Every time you make a move

Friends Will Be Friends-Pt 1

Garden Lodge, Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, June 1985

"My home..."

Freddie breathed in the cool air as he stood on the small terraced balcony of his master bedroom in his printed kimono, staring at the job that last week's wet and stormy weather had done to his garden below. The grass was green from the rainfall, the Japanese koi carps were back to swimming in the pond like slithers of orange and pearl, the vibrant bluebells were dotted around in several flower beds, and most disappointing of all the cherry tree that was in season was now bare after gail force winds stripped it of its blossoms. It was quite a task for Phoebe to rake up the petals on the pathway to the front door.

Soon enough the early morning breeze was nipping his lower legs, so he backed himself inside and shut the doors as he heard Monica toss and turn in his Queen-sized bed behind him, "See anything of interest out there?"

"Just a helicopter... and Goliath was doing a few laps around the house with Tiffany again" he cooed, untying the leash of his kimono.

Monica brought the duvet tighter around herself to keep the heat in as he clambered back onto the mattress, "You mean they were playing chase?"

"From the looks of it... why can't Johnny and Roshni play like that?" Freddie moulded himself against her from behind to absorb her warmth.

"They do. You only seem to notice when they're playing tricks on you" she kissed the knuckles of his hand that was slipped under the crook of her neck.

Freddie ignored her and began humming a ballad-like tune in her ear once he was settled again.

She could tell right away that it was another song idea of his just by how intricate it sounded and the plentiful amount of notes in each bar and because if that it was going to be a bass or piano-based song, or more likely synthesised.

"Mmm... that sounds nice," Monica's lips curled into a smile, "Is that yours, or John's?"

"Both. Just a new melody that had been chewing at my ear for some time," Freddie's other hand smoothed up and down her curves, "God, I wish you'd wear your silk pyjamas to bed more often."

"Silk is more comfortable," she flatly said, trying to maintain composure under his touch, "What will it be about, do you think?"

She heard Freddie's breath heaven behind her, "Don't know yet... companionship, maybe..."

"Ahhh..." was all Monica could answer back, feeling him lift her hair out of the way so that his lips could place light kisses on the nape of her neck.

"Maybe there's time for a quickie..." she thought, remembering that she was reuniting with her old friend from Belfast Paula McIntyre sometime later in the morning.

Paula was going on a solo camper van trip across Western Europe for the summer, and would be stopping in the city to visit Garden Lodge. It would be  Monica's first time meeting her since their trip to London together, but she knew so far that Paula's life took a different path to her own. After a foundation art course and health and social care degree she was still living with her parents. But she ended up working in art psychotherapy, and now she had bought herself a camper van with the money she'd earned. When Monica asked Paula why she didn't save it for a flat instead, her excuse was,"Fuel is cheaper than paying rent".

She wasn't wrong.

With his arms under her neck and her waist, Freddie was about to roll Monica over and onto her back so that he could properly kiss her when he heard the whirring of the slider doors.