I'm Yours
Chapter 12: Everything Out In the Open
"Well, at least we have each other," Rufus said, moving to sit down next to Lily, who was on her lounge chair. He sat in his own lounge chair, sideways so that he could face her.
Lily snorted. "Don't remind me!"
"Excuse me?" Rufus asked her.
Lily, who had been sitting the correct way on her lounge chair, her arms crossed over her chest, suddenly looked over at him, a nasty scowl on her face. "This is all your fault!" she snapped.
"All my fault? How is that?" Rufus asked in shock. Why the heck was she always blaming him for things?
"If you hadn't been so cheap in booking this stupid thing, then none of this would have happened. I mean, come on! What island has a boat that comes and goes during one time slot only? What company doesn't check to make sure that they have every one of their passengers in on board before they take off—especially when that is the last boat back?" Lily snapped.
"Who says this company was cheap?" Rufus asked, a little angry now.
Lily turned sideways so that she was facing him too now. "It was the cheapest company you could find. Wasn't it?" she asked.
Rufus sighed. "Yes, but that doesn't mean it isn't a good company! You had fun while we were here, didn't you?"
"I'm not having fun now!" Lily said, tossing her hands in the air. "It doesn't matter anyway. The bottom line is, they left us here without making sure all of us were on board. That makes them a bad company."
"Well, they did warn us," Rufus said.
"Oh, that's true. You're completely right. As soon as we get back, I promise to write them a letter of apology to them for them stranding us here. Then again, why should I wait? I could write it with a stick right here in the sand!" Lily said, her voice lively and animated.
Rufus shot her a look. "You don't have to be sarcastic, Lil. It's bad enough that we have to stay here." He interrupted her before she could blame him again. "And before you interrupt and say it was my fault, let me remind you that is it just as much your fault as it is mine, and you know it!"
Lily shot him the death glare, her arms crossed over her chest again.
Neither one of them said anything, and Rufus knew that, more than likely, they were both thinking of what had happened after they had made love.
Lily sat up and stretched, then yawned. "Now you got me tired." She lay back down, on her side and facing her husband. She gently pushed some hair out of his eyes. "You gave me quite the work out!" She grinned at him.
He laughed, and gently stroked her cheek. "Right back at ya!"
Lily cuddled up next to him, resting her head on his shoulder. She wrapped her arms around him.
He kissed her temple. "Are you tired?"
"Yes," she said.
"Why don't you take a little nap?" Rufus suggested. "We still have a little time."
Lily glanced at her waterproof watch. "We only have fifteen minutes. We should start heading over there now."
Rufus yawned. "I'm kind of tired too. I don't feel like getting up and walking over there just yet. How about we just relax for ten more minutes, then we'll head back over?"
Lily sighed. "Well, that ocean breeze does feel nice, and the sound of the waves is soothing. I suppose it would be nice to just lay here for a moment, and enjoy being on this beautiful private island." She grinned up at her husband.
"Now you're talking!" Rufus said, grinning back at her.
They kissed, then rested in each other's arms, just enjoy the relaxation of lying on a beach bed on a beautiful private Hawaiian island.
"It was your idea to stay there and rest. I wanted to go back!" Lily said.
"You agreed! You could have said no. You have a mind of your own, you know. You don't have to do everything I say," Rufus grumbled.
Lily rolled her eyes. Trust me—from now on, the very last thing I want to do is anything you tell me to do. I've learned what a big mistake that can be."
"Lil, what is going on with you? Why are you being so nasty to me all the sudden?" Rufus asked in surprise.
Lily stood up in a flash, and faced him down. "Do you want to know why I'm acting this way toward you?" she snapped.
Rufus stood up just as quickly. "Yes, Lil, I do. I wouldn't have asked if I didn't!"
"Well, I'll tell you then! From day one, you have been nothing but cheap! First, you booked us in coach on the plane. We had to sit in those uncomfortable seats for a thirteen hour flight!" Lily began.
"We had stops in between! Besides the seats weren't that uncomfortable. We were treated right!" Rufus insisted.
