The Visit

I

"Can't we just hide and pretend not to be here?" Emilia posed the question as she sat up in bed adjusting her pillows, before eagerly taking the mug of freshly brewed coffee from Matt's hands.

"Well, we could..." Matt looked at Emilia smiling at the absurdity of her suggestion. "What do you suggest, when they knock on the door, we should what... simply hide in the bathroom until they've gone?" He proposed imagining the two of them cowering in the bathroom from Emilia's parents like two small naughty children whilst they knocked loudly on the front door slowly becoming more and more agitated.

"What, you don't think that's a clever idea?" Emilia expressed her disappointment over Matt's ridiculing of her idea with mock pleading eyes as she took a sip from her mug before holding it close to her lips in that particular way which was so endearing to Matt. "We would have to turn our phones off," she continued ignoring Matt's look of amused contempt towards her imaginary scenario, "or, at least turn them onto silent so she could not hear them from the front door. You know what 'the witch' is like; she's a persistent beast at the best of times and would definitely call us."

Matt slipped under the duvet beside her as he continued to listen to Emilia. This was his favourite time of the day; his natural body clock having woken him just as the sun was starting to rise. However, rather than immediately getting up he would lie silently beside Emilia as she continued to sleep, studying every peaceful feature of her face still lost in dreams and as much in love with her as the very first time he'd met her. Before finally rising he would kiss her just behind the ear and watch as she'd start to stir 'If this is my last day on earth,' he would always think, 'then so be it, for perfection lies before me and it can get no better than this.' Even after a year and a half of them being together he was still unable to fully comprehend how lucky he was.

"Well my gorgeous, as I've never met the woman, in truth I've only your word as to what she's like." He jested at the fact Emilia had up until today refused to allow him to meet her parents.

"Well think yourself lucky," she giggled as she protested against the coolness of his body trying to cuddle up next to her, "because once she's met you that's it. Your life will end as you know it. 'Resistance is futile' I promise!"

Matt laughed at Emilia's reference to the Star Trek episode of the same name, where the famous Jean-Luc Picard went up against the Borg Collective. That was another thing he loved about her - she was as big a geek as he was. Yet, he recognised the deeper meaning behind the statement. Emilia's mother had dominated and controlled every aspect of her childhood, and only in the last few years had she started to gain the confidence to start extinguishing the years of negative influence. However, she'd never been able to fully escape, so when every so often her parents seeped back into her life through no control of her own, Matt witnessed how she suffered.

"So, she's not a witch at all, she is part of the 'Borg Collective'. It makes sense now! That's the truth as to why you've never wanted me to meet her!" He jokingly responded purposely skipping over the deeper meaning of her remark with regards to her mother.

"Damn right lover, always afraid she would assimilate you in some way."

"Wow Emilia, that's just put some uncomfortable images in my head!" Matt giggled having to put his coffee mug down out of fear of spilling it over himself. "That just sounds wrong, the idea of your mother assimilating me!"

Emilia stared back unable to hide the grin which had started to form across her face.

"Hey, you just keep to yourself any dirty thoughts about my mother! There's only room in this relationship for one assimilation, and that privilege is all mine." With this, she straddled Matt's lap and gave him a long sensuous kiss. "You baby are all mine, and no one is ever going to get in the way of that."