The Experiment © [Completed]

Chapter 47 - One Down ❤️

Dei woke up to the persistent ringing of her phone alarm on Wednesday morning. She turned it off and stayed lying on her back for a few more seconds, trying to chase the drowsiness away. She glanced to her side and found that RJ was no longer beside her on the bed. She looked at the huge window and saw that the sun was still making its way up to the sky, sending a warm glow of morning rays through the white curtains. A quick glance at her phone screen showed that it was only a quarter to 6 in the morning.

She heard some clanging in the kitchen when she got out of RJ's room and walked into the bathroom, and she realized that he may be preparing something for breakfast. She smiled at the thought.

The smell of freshly baked bread, butter and garlic met her as she walked out of the bathroom, a few minutes later.

No way, she thought.

She turned the corner and saw RJ pulling out a tray from the oven.

"Babe? Are those...?" she asked looking at the tray.

"Garlic bread sticks, yes." he said, smiling at her and she noticed him touching his right ear for a couple of seconds. She took a moment to appreciate his appearance that morning. He was wearing a white printed shirt over his grey sweatpants and there was a blue apron hanging on his neck too. He looked adorable.

"Wow!" she said, amazed and already her mouth was watering as she looked at the fresh garlic bread. She took a bite on one of them and closed her eyes as she savored the melting goodness of the bread inside her mouth. "Hmmm... It tastes just as good, babe. I love the softness of the bread, it's literally melting inside my mouth." she commented.

"That's not all, I'm cooking your favorite pasta too," he announced, walking back to the gas range.

"Pasta and garlic bread this early in the morning? Oh, you spoil me, babe!" she said, wrapping her arms around his waist from behind.

"Happy first monthsarry, Dei," he said turning to glance at her.

Dei stood on her tiptoes and kissed him lightly on the lips. "Happy monthsarry to you too. And just so you know, I appreciate not only the food but your effort too, and the fact that you remembered this special day."

"Of course," he said, smiling at her.

"I have to share this wonderful sight though. You look both sexy and cute in that apron," she said laughing. She took a quick shot of him as he worked and posted it on SnapChat.

Dei started preparing the table as RJ finished up and she loved the feeling of how domesticated they seemed at that point. She watched him as he laid the food on the plates carefully, his eyebrows furrowed in concentration. He was definitely not the fuckboy she had heard so much about before.

"You're staring," RJ said when he turned around, balancing the plates on both hands.

Dei raised her eyebrows innocently. "I was not. I'm just happy," she smiled. "I have a surprise for you too, by the way. I want you to see it before we eat."

"What is it?" he asked, looking at her excitedly.

"You'll see," she said and he noticed her blushing hard. "Take a seat first, I need to get it from my room..."

"Okaaaay..."

She came back holding a cardboard about 8x11 in size. She was holding it to her chest with a shy smile on her face.

"Look, I'm not a poet, and these certainly aren't my words, but I'm quite an artist so I... put together pictures of some of our memorable moments from the start. Here they are," she showed him the collage she had put together, and indeed, it showed most of the memorable moments they had shared. There was their first ever live feed, the fake wedding, their first picture as a couple after he kissed her, a picture Beth took when they were at the beach and some pictures they had from their TV guesting. In the middle was a poem from one of her favorite poets.

He heaved a deep sigh and savored the warmth that her gesture gave him. "This is beautiful, Dei," he said, looking at her.

"There's something else..." she ducked her head and blushed. "I... uhm... sang a song for you," she said softly.

He didn't know if his smile could get any wider as Dei placed the earphones in his ears.

"I didn't write this, but the song's definitely for you," she whispered before pressing play on her phone.

(Say it Again - original by Marie Digby, a cover by yours truly)

RJ was silent for a few moments after the song ended and Dei waited...

"Thank you, Dei..." he said, looking at her with a grateful smile. "No one's ever done anything like this for me before and I will cherish this forever, babe..." he added, pulling her on the waist and giving her a tight hug.

Dei flashed her shy smile again. "I may not be as good a singer as you are but the words came from the heart," she said, wrapping her arms around his shoulders.

"I know. I felt it."

"Let's eat? We might be late for work..." Dei sat on the chair across him and placed some bread sticks on his plate.

"Oh, we're not going to work today," RJ said with a smile.

"Huh?"

"I already called Matt. I told him we're skipping work today."

"And he agreed?" Dei asked, surprised.

"With conditions," RJ replied, showing her his phone and the live feed feature on their page.

"What are we doing today then?" she asked, taking a bite off a breadstick.

"We'll go to all your favorite places," he answered.

"All?"

"Okay, maybe just a couple." he said with a wink.

"Good enough," she said, grinning wide.