Lily ignored him. "Then you booked us the cheapest hotel ever! In fact, it was more like a motel. It doesn't deserve to be called a hotel!"
"We're only in the room to use the bathroom and bed anyway!" Rufus protested.
"So not the point!" Lily snapped. "Then you booked us on that horrible helicopter tour without looking into it better."
"I was just as scared as you were. I was paid back for that one. Trust me," Rufus grumbled.
"Then let's not forget how you didn't seem to care when I was scared on the submarine, or that I was sick, and didn't want to go on the boat for the dinner cruise. No, all you cared about was not wasting money, and the fact that you didn't want to drink alone!" Lily was practically yelling at him now. Her face was red, and she was shaking.
Rufus was willing to be money that her red face wasn't from a sunburn. He didn't only know that because he had put sunblock on it either. He sighed. "I'll admit, I messed up on the ship. I shouldn't have made you go on the boat when you were feeling sick. I also shouldn't have pushed the alcohol on you. But, as I said before, I really did think you would feel better once we were on the ship. I also though the alcohol would help your stomach. I guess it was just stupidity on my part. As for the submarine, well, I thought you'd like it once you were on it. I just thought the waiter had made you paranoid."
"Nice, so now I'm paranoid!" Lily said.
"Lil, I didn't mean it like that, and you know it!" Rufus said.
"Then you flirted with another woman when I was feeling sick," Lily said, going back to the night of the dinner cruise.
"Well, if you wouldn't have acted like such a..." Rufus trailed off. Dare he go that far?
Lily narrowed her eyes at him, her arms crossed over her chest yet again, and her foot tapping. "Like a what, Rufus?"
Suddenly, Rufus' anger made him snap. "Like a bitch, Lil. You've been acting like a bitch ever since we got here!" There. He'd said it. He just hoped Lily didn't kill him for it.
Lily stomped her foot angrily. "You take that back, Rufus Humphrey!"
Rufus crossed his own arms over his chest this time. "No, I will not, Lil! I tried to do something nice for you—for us—and all you have been doing this whole time is complain, complain, complain! I'm sick and tired of it! Did you forget about that night after we got back to the hotel? How I apologized to you, and took care of you all through the night? You said you forgave me! Now I see you're nothing but a liar!"
"How dare you?" Lily snapped. "I was not lying when I said I forgave you. I did, but it doesn't mean I can forget what you did! I'm the one who has the right to be angry. You spent as little on me as possible this whole trip!"
"Oh, so it's all about money, is it? And here I thought being on our honeymoon was about being together. Apparently, you're too good to settle for anything that's not the best of the best! You've become a rich snob just like every other upper east sider!" Rufus snapped.
"And you've become a cheap bastard who cares more about saving some money than he does taking care of his wife!" Lily snapped.
"Lil, if thats what you think of me, then you don't know me at all," Rufus said to her.
Lily glared at him, her arms still crossed over her chest. "Actually, Rufus, I think now I'm finally beginning to see the real you."
"And what is that supposed to mean?" Rufus snapped.
"Rufus, I'm going to go now because I can't stand the sight of you right now. I ask that you don't try to follow me," she said.
"Good, because I really can't stand the sight of you now, either, Lil. I'll be more than glad to leave you alone as long as you leave me alone!" Rufus snapped back.
"Gladly!" Lily snapped.
"Fine!" Rufus yelled.
"Fine!" Lily yelled back.
They then turned their backs on each other, and walked off to their own separate ways. Both were angrier than they'd ever been before at the other, with Lily thinking of Rufus as being a bastard and a cheapskate, and Rufus thinking of Lily as a, ungrateful, high class, snooty bitch.
It was after five now. Rufus had checked his cell phone about fifty times only to realize there was, of course, no reception. It was a classic, clichéd thing to happen—seen in all the horror movies—no reception when you need it the most. But, there it was. No reception when they needed it the most.
Rufus was so bored. He had read his book for a bit, and then read his magazine. Heck, he had even tried making a sand castle in the sand, using only his hands. He swam a little, and napped again. Now he felt he had to do something productive, or he was going to go stir crazy.
