CHERRY BOMBS

00. They Meet

It had started with a Want ad. Chamomile "Sunny" McGee was ashamed to admit such a thing. She had always thought she had enough friends that would gladly move in with her since she was in desperate need of a roommate. But, as she analyzed her friends, she realized that she didn't want to move in with any of them, for fear of clashing with them and bumping heads. So, one of her older sisters suggested she put up ads on campus, in areas that she knew women would be, and interview people from there.

Sunny, of course, had been rather put off by the idea. She just wasn't the type of person to do such a thing, but after two months of paying her townhouse's rent by herself, she was desperate. So the flyers went up, and the phone calls came in.

"I'm not sure this is going to work so well Cher," Sunny sighed while talking to her sister. She ran a hand through her wavy hair and closed her eyes in thought.

Gardenia (or "Cher" as she was better known as) was older by three years, and the middle child of their family, she was also the prettiest in Sunny's opinion. Her oldest sister, Lillian, was over thirty and a housewife to a wealthy husband, while Cher had her own beauty business which was nearing international fame. Both sisters were beautiful, Lily had been prom queen in both high school and college. Cher had won beauty contests and had been runner up in the Miss America patient. Sunny had been neither. She wasn't a tall, blond, bombshell like Cher. Nor was she an auburn headed vixen like Lily. Sunny felt that she was the most average out of the three, with her milk pale skin, waist length, wavy auburn hair, doe-like brown eyes, light sprinkle of freckles over her nose, and being a bit rounder than the other two despite being just as tall. She was also very modest about her way of dress.

"Maybe you'll find a man out of this!" Cher had laughed airily at the suggestion, but Sunny knew better than to think of the comment as a joke.

A man did sound rather nice… but to live with one? The thought made Sunny uneasy.

Yet, there was a man that showed up to their interview. He wasn't the first man that Sunny and Cher sat down to talk to, and he wasn't the most memorable one, but he was someone who stuck out in Sunny's mind.

It was a bright Tuesday, Cher and Sunny were sitting at a local café right on campus. The insides were designed to look like an on old French cottage. It was calming to Sunny. Interviews for the roommate were underway while having coffee and pastries.

Cher was too busy staring at the owner of the shop to really care about what people were saying to her sister during the interviews. The owner of the pastry shop was a tall man with dirty blond hair, bright blue eyes, and a boyish smile that made her bite her lower lip with want.
As soon as the girl Sunny was talking to left, she turned her doe-like brown eyes towards her sister and then stared in her sister's line of vision and snorted.

"What? I can look!" Cher frowned. "You think he'd mind if I went over there and asked for his number?"

"Mr. Silverstein is married Cher," Sunny pointed out, nodding towards the man's wedding band. "Happily at that, his wife visits him sometimes during lunch, they're cute together."

"Any kids?"

"Two," Sunny replied leisurely, taking a leisure sip from her iced coffee.

Cher frowned again, turning away from Mr. Silverstein and groaning, "All the good ones have kids."

Her younger sister refused to comment on that.

"Excuse me, are you Sunny?" A gentle voice asked from before them, causing both sisters to glance up.

Sunny could feel her face heat up in a blush. The man before them couldn't have been older than her, with sandy blond hair which was styled so that his bangs fell messily around his face. His eyes were a wide almond shape, and a light hazel which bordered on amber. His skin was a healthy tan, and he had a nice smile which Sunny couldn't help but smile back at.

"Yes," Cher answered, "This is Sunny. I'm her sister, Cher."

The man pressed his lips together to prevent a larger grin from spreading out on his face, "Sunny and Cher?" He repeated, this time a grin really bloomed onto his face. Sunny was prepared for the jokes, or roundabout insults that she knew were coming. It had been that way her entire life. Instead, much to her surprise, the man said, "That's pretty awesome."

"Please, have a seat." Cher gestured to the chair which was across from them. "We'll get this started. I hope you don't mind the screening process, I just don't want my sister living with a weirdo."

It was a lie, Sunny was the one who minded, but Cher was good at picking out bad people from good. So far they had very few good.

"No, it's cool. I completely understand, wouldn't want to end up with a serial killer or anything." He shrugged. He then brought his hand out to be shook. "I'm Zachary by the way. But everyone calls me Zizi."

"Would you like to order something?" Sunny asked, a kind smile on her face. Zizi merely shook his head a little and quietly said 'No, thank you.'

"Tell us about yourself," Cher nodded at Zizi, watching him with expectant blue eyes.

The blond man thought a moment.

"Well," He drawled, "I'm a yoga instructor and an artist, and I'm in desperate need of a place to stay."

"Why's that?" Cher asked, arching an eyebrow curiously.

"My last roomie and I had a falling out. We…he said some things that he's coming to regret, and he doesn't want me out, but I need to leave." Zizi looked down at the table top, small frown marring his face, "So now that I left him behind, I realize that I don't make enough to support myself as well as I thought I would, and it would be a lot easier to live with someone. That and it wouldn't be so lonely. I've gotten used to living with a roommate."

They spoke some more with Zizi, and promised to call him if they decide that he'd be the one that Sunny wouldn't mind in her condo. He thanked them courteously and left the two sisters.

"He was adorable," Sunny smiled gently, watching the man's retreating back as he headed towards where the school gym was located.

Cher thought a moment, leaning back in her chair. "So, I'm assuming that he's the one?"

Her younger sister nodded, "Oh yeah, he's the one."