Empty Spaces

Break

The hours went by quickly once she got home. Sylvie tidied up a bit while waiting for Matt and Bella to wake up, which ended up being all the kitchen. Kelly and Stella got up and left around 5, stating Stella having a shift at the bar tonight and had to wait for delivery and Kelly was going to keep her company. It was a little after they left that Bella walked into the kitchen, doe eyed and sleepy as she rubbed her eyes. It took Sylvie a second to realise she was looking for her.

Making her way around the centre island Sylvie smiled, kneeling down and opening her arms to the girl. "Hi sweet princess, how was your nap?" Sylvie asked as she embraced her, picking her up for a cuddle before sitting her on the bench in front of her.

"Good." Bella mumbled hoarsely, a yawn escaping her mouth before she could stop it. She opened her mouth again but closed it, like she was trying to think of what she was going to say as to not blurt anything out. "Vee, can we go to the park, please?"

Sylvie looked down at her watch, it only read 5:17 which meant they had a little while until the sun would go down and the storm was meaning to start. She had looked it up while they were sleeping, trying her best to get as knowledgeable so she wouldn't freak out once it started. It had only been marked a category 1 unlike the one yesterday which had been marked a category 3 and it wasn't meant to start until 9pm that night but she didn't really want to risk it.

"Why don't you go wake Matt and see what he thinks?" Sylvie smiled, picking the girl off the bench and placing her down. All the sleepiness had disappeared from Bella as she made her way back towards the living room, it made Sylvie giggle at the sight before she slowly followed behind the girl to watch their interactions.

"Matty? Matt?" Bella nudged his shoulder gently at first, then a little harder as she tried to wake him. She didn't want to do it too hard in case he got mad at her. "Wake up Matt."

Bella leaned down and began poking his cheeks, her grin growing as he finally began to wake. "Matt! You're waking! Vee I woke him!!" Bella called, not realising she was at the door watching them.

Matt groan softly as he sat up, his hand coming up and rubbing over his face to try and regain some strength. The nap was meant to help refresh him and keep him going but it ended up just making him more tired. He turned to Bella and smiled. "What's up munchkin?"

"Can we go to the park!?" Bella asked, jumping up and down in the spot.

Matt looked at his watch and then out the window, before looking back at the small girl. "It's not very safe outside right now, but maybe we could go tomorrow or the next day? We don't know if the storm has affected anything in the park and id hate for you to get hurt. I'm sorry."

Bella nodded her head in understanding before running off to the corner of the room where all her new toys, books and pencils sat. She decided that she was going to do the next best thing to going to the park, which was drawing the park.

Matt and Sylvie sat on the couch, their attention split between the tv and watching Bella play. It felt good to be able to relax, it left Sylvie time to imagine what she wanted her life to be like and what it was evolving into. She had always pictured herself married and with kids but as she grew older and relationships failed her dreams of becoming a mother were fading, this gave her an opportunity she didn't know she needed.

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It wasn't until later that night after dinner when Bella was asleep on the couch, wrapped tightly in a blanket that Sylvie began to think about where she would sleep. Usually she'd sleep on the couch but there wasn't enough room for her and Bella together and with Stella and Kelly taking up the other bedroom there wasn't any room for her. She began to think about alternatives, maybe she could put some blankets and pillows in the bathtub and sleep in there?

"Hey," Matt looked over at her from the fridge, grabbing out a couple beers and holding one towards her. She took it and opened it swiftly, taking a big gulp. It was just what she needed since the rain was beginning. "So, you can take my bed and ill sleep on the cot in the study."

Sylvie shook her head, setting her beer down on the table. "No way. I can sleep on the cot."

Matt chuckled lightly, taking another sip of his beer as he watched Sylvie. "You're the guest, you shouldn't be on an old dusty bed."

"Neither should you, this is your house, I wouldn't feel right." Sylvie stated, bringing her hand up and tracing the label on the bottle. Suddenly an idea struck her, probably not the best idea but it could work. "Well, your bed is big enough for the both of us. We could share?"

His eyebrows shot up as he looked at her in disbelief. The thought of him sharing a bed with Sylvie made him nervous, he was a gentleman of course but he was also a cuddler. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah!" She said, shocking herself by how confident her voice was even though her head was screaming at her, asking her what she was doing and telling her it was a bad idea. "We're both adults, it'll be fine."

Matt looked at her once more before chugging the rest of his beer, once it was done, he nodded. "Okay then, it's a deal." He stood up from the chair and rinsed his bottle out before putting it in the recycle. "Do you want to use the bathroom first?"

"No, you go ahead, I'll go after you." Sylvie smiled at him as he walked past her. Once he was gone, she dropped her head to her hands and let out low groan.
What had she gotten herself into?

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Matt didn't take long in the shower, long enough to wash his hair and body then got out. He exited in pyjama shorts and a t shirt, still towel drying his short blonde hair. He headed into the bedroom and sat on the bed, grabbing his phone from the nightstand and checking his emails.

"Sylvie," He called out, indicating he was decent, and it was her turn to shower. When she entered the room, she had her toiletry bag in one hand and her clothes and phone charger in the other. "Showers all yours."

Sylvie nodded her thank you as she disappeared into the bathroom and closed the door, she was in there for twenty minutes before she stepped out in an oversized baseball shirt and pyjama shorts. The rain was heavier now, and the thunder echoed slightly through the house, nothing like it was yesterday but she was glad she was staying with Casey.

"You alright with the left side?" Matt asked, knocking her out of her trance for a second. She had shut off for a second, blaming it on her lack of sleep.

"Huh?" Sylvie questioned, placing her charger and phone on the bed while she towels dried her hair.

"To sleep, are you okay on the left side?" Matt had already made himself comfortable on the right side, where he usually fell asleep (but always woke up in a different position). He wanted to make it as comfortable as possible and he figured if they kept communicating it would help.

"Oh! Yeah, no, that's totally fine. Thank you." Sylvie said as she hung up her towel before making her way over to her side of the bed, she plugged her charger into the socket and then her phone in. She climbed under the covers and laid down, letting out a breath of relief at the soft mattress that accepted her body. She groaned in satisfaction, her body finally being able to relax. "Your bed is so soft."

Matt left out a laugh as he got himself comfortable, he placed his phone on the bedside table as he laid down lower, his head finally hitting the pillow. "Yeah it is. Makes it hard to get up some days."

"Mm, I can see that happening tomorrow." She mumbled; her eyes already closed as the exhaustion hit her body. She knew it wouldn't take her long to get to sleep, she'd be wanting to slip up the covers since she had woken up.

He admired her soft expression, how calm and peaceful she looked. He was kind of grateful she was so tired because the storm was starting to roll in. He rolled over and switched off the bedside lamp, the room darkening besides the light from the moon and lightning. He could feel the heat radiating from her body and it made him miss sharing his bed with a woman he cared for, as selfish as it was, he hoped nothing happened so he could have this every night.

As he laid on his back and finally closed his eyes, he felt the bed shift under her weight as she rolled, her arm loosely draping itself across his midsection, he took in a deep breath before he relaxed, and sleep began to overtake him.

He could really get use to this.