Twenty-Six

Cole

I woke up with Bobby covering most of my body with his own. His head tucked into my shoulder and his arm slung across my stomach with his leg draped over both of mine. Closing my eyes I hoped for a little more time like this. Just to feel the warmth and safety of his touch, but I knew eventually he'd wake up and it would be over.

He drew in a deep breath and kissed my chest. "Good morning," he whispered.

"Good morning," I said and wrapped my arms around him, holding him right where he was. "I could wake up like this every morning."

"I bet you wouldn't say that in the summer when it's hot and sticky." He slid far enough away to rest his head on his hand while keeping his leg slung over me.

"I'd probably try to ignore that I was dying of heat," I said, making him laugh.

"What are your plans for the day?" Bobby asked.

"I want to write down more of the mural. I doubt we find anything in it all, but I'd like to make sure." He nodded before leaning in for a kiss.

"Why don't we go out to breakfast and relax before starting that. I can help you for a while but then I need to get home."

I tried to remember the last time I went to breakfast with someone who wasn't a family member and sadly, I couldn't remember anything recent. "That sounds great." The thought of spending a little more time with Bobby away from the usual madness that followed us was more than inviting.

"Cole?" Mom yelled from the front door. Bobby's eyes widened in what I would have sworn was fright before he scrambled for a blanket to cover himself.

"Back here, do not come—" was all I got out before she opened the door.

"There you are. Good morning, Bobby," she said to the lump where he was completely covered up. "I just wanted to know if you were coming by for dinner later."

My family sometimes got together for Sunday dinner. It wasn't anything planned and sometimes it was just one or two of us, but it was a tradition from when I was a kid and when I had time I went. "I'm not sure. We're going out to breakfast then I have a few things to work on today."

"Okay, well stop by if you get hungry, we're eating at six. Your sister has requested lasagna. I haven't decided if I'll make one or cook a frozen one." She spoke to me, but her eyes were locked on Bobby, who still hadn't moved at all since she'd walked in the room. "You're welcome too, Bobby."

"Thank you," he said from underneath the covers.

She grinned at me, obviously enjoying the fact she was making Bobby so uncomfortable. I rolled my eyes at her which she returned. "Bye, boys," she said as she walked out the door.

"It's safe," I whispered. He slowly poked his head out and looked around the room before flinging himself on top of me and kissing me.

"Let's go eat," he said after another big smack. We were both dressed and out the door in less than thirty minutes and once again it was all just so nice.

The sun was shining, it was a beautiful clear day, and I don't think I'd taken the time to enjoy a morning in months. Bobby took my hand and pulled me to his car. "I'm driving," he said, before holding the door open for me.

"What a gentleman," I said, making him laugh.

He hurried around to the driver's side while I slid into my seat and buckled up. "Where to?" he asked when he got in and started the car.

I gave him directions to a small local restaurant that had a covered garden and was aptly named Garden of Eden. "This looks nice," he said when we walked in.

"Morning, Cole, just the two of you?" Janine, the owner, asked as soon as we walked in.

"Yes, and can we eat outside?" I asked.

"Of course," she said and led us out there. It was a beautiful space, and once again, normal. It was busy, but not so busy that we felt rushed or that other patrons would be waiting for a table if we took time to enjoy it. So, we did.

We talked about anything and everything, and I was reminded how much I really liked Bobby even though I didn't know him all that well. He was interesting, and funny, and truly a really nice person. I found myself waiting for his accent to slip through, and when it did, I couldn't stop myself from smiling. "What are your plans for the rest of the day?" I asked just as our food arrived.

"Not much. I do need to do laundry and get ready for the week. But nothing set in stone. Are you going to your parents for dinner?" Bobby asked.

"Probably. Then I don't have to worry about cooking for myself."

"Do you cook?" Bobby asked.

"If you count opening a can or putting something in the microwave as cooking. I mean I try, but it doesn't always work out."

Bobby laughed at that and the two of us were quiet for a few moments while we ate breakfast. It was funny how even when we were quiet there wasn't any sense of needing to speak. I was happy just to be in his company, and I hoped he felt the same. "How's your food?" I asked.

"So good. This was a great choice. We'll have to come back here again," he said.

"I'd like that," I said, and I hoped through all the weird shit, the two of us could have one more day that was fucking normal, but somehow in the back of my mind I knew that would be a hard-won battle. But in this moment, I was willing to fight as hard as I needed to for Bobby and me. Because he was worth it, and nothing was going to make me give up on him. I hoped he felt the same, because I knew at some point, we'd both need to choose to either stay and fight or ignore everything we'd seen and go on with our lives.