Spectrum 》Chris Evans

forty-two

REAL LIFE

River walked out into the main area of the airport, carryon bag resting quite uncomfortably on her stiff shoulder. Yawning, River rubbed at her eyes as she made her way to the baggage claim. She was traveling sans Ruby, who decided to stay in London for a few extra days to visit some friends.

She had found her bags quite easily, which was a surprise, considering how many people were on her flight. She ended up getting smushed between a rowdy four-year-old and a loud, offensive, middle-aged man who smelled like cigarettes and stale cheese. It was not a pleasant flight. River was greatly looking forward to going home and sleeping for about 12 days.

As she began to walk towards the airport's exit to try and hail a cab, she felt a strong tap on her shoulder. Annoyed, River huffed and turned around, about to give the stranger a hard glare and a curt "what?" Her words stopped in her throat and her gaze softened upon seeing whoever had tapped her shoulder.

"Chris?" River asked in happy disbelief. A wide smile creeped up on her face, and her eyes lit up. Chris chuckled softly, nodding his head.

"Hey, Sunshine," Chris said, huffing a little as River threw herself into him. Chris laughed loudly this time, hugging her back tightly, lifting her up from the ground a bit.

"What are you doing here?!" River laughed into his neck. She was shocked to see him, but also ecstatic.

"I wanted to surprise you," he said, setting her down. She looked up at him, her eyes bright and face beaming. Chris felt his heart flutter. He would never get tired of looking at her. He thought she was the most beautiful woman in the world (besides his mother, of course).

"You did an excellent job of that," River giggled, nudging his arm with her shoulder. The pair began to walk towards the exit of the airport, goofy grins on both of their faces.

"How long are you staying?" River asked as they walked into the cool air of outside. She took a deep breath, happy to fill her lungs with some fresh air after being stuck in a plane wit stale and recycled air for hours.

"Four days," Chris said, sounding a little bummed that his time there with her was so short.

River smiled wide, nearly jumping in place. She knew that four days wasn't a lot, but she had missed him, so she would gladly take what she would get.

"Do you wanna come over to my place?" River asked, hoping she wasn't sounding too eager or pushy. "You can meet Pudge."

Chris smiled, wrapping an arm around River's shoulder. She put her arm around his waist and smiled up at him.

"Lead the way, miss Canada."

***

"Welcome to my humble abode," River announced as she unlocked the door to her house. She smiled, happy to be home. She turned to Chris and motioned for him to follow her inside. She walked into the living room, tossing her bag on the couch.

"Now the fun part: finding my cat," River mumbled, barley loud enough for Chris to hear. He chuckled quietly, shaking his head as River began to tiptoe around her living room, scanning for her cat.

"Pudge?" River called quietly, hoping to be able to draw her furry pal out from hiding. At the sound of her voice, Pudge came trudging down the hallway, meowing loudly. He saw Chris and stopped in his tracks, looking curiously up at the unfamiliar human. Hesitantly, Pudge walked over to Chris and nudged at his leg. Chris bent down to pet him, and he plopped to the ground, purring loudly.

"I think he likes you," River laughed, getting down to the floor with Chris to pet the cat. "Hey there dude. I missed you."

Pudge continued to purr, soaking up all the attention he was receiving.

"He really is fluffy," Chris said, looking up at River. She just smirked and shrugged.

"The fluffiest around. Hey, are you hungry?" River asked as she stood up. Chris stood too, and moved to follow River as she made her way to her kitchen.

"Yeah, yeah. I could eat."

River opened up her fridge and began to scan the items, frowning when she realized it was nearly empty, and the few things that were in there were expired. Closing the fridge, she turned back to look at Chris, her breath catching in her throat at the sight of him. He had shed his jacket, leaving him in just a white t-shirt that fit just wonderfully. He was leaning against the counter, his arms crossed over his chest. He cleared his throat, and smirked at River when she quickly looked back up at him, her cheeks flushing a bright red.

"Pizza?" she asked him, her voice shaking slightly.

"Sounds great."

***

River and Chris sat side by side on her couch, the now empty box of pizza abandoned on the coffee table. River had a glass of wine in her hand, and Chris was nursing a beer. They were talking about nothing and everything, just enjoying each other's company.

"Can I ask you something?" Chris asked as River finished laughing at a story he had just told her. She brought her glass up to her mouth to take a nervous sip before answering.

"Uh, yeah, sure. What's up?"

"You remember that conversation we had outside the bar in Atlanta, right?"

River nodded in response, smiling softly at the memory. She had been waiting for him to ask about it.

"Well, I don't mean to be pushy, or anything, but I guess... I don't know, we've been talking a lot lately. Not that we didn't talk before, but it just feels different now, ya know? I just, I'm trying..." Chris was rambling, and River couldn't help but giggle quietly.

Before he could say anything else, River leaned over and placed her lips on his. He was a little taken aback, but quickly returned the kiss, moving his hand to cup the side of her face.

Chris' lips were soft against River's. Their lips moved in tandem, the kiss slow and sweet. As cliché as it sounds, River felt fireworks the moment their lips touched.

Slowly, and a bit reluctantly, River pulled away and leanded her forehead against Chris', her eyes still closed and a dopey grin on her face. She let a soft giggle, and Chris couldn't help but peck her lips once more.

"Does that answer your question?" River asked, her eyes finally fluttering open. Chris smiled at her and moved his hand so that he could cup that back of her head. He pulled her into another kiss, this one more intense than the last.

"Does that answer yours?" he asked against her lips, pulling her in once again. River smiled into the kiss because, oh yeah, it most definitely did.

_____
WOOOO IT'S ABOUT DAMN TIME GUYS
RHIS IS OFFICIAL AND I AM V HAPPY
xo,
A V EXCITED SADIE 💕