Max
Persephone's jittery as she jostles beside me, her entire being radiating a ball of pure energy. She laughs as she observes her friends from a distance, watching their every move as they dance to the beat of the music. I can't tear my eyes from her face, from the way her lips tilt upwards as she giggles. How her eyes twinkle in the dark night, and how the large mirror ball hanging from the ceiling only adds to the enchantment of her expression.
With no notice, Persephone suddenly turns her head in my direction.
She's caught me staring, again.
In an attempt to cover up my desperate longing, I mask a self-assured smile, before words find themselves.
"Do you want to go dance?" I motion towards her small group of friends, not missing the hint of nerves Persephone's eyes hold.
After the wedding ceremony, we all made our way to an adjoining reception hall, where we first ate, before getting up to dance. The rest of her friends left to dance a handful of minutes ago, while Persephone hung back, saying that she'd just watch for a few minutes. Personally, I think she's just too scared to ask me to dance, so, it's my time to shine.
"Don't feel like you have to, if you don't-" She begins, smiling softly under her quiet tone of voice.
"Hey, we didn't practise at the diner for nothing, right?" I smile gleefully as Persephone rolls her eyes, her mind obviously tracking back to our awful dancing at the diner the other night.
"Fine." She finally says, reaching around and placing her glass of champagne on the table behind us. I stand from my own seat, extending my hand as I peer down at her. She rolls her eyes again as she sees my hand, although her face is stretched into a smile as she looks between myself and her friends. She accept my gestures in the following seconds, and sparks fly between our palms as I help to pull her to her feet. I keep our hands laced together as we step onto the dance floor, although my head's clarity is beginning to fade.
I don't know why that happens, when I'm around her. Why I'm always filled with the desire to touch her, to feel the warmth of her skin on the surface of my own. Why I get butterflies, like I did around girls in middle school. Why I'm so confused, about this entire situation. It's simple to understand, in hindsight. We have an arrangement, nothing more, and nothing less. So why does it feel like more than just an arrangement?
I don't understand why I was filled with so much anticipation about tonight, and more importantly, why I have so much dread for everything after tonight. For when everything goes back to normal, and Persephone and I go back to being people that just work at the same place, in totally different fields. For when we won't have any more favours to fulfil, nothing left to tie us together. Personally, I'd love to keep our... friendship going, but I have no idea what Persephone is thinking. What's on her mind. What plans she has for after tonight.
The scariest thing is, that I've got a feeling neither of us have a plan.
"Are you okay?" My eyes snap back to Persephone, taking in the slight tinge of worry spread across her expression.
"Yes, sorry. Got lost in my head for a second." Persephone smiles now, steering me towards her friends. They all turn around as they hear us approaching, directing their partnered dancing towards us. Baby Oliver giggles in Christian's arms, holding his hands out in Persephone's direction. She herself laughs, taking a hold of the baby, bringing him to rest in her arms. I find myself smiling again, as she rocks the baby in her arms to the beat of the music.
She'll be an amazing mother one day.
She catches me staring again, surprising me by lifting Olly into my arms. I stare at her, stunned as the baby softens into my arms, panicking a little. I mean it when I say I have never held a baby before. I was the youngest in my family, youngest sibling, cousin, grandchild, meaning everyone held me instead.
"You're okay, just support his head," Persephone readjusts the baby in my arms, one of her hands lingering in the middle of my back. "And dance. He likes that."
Persephone begins to shimmy from beside me, laughing as Olly latches his hand around one of her fingers. Her eyes stare up into my face once more, spying the look of concern etches onto my lips.
"Dance, monkey." She whispers sarcastically, the softness of her breath making the hair on the back of my neck stand at an end.
"I'll get you back for this." I whisper back as I begins to sway to the music, unable to keep the smile off my face as I stare down at Olly. He giggles once more, reaching his spare hand up and grabbing the corner of my suit jacket.
Meanwhile, conversation flows around the group, and I'm yet again surprised by how easily Persephone's friends make everything look. How easy they make friendship, romance, children look. Maybe they're just those types of people though, the kind that makes everything look easy, no matter how hard it may actually be.
"Oh, I wanted to ask you boys," Persephone's voice pulls me from Olly's face, drawing the attention of Christian, Casey, and Bailey at the same time. "Max told me you didn't interrogate him the other night. Why?" I laugh loudly, and it takes every ounce of willpower I have not to stoop down, and press a soft kiss to Persephone's hardworking forehead.
"What do you mean?" Christian replies mid shimmy, glancing innocently in our direction. Beside him, Lera smiles dotingly at her child, before that grin makes it way to me. She adds a thumbs up, making me blush slightly. Okay now I really wish I could hide my face in the top of Persephone's hair.
"Christian, you told both Casey and Bailey that if they hurt anyone, you'd legitimately kill them, because your loyalty lies with us girls. Am I exempt from this ruling?"
"No, of course not. Homegals before pals." Everyone snorts, and Lera takes the opportunity to punch her now-husbands shoulder playfully. "But... as much as I love you Pers... I'm not going to attack Morin on your behalf."
"And why not, tough guy?"
"Because, unlike these two twats," Christin's thumb zeros in on Casey and Bailey, who scoff respectively. "I don't think I could actually take Max on, and still be alive. I'm a dad, for fucks sake, not a professional hockey player. I need to start acting the part."
