Soccer System: All the Skills, One Player!

Lucas picked up the remote control and started browsing through the movies available on his streaming service. Kate snuggled a little closer on the sofa, adjusting the cushion next to her.

"Okay, romantic comedy. Nothing clichéd, but also light. Hmmm... how about this one?" Lucas asked, stopping at a movie called Two-Night Stand.

Kate laughed softly. "That movie is... kind of curious, considering our current situation."

Lucas arched an eyebrow, amused. "Really? Why?"

Kate stammered, trying to hide a smile. "Well, the movie is about two strangers who end up stuck together during a snowstorm after a night of casual sex. They had no plans to spend so much time together, but... things evolve."

Lucas tilted his head slightly. "It sounds interesting."

"Interesting is a good word," Kate replied.

Lucas pressed play on the movie, and soon the opening scenes unfolded on the screen.

The protagonists, played by Analeigh Tipton and Miles Teller, were strangers trying to deal with the uncomfortable situation of being forced to live together.

Kate and Lucas watched with rapt attention, laughing at the awkward situations and identifying with the characters in unexpected ways. As the movie progressed, the two protagonists went from strangers to friends and, eventually, something more.

During a scene in which the main characters were sitting on the floor, sharing personal stories, Lucas and Kate also seemed to absorb the intimate atmosphere. Without realizing it, Kate moved a little closer to Lucas, their shoulders almost touching.

"This scene is so authentic... It's not that forced romance by many movies. They just... connect."

Lucas nodded. "I like movies like that. They show how complicated and unpredictable actual relationships are."

Kate looked at him. "I never knew you were so philosophical about romance."

Lucas laughed lightly. "Hey, there's a lot to be learned from movies. Even the lighter ones have lessons if you pay attention."

The evolution of the relationship between the film's protagonists seemed to echo the atmosphere in the apartment. When one of the movie's most romantic scenes took place - the characters kissing in the soft light of a snow-covered window - Lucas glanced at Kate, catching her looking at him at the same time.

Kate's eyes quickly shifted to the screen, but there was an obvious blush on her cheeks.

Lucas cleared his throat, trying to dissipate the nervous energy. "Khum! That scene is pretty cliché, but I will not lie. It works."

"I agree. The tension between them is well done." Kate replied softly.

A few more scenes passed, and the movie reached its climax: the protagonists finally confessed to each other, leaving behind the fears and uncertainties that prevented them from being honest about their feelings.

As the credits rolled, Lucas turned off the TV, leaving the apartment plunged into silence. Both Kate and Lucas waited for the other to speak first.

"That movie always leaves me with a strange feeling," Kate finally said.

Lucas frowned slightly. "Strange? What do you mean?"

Kate shrugged. "It makes me think about how easy it is to make connections with people when you just allow yourself to be vulnerable. But it's also scary, because you never know what's going to happen."

"I understand. I think sometimes we protect ourselves so much that we forget what it's like to really open up."

Kate's eyes met Lucas's, and for a moment, the world seemed to shrink to that small space on the sofa.

She couldn't deny that she had always found Lucas more attractive than most men. However, being attractive was never enough to attract Kate's interest. She was looking for someone who was intelligent, educated and, above all, had a worldview similar to her own. The last almost three hours have made Kate to realize that Lucas fitted perfectly into both of the requirements she had imposed on herself all this time.

However, Lucy was still in love with Lucy, Kate's best friend, and she knew she shouldn't feel that way. She didn't even want to.

And the worst part was not knowing how Lucas felt. Did he like Lucy? If so, why was he making her wait instead of dating right away?

With no answer to this and not knowing how to feel about Lucas looking straight at her, Kate got up from the sofa.

"Lucas, thank you for inviting me to spend Christmas here. I don't know what I would have done on my today," Kate said, with a slightly nervous smile.

"Thank you. Honestly, Christmas would have been pretty lonely without you."

"Well, I..." Kate said, but then the sound of a message on her cell phone interrupted her. Kate looked at her phone and smiled. "It's Lucy. She's wishing me a Merry Christmas."

Lucas looked at the clock on the wall and saw that it was 00:03.

"Merry Christmas, then."

Kate held his gaze for a moment longer before finally saying, "Merry Christmas, Lucas."

She put her cell phone away and, for a moment, was quiet. Before either of them could say or do anything, distant thunder echoed, causing the windows to vibrate slightly. Kate, startled, immediately went back to the sofa and curled up next to Lucas, who hugged her with no problems.

"Christmas storm. What a cliché, isn't it?" Lucas said and then the wind outside got so strong that it could be heard easily.

The wind outside whipped the windows, and inside the apartment the light flickered.

Lucas still had his arm around Kate, their bodies close together because of the fright she had taken. Her heart was racing, not so much from the thunder, but from the closeness.

Lucas noticed her breathing, a little faster than usual, and his gaze went instinctively down to her eyes. "Are you all right?"

Kate raised her eyes to meet Lucas's, and at that moment, it seemed as if all the noise of the storm had dissipated. She tried to say something, but the words died in her throat.

Then, with little thought, just following an impulse she hadn't been able to ignore all night, Kate leaned in and her lips suddenly met Lucas's, surprising him.

She was afraid he would kick her away, say she was crazy to be kissing the guy her friend liked. However, Lucas, lonely these days and confused about Lucy, responded. Lucas' arms wrapped around her, and she felt a shiver run down her spine when he put her on her back and got on top of her.