The Stand In

Chapter 25

It takes me a little while to search around his kitchen and find a Tupper-ware box, unfortunately for me, it's on the top shelf. Unable to reach it from the ground, I decide to do what I've been doing most of my life, and scale the counter to retrieve it.

Once I've got it down, I clean the box and dry it before halving the bowl and stashing it in the fridge for later.

I'm just staring at the rainbow bowl of goodness, when arms go around my waist. I let out a scream in fright before laughing at myself, as Zak grumbles into my neck.

"Good morning." I say rubbing his arm.

He hmphs in response and stays with his face pushed into my neck.

Picking up the bowl and two bottles of water, I pat his arm. "Okay back to bed, walk along with me."

He does, his feet matching every one of my steps until we are back into his room, unwinding himself, he drops back down onto the mattress as I clamber in the other side and sit with my back against the headboard, bowl of fruit on my lap.

The blinds have been lifted half way, giving me a view of the pool and it's waterfall outside. The sun is shining and it's blue skies without a hint of cloud.

"What a beautiful day." I say looking over to Zak who is slowly accepting that it's a new day and time to wake up.  I give him a few more minutes until he is pulling himself up enough to eat from the bowl too.

"I thought you left. Then I saw you." He says. "Fluttering around my kitchen."

"Did you see me scale the counter to get the Tupper-ware?"

"Why do you think I got up?"

I smile "Perhaps a lower cupboard would be better. Then I haven't got to climb in future."

"Plan on staying over more often?" He asks quirking a brow.

"Hmm, maybe. If the service is up to par." I joke popping a grape into my mouth and eating it.

We sit in his bed for a while in silence, enjoying the moment of having breakfast together when Zak says "Keep waking me up with all this fruit and I'll move you in."

I laugh softly "I thought my stomach was going to wake you up."

He shook his head "Didn't hear a thing. I didn't know you had moved until I rolled over to find you. Then I panicked."

"Panicked?"

"Incase something had happened or you left for some reason." He says picking up a blueberry.

I shake my head "No, just getting food. There's another pot of this in the fridge, I have cut up too much."

"I'll chow through that."

"Please do."

I'm eating a sliced strawberry when I hear Zak's low chuckle, glancing over, I frown "What?"

"When you're happy about food, you wiggle. Have you noticed that?"

"I do not."

"You absolutely do. I thought it was a nervous tic, but it's not. You are just enjoying whats in front of you. It's cute."

"Well now I'm embarrassed."

"Don't. I like your little shuffle."

"Oh shush and have a strawberry." I say feeding him as he puts his hand behinds his head.

"Will you feed me?" He asks amused.

"If it stops you from pointing out things, absolutely."

And that is how we spend the next hour, snuggled up, watching the waterfall and me, feeding Zak.