** Harper **
They spent a good part of the evening reminiscing about home cooking from Harper's mom. Harper thought wistfully of her favorite shepherd's pie, and Eli missed the divine brownies they used to smear all over their faces while they played games on the couch. Harper reminded him that she could make brownies from boxed mixes — not something that came anywhere close to divine, but passable in a pinch — so they spent the next couple of hours baking and snacking while trying out one of her company's newest games.
Harper was surprised by how easily time passed when she was with Eli. At the end of their heated "lesson", she had been a bit worried that the sudden step toward intimacy would make things awkward, but she was relieved to find out that it wasn't the case. It was so easy to settle back into the old rhythm between them, as if the past four years and the past few days changed nothing at all, and that they were still just each other's best friend next door.
