A Heavenly Morning
Author's Note: Attention readers, hopefully the first chapter was relevant to your usual expectation when reading a story. So here's another one. I feel like I should state that I'm currently a little less motivated to writing this story than I was last time, but that could just be since I just started and it's not very popular yet. So long story short, this story may take longer to finish than the last one, but I promise that doesn't mean it won't get done. This mood could change once I get into it and hopefully it will.
Monday
Maurecia's POV
It's a bright and early Monday morning and it's currently the first Monday since Labor Day that I've been officially free. I can't help but think about what it's like to not have school today. The first Monday of Christmas break is never a day anyone looks forward to in particular unless it's Christmas day. But right now I need to prepare to go to Todd's house. There's a blizzard planned sometime this week and it won't be pleasant for me alone since I wear roller blades. I'd use boots this time, if I didn't need the skates as a transportation source. I'm fourteen, almost fifteen and I don't have a car or a school permit. But Todd's house is farther away than the school so it's not like a permit would do me any good anyways.
I get up and pack a bag with a couple extra shirts, some sweatpants, underwear, an extra bra, and a pair of pajamas. Then I put on a red, hooded sweatshirt because I really need to wear things like that this time of year. It's way too cold outside to do otherwise. I mean, I could wear a coat but then my ears would get cold. I can't fit a hat over my helmet. I also pack my diary because I might have a few things to add or a couple of stories to tell Todd. My, or I guess 'our' scrapbook that I may have a few photos to add later on. And then of course a toothbrush because Todd wants to be a dentist in the future so I need to have sparkly teeth when around him. When I'm about to close the bag I realize Fluffy isn't awake yet. I tap him lightly on the side to signal him.
"Hey Fluffy." I whisper and he just rolls over. "Rise and shine." He opens his eyes slowly and steps off his bed. I then pick up a black stethoscope my mom gave me from her hospital and begin counting Fluffy's heart rate. He just yawns and gives me a grumpy look.
"Come on Fluffy. You wouldn't want to go into hibernation now would you?" He only rolls his eyes until I'm done counting. "Your heart sounds healthy for now sweetie." Fluffy sighs and gets back in his bed. I have to forbid this.
"I don't think so Fluffy." He groans in annoyance. It's true I don't leave him alone during winter but he should know that if he turned out like my hedgehog I'd never forgive myself. I put my stethoscope into my bag as well because I'll need it for the next couple of days with Fluffy behind me. I then look down at his pair of skates and helmet and ask.
"Do you want to bring your skates to Todd's house?" He folds his arms and shakes his head. I only roll my eyes. "Okay, I guess you aren't really feeling it today." I step out of the room and on my way out I see my older brother Parker, playing on his PC. He normally doesn't show anyone else a lot of attention but this time he oddly tilts his screen down.
"Maurecia? Where are you going?" He asks.
"I'm going to spend the night with my boyfriend." I say as he raises an eyebrow.
"Did dad say it was okay?" I sit on a chair across from him.
"I texted him and he says it's okay, but he's a little worried the blizzard could come in and I'd have a tough time getting home." To my surprise he closes his computer and removes his earbuds.
"Well then maybe you shouldn't go." I sigh.
"Parker."
"Yeah Sis?"
"Do you know Todd personally?" He shrugs.
"From what I've seen he's pretty cool and I do applaud to you for choosing him instead of one of those dumbasses a lot of girls date first." I raise an eyebrow in slight annoyance.
"Are you saying a lot of girls date dumb guys? Because that sounds a little sexist."
"No, I'm just saying that most people's first relationship isn't their last." I guess that's fair. "Most of the time the first relationship fails and both members try to do better with the second. Though, usually the first one ends because the guy rushes to sex or does something else that's immature and irredeemable." This makes sense, but I'm still confused by his timing.
"Why are you telling me this now?" I ask as he grins.
"Because you're only a freshman. That's a little young for dating don't you think?" I nod.
"To most perspectives I'd agree. But I'm so determined to being with Todd that it overrides that."
