It was the first week of January and all Ricardo can do is think about all of the ways he's failing. He ducks his head over the railing outside of Mike's guest house and tries to breathe. He'd never imagine this would be going on this long. He thought for sure he'd be back in Egypt by now, back to teaching the aspiring wrestlers over there. Instead... well, instead, he's still trapped in the States, unable to travel because of worsening situations regarding the pandemic. It's been months. He aches to be able to uphold his obligations, still receiving text messages from students eager to have him back soon. He doesn't move or respond as the door behind him slips open, light shining down upon him, upon the steps he's sitting on.
As soon as Alicia steps outside and sees him, in the chill, with no jacket on, she marches forward determinedly and drapes a soft blanket over his shoulders, massaging his arms briskly. "Why are you out here? It's cold," she complains softly and he chuckles bitterly, shrugging. "Come back to bed."
"In a little bit," he tells her. When she frowns at him, he sighs. "Insomnia. I didn't want to bother you."
She clucks. "When I wake up to an empty bed, and find you sitting out here in the cold, yeah, it kind of bothers me." She presses a warm kiss to his neck, and sighs. "Come inside, Ricardo. Please."
He sighs, allowing her to draw him to his feet, draping his arm over her shoulder. "Alright," he mumbles, following her inside.
She smiles softly at him and settles him in their bed after the long walk through the hall to the bedrooms. She tucks him in and stares deep into his eye. "Now isn't this better than sitting outside in the dark?"
"Yeah," he exhales. "I'm sorry, Alicia. It's just... you know how restless I get."
She cradles his face in her hands, kissing him. "Yeah," she sighs. "I know." She shrugs out of her robe and settles in next to him, smiling as he reaches out to touch her, fingers grazing down the smooth silk of her sleepwear but enjoying the soft warmth of her bare skin better. :"I love you," she tells him, already drifting off.
He sometimes gets envious of her for being able to sleep so easily when it's always such a struggle for him. Even so, he's content to lay here in the dark, and listen to her soft steady breathing as she sleeps, tucked up close to him. Eventually, the sun just starting to lighten the night sky visible through a gap in the drapes, it cradles him into a doze of his own.
