SEVENS

BONUS: HONEYMOON SUITE

A|N: not going to apologize because honestly iLife sucks sometimes and I have no time or energy to write but I hope these kisses make up for my lack of motivation.... anyway comment, like, spell out your favorite meme for me in the comment section whatever makes you happy...

The hotel "room" Raf had booked for us was in fact a honeymoon sweet. His grandfather owned the building. Raf hadn't needed to do anything more than give his name and a smile to the clerk before the hotel's manager was personally escorting us to the private suite elevator and promises that everything was complementary.

St Josephs had acclimated me to wealth, Made me expect to have polished wood floors and hand prepared meals at the very least. Walking into our room however felt like walking onto the St. Josephs campus all over again. That slap to the face luxury a kid like me dreamed of pillaging, not living.

"You like it? It's not Grandpas nicest place but I like staying here every time I visit Jiri." Raf wheeled out suitcase over to sit next to a large white leather sectional. It was modern, something that just felt like heightened wealth to me. The whole room was in tones of whites, greys and lavenders.

"It's nice."

"There's a private pool and fire pit on the balcony, we can use either later if you'd like." When I turned to Raf, to confirm what I'd just heard I found him looking at me almost worriedly. He had his hands stuffed in his sweat pant pockets and his lip snagged between his teeth.

"Do we have to wait until later?" Some childish part of me waned to go do a cannonball into the pool.

Raf's lip popped from between his teeth and worry was replaced with a smile. "No— there's no reason we can't."

My heart leapt and I couldn't contain the smile that tore at my lips. I turned and began towards the glass doors on the other side of the couch.

I heard footsteps behind me. "Wait. You're going to go in without a swimsuit?" Raf sounded almost offended.
"Did you pack me one?" I shot back. I didn't think he had, who packed a swimsuit for vacation anyway.
"No but there's a gift store downstairs that we can go buy one from."

"That's bull shit." The doors didn't make a sound as I slid them open. Our suite was on the second to top floor. From then balcony the coastline was visible as a dark line against the night lights of the city. The pool floor was lit up by color changing bulbs exciting me even further.

Mom had only taken me to cheap motels, ones where the pool water was green with pond scum and where she kicked me out of the rooms to dose up. She took me there when her addiction became more important than a roof over her head. It was why the apartment had been so hard to let go of, not only was it the only place I knew she would come looking for me but it was the first commitment mom had ever made to me.

Raf hadn't made any commitment to me. No verbal one anyway. But he had already given me more than mom ever had.
I stopped at the edge of the pool, the toe of my boot and worn sneaker dipping into the still pool. I caused more ripples than the wind.

Raf came to stand next to me. The lights from the pool lit under his chin and brow bones. Like someone telling a campfire story. I wanted. To blurt out "I love you." I knew it was a lie, fueled by high emotions, low sleep, and the unending desire to have it echoed back. I let my mouth hang open instead, hoping that he would feel it in the space between us.

"So are you just going to jump in fully clothed then?" Raf asked.

"I was thinking just boxers."

Raf swallowed and looked away. "Should be heated."

"What?" Was that his admittance to wanting to turn things up a notch too.

"The pool. It's heated."