Borrowed Time

Chapter Sixty

Maybe Gianna had a master plan for not letting Juliette help cook dinner, but really... She could prep way better than Esme. It was one of the few things that she was certain that she could do better... But there Esme was, struggling through cutting bell peppers and onions... It was painful to watch.

Juliette sighed, walking over from where she'd been straightening up the dining area a bit to stand beside Esme, her arm slipping around her waist for a moment as she walked around to stand behind her and peer over her shoulder.

"Hey..." A response wasn't needed, but Esme gave her one anyway... That was fine, she liked hearing her voice. Something in the timbre of it was just inherently relaxing.

"Hi princess." Esme responded, chopping the vegetables unevenly as she did. Juliette grimaced and sighed, sliding her arms around Esme's waist as she pressed a kiss to her shoulder, peering over at her handiwork... If she could call it handiwork.

Her girlfriend had many talents, she knew that... She was normally great with her hands... But she still couldn't do prepwork correctly. It was cute, honestly, to see her struggle with something for once...It made her seem more human, more real. Juliette appreciated any reminder that her ethereal girlfriend was actually walking through the world with her, it was very helpful. She pressed a kiss to the back of her neck.

"You... Are wonderful at so many things." Esme chuckled at this, shaking her head as she continued her very shoddy chopping... God, did she hate the pepper she was cutting? Was it like... A personal thing? It seemed almost personal, intentional...

"I know what's coming." Okay... Yeah, she probably did, but Juliette was going to say it anyway. It was fun, she wasn't letting Esme steal away her fun just because one of them didn't struggle to know what people might mean or say.

"You're still terrible at prepwork." Esme nodded, letting out a laugh as she continued to work, her knife work a little more shaky now... Was she nervous now that Juliette's arms were around her? Distracted? Juliette loved the idea of that, the fact that she held so much power over someone who was just so fucking perfect... Stronger women than her probably wouldn't have even been able to handle it, she wasn't sure how she wasn't fully letting it go to her head.

"Oh yeah?" Yup. She hadn't met someone who was so bad at cutting things in a uniform manner... Micheal wasn't great at it either, but after Shelby and her had managed to bully him enough, he learned how to do it correctly... Maybe Esme just needed a little more encouragement. Juliette let her hand drift up, her arm wrapping around the front of Esme's shoulder as she tucked her nose against her back, closing her eyes for a moment when she inhaled.

Home. Esme smelt like home... She wanted to know where she got her soap from so she could keep a bar at her house and use it when she felt alone... But maybe that was strange. She didn't want Esme thinking that she was too obsessed with her.

"Yeah." Juliette pressed a kiss to the side of her neck, making Esme sigh as she tilted her head a bit, leaving space for her to leave another one, which she gladly did. "But you look so handsome doing it, so that makes up for it." She murmured, and Esme let out a quiet chuckle, turning around in her arms to hold her close for a moment, her eyes positively shining... God, she was so perfect... It was a marvel that Esme was interested in her, considering the millions of people that she could have otherwise.... But she wasn't really going to question it too hard, because she didn't want it to go away.

"Handsome?" Oh. Was that the wrong thing to say? Juliette cleared her throat and nodded, resting a hand against her cheek... She remembered the first day they'd met each other, how she thought that her expression was hard, that she looked almost mean... Any trace of that was gone. Sure, her features were a little sharp, but there was just more softness there, in the way that her lips turned up instead of down now, how her eyebrows were soft instead of furrowed downward... She liked seeing how Esme relaxed around her, how she'd helped her feel a bit more alive.