Chapter Seventy Eight - Ordinary People
Henry stood nervously outside his brownstone house in DC, his left hand clutching at his bag over his shoulder, and a brown paper one in the other as he inhaled deeply. His mind had not offered him a slither of peace during the five hour drive here, and it didn't appear to stop now he was standing outside waiting for Elizabeth to answer the door.
He could hear his heart thumping in his ears, his hands getting clammier by the second as his mouth started to twist in anticipation. He swallowed hard as he spotted her shadow behind the glass, the door handle dropping as it opened revealing herself to him.
'Henry, Hi' she smiled gently, stepping back into the house and welcoming him in. His eyes cast over her more relaxed demeanour. An oversized Peter Frampton top hung from her top half, along with a calf length housecoat, her legs hugged tightly in dark blue denim and only socks on her feet. He relaxed into himself a little as he drank in the pleasurable sights of her.
'Hi, I brought ice cream' he chuckled nervously, holding up the brown paper bag and grinning as she closed the door behind him. Elizabeth furrowed her brow a little at his actions, her mouth falling agape slightly as she tried to find some words.
'I know it's silly, I just didn't want to come empty handed, and well, it's mocha fudge' he shrugged.
'Thank you, but you really didn't have too' she giggled softly, taking the bag from him. 'You can take your bag off' she bit her lip nervously, perhaps this was going to be more awkward than she anticipated she thought.
'Right, sorry' he slipped it down his shoulder and to the ground 'I've got some things to stay, if that is still ok?' He questioned.
'Of course. Henry, I don't want this to be awkward between us,-'
'I don't either but it is hard, I am still not quite sure what I'm doing here' he sighed a little and she nodded with a deep inhale.
'I guess we just have a lot to talk about, at the very least I want to co-parent effectively with you and right now I don't think we can even do that, so can we build on it?' She asked hopefully and he nodded, a gentle smile falling on his lips.
'Of course. Something smells good?' He questioned as his nose wandered to the kitchen
'Arh, that would be my cooking'
'Cooking? Wait, Elizabeth McCord is cooking?' He teased, following her into the kitchen. She laughed, allowed and threw a playful hurt expression over her shoulder as she stood at the kitchen island.
'Yes, I had to learn, quickly' she laughed at herself. 'Drink?' She asked
'I'll get it, so what are you cooking?' He asked, his nerves kicking in.
'It's a new specialty of mine I like to call…' she trailed off and bit her lip nervously, a sheepish grin falling on her lips as Henry locked eyes with her
'Blake cooked for you didn't he?' He questioned
'Busted' she grimaced and Henry chuckled at her
'I should have guessed, so what did Blake cook?' He smiled, his heart finding comfort in the fact that she must have spoken to at least one person about him visiting her this weekend.
'I don't know, I can't remember, I'll text him' she replied nervously, searching for her phone.
'Elizabeth it's fine, I don't need to know, it's pasta I can see that much' he pulled out a few options of soft and alcoholic drinks from the pantry 'Which would you prefer?' He asked and she bit her lip nervously, her heart fluttering, seeing him back in the home and things feeling so normal was sending shivers over her body.
'I'll just have some sparkling water for now, maybe wine when I've had some food' she requested and he nodded, pouring her a drink and handing it to her.
'Can we make a toast?' He asked, walking a little closer to where she was standing at the island.
'Too?'
'Too new beginnings?' He shrugged, he wasn't really sure he just knew he wanted an excuse to stand closer to her, his lips watering at the smell of her perfume.
'New Beginnings' she smiled, softly tilting her glass into his and taking a sip. 'Are you hungry? Would you like to eat now? Or wait a little?' She asked, glancing down at her watch noting It was a bit early for dinner.
'I'm ok just now, unless you want to eat?'
'No I'm ok, I was just cooking it as instructed, we can heat it up later' she explained. She slowly started to turn the cooker off, and set utensils aside, her eyes flicking to Henry every now and again wondering what he was doing. Her mind whipped into a frenzy as she struggled to think of something to fill the silence between them.
Henry watched her stand at the island, his racing thoughts had soothed and he felt calm, comfortable, he felt like he was where he belonged. He sighed inwardly as he knew that being within her presence like this, daily once again was such a long way away, if it was even on his path at all but, nonetheless he silently vowed to enjoy every moment with her today, unsure of when the next opportunity would arise.
'Have you heard from Stevie recently?' She asked, glancing in his direction, her cheeks flushing as she caught him staring at her, the way he used too.
'Not since yesterday, have you?' He cleared his throat glancing away from her
'About half an hour before you arrived, it's morning in London and she hadn't long woken up. Her and Jareth are off house hunting today. I can't believe our baby girl is getting married in less than eight months' she shook her head in disbelief as she reached for her glass.