"I know, and I know Todd cares about you to. I'm just saying that since most first relationships don't work out, I'm proud that you're with someone a little more sane." I smile at him.
"You really did give me my space while Todd was around. Unlike Jonas, Caleb, and Eli." Parker smiles a little wider.
"It's because I'm not immature like they are. I'd sit down and play games while you ate dinner with Todd because I thought you deserved a little alone time. And trust me, none of our brothers are going to keep their first girlfriend." I chuckle at that.
"Well what are you getting at?"
"I'm saying that I'm proud you have reasonable standards and this guy meets them. Did you know that last year when you were in the hospital I wanted to find Todd and beat him up?" That surprises me.
"No I didn't."
"I didn't know for sure who did it and I was a little surprised when I found out the guy who hit you happened to be the boy of your dreams. But I'll tell you this, if you want to keep this boyfriend, you need to spend at least fifty percent of the time doing what he wants to do."
"I don't think that will be too difficult." I say.
"And you might need to slow down a little as a whole so you don't overwhelm him." I roll my eyes.
"Todd's already used to my insane speed. I wouldn't worry about that either." He shrugs.
"Well I mean, are his parents used to you riding roller blades indoors?"
"His parents aren't even home." He grins.
"Oh I see, you're taking this opportunity to spend some alone time with him." I nod.
"Can you name a better time?" He shakes his head.
"No Maurecia I can't. On Christmas break if his parents are gone, your parents are gone, your brothers are sick or lazy, or you just feel trapped inside, then I say go for it." I smile.
"Thanks Parker. And I guarantee when you get a girlfriend you'll treat her well."
"That really means a lot to me. Have a good time."
"I will, but can you handle being in a house plagued with the flu?" He nods and puts his earbuds back in.
"Don't worry about me Sis. I'm the man of the house." I smile and open the door.
"Okay then, bye Parker." I get outside and realize Fluffy isn't on my shoulder. "Fluffy? Where'd you go?" I step back in the house and notice Fluffy sitting next to Parker and watching him play his game. "Fluffy!" Parker tilts his computer screen.
"Is something wrong?" He asks as I point to Fluffy. "Oh, I guess he wanted to watch me play." Fluffy nods and I roll my eyes.
"There's no time for that." I pick Fluffy up and set him on my shoulder.
"EYAH!" He squeals.
"Just calm down and hang on tight." I open the door and go at full speed down the road, only a few minutes later I'm at his house. "Okay Fluffy, are you ready to see Todd?" He holds his thumb up. "Okay then!" I ring the doorbell.
For a couple of seconds I'm just standing here and there isn't any greeting at all. Is he not home? No, that can't be possible. I ring the doorbell a second time and a couple seconds later Todd opens the door.
"Good morning Maurecia." He says while winking.
"Good morning Todd." I say while blushing, he blushes to moments after.
"Please come in." He says as I step into his house. His living room has a large T.V. in the center and a Christmas tree in the corner. I bet he did a little customization here and there to welcome me. Fluffy suddenly jumps onto his shoulder.
"Fluffy! Don't bother Todd!" I say a little vigorously. But to my surprise Todd begins laughing.
"Ha, ha, ha! I see someone else missed me huh?" Fluffy licks Todd twice on the back of the ear. I chuckle a couple of times at that.
"Fluffy doesn't normally do that anymore." Todd picks him up and holds him in his hands.
"Well then I guess I'm his favorite." Fluffy hugs Todd's chest, he never hugs me like that.
"Okay Fluffy, I think Todd's something we'll have to share." Todd bursts out in laughter after that.
"Ha! That's hilarious!" Then Fluffy taps him a few times. "What is it Fluffy?" He points to the stairs. "You want to go upstairs?" He nods. "Okay, let's go." As we take a couple of steps Fluffy holds his hand out at me.
"What?" I ask as he shakes his head. Todd shrugs a little.
"I think he wants to speak to me in private." Fluffy nods in agreement with him. Both Todd and I look at each other for a second.
"What's this all about?" I ask.
"I don't know." Todd says. "But maybe I should find out. In the meantime why don't you make yourself comfortable on the couch?" I smile at him.
