Bound in Love

Chapter 22

"Fuck..." He chuckled as he remembered he was going out on the street with the towel rolled around his hair. "What a fucking moron." He mumbled, getting up and adjusting his jeans.

Chris checked if his wallet was still in the pocket of his coat and left the towel on the hanger near the door. He shook his head a little and ran his fingers over his curls and opened the door to leave.

When he got to the empty street, he pulled the hoodie of his coat over his head as there was this drizzle falling down. Chris dug his hands in the side pockets of his coat to protect them from the cold and started walking down the street. The sky was dark. It looked like one of these dystopian skies you write about in young adult fictions. The layers of grey where of different shades, of different density. The clouds were thick and stagnant. It announced a rainy Sunday. A typical winter day in Seattle. The street was almost empty but that was something he actually liked for he didn't like to be around many people. He didn't like messy places or strangers greeting him all the time. It was a five-minute lone walk until he got to the bakery. The usual terrace in front of the door was not set. All tables and chairs were piled up in a corner under the black awning to protect them from the rain. Chris pulled a hand off the pocket and pushed the door opened, entering the modern French style space. Inside, it was warm and cozy and there were a few people scattered over the tables having their Sunday breakfast and reading the newspaper. Then, a voice got his attention as he was taking his scarf off.

"CJ!" He heard the voice of his brother calling him and Chris looked at his right side from where the sound was coming from, to find Peter waving and smiling at him.

Chris smiled back at him who was alone, thankfully, at a table by the window. Immediately, he approached his brother while getting rid of his coat too. He held both in his hand.

"Brother!" Chris gasped as he and Peter shared a tight hug, then he kissed his brother's cheek not caring about what people would say.

"Sit." Peter pointed at the chair in front of him and Chris did so. "Where's Ellie?" He asked. "It's been a while since I have seen her, she must be huge..."

Chris started laughing. "Don't fucking tell her that!" He said in between laughter.

"That bad?" Peter laughed too.

"You have no idea..." Chris rolled his eyes. "She drives me insane... she complains so much. One time she is round. Another she is fat... and she complains for real!" He added then he fell silent for a few seconds and took a deep breath. "But the truth is..." He smiled and Peter smiled too. "... she looks so amazing, so beautiful. I wish she could see what I see."

"So, in an overall, she is giving you a hard time?" Peter chuckled.

"Yes." Chris affirmed and then they both released a laughter. "She has been driving me insane with these fucking hormones."

"Anyway, I meant her belly!" Peter clarified. "But you hang in there." He added playfully.

Chris nodded. "It's growing a lot. I can feel my daughter kicking..." There he took both hands to his cheeks and his eyes opened wide and Chris shook his head lightly as if not believing it. "It's insane... I can't even explain the feeling nor the love I feel... it's..."

"I love to see you like that." Peter interrupted him as he noticed the glitter in his brother's eyes. Chris was ecstatic. Happy has he had never seen him before. "But I know some shit happened while you were on tour."

Chis rolled his eyes. "I was tired... it was just that. They called Ellie and she flew to New York... they stressed her so much and I was fine!"

"Of course she did!" Peter agreed with how things had been handled. "She would go there anyway. You know her and I know her too. She would cross the fucking world if she needed to."