Deal With It

forty eight

"Oh my God, that's amazing!" I shouted as he turned me around.  "Well done, you!"

He put me back down and I placed a kiss on his soft lips, never having felt this happy for him. "It's an integrated course," he started explaining as he intertwined his fingers with mine, "so in 18 months I'll be completely prepared to get my license. Dad knows someone in London and it'll be completed one-on-one. Arissa, I can't believe it," he laughed as we walked up the stairs. "I never thought my luck would change like this," he told me as we entered the bedroom.

As I listened to him and watched him, I felt tears welling up in my eyes. "I-"

"Hey!" He poked my stomach. "Don't cry, idiot," he said playfully, getting ready to tickle me. His hands made contact with my stomach again but this time I burst out laughing.

"Stop!" I squirmed, falling back on the bed. The two of us were laughing and he lay down next to me, both our legs hanging off of the side of the bed. "I'm just really proud of you," I said as I turned my head to look at him.

"I know you are," he smiled at me with his arms crossed beneath his head, "and that's one of the many reasons why I love you."

"Oh, really? And what are some of these other reasons?"

"Well," he looked up at the ceiling in thought. "You make some great pancakes," he started.

"True," I cut in. "And they do say that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach," I grinned at him and he nodded.

"Also, I love that you're a terrible driver so I always get to drive," he continued. I opened my mouth to protest but he put his hand over it, so I licked it and he quickly pulled it back, raising a brow at me. "Jeez, Arissa. If you want to lick me, I'm sure we can find somewhere better," he winked and I scrunched up my nose in disgust. "That brings me to my final point," he said and I rolled my eyes. Great. "I love how good it feels to fuc-"

"That's enough," I shouted, putting my hands over my ears. "So basically, you only love me for my pancakes, supposedly bad driving skills and how I am in bed," I pouted, facing away from him.

I could hear him chuckling lightly. He rolled onto his side and put his hand beneath my chin to turn my face back towards him. I looked at him sullenly. I knew he was purposely joking so I played along. "You know those aren't the real reasons."

"I do?"

"Of course," he answered. His finger traced along the side of my face and he gazed into my eyes affectionately. He continued this motion as he spoke to me. "I love you because you're the most beautiful woman I've ever known and ever will know, inside and out," he said. Immediately, my cheeks flushed bright pink and I felt them heating up. "I love your kindness and how caring you are towards everyone— something totally foreign to me. I love how you seem to be so innocent at first, like you wouldn't hurt a fly, but if something angers you... damn. Like that time you stood up for me in front of Laura," he laughed.

"Don't remind me," I cringed as I recollected that day. Things had changed so much since then.

"I love how close Heidi and you are, I love that my family loves you. Maybe not Kyle, though."

I gasped. "Did Tyler Lawson just call Kyle family?"

"No," he quickly replied. After a couple of seconds he continued to shower me with compliments, telling me how much he loved me. It was strange having him open up so much but a good strange. Hearing all these things made me realise how lucky I was. He was the perfect boyfriend. "I also love how you look when you're angry."

"What? Why?" I was confused.

"You should see yourself. You furrow your brows so hard that little wrinkles appear along your forehead," he ran his hand along it. Then he picked up my hand, "and these. You ball them into little fists as if you're ready for a fight. It's honestly adorable," he said.