Late Night Studies
Turning in his sleep he instinctively reached out, but soon awoke when he was surprised to find the familiar warmth that usually greeted him no longer there. Awake he climbed out of bed, as he did eyed the alarm clock. Noting it was almost three am he forewent the bedside lamp and instead grabbed a t-shirt, pulling it over his head as he went.
His bare feet padded against the cool boards of the wooden floor, and his instincts led him towards the kitchen.
It was a modest sized apartment, one he often found himself still surprised that he lived in, as did many others. Especially considering the luxurious homes he'd bought with his three ex-wives, who subsequently now lived in and owned. The simple apartment paled in contrast.
The apartment was indeed humbling in comparison. Quaint and decorated in a simple fashion much more suited to his needs rather than decadence. It was the first place in a long time he was welcome to call home.
His instincts had been right.
He found her sat at the island in the middle of the kitchen. He didn't know how she'd managed it, but she was sat crossed legged atop one of the stools. Before her lay mounds of medical journals and textbooks, littered with what was unmistakably her handwriting on pages of notepaper and post it notes. A small lamp that usually resided in the living room, but moved there by his insistence four nights ago, was the sole light that lit the small area.
He was getting used to her being there now. Waking up to find her tangled amongst the sheets or to hear her in the shower getting ready for work. They'd soon developed a routine; he would always be the first in the kitchen, their silent deal. He would make breakfast and she would go across the street for tea and coffee.
Her moving in was a subject that had been at the forefront of his mind for quite some time, but wasn't sure how to approach it. Already in the past couple of months had taken over three drawers, space in his wardrobe and her gym kit constantly in his hamper. She practically lived there regardless. And for the better part of the week had been a permanent fixture in his kitchen when not at work.
Stepping away from the doorframe, he walked over, placing a hand on the small of her back so she knew he was there before kissing the bare skin of her shoulder that her tank top didn't cover before moving on to boiling the kettle at the stove.
"You do know it's gone three don't you?" He asked, pulling out two mugs from the cupboard without the slightest glance back.
She yawned, lifting her glasses to rub her eyes. "Yeah."
"At least you remembered the glasses this time. How long have you been up?" He pulled the milk from the fridge, making sure to pour a generous amount in the second mug, hers.
She shrugged, "Give or take a couple of hours."
"You should be sleeping." He warned as the kettle started to whistle.
"I couldn't sleep." He gave her a look of disbelief, which she instantly rolled her eyes at. "But not for lack of trying."
Silence passed over the couple, and the only sounds that could be heard were that of the spoon he stirred against the ceramic mugs as he finished making his coffee and her tea.
He brought the drinks over to the island; in the spare space that she hadn't managed to litter with her notes he placed both mugs.
They continued in their silence until Meg dropped her pen and ran her hand through her hair in quiet frustration.
She stared intently at the books that lay in front of her before finally speaking.
"What if I fail? What if I forget something?"
"You're going to be fine." He reassured, a response he was well trained in.
"You don't know that." She answered despairingly.
"I know that you've come too far to stumble and that you're beyond ready for this."
She turned to him, her eyes bleary with creeping tiredness. "You promise?"
He brushed away the few stray hairs from her forehead, "I promise."
She finally relented and allowed him to pull her into a hug as she sat on her stool; he paused long enough to place a kiss atop of her forehead.
She smelt the coffee, "What are you doing drinking that stuff? It's going to keep you up, you'll never get back to sleep."
"That was the plan."
"Huh?"
He pulled out the empty stool beside her, "We've got," He shot a glance at the digital display above the cooker. "About just over three hours, give or take, until we've got to be out of here. Figured you could do with someone to run over the last of this with."
She smiled sincerely, "Thank you."
"Thank me when you've got your finished diploma. Now where do you want to start? Diagnostics?"