Joey would have happily sat at the table all day relishing Lauren's company, but she suggested they do a puzzle to try and pass the time stuck indoors. It took them most of the day; Lauren was still putting together pieces as Joey cooked them dinner, and he smiled to himself hearing her singing under her breath across the room.
They sat at the table talking for hours after dinner, a situation that was both familiar to the pair of them and entirely new, with Joey repeatedly being hit by the reminder that Lauren was his girlfriend now, something he would never in a million years have dreamed would be a reality.
"I lied," she said in one of the natural silences that fell between them.
"Huh?" Joey asked, feeling his heart racing with paranoia, wondering if she was going to tell him that she didn't actually love him, or that she didn't actually want to be with him.
"I did feel something when we kissed that night. More than something," she admitted.
Joey laughed with relief as he pulled her into his lap to kiss her, proving to them both - unnecessarily - that they felt much more than something.
That night they walked upstairs to bed hand in hand, and brushed their teeth side by side just like they had their first morning here. On their way back into the bedroom, Joey paused in the doorway. Lauren must have missed his presence because she turned around, immediately coming over to him and rubbing his arms before letting her hands slide down to slip into his.
"You okay JoJo?" she asked, a crease between her brows as she looked up at him.
He squeezed her hands, willing away the tears that had sprung on him out of nowhere. "Yeah," he said shakily. "I'm just... really happy."
Lauren blinked rapidly, her own eyes shining, and they both laughed self deprecatingly. She stretched up slowly to kiss him, her lips pressing gently but insistently against his. Her fingers wound into his hair, and his hands slid up under her t-shirt to hold her steady, his fingertips spanning her ribs.
Sleeping together for the first time happened as naturally as breathing, and falling asleep holding Lauren close to his chest was a routine that Joey was happily getting used to.
He woke the next morning to see Lauren propped up on one elbow, looking at him with a half smile on her face.
"Morning," he said, stretching up to press a sweet kiss to her lips. He lingered as long as possible, and when she pulled away she nestled closer to him, placing her palm on his bare chest over his heartbeat, and reminding Joey how naked they both were.
They lay there gazing unspeakingly into each other's eyes, arms wrapped comfortingly around each other. Joey's fingertips trailed absentmindedly across Lauren's bare skin as he thought about how lucky he was.
He could have stayed there in bed with her all day, but as the sunlight started growing stronger through the blinds, Lauren got out of bed and pulled on clean clothes, going to make them some coffee. Joey pushed himself up on the pillows, peering out the window. The snow looked like it had cleared a little and he was hopeful for the prospect of going home - although sad to be leaving Lauren. When he pulled up the flight information on Lauren's laptop, however, he was disappointed to find that all flights were still cancelled for the next three days.
He shut the lid of the laptop with a sigh just as Lauren returned carrying two mugs.
"What's wrong," she asked with a frown as she passed him his mug and then carefully slid back into bed beside him.
He took a long drink before he answered. "I still can't get a flight until Thursday." He looked over at her, and her eyes were filled with sadness as she reached across to stroke his shoulder sympathetically.
