Baby, don't let the lights go down
("I Miss You," Adele)
Polaroid Memories
Riley Matthews was in that delicious state between sleep and wake, deciding whether or not to succumb to her fuzzy mind and go back to the land of dreams or to greet the day and start being productive.
It really was no contest. The brunette buried herself further into her stark white sheets and comforter and lazily began seeking her boyfriend with her hands. After a few minutes of stroking nothing but warm sheets, Riley let out a small groan and committed to waking up to solve the problem of the missing boyfriend. Before she got too far, however, a gentle click filled the otherwise quiet dorm room and the small disturbance was enough to awaken the girl.
"Ben," the brunette groaned out in a whiney voice. "What time is it?"
Another click sounded before the British accent responded, "Seven in the morning."
Riley Matthews let out another groan. She was absolutely not a morning person, the little moon tattoo on her wrist can attest to that. Riley was a night owl and seven in the morning was not an appropriate time to be awake during spring break. "Ben, come back to bed."
A gentle chuckle and another click responded to her whine. Not one to let go, Riley continued talking. "Seriously, Ben. This isn't going to work if you keep waking me up at stupid hours in the morning. Besides, mornings are for cuddles - and I like to cuddle." Riley's ramble was interrupted by more clicking noises. Her hope of a morning cuddle session was slowly dissolving. With an overdramatic sigh, Riley threw the blankets off of her and sat up. "What the hell are you even doing?"
After Riley's eyesight cleared for the day, she focused in on the sight of her shirtless boyfriend standing behind her tripod and her camera that she got from her Uncle Shawn in high school. She'd bought a newer one in the years since her seventeenth birthday, but that particular one was her favorite. It was the camera that inspired her start her blog Girl Meets World. She owes a lot to that camera and to her Uncle Shawn.
"Good morning, Reporter Girl!" Seriously, that guy was too cheerful in the morning. "I hope you don't mind, but your equipment was already set up and I was inspired to snap some photos of you to add to my portfolio. But I don't have any of my own cameras with me, and - well, you know - you can't ignore inspiration, so I took the liberty of, well…I understand if you hate me."
This was one of those moments where Riley could almost feel her adoration for this man grow in her chest. She wonders if his rambling was something that he managed to pick up from her during their friendship-turned-relationship. In the back of her mind, she thinks she should probably be upset at someone using her equipment without her permission, but – if she's honest – she's envious of Ben's artistic eye and she'd gladly let him use her stuff if it led to the photographs she's learned to love.
"So, what I'm hearing is," Riley did her best to turn on her best flirty voice, "Is that I inspire you."
A few more clicks of the camera, and Ben moves from behind the tripod and playfully stalks to his girlfriend. "Oh, Reporter Girl, you have no idea."
A few minutes and many kisses later, Riley was basking in the victory of having received the morning cuddle session she wanted. "So, can I see the photos? The majority are of me sleeping, so they can't be that good."
Ben pulled her closer to his chest before responding. "On the contrary, love. They capture a certain peace and vulnerability that you hide during the daytime. And, no. You can't see them until I edit them. This isn't like my writing where I let you read it at any stage and I'm alright with you lovingly ripping my work to shreds. I want to finish this project on my own."
"But-" A kiss to interrupt.
"No, Riley. Be patient."
Instead of immediately responding, Riley reached over to her bedside table and grabbed her Polaroid camera. "Fine. But I get some unedited snaps for myself."
For the rest of the lazy morning, the young couple took Polaroid photos of each other in candid moments while lazing around in bed, eating PopTarts, and watching movies. Some of the shots were artistic and beautiful, many were poorly aimed selfies, but all were a good memory that each of them wanted to hold onto.
"Ben. I'm sorry." Riley's apology was a gentle whisper that was almost inaudible over the rustle of a bag of chips.
"What do you possibly have to be sorry about?" Ben's gentle smirk was so inviting.
"I'm sorry it took me so long to be like this with you."
Ben pulled her closer before answering, "I'm still a little lost, Reporter Girl."
"Just. Everything. I had so much Lucas baggage and so many moments where I just wasn't sure about anything. I made it so hard for you to get close to me. But, Ben, you're my best friend – and I'll kill you if you let that slip to the gang. I'm happy. You and me? This is good."
"I think so too, Riley. This is good. And getting to know you wasn't difficult. Sure, sometimes frustrating, but always worth it. I don't know how I'm supposed to say goodbye to you when you go to England."
"So. Don't say goodbye."
"Riley," Ben sighed. He opened his mouth to say something, but in the last second, the gleam in his eye changed slightly and he stuck his smirk on. Riley liked the way her name sounded in his mouth, it was different from the way Lucas said it. Ben pronounced her name confidently, like it was holding a secret. She liked that. "Riley," he repeated. "I never want to say goodbye to you. But. One day, I'll have to."
"I know." Riley rested her head on her boyfriend's shoulder, ignoring her phone vibrating on the coffee table. "That's what the photos are for, right?"