He climbed the stairs to the upper floor. It was still early and he liked it, always had. Being up before everyone else, just him and the sound of his own thoughts. Thoughts that tend to drown in the everyday buzz, which he admittedly didn't want to be without but frankly occupied the surrounding air most hours of the day.
On the last step he stopped for a few seconds, taking in the view from the large window facing the treetops and the sky; the sun slowly rised to a new beautiful day in this surrealistic and currently not so beautiful world. It was almost like the sun and the birds and the blossom were trying to compensate for all the chaos, death and disaster.
He shrugged and went on into the master bedroom, just to be standing still again on the threshold. The view in front of him was even more breathtaking. He'd seen it many times before of course and every moorning for several weeks now, but was still overwhelmed by it every damn day; the amount of dark-blonde and pinkish-blonde hair, swirling togehter with no sharp edges, impossible to know which head it belonged to. If you didnt know, which he obviously did. Those small and still chubby arms of his daugther clinging around the bigger but still tiny body beside her, like she was saying "dont you dare leave me again, if so for a minute". Maybe she was, at least unspoken. It wasn't easy for a grown up to deal with the kind of reality they had been facing the last couple of years and it sure wasn't easier for a three year old. He couldnt help but thinking these weird and fucked up circumstances the pandemic brought actually were a bit good for them all. The possibility to slow down and be together not able to do anything, or just little, else than taking care of each other.
His thoughts were interrupted when a pair of green eyes opened and looked at him, first a bit confused, then with a little smile playing in the corner of her mouth. He whispered a soft good morning when he crossed the room and leaned over the bed to place a kiss on her lips. Careful, so he wouldn't wake the child.
"Slept good?" he whispered, removing a strain of that almost faded pink hair from her face.
"I did."
She yawned and stretched up to touch his neck, curling the untamed hair around her fingers.
"Good. Coffee is ready when you are"
He softly caressed her arm before moving towards the door again.
"Hey B!" she said with a low voice when he was almost out of the room.
"What?"
He turned around, looking at her attentively.
"It's the third day in a row I wake up without spasms, not taking the pills. It's fucking amazing isn't it?"
Her eyes teared up but she was still smiling.
"It is. It's fucking amazing".
He smiled back, hesitated for a second and then continiued.
"We just have to find a way to keep us in quarantine when this shit is over" he said half joking, half serious. "It clearly do you good. And her too".
He watched his little girl, fast asleep with a thumb in her mouth and her beloved stuffed animal Piggy under one left arm.
"She hasn't been having nightmares the last week" he stated, and she nodded confirmingly.
"And you?" she asked. "What's in it for you?"
"Me?" He raised an eyebrow and grinned. "I can shamelessly eat as much snacks and unhealthy food I want and I get to see you naked every day. What else do I need?"
He chuckled and quickly exited the room before he was hit by a pillow flying his way.
******
When she came down to the kitchen ten minutes later, he was leaning at the countertop with a cup of coffe in one hand and his iPhone in the other. His hair was a mess, as usual, like it couldn't be tamed with less than a lot of effort, which he never gave it. She loved him for that, the "I don't give a fuck how I look" attitude. He hadn't shaved for over a week and the beard was coming back. She enjoyed it cause she knew it probably wasn't there to stay, at least not in the public room. He claimed he never would be able to wear full beard again cause people would just associate it to Jackson. She hadn't really figured out why that would be so bad though.
