Young Love

The Spectacular Anniversary

"I love you."

Matteo flushed and squeezed his brown eyes shut tight, the collar of his shirt seemingly digging into his skin. He kicked the blankets off until they landed on the floor with a dull thump. Why did he have to leave his phone in his back pocket? Why did he have to butt dial her? Why did he have to pick up the second he heard her voice calling out to him in confusion? Why did he have to say the first thing that came to mind?

"What?"

She answered. She didn't hang up or curse his name to hell for being a creep!

His heart thumped.

Slowly, Matteo opened his eyes. It was nearly midnight and the soft darkness of night blanketed his room. He was all alone. No, not alone. Despite the fact that she was miles away from him, the small device pressed tightly against his cheek connected them. If he let his mind wander just a bit, he could imagine the heat of the phone turning into the nervous but comforting warmth of her hand.

Call it brave or stupid, but Matteo suddenly gained the courage to say everything he was thinking while protected by the never-ending dark.

"I love you, Anna. I love the way your nose crinkles when you laugh. I love how edible your lips look when you wear that nude lipstick. I love the way your butt looks when you climb the stairs. I love the way you push your glasses up by the bridge. It looks so freaking adorable and sexy and-"

Matteo stopped.

What the hell was he doing? Had he seriously just told Anna he loved her and admitted to being turned on by almost everything she did? Oh god...

He coughed, adjusted his collar, and sank deeper into the pillows. If there was anytime to just disappear off the face of the planet, now was it.

"Is it just me...or is it, uh, hot?"

The phone slid down his cheek, falling softly onto the mattress. His vision blurred around the edges as Matteo held his breath for an answer.

"I'm on my way."

~~~

The door creaked to a close, but in the pitch black room it sounded like a bomb shelter being lit up in flames.

Anna winced.

Walking on tiptoes, she slowly made it to Matteo's bedside and turned on the lamp. A warm, yellow glow illuminated the room and took her breath away. Matteo looked positively handsome.

His peppered hair was beginning to form a widow's peak, his face sagged from old age, and the trail of sweat only further proved that she wasn't exaggerating when she told him he had a 100.9° fever. Still, he was the Matteo she loved and cared for these past forty-one years.

Digging through her purse for the cold pack she went out to buy, Anna jumped when Matteo jolted awake.

"Anna! I'm sorry about what I said earlier! I mean, no I'm not. I'm not sorry that I love you, but I am-"

Placing the cold pack on his forehead, Anna smiled at her lover.

She knew he was a little out of it earlier, but not that it was this bad. Worry slipped its way into her thoughts. Would he need a doctor? Maybe she'd just wait a few more minutes. Matteo always hated going to hospitals. 

"Darling, I love you too."

"You do?"

The face-splitting grin he wore made her heart leap and Anna quickly handed him the NyQuil. Desperate to hide her shaking knees, she laid next to him and placed the medicine cup on their bedside table.

"There was once a boy and girl who had never said a single word to each other. They had all the same college classes and went to all the same study groups, but the most interaction they had were awkward but admiring glances. Realizing that nothing would ever change if she didn't take matters into her own hands, the girl made the first move."

Matteo scooted his hand closer to hers inch by inch. When he finally grabbed a hold of it, the two lovers flushed as they gazed into each other's eyes.

"The study group was pulling an all-nighter and she tried bringing him a coffee."

"Tried?"

"She was so nervous that she tripped over nothing and spilled the whole cup into his lap! The girl was absolutely mortified, but the boy was naturally sweet. He never had an unkind word to say about anybody, and he was so absolutely bewitched by this girl that he thought a million burns would be worth it if he could talk to her."

"Really?"

Anna wrapped an arm around Matteo's waist and cuddled against him. Burying her face in the crook of his neck, she nodded.

"Most definitely. They became friends, then lovers, and after four years of dating they married. A year later they were graced with two twin boys that soon became their world, a year after that another baby boy, and two years after that their first and only little girl. Their children grew up, fell in love just as the boy and girl had, and three are now expecting their own children."

Matteo smiled against her shoulder.

"We did good, didn't we?"

Scooting back just a bit, Anna looked over her lover's face. It was still a little red, but he stopped sweating and the unhealthy glow to his eyes was gone.

"Feeling better, darling?"

He smiled and nodded, but then quickly began apologizing as it all came back to him.

"I know it's our anniversary and we had plans tonight and I'm so sorry I got-"

Anna collided their lips together, letting them dance a routine as old as time. Her grip tightened around his waist as Matteo tugged on her corkscrew curls. Still worried about his health but wanting to reassure him, she pulled back and pecked his leathery cheek.

"No worries, darling. Tonight was...spectacular."

Matteo melted, his brown eyes crinkling in pure bliss.

"You make me feel young again."

"And you make me feel like I didn't shit out four children!"

The couple spent their thirty-first anniversary tucked away in bed, cuddling and kissing and talking like the eager teenagers they felt like around each other. When Matteo's sickness finally caught up with him, Anna stayed by his side and sang their favorite songs. It wasn't long before they drifted off to sleep. While the couple dreamt of different times, one thing remained as true as fate: both were wrapped in their lover's arms as they listened to the rise and fall of their heartbeat.