Hello hello!
Guest: aw thanks, I really wanted to give some depth to this chapter even with all the action and you caught it perfectly.
Now, someone asked if there was going to be some peek at them living together, this is the closest we get!
A few days later, on a chilly Sunday morning, Gillian woke up with a strange feeling immediately coming to her mind. The second she was awake, her brain lazily getting into gear, the first coherent thought she got hold off was that that was the first day she was officially without a house of her own.
The little adjustments the real estate agent had suggested had really made the difference, so much so that a buyer had decided to close the deal before they were even completed. Private negotiations, quick signing and before she knew it her apartment was gone, officially as of that morning. It shouldn't have been such a big deal, and somehow it wasn't, but of all the nights she had spent at Cal's, of all the mornings she had woken up in his bed even before they moved in together that one obviously felt different. Those other times there was still a place she could go to if she wanted - or needed - somewhere where she would find her things, space and time that was only hers; but from that morning on that place was no more.
And she was absolutely ok with it.
What she wasn't as fond of, was the fact that on the monumental occasion she woke up alone.
She rolled on her left side ready to find the familiar comfort of Cal's body, but was welcomed instead by the ruffled sheets. Sure, it wasn't the end of the world and it wasn't the first time it happened; but once you get used to falling asleep with someone every night and find the same person right there in the morning any variation from the norm was bound to be noticed.
Gillian rolled back to her side of the bed and checked the time on her phone, surprised that Cal was up and running so early on a Sunday, then heard some noises coming from downstairs and figured it was him. Not that she had anything to worry about anyway, but as long as he was in the house she didn't feel the need to investigate further on his sudden early-morning routine and instead she snuck back deeper under the comforter and enjoyed the warmth. With the house sale closed they had moved the last of her things and there were still a few boxes that needed unpacking. The plan for the day was to get to that, but then again the warm and comfy cocoon of the bed was hard to give up and since Cal certainly wasn't the kind of person who was hell bent in getting stuff done - certainly not tidying and cleaning - she didn't feel the need to jump to it either.
Without urgency, she'd much rather roll around in bed and think about their new situation, which really wasn't all that new anymore. She meant what she had said to him when he had hit her with the request out of blue: for the longest time, his house had always felt like home to her. Even when she was still married, when Alec would "work late" and she didn't feel like staying home alone and pretending everything was ok, spending time at Cal's came natural. For years she had been a staple feature for dinner and holidays at the Lightman household, and when they had started dating they'd hardly spent a night apart.
Still, living together was a different thing, it made it all official and real and she had easily slipped into the newfound arrangement. They were also exchanging notes, so to speak, with Cal picking up on some of her propensity for staying busy even when not necessary, and Gillian occasionally emulating his habit to lay back and take it easy like she was doing in that moment.
And right on cue, just a few seconds after she started to hear rattling noises approaching up the stairs, Cal showed up on the door holding a tray with what looked like all the most valuable China he had in the house. He was trying to smile but his hands were gripping the shaky tray as if it was an exploding device about to go off, and he had to give up on his plan of looking at her and opted to watch what he was doing instead. He'd better, Gillian thought as she sat up on the bed and threw a look at the tray, because it looked like he had just about emptied the pantry to make breakfast.
"What is all of this for?"
She asked with a smile as he carefully arrived at the bed, gently placing the tray on her lap. Cal manoeuvred carefully not to spill anything and make an utter mess, walking around to get back in bed and sit next to her, lifting the plastic lid covering one of the plates on the tray and revealing a generous serving of fluffy scrambled eggs, a huge smoked salmon and cream cheese bagel and two slices of buttered toasted bread.
"Either to celebrate you officially live here now," he mumbled with a big grin, satisfied with the way she eyed her breakfast. Then he took the lid off the other container and unveiled a chocolate muffin almost as big as her face, as he added cheekily. "Or to help you cope with the fact that you officially live here now."
She had been smiling so hard for so long already that she didn't think she could do it more, but she damn nearly suffered from facial paralysis when he was done. Forget about the whole breakfast in bed thing, which was already something spectacular considering he must have woken up early enough to go out and get the bagel and muffin from the bakery down the street; what really got to her was the fact that he had known exactly what was going to go through her mind once awake even before she did.