"Okay. Have fun you two." I sit down as they enter Todd's room and I pull out my scrapbook. I look at some of the pictures I had before we got together and they were all wishful thoughts, then I look at all the photos we've taken together and they look so much cuter than the old ones. There's a photo of me and Todd at the pool together. Seeing him without his shirt is pretty hot. Sometimes it's even a turn on. Another photo has me and him in a haunted house. The entire time I was hugging his arm. I wasn't scared but I pretended I was, and Todd pretended like he was incredibly brave the whole time. A couple of other times we were kissing, hugging, holding hands, or just lying together. One time we took a nap in a hammock together. I didn't fall asleep but it felt amazing to be next to Todd the whole time. A couple minutes later Todd comes out.
"Okay we're done." I immediately turn towards him.
"What's the story?" I ask as he sits next to me.
"He says you won't stop bothering him." I'm a little confused.
"How do you two talk to each other?" He sighs.
"It's something that Fluffy told me not to share. But we do have a way of communicating directly."
"Why doesn't Fluffy want me to know?" He shrugs.
"I guess it's a 'guys' thing. But he did say he's pretty annoyed right now."
"Why?" I ask.
"He says you won't let him sleep or eat as much." I make a defending face.
"I have a reason for that. I don't want him hibernating." Todd's casual grin appears.
"I see, you don't want your best friend falling asleep on you this winter." I nod.
"I mean you did say I should spend more time with him and give him more attention. Isn't this what he wanted?" Todd shakes his head.
"No Maurecia, he's annoyed because you won't give him any time alone anymore. He says you walk into the bathroom with him now." That's one of my favorite things about Fluffy, I don't have to clean up after him.
"I used to give him five minutes alone but later he tried to take a nap without me watching him. He lost that privilege." Todd rolls his eyes.
"I think he just wants a little bit of leash."
"I give him the leash whenever it's not winter okay? I even let him walk around school and go places on his own."
"Well he says he's not planning on hibernation any time soon so you should stop stalking him." I sigh.
"Hibernation isn't something they think about Todd." He leans on his side of the couch. "He could easily go to bed one night and not wake up the next morning."
"Not if he isn't well fed." I nod.
"And that's why I limit his food each day as well." He frowns a little.
"No offense Maurecia, but that's not real good caretaking." I roll my eyes in disagreement. "He may be a porcupine but he believes you're taking away his rights as a living being." I finally snap.
"Todd! Hibernation is lethal to his health! If I don't keep a close eye on him this year, he could die! And believe me, he's barely three years old. I'm not ready to lose him now!"
"Okay." Todd says slowly while looking intimidated. I wrap my arms around his back.
"I'm sorry cutie." I say apologetically. "It's just a little scary knowing I could lose one of the two boys I love more than anyone else." He hugs me back.
"That's understandable. Is Fluffy a lot of work?" He asks.
"He can be at times. But he's a smaller animal version of me in a nutshell. He really loves doing stunts. And he's overly protective of me to anyone who may pose a threat." He frowns.
"Believe me. I'm well aware of that." He sighs. "As if you punching me a lot in the shoulders wasn't painful enough." I give a sympathetic frown.
"I know, and I'm sorry I ever did that." He responds pretty quickly.
"You shouldn't be the sorry one. I'm the one who almost killed you the only time I did it." I begin massaging his shoulders.
"Aw, cutie pie." I say in a loving higher pitch voice. "I forgave you for that last year." A tear rolls down his face.
"But, I still can't forgive myself for that. I think about it a lot you know? The fact that you were in a coma that I caused and it was a convenient miracle you were able to wake up at all, let alone in two days." I climb on top of him and hold us close together. He hugs back and continues. "It was really scary for me just looking at the thought of you not coming back, and it was too late to undo that action after I did it. It felt like I-" I suddenly cut him off by pressing our lips together. He immediately closes his eyes. A couple seconds later we stop.
"Todd." I say while give him a serious yet casual face. "I don't like looking back to that either. And the fact that you look back to it actually saddens me more." He looks down. "But honestly, I'm actually partially glad you did it." He looks up shocked.
