Page 57 of With You

River takes my face in his hands, and kisses me like it’s something he’s been commanded to do, like it’s a requirement for him to keep living. He takes me into his arms, lifting me off the ground and giving my aching feet some reprieve as he deepens the kiss.

“I always imagined this,” I breathe against the corner of his mouth, wrapping my arms around his neck.

“What? Kissing me?” I hear the smugness in his voice, feel the upward curve of his lips against mine.

I drag my nails through his scalp before grabbing his hair and giving it a not-so-gentle tug as River’s teeth scrape my bottom lip.

“No, yanking this hair out of your arrogant head.”

River lets out a breathy laugh, and I swallow it down, tightening my grip around the dark brown strands. I let the kiss go on for longer than I should before releasing him and pulling back.

“The others will be here soon, let’s get ready.”

“Can we just cancel on them? I’d rather keep doing this.” He chases me for another kiss, and I give it to him before squeezing his arms.

“Later, mon cœur.”

A heavy sigh escapes him but he doesn’t argue back as he places me back on the ground, the pain in my feet still there but slowly subsiding. I circle my ankle a few times, the ever-present dull twinge there as a reminder of the one thing that has the ability to stop me.

“You okay?” River asks, stretching his arms above his head, his white T-shirt rising high enough to show me the bottom of his torso and the defined lines of his abs.

“Yeah, just need to roll it,” I say, and before I’ve even finished speaking, River’s already moving to grab my foam roller.

He brings it over, sits on the floor, and pulls me down with him. I lean backward, stretching my leg out in front of me, and River lifts my ankle to place the pink foam roller underneath. The ridges dig into my skin as I press my ankle and calf into it, moving my leg back and forth while River keeps it in place. He uses his other hand to gently squeeze my ankle, massaging it in tandem with the roller. Within a few minutes, the pain slowly fades, and I reach forward to run my fingers through his hair.

River closes his eyes, nuzzling his head into my palm as I play with his hair. He’s like a puppy, a content smile on his face while he lets me scratch my nails against his scalp.

“Stay in my room again tonight,” he murmurs, eyes still closed. “I could fall asleep right here.”

I push his head back gently, a small huff of laughter escaping me. I’ve spent a few nights in River’s room now, on days when I’m too tired from practice, and I’ve allowed him to carry me there through the darkened hallways. Or when I’ve overdone myself, and my body aches so much that even the thought of soothing the pain myself is too much to bear, and he does it for me. River has become an expert at cleaning my wounds, treating me with so much care, and putting his own needs ahead of mine. I know he hurts, too, but he hides it from me. He thinks I don’t notice the small winces and noises whenever he’s worked his muscles too hard, but I do.

“D’accord,” I say quietly, already looking forward to the way it’ll feel to be in his arms as we fall asleep together.

“Knock, knock,” Grayson announces as he enters the studio, without actually knocking on the door.

River stands, completely composed as if he wasn’t just putty in my hands, and takes the roller with him to pack it away in my bag as he greets our friends.

I stay seated as Evie and Zena approach, practically skipping over with excitement. They both bend down to hug me, Evie shifting her mouth closer to my ear.

“Were we interrupting something?” She giggles, saying it just loud enough for Zena to hear it, too.

I shove her back playfully, Zena still clinging to me and squeezing tightly.

“Give us a heads up next time, and we’ll leave you two lovebirds alone,” Zena adds, only making Evie laugh more.

I extract myself from Zena’s grip, standing to get away from the two of them and their wild imaginations. I’ve felt so much lighter not having to keep it a secret from them, being able to tell them more about mine and River’s relationship, while still keeping all the best parts of it for just us two.

“Are we here to watch a performance, or to see you two rolling around the floor?” Damien asks, gesturing to Evie and Zena, who have shuffled closer together, whispering and laughing as they lie on the studio floor.

Evie shoots him a glare, and Grayson mimes zipping Damien’s mouth shut before his hand gets swatted away. Zena stands, sticking her tongue out at him as she pulls Evie up.

“Alright, children, let’s get started,” River says, corralling everyone to one side of the studio with a wave of his arms. “No arguing during the performance, please.”

They all drop to the floor, Layth putting his jacket down for Zena to sit on, and Damien following suit for Evie. It’s not like the studio is dirty, but it is scuffed from years of people dancing on it. Grayson stretches his legs out in front of him before Zena pats his knee as a silent way of telling him not to. He smiles sheepishly at her, then crosses his legs and tucks his hands underneath him.

River and I move to the other side of the studio, setting up the music on my phone so we’re ready to start.

“You good?” he asks, dipping his head closer to mine slightly as we stand side by side.