The Yellow Offer

"Do you like yellow?"  Raoul called to Penny from the tiny kitchen.

"Huh?" Penny didn't look up from her laptop as she faithfully flipped through auditions.  She noted the Rockettes audition coming up the following week and sighed.  "Wish I was a dancer..."

"Penny?" Raoul finished mixing their coffee and walked the short distance across the small apartment.  He sat in the floor, in front of Penny and handed her the fresh coffee.  Fresh coffee at  nine o'clock at night was the norm for the new pair of friends.

"Um?"  she graciously accepted the mug and sipped it, closing her eyes for a second.  Raoul watched her.  Penny blushed when her opening eyes met his.  His gaze unnerved her.  Penny had only ever had one other boyfriend and that relationship had always been awkward.  Bert from her small town high school had just, well, been all wrong.  Penny pushed Bert's face out of her mind and concentrated on the adorably cute face of Raoul.  Raoul, with the milk chocolate skin and dark brown hair, smiled at her.

"Yellow," he said again.  "Do you like the color yellow?"

"This is a fun game," Penny laughed.  She cocked her head to the side and thought about the random question.  "Yes," she said decidedly, "I like yellow."  

"Well, my mom painted her kitchen yellow last year, and she still has a lot of paint left over.  I'm sure she'd let you have it.  If you wanted to paint.  Your apartment, I mean."  Raoul gestured to the stained, ugly walls.  "It might brighten the place up.  This place; it doesn't fit you."

"Fit me?"  

Raoul looked down, embarrassed.  Penny thought she caught a light blush darken his dimpled cheeks.  "I mean, you're so sweet and bright.  I think you'd be happier if your house, I mean home, I mean..."  his voice trailed off.  

Penny smiled.  "You're sweet, Raoul," she said.  She touched his cheek.  It was still warm from his unexpected blush.  He caught her hand in his and their gaze locked together.  Two minutes passed like eternity.  A kiss was coming, and Penny wasn't ready for it.  She sat up quickly, pulling her laptop back across her lap.  

Raoul cleared his throat.  "I'll tell Mom yes about the paint, then," he said softly.  

"Yellow," Penny said.  "I think I'm gonna like yellow walls.  Thanks," she said, offering a smile.  Her eyes scanned the Actor's Backstage website.  

"What about that one?"  Raoul read from the floor, his head twisted around to see the screen.  His calloused finger jabbed at the screen.  

Penny leaned closer to read the audition......