He yawned as he carried the two cookies he had to Astrid's house. Glancing around, he watched as the sun was nearly about to set. I suppose she was right, as much as I hate to admit it. That girl, Cara, seems like she would be a good addition to the team.

He trekked his way across town, not bothering to knock on the front of Astrid's house as he entered. Her house was a simple single story with a cloudy grey-blue siding. Her door was a bold scarlet red. Windows were decent in numbers, the sides line with decorative shudders that didn't actually work.

"Astrid!" Sterling called, stomping his snow-packed boots onto her entrance rug. He looked around. Very little decorated the walls and floors, aside from a few odds and ends she got approved from what they found on their runs.

"What do you want!?" Astrid complained from somewhere in the house, causing a grin to unconsciously stretch onto his face. He shuffled into the house. "And you better take your goddamn shoes off!" Sterling looked down at his boots before sighing. He put the wrappers of the cookies in between his teeth and leaned down to untie then. Once done, he grabbed them in one hand, the cookies in the other, and set his boots next to each other at the door.

He started making his way back in the house, finding her in the kitchen. He held up the two packages of cookies, watching the way her eyes lit up. He tossed her one, before opening up his own. She caught it mid-air, a grin pulling at her lips as she pulled the bag open. She stuck her nose in, inhaling the smell.

"Ah, nothing like stale cookies to wind down your day!" Astrid chirped, reaching in for a bite size cookie and popping it into her mouth. Sterling rolled his eyes at the woman across the island from him. He leaned heavily against his arms, watching Astrid as she ate another cookie. Her eyes met his, seeing the uncharacteristic seriousness in them. She laid the bag on to the counter top, matching his pose.

"What are you here for?" she asked, worry lacing her tone. Sterling couldn't help a surpressed laugh at how Astrid instantly assumed it was bad news. Then again he was never so serious about food news, so It was understandable. "Did something happen?"

"You could say something like that," Sterling replied, looking down at his hands. "I met Cara today." Confusion covered Astrid's face at the statement. Her mind ran through all the people who lived in Ryseden, trying to stick a face to the name. She couldn't come up with anyone, her mind reeling that there was someone she didn't know in the small community.

"Who's Cara?" Sterling rolled his eyes at Astrid. Way to not even know the name of the girl you want to join our team, Astrid.

"The girl you saw in the dining hall that was talking about becoming a runner. The one you said was dressed in dark clothing." Astrid's eyes widened, recognition flitting through them. Her eyes lit up in hope. His heart sped a bit at the sight, but he quickly passed it off, trying to ignore the feeling.

"And? What did you think of her?" she asked giddily, a smile spreading across her mouth. Sterling watched this, a flicker of jealousy shooting through his veins at the sight. Cara has a lot better chance with her than I do.

"I like her," he admitted, causing his companion to squeal happily. He cut her a look, not appreciating her excitement. "But it's too early for her to join. I don't think she's been here long enough," he excused. Astrid rolled her eyes, her hand gravitating back towards the bag of cookies. The bag crinkled as she picked it back up, her hand disappearing inside as she grabbed a few more cookies.

"It's never too early to get a person to join the running teams! We don't have enough people to willingly join or even volunteer," she countered, a knowing grin on her face. "Margret will be completely okay with it! I'll go talk to them now!" Astrid finished, making her way around the table and towards the front door. Sterling grabbed her arm, effectively stopping her in her tracks.

"It's late... why don't you wait until tomorrow? I'm sure that they're busy," he tried, hoping to keep her from asking. The last thing he wanted was to cut his alone time with Astrid shorter than what it already was. Astrid glanced out the window, a frown marring her face.

"Sterling it's like, six. What could they be possibly doing?" He breathed out heavily, hoping she wouldn't question him too much.

"Eating?" he supplied, hoping she'd take the bait and let it go. Astrid shook her head, and he felt his hope drop.

"Then we can eat and discuss things with them," she retorted. She went to leave again, but Sterling tightened his grip. "Sterling?"

He stayed silent for a bit. Astrid don't try pulling away, watching as her partner mulled a thought over in his head. He looked up at her, a pleading look she couldn't deny. Astrid sighed heavily before shrugging her shoulders.

"Fine! Fine I'll ask them tomorrow." Sterling's face quickly broke out in a grin.

"Thank you," he whispered. Astrid gazed at him oddly, internally questioning his motives. Her face must had shown her inner thoughts, because Sterling chuckled awkwardly.

"I just want one more day alone with my buddy before another person comes in to ruin our fun," he revealed in a joking manner, even though he was far from joking. This caused Astrid to roll her eyes.

"You men and your fun," she answered teasingly. "Okay, okay, lets go hang out in my bedroom." Sterling wagged his eyebrows at her, earning a slap on the arm in response. He picked up farting into her room before she could.

"I call your bed!"