Before The War Starts (FrUK)

Chapter nineteen

July 21, 1939
It was great to be home once again. I returned to work, and everyone was happy to see me again. Of course, over half the men there did the same thing as Francis and I did: enlisting in the army. Today I had a day off, and if I am going, to be honest, I just did not want to do anything all day besides lay in bed. "My love, are you hungry?" Francis turned to me and smiled. "Not really, maybe later. I think I just want to lay in bed all day."

Francis shrugged knowingly as he placed the covers higher over us. "I couldn't agree more," he laughed. He placed his arms around me and held me in place. I think I had started to get a small separation issue. I had no idea what was wrong with me, and I was not going to tell Francis. I have never loved someone as much as I love him, and being physically away for so long made me feel a certain way that I could not explain. "Are you alright, Arthur?" Francis asked. He was holding me close, and I felt safe.

"I do not know," I whispered. Ever since I got back, all I wanted to do was lay in bed. I have not eaten much and had only been leaving to work. "You can talk to me about anything you know?" Francis whispered in my ear. "Yes, I know...I just do not know what's been wrong," I answered. It was not like the training was scary or something. I liked the training a lot. "You know, it is okay to talk about your feelings sometimes. It is good to get things off your chest when you are emotionally not feeling well."

I turned to look at Francis, kissing his cheek. "I just miss being home with you, I guess. So much so that I do not want to leave you." I looked at him seriously as he pulled me in closer. "That is still no excuse not to take care of yourself. Come on now; we will eat, then take a walk. You need to be more active. I am pretty sure I am the only person you have talked to after you came back," Francis shook his head.

He lifted me out of bed and turned on a light. "Here, I shall put on some music to help you feel better," he smiled with joy as he ran to the record player. He played some of his French music, which only made me want to stay in bed more. I love his music, and it was all I wanted to listen to while I was away. "Arthur, come on," he begged. I looked at him from the covers. He smiled at me some more before I covered my face. "Fine!!!" I said, throwing the covers off.

"I am only doing this for you, though," I said stubbornly. "Great, while I make you food, I expect you to shower, shave, and freshen up, darling" Francis winked at me as he helped me stand up. I looked at him with a smile, and he shook his head at me. "Well get to it, darling; we do not get all day," he laughed, pushing me towards the bathroom and spanking my bum as we parted ways. I laughed at his behavior and decided to do as he said. I walked to the bathroom and slowly took off my clothes.

I lost a couple of pounds at training, so I did look thinner than usual. I turned the water on and slowly stood in the tub, feeling the hot water go down my spine. I just need to relax; I am here now with Francis. Nothing bad will happen, I won't get that emergency call, and everything will return to normal. I pushed my head back so water would run down my face and hair. "Just relax, Arthur; you will have a wonderful day with Francis. Just relax," I said out loud. The thought made me happy.

~
Once I finished everything Francis asked me to do. I walked into the kitchen and saw him happily cooking food for us. "Better?" I asked. He turned to me and smiled. "Much better," he laughed. "Now, The food is almost ready; take a seat," he said as he pulled me towards the table. "It smells good" I smiled. I looked at what he was making, which was regular breakfast. "Would you like some tea?" He asked. "Yes! But I got it," I stood up to take out all of the things to make tea.

I looked at Francis and wanted to look at him forever. "Honesty Francis, is it possible for you even to be more gorgeous than you are right now?" I asked with a smile. "Arthur, you never cease to make me smile," he turned to me as I continued to stare at him with a smile. "Will you be open today?" I asked. "Yes, only for the evening, when we return from our walk today." Francis turned the stove off and started to get plates out to serve the both of us. I had started to warm up the water.

"That's nice, dear," I smiled. After I set up the water to boil, I took out the radio so we could listen to some tunes. "Isn't it amazing how we have been together for almost a year? Have you decided to stay here in Paris for the job?" Francis set the plates down and looked at me seriously. "Yes, that's the plan. To stay in Paris with you. Also, you are right. We are a year October fifteenth. How great is that." I looked at him with a smile as he nodded. "I am sure we can do something special when it comes," he kissed my cheek before taking a seat at the table.

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