t r o u v a i l l e | ✔️

entry 10

Nathanael
10:17
19 december 2016
manhattan, new york

I woke to the soft hum of Ruth's voice. Early this morning we'd finally fallen asleep on the couch and I ended up stretching out with my head resting on her lap. Now her slender fingers glided through my hair and occasionally her fingertips would scratch a little.

It was so comforting that I could have fallen right back asleep. So I just laid there, pretending that I was as Ruth began to quietly murmur the words to what I knew to be As by Stevie Wonder. My personal favorite.

Her hand left my hair and smoothed down to my stomach where she left a couple gentle pats. "Get on up darlin' so I can fix breakfast." I only shifted slightly. "C'mon, I know you ain't sleep no more."

I rose off her thighs and situated my self upright. Ruth gazed at me as I began to wipe at the tiredness in my eyes. Funny I hadn't slept since before I left Indonesia and now I wanted to lie right back down and drift off to Ruth's comforting touch.

Peering over at her I saw the corners of her mouth draw up into a smile. She finally stood and before I knew it, placed a winsome kiss on my forehead. "Mornin'." She whispered.

"G-good morning," I rasped. She had me stuck there like a puppy as I watched her leave. Before I would go into the kitchen, I rushed to my room to brush my teeth. I found another toothbrush and a set of clothes that she might want to change into. I felt bad for not offering them last night, for I knew she must have been burning up in her jeans even after she shed her sweater.

Ruth was swaying her hips to a beat. No music was playing, meaning she had yet another song in her head. My eyes followed her from where I stood at the doorway of the kitchen. She moved easily around the kitchen and mouthed words with the cooking spoon at her lips. It was only until she turned to reach for the milk off the middle counter did she catch my stare.

I grinned.

She pursed her lips to contain her smile as best she could. "Well you could come an help me, 'stead of jus' standin' there."

"Well what do you need me to do, angel?" I pushed off of the threshold and approached the island.

Ruth tipped her head, motioning for me to join her near the stove. "The biscuits are already in the oven. Just keep your eye on them grits and fry the eggs." She handed me a bowl of whipped eggs and raised her eyebrows. "Can you do that for me?"

Nodding I brought out a pan. "If you go to my room, there's a toothbrush and some clothes. If you want, you can shower, or just, you know, do whatever." I stammered and shrugged about.

"Sure will," She sashayed out of my kitchen.

I aimlessly poked in the grits and checked in on the biscuits before pouring the eggs into the heated fry pan. Unfortunately, I resorted to take out meals for the majority of my life so cooking was never a priority. After a couple minutes, I realized that I forgot to spray the pan.

A new batch of eggs, and a finished pot of grits later, I was finished with breakfast. "Nathanael," I spun around to see Ruth at the entrance of the kitchen. She frowned. "I know you smell that,"

I grinned. "Smells like breakfast."

Without another word, she opened drawers until she found an oven mitt. Then she moved to the oven, pulled out the biscuits and dropped them onto the stove. "Burnt biscuits." She crossed her arms under her breasts and pursed her lips unimpressed. "I had a timer on the oven. Did you not take 'em out when it went off?"

I forced my eyes away from her breasts and blushed when she caught my gaze. "I thought that meant something else," I mumbled, toying with my glasses.

Her shoulders fell in mock exhaust. "No," She groaned.

"Well," I began. I moved to the pantry and opened the door before motioning to the collection of cereals. "Bon appetite, angel."

Ruth
11:02
19 december 2016
manhattan, new york

Two bowls of cereal later we managed to burrow ourselves under a quilt upon the couch while watching cartoons. Well, to be quite honest, the cartoons were watching us. We murmured back and forth, revealing little secrets and simply enjoying each other.

"I remember when I was little, I wanted to be an airplane pilot." Nathanael admitted. "I've always wanted to travel, you know?"

"I see why." I murmured. "The world is so beautiful. I just don't see how you can get on and off of those planes-and without home-cooked meals."

He chuckled dryly. "Oh, it's a blast," We fell into another comfortable lapse of silence. His hand traced along my arm and up to my face. He stared admirably as his fingers trailed my features. Going from my thick eyebrows and down the slope of my nose to my lips. He moved closer as his thumb ran across them. "Ruth," Nathanael purred.

I remained reticent, my own hands tucked in between our two bodies. I watched his own eyes as he seemed to weigh the circumstances of what I knew that he was about to attempt. "Angel...would you mind?" He spoke almost inaudibly. Our noses brushed.

My eyes fell shut. "I would,"

His forehead came to rest upon mine. His finger came to lift my chin prompting me to reopen my eyes. "You are so precious."

"Nathanael," I breathed. "I can't."

"What can you not do?" He probably thought I was crazy.

I shifted until my face was buried in his chest. His arms came to wrap around me. "When d'you leave again?" My voice was almost a whimper. I just felt like this was a bit too good to be true.

"Why?" He dodged

My stomach knotted slightly. "Y'see I just feel like we're goin' to go through this all over again. I don't wanna get tied up an-,"

"Hold on-Slow down." He gripped me tighter and stopped me. "You could always come with me, angel. And no one said that I had to go anywhere."

"You got work to do. I can't be in the way of that." I made my way out of his hold to sit up on the couch. "I should probably head home."

"Where is home, Ruth?" Nathanael questioned. He stood up after me, staring down with an intense gaze. I didn't answer, my mind reeling with various thoughts. "Is it in Queens? Back in Georgia? Where do you feel the most at home?"

And then I looked at him. I mean really looked at him. From his invasive gaze to the irritated tick of his jaw. The man who lingered in my thoughts for the span of time that I hadn't seen him was in front of me once more and I was about to walk away? He was right. I was scared. When was the last time I had ever become attached to someone before my parents died? It was unsettling.

But where is home? The question was so simple. I caught his blue gaze and frowned. But there were so many risks. Yet he was so worth it.

"I feel most at home when I'm with you."

~

Thank you all so much for reading this story.

start: 28 august 2016

finished: 14 september 2016