Lily was still not speaking to him, and, frankly, he wasn't quite in the mood for speaking to her either. Still, he was getting hungry now, and he knew he couldn't wait until two o'clock tomorrow morning to eat. Lucky for him, the island had a lot of trees, and he was sure that, being in Hawaii, there had to be some coconut trees somewhere. Or pineapple trees. Wait, did pineapples eve grow on trees, or did they grow from the ground? He didn't know, but he was sure determined to find out.
He headed into the woodsy looking area that had all the trees. He had to search a little ways in, but then he found one—a coconut tree. It was like the Holy Grail. The question was, how was he going to get up there? An idea hit him. He looked around for the biggest stone he could find. When he found it, he threw it as hard as he could at one of the coconuts. He missed it.
With a sigh, he tried again. This time, it hit the coconut, but the coconut only shook.
He tried again, and the coconut shook even more. He was sure it was just about to fall.
He got the stone again, and threw it as hard as he could once again. This time, the coconut fell to the ground.
"Yes!" he cried out, a big smile on his face. He headed over to retrieve the coconut, but, right before he could get to it, Lily appeared out of nowhere and snatched it out from under him.
He looked at her in surprise. "Hey! That was mine! I got it down."
Lily smirked at him. "Yeah, well, I picked it up off the ground."
"Give me that, it's mine!" Rufus said, lunging for it.
Lily quickly pulled it away, and ran from him. "It's mine now!"
Rufus let out a loud cry of frustration. "Fine! Keep it! Good luck trying to figure out how to open it!" he yelled. "I can get another one, so forget you!" He didn't know how he was going to get his coconut open, but he'd worry about it later, after he managed to get another coconuts. If he could managed to get another coconut that is.
Rufus managed to get not one, but two more coconuts. "Take that, Lily! I got two!" he yelled to her as he passed by the lounge chair she had chosen to sit on.
In response, Lily showed him a finger that was very un-Lily like.
"Classy, Lil. Classy!" Rufus snapped sarcastically.
Lily stuck her tongue out at him in response.
Rufus rolled his eyes. "Real mature," he said just as sarcastically. He then sat three chairs down from hers. He had an idea how to get his open. He had kept the big stone he had used to get his coconuts down, and he slammed it across the top of the coconut repeatedly. It seemed to take forever, but he finally got the first one open.
"Yes!" he said, immediately drinking the coconut milk from it. He thought it tasted nasty. It wasn't a nice, coconut-flavored milk like he had thought it would be. Instead, it was like white tinted water that had an un-distinctive, but bitter taste. It didn't matter. It was better than drinking the sand-infested ocean water. He dug into the coconut. "Mm," he said when he tasted the delicious coconut. At least that tasted like he imagined it would taste.
He glanced over at Lily, who was staring over at him, holding her still unopened coconut in her hand. He felt bad for her. As angry as he was at her, and as angry as she made him, she was still his wife, and he was still her husband. It was his job to make sure she was taken care of.
With a sigh, he cracked open his other coconut, and brought it over to her. He then handed it to her.
Lily looked up at him. "I don't need your pity, or your coconut!"
Rufus sighed. "Lil, come on. I know you're hungry. You need to eat. I don't want you to starve."
"I can do it myself!" she snapped. She grabbed her own rock, and tried smashing her coconut again. She had been doing it before to no avail. Now was no different.
"Lil, stop being so stubborn, and just take it!" Rufus snapped at her.
Lily sighed. "Fine!" She grabbed the coconut Rufus offered her, and quickly drank down the milk. She let out a satisfied sigh.
"Do you like it? I think it's kind of gross," Rufus admitted.
Lily shrugged. "It's not bad. It's better than drinking salt water." She nodded toward the ocean.
Rufus nodded. "Agreed."
Lily then dug into her coconut. Rufus ate with her from the rest of his coconut that he had left. They ate in silence.
Eventually, Lily looked over at Rufus. "Why are you helping me? I thought you thought I was a greedy bitch?"
"I never said you were greedy," Rufus corrected.
Lily shrugged. "But you implied it in so many words. And you definitely called me a bitch."
