successful ; david dobrik

73

LORELEI

Music hums softly from my phone on the coffee table as I sit on the couch, my hands spread out on my thighs as I wait for my nails to dry. I'm spending the evening doing a bit of self care while I wait for David to get home, a glass of wine and bottle of nail polish open on the coffee table.

Rain trickles quietly down the window as I flip through channels, doing my best not to disturb the fresh coat of polish on my nails as I grip the remote. I settle on an early 2000s romantic comedy, only paying half attention to the television as the front door swings open.

I can hear David shuffling around in the hallway, kicking off his shoes and putting down his belongings before he walks into the living room, smile on his lips. "Hey, you," He murmurs, approaching the couch. "No pants?" He asks, tapping my bare leg softly.

"Laundry day," I declare, leaning forward so that David can sit down behind me, pulling my body into his lap. His arms snake around my waist, face burying in my shoulder. "How was your day?"

He doesn't answer for a moment, just kisses my neck and then my shoulder and then the underside of my jaw, his lips slightly chapped but nonetheless soft as they move along my skin. "Good," He hums out, squeezing my hip. "Long."

I nod my head and smile, craning my neck to place a gentle kiss on his lips. "I missed you," I say, my hands wandering up to tangle in his hair. "Always do."

David's lips turn up in a lazy smile, his eyes flickering down to meet mine. "I know," He murmurs, kissing me again. He tastes like minty gum as my fingers tug at his hair, tongue creeping between his lips. His lips are slightly chapped but still soft and I think, with a stab of heat to my abdomen, that I want to do nothing more than sit here and kiss him for the rest of the night. "Cute," David murmurs into my mouth as his hand rests on the curve of my waist, his fingers tracing the waistband of my underwear. "New?"

I hum out a quiet noise, leaning forward to deepen the kiss. I don't know exactly how far I want to take this, how much I can handle before it's too much too soon, but kissing David feels too good to stop, and so I don't. "Mhm," I mumble, my nails scraping along his scalp. David releases a content sigh, squeezing my hip. "Love you," I whisper as we pull apart, lips swollen from kissing.

"I love you," David says, wrapping his arms securely around my middle and burying his face in my shoulder, breath fanning over my neck. We stay like that for a few minutes, neither of us saying anything. There's not much that needs to be said, after all.

"Has Astley been out?" David asks, casting his glance down at the small dog who's cozied up on the floor, his head buried between his paws.

"A few hours ago. Can you walk him quickly while I switch the laundry over?" I squeeze his hand softly, smiling as David nods his head. I stand up, brushing my hands off on my sweater as I make my way towards the laundry room. I open up the dryer, moving the dry clothes from the machine and into an empty clothing basket.

We signed the papers to buy the new house yesterday, and we'll be getting the keys within the next week. I know that I should start packing, should start making sure that we have everything in order but I can't help but feel a pull towards this house. David and I have made so many memories in this house, had so many firsts right between these four walls and I know that I'll miss it. It's just a house, just a place, but somehow it seems like much more than that. I set the full laundry basket aside and open up the washing machine, working on moving the damp clothes to the dryer.

Regardless, I love the new house. It's everything David and I wanted, somewhat traditional with modern elements integrated. There's plenty of room for us to grow, with more than enough room for his family to visit and for Natalie to have a spot with us. I'm excited to move, excited to take this next step with David, but I will miss the old house. "You look stressed, petal," David murmurs, breaking me from my thoughts. He offers me a light smile, picking up the basket of clean clothes. "Everything okay?"

I nod my head, bringing a hand up to tuck my hair behind my ear. "Yes," I say, decisively. "Just thinking about the new house. Lots of things to do. We should start packing soon, D."

David nods his head, nudging me softly. "Don't worry about that now, Lor. I've got everything handled, okay?" His caramel eyes look into mine, small smile on his lips.

I take a breath and nod my head again. "Yeah. I know. Thank you, Dave." He's perfect, always has been and always will be. David takes care of everything for me, makes sure that I don't have much to worry about even with his busy schedule and lifestyle. I don't know how I got this lucky, how I ended up with someone like him.

It's a miracle, I guess, something that I'll always be thankful for.