“We will be. When I tell you everything.”
“Alexander, if you’re not ready—”
“I want to. I can tell you in person when I pick you up?”
Eden smiles wide, breathing suddenly that much easier. “Yeah,” she whispers. “You know what? Yeah. Come pick me up. A little time away from the city might be good for me, too. I’ll pack a bag.”
“Awesome. I can’t wait to see you.”
“Me, too.”
They pause, both smiling like idiots.
“Hang up, dummy,” she says, holding back a laugh.
“No, you hang up.”
“Oh my God, we’re not doing this.”
“Then hang up first.”
“Maybe I will.”
“Do it,” he dares.
She can’t bring herself to. “No, you.”
“Oh my God,” Li sighs dramatically somewhere in the background. “I will pick myself up out of this chair and hang up for you.”
Alexander chuckles. “I’ll see you soon, sweetheart.”
“Alright, alright. I’ll see you soon.”
She ends up hanging up first, but it’s no matter. She rolls over onto her back and beams at the ceiling. Today might have started rough, but the promise of seeing Alexander soon makes it a million times better.
He knocks on her door, smiling wide when she comes to answer. She throws her arms around him in an instant, pressing her face into the crook of his neck.
“You’re here early,” she mutters against his skin.
He breathes her in. “I might have floored it so I could see you.”
“You shouldn’t speed.”
“Sorry.”
Eden giggles. “No, you’re not.”
He laughs with her. “No, I’m not.” He plants a chaste kiss on her forehead. It’s a bit ticklish because his stubble is coming in, but Eden can’t say that she minds. “Can we talk inside?” he asks.
“I’d rather do this on the doorstep.”
“Oh, uh… Okay?”
“I’m kidding, dummy,” she says with a light giggle. It’s a nervous little sound. “Come on in.”
Eden guides him over to the couch, sitting down directly next to him so that she can play with his hair. It’s an exchange of sweet touches, gentle caresses. He has a hand on her knee while she brushes the hair at the nape of his neck.
All is calm, all is right. He closes his eyes and collects his thoughts. He had the whole drive back to the city to think about it, but now that he’s here, he doesn’t know what to say.
