The Unknown Number

Twenty-five - German

Eric's POV

We all sat down to eat when I said "thanks for letting me join in on your celebrations, it means a lot to me."

"It's not a problem mate." Grinned Logan

"It's fun with you here." Eleanor smiled.

"I agree, it's good to have you here." Chuckled James.

"I agree with my siblings." Lily smiled.

I blushed but grinned around. I felt Charles' hand on my thigh, my breath caught in my throat. I looked over at him and he smirked slightly.

"Danke, dass du diesen Tag mit uns verbracht hast, Eric, es ist großartig, besondere Anlässe mit dir zu verbringen. Ich liebe dich so sehr, Liebling." Charles announced.

My mouth fell open in shock. Charles could speak German?

"Du kannst Deutsch sprechen?" I whispered

"Mein Deutsch ist etwas eingerostet, aber ich spreche es fast vollständig, obwohl ich es nicht so lange sprechen musste." Charles responded.

I was in shock.

"Can you tell those of us who don't speak German what you said?" Lily asked.

"So at first Charles said: Thank you for spending this day with us Eric, it's great to share special occasions with you. i love you so much darling.
Then Eric said: you can speak German?
Then Charles said: My German is a little rusty however i am almost completely fluent despite not having to speak it for so long." Eleanor translated.

"Since when could you speak German?" I whispered, gobsmacked.

"I learnt from a young age as part of my schooling. I continued to learn while at university as I thought it would help my resume. I hadn't spoken German for years however when I learnt that you are German I decided to refresh my memory." Charles smiled.

I stared at him, unable to do anything other than gape at him.

"I think Eric is doing a rather impressive imitation of a goldfish." Eleanor and Logan laughed.

Charles chuckled then briefly kissed my lips.

"I hate to interrupt but I really want to eat." James commented.

Both Lily and Eleanor whacked him around the head causing him to cower. I chuckled slightly, still in shock.

"Everyone, tuck in." Charles announced.

Everyone egarly tucked into the food, helping themselves to spoonfuls of vegetables, slices of turkey and piles of potatoes. Everyone munched in silence, until James exclaimed "Holy shit this is amazing!"

I blushed.

"You are an excellent cook darling, thank you for this amazing meal." Charles grinned at me.

I felt his hand rub my thigh again and I had to hold in a gasp. Charles was looking at me, a smirk on his face; he had evidently realised why I had gone a deeper shade of red.

God damn that man is extraordinary.

After everyone had finished stuffing themselves, Charles and I began to clear up while his siblings went and sat down in the living room to watch some football (not the silly American version, propper football, soccer of you insist).

As Charles stacked the dishes, I couldn't help but stare at the amazing man before you.

"I know I am wonderful dear however there's no need to stare." Charles chuckled.

I walked over and kissed his lips, one hand on the small of his back and the other on the back of his neck. When we broke apart, I smiled down at him; he really is the most handsome man to ever exist.

"You go sit down Eric, I'll finish stacking the plates then I'll be in." Charles smiled.

"Alright Charles, don't be too long." I grinned as I walked back into the living room.

There was no more space on the sofas so I sat down on the floor, leaning against the leg of the sofa Logan and James were on.

"Alright Eric?" Asked James.

"Yes thanks, who's playing?" I responded, nodding to the TV.

"Liverpool Vs Man United." James announced.

"Nice, who'd you support?" I grinned.

"Liverpool." Answered the Francis siblings (bar Charles).

"Do you support a team?" Lily asked me.

"I do, I support Bayern Munich." I grinned.

"Decent team, we're trying to steal Bellingham off you though." Logan chuckled.

I laughed, "can you afford him though?"

"Probably not." Chuckled James.

Charles walked into the room smiling. He plonked himself down in my lap. My leg began to shake. Of all the times for my anxiety to start showing.

Normally my anxiety quite mild so it is manageable however sometimes it spikes and I begin shaking.

"Shhhhh, don't worry Eric I'm here." Charles whispered quietly.

I wrapped my arms around Charles and pulled him close to me. After gently kissing my cheek, he grasped my hand and our fingers intertwined. Charles resend his head in my shoulder as we continued to watch the football match.

"This is very unusual." Muttered Lily.

"What's unusual Lil's?" Asked Logan.

She pointed to me and Charles and I looked at her, very confused.

"You do have a point." James agreed.

"Can you explain what's strange?" I asked.

"I don't think I've ever seen Charles behave like this with a boyfriend before. When Charles has been in past relationships and is around other people when he and his ex-boyfriends have been together, they would barely hold hands let alone kiss each other in our presence. I mean Charles isn't the biggest fan of PDA at the best of times so it's weird seeing him all affectionate." Lily explained.

"It's probably because I love Eric. Many of my past relationships were brief and didn't cause much stress when we broke up however with Eric it's different. I feel as though I can truly be me. I love him so much and I want to show him that I'm every possible occasion." Charles expressed.

My eyes felt kind of watery. That was the sweetest thing ever. I looked down at Charles, eyes sparkling with unshed tears of happiness, and kissed his soft, cherry-red lips.