Bad Blood ~Rewrite~

Twenty-Eight

The sun sparkled through the curtains of the window, cascading shadows across the room. Caitlyn stretched out lightly in the bed. She reached out her arm and felt a sigh escape her lips as she found the other side empty. Her eyes fluttered open, and a soft frown spread on her lips when she saw that Thomas was gone. She sat up slowly and stretched out, examining the room around her silently. Unlike the rest of his apartment, his bedroom looked lived in. She could tell he was making an effort to keep it clean now that she was coming over so often. Before, there were small piles of clothes scattered around. Now, she was sure if she opened the closet, she'd find them hidden. A soft smile spread across her lips at the thought, knowing the effort he put in for her. It was nice to feel this way after so long.

The bedroom door crept open slowly, gaining her attention suddenly. Thomas peeked into the room quietly and let out a soft breath when he saw Caitlyn sitting awake. A sweet aroma filled the room from behind him and Caitlyn found herself taking in a deep breath.

"Good morning!" He said as a smile spread across his face. He plopped down onto the bed beside her and gave her a gentle kiss. "And happy birthday..." Caitlyn smiled as he wrapped his arms around her tightly. She rested her head against his chest and inhaled his scent silently.

"Thank you," she giggled softly.

"I thought we'd do something fun today," Thomas muttered as he brushed his fingers through her hair. She relished in the feeling of his chest vibrating as he spoke.

"What did you have in mind?" She asked, resting her eyes softly.

"You'll see... first, I made you breakfast." Caitlyn let out a surprised chuckle as he brushed a strand of hair away from her eyes.

"You made me breakfast?" She asked softly.

"Don't sound so surprised," he laughed. "C'mon. We have things to do today." He grabbed her hand and led her out of bed and into the kitchen. Caitlyn felt her heart burst when she saw the table. He had set it carefully and decorated it with roses. There were two plates of food set beside each other, and the scent of coffee was in the air.

"Do you like it?" He asked, pulling her chair out for her and helping her sit.

"I love it," she smiled as he sat beside her.

"I couldn't bring myself to make a full American breakfast because I don't understand how a person can eat so much sugar for breakfast, so instead, I made bacon, eggs, and crepes."

"You know how to make crepes?" She asked, examining the beautifully rolled crepe on her plate filled with cream and berries. Thomas smiled softly and looked down at his own plate.

"My mum taught me. We used to make them for every birthday..." Caitlyn reached over and gave his hand a gentle squeeze.

"Did she teach you how to cook anything else?" She asked, holding his hand with one hand and taking her fork in the other. She took a bite of the crepe and felt the cream melt on her tongue.

"My mum loved to cook," Thomas said with a small laugh. He started brushing his thumb nervously over the back of her hand as he spoke. His fork picked up his plate, but no food left it. "She'd bake when she was anxious or upset too. I remember when my dad told her that he impulsively bought a vacation house in America... we had biscuits and cakes for weeks. You'd have thought she was making her own patisserie to pay off the house." Thomas paused and bit his lip as he stared intently at his plate. "But, cooking was also her love language. Whenever we were sad or upset, whenever she wanted to make us feel better, she'd cook for us. I remember when I was eight, I was having a hard time at school." Caitlyn stared intently at him as he spoke, taking in every word. "Some of my classmates were always picking on me because I was too small or too weak." He let out a soft chuckle and put his fork down, running his hand over his face. "I'd come home every day in tears... but my mum would be there with a hug and some food. She'd tell me that the other boys were just jealous because I may be small, but that meant I could get into places they couldn't, and I may not have been able to lift the heavy things they could, but I could run fast..." Thomas stopped short when he met Caitlyn's gaze, seeing the tears glistening behind her eyes and the sad smile on her face.