Adam lived in Footscray in an old weatherboard house, positioned close to the house next door, with only walking room between them. On the other side was enough space to drive his Toyota into the shed in the backyard. A gate ran across the drive from the front of the house to the boundary.

I heard Molly barking on the other side. Beyond this boundary fence was a motel car park. The house was quaint and shielded from the road by untidy trees. It needed painting. The small front verandah needed repairs, and the iron lacework had come loose in places. The door stood in the middle with windows on either side. It reminded me of pictures I used to draw as a kid.

He led me inside and along the hall. The lounge was on the left at the front of the house, on the right was a room with a desk against one wall and a drum set in the corner. They must have been Mr Lundy's.

The next room on the left was the bedroom. Adam threw my bag on the floor as we passed. I peeked in to see a double cast iron bed similar to the one we had slept in at the weekender. Across the hall was the bathroom and toilet. At the end of the hall was the dining room and kitchen, which ran the width of the building.

The house was clean, but it definitely belonged to a man, not a trinket or ornament in sight.

Adam unlocked the back door where a lean-to laundry was situated and let Molly inside. She skidded around his legs, then came and did the same to me.

I crouched and cuddled her. "Yuck." I screwed up my nose as she licked my face.

Adam laughed. "Keep her in here. I'll drive the truck in."

"Okay." I wiped my chin. "Can I look around?"

He grinned and shrugged. "Sure, help yourself."

When he closed the door, I checked out the drum set, pearly white and tainted with age. In the lounge was a large flat-screen TV and PlayStation, a bookshelf filled with books and DVDs. I was surprised to find every one of D. H. Lawrence's works. I was looking at his DVD collection when Molly came into the room. Adam leaned against the door frame with his arms folded.

"You're a romantic," I said. "You have all of Lawrence's books and The Notebook."

"If I said they belonged to an old girlfriend, would you believe me?"

I frowned and studied his face. "Yeah, I would. The Notebook isn't a man's movie. Have you watched it?"

He came over and wrapped his arms around me. "No, I haven't. The books are mine."

"Will you watch it with me tonight?"

Adam screwed his face and sighed. "If I have to, but this one's better." He grabbed another DVD and handed it to me.

I read the cover and laughed. "Three hundred? You want me to watch some psychotic blood and guts thing?"

"At least you won't cry when you watch it." He smirked and cocked his head saying, "Not sure if I could handle any more emotion today."

His comment stung me. He must have noticed because he sucked on my neck and added, "I'll want you to take off your pants if you cry again."

Hurt, I said, "You don't like it when I cry?"

He laughed against my skin. "I love it when you cry. Especially when I've made you cum."

Yeah, typical man, turn it into a joke to avoid the question. I peered at him and said, "I mean real crying."

"No." Adam shrugged and gave me a helpless expression before saying, "It doesn't turn me off, just confuses me because I don't know how to fix it."

He was sincere, so I took pity on him. Men don't handle women crying. I guess it's because most of them have the, I'll fix it gene.

I rubbed his cheek with my hand. "How could I not cry when you said you loved me?" I smiled and pecked his lips. "I won't cry anymore."

Adam shook his head and laughed again. "You will."

He was so correct. I lifted the side of my mouth in a grin. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure I will. I'm a bit of a sook, you know."

"I kind of had that one worked out," Adam whispered as he sucked my neck again.

"I promise I won't get emotional again," I vowed.

"Thank fuck for that." Adam laughed against my ear. He lifted me. "Now we've got some unfinished business to sort."

I threw the DVDs on the couch and put my arms around his neck. "Do you have condoms?"

"Jasmine, we haven't used a condom since our weekend away. Forget the fucking condoms."

I tapped his chin and, with a teacher's guise, said, "You said you were going to stop swearing."

"No, I didn't. I said I shouldn't swear in front of you, and you said you didn't mind. If you don't like it, I'll stop, just say the word."

"Don't stop. It makes you sound like a bad boy, and I like bad boys."

Adam grinned and threw me on the bed. "Good. I want to be bad right now. Real...bad."

I shrieked with laughter as he lifted my top and sucked on my stomach.

He went to Kye's and brought us takeaway Chinese for dinner while I had a shower. We sat in front of the TV, a pile of DVDs on the coffee table, arguing over what to watch as we ate.

Adam took a forkful of food and shook his head as I held up The Notebook. "No."

"You said you would if you had to, and I'm saying you have to."

He grinned and shook his head again. "And you said you wouldn't cry again, so the answer is no."

I huffed and picked up the other girl's movie from the pile. Bridget Jones Diary.

Adam held up Mad Max.

I shook my head and waved Bridget Jones in his face as I swallowed my food. Adam grinned and held out Blood Diamond. "You'll like this one. It has a bit of romance in it but enough blood and guts to keep me happy."

I grimaced so Adam held Big Stan towards me. "Super funny, no blood and guts, no romance, no tears. What do you say?"

"Deal." I grinned.

I curled in the corner of the couch with a pillow on the arm to watch the movie. Adam rested his head on my butt his feet dangling over the other arm. The movie was funny. I like Rob Schneider's movies.

Rob Thomas' voice singing, "I'm not crazy, I'm just a little unwell," rang out from Adam's phone somewhere in the house. I pretended not to notice but had an instant feeling of dread. He went to answer it. I couldn't hear what he was saying and didn't want to. The first chance I got, I would accidentally put that bloody phone through the wash.

He came back into the room and touched my head. I raised my eyes to look at him.

"I have to go out for a bit," he said.

I didn't say anything but focused back on the movie. I was getting sick of being the patient, unquestioning one.

Adam sighed. I sat up and switched off the TV. "You may as well drop me home then," I said.

"Jasmine, I'll be back before the movie is done." He picked up the controller and clicked the TV back on.

I stood and put my hands in my back pockets. "Can I come with you?"

He drew me towards him and said, "No." Then he kissed my forehead and sat me on the couch. "I'll get some ice cream on the way home. What do you like?"

For some reason, my blood boiled. "Are you treating me like I'm a little girl? Because you know I don't like that?"

He had an air of impatience that I hadn't seen before, like I'd been told off and he hadn't had to say a word.

"If you're going to behave like a little girl then that's how I'll treat you. What do you like?"

"Are you going to fight with me?"

"Do you want to fight?" Adam put his hands on his hips and sighed. "Have your mind made up before I get back because I don't have time for this shit right now?" He strode out of the room, slammed the back door and drove away.

I was so angry. I couldn't believe that we had told each other we were in love eight hours earlier, and had asked ourselves what the next step was. Now we'd moved onto fighting.

I didn't know what his job was, and I hated not knowing when I'd see him. I loathed the sound of his phone calls, but I didn't want to fight with him. I told myself I was being stupid. I could either cause a fight or prevent one. I settled back on the couch, trying to calm down and focus on the movie. 

Woah, I hope they don't fight.

I wonder where Adam had to go.

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