⇾𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐖𝐁𝐄𝐑𝐑𝐘 𝐅𝐈𝐄𝐋𝐃𝐒 𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑 | 𝐉𝐨𝐡𝐧 𝐋𝐞𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐧 𝐈𝐈𝐈

Chapter Fifty-Five: The Good Ole Here and Now

April 10, 1967

"Owww," I whined, moving away from the bathroom counter and sitting down on the side of the tub.

John popped his head into the room, confused at what was wrong with me. "Everything alright?" he asked me, knowing full well what my reply was going to be.

I shook my head and he came to sit down next to me. "My back hurts," I said irritatedly.

"We don't have to go and see Trixie today," he said to me reassuringly. "It'll be alright."

"I know," I said. "But I want to, and that's the worst part." I frowned, willing myself not to cry for such a silly reason.

He lowered himself onto his knees in front of me. "Oh, come off it. You know she'll understand. How about I call her up and tell her you're not feeling well right now. We'll run you a nice bath and you can relax for a while. We can go later."

I smiled gratefully. "That actually sounds quite nice," I admitted, wincing when another wave of pain went through my lower back. "What day is it?" I asked him.

"Monday?"

I nodded, looked down at my stomach, and then back to him. "Twenty-one weeks," I commented, tapping him on the nose.

"Isn't that lovely?" he asked with a smile.

"Well, it's very painful, clearly." I laughed.

"Right, come on, then." He shuffled to the right on his knees and turned the faucet on the tub, putting the plug in the bottom. "I'll get you a towel," he told me and I nodded.

"I love you, John," I said with a smile.

"Oh, well, I love you too," he responded, kissing me on the lips briefly because he left the room to retrieve my towel. I turned to where the bath was running and reached for some soap that was sitting on a shelf. I took the bottle and snapped the lid open, squirting some of it under the running water, watching as bubbles blew up around it.

Just as I stood up to get undressed, John returned with my towel.

"I'll call Miss Beatrice," he said, setting the folded towel on the counter.

"Thank you, John," I said, putting my arms around his neck.

He accepted my hug gratefully. "Enjoy your bath," he said teasingly.

~~~

Roughly an hour later, I had toweled myself off and found myself wandering downstairs to find John. He was sitting in the living room, positioned on the floor in front of the coffee table looking at a box.

"What're you looking at?" I asked him, going to position myself next to him.

He looked over at me, flushing red. "I didn't mean to pry or anything. I found it under the table."

I shook my head. "You're fine. Just tell me what it is."

"All sorts of things," he said, then he spotted a 45 laying at the bottom of the box and he picked it up and examine it. Suddenly, he began to smile. "Well, would you look at that?"

"What is it?" I asked curiously.

He held it so that I could see it too. ""My Bonnie,'" I read, them smiled. "'Tony Sheridan and the Beat Brothers.'"

"What were we thinking with that name?" he asked with a slight chuckle. He studied the single, flipped it upside down even. "'When the Saints Go Marching In.'" He sighed. "God, that was so long ago."

"Everything's different now," I added.

"Well," he reasoned, smirking at me. "Not everything."

"What hasn't changed?" I asked amusedly.

"Us," he responded simply. "We're still John and Donna...Johnna," he teased. "John and Donna, the crazy lovers."

"Are we crazy?" I asked sarcastically. "Because I think that's an understatement."

He stood up. "Maybe it is." He went towards the stereo and laid the record down on the turntable. Flipping it to the right speed, he lifted the needle and carefully placed it onto the grooves.

A few crackles later, music began to play.

My Bonnie lies over the ocean
My Bonnie lies over the sea
Well, my Bonnie lies over the ocean
Yeah, bring back my Bonnie to me

John smiled over at me, looking almost emotional as he listened to the record.

"Don't you miss that?" I asked. "Being four unsuspecting little boys from Liverpool, able to get excited over merely being a backing band on a record?"

He shook his head. "I wouldn't go back to that if I'd have to give up the good ole here and now...come here, love." He gestured for me to join him where he was, and I did as I was told, despite practically everything being in pain.

He took my hands in his when I made it towards him. He brought my left hand to his lips and placed a kiss on it, giving me a cheeky smile before he pulled me close to him and began to sway me from left to right in time with the music. When the tempo picked up, he broke off into a wild dance himself before he spun me around and forced me to join him.

When it ended and we were both too breathless from laughing for our own good, we collapsed onto the couch. "We're going to dinner at Trixie's," John told me.

"Well, that sounds good," I responded. Then, I looked up at him. "Does that mean we have time for a nap?" I asked him innocently.

He smiled. "Yes, it does."

"Good." I stood up and pulled him with me. "I'm tired."

"But it's only noon," he said teasingly.

I frowned and shook my head. "Well, I don't care."

~~~

My eyes fluttered open and my head was laying on John's stomach. I didn't have any blankets on me or anything, yet I was still burning up. John, miraculously, was reading a book. What book exactly, I had no idea.

I sat up groggily, rubbing my eyes, and caught John staring at me with a smile.

"Good morning to you," he said with a grin.

"You know how long it's been since I've seen you reading a book?"

"Oh, come on," he said. "Not even a hello?"

"Hello," I murmured. "I didn't know you could read." I smiled teasingly.

"What can I say?" he asked. "I love this book." He held it up and I saw that it was Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, his favorite. He opened the book again and began to read. "'It's difficult to explain. You see, sometimes I'm big and sometimes I'm small. It's very confusing.'"

I laughed. "Isn't that just fantastic?"

"I can't wait to read it to Julia and Joseph," he said with a grin.

"Well, I can't wait for you to either."

He looked down at his watch. "Maybe we should get ready now," he said.

I nodded. "Maybe we should."