You Should Be Here | j. christopher

036

"I miss home. And my street is noisy and I know that your street is way noisier than mine. Plus I had this dream that our baby would be an L.A kid like we are but..." She trailed off.

Joshua came closer and gently placed a hand on the side of her face, "I have to be here. My job is here."

Ayoluwa blinked and Joshua knew that she holding back tears of disappointment, "Yeah. The thought was stupid anyway."

Joshua took his hand off of her skull and slowly, cautiously wrapped his arms around her shoulders, "I didn't mean to dash your dreams. I just can't leave right now."

"No," Ayoluwa sniffled as she allowed Joshua to embrace her a little tighter, planting the side of her face onto his shirt, "I'll get over it. Hormones make everything so dramatic."

Joshua chuckled a little as he rested the top of his head onto her scalp for a few seconds before moving back, not wanting to step over any boundaries, "I should probably go, if that's it."

Ayoluwa shook her head, "This isn't like Manhattan. The cabs usually stop running after 10:30."

Joshua stared down at her, not wanting to say anything that could ruin his luck, "You have a guest room?"

But Ayoluwa was already turning and walking up the stairs to where the bedrooms and the future nursery were.

Without another word, Joshua speedily took off his shoes in order to follow her upstairs.

Joshua thought Ayoluwa's bedroom perfectly described her personality to a T: tastefully understated with an uniqueness that made the room scream her and only her.

"You have a guest room?" Joshua repeated.

"It's not set up right now and I would ask you to sleep on the floor but..." She trailed off and both pairs of eyes dropped to the hardwood floor.

"Right... So..." Joshua let his eyes drift over to the queen sized bed for a moment and then back to her.

Ayoluwa had stripped herself of her hoodie and her bare back was towards Joshua.

She must've done this shit on purpose.

There's no way that all of this was a coincidence.

Joshua still didn't wanna ruin his luck so he remained clothed even as she plucked an old t-shirt from the drawer and pulled it over her head.

Joshua let out a little cough and then began to tug off his own shirt, still unsure that this was real and not some pleasant dream.

Once he was down to his boxers, Joshua waited for a verbal or nonverbal go ahead.

Once she was dressed in pajamas and had a head scarf tied around her hair, Ayoluwa turned and faced Joshua, "Why do you look scared? It's just for a night."

"Scared? I'm not scared." Joshua immediately denied.

Ayoluwa gestured to the bed, a teasing look on her face.

Joshua glanced at her but climbed onto the left side of the bed, feeling his body sink into the mattress.

Ayoluwa got in as well, then surveyed the duvet over the both of them and then at Joshua, "You know what this reminds me of?"

"That night in the lake house," Joshua said in a knowing tone, "Man, I was so conflicted that night. You had me fucked up in the head."

"Like you didn't?" Ayoluwa laughed, "Sending me hella mixed signals. I didn't know if you hated me or liked me and I was so desperate to know that I just asked."

"Outta nowhere too." Joshua said then licked his bottom lip and continued in a quieter tone, "That's when I knew. That night is when I knew."

Ayoluwa turned her face over on the pillow to face him, the look etched on her skull a curious one, "Knew what?"

Joshua gave her a slow blink, "That I loved you."

Ayoluwa slowly lifted her hand to start cascading her index finger along his jaw, "You wanna make it just like that night?"

Joshua had to keep his eyes from bugging out of his head at her boldness and before he could fully take in her words, her lips were on his.

And suddenly, Joshua found it extremely hard to think.

NOTE FROM KY
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