Love

Room

As Ben and I start walking to his hotel room, I remember what it was like when we were in bed.

Time disappeared when we were naked, enjoying each other till the end.

My blood started boiling at such thoughts, as I wanted to feel his skin again. However, I was also worried, as my body does no look the same after all these years. My skin is no as soft as it used to be, and now I have more flesh than I would like to admit.

I look at Ben, and besides his grey hairs and some wrinkles, he seems to look exactly the same under his clothes, unlike me.

I wonder what he will think of me when he sees me naked. I think while looking at Ben. He then looks back at me and smiles, as if he could read my mind.

I look the other way, trying to be away from his piercing eyes.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Ben asks.

"Ah, no, my thoughts cost more than a penny," I reply, still without looking at him.

"I know you're hiding something from me, I can tell. You haven't changed that much after all this time."

For some reason, I take his comment personally, as I believe I had changed, and a lot. However, it seems Ben still knows how to push my buttons.

"What are you talking about? I have changed," I say, hurt by his comment.

"True, but your essence is still the same."

"And what's that exactly?" I ask, trying to hold my temper.

"Well, you're very kind and sweet, and I like that about you..."

Despite my age, I'm still "sweet"? That's... Interesting. I thought by now I would be sexier than sweeter.

"... Which means you have a good heart," Ben says, finishing his sentence.

Ok, this past part fixes it a bit. Still, I wanna be sexy.

"Ok, not bad," I say. "I also think you have a good heart."

"Hmm, I don't think that's true," Ben says, "especially after what I did to you."

Oh shit, I forgot about that for a moment.

"Agreed, but I don't think it was all your fault, as she meddled in our marriage," I comment, as I believe it was true that way.

Ben looks at me but shies away, showing guilt in his eyes. I know he is remembering how and why our marriage failed, and how guilty he still feels.

I bite my lips, as this has turned into a dark moment. I don't think either of us wanted our talk and night to go down that road, but somehow it did. Now my mind is full of thoughts, trying to find a way to speak of something else.

"What a night, huh?" Ben says, rubbing the back of hi neck, looking away from me.

"Yes... Hmm, well, I still want to see the pictures, if you don't mind," I express. I am not in the mood anymore, but I do not want the night to end on such a low note.

"You sure? I don't want to..."

"It's ok," I interrupt. "I truly want to see them."

Now I see Ben throwing a smile, looking more confident than before.

We enter the hotel and as we enter the elevator, he crosses his fingers with mine, and I do not refuse. I like his touch over me, it is filled with mostly pleasant memories, while I refuse to remember all the other ones.

We then end up on the seventeenth floor, and I have a small suspicion of where exactly he is taking me. I raise my head to look at him, and I see him looking back at me mischievously.

We walk through a long haul, until we arrive at the door 1741. We are back right where we met for the very first time.

"Are you serious?" I ask.

"Dead serious," replies Ben, smiling.

"Is Henry Cavill in there? Because I would like to meet him," I add, making Ben laugh.

"Well, why don't you enter to find out?"

"I certainly will," I say, laughing at Ben's dare.

He then hands me the key, but as I'm grabbing it, he also holds my hand and pushes the key to open the door.

"Thank you," I say, opening the door, while Ben places his other hand on my back.

I feel a slight push as I enter the room, making me feel Ben did not want me to regret and walk away. I do not say anything, as I already know Ben is not entirely comfortable at this moment.

Ben then turns on the lights, where I see hundreds of pictures spread along the room, including our wedding photos.