Quiet e.d

11

Ethan's POV
i wake up and am immediately hit with a wave of warmth when my body is aware that another smaller body is in contact with it: my princess sleeping in my arms. I turn around to my nightstand and send a quick email to my boss saying i'm sick, because today I wanna help Winnie unpack the boxes, and also because I don't want her to overwork herself again as she did yesterday, as that lead to her going to sleep not feeling too well... that won't happen today. I place my phone back to where it was before and go back into cuddling her, but a couple of minutes later i start to feel small little kisses on my bare chest... her way to let me know she's awake. I look down to see her eyes fluttering open, her head lifting up a bit to look at me.
W: "morning"
E: "morning princess"
W: "aren't you supposed to be at work?"
E: "I sent my boss an email that I'm sick"
W: "why?"
E: "because i'm gonna help you unpack. After what you did yesterday, and by looking at what happened in the middle of the stairs, you overworked yourself, and that's not happening today."
W: "E you didn't have to do that, you shouldn't be skipping work because of me"
E: "you're 100x more important than work"
i kiss her forehead, making her blush as always, but her mood changes really quickly when she looks happy all of a sudden.
W: "yesterday I told you I had a surprise for you, but I forgot to tell you last night like I said I would"
E: "oh my god! yeah I totally forgot, tell me now"
W: "ok, well..."
she pauses and gives me a look, the look I am very familiar with, the 'something's up' look.
E: "oh no what have you done?"
she still doesn't speak, the look still glued to her face.
E: "princess what?"
W: "ok ok fine... you know my instagram account where I post my drawings and stuff?"
E: "yeah... what about it?"
W: "I got a dm yesterday morning when you were at work... some people are interested in my work and might want to do an exhibition of it!"
E: "OH MY GOSH REALLY?"
I say getting out of bed, jumping back in shock.
W: "YEAH"
she gets out of bed too, excitingly jumping up and down.
E: "princess that's AMAZING!"
i say as I run to her side of the bed and pick her up, her arms wrapping around my neck. I spin us around, making her laugh and making me smile: her work will finally get recognised and the world will finally know about Winnie Myers' talent. I put her down, and she points her toes to match my height.
E: "congrats baby, i'm so proud of you"
W: "thanks Eth"
I sweetly press my lips against hers, but after a couple of seconds she pulls away.
W: "ah!"
she unwraps an arm from my neck and brings it to her back.
E: "what's wrong?"
W: "my back..."
E: "i told you: you should've waited for me instead of lifting those heavy boxes by yourself"
W: "it's ok I'll be fine. Now, how about I make you a breakfast burrito?"
E: "mhmm that sounds amazinggg, but if you're tired at any point today, promise to tell me and we'll take a break ok?"
i put my pinky up but my thumb was facing her, therefore when she intertwined her pinky with mine, her thumb was facing me, and the promise ends with a kiss. I go to put a shirt on but Winnie stops me.
W: "wait"
E: "what?"
W: "can you not put a shirt on... p-please?"
E: "why?"
W: "because I like to feel your bare skin, not in a weird way, i-it just instantly relaxes me and makes me feel at home... but if you're cold then put the shirt on"
E: "aw baby it's ok i'll leave it off"
W: "yay! thank you baby"
I chuckle, putting her hand in mine and going downstairs.
she heads towards the kitchen and I follow, making her confused.
E: "what? I want to help"
W: "you don't know the recipe"
E: "then teach me"
she laughs and looks back and forth between me and the pans she's gotten out.
W: "fine"
E: "yes!"
W: "can you grab me the tortillas please?"
E: "yep"
I open the cupboard just under the hobs and grab the tortilla packet, but when I look back up I see her reaching for a can of beans in a high shelf, but soon giving up.
W: "can you get that?"
i laugh at how cute she's being.
E: "sure"
I grab her the can as she carries on teaching me her mother's recipe.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I'm emptying a box and finding out so much about her: I don't know why she packed this stuff but i've found one of her old diaries, a teddy bear, the heating aid she found yesterday, and as I reach inside, I feel something square, so I pull it out only to see a picture frame.
E: "oh princess..."
it's a picture of a woman in a hospital bed holding a baby, and a man crouched down next to the bed... both of the adult had tears coming out of their eyes, and the baby was crying. I pull the picture out of the frame to take a better look at it, but there's something written in the back of it.

my little butterfly...
you aren't so little anymore, in fact, you're a woman now, the strongest woman I've ever met: you conquered every one of your fears, and I'm proud of you for that. As you know, I'm very weak, so I don't think I'll survive for much longer... but please, whatever you do butterfly, don't forget about me when I turn into a butterfly, ready to fly high in the sky out of your sight. I know you've never met your father, so I thought that since my time has come, you have every right to see at least what he looks like... I thought it was love... but learn from my mistakes: men are unpredictable, so don't be surprised if you get a little heartbroken on the way, be ready, ready to get back up and find the perfect man that will support you no matter what. I love you butterfly, don't forget to look up every now and again...
love,
mom xx

W: "ok, bathroom done! how's it coming-"
she stands there shocked in front of me, I hurriedly try put the frame back together, but she comes over and stops me.
E: "princess i'm so sorry it wasn't my place to look at that and i'm-"
W: "it's ok Eth"
i sigh and put the frame down on the desk. she lifts my face up with her fingers.
W: "don't feel guilty about reading that... I would've showed you at one point"
as i'm looking at her, I too, like her mom, think that she's the strongest woman i've ever met. I get a blurry vision and she notices, cupping my cheeks to wipe the tear that just managed to escape my eye.
W: "hey hey hey, what's wrong?"
E: "that letter... you really are the strongest woman i've ever met."
W: "eth..."
E: "no winnie it's true... y-you' ve lived through devastating times and adapted to an unfamiliar lifestyle and made it yours."
W: "you know my mom... she mentioned getting heart broken and finding the perfect man... I really don't think I'll ever get my heartbroken, because the perfect man is already mine"