Rufus sighed. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have called you a bitch."
"But you think I am one." Lily stated.
"Well, you've been kind of acting like one lately," Rufus stated.
"Well, maybe if you didn't give me a reason to, then I wouldn't have to!" Lily snapped.
"All I ever did was plan a nice trip for my wife for our honeymoon. What's wrong with that?" Rufus asked.
"I already told you, you were cheap about everything!" Lily snapped.
Rufus sighed, and rolled his eyes. "What is wrong with you? The Lily I knew when I first met you didn't care about all this high class, ritzy stuff. In fact, we used to make fun of the rich snobs we'd see, and promise never to become like them!" Rufus reminded her.
Lily glared at him. "Oh, yes! I forgot that one. You think I'm a rich snob aside from being a bitch. It's wonderful to finally find out what you really think of me all these years, Rufus!" She turned her back on him.
Rufus rolled his eyes. "There you go again, turning it all onto me when you're the one in the wrong. What happened to the old Lily? The one I fell in love with?"
Lily whipped around to face him again. "She grew up, Rufus! That's what happened to her."
"More like you married William, and he changed you," Rufus grumbled, his arms crossed over his chest again.
Lily raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me? What does William have to do with anything?"
"Well, when you married him, that's when you changed. You became this rich, high-classy, snooty woman who cares more about her own reputation and the high class things in life than you do anyone else! I mean, look at what you did to Serena!" Rufus was so angry now, he felt every single thing that had ever bothered him about Lily start to come out.
"I lied to protect her!" Lily reasoned.
"You liked so that no one would know that a daughter of Lily van der Woodsen was having an affair with her teacher. You wrongly accused him, and put the poor man in jail," Rufus reminded her.
"He's forgiven me for that, and I've already paid for that. Besides, how does that have anything to do with the argument we're having?" Lily asked.
"I'm just saying that William changed you into this conniving person who only cares about her own reputation. He got you thinking that you're only good enough if you have a lot of money and know how to spend it! Then he got you lying to me, your husband when you thought you had cancer."
"I didn't want you to worry," Lily said calmly.
"And you didn't think you were worrying me when you kept lying to me, and running off to who knew where?" Rufus asked.
Lily sighed. "You weren't supposed to find out the truth."
Rufus nodded. "Exactly! But it was fine for your ex-husband to know the truth. You know, a part of me always suspected that you love William more than you love me."
Lily wrinkled her nose. "That's ridiculous! I don't love William at all!"
Rufus raised an eyebrow. "Is it really ridiculous, Lil? Is it really? He has more money. He can toss it around like it's simply notebook paper. He's the one you went to when you needed someone the most. He has all the money."
"He is a doctor," Lily said coldly.
Rufus narrowed his eyes at her. "And he was the only one you could go to?"
"I knew him. It trusted him," Lily stated simply.
"But you didn't trust me to understand; to be there for you," Rufus stated. "Even though I'm your husband."
"William has no relevance whatsoever to our argument," Lily said coldly.
"Yeah, well, then maybe you don't really know who I am, because, frankly, I thought I knew who you were Lil, but you changed. You're still the woman you were when you married William." Rufus stormed away from her then. He couldn't stand to be near her anymore. He didn't know what he was going to do for entertainment, but he knew that, whatever it was, it wouldn't be with Lily.
He sat down in front of the water on the sand, and let the water lap over his toes. He wished he had never planned this stupid honeymoon. Lily didn't appreciate it anyway.
Lily sighed as she watched her husband sitting by the water, and looking sad. Maybe she had been too hard on him. But, really, what was all that stuff about William? What on earth did William have to do with anything? And she didn't like being called a bitch by her husband, or having him insinuate that she was stuck up and snooty just because she had money. It wasn't about the money. The problem was, she felt he didn't love her enough to want to make this honeymoon special for her. He had paid as little as he had to pay. It was like he didn't think she was worth spending the money on. It hurt her feelings.
She sighed again, and contemplated going over to her husband to talk to him. She didn't know what she'd say. She really wanted him to make the first move. She was bored out of her mind not having him by her side though. All she had done all day was read, look at her magazine, and sunbathe. She was still hungry.
