The Agreement •MXM• (Book 1)

This can't be happening

Cyrus

As soon as the door behind him locks I wake up. My eyes spring open and I cover my sounds of absolute disbelief with my hand. I can't let him know that I was awake. That I heard all that. I mean what in God's good grace was ALL THAT?
The fresh memory replays in my head,
"Never do this again,never make me worry again."but it doesn't stop every word he said just keeps replaying in my head like I'm a broken record- his that part of the song that keeps cracking and repeating. It meant nothing before and after a couple hundred times the meaning starts to shift,to morph into something it never was. That's what happens when you think too dang hard.
I've been thinking hard about you. And you keep shifting when you were supposed to be nothing but a passing thought. The background music in the music that is my life. I was fine until you decided to flash your amber eyes my way. You had to chuckle warmly in my face. You had to show off the fact you had dimples,that you can piss me off and be hot while you do it. When the hell was that fair?
Who told him it was okay to stand there and sulk when I didn't say anything wrong? Okay maybe I did a little wrong by telling him he didn't have to take care of me but hey- I've lived with Aaron for nearly two months,I've never seen his butt skip a day of work. He comes back at ten or eleven almost everyday. He doesn't even have time to look at his phone,and when he comes back he's so exhausted he just changes and plops down in bed.
How is a man like that randomly have time to just take care of me all day? How am I supposed to believe that? Why would I? So I told him to leave and he looked like I had just broken his whole world,like he's a victorian woman and I just told him let his ankles show. I didn't. I didn't say anything wrong and recently he's been acting so strange.
Smiling. Laughing. Wanting to know me. We can excuse all of that- BOOM a speech about how he can't bare to see me in pain. Heck,I wasn't even dying. I just had food poisoning but he checked on me every thirty minutes. He checked my fever each one of those times. I would know because I was awake. He didn't leave once. There's no way nothing is going wrong in the company right now with way he straps it to his back and carries it around. He can't just leave to spend more than a day taking care of me. I'm business major I know that's not going to work.
I'm panicking. Picking apart everything he said again when the door opens. Instantly my breath hitches and I dive under the covers and try to look I've been asleep this whole time. My heart is pounding as he sits down beside me on the bed,I hear him open a book and flip a page. This means he's here to stay a while and by that I mean the whole night so no need to pretend now.
Slowly,I act as though I'm getting up for the first time in hours,"...hey."if that below par role I got in high-school theater doesn't save me now I swear to god I'm suing,
"Ah,your awake."he says not facing me but I face him. His lips are pursed up,glasses on and he seems so- grey? Dull I think. Maybe it's the knitted sweater that's baggy all over and a very mellow shade of blue.
"How long have I been out."that's a normal question to ask,right?
"Just about three hours since the last time you woke up."he mutters still not meeting my eyes,"Your fever has gone down."I know,you made sure it did.
"Good thing I don't have a shift today."
"...just my luck. You can quit your job you know."
"I won't be doing that."I sit upright and lean into the head board,
"Of course you're not. Offer still stands if you ever change your mind."will I? I doubt that,
"I have to tell Nana."it doesn't take an genius to see that we're carefully picking our words. The awkwardness that's making it hard to even move. He makes a noncommittal noise at this,
"I already did."Why are you mad? I want to ask this so bad but I just know we'll start arguing. It'll be a back and forth until someone drops the hot potato,problem not solved. Then we just have to move on like it never happened.
"Okay,thanks."A pause,"I'm going to a hospital tomorrow."
"Okay."it's so easy to see when he wants to fight me. It's so easy to see when he wants to ask questions. So easy to see when he hides the urge to as well. I can see it now with the way his jaw works,
"Alright."Why did you say all that just now? Why did you say you can't handle me being sick? Why,Aaron?
"Are you feeling alright?"
"I'm fine,much better."I say fidgeting with the ring on my finger,he notices,
"Does it not fit? Do you want me to get you a new one?"I frown at his advances and he realises he's getting way ahead of himself,
"Have you ever heard of this funny thing called a habit?"I cross my arms over my chest and his face goes up a shade of red,
"Yeah,I have,you know since I'm such an old man. But habits come from somewhere, so where did yours spawn?"
"Spawn? People still use that word?"
"Yes they do,Cyrus. So answer the question."I hate when he doesn't forget things. He's always sharp,alert everything that a guy whose never off track would be.
"I never wore jewellery,so when I wore the ring I kept noticing it was there. I was pretty nervous when you gave me this so...it became my mindless thing."I lift my hand and let the light shine on the plain golden ring. Once I read an article that said my ring had a huge diamond and was crafted by a legend jeweller from France. Which is strikingly untrue when you actually see it,
"You were nervous?"
"Yeah,weren't you?"
"About the wedding or marrying you?"he leans back and gives me his annoyingly handsome smirk,
"Aren't they the same thing?"
"Well the wedding was technically planned by me and that's a totally different type of stress."
"And me?"
"Well,it was different. You were the first person in years to truly challenge me. To go against me. Saying something completely uncalled for each time we spoke."
"So you have a domination kink? Cool."
"Cyrus,no. I do not."
"Oh,really? Fighting to be at a top position at a company,always wanting to be in charge of everything. A burning,passionate desire to handle everything and have people look up to you. He very much has a dominate thing going on."It's too satisfying to watch the way red spreads over his skin when he's embarrassed. Not just his face but his neck too,spilling down like a pink river,
"I- that is not even credible."
"Why not?"
"Because! You're twisting words so they sound like I have a- yeah..."
"Oh my good lord,you can't say kink can you?"
"I can. I just don't want to."
"Alright then say it. Prove you're not a chicken."
"That's reverse psychology and I'm not falling for it."he says and looks away,
"You're that bad of a goodie two shoes?"I laugh so hard my stomach hurts and he just sits there and grunts at me,
"Seems like the life is coming back to you,huh?"
"It never left."so you're little speech was not needed.
"You still had me scared though."he gently gets up and heads for the door,"I'll come to bed soon,I just need to handle somethings so don't wait up."
"Get over yourself,I wasn't going to."I sneak myself back into the warm covers,and watch as he smiles at me from the door,
"Of course you weren't. Get some shut eye."
"Night."
"... night."