"Or," Cal added then, leaning in closer to kiss her neck when she took a first forkful of scrambled eggs, "has it ever occurred to you I just wanted to do something nice, darling?"
"Darling," Gillian mumbled absently, enjoying the touch of paprika in the eggs and the feel on his lips on her skin. "So, what did you do?"
Cal stopped and pulled back, giving her a questioning side glance that tried to say he had no idea what she was talking about. Too bad it was accompanied by the faint trace of a painful smirk that screamed "busted".
"Pardon me?" He asked then, and Gillian shook her head.
"You usually call me love."
"I call everyone love!" Cal pointed out.
"Don't I know that!"
Gillian scoffed audibly, half chewing a big bite of the bagel. She looked at the tray with a touch of disappointment, wondering why there was no liquid whatsoever to accompany the feast and figuring and thinking maybe Cal's unsteady hands would have made a mess of it if there was. Then she seemed to realise he had been profoundly silent after her reply, and way too still and quiet not to pay attention to the sudden change.
"It might sound the same but I don't mean it the same way."
She looked up at him ready with a joke, but it died on her lips when she saw him. It was a face she had come to learn, and like, a lot: it was an expression that told her all about his love for her and how much she meant to him, the face of someone who was afraid that when he said things like that he wasn't making himself clear enough or that she wasn't taking him seriously. It was that little pout, so uncharacteristic of him but so sweetly childish, the face of a man in tune with his feelings but afraid to see them dismissed.
She loved that face.
Betraying nothing on her face, Gillian slowly removed the tray from her lap and put it down on the floor. Then she turned around to face him, still holding a mask of silent indifference, put her hands on his chest and slowly went up to his shoulders and face, gently caressing his beard before pulling him into a kiss. It was a slow and tender kiss, one that she hoped could match the intensity and depth of his statement, one that Cal received passively and enjoyed thoroughly. Gillian saw it when she pulled back, he had his eyes closed and his neck was still stretched forward, his lips still perked up because of her kiss, and she felt a warm wave of affection inside of her. They had been together for a while and they had learned how to open up, but it still did something to her to see how he could completely abandon himself to her sometimes. Smiling, Gillian brushed his lips with her finger then moved back, waiting for Cal to open his eyes again and ready to welcome him with a delighted expression when he finally did.
As she had hoped he looked more relaxed, this time knowing he had made his point clear even though it was her kiss that had made the real statement. But just to make sure, Gillian gave him another quick kiss then retrieved the chocolate muffin from the tray on the floor. Then she settled into his arms leaning on his chest, picking a piece of muffin with her fingers before bringing it to her mouth. Cal rolled his eyes and grumbled softly, likely something about why had he even bothered cooking breakfast when he knew she was going to eat the sweet stuff only anyway, then grumbled some more when she shoved some of the muffin in his mouth instead.
"I know Cal," she sighed as she snuggled up on him. "I'm just starting to realise it might be getting a little confusing now."
Cal chuckled and wrapped his arms around her, absently brushing his cheek on her face and watching, mesmerised as he always was by the way she dove into her treat.
"I can always stop and come up with something else."
This time it was Gillian who gave him 'the look', the same she had given him weeks earlier about his beard. It was the 'don't you dare' look that made him shiver, because it was about things that were so unquestionably his that not only she liked but claimed. She didn't show that possessive streak to him often but when she did Cal felt all sorts of ways about it, mostly overwhelmed and fulfilled.
Cal held her tight and gently, listening to the soft humming that always came from her when she was enjoying something sweet, then he tried to reach for the muffin in her hands and take it. Gillian fought back initially, but after a while they both chuckled and the silly duel ended when Cal managed to take out a big bite. She hit him playfully but then rushed to finish the pastry before he could make any more damage, finally easing back into his arms when he positioned himself right behind her.
"You still haven't told me what you did," she said then after a while, and Cal raised his eyebrow to her. "You do call me love all the time, but you call me darling only when you've done something wrong." This time he gave her a surprised look and she rolled her eyes at him. ""Hello, language expert here!"
"Well, it's kind of sad you assume I must have done something wrong…darling." He intentionally leaned on the last word as if to disproof her point, but they both knew she was spot on with her assessment. So Cal sighed and held her closer, as if he was worried his next words might scare her off. "Maybe I'm just nervous because I totally forgot our anniversary."