She dug into her coconut, determined to scrape out every last bit. What she wouldn't give for a burger right now—being on a diet or not. Better yet, she could sure go for some of Rufus' waffles that he was practically a pro at making. Her stomach grumbled at the thought.
After a shot bit, she finished her coconut, then tossed it to the sand. They had stranded her here. Let them pick up their own island. She usually wasn't one for littering, but she was ticked off enough to do it this time.
A breeze blew past her, and she rubbed her arms together. Being by the water, it was a little colder than usual. She hugged her knees and rubbed her arms at the same time, hoping that wrapping herself up like a turtle would warm her up a bit. Unfortunately, it didn't help much.
"Here."
Lily suddenly felt warmth around her shoulders. She looked up at the sound of her husband's voice, and realized that he had placed a beach towel around her shoulders.
"I found a pile of clean ones over on one of the tables at the buffet area," he explained.
He wrapped his arms tightly around her, and kissed her temple. "I'm sorry I was such a jerk. You're right. I've been such a cheapskate. This is your honeymoon. You deserve nothing but the best!"
Lily looked him in the eyes, enjoying the warmth his arms were already giving her. "It's our honeymoon. Did you want the best too?" she asked him.
He nodded. "Of course I did! But, let's face it, Lil. A great honeymoon takes money, and I didn't want to use your money for a trip that was supposed to be for you."
Lily turned around to face him. "Rufus, we're married now. My money is your money. You know that!"
Rufus shrugged. "I don't do much to contribute. Sure my band and my producing brings in a little extra cash, but I'm not a millionaire like you are. I didn't want to take your money and use it on a gift for you. It just wouldn't seem right. I'm your husband. I know in this day in age the woman can support the man, but I always feel like I failed you, not having the money to give you the life you want."
Lily sighed. "My gosh, I really am a selfish, greedy bitch."
Rufus gently rubbed her back. "No, you're not. I was just frustrated with myself for being so cheap. You're not a bitch, and you're anything but selfish. You're not greedy either. You just know what you like, and you go for it. I love that about you."
Lily took his hands in her own. "But I am, Rufus! If I made you feel that way—that I wouldn't love a trip unless it was full of wonderful, luxurious things—then I really have gotten to be a rich bitch. I proved you right. Here you were just trying to give me the honeymoon I never got, and I complained about everything because it wasn't up to my usual standards! Oh, Rufus, I'm so sorry! Here I thought you didn't love me enough to want to spend the money on me. That's why I was so upset! Really, you just didn't spend the money because you didn't want to make me pay for my own honeymoon."
Rufus squeezed her hands. "Well, I could have borrowed some money from Dan, or something. I could have tried harder to be able to afford getting you something much nicer! Really though, the hotel looked so much more beautiful in the brochure. I guess it must have been an old brochure."
Lily raised an eyebrow. "You think?"
Rufus smirked. "Judging from how our hotel looks now, the brochure must be decades old."
They both laughed.
Lily couldn't help but smile. It felt good to laugh with him again. She gently stroked some hair out of his eyes. "Rufus, about all that William stuff..." She trailed off.
Rufus sighed. "No need to say anymore. I was just jealous that he could afford to take care of you better than I could. He's a doctor. Not only did he know how to take care of you money-wise, but he knew how to take care of you physically. You didn't even want to tell me you were sick! Yet, you went to him, and he cured you."
Lily sighed too. "Rufus, I'm sorry I didn't go to you. I should have right from the start. Like I said, I just couldn't stand the thought of worrying you. I went to William because I wanted someone I could trust. Or, at least, thought I could trust. I wanted someone I knew would know what he was doing. I had to have him cure me. The thought of losing you was worse than the thought of my actual death. I had to have him cure me so that I could get back to you and know that it would be for years and years to come, and not just for a few months or so until I died. Every moment I had to go without you there to hold me and support me was torture. It was worse than all the cancer treatments I had to go through."
