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Love. Something I thought I knew so well, until I met Merrill that is. She had shown me what the word truly means and shattered the bounds of what I thought possible. She has been the light of my life for what feels like forever. Even when we weren't together, it's like I longed for her and I truly believe she is the only person for me.
As I watch her stir in her sleep I smile like a dork. She's the only person to love me just for who I am and I accept her in the same way. I can't really picture a life without Merrill in it but I imagine it would be very dark. In many ways she showed me who I was. She says the person was always there inside of me and maybe she's right—I just needed the right person to discover it.
Her eyes begin to flutter and I wait impatiently for her them to be revealed to me. It's the best part of my day to watch her wake up. Knowing that I'm the first person to see those eyes everyday brings me such comfort. She smiles before her eyes even meet mine and I grin like an idiot. "Good morning" she whispers "mhm" I reply already lost in her eyes, a ritual of mine.
"What are you up to?" I shake my head softly and furrow my eyebrows at her question. "I can't just... enjoy the view" I scoff playfully, "only if I can do the same" she echos and I close my eyes as I'm overwhelmed with delight. "Permission granted" I twirl my hand and extend it, doing the best version of a bow as I can in bed.
We lay there for several moments, just silently staring at one another. I've never had someone admire me in the way she does. It makes me giddy and fills me with a sense of eternal peace all at the same time. As she smiles I think how much she's changed since we first met in the bar that night...
I survey the room as I sit in the corner, sighing softly to myself. I didn't want to come out tonight but my friend invited me and I couldn't say no. Don't get me wrong, the party is great, I'm just not a party person. A brunette lightly stumbles over to me and I look up at her as she tries to speak. "Looks like you've had a few drinks" I chuckle, finding something cute about her clumsiness.
"And you haven't had enough if you're noticing. Come on, the bars over there" she takes my hand and pulls me up, being a lot stronger than I initially expected. At first I'm just placating her until I assume she'll get distracted or bored. Except, she continues to engage me and the longer we talk to more intrigued I become...
There hasn't been a day since then that I've not thought of her. That was about five years ago and I can safely say she still amazes me. Every time I think she can't be any more wonderful, she proves me wrong. We decide to get up and get ready, not having any plans aside from staying in and watching movies.
I head off to the kitchen to start on breakfast while she finishes up and hum random bits of songs to myself. I'm soon done with everything and she still hasn't come down so I go up to check on her. I find her in the guest room closet, rummaging around in search of something.
"If you're looking for your gift in here, you won't find it" I chuckle and she turns around with wide eyes as she's been caught red-handed. "I'm not!" She protests and I cross my arms over my chest, "fine. But... if you were..." "I wasn'tttt" she whines and I giggle. "Come on, food's getting cold" we head to the kitchen and make plates before sitting at the dining table.
"Speaking of presents though..." she prompts and I hum in response due to the food in my mouth, "what do you want for Christmas? It's almost here and you still haven't told me" she complains. I hold up my finger as I cover my mouth, trying to chew my food properly as I fight back a laugh.
She eyes me incredulously, following my every move. I hurry to the linen closet and grab a single bow out the pack and walk back over to her. I place it on her head and smile softly, "all I want is right here" I sit back down and grin goofily as I stare at her. "Cute. But I'm serious" she sighs as she takes it off and places it on the table.
"So am I..." she narrows her eyes at me and I just continue to smile until she breaks and reciprocates. "You're really goofy you know that?" She shakes her head in amusement, "ha-huh yeah" I say like the cartoon dog and she places her hands over her eyes as they close. Her head is thrown back as loud chuckles escape her and my eyes crinkle as the smile on my face grows.
"I could've choked!" She exclaims, "on what? Air? Well... not like I haven't seen it before" I chuckle as I place food in my mouth. She frowns deeply but I know she's only pouting because it's true. "I'm right and you know it" she continues to pout but her lips twitches slightly. "Awww... I know you wanna smile" I tease and her lips move even more.
"If you stop pouting I'll..." I glance outside to see snow littering the ground and I turn back to her with a growing smile. "I'll make snow angels with you" her eyes widen a bit and a big grin appears on her face, "really?! You mean it??" I feel my heart just turn to goo from her look of pure excitement. It amazes me how she has such an appreciation for simple things; I love that about her.
"As soon as we finish breakfast—and change" I giggle and she nods quickly, almost inhaling her food after. We washed the dishes together and then go put on appropriate attire for the weather. As soon as we get outside, she takes my hand and pulls me to a wide open spot.
"You know... I've never done this before" she admits shyly, "guess what? Me either" a pout forms on her face and I give her a little peck to make her smile. "So we just..." she trails confusedly, "lay down and—for lack of better words—do it" I answer. She giggles cutely and sits down, gesturing for me to join her which I do without a moment's hesitation.
We lay on our backs and she turns to look at me with the biggest smile on her face that I can't fight to reciprocate. We spread out our limbs, waving them on the ground as sounds of delight escape us. I've never been happier than I am in this moment; beside the woman I love. Despite the freezing temperatures, I feel a warmth spread through me as she rolls over on top of me.
She looks into my eyes and I smile warmly at her. "I love you, baby" she presses her lips against mine and her hands hold my cheeks in place, my own gripping her hips. "I love you more" I whisper as we pull away and she simply shakes her head, one of her curls falling from her messy ponytail. I tuck it behind her ear and her cheeks grow a bit redder which makes me smile even more.
"You really are all I want for Christmas" I sigh and she rolls her eyes once more, "I mean it. You make me the happiest woman alive and... I want for nothing when I'm with you. Your presence is a present" I tease and she says nothing. The brunette only stands and pulls me up with her, leading us back into the house and I simply follow. We remove our jackets, appreciating the warmth of the heater.
The day winds down and we've soon gone through many movies and snacks, the sun having set long before. A quick dinner is had and we return to the comfy blankets of our bed, cuddling up together and sharing our body heat. "Thank you for making me feel like I'm enough" she mumbles simply, "you absolutely are, my love. You absolutely are..." I assure her.