"What are you talking about, Cal?" She chuckled at his silliness. "That's next week."
"Not according to my calendar."
He noped her without hesitation, his voice still gentle and betraying a touch of embarrassment. Gillian felt that he really was sorry about forgetting the date and let it go by, especially after the 'break' they had taken, but she couldn't resist letting out what immediately went through her mind.
"Ok, you have to explain it to me Cal." Decisive, a touch annoyed, Gillian came out of his embrace and turned around to face him, kneeling in front of him and squaring him off. "Why are you so determined to count those two weeks? They were horrible, we could barely talk let alone work together. We were too stubborn and proud to cave first, too afraid to do anything to make it even worse. We didn't even kiss once then!" She looked and sounded vexed, her hands doing something in between caressing him and gripping at him in frustration. "How could you possibly consider those days as part of our relationship, something to celebrate no less?"
Cal looked at her silently for a few seconds, blinking once as if he was trying to determine if she was serious. He did pretty much what she had done earlier, looking at her steady and with no apparent emotions on the surface, then suddenly seized her in his arms and pulled her close even though she was towering over him because of the imposed position. Cal held her tight and forced her to look at him, to pay close and real attention, looking up at her with a serious expression.
"Because they were horrible and I've never felt so bad. Because I was scared that if we couldn't work together anymore I was going to lose the one thing that redeems me of my many bad qualities. Because being stubborn helped us not to let that messy situation be the end of it, and because our fear of doing the wrong thing led us to the right one and wait for the right moment. Because when we did kiss for the first time we both wanted it and it felt like we earned it." He stopped for a moment, as if to make sure she was still with him before the last part. "Because without those two weeks we wouldn't have had everything else."
It was a good thing that he was holding her so tight and close, because she just about melted, right before his eyes. Damn him and his uncanny ability to say the best things at the least opportune moment, to surprise her with those romantic heavy loads unleashed on her when she least expected it!
Gillian had to fight back the urge to smack him on his chest, opting instead to grip the fabric of his t-shirt and pull at it as if she wanted to strangle him. Instead she leaned forward and engulfed him in her arms, still standing higher than him and holding him until he finally got the hint and hugged her back. After a while Cal gently eased out of her hold and moved the both of them, Gillian as always marvelling at his deceiving muscular tone and strength, until he was laying on his back and she was sprawled on top of him. He kissed her then, his hand in her hair, and they both enjoyed the break for as long as they wanted knowing moments like those were always precious, no matter what.
"What about the months we were broken up?" Cal asked then, absently caressing her face. "We don't quite get up to a year without those. Why do you factor those in?"
"We didn't stop loving each other, we wanted to make it work, whatever it was," she answered quickly, clearly having given the matter a lot of thought. She held his gaze, softly but determined, then rested her head on his chest and sighed, her hand looking for his. "We missed each other, we spent them thinking about what went wrong and what if we've had a second chance. They are part of our relationship as much as anything else."
Even though she couldn't see him in that position Cal nodded, absently tracing lines on her shoulders with his fingers. He liked that take on it, it wasn't that different from his one of those two famous weeks, and he was very much ok with the fact that she assumed whatever she had been feeling in those months applied to him as well. It did, he knew that now, and somehow it helped to cope with all the time they had lost.
"So I guess that means…next Thursday is our anniversary then?"
He asked then, and Gillian hummed a soft agreement with her mouth pressed on his collarbone.
"Uh uh," she mumbled, then pointed her elbow on his chest to look at him straight. "And you better show me the works, Cal Lightman."
"After you discarded this beautiful home made breakfast to eat a premade bomb of sugar?" He snorted sarcastically, rolling his eyes at her. Then he flipped them and pinned her down to the bed, so quick in his movements that Gillian only realised what happened when she found him staring down at her, feeling the weight of his body on her like a heavy blanket. "You bet I will, Gillian Foster."
Then he leaned down to kiss her and all of a sudden they both knew unpacking her stuff had just dropped down a spot in the list of things to do.
Now, two things. Before some may ask no, I won't be writing about their anniversary.
And the next one is another flashback!