Rufus sighed, and gently stoked her hair. "Just promise me you'll never go through something like that again without telling me first. Heaven forbid something like that happens to you again, I want to be there with you every moment of every day. More than likely nothing will happen to you, but, if it does—"
Lily cut him off with a finger to his lips. Then, she took his face between her hands. "You'll be the first to know, I promise. Trust me, I learned my lesson. Living without you was definitely a fate worse than death."
"I love you, Lil. You know that, right?" Rufus asked her, his eyes lowered.
Lily nodded. "I know. And I love you more with every breath."
His eyes lowered to the closing point, and they kissed for several minutes, only pausing to breathe.
Lily sighed against his kisses. It felt so good to have talked things out, and to no longer be arguing with him. She'd vow never to argue with him again, but, if they never argued again, they wouldn't be able to make up. And, right now, she was really loving making up. However, she at least wouldn't argue with him for the rest of their honeymoon. She grinned at the thought.
"What?" Rufus asked, breaking their current kiss, and grinning at her.
"Nothing. I was just thinking. Since, no one is around, and since the water is probably warmer than it is out here..." She stood up, and stripped off her bikini. "Why don't we go for a little swim?" She looked down at her naked body. "I know it's not tonight's lingerie, but..." She trailed off.
"It will more than do!" Rufus said, standing up, then stripping off his swim shorts. He licked his lips as his eyes wandered up and down her naked body. He then quickly walked over to her, and picked her up.
"Rufus!" She said with a giggle, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Don't drop me!"
"Never!" he told her. He carried her into the water then as they kissed the whole way there.
They made love in the water, Rufus supporting all of Lily's weight as they shared their love for each other in the most intimate of ways.
The moonlight shone down on their skin, and the ocean water glistened on their bodies. They reached their climax together, and to both Rufus and Lily, it was one of the most beautiful moments out of all the times they had made love.
They stayed there like that for a while—Rufus holding Lily in his arms—after their lovemaking, just enjoying the feel of being in each other's arms.
"Well, even if the water wasn't super warm, you managed to warm me up anyway," Lily said with a smile, as she gently moved a wet strand of hair out of Rufus' eyes.
Rufus grinned. "And you warmed me up as well!"
They kissed a little bit longer, then Rufus gently set Lily back down. "A plus side to making love in the water is you're lighter. I can hold you up for longer!" He told her with a grin.
"Are you saying I'm a heavy cow when we're not in the water?" Lily asked, her arms crossed over her chest, and an eyebrow raised. She tried not to smirk, for she didn't want to give her playfulness away.
"Well, yes!" Rufus said bravely, seeing right through her little game.
Lily gasped. "I cannot believe you just said that!"
"Well, I did. What'cha gonna do about it?" Rufus got a mischievous glint in his eyes.
Lily smiled, and batted her eyelashes at him. "This!" She then said before splashing him in the face.
He gasped. "Oh, it's on, Mrs. Humphrey!"
Lily squealed as he went after her, and, for the next half hour, they just enjoyed splashing each other, swimming, playing, and kissing in the water.
Eventually, they both got tired, and headed out of the water. They then sat back down in their lounge chairs.
"I never opened the other coconut. Wanna share it?" Rufus asked, holding up the third coconut.
Lily licked her lips and nodded. "Please! I'm still hungry."
"Me too," Rufus said, grabbing the big rock. He cracked open the coconut, and handed it to her. "You can drink the first half."
"Thanks," Lily said, taking it from him, and drinking half of the milk. She then handed it to him, and he drank the other half.
He then took a rock and broke the coconut in half, then they enjoyed eating their half of the coconut, and looking up at the stars as they ate and made smalltalk.
"Well," Rufus said, once they had finished their coconut halves and deposited the now empty shells onto the sand, "It's only eight o'clock, but, seeing as there's not much fun and interesting to do, what do you say we go to bed?"
Lily smiled at him. "I can think of something fun and interesting to do in bed that doesn't require sleeping. That is, if you're not tired." She batted her eyelashes at him.
Rufus grinned at her."I took two naps today. Of course I'm not tired! What did you have in mind? Please tell me it rhymes with poor Tex."
Lily giggled. "Actually, it rhymes with poor dove taking."
