"Hey, Evgeni. What’s up?" you ask when you open your apartment door.
You and Evgeni have been together for five months, and you knew you were in love with him, but you didn’t know how to tell him. Whenever you thought it was the perfect time to, you either chickened out or were interrupted by his teammates. It frustrated you that you couldn’t just tell him how you feel.
"Movie night, no?" he asks, holding up a case of beer.
"Oh yeah, that’s tonight! Come on in," you say while stepping aside.
He walks past you, planting a kiss on your cheek. You blush when he’s not looking. He’s always had that effect on you, and he likes to poke fun whenever he sees you react like this.
"Your face red?" he asks from the kitchen.
"N-no," you stutter as you close the door.
You walk into the kitchen to see him making popcorn. Since he’s in the playoffs, he thinks he can cheat here and there. What they don’t know won’t hurt them, right?
You hug him from behind and rest your cheek against his muscular back. You feel his muscles relax under your skin as you make this gesture, and he takes your hand to his face before kissing it. The microwave beeps, ruining your moment, and you hear him groan as you pull away.
"I’ll be in the living room, okay?" you ask.
You see him nod, so you go into the other room with a beer in hand. You plop yourself on the couch and turn on the television. Evgeni soon comes in with a bowl of popcorn and his own bottle. He stands in front of you, but you don’t know why. Suddenly, he puts everything down and moves your upper half. He sits behind you with you between his legs and tosses a blanket over you before grabbing the bowl and bottle again. You pick a movie on Netflix and wait for it to load.
"This is definitely new," you comment.
"What do you mean?" he asks.
"We usually just sit on the couch."
"I can’t cuddle with beautiful girlfriend?" he asks, looking in your eyes. You feel your cheeks heat up, and he smiles, but he doesn’t make fun of you like he usually does. "You cute when blush."
"Thank you," you mumble before kissing his cheek.
You lean back into his chest, and he places the bowl of popcorn on your lap before taking a few pieces. He eats them and then kisses the crown of your head.
“YA lyublyu tebya,” he mumbles into your hair.
"Huh?" you ask. You turn around and look at him. "What does that mean?"
"I-I love you," he says, and it’s your turn to see his cheeks redden.
"I love you, too," you say with a smile.
You kiss him softly, holding his face with your hands. His arms tighten around your waist, and he starts to pull you onto his lap, but the bowl of popcorn falls onto the ground. You start to get up to get the broom, but he pulls you back down.
"I clean that later. I kiss my love now," he says before pressing his lips against yours once again.
-Emily
