say hello wave goodbye

16: this is the start of something good (1997)

May 1997

She wakes up to the smell of coffee, automatically reaching out and frowning when her hand touches an empty space on the mattress beside her. "Linds?"

"Right here," he says from behind her, and she turns her head to follow the sound of his voice. He's sitting on the edge of the bed with a mug in his hand and another one on the nightstand.

"You left me," she complains in a sleep-heavy voice, pushing herself up into a sitting position and taking a long sip of her coffee while he admires the view. This is the third morning in a row that he's woken up with a naked Stevie next to him, and he's still in that stage where he can't quite believe his luck. She either doesn't notice him ogling her, or else she's just ignoring it, because all she says after taking another drink and setting the cup down is "Get back here. I'm still sleeping."

He knows he won't be able to go back to sleep himself, but he could think of much worse things to do than lie in bed with her for another hour or two, especially since it is her birthday. "Your wish is my command."

"Mmm. Good." She nods in satisfaction, the corners of her mouth still turned up in a content smile even after her eyes close again. She pulls the comforter up to her shoulders and burrows down into it like a cocoon before curling up beside him.

He loves that she sleeps in the same positions, makes the same faces when she's dreaming, even jabs him with her knees and elbows in the same way that she did when she was 20 years old. If it wasn't for the twinges in his lower back, these last couple of days would have made him completely forget that they weren't 20 all over again. And not just because of the sex, although it's been plentiful. They actually fell asleep soon after their long-awaited Friday night 'reunion' and didn't wake up in time to go again before Karen showed up at 7:30 on the dot to collect the dogs. As he'd predicted, Stevie had gone back to sleep the first part of their drive, waking up just in time to start rubbing him through his jeans as they cruised across long empty stretches of desert freeway. They all but broke into a run when they got to the place where they were staying, not even managing to get their luggage out of the trunk until several hours later. Hell, he still hadn't bothered to unpack beyond pulling the few items he needed out of his suitcase. It's amazing how much you don't need when all you're doing is eating, sleeping, and fucking. He packed light to begin with, knowing that Stevie would more than compensate for his minimalism- not that he was complaining. There was some grumbling when he was lugging her bags upstairs, but then later on she rewarded him by showing off some of the things she had bought on her last shopping spree. The girl still does love to play dress up. He loves the part where he gets to undress her. It's your classic win/win situation.

Being here with her like this, just the two of them together with the last self-imposed barrier between them finally torn down, it's easy to forget that the last twenty years ever happened and hard not to wonder about what could have been. Last night they went for a walk before dinner, just as the sun was setting, and she had picked a few wildflowers and tucked them behind her ear. Aren't they pretty? she asked, smiling at him over her shoulder, and for a fleeting moment in the shadows of dusk he swore he saw the same girl he fell in love with as a kid. The one he never stopped loving, even when he was sure she was lost to him forever.

She snores softly, tucking her head under his chin, and he smiles down at her before closing his own eyes. Maybe he'll sleep a little longer after all.

-------------------------

"Lindsey, we are getting out of this house."

He hadn't expected this answer when she woke up again and he asked her how she wanted to spend her birthday, especially when she still hadn't made any move to get out of bed after being awake for almost a half hour. "Oh yeah?"