Every New Beginning... (Chris Evans AU)

.157.

  Safe behind a closed door, I take a deep breath and exhale slowly. For good measure I take four more until I hear him interrupt me. "Do you need random facts again?" I can hear the laughter in his words. 

  "Why do you ask?" I question, smiling at myself in the mirror, enjoying the fact that he still knows me so well.

  "Well, I hear no water running, no rustling around of anything, which means you're either in an attack or the start of one." He pauses. "Or you've passed out but since you're talking to me, I know it's not that one."

  "Quite the inferencing skills you've got there, Evans. How does the precinct ever let you have a moment's rest?" I pull my hair up in a messy ponytail before removing my makeup.

  "I ask myself that all the time."

  I work quickly in hopes that keeping my mind occupied on what I'm doing I can keep myself in check. "Movie or sleep?" I hear him ask from the other side of the door.  I pull the door open as I begin applying moisturizer to my face. A glance at the clock says it's just eleven.

  "If I try and sleep now, I'll be wide awake in a couple of hours," I admit, as I rest one knee on the bed closest to the bathroom. Chris sits on the edge of the other bed, flipping through the television channels. 

  "Movie it is then." He kicks off his shoes, leaving them at the edge of his bed and leans back on his elbows. 

  I pull back the covers from my bed, causing Chris to finally look at me. Right as I sit, I notice him watching me. His head cocked to the side, his eyes are narrowed. "What?" I ask.

  "Isn't that my shirt?"

  My eyes go wide as I realize I forgot that I had packed it to sleep in, just like I've been doing at home. But, in my defense, I hadn't planned on him seeing it. I jump out of bed, going back to my suitcase once again. "I, um, didn't even realize I had packed it," I lie. 

  "Opal, it's okay," he chuckles from his spot on the bed. I continue my effort until I realize I didn't pack another shirt to sleep in. I'll have to just wear the top I wore today. It's not ideal, but. 

  I go back into the bathroom, empty handed, shutting the door behind me. "Opal, it's fine. Seriously."

  At this point I'm biting back tears, feeling them start to sting my eyes. "No, this way you can take it home with you."

  "I don't want it back." 

  "No, it's fine. This way I have less to mail back to you when I get home," I admit, slipping the shirt over my head as I hear footsteps in the room. 

  "Opal." he says sternly, his voice just on the other side of the door, but I continue to change. "Woman, I swear, if you come out here not wearing my shirt I'm walking right out of this room."

  Part of me wants to see if he's serious, while the other knows that if I fold up this shirt and hand it over to him, I will lose myself in gut wrenching sobs. But, it's still his. "I'll give it back to you tomorrow then?" I slip it back on and open the door.

  Both hands rest on the bathroom doorframe holding him up. "You can try, but I'm not gonna take it." 

  "You will, and you'll like it," I insist, getting closer to him without even noticing it. 

  His brow quirks as one corner of his mouth begins to curl. "Is that so?"

  "Yep," I say sternly. "I'll take it to your apartment myself if I have to." I poke my finger against his hard chest. His eyes flit between my daggered finger and my eyes. The expression in his eyes tells me he's enjoying this as much as I am. But, then reality hits me. I clear my throat and duck under his arms to go into the bedroom, putting some distance between the two of us. "Did you find a movie?" I ask, changing the topic.

  A glance over my shoulder tells me he's still in the same position, but his head is hanging down now. When he finally looks up, he sweeps the ball cap off of his head, tossing it on the bedside table before running a hand through his hair. "Not really. You can pick." 

  I begin flipping channels from my spot in my bed while Chris slips into the bathroom, closing the door behind him. I smile to myself with a low giggle as I come to the perfect movie for tonight. "Found one!" I exclaim as I hear the faucet turn on. 

  Chris opens the door, drying his hands on a hand towel. "What is it?" he asks, tossing the towel on the bathroom counter.

  "Come and see," I say, trying to hold back my excitement. I watch as he walks around my bed to climb onto his own. With a quick maneuver of the pillows he flops down, his back resting against the headboard. 

  As the opening credits begin, I try to grab a couple of sly glances. Once he realizes it's Top Gun, he burst into my favorite side splitting, pec grabbing laugh. "I thought it was pretty perfect," I admit as he gives a nod in agreement. 

  I find myself shifting around from my spot through the first ten minutes of the film, unable to really get comfortable.  "Come on," I hear Chris say, causing me to look over at him. His eyes are still on the screen, but his left hand is waving me over to join him. 

  I shake my head, "Chris-"

  "Don't deny me a cuddle, Ope. Come over here," he offers, scooting over to the middle of the bed. 

  I take a moment to think it over while I chew on my lower lip. "You're gonna draw blood if you bite any harder." He finally looks over at me, wiggling his fingers with his palm outstretched. "Get over here, woman." 

  With an eye roll and quickened heart rate, I climb out of my bed and take the one step over to his. He pulls back the covers that he's sitting on top of, giving me space to slide in. He leaves his arm open for me to lay against him. 

  As I slip into that overly familiar space I wonder if he can actually feel my insides shaking as my breath shudders. I swear my  body reacts out of memory and melts against his side as his arm curls around my back, his finger tips brush lightly over my arm. 

  I attempt to swallow down the lump that has developed in my throat at the realization that I need to be honest with him. "Chris?" I say, my voice small and soft. 

  "Yes, love?" 

  His answering with the term makes my heart ache in the same way it did when I dropped my engagement ring into that envelope. "This, um this," I stutter, "this doesn't change anything. I need you to understand that." 

  I can feel the sigh as he releases it, the warm air caressing over my hair. "I know, Opal. And for now, this is enough."

  Just before the movie reaches our famous bar karaoke scene, my eyelids become too heavy for me. With a couple of flutters I sink into the best night sleep I've had in over two months.