I'm about to go to war;
and I don't know if I'll see you again
over four years later
JOHN IS patiently waiting outside of the gates in the airport for when his wife walks out those doors. His stomach is a jumbled mess of nerves, and his mind is racing with excited thoughts of seeing her again since she'd been in France for work. After a month without her; he is ready to feel her touch, have her right against his chest, and be able to link their hands, kiss her- and maybe most importantly, be able to protect her. John hated the long distance between them and the difficulty of time zones. But that waiting he'd endured would all be over in mere minutes.
John worries about her a lot, even though he's been retired for a few years and technically nothing should happen. But, she's been in a whole other country where he'd been absolutely powerless to help her if something were to happen.
He's anxious and fidgety as he stares at the flight times. Time is ticking by so slowly that it's beyond painful, and he can't remember the last time he's been this impatient. Every second he's finding himself re-adjusting his clothes and checking his phone just to look at the time. A month is far too long for him to wait (he's not letting them separate this long again). Much too long for now having to wait for her cute head of brown hair to skip out the doors. As people begin to file off the plane and walk out, John scans each face with anticipation. His stomach lurches as more and more people walk by him and he doesn't see her.
It's near 8 p.m. when John watches Kaitlyn finally walk out of the security area with some fellow musicians. She looks exhausted with her big shirt, shorts, and tired face. He watches as she yawns, and as she looks around scanning people's faces. But when her eyes finally land onto his form; she smiles, gives an excited wave, and jogs her way over, carry-on and all.
"John!" Kaitlyn squeaks as she practically jumps into his arms (discarding her backpack and carry-on to the ground), "I missed you.."
Kaitlyn is finally with him. And he's finally holding her tight, with his face pressing into her hair. His strong arms are wrapped around her as they stand in the middle of the mostly empty airport. "I missed you too," he murmurs as he's so happy to enjoy having her here. His chest is filled with delight as all his jitters are gone.
Nothing around them matters, not the giggles and 'awws' from Kaitlyn's friends/coworkers. They're too caught up into each other, John's hands cupping her cheeks as he looked over her face with a grin, "you look just as beautiful from when I last saw you. Maybe even more."
"God you've turned soft without me!"
"You turned me soft in the first place my love." he smiles, brushing stray pieces of her hair behind her ear lovingly. She's leaning in to him for support, eyes closed, and against his chest.
"John,"
"Hmm?"
"I'm tired, I literally couldn't sleep on the plane. It was horrible.."
"Then let's get you home."
"I love the sound of that," Kaitlyn grabs her husband's hand to pull him over to baggage claim. She's exhausted to the point she can hardly keep her eyes open, but she'll ignore it because she's finally with John again and she couldn't be happier.
John watches fondly as Kaitlyn fell slept in the passenger seat, her eyes delicately closed, and her breaths even. A glimmer shone in his eye as he sat in the driver seat in the garage. She didn't wake up to the noisy garage door opening. She looks like an angel with her hair messy against the mustang's leather seat, and he almost feels guilty moving her.
With ease John is able to scoop her up into his arms bridal style. She's light as a feather to him, her head fell against his chest, and in this moment John is holding his whole world. His footsteps echoed on the stairs as he carries her up; he tries his best to stay quiet as possible not to wake his precious wife.
He makes sure to change her clothes carefully after he lays her on their bed. She looks so beautiful laying there on the pure white sheets. When he joins her in bed, he tucks his arms around her tiny frame and hugs her flush to him. John's body is able to relax, all his tension suddenly gone now that she's back. For the first time in a month John is able to fall asleep with ease.
•••
Kaitlyn has to force her eyes open the next morning, her surroundings blurry and bright from the windows. Disoriented and jet lagged, she confusedly looks around from the large bed of white to find herself alone. She sits up straight for a few seconds trying to take in her surroundings- until it hit her. She is home. Not in France. Home. And home meant John. A smile forms on her lips as she rubs her eyes and jumps out of bed.
Her bare feet pad against the cool hardwood, she glances at the clock and sees it reads 12:34 p.m., and then she sees her discombobulated state. Messy hair and dark bags under her eyes; more than likely caused by the all-nighter they pulled on their last night in Paris. Thinking about those fond memories made her smile, and it was crazy to think that was only mere hours ago; it feels like it had been a lifetime.
She adventures out of the master bedroom and down the grand stairs. The faint smell of food in the air makes her stomach grumble and she goes right towards the kitchen with no delay.
John is sitting at the breakfast counter reading the newspaper. He notices her presence immediately, his head snapping over and a smile forming on his lips.
"Good morning," he speaks softly seeing his rather cute but tired wife, "suppose you're hungry."
"Very," Kaitlyn walks over to where he's sitting and places herself in between his legs so he'd wrap his arms around her. She places her head into the crook of his neck; the smell of his cologne absolutely intoxicating (she missed this). The feeling of safety and love was overwhelming, "I could definitely use some coffee."
