Memories

Dancing

Luke was sitting at his porch, newspaper in hand, seemingly admiring the vegetation that was thriving on his front lawn. But he wasn't looking at the shrubs, not even the newspaper. In fact, he was thinking about the family he so dearly loved. He was remembering one night in particular...

I heaved a great sigh as I sat down and wiped from my forehead sweat that was starting to run down my face. Groovy music filled the air, and I watched with great amusement as bodies spun in front of me, dancing all around. I was just about to settle down when Cece, my youngest daughter, came to me in a flurry of limbs and said, "Dance with us, daddy!" I simply laughed in response. 
"Yeah dad, dance with us!" my other daughter Lucy said as she danced wildly behind Cece. 
"I don't know, daddy's tired," I replied. I chuckled to myself, knowing what was about to happen as they both came to me together and pursed their lips. "Please?" they sang, and I looked to their mother for help while pleading with my eyes. She walked over to me, placed her hand on my shoulder and pressed her forehead to mine. I expected her to let me sit, but she then whispered, "Come on, honey. Do it for the kids? Just this once?"
Defeated, I reluctantly rose from my seat and started dancing slowly, but soon lost myself in the heat of the moment. 
Tonight was a very special night. The theme of the night was to just have fun, and we let the children stay up after bedtime. We played games and danced and had ice cream. My wife even performed a few tricks for us. The children were in a frenzy because of a sugar rush from the ice cream and would not settle down. It was so much fun.
Soon enough, Cece climbed onto the sofa; the first sign of growing tired. Both she and her sister started yawning but refused to go to bed. They tried their best to stay awake, but couldn't keep their eyes open. Cece was fast asleep while her sister was still holding on to consciousness, but it was a losing battle. 
My wife led Lucy by the hand as I carried Cece to their room. "Goodnight, my little one," I said as I kissed her forehead and tucked her in. We exchanged places with her mother after she did the same with Lucy, and I wished her sweet dreams as well. Light snoring filled the silent room as our daughters fell asleep, and we shuffled out of it, my wife taking one last look before turning off the light and closing the door. 
"The kids are gone," she said as we started clearing up. "Indeed they are," I replied. We carried the dishes to the kitchen and started cleaning them, making small talk here and there. After the dishes, I took out the trash and found my wife waiting for me in the living room. She stood up to meet me with a kiss on my cheek. I returned the gesture. 
I switched the music on and played some slow jazz music. 
"The kids are gone," she said, this time with a small smile on her face as she pulled me towards the center of the living room. "Yes they are," I replied while I placed my hands on her hips as she held my shoulders. We danced around the living room, not caring about the time. My sweet wife eventually rested her head on my shoulder and whispered an I love you. 
"I love you too," I replied, kissing the top of her head.
We kept on dancing, even when the music stopped playing. The sky outside was beginning to grow brighter, but we didn't care. We were just two lovers, holding each other in a warm embrace. 

In that moment, there was only her and I, and I couldn't have been more satisfied. 

I loved her, and she loved me; that's all that mattered. 

Luke was shaken out of his memories as a light wind ruffled his hair.  Grey clouds were rolling in as the air grew colder. He put away the newspaper and stood from his chair, stretching before he went inside to set the tea to boil. Winter was setting in quite quickly.