'It's crazy, I can't believe she is moving to London. I feel quite detached from her life recently' he admitted
'Me too, I don't think it has anything to do with us, I think she is just wrapped in her bubble and well, Jareth's parents hold some kind of title so I am sure they are being well looked after. I will miss her so much when she moves' Elizabeth sighed sadly
'Me too, I am not looking forward to watching her go' he closed his eyes briefly at the thought, opening them again as he brought his drink to his lips, his eyes walking back to Elizabeth.
'What?' She asked cautiously, her gaze locking on his as her face narrowed with a softness.
'Just thinking about Stevie and how happy she is'
'Hmm' Elizabeth pressed her lips together
'I miss being that happy,' he sighed heavily. Elizabeth dipped her head at his words, a mixture of empathy and guilt floating within as she flicked through the pages of their past in her mind.
'And when I say I miss being happy, what I really mean is I miss you, because somewhere along the way those two words became synonymous' he blinked, his words hitting her right in the chest, his hands shown, his heart within them.
Elizabeth swallowed harshly, bowing her head slightly as she took the weight of his words straight to her core. 'Shall we go and sit down?' She gestured. Henry nodded and pushed his lips together as he stood up straight, walking into the lounge.
On Elizabeth's way in she swiped the wine off the counter, placing it on the coffee table. She slipped into the couch and tucked her feet up under her, her housecoat covering her body like a blanket. Henry took a seat at the opposite side of the couch, his body facing hers, all of his attention at her mercy.
Elizabeth leant forward and poured herself a glass of wine, the red liquid splashing into the glass as she continued to fill it. 'Would you like one?' She asked, glancing at him briefly.
'Think I am going to need one if you're not going to answer me soon' he tried to tease but there was so much truth in his words it came out dry. Elizabeth inhaled and decided not to acknowledge his comment for a moment as she concentrated on pouring him a drink, placing the bottle on the table between them. Dutch courage at their disposal.
'I was going to answer you, I am going too' she sat back comfortably, bending one knee, bring it up to her chest whilst the other lay on the sofa, she held her glass on top of her bent knee and let her free hand fall into her lap.She looked into his eyes, her heart yearning for him but her head pulling her back. 'I miss you too' she admitted into the silence between them. Henry's air lodged in his throat, his heart beating a little faster as he waited patiently on her words.
'I'm scared Henry,' she admitted. Henry placed his glass down on the table and reached for her free hand, his fingers gripping at hers, holding them in her lap as he shifted a little closer.
'I am so sorry I've made you feel this way Elizabeth' his voice thick with emotion, his mind sent into overdrive at her words, his words and the fact she wasn't pulling away from him.
'It was my fault too, I let you down too Henry' she sighed, her words echoing a moment between them weeks ago.
'Yeah you did, but I don't care for that now, we've lost everything and I don't want that, I want it all back' he inhaled deeply struggling to keep his emotions at bay. His thumb caressing her skin as her eyes started to water at the confusion.
'You've lost all my trust Henry' she almost broke, knowing her words would hurt him, but she also knew she needed to be honest. He sniffled and nodded his head, swallowing his tears.
'I'm willing to take however long to get it back. I want you back Elizabeth, please' he pleased with her, all his cards lay bare as he took an opportunity to fight for what he should have done months ago. Elizabeth dipped her head, torn between head and heart as she battled with herself, wanting to run to him, but also run away from any potential hurt.
He moved his hand from hers, slowly tracing his fingers up under her chin, lifting her head to recapture her gaze as he looked at her with the most sincere of gazes.
'You don't need to act tough here, not with me. Hand me your hurt and I will hold you safe, I am not going anywhere, not this time.' He spoke tenderly. Elizabeth's lip quivered and she held her breath as tears filled her eyes, fear running wild within as she contemplated taking a leap of faith.
'I want to give you all of me Henry, but there isn't much left' her words broke with shaking breaths as she fought to keep strong.
'I disagree, I think you are everything you were and so much more. Pain changes us, but it doesn't diminish who we are' he spoke, his tears already falling down his face as he dangled his heart out for her to grab. HIs thumb continued to stroke her cheek lovingly, her head tilting into his palm and her eyes closing at his kindness, his love soaring around the room for her.
'I have faith' he whispered
'That must be nice' she mumbled, her eyes peeling open slowly as she regained her focus on him. She lifted her hand nervously and reached for his face, reconnecting with his skin sent shivers down her spine, her thumb softly wiping away his tears as she tried to hold back her own.
'Please don't break my heart again' she whispered, finally giving into hearts desires.