"You don't actually mean that do you?" I give him a somewhat sad frown.
"Todd, if you hadn't punched me, you probably would've left Wayside school when that week was over. At the same time, if you had forgiven me, I would've felt like an irredeemable jerk."
"Why's that?" He asks.
"Because over the last year, I've looked back to all the times I punched you and looking at it now, I felt really guilty. If you hadn't punched me one time in return then I never would've learned how you felt." His eyes widen. "And if you hadn't knocked me out, you would've never learned how I felt knowing that I could've driven someone I care about away from me. I could've lost you forever." He speaks up.
"I'm not sure if I'd go that far." I respond quickly.
"But it is accurate. If we went through that week without that one instant, you would've adamantly walked out on Friday never to return. If you were indeed too mature to retaliate, I would've spent the entire week trying to get you to stay and after all the times I punched you, you wouldn't do likewise." He sighs.
"You're probably right about that."
"It can't be denied that moment where you visited me in the hospital brought us closer together than ever before." He nods.
"I agree."
"But you coming to see me only proved one thing, you actually cared about me." He smiles. "And if I were in an accident that were caused in any way unaffiliated by you, you wouldn't have had the urge to come."
"It's hard to say for sure on that."
"You might've felt a little more remorseful when you left Wayside, but you would've done it anyways. Me spending time in the hospital helped me learn what it's like to stand out alone with no one who hears you." His smile begins looking more a more pure by the second. "And while I was unconscious I had a bad dream."
"What was the dream about?" He asks in an eager sounding way.
"I was trapped in an empty void. A void that was pitch black and no sign of life anywhere, no matter which direction I went, there wasn't even any hope for me even getting anywhere." I pause for a second. "But then I heard a familiar voice." I look up, mimicking how I envisioned myself in my dream.
"I heard a voice calling for me at the end of the tunnel. Outside of this black hole that hasn't finished evaporating. So I followed that voice until I could see some light, the exit was getting closer and closer to me. Every step I took I felt stronger than before and an eternal surprise was waiting for me." He lays there looking at me with a fascinating reaction on his face.
"Every step I took, the voice was clearer and more identifiable. I could feel my heart getting faster and faster. I took one look back at the dark void behind me and felt I was dead and my soul was reaching heaven. Then I faced forward and prayed for the best outcome. If my life is officially over, then I'm ready to accept it, only knowing I could smile down on you for the rest of your eternity." A heartfelt tear falls down his face, then I make eye contact with him.
"But I wasn't dead Todd, after I stepped through the bright barrier, I was back in my place on earth and guess who was there to greet me when I was freed from that dark imprisonment."
"Me?" Todd says under a river of joyful tears.
"You." I hug him again holding our bodies as close together as I could. "I thought I was dead and I was ready to leave everything behind because I thought I had no choice, but the fact that you were there for me when I reached the end, you saved my soul from its early one way trip to heaven. The words you said in your prayer purified me and brought me back to you. And that's a journey I was uncertain where or when it would end. Going through that dreaded nightmare made me stronger at heart and gave me a better vision on how easy a life is to end. When I woke up and saw you holding my hand in the hospital…" I begin crying as well.
"I felt reborn. I felt that my soul had been cleansed and the capacity I had for love had reached new limits that didn't exist before. Your very presence renewed me Todd, and that's something I will never forget as long as I'm living, and I'm so thankful I have you with me in life. Life's a journey to Todd, and I'm glad we're doing ours together."
"Wow." He sniffles. "I've never heard anyone say anything half as beautiful before." We both look into each other's eyes for a second before he hugs me closely. "I love you so much!" He says in a broken voice. I hug him back gently.
"I love you to. And there isn't another boy on the planet I'd rather be with than you." He kisses me on the cheek.
"Me neither Maurecia." I wrap my arms around him and prepare for the best week I'll ever have.
Author's Note: There you go. This one kinda came out of nowhere and I didn't plan on ending it this way, but I'll save my original plans for the next chapter. Carry on readers, goodnight. :)