¿ɪꜱ ᴛʜɪꜱ ᴀʟʟ ʀᴇᴀʟ? ✰𝘼𝙡𝙚𝙭 𝙏𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙧 𝙊𝙣𝙚 𝙎𝙝𝙤𝙩𝙨✮

✰. 45

Citrus

✰

Fruits were never such a big deal to Alex. Maybe when he was younger, for nutritional purposes, but now, he barely thinks about them.

Even the mere thought of consuming them was unusual. Unusual in the way he couldn't think of the last time he ate a fruit. This, however, never bothered him. In fact, it seems like he could live the rest of his life never ingesting another fruit ever again.

Though there were always constant reminders of that sweet food that many people enjoyed in his own life.

His humble home housed many of nature's candies.

And he wasn't the one consuming them at all.

The love of his life seemed to be consumed by the sweetness of fruits. Constantly snacking on tangerines and berries. Fruits were her lifeline.

Even now, as he sat with her on one of the many sandy beaches of Los Angeles, he couldn't help but watch her fingers delicately peel a tangerine. The mist of oils of the peel mixed with the salty ocean air, creating a unique scent to his nose.

Once half of the tangerine was bare, she peeled half from its center, setting the rest down in her bag, protecting the citrus fruit from the air and preventing it from drying out.

Her fingers worked quickly again, removing the pith around the flesh and making a temporary pile of trash. She worked so effortlessly to make the fruit more presentable and edible than it already was.

When it looked clean enough, she'd always offer a piece, knowing what his answer would be.

"No thanks."

It was always the same response. It never differed from the last time he had to decline her offer. She smiled at his response, used to it by now, bringing the small piece of tangerine to her mouth, savouring its sweetness.

He didn't quite understand why she liked tangerines so much. If they weren't peeled right, they would be messy. If someone didn't pick them right or waited too long to eat the fruit, they would be bitter or sour.

Most of all, it made her fingers smell like citrus. A smell that soon became comfortable to him.

From the early days of his career and relationship, he first noticed her attachment to fruit.

She'd always give him an apple for the road, and always an apple, because she knew that was what he preferred. She tried once by giving him a tangerine, but he accidentally let it slip that he gave it to Jamie instead. It made her upset, just a little bit.

He never told her, but he could never stomach a tangerine. It tasted like nothing but acidity and sweetness that was too much for his taste buds. He would never tell her this, though.

It was something that she cherished, and he respected it, even if it was a slight annoyance seeing the fruit in every bag and on every table in their home.

He smiled as he watched her work on the tangerine, her eyes focused on the fruit like a surgeon. Her ability to concentrate on something so simple and mundane was both a fascination of his and something that was irritating.

Alex wouldn't lie if he said he wasn't a little bit jealous. The way her hands washed and carefully touched tangerines reminded him of the way she'd hold his face or hold his hand through the busy street. And the way she'd bite at the slices would remind him of the most intimate moments they shared.

He'd watch her lips wrap around the small slice, suck out the sweet juices first, and then see her pink tongue wipe the slight mess from her lips.

He learned that tangerines consumed her more than she consumed them. Quite literally.