"I could make you some," he softly ran a large hand through her hair,
"No no, don't worry about moving." she still has to go onto her tiptoes to kiss his scratchy cheek even though he's sitting, "I got it."
It's a simple action by John. He's able to grab ahold of her hips and twist her around so she takes his seat at the island. She always forgets about his quick reflexes and strength until he pulled something like that. A fake pout graces her lips as she watches him with a careful look. Kaitlyn has missed seeing her gorgeous husband; his height, broad shoulders, and the way his dark hair falls past his neck. She feels chills run down her spine as her stomach bursts with emotion watching his every move; the grace he has from touching the mugs to pouring the steaming coffee.
"I love you," Kaitlyn says softly as he places the hot drink on the granite in front of her. Those three words rolled off her tongue effortlessly, she was glad to speak them in person for the first time in weeks. She sees a pink blush creep up his neck and face.
John then leans down and places a kiss against her lips, "I love you too." he says it in the softest most endearing tone that makes both their insides melt.
Because John missed her dearly, he closes the gap between them and leans down for a sweet kiss. It's a deep kiss; immediately being filled with need and love. It's one that has Kaitlyn backed up against the wall and smiling against his mouth, kissing him back urgently. For John, it's too soon as she pulls away, so he goes back for another; his mouth red from kissing, so soft and desperate for a taste of her.
They are gasping for breath as they finally pull apart, Kaitlyn grabbing up at his strong shoulders with her emotions on high. John's heart is beating fast and painful in his chest. He doesn't want to let go now that she's back. He's been waiting a month to kiss her like this and he just wants more.
"Mmm I definitely missed that," Kaitlyn beams, cupping his cheek with her delicate hand. Ever since he retired all those years ago, they were rarely ever apart; her month in France (as fun as it was) was extremely difficult for her because of that. John is her protector, lover, and best friend. She relies on him more than she realized.
"Me too," John speaks as he rests his forehead down on hers,
"I'd love to go back though, with just you."
"We can make that a plan."
Kaitlyn stares into his eyes lovingly and softly running her fingers down his scratchy cheek, "Oh also! I have stuff for you,"
John raises an amused eyebrow, "you coming home wasn't enough of a gift?"
She giggles, "well that was part of it! But," she gets up from the chair and quickly scurries over to the other side of the kitchen where her carry-on is. She rummages through it and pulls out an envelope, "these are for you."
A blush forms on his cheeks as he takes the package from her hands. She knows they always agreed on no gifts, he is horrible at receiving them and so is she. She watches with anticipation as he opens the envelope. He pulls out the twenty or so pictures that are inside; and instantly a smile formed on his lips. He thumbs through the stack and loves what he sees; the most beautiful pictures of his most beautiful wife all. Some are in front of iconic French monuments, gardens, and in cafés. One in particular is wallet sized, which he knows immediately where it would be going.
"I hope you enjoy it I-"
"Couldn't have asked for anything better." he leans down and captures her into a sweet kiss. The two smile into it as his hands go to both sides of her face, "thank you. Though you do know I have plenty of pictures of you on my phone right?"
"Oh I know. I mean I sent you plenty." she grins, "but we both know you're more sentimental than you like to admit.. So you're very welcome."
"You have me there," John captures her in his arms and into a tight hug. She knows him all too well he thinks.
"And I had plenty of fun trying to make sure I looked good. Took a few try for each one." she mutters into his chest,
"You're gorgeous no matter what, stop that."
"And you always say that!" Kaitlyn looks up at him and carefully squeezes his arm.
"Because it's the truth Katie."
"And you're the most handsome man in the world but you never believe me when I say it."
"And you," he leans down more so his lips are centimeters from hers, "drive me crazy,"
The close proximity, the feelings, and the love is swirling around them. Full force emotions that bring two people together, souls intertwining, and everything that comes along with it; the ups and the downs. The fights to the nights in bed.
"Wanna know what else I miss?" Katie looks at him mischievously, her fingers playing with the bottom of his shirt.
"What's that?" his heart feels like it's starting to beat out of his chest as her soft fingers moves to the hem of his pants. He can already feel himself getting hard, having to shift around uncomfortably.
Kaitlyn goes up on her tiptoes to meet him in a swift kiss. She pulls away too soon for him with a cruel giggle, she knows what she's doing to him. Taking his hand into hers she tugs, "back to bed?"
"Absolutely little one,"
Except, what neither of them realizes is that change is on the horizon and coming fast.
playlist
01. summertime in paris― jaden 02. sparks― the dø 03. see you again― tyler, the creator 04. les― childish gambino 05. remembering sunday― all time low 06. time machine― state champs 07. eyes closed― halsey 08. can't tell me nothing― kanye west 09. kashmir― led zeppelin 10. car radio― twenty one pilots 11. landslide― oh wonder 12. after the storm― kali uchis 13. fix you― coldplay 14. here― alessia cara 15. sign of the times― harry styles 16. new year's day― taylor swift 17. perfect― ed sheeran