Then Because She Goes - Matty Healy

★ Toothbrush

Anonymous asked:
Yes to blurbs!
Maybe when they decided to move in together? Or taking a vacation together? Or one of them winning an award for their writing?

—

They move pretty fast after getting back together. Especially because so much of their relationship at the beginning was long distance, the minute they're finally living in the same city (when Este moves to London) it's hard to separate them. She starts spending two or three days at a time over at his house since it's just as easy to just take the tube to and from work from there as it is from her granddad's house.

When she leaves to spend a few days with José and grab some fresh clothes, Matty pouts and grabs her by her belt loops to lure her into kissing him and tries to hide her things so she can't leave.
"Why go back to that tiny house in icky Islington when you can stay here with me," He whines.

"I'm telling Lolo you said that." She retaliates, and Matty scrambles and takes back what he said. He's still desperate to always make a good impression, even though José loves him.

She comes back the next time and sees a toothbrush, still in its package, sitting on the edge of the sink. "I do own a toothbrush, you know." Este tells him sarcastically.

Matty explains that it's stupid for her to take hers back and forth so he got her one to keep at his place. She secretly loves the fact that he thought of doing it for her. He likes seeing the ceramic cup next to his faucet now have two toothbrushes instead of just his.

Covid hits so he isn't on tour anymore and Este begins working remotely, mostly from the Islington house, since whenever she tries to write at Matty's, he blares his favourite records in the next room to distract her. Or burns his toast in the kitchen and needs her help to get the smell to go away. Or slyly sits next to her, peeling off each article of her clothing until they end up tangled in his sheets again.

But when Matty's not at the studio and she's not on the clock, they're attached at the hip. Este starts liking his body wash better than the one she had at home. Then she no longer has to ask him which kitchen drawer a certain utensil should go, and just knows the answer herself.

They live like this for a couple months—but the thing that changes things is when José decides to move in with Este's parents. London is a big city and now that he's long retired and Florencia's gone, he likes the idea of living somewhere more rural. Since they've owned the house for so many years, there isn't much of a mortgage left to pay, and he offers Este to add her name and take ownership of the property.

When she brings the idea up to Matty, he asks, "You really love that house, huh?"

The more she thinks about it, the more she realises how old and small it really is; and how it inhabited some of the lowest moments of her life. If José's ready to move on from it then she should be too.

"I actually kind of hate it." She decides, sitting on top of his counter while he stirs a pot of cooking pasta. Matty takes a noodle out with his wooden spoon and lightly blows on it to cool it down before asking her to try it and tell him if it's ready or not.

"Then just live here." He finally suggests.

Este's not sure why she's so shocked and flattered by his idea, as if they weren't already practically living together. She's rendered speechless and slowly chews the still undercooked pasta.
"...Really?" She suddenly becomes shy.

"If begging you to stay like a toddler every time you have to leave doesn't show you that I want you to live here, then I'm not sure what to tell you, darling." He points out with a laugh.

So Este's stuff gets packed into boxes and her granddad sells the house. They rent a moving van and lug everything 40 minutes west, over to Matty's. Este snaps a funny photo of him in the back laying across all the boxes and then posts it to her Instagram story without much explanation, making fans freak out and get scared that Matty's giving up his concrete bunker even though he isn't.

He even calls the guys for help, despite her protests. "It's only some boxes, love. We'll be fine," Este tries to reassure him, but he asks them anyway. Matty doesn't want to make her carry anything so she directs them as they unload the van.

"The last, like, 8 boxes I've seen have all been labelled 'books'... You are a crazy woman." Ross declares.

"Books are my job, mate!" She argues.

There's one box that has 'important' scrawled across the front that she forces Matty to carry up the stairs and to his—their—room. It's incredibly heavy and she hears his laboured breathing as she trails behind him on the steps. She stops him when he's about to set it down, telling him that she wants it some place else. "A metre to the side, maybe." He huffs and shifts it like Este asks, but then she stops him again.

Matty's fingertips grow white from gripping it so tight and he bites his lip to accompany the immense effort it was taking to humour her.

"Love, you're killing me here," he complains, voice breathy and strained.

"Just let me think," Este stalls some more, tapping her finger to her chin and looking around the room as he continues to struggle. "Maybe it can actually go down in the lounge."

He looks at her, dumbfounded. "Are you fucking with me?!"

She pretends to act innocent and then eventually gives in, giggling and telling him to just put the box down anywhere. He shakes his head and laughs, sitting on the bed in defeat and wrapping his tired arms around her waist to drag her onto his lap.

"That was cruel." Matty says into the crook of her neck, kissing it shortly.

"You're just extra fit when you're all sweaty and breathless and grunting, okay? I had to wind you up a bit," defends Este. His hands on her skin (and their lips against each others') get a bit carried away and they have to stop themselves when they remember that Adam, George, and Ross are just down the stairs.

When Notes comes out, Matty has to do a bunch of Zoom press, and it's a struggle to find a presentable background that doesn't show any of her cluttered belongings. She ends up unpacking her stuff rather slowly so the mess stays longer than anticipated. Este really does have a lot of stuff, her maximalism shining through with the sheer volume of things she moved with her from Islington.

It works unexpectedly well with Matty's existing decor. The house grows brighter with the art Este adds to the walls and more charming with her flourishing shelves of books. She mixes her vinyl in with his and takes care of the plants that now scatter their home. Trinkets start to line most flat surfaces. His mug cupboard grows fuller.

The two of them are just too busy basking in the glory of one another's constant company. It's a delight to wake up in Matty's arms and hear his croaky sleepy voice every morning. When she thinks she needs privacy, Este puts her headphones on and glues her eyes to her laptop screen in the guest room. But then she can't hear his shuffling footsteps anymore, and misses the way he hums made-up songs when he's concentrated. So she moves down to the dining room table and sighs in comfort when Matty kisses the top of her head every time he walks past.

He likes having to sort through the mail to make a pile of her letters before opening his own; and doesn't mind buying twice as much tea to accommodate both of their habits. Coming home from the studio feels so much better knowing that Este's there to greet him and then kiss him goodnight. The bed sheets now smell of mint, just like her.

And when she's fully moved-in, and the house is now theirs, Matty smiles every time he notices how lonesome it was before becoming littered with Este-ness.

"Sure you're not sick of me yet?" He asks.

Este grins. "Positive."