I hold a mate in my hands, keeping them warm as I wait a little longer.
I rest my body against the wall, my head resting against it too.
It's stupid. It's so dumb the way I'm so in love with someone that even watching them sleep makes my heart flutter.
She was still wearing yesterday's clothes. She was probably so tired last night when she got home that she didn't want to shower and that's why she slept on the sofa. She didn't like getting into bed with me if she hadn't showered after her shifts.
One of her arms was hanging over the edge, her face covered by her brown hair that it was somehow still in a ponytail. One of her legs was at the verge of falling too.
She was adorable.
Sighing, I drank for my straw and slowly made my way to Asha. I left the mug on the coffee table and sat on the floor, right in front of her. I didn't want to wake her up but she said she wanted to come with me and if we didn't leave soon, we'd be late.
I moved some of her hair from her face, softly caressing her cheek. She had a little beauty spot right below the end of her eyebrow. It was pretty. She was pretty.
I gave her a soft kiss on her cheek, then another at the top of her nose, her forehead and finally I kissed her behind her ear, right below her earlobe where her little elephant tattoo was, that's when she moaned. Smiling to myself, I kissed her lips, once, twice, three times... God, I loved kissing her.
"You don't have to come if you don't want to," I told her, brushing her hair behind her ear, she liked it when I did that, it made her fall asleep faster. "I can be back before Tuesday—"
"No," She said, opening her eyes fast. "I'm going."
I laughed at her sudden rush of energy and watched her lean in to place a kiss on my forehead. She smelled like hand sanitiser and hospital.
"I'll go shower." She yawned, stretching as she titled her head to the side, trying to crack her neck. "Is that mate?"
I snorted, nodding as she extended her hand to grab hold of the mug. She started walking away with the straw between her lips and a tired look on her face.
"I'll make you breakfast," I called out for her, hoping that she doesn't fall asleep while showering.
It had been three years since I moved back to London and a year later, she moved in with me.
At first, it was a bit tricky. We weren't used to living together and to top that, we were still working out some things between us. We managed to recognise when the other was getting to a snapping point and we'd try to talk rather than shut the other out.
It was also hard because she was stressed out from work. I began to see how it affected her, physically and mentally, so instead of fighting her or whatever, I just tried to calm her down, talk to her, let her see what was up.
It wasn't easy. But it was worth it because the past three years have been the best three years of my life.
I have never loved anyone or anything like I loved her. I am madly in love with her and even when she was annoying as hell, she was still my favourite person. The one person that made me smile no matter what mood we were in.
When I finished making breakfast, Asha was still not out of the bathroom. She always did this, sometimes, she was too tired and the warmth made her even more sleepy. And sometimes, the water took a little longer to get warm and she'd sit on the built-in shower bench, waiting for it to warm up. It wasn't the first time she had fallen asleep on it.
I walked inside the bathroom and of course, she was there, sitting while the water was running. The water was hot, so hot that the bathroom was full of steam. Sighing, I turned the cold water on to regulate it, making it warm.
I bit my lip, watching her as she scratches her eyes.
That damn bench.
"I didn't fall asleep," she said, "I was waiting for it to warm up."
I nodded, humming as a reply. I've been with Asha for three years now and before then, I was with her for almost two years. We've been together so many times that one would think I was used to the sight of Asha's naked body by now but I wasn't.
Every single time, without fail, whenever I see Asha's naked body, my cheeks warm-up and my throat gets dry. There was a tingly sensation at the pit of my stomach, a sudden need to be closer to her.
My heart skipped a beat when my eyes finally met hers, there was a hint of a smirk on her lips.
"You need to shower," I said, my voice hoarse.
"Have you showered?" She asked me, biting the side of her lower lip as she made her way to me. My heart was beating so fast one would think this was the first time we do this. "I don't think you've showered."
"We're going to be late." I swallowed hard, her wet hand began to play with the waistband of my pyjama. "You need to hurry."
"And you need to shower," she nodded to herself, ignoring my comment. She knew perfectly well what she was doing to me and she even found it funny how easy it was for her to just... hypnotise me. She leaned in closer, her bare chest was against me. "And we need to save up water. Help the planet."
"You're so full of shit, Greenworld," I groaned, playfully rolling my eyes.
We both knew the moment her body touched mine that I was done for. Pushing her inside the shower, I removed my pyjamas and threw them over the shower's door.
She laughed at me, laughed at the effect she had on me.
Annoyed and very turned on, I decided that two can play that game.
