Not This Time

It started out a perfect day. The sun had splashed pink clouds across the horizon and rivers of silver light ran through the streets. Pero had jumped into the day in high spirits. The weather was only a sign from above, his plans for today will definitely come out better than he had anticipated. His girlfriend, Alice, wouldn’t know what hit her when she comes over.

This is why the sudden change of the skies to grey and the thunder mumbling overhead had thrown him off balance. What could possibly have changed in two minutes? A cold and wet evening was definitely unexpected. Even as he thought, the icy wind whistled among the branches of the trees, transporting weightless materials in its course.                               In that moment, his phone rang. He reached into his breast pocket and brought it to his ear.                              ‘Hello?’                                                  ‘Hey baby’ Alice said from the other end. ‘I just called to let you know that I’ll be home soon. I’m about leaving the airport.’                                                 'Leaving!’ he exclaimed ‘But you didn’t tell me when you’d boarded. I’d have come pick you up’ he added.                                                   ‘Yea I know, I’m sorry. My phone battery died. Blah blah blah. But it doesn’t matter. I’ll see you soon.’ She squealed; her voice full of excitement. He closed his eyes and let out a loud sigh. ‘Sure. See you soon babe.’

‘Can’t wait! Bye’ The thrill in her voice eliciting a smile from him. He flung his phone to the bed.

Great. Just great he thought. He glanced at his wristwatch. It was a twenty-five minutes’ drive from the airport to his house. Twenty-five minutes. Alice would be here in twenty-five minutes which leaves him with twenty-five minutes to prepare dinner. Twenty-five minutes to tidy up the place although it wasn’t chaotic, just bachelor-like, that’s all.

Springing into action, he started off in the sitting room, picking, arranging, disposing; then went on to his room and bathroom. And just like that, in the blink of an eye, his timer went off, he had five minutes left.

Dinner. He hadn’t prepared dinner yet. Although he could whip up something in less than seven minutes, he didn’t want her coming in to meet him in the kitchen. That wasn’t part of his plan. None of this was part of his plan. It was meant to be an evening out.

Almost on cue, the doorbell rang. Alice. He sprinted out of the room. Pero stood before the door, taking long seconds to regain composure before he finally opened it.

‘Baby!’ Alice cried jumping on him. In turn, he opened his arms and they held onto each other in a tight embrace. He inhaled her scent, letting it cloud his senses. Gosh, he missed her. He missed everything about her. Four months was too long a time to be away from her. He tightened his hold as he felt her warmth and affection, all good things he had felt long before. She slowly withdrew from the embrace and kissed him on his lips. He’d also missed this. A lot.

The blaring of the horn from the taxi caused them to tear apart with a smile on their faces.                                        ‘Oh yeah, I don’t have enough cash on me and we couldn’t stop by the ATM.’                                                     'Sure babe. I’ll take care of it. Go on inside.’ Pero said.

He walked down and paid the cabman. Retrieving her remaining bags, he started back towards the house.

‘So how was your flight?’ he asked coming from the room where he went to drop her bags. ‘I can’t imagine it was pleasant. I mean the weather and all.’ He added as he settled down beside her on the couch. He lifted her legs and placed them across his laps.

‘Oh my gosh Pero! You surely can’t imagine.’ Alice replied as she assumed a more comfortable position relaxing on the chair while her boyfriend massaged her feet.

‘Hmm’ she groaned in pleasure. ‘Thanks. These feet have seen better days.'               ‘And shoes’ Pero added causing them both to laugh.

They both sat in silence. Alice, reveling in the bliss of Pero’s hands on her feet, working its magic. She’d told him over and over again to consider applying for a masseur in a spa. His hands are angelic.                     

Pero on the other hand sat, his eyes fixed on her in wonder.           Alice. His Alice. He thanks God everyday for giving him Alice, his personal angel.                                         'Are you okay?’ her voice pulled him back to reality.                                                   ‘Yes, of course. Why?’ he asked. ‘Well, for starters, your magic hands were not on my feet anymore and you’ve been staring into nothing for a while.’                                                    ‘Oh, I’m good. Just so glad you’re here.’ So so glad, he thought.

She smiled and stood up, jumping into his laps, wrapping her arms around his neck.

‘Are you sure?’ she pressed on.        ‘Yes Alicia, I’m sure.’ He stared straight into her eyes. Those beautiful hazy eyes of hers. These eyes were his most prized possession, believe it or not. They’d held him sway when his legs wobbled, ready to let go.          With his left hand, he brushed her hair away and raised his right hand to touch her face, caressing and stroking. Such pale, smooth skin, with her red chubby skin.

Alicia leaned into his touch. She’d craved it every night before she fell asleep and itched for it with every waking moment. She didn’t think she could have lasted one more week without Pero. Not another week.

Most nights, he laid awake in his bed, staring up at his ceiling, thinking of her, wondering what she was doing. Was she done with her research? Is she in the library? Or maybe sleeping? Time difference made it impossible to call her just any time. Seeing her now, here, physically is way better than seeing her on the screen. Here, right now, he could reach out and feel her inch of her body. He wanted to tell her all these. Tell her how he hated coming home every evening to an empty house. How he missed her scolding him like he was a little boy, how he missed the way she prepared his coffee every morning, how he missed her kisses, her touch, her. How he missed her.

‘I missed you in ways you can’t begin to imagine.’ He whispered softly. That’s all he said.

All the time he wants to say more, but ends up saying little. Every time he’s faced with an opportunity to express himself more, like a deer caught in the headlight, he freezes. This is what denied him promotion in the office and severed some ties with his family. They always assume he’s holding back on purpose. He doesn’t want to lose Alice too. He can’t lose Alice too.

‘I missed you too baby.’ She replied, a smirk on her face. she leaned further and placed her forehead on his.

Bliss.

He reached down to his pocket and patted it against his lap. Yes, the box was still there. He’d bought the ring some months ago with hope of proposing to her before she traveled. He’d taken her to very expensive restaurants, treated her to dinners on rooftops, all perfect setting for proposing but he’d only managed to remove the box, never going further.

How he wanted so much to go on one knee right now. Just ask and get it over with. But it only remained thoughts, never reality.

‘Calm down’ said Alice and she chuckled. Pero drew back looking at her with uncertainty.                                         ‘What do you mean?’ he asked.                                                                                                                  ‘I mean, you just relax. I can feel the tension radiating from your body. The cogwheels in your brain are working overtime.’ He shut his eyes momentarily, laughing in wonder. ‘You’re crazy.’

‘No, I’m not. You know what?’ Alice said as she got up from his laps. ‘I’m going to get a bottle of wine. We’d drink and unwind and you will relax hubby.’ She said walking into the kitchen.

‘And yes, I’ll marry you’

Pero’s world came to a halt. Did he blurt it out whilst thinking? He turned around sharply, ‘What did you say baby?’

Alice stopped and turned back. ‘I said yes I’ll marry you. I know you’ve had that ring for months Pero. In fact, I felt it just now in your pocket. God knows I’m tired of that lost look in your eyes everytime. So yes, I’ll marry you.’