"Thanks man." I reach forward, connecting mine and Christian's knuckles in a fist bump. It's Persephone's turn to scoff
"So what will you do if Max upsets me, if you're too old to break his kneecaps or whatever it is that you'd normally do."
"Hmmm... probably home robbery. I'll swindle your address from Pers, and sneak attack in the middle of the night with the knife set I bought from Target minutes earlier with Lera's card, so it couldn't be traced back to me. I mean, I told Kat that's what I'd do if Noah ever fucked up." Snorts circle around the group once more, as everyone tries to comprehend whatever the fuck Christian just said. "Oh, speak. Of. The. Devil."
I swivel my body around, smiling as I lock eyes with Noah and Kat, Lera brother and friend that I met earlier today. They both greet me, and before I know it, I'm pulled into my thousandth hug of the day.
Because practically everyone here is a Bruins fan, I've been pretty popular with the crowd. Earlier, Noah told me himself and Christian always dreamt of playing for the team, and catch a game together whenever they can. I can't say it's an altogether bad feeling, being accepted in a group of strangers, even if it is because of what I do for work.
Noah and Kat make their way around the group, saying hello to everyone again. It's getting later in the night, and more and more people are beginning to head home.
No matter the time, I'm experiencing the weirdest of feelings. Due to all my training, I'm usually in bed pretty early in the night, knocked out. And although the sun begun to set hours ago, I've never felt more alive. More happy to be where I am. More ready to tackle life head on.
And the best thing, is that I feel more comfortable in my life than I have in a long time.
...
My car hums with comfortable silence, a stark contrast to the bustling streets passing by us. Bright, illuminated lights spill through the front windscreen, landing on Persephone as she lounges in the passenger seat. Traffic hits a standstill, and I look across at her, our gazes locking.
"Do you want to go anywhere before I get you home?"
We left the wedding venue twenty minutes ago, just as it hit midnight and the carriages turned back into pumpkins. I'm exhausted, to say the least, but this stupid grin won't migrate off of my face. I'm not mad about it, not in the slightest, it's just... different. A good different, but different nonetheless.
"Ice cream." I smile, nodding at Persephone while I chuck on my right indicator, just as the lights above us blink green.
"I know just the place."
I drive quickly, in the direction of my favorite ice cream shop. I've been here a thousand times, particularly after a difficult game or training.
I find a parking spot right outside the parlour, slotting my car into it quickly. People bustle around outside, the strip of shops full of bar crawlers and late night visitors. I take my keys out of the cars ignition, opening my sides door and stepping out into the dark night. I round the car, stopping outside the passenger door and pulling it open. Persephone smiles as I extend my hand once more, memories of all the times our fingers have entwined in the last few hours. Our palms collide once more, the heat exchange instantaneous. She steps out of the car, and I close the door behind her, the car beeping as it locks.
I help her step onto the pavement, and together, we wander inside the late-night ice cream shop. Another one of my favorite things about this place is the fact that it's open 24/7, perfect for whenever I get cravings.
We order our ice cream quickly, and take a seat in a comfortable booth in the back corner of the shop. We sit on the same side, so close that I can smell the fresh, floral perfume that I've caught an aroma of all night. It's so perfectly her, it's insane.
I sling my arm around the back of the booth as we begin eating, our conversation growing quiet. We've been eating for a minute or two before Persephone sighs, letting her head fall on my shoulder, and closing the only gap between us. A gap I've been dying to close since we first sat down.
I let my droopy hand connect with the skin of Persephone's shoulder, my fingers running along the smoothness. A shiver is sent up my spine with the simple touch, shivers I can't control.
My breathing is uncontrolled as I watch her lips form a soft smile. A smile forms at my own, and I can't control my movements as I ponder the unspeakable.
I let my head drop, drop, drop, until my lips skim Persephone's forehead.
In comfort, I remind myself.
Persephone lifts her head slightly while I sit back up, smiling towards me.
"Thanks for tagging along with me tonight. It really means a lot." She whispers softly, bringing a hand to rest on my shoulder, to stabilize herself.
"It's okay, I enjoyed it."
"Good." Her eyes flick to my lips wordlessly, as mine dance over hers. It seems like common knowledge, what we're both thinking, but it's also weird. I know that I like her, but I have absolutely no clues about how she's feeling. I don't know whether she potentially likes me, in more of a friendly convenience way, or if she's just confused, regarding our arrangement.
Arrangement's the wrong word. The entirely wrong word for how I'm feeling, and for how I'm going to cope when it all stops.
It's selfish, but I can't give her up. Not yet. I've had the most exciting and fulfilling few weeks of my life, in the time that I've known Persephone. I've found reason to smile once again, and found myself smiling as soon as I woke up because of her.
I can't predict tomorrow, or the next day, or the next week, but sitting here, smiling down at the most beautiful, smart girl that I've ever seen, I know that I want to have her in it.
And that's enough, for now.
A/n:
hello everyone!
happy surprise update day! i took a break from studying, and ended up writing whatever tf this is lmao
i hope you enjoyed, and fingers-crossed i'll see you all soonish!
lot's of love, em xx