I pressed my bare chest against her, the water hitting my back as I began to trail kisses down her neck, right where she liked it. My fingers began to trail up and down her thigh, getting close to where she wanted but never really making contact. She pushed her legs open, telling me what she wanted as her lips found mine.
In any other occasion, I would've given her what she wanted but I didn't want to. Not yet.
"I thought you said we needed to hurry." She moaned when I moved two fingers down her body, dangerously close to the area where she wanted me closer. Her eyes snapped open and met mine, I loved the way her eyes got slightly warmer whenever we were in heated moments, the way she bit her lip as if she couldn't wait anymore to kiss me.
"I thought you said we were going to shower," I whispered, smirking when I let my hand travel up her thigh.
"I thought you said we were going to cut the bullshit—" Without a warning, I slid a finger between her legs, making her eyes shut close.
She threw her head back when I began to move my fingers slowly in circular motions, teasingly. She wrapped her arms around me, pulling me closer to her, her breast pressed against my own. Her body felt warm against mine. I loved it when we were like this and she'd always pull me closer to her. It felt like she wanted every single inch of her body to be pressed against mine, and the urgency in which she did it, it was— like needed to feel me.
She moaned my name when she liked what I was doing and I knew she wanted more and I wanted to tease her but I wanted to please her more. I moved my hand away, ignoring the glare she sent my way, I wrapped her legs around my hip and I sat on the built-in bench, the warm water hitting her back and splashing on my body.
I kissed her mouth, moving my lips all the way down to her chest, making her moan when I nibbled on her skin. I slid my hand back where she wanted it, between her legs and I pleased her the way she liked.
♀ ♀
"Yeah, no, Becca was running late, but we made it." I glared at Asha, ignoring Nina's annoyed sighed.
We were on our way to the vineyard. We didn't really need to come, I just wanted to have some alone time with her. She had her legs up the dashboard, her short riding up to show a little bit of her ass and I had to look away because it was distracting and I was the one driving.
"Well, let me know if you need me to pick you guys up from the airport, when are you coming back again?" Nina asked, her voice sounded all around the car.
"Hopefully Tuesday."
"Just send me the times and I'll pick you guys up, I feel like I bought a car for no reason, it's stupid—" Nina groaned, I heard Maggie's voice in the background but I couldn't hear what she said. "No, I'm not giving you my car, are you dumb?"
"Okay, well, we're here, so I'll call you later!" Asha said to no one in particular because Nina was too focused on her discussion with Maggie to hear. Once she hung up, she turned in her seat, not wearing her seatbelt despite the times I told her to put it on but when we were here, countryside, there were no cars and she'd often remove it. "I'm going to say something and you can laugh if you want but I can't stop thinking it—"
"No, once you say it I won't stop seeing it—"
"I think Nina and Maggie are shagging," Asha said at the same as I was speaking. I sighed, shaking my head.
"They're friends..." I pointed out, trying to take the image out of my mind.
"My love, I'm telling you because I ran into them and they looked funny."
I laughed, taking a left turn into the villa. There were no cards around since it was private property and all that was around was pretty much just vineyards.
"What is funny to you, please?" I parked the car, turning around to face her once I removed my seatbelt. "Enlighten me."
"Their hair was all messy and their lips looked all swollen and they looked like they were up to something— and it smelled funny."
I threw my head back, laughing at my girlfriend. Jesus, she was adorable. I reached over the space between us and cupped her face, bringing her closer to me so I could kiss her.
"Are you going to tell me why we're here or...?" She asked me, her cheeks still between my hands.
"Didn't you say you wanted to see how wine was made?" I lifted an eyebrow, reminding her that a couple of months ago she heard me talking to my granddad about the vineyard and started asking me questions.
"To be honest with you, I just like hearing you talk about winemaking, my little winemaker." She confesses, leaning in and pecking my lips.
My heart swelled up about three times its size.
"Actually, it's more like Vigneron and not Winemaker because I only take care of the—"
She kissed me. Kissed me like she wanted more of me and suddenly, I forgot all about wine because when she pulled away, she had that look in her eyes and we couldn't get inside the house fast enough.
♀ ♀
"So, wait, how old are these ones?" Asha pointed at the oak barrels. We were ending the tour and she was asking me questions the whole time, what this was, what this was for, what happened if you did this, what happened if you didn't do this.
It was adorable.
"Almost 7 years," I told her, "That was the first barrel we produced here. Under my supervision. My granddad is trying to buy it off me, I'm not sure if I want to get into that just yet—"
"Wait a damn minute," She said, turning around to face me, wrapping her arms around my neck. "why would he have to buy it off you?"
