to come over at this time.

Just as those thoughts were passing through my mind, I heard the doorbell ring. I got to my feet and went over to the door, standing on my toes to look through the peephole. I sighed in relief when I saw Matt standing there, unlocking the door and pulling it open quickly.

"Hey, Matt!" I said with a smile, ushering him inside and shutting and re-locking the door behind him. I turned to face him fully, my back now to the door. "Thanks so much for coming. I'm sorry to bother you, I'm just kind of freaked out…"

"Hey, don't sweat it, Liz," Matt said, smiling at me. I took a moment to quickly take in his appearance: Guns n’ Roses t-shirt, black jeans, and beat up sneakers. Nothing out of the ordinary. Looking back up at his hazel eyes, I returned his smile and stepped forward, opening my arms to hug him. He closed the space between us and wrapped his arms around me, picking me up off my feet for a moment before putting me back down.

"New piercing?" I asked him after we had pulled away, noticing the silver ring in his lip for the first time.

"Oh, yeah," he said with a grin, running a hand over it as he sat down on my couch. I took a seat beside him. "Whaddaya think?" he asked.

"I really like it!" I said, smiling. "It looks good on you."

"Thanks, I just got it about a month ago. It's finally stopped hurting to eat," he said with a small laugh. "Anyways, what's the deal with your neighbors?"

"Ugh, I don't know," I said, leaning back into the couch. "I think they're just drunk off their asses, but they've been knocking at the door 3 times tonight already," Matt nodded, leaning back next to me. "You want me to run them off next time they show up?" he asked, flexing his arm muscles slightly, not that he needed to. I laughed lightly. "No, that's alright. I feel a lot better just having you here," I said truthfully.

He shrugged. "Well, tell me if you change your mind."

Matt and I kept on talking for a while, about everything from his band and my job to movies and TV. The two of us always had a good time together, and he constantly made me laugh. I was grateful that the guys were on a break from writing and touring right now, since it meant I got to see Matt more often.

While Matt was telling me some story about something that happened on the tour bus, I started to zone out and stare at him a bit. I knew it was silly to even entertain the idea, but I'd had a crush on Matt for quite a while now. He was just such a wonderful person, while also kicking ass at the same time, and I couldn't help but feel attracted to him. It also certainly didn't help that he was one of the most beautiful people I'd ever seen, with the cutest dimples of all time, and that new lip ring certainly wasn't hurting anything, either…

I was snapped out of my daydream when I heard Matt say my name. "Huh?" I asked, coming back to reality. He gave me a small smile. "You're zoning again."

'Again? Does that mean I've been doing it before?' I wondered. "Sorry, I was just thinking," I said, glancing at the clock and seeing that it was nearly 12:30 AM now. Apparently my neighbors were done harassing me for the night.

"About what?"

"Oh, nothing important," I said, giving him a small smile and standing up, stretching. "I'm gonna go grab a glass of water, you want anything?"

"No thanks, I'm good," he said, seeming to drop his previous question, which I was grateful for. I went into the kitchen and came back a minute later, settling back in next to him. "Y'know, I'm glad you're off tour for a while. I was starting to really miss you and the guys." I said.

He smiled at me gently. "Yeah, I've missed you, too. It's always tough to be gone for a long time."

I nodded in understanding, realizing there was one important topic Matt and I hadn't hit during our catching-up session.

"So, Matt, you got a girlfriend right now?" I asked as casually as I possibly could, taking a sip of my drink. "Nope," he said, much to my surprise. "Really?" I asked, turning to face him fully. He chuckled. "Yup, really. What about you?"

I shook my head. "No, I don't have anyone, either." Matt raised his eyebrows. "What is it?" I asked.

"Nothing," he said. "Just… I don't know, I guess I'm just kinda surprised 'cause I feel like you could have any guy you want."

I laughed out loud at that one, but smiled at him anyways. "Yeah, right."

He shrugged. "Just telling the truth."

"Well you're wrong, I can't. But look who's talking, Mr. Rockstar!" I said, giving him a good-natured shove on his muscular arm—which didn't budge at all—"I'm pretty sure you're the one who could have any girl you want."

He sighed, looking at his hands clasped between his knees. "I guess you're sort of right, there are some—but not the one I want."

My smile fell. He seemed kind of sad all of a sudden, and I wasn't sure why. "What do you mean, Matt?" I asked, resting my hand on his lower arm to try and comfort him.

He looked up at my hand on his arm, but still didn't quite meet my eyes. "I mean just what I said; I can't have the one girl that I want."

"I'm sure you're wrong," I said. I couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy at this point, but at the end of the day I just wanted him to be happy. "You should just tell her, I don't see how anyone could ever say no to you." His eyes finally met mine at this point, and I gave him what I hoped was a comforting smile.

He looked at me for a second in thought, then leaned towards me, bringing his face a bit closer to mine. He studied me carefully for another moment, like he was searching for something in my eyes. "Here's to hoping you're right," he whispered, before leaning in and attaching his lips to mine.

His touch was soft, and he pulled back after only a second, before I even had a chance to react. He looked at me nervously. I wasn't sure what to say. 'Did he really just do that?' Not having any better ideas, and considering Matt was starting to look genuinely worried about my reaction, I placed my hands on either side of his face, leaned in, and kissed him back.

He froze for a moment, seemingly in shock, before I felt his body relax and start to respond. We stayed connected for longer this time, and I enjoyed the feeling of finally having his lips on mine. His kisses were soft and gentle, contrasting with his tough appearance but matching the Matt I knew's personality perfectly. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer to me, wanting this moment to last as long as possible.

The two of us eventually pulled apart for the sake of air, but I kept my hands on Matt's shoulders to hold him close, his hands moving to my waist. "You have no idea how long I've been wanting to do that," he said, resting his forehead against mine. I couldn't help but smile at him. "I've been wanting it to happen for a while, too. I just never thought you would like me that way."

"You kidding?" he asked, pulling away slightly to look into my face. "Liz, I think you're amazing."

I blushed slightly. "Well, I meant it when I said I didn't know how any girl could ever say no to you."

He smiled and pulled me onto his lap, holding me closer than ever now. He nuzzled his face into my neck, kissing it every now and then. "Well, like I said," he murmured, "there's only one girl I want, and now I've finally got her."

We sat like that for a long time, enjoying finally having an excuse to hold each other. Matt's body was so warm. I'd almost fallen asleep against his chest when I heard his voice again.

"Liz?"

"Mhmmm?" I asked, nuzzling closer to him.

"Where am I gonna sleep tonight?"

I woke up enough to lift my head off of his chest and look him in the eyes. "Honestly," I began, "I don't really care. But wherever it is, I'm sleeping there, too. I have no plans of letting you go tonight." I tightened my arms around him to emphasize my point, smiling at him.

He grinned back at me, leaning forward to press another lingering kiss to my lips. "Good. Then we can stay right here." Carrying me in his arms, he got up and turned the light switch off before returning to the couch. He laid down, bringing me with him, and pulled a blanket over the two of us. "Goodnight, Liz."

"Goodnight, Matt." I said, snuggling closer to him. Even in the dark, I couldn't keep the smile off my face. I'd finally gotten the guy of my dreams, and I couldn't be happier.

Notes