Conrad
Maya and I were in my movie room watching a comedy. She is in one recliner chair with a blanket around her, and I am in the one next to her, a bucket of popcorn between us.
“I should probably think about getting home. It’s getting late.” Maya sighs, standing up.
“Or you can stay. Neither of us has work tomorrow.”
I would like her to stay here with me rather than drive home in the dark. Not only that, but I liked sleeping next to her at her place. I don’t want anything from her. I just want to have her here.
“I don’t know if it is such a good idea, Conrad.” She sighs and runs her fingers through her hair.
“Maya, all we will do is watch the rest of the movie and then sleep. I am not looking for anything else.” I say softly because my gut says a part of her is worried, I want more after what happened in my kitchen.
“Promise?” she whispers.
“I promise, Maya. Please stay. Plus, I don’t want you to drive home in the dark.”
I would be in a panic from the second she left until she let me know she was home safe.
She takes a moment to think about it, “Okay. I will stay.”
I smile brightly, reach over the chair she previously sat on and grab the blanket.
Maya folds her arm over her chest and huffs, “I was using that.”
“And you still can, but we need to share.” I chuckle and pat the spot next to me on my chair.
Maya rests her hands on her hip and raises her brow at me, “And what if I don’t want to share?”
“It is nice to share,” I reply sweetly, patting the spot again.
She snickers, shakes her head and rolls her eyes at me, “Fine.”
I grin widely because I have won. She shakes her head again. I reach for her and pull her down next to me. The chairs are a good size, with enough room for two. I place her next to me, and she drapes her legs over my lap. I give her the blanket back, and she lays it over us.
“Now, can we get back to the movie?” she asks.
I smile, “We sure can.”
Maya surprises me when she curls right into me and rests her head on my shoulder. I slip my arm around her shoulder, and we focus on the movie. I am happy she agreed to stay. Though she does look tired, so I am not sure if she will manage the entire film. If she wants to go to bed, we can, and I can put the remainder of it on in there, and if she falls asleep, she will be in bed already.
Maya next to me feels right. I must have this thought multiple times a day, but I can’t help it. How can someone who isn’t even mine feel so right next to me? It is all still a little strange to me. It is hard to believe I have only known her for a short time because it seems like more.
Maya yawns loudly and apologises the second she does.
“Do you want to go to bed and watch the rest, beautiful?”
“No, I am fine here. I am not tired.” She protests.
“Okay, if you say so, sweetness.” I laugh and kiss the top of her head.
She sticks her tongue out at me and turns back to the screen. I don’t know why she denies she is tired when it is obvious, but I won’t say another word. The movie still had nearly an hour, so we will see how it goes.
Maya’s hand landed over mine, cautiously linking her fingers with mine. I look over at her, but her attention is on the screen. I don’t mention it because I really don’t mind. I will take whatever she is willing to give, considering over the last few days she hasn’t even spoken to me. I believe she is not quite sure what she wants. She can take all the time she needs to work it out. I am not going anywhere.
****
It hadn’t even been half an hour, and Maya had fallen asleep in my arms. I like that she is; it tells me she feels comfortable. She wouldn’t fall asleep curled into me if she still felt on edge around me.
I switch the movie and carefully stand, scooping her into my arms. She groans but doesn’t wake. Maya snuggles in and buries her face in my neck.
“I got you, beautiful, promise,” I whisper and kiss the top of her head.
I make sure I hold her tightly and head upstairs to my bedroom. I have spare rooms, but I would rather have her next to me. Though, she will need to sleep in her clothes because I don’t want to undress and change her. I don’t think she would be comfortable with me doing so just yet.
I arrive in my bedroom safely, pull the covers down, and lie her on my bed. I covered her up and went to walk away, but she did the same thing as when I stayed at her. She grabs my wrist.
“No, stay.” She whispers tiredly.
“I am just going to change, beautiful. I will be back in a minute. I promise. Do you want something else to sleep in?” I ask.
“Yes, please.”
I fetch her a tee and hand it to her. I grab something for myself to sleep in and go to my bathroom to change to give her some privacy to do the same. I pull on PJ bottoms and a tee before returning to the room. I knock to make sure she is done, and she tells me I can enter.
Maya is snuggled up under the covers. I slip in next to her and command for the light to switch off, and put the small lamp on for her sake. I usually stay up later when I am not working the next day, but I don’t mind an early night if it means I can sleep next to Maya.
“Thank you for tonight, Conrad.” She whispers.
“You are welcome. You can come here anytime you want.”
Maya finds my face in the dark; her hand rests on my cheek. She scoots closer to me and manages to guide her lips to mine. She presses hers to mine in a soft kiss. I groan instantly because I was not expecting it. Maya giggles into the kiss and pulls away.
“Goodnight, Conrad.”
She turns her back to me. I take my place behind her and snake my arm over her, “Goodnight, beautiful.”
She wriggles back against me, the mould of her body fitting perfectly with mine. I smile and bury my face between her shoulder blades.
I hope I can get her to spend the entire day with me tomorrow. I will start our day with breakfast and bed, after, I have no idea what we will do since we need to be careful, but I am sure I can make a plan for us. She may not want to, and if she doesn’t, I will respect that, but it would be good if we could. I will try not to get my hopes up too much, just in case.