Time After Time

Chapter 9: More Than Words

"... Silence. That was the only thing that rang through John's ears the moment he stepped foot into Lacey's flat. The light of day had long since dwindled to nothing, and the long shadows of the late evening dissolved into gathering the darkness of the night. What appeared like a lively place just hours ago was now replaced by nothing but absolute stillness. Not a sound could be heard either close at hand or in the far-off distance. Even his breath seemed to fade every moment it left his mouth.

John was tired as hell, weary with the burden of long-closed eyes; easily being mistaken as a walking zombie, feeling dead on the inside but subconsciously awake. The closer he got to the bedroom, the more eager he became to see her.

It had been a long and tiresome day at the studio once again, failing to spend any time with Lacey on one of the most important days, her birthday. It was every intention of him to try to stop by during a break or even wrap up earlier but that never happened and thus, here he was, walking through her dark and silent flat, with only a beam of moonlight coming through the windows, shining light to where she lay.

Once he finally reached her bedroom, his eyes immediately fixated on the still yet radiant beauty, her head softly nestled into the comfort of her white feathered pillow. His heart thumped in accordance with slow, shallow breaths. Serenity plastered across his face as he watched her sleep. She was absolutely beautiful and wondered why someone with so much radiance is interested in him, especially someone who had a title to his name - someone who was still married.

The longer he watched her sleep, the more negative thoughts entered his mind. Things were rough the past month with her, especially when she was asking for things he couldn't give her, at least at this moment. They have spent most nights arguing about the status of their relationship, or in John's eyes, their affair. Lacey wanted nothing but John. Their affair was on-and-off going for two years now but yet, he still felt that leaving Cyn at this moment would be bad for him, or even worse for The Beatles.

John felt he didn't deserve someone like Lacey - she drove him crazy but everything about her was an addiction he couldn't stay away from. The longer he spent with her, the more he wished to have. He craved any possible moment he could get alone time with her and during times when they were out in public with company, he was thankful to even be setting his eyes upon her beauty.

"Lace...," he softly whispered, slowly meeting his body with the soft curves of the mattress, "I'm home."

The sound of his voice brought her out of her peaceful slumber, turning to bury herself in the warm, soft sheets. She rubbed the remains of sleep from her eyes and gazed at the blurred figure sitting on the bed next to her, the smell of cigarettes and cologne awakening her scents. Her eyes heavily blinked a few times, regaining focus on her vision, finally recognizing the man next to her - the man she loved.

"Hey...," she sleepily slurred, twisting her head to the side, trying to see what the time was, "Sorry, I tried to wait up but..."

A smile developed on his face, finally meeting his eyes with her cerulean ones, "No worries then, love," he leaned down, placing a gentle kiss upon her plump carnation lips, "The lads wanted to get the track done."

Lacey sleepily smiled, forcing herself to sit up and reach over to the crystallized lamp that was resting on top of her mahogany nightstand, twisting the knob until the light vibrantly lit the room up, now creating a warm glow upon both of their faces.

"Well, I'm glad you're done and you're here," she once again warmly smiled at him, patting her hand on the space next to her on the bed, "Now, get in bed or I'll..."