Came for the Low- Revised

Untitled Part 36

There was a soft knock at the door that broke his concentration.

    "Come in."

    Christine slipped inside smiling over at him. "I think I've slept long enough to keep myself going for a few days."

    He copied her expression and turned off the clippers setting them down.

    Christine saw the tool on the sink and gasped. "Are you shaving?" She asked rushing to his side.

    "Yes"

    "Oh no, I love your beard!" She whined reaching like she wanted to touch but wasn't sure.

    He laughed at her and ran his hand over the short stubble. "It grows back." He assured her, teasing just a bit.

    Christine rolled her eyes and pulled herself up onto the long counter top, crossing her legs. "Yes but, I really loved it." She angled her brows down in the saddest face she could manage.

    Stopping as he reached for the razor, Zemo gave her a dirty look in the mirror and she laughed. "I'm sorry." She said rubbing his bare arm. He'd taken off his t-shirt and was shaving in his underwear with a towel around his shoulders and nothing else.     "Please. Finish." She said glancing at his necklace, her fingers finding her own without needing to think about it. "Actually I'm curious! I haven't seen your face in forever" She said and dropped her thin chain to reach and run her fingers through his hair and down along his almost bare face.

    Zemo gave her a little wink and got on with it —lathering the soap and starting the process— all the while his wife content to just sit and watch for the simple sake of being able to.

    The freedom to casually enjoy the sight of her husband was something Christine would never take for granted again. The mundane and the ordinary held magic in them now, especially knowing that her family's future would change drastically once they got to Germany.

    True to his word he'd shared everything with her during the many times she'd fed Galina in bed, not the least of which was his uncertainty over who he was becoming.

    Those doubts were gone now, she could see that as she watched him, her gaze following his slow, meticulous strokes along the side of his face with his heavy double bladed razor. She liked watching him concentrate, and how his hands moved when he rinsed the blade and touched his face to feel for more of the thick hairs.

    Not minding the audience, Zemo glanced at her in the mirror, still tilting his head to see the underside of his jaw in the reflection. "Good?" He asked smoothing over the curve again.

    "Yes," She smiled but squinted. "Wait, I think you missed a spot on this side." She said twisting her face subconsciously matching his exaggerated expression.

    Zemo relaxed and laughed holding the razor up for her. "Please"

    Christine took it without hesitating and edged closer to him. "Right. Here." She said, her words distorted by the way she turned her mouth to the side. The scrape of the last bit of stubble as she shaved the small area was satisfying, especially with the reveal of smooth skin beneath the shadow and soap. She did love that beard, but she'd been excited to reunite with this version of the Baron as well. "There." She sat back.     "Finished."

    "Not too sad to see it go?" He asked taking the razor and swishing it under the running water a few times before setting it down on the porcelain counter.

She shrugged. "I am, but I remember now how much I like to see your face." She watched him checking himself in the mirror. "After all it's such a handsome one." She said only half pretending to swoon.