Drink Me

66. NORMAL, EVERYDAY STUFF

NORMAL, EVERYDAY STUFF

Riley opened the sofa-bed and fitted the sheets and blanket that Gabriel had provided before excusing himself to sleep. He grabbed the toothbrush that Alice had bought for him and poked his head into the bathroom where the woman was brushing her teeth.

"May I?" he asked.

Alice motioned for him to come in so Riley walked inside and closed the door behind him; the running water had created a nice warmth and the mellow light contributed to the general cosy feeling of the small room.

He joined Alice to the sink and begun brushing his teeth. Only the sound of the water filled the silence as Riley thought about what he wanted to say to the Alice to apologise for his behaviour at dinner. Now that they were finally alone, he wanted a chance to explain himself and make amends. But as their eyes met in the mirror, Alice grinned at him, her nose scrunched up in a cute way that had Riley melt in a chuckle.

All was forgiven apparently.

"Soon turned out, I had a heart of glass."Alice started to sing in falsetto as she splashed some water on her face and continued humming the song while carefully rubbing her skin with soap, scrubbing away every last trace of makeup.

"You're possibly the worst singer I've ever come across," Riley teased after rinsing his mouth, but the comment only prompted Alice to sing even louder.

Shaking his head, a grin still on his lips, Riley removed his t-shirt, but when Alice looked at him through the mirror, her face dropped into a childish frown.

"Oh, baby, you're hurt," she said, swiftly turning to inspect the purple bruise on his left side.

"It's nothing," Riley replied, but winced as Alice's wet fingers skimmed across the tender spot in his ribs.

"They could be broken," Alice observed. "You should have it checked out."

"It's just a bruise," Riley reassured her, wiping a droplet of water falling from her chin.

"Oh, you're such a tough guy," Alice mocked, faking a rough male voice.

"Fine," the man relented with an eye roll. "It hurts like hell. Happy now?" he asked, removing the rest of his clothes.

"Very happy now," Alice replied with an eyebrow wiggle, shamelessly scanning Riley's naked body as she leaned against the sink.

He walked into the shower, away from Alice's prying eyes, and opened the cold tap. Taking a deep breath, he stepped under the freezing stream, his head tilted back to allow the water to fall on his face, and he started to count down from ninety. The cold and the progressive lack of oxygen forced his brain to focus on the task, freeing it from all the overwhelming emotions that had been cluttering during the day. In the background, Alice was still humming her tune, creating a warm feeling of comfort.

When the time was up, Riley moved away from the water. He allowed air back into his lungs with a deep breath that confirmed his ribs were, in fact, intact, and quickly opened the hot water, feeling his muscles immediately relax under the heat. From the gap in the shower curtain, Alice appeared lost in her word, busy scavenging the shelves of the sink cabinet.

"This is nice," she said, finally pausing her singing as she studied a pack of razor blades with curiosity.

"What is?" Riley asked, rubbing shampoo in his hair.

"This, us doing normal, everyday stuff and that," Alice explained, closing one cabinet door before moving to the other one.

"Yeah, I guess it is," Riley replied with a smile, infected by her chirpy mood.