I pick up Lupita bridal style, making her giggle. I kiss her cheek then set her down in the chair opposite from mine. After an amazing dinner, there's a light knock at the door.
"Can you get that baby? I'm going to clean all this up." I say, standing to return the plates, bowls, cutlery, and condiments to the kitchen. Lupita smiles and nods, heading toward the door. I'm just putting the dirty plates in the sink when I hear her unmistakeable voice.
"Hi, uhm is Athena home?"
"Yeah, she's here. Sorry, what's your name?"
"Ariithiana Armor, and you are?"
"Lupita Navarro, I'm Athena's girlfriend."
My heartbeat begins to race as I look at the jagged scars on my hand from the last time I saw her, the last time I talked to her.
Why is she here? And today of all days! It's been a whole month...
" Hey babe, someones here to see you, says she's your best friend?" My thoughts are interrupted as Lupita pokes her head into the kitchen. She doesn't look at me questioningly, but instead her eyes only hold curiosity.
"I- I'm coming." I stutter, quickly washing my hands and drying them. Walking toward the front door, I hesitate for a moment, then turn the corner. She's standing in the doorway, with Helios gazing up at her adoringly as she scratches behind his ears.
She's wearing the same black and gray sweater she wore at the airport, dark blue jeans and knee high boots. Her hair is lightly curled, making her hair seem shorter. She finally notices me standing there and looks up, startling me. Her eyes look a dark shade of blue, but the bags under them show a certain tiredness I've never seen, not even on the day of a test.
She smiles at me uncertainly, disregarding a whining Helios at her feet. A reserved type of love shines behind the hesitation in the blue depths of her eyes.
"Hey." I say, breaking the uncomfortable silence.
"Hey... I'm sorry to show up unannounced, but you weren't answering any of my texts or calls..." She looks away, but I catch the flash of hurt in her eyes, and I involuntarily step forward to comfort her, but I stop. " I want to talk... If you have a minute."
"I'll be right back baby, I'm just going outside for a second." I call to Lupita, tossing Helios back inside. Closing the door behind me, I walk to the swing under the tree in my front yard. The sun has just set, leaving small trails of light in the sky. I sit at an angle so I can see her sitting next to me. She shuffles her feet, not looking at me.
"So... You have a girlfriend...?" Ari's voice is guarded but I hear pain, which makes no sense. "She's beautiful."
"Yeah, we're celebrating our One Month Anniversary today." I say curtly, cracking my knuckles out of habit. She looks up at me in surprise, but then whips her head back, staring at her feet.
"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt-"
"Don't be, it's fine. What did you want to talk about?" I could already feel myself naturally softening up to her presence, and as much as I tried, I couldn't stay cold towards her for long.
"I just wanted to apologize for my behavior. It was wrong and I hate myself for hurting you so much, I'm so sorry Athena. You don't deserve any of that. I want to rid you of that pain, so I'm going to stop talking to you in every way, shape and form." She speaks quickly and quietly, her words spilling over each other, managing to break my heart.
"No." I say, looking at her incredulously. "You think you'd rid me me of the pain? Are you kidding? You'd hurt me even more."
"Maybe it's for the best Athena." She still won't look at me. I sigh, reaching over and grabbing her hand. She flinches, but relaxes as I begin to rub circles with my thumb.
Honeymoon Stage
Start from the beginning
