I Heard A Rumor

Chapter 7: Sneaking Around

"Someone's a morning person.", I open the door to the hotel balcony to find Jon sitting on his phone. He immediately looks up and smiles, "Hey, good morning! I made you coffee.", he hands it to me and moves over on the couch to make room for me. I giggle and kiss him on the cheek, "I thought that was my job. I'm the coffee girl and you're the senator. Someone's a lot more accomplished than me."

Jon shakes his head, "What? You went to Northwestern and you still work for the Post, right? That's a pretty big deal. What happened to working at the Post, anyways?"

"I'm kind of taking a break from the Post right now, it's been a really toxic environment recently." That's not really a lie, since I dropped the McConnell story, Michael's been off my ass. Amy's continued to give me little tidbits on what the Democratic caucus does behind the scenes to keep him satisfied, and it's worked so far.

I can feel Jon trace his thumb on my knee, "God, you don't deserve that at all. It makes me so mad. Imagine if the Washington Post somehow got a hold of us, though?", he laughs nervously.

My eyes widen, and I almost want to just tell him everything. God, I want to. I know I should, but I just can't. Twisting my response, just like a true reporter, I respond, "If there's one thing I've learned, we need to be in control of our story. It's ours, not the media's or anyone else's."

How naive we were.

~

"Seriously, vanilla is your favorite ice cream flavor? I think you might need to get tested for covid, because you have absolutely no taste."

Jon scoffs, "It's universal, everyone loves it! You can put anything you want on it."

I roll my eyes, "Yet you didn't."

"Says the one who got Mint Chocolate Chip. You didn't even try to have taste either."

"At least Mint Chocolate-Chip has taste! And I wouldn't tease if you didn't always order like a basic bitch. We had chicken tenders last night."

"And chicken tenders are always the safest option. You did split them with me."

I shrug, "You're a terrible influence on me, Jon."

"And you just like teasing me."

~

The day flies by, we spend most of our day around the Falls. It feels magical. And being here with Jon, being able to hold his hand just makes me feel like I'm living in a fairy tale.

"You know", Jon says, walking with his arm slung on my shoulder, "I've traveled the world, but I've never been here before. I'm really glad I'm able to share this experience with you."

"Me too. This just feels so right. I'm still kind of in shock that we're here right now, considering we really just got together two days ago."

Jon looks a bit taken-back, "I know what you mean. And I can see why you think we're moving fast. Are you okay?"

I stop walking, lean up and kiss him, his lips still tasting like vanilla ice cream. "Jon, this is all I've ever wanted."

~

Regrettably, it seems like our time away with each other went by way too fast. I found myself unable to contain my smile the entire vacation. I feel like Jon and I are in our own little world and I never want it to end. Unfortunately, all good things have to come to an end.

Not yet, though. We decided to end our vacation Sunday night with a fancy dinner. Our first official date. While we were shopping earlier, I bought a cute red dress for tonight. I stare at myself in the bathroom mirror, thinking about how much I've changed in just a few months.

After my world fell apart last year after a heartbreak, I wasn't sure if I could ever find anyone again.

I'm glad I was wrong.

I take a deep breath, tucking my loose hairs behind my ear, and open the door.

Jon is dressed in a blue blazer, it looks like the one he wore all the time on the campaign trail.

"Hey..", I say nervously.

"You're beautiful, Autumn."