"I think my feet are crying", I say, taking my shoes off and sighing deeply.
"Sit here and put them on my lap", says Rúben, patting the sofa.
"What would that achieve?"
"It would make it easier for me to reach them so I can massage them".
A foot massage? No.
"Rúben, no. You don't have to massage my feet".
"I know I don't. But I want to".
"I don't massage your feet after matches".
"Because the team hires people to do that", he says, rolling his eyes.
"But my feet are gross. I've been wearing those shoes all day".
"Grace", he says in a tone that lets me know he won't back down. "Wash them quickly and come back. And bring some lotion or something with you".
"You're taking this seriously, aren't you?", I say, amused by his attitude.
"I take everything seriously".
I lay down putting my feet on his lap as he asked. And the moment he applies a tiny bit of pressure to my foot, my head falls back on the armrest and I can't help but let out a moan.
"Good?", I can hear the smile in his voice.
"Yeah. You're alright with your hands, I guess".
He just laughs and shakes his head.
"I love this lotion".
"It's the one I use for my body, I don't really have any foot cream".
"I know it's the one you use. It used to drive me mad how delicious you always smelled".
He compliments me, in one way or another, every day and I still feel like a kid who just got her favourite toy for Christmas every time he says something new. Everyone deserves this and now I know it. Everyone deserves to be appreciated and complimented.
"Why are you looking at me like that?", he says, staring at my smile.
"Because I love you".
"You do?", he says, stopping the massage to fully concentrate on my words.
I nod.
"Well, you're in luck because I love you too".
He removes my feet from his lap so he can move to be on top of me on the sofa.
"Thank you for letting me be someone deserving of your love", he says, holding the side of my face so gently it feels like he fears I might break. And broken I was before meeting him.
"No, thank you for turning me into someone who could trust again, enough to fall in love. I thought I was never going to be able to do that".
The kiss is as gentle as the hold he still has on my face. I let out a happy sigh inside his mouth.
"Can we just...hug? I need to hold you right now. And I need you to hold me", I ask, feeling my heart beating incredibly fast.
"Of course we can".
End of part 3