"He doesn't have to, he wants to." I smile down at her, kissing the top of her head. "He wants me to get into the business of selling it but I like making it. When we were kids, he used to take Roma and me to his vineyards, he taught us everything. I remember we used to run around, picking up grapes. We used to come back home with our clothes stained and our lips purple."
She smiled sweetly at me, it was the type of smile that gave me butterflies.
"Becca," She asked, swallowing hard as she went on the tip of her toes to kiss my lips. "Do you want kids?"
The question caught me off guard. Not because I wasn't ready or didn't want kids because I did and I was but because I didn't think she was. She still had a few years left of residency and a kid was a lot of responsibility. If she wanted to, I could do it myself or we could adopt but I didn't want to give her any more stress than she already had.
"Of course," I said, "with you and if you want—"
"I want kids with you, I want, like, so many kids with you." She chuckled.
"I think you mean you like 'trying' to make kids with me."
"That too," She smirked, the look she gave me made my knees go weak. "I keep wondering why you're still not pregnant, I'm starting to think I'm the problem."
"Yeah, the lack of male genitalia might just be the issue." I nodded, giving her a sad smile. Sensing my mood, she moved one of her hands to my lower neck and put her fingers through my hair. "It's okay, I could just find a guy to help us—"
She pulled slightly, forcing me to look down at her. "I'll cut your tits off."
"Hot."
She rolled her eyes, a hint of a smile playing on her lips. "I love you."
"I love you, more."
♀ ♀
Sunday came around and we couldn't go out because it was raining lots.
Yet it was hot. It was humid and my hair was starting to get affected by it. Asha liked it, though.
I was on the phone with my dad, telling him about the new barrels I had. He didn't like the way I made wine. I used Oak ageing barrels, he liked using steel barrels. He liked doing everything with machines, I liked doing it the way granddad taught me. Fair enough, the taste changes and his way is slightly juicer but since I've drank more wine my time than my father has... I like to think I know how a little more than he does.
I was walking down the stairs, guided by the melody.
"I call you back tomorrow," I spoke into the phone, not even waiting for him to reply before I hung up.
I dropped my phone on the table, looking into the living room. Asha was playing the piano, a song that she knew I really liked.
She was barefoot, her skin a little darker thanks to sunbathing yesterday all morning. She was wearing short shorts and an oversize jumper that kept sliding off her right shoulder, showing her bare skin. She wasn't wearing a bra. Her hair was up in a messy bun with strands of hair falling.
The doors were all open because, despite the rain, it was still kind of hot. The sound from the rain hitting the floor and the fact that Asha was quite literally the best pianist I had ever known, made me feel like the world had shut down and all that was left was us, here and now.
She was all that mattered.
Ever since I met her, she was... everything.
Without overthinking it, I ran to our room, fishing for the little box I had been trying to keep hidden and I ran back downstairs, skipping the last two steps of the stairs as I rushed into the living room.
When she noticed me, she stopped playing, a smile on her face.
"Are you okay?" She wondered, laughing at me fast breathing.
"I love you," I told her, swallowing hard and hiding my hands behind me so she wouldn't see them shaking. "I have loved you ever since you first held my hand and I haven't stopped loving you a single day of my life and I don't think I will, I don't think I want to. I don't know if you remember but one day, I told you I was afraid I'd never find real love and then you told me— you told me about your parents. And I remember thinking... that, I want that. I don't want perfect, I don't want simple. It's naïve to think it'll be simple or perfect all the time... so, I'm not going to say that I want complicated, or arguments and but I will say that I welcome all of it and all that makes it real... because I know that despite all the complications, arguments and all the wrong things that could happen, we will keep choosing to fight for us, to make it work. I— I want to spend the rest of my life fighting with you."
"Becca—"
I got on my knee, hurting it because I'm pretty sure I stepped on a little rock but I couldn't really move because I didn't want to ruin the moment.
"Do you want to marry me?" I asked, bringing up the little box and opening it up so she could see the ring.
When you propose, you expect the person to say yes or maybe no if you're unlucky... but you don't expect the person to snort and burst out laughing.
"What?" I asked, my heart sinking.
"Baby," She laughed, getting up and running out the room, I follow after her, my heart beating dangerously slow.
I followed until we were up in our room and I watch her go through her bag until she finds it and turns back to me.
"I was waiting until it stopped raining," she chuckled, opening the box and showing me the ring.
"Shut the fuck up." I laughed, my shoulders relaxing.
"I love you."
The end.