Rufus nodded. "Doesn't make much sense, but..."
Lily laughed. "And 'poor Tex' does?"
"Tex hurt himself. Poor Tex!" Rufus gave an example.
Lily giggled. "Do you want more lovemaking or not?"
Rufus stood up. "Yes, please!"
Lily smirked. "I thought you'd say that!" She stood up.
Rufus then picked her up and carried her to the beach bed, kissing her the whole way, and wasting no time at all in making love to her once he had laid her down onto the bed.
Lily moaned. She really did love the making up part.
After they made love, Lily went back and slipped her bikini back on. She was glad she hadn't worn it into the water, for sleeping in a wet bikini would have sucked. She also put on her cami over top of her bikini top.
Rufus slipped on his swim trunks, also glad he hadn't recently gotten them wet. He then took the rest of the clean beach towels, and brought them over to the bed to use as blankets.
"It's not much," he said about using the towels as blankets, "but they along with each other's warm body should keep us warm tonight."
"And, if we need another source of warmth, I know where we can find it," Lily said with a sly smile as she cuddled up closer to him.
Rufus grinned at her. "Why, Lily! Aren't you ever so insatiable tonight?"
"Is that a problem?" Lily asked innocently.
"Yeah right!" Rufus said.
They both laughed.
Lily then rested her head on Rufus' shoulder.
"I didn't mean you were a heavy cow. I was only teasing," Rufus said to her.
"I know that, my Darling!" Lily said with a smile. "You've said many times already how I don't need to diet."
"You don't!" Rufus said with a nod of confirmation. "I love your beautiful perfect body just the way it is."
Lily lowered her eyes. "And I love yours just the way it is—sexy and amazing."
Rufus moaned and Lily lowered her eyes, then they kissed again for a bit.
Lily then rested her head on his shoulder again. "I really am sorry for complaining about everything. I promise to not complain about a single thing on this trip from now on!"
Rufus smiled. "You won't have to. We still have a while left of our trip. As soon as we get back tomorrow, we'll stay at the most expensive hotel we can find. I won't get a refund from our hotel for tomorrow, but who cares? We're going to have fun on this honeymoon, dang it!"
Lily grinned. "Now you're talking! At least we'll have a lot of good stories to tell the kids when we get back."
"Like how we thought we were going to die?" Rufus asked.
Lily laughed. "I'm never getting on another helicopter as long as I live!"
"Me neither!" Rufus agreed. "Of course, we still have the plane to get home on. We can upgrade to first class."
"Rufus, you know how you said you felt you couldn't give me the life I wanted?" Lily suddenly asked after a brief bit of silence.
Rufus nodded. "I should hope so. I'm not getting that old that I can't remember what I said an hour ago!"
Lily gently pushed him. "I'm being serious!" She smiled nonetheless. "I want to tell you that, you do give me exactly the life I want just by being my husband." She looked him deeply in the eyes, and stroked his hair. "You're my dream, Rufus. The day I married you, my dream came true. It was then that I realized fairytales didn't just have to be just fictional stories. I'm living a fairytale in real life because I got to marry my prince."
Rufus' eyes lowered. "Oh, Lil. My dreams came true when I married you too. Not only are you my princess, but you are my soulmate. Not many people get to marry their soulmate, but I did. And for that, I'm the luckiest man alive."
"And I'm the luckiest woman alive for having married mine," Lily said.
They kissed again, and didn't stop until a short while later when tiredness fell upon them both.
"This is kind of nice, lying in your arms on a beach bed with the ocean here to lull us to sleep," Rufus stated.
Lily snuggled closer to him and smiled. "Mm, yes, it is."
"Goodnight, Mrs. Humphrey," Rufus said, holding her close, and kissing her temple.
Lily sighed with contentment of having her head on her husband's chest, and his arms around her, protecting her from any harm. She kissed his cheek. "Goodnight Mr. Humphrey."
They then let the sound of the ocean lull them both to sleep, both so happy to just be safely in the other's arms, and to know that, no matter how bad things had gotten on their honeymoon so far, they had each other. And, in the end, that was all that really mattered.