I'll Be There

29 | good ass intro

When Spencer woke up that morning, Olivia was still curled up into his side. He could feel her steady breath warm on his arm as her chest slowly rose and fell next to him. Careful not to disturb her, he inched his arm from under her neck, shaking out the numbness once it was free.

Letting her rest, he quietly made his way to the bathroom then out to the kitchen. It had been an anxious past few days for her, and he wanted her to sleep in.

In the kitchen, he went about his preparations. His game day routine had become a ritual this the season. To start, there was Olivia's tea, then his morning smoothie, and then his journaling. True to both Olivia's and Dr. Spears' word, releasing his thoughts onto paper every morning had completely changed his approach to each day.

Line by line, he filled up a page of his notebook. Regardless of whether it was about football, Olivia, or his family, every last thought made it onto the paper.

Tapping his pen on the counter, he looked over his shoulder towards the bedroom. She was still sleeping. He would have to get started without her.

Moving onto the next step of his routine, he changed locations. Sitting down on his usual cushion, with his legs butterflied out in front of him, he took one deep breath, and then another; the stillness of the third bedroom turned meditation room helping him center himself.

Olivia had spent a copious amount of time decorating the space, and while most men he knew would never admit something like this, he had no shame in accepting that the room had slowly become his favorite in the apartment. And just like every morning, he sat inside it, with his eyes closed, working through the breathing techniques that Olivia had taught him.

Eventually, the faint sounds of her footsteps could be heard coming down the hall, and he opened his eyes, anticipating her entrance.

"You're late," he teased lightly when she sauntered into the room. By the look on her face, he could tell that she was not yet fully awake. Shifting his gaze, he followed the streak of sunlight that ran from her bare feet up to her exposed shoulder.

Adjusting her robe, she yawned out a muffled "sorry."

Spencer made to reply, but before he could, her arms swung high over her head as a high-pitched mewl vibrated through her throat. Her eyes squeezed shut and a closed-lipped smile stretched across her face. The stretch ran its course, and she dropped her arms to her sides, the impact producing a soft thud.

"What?" She smiled, opening her eyes to find an amused look on his face.

He chuckled at her sleepy motions. "You feeling better?"

"Mmm, much," she hummed. She knew the calm feeling wouldn't last all day, so she was going to enjoy it while she could.

Kneeling on the floor in front of him, she crawled into the space between his legs, curling up into his chest. His arms instinctively wrapped around her as she pulled his face down to hers, her lips soft against his.

This wasn't exactly part of the ritual, but he never got tired of her kissing him like this—slow and gentle. As if she had all the time in the world to relearn the exact shape of his lips. Over and over and over again.

Between the two of them, there had been a lot of learning and relearning. New habits, new quirks, new pet peeves. Every day presented a new discovery. And Spencer wouldn't lie, he was enjoying the process of getting to know Olivia all over again. Learning the woman that she had become over the past few years and the woman she was continually growing into.

The new Olivia was relaxed. soft. gentle.

Until she wasn't.

"Liv," he moaned as she deepened the kiss. She was trying to unfold her legs and push them around his hips without breaking away from his face. He had to support her lower back with his palms so that her clumsy movements wouldn't send her tumbling backwards. "Today's not the day to get off track," he managed to get out once she gave him a second to breath.