Ten days had passed by, and in those ten days, Mona had received ten different love letters in the mailbox.
He had gone back to Chicago as expected, obviously there was no way he would not be staying with her. However, he had told her that he was going to work nonstop for the rest of the following week because he had been waiting to take some much-needed time off work.
She wasn't sure why he needed to take time off work, choosing not to question it.
The last thing she needed to do she had done. Mona had unblocked his number and now they were in contact on everything again. It felt strange, she spent five months bettering herself and for some reason, she didn't feel like it had been wasted by her actions.
It was a Saturday morning, she was standing in her kitchen in a pair of her fluffiest slippers and a baby-pink silk robe on. The robe reached mid-thigh, her bare body feeling like butter against the material.
Her blurry eyes read over the small note, it laid against her countertop whilst she ate her breakfast.
Hayati,
You wanna hear the story about the day that I knew I loved you?
It was on our fourth date. I know what you're thinking right now, isn't that fucking early? We had only known each other for four weeks at that point. Every week I was seeing you for a date, trying to make sure you were free enough to see me. And I guess it worked since you always accepted.
Our fourth date in the city was the exact moment I knew I loved you and I would have to marry you one day.
I don't know if you still remember it, but I'll tell you what I can remember. I got to your dorm room at seven, dressed in my best fit, ready to take you out on another date. When I got to your place, I found you in a pair of jeans and a tank top. I remember thinking, 'does this chick not know that Bellini's is a fancy place where you gotta dress up nice?'. Looking back now, I realise I was a dickhead in those days, and looks were the only thing I cared about.
Anyway, you told me you'd like to decide the date and if it would be okay for me to cancel the booking. I don't know how I agreed to that, Bellini's had this shitty pre-payment service where I had splashed some extra cash out of my rent money to make sure we had the best table. But seeing you in front of me and knowing you still wanted me to spend the evening with you was enough reassurance.
I remember going into your place and seeing a bunch of shit set out on your table. You asked me if I wanted to help you finish the care packs you were making. I had no clue what the fuck a care pack was.
It was then that I knew you're the type of girl no guy would want to let go of if he found her.
A care pack in your terms was for those who lived out on the streets or needed some care. We were making care packs for homeless people.
Our fourth date was spent ordering greasy pizza in, making these care packs and then we went around the city for hours handing out fuck knows how many bags in total.
I asked you that night why you decided to do something like that and you looked at me like I was crazy and told me it wasn't something new in your routine. It was something you did regularly, and if I had an issue with it then you weren't sure if we could be friends.
I don't know how many hints I needed to give you for you to realise I didn't want to be just friends with you.
But you see now why the fourth date was the one for me. Loving you that early on was easy, it was bound to happen when you're around a woman as whole as you.
I don't know how you end this shit, but four dates in was the sweet spot for me.
Four dates to know that I love you,
I'll never stop loving you.
– Heath.
Heath. He ended it short and sweet with his name and nothing more.
She tried to not smile as her finger grazed over his inked name. Writing for him was clearly strange and not something he did, his ending was as awkward as she assumed he felt writing it.
The memory of his letter left her heart full and she wondered why she had never known of his point of view before. She knew he fell in love with her first since he was quick to admit that early on, but she didn't know that something as mundane as them packing up care packs was the reason for it.
Mona didn't have to think of him for very long since he arrived at her doorstep after she finished her morning coffee.
She was picking up some miscellaneous dog toys when the doorbell rang.
Still, in her robe, she secured it right to her body and went over to open her door.
The laugh that broke out on her face was so genuine and wholesome.
What was he doing here? She mused.
His short stubble and sharp eyes were the first thing she noticed and then she saw the huge bouquet of red roses in his hands.
Dressed in a black shirt and some fancy-looking slacks, she noticed a silver chain around his neck and his short curly hair seemed freshly cut.
"Happy Valentine's Day, baby." Heath greeted as if it was nothing out of the ordinary.
Valentine's Day.
She gave him dubious look and then her eyes were roaming down to see the piles of gift bags on the ground.
Mona smiled, letting him see a touch of her tongue. "You're stupid. What are you doing? I thought you were staying in Chicago for a while."
"I wanted to see you, and I managed to get time off. Three weeks to be exact."
She almost didn't hear him as the words replayed in her brain. Three whole weeks of no work, he must've been insane.
He was the type to drown himself in work and never take any days for himself. Three was out of the ordinary, way, way out of the ordinary.
In his field of work though, it wasn't entirely unusual. He worked on his own time and he could be out of the office for weeks if he needed to be.
She wondered what his sudden urge was and her eyes drifted back to his handsome face.
"You also do know that it's August, right?" She told him straight, yet still taking the flowers in her hands and bringing her nose to them. She took the fresh scent, peering at him through her thick lashes. "Are you sure you're not slowly losing it?"
His grin was crooked, repeating himself. "No. It's Valentine's Day today."
She stroked the petal delicately.
His smile sent butterflies through her stomach.
Narrowing her darkened eyes onto his, she cocked her head to the side, studying him for a brief moment. "Sure, it's Valentine's Day. Now what?"
"Well, now you're going to invite me in so we can celebrate it properly of course." He said, his serious tone making her confusion skyrocket. "And I can show you what's in these bags."
She was positive he was losing it, standing there on her doorstep with a million red and pink bags by his feet.
"You know I actually hope you're going to therapy like you promised because I don't know how to keep this pretence up." She muttered, biting her lip nervously. "It's August, Heath, Valentine's Day is in February, on the fourteenth."
"I am in therapy, I managed to get Mar back." He was prompt to assure her, slowly nodding his head. "And It's Valentine's Day today because we missed it this year, and I know how much you love it."
She did like Valentine's Day. She knew every day should be about celebrating love but having an entire day dedicated to it was just sweet and fun for her.
"You never asked if I was free today, you just assumed." She pointed out, looking up at his tall figure.
He cleared his throat, shoving his hands into his pocket. "Shit. You busy today?"
She stifled a laugh. "No."
"So am I allowed to come in and whip up a fancy meal for two?"
"That sounds a lot like a date to me." Her lashes were fluttery and full, brushing low as her eyes honed in on his. "I'm not prepared for such a thing, I mean I'm still in my pjs."
He took his time taking her curvy body in, she felt her cheeks flame when the awareness of his intense regard made her feel somewhat vulnerable.
"You always look beautiful but if you want to go and get dressed and do that girly shit you do then you can. I have no trouble setting up in the dining room, in fact, the more time you take, the better my presentation skills will be."
Wait what– he was being serious?
When he didn't appear to be kidding, she gave him another curious stare.
She guessed that didn't sound so bad, after all, it wasn't like she had anything better to do. She would just be having another boring weekend if he hadn't shown up.
With a simple glance his way, she accepted. "Okay fine. You can come inside."
Before he stepped into her home, he stopped and began patting his buff chest. "Oh fuck, I nearly forgot..." He pretended to look for something before he reached over and his face daringly cupped the side of her small face.
The heat crept up her neck, staining her cheeks in no time. Her widened eyes caught him and she watched his flicker down to her pouty lips.
"Will you be my Valentine, Mona El-Issa?" His throaty voice danced around her ears.
He waited for her nod and when she managed to do as much, his lips were grazing her soft cheek. It was so quick she nearly missed it but she felt his lips linger mere seconds after.
A cheek kiss was all it was.
And yet it was enough for her to feel like a giddy schoolgirl.
He was being so freaking corny, she thought it was all stupid since they were in their thirties and it was not like they were strangers to each other.
It was stupid, she told herself.
So then why did she like it so much?