A Love as Hard as This

Chapter 43

Noah's Perspective:

Richelle and I were standing outside my car, finally ready to go home after a full week at the hospital. "You okay?" I asked her, opening the door and gesturing for her to get inside. She reluctantly got in after looking at her phone and sent me a sad glance.

"I'm fine," she mumbled as soon as I got in beside her. But I could tell she wasn't when a single tear rolled down her cheek. She quickly brought up her hand to wipe it, but realized there was no point and dropped it into her lap.

"You're not. What's wrong? I know there's more," I said, bringing my own hand up to get the tear and dragging it lightly down her face, leaving a trail of warmth where my fingers had been.

She was silent for a long moment, then looked at the road with no emotion. "My grandma just died."

I couldn't believe it. It wasn't like she'd seemed fine when I'd seen her last, really, she hadn't, but I hadn't expected her to be gone so soon. I was hoping that she'd stay and bring Richelle more happiness before it happened, maybe even be healed. It had low chances of working, I knew that, but it was still disappointing to know that I'd never see that smile on Richelle's face again.

I pulled over right then and there, into a little curve next to the park near our houses, unbuckling my seatbelt and embracing her little sobbing body.

Her head leaned against my shoulder, getting my shirt wet with her tears, but that didn't worry me at all. I stroked her hair, trying to comfort her, but the way her sobs only got worse was a clear sign that it wasn't working.

"I've lost everybody," she whispered.

"Not me. You'll always have me." I assured her.

"Promise?" she asked, unsure.

"No matter what."

——————

We went into her house and talked about her grandma a little, her reliving beloved memories of her grandma and me listening loyally. As time rolled by, we ended up on her couch, our legs tangled together while we leaned on each other.

We muttered loving words to each other, smiling, giggling, just having fun, when she piped up. "Noah?"

"Yeah?"

She turned my head lightly, facing my face towards hers and forcing me to look deeply into her eyes. Those eyes. I could live seeing just her eyes forever, they were so beautiful. "Distract me," she whispered.

She cupped my hand lightly and kissed my jawline lightly, sending shivers down my spine. It was obvious that she wanted to control this, so I let her. I let her trail kisses until her lips were hovering over mine. Then she grabbed the back of my neck and pulled me closer, molding our bodies together.

I felt her tongue slip into my mouth, winding over my teeth. I stayed still, until she patted my shoulder with her hand, signaling I should kiss her back. So I did.

And we kissed—or made out, rather—for half an hour, until our lips were so swollen and our bodies were so tired that we could barely breathe anymore. We reverted back to the same position we were in before, sprawled out on one side of the couch. "Hey, Riche?" I waited until she nodded before I spoke again. "Wanna have a movie night? Like old, less complicated times?"

Her eyes lit up and a wide smile grew on her face. "Yes, yes, a million times yes!" she yelled, tearing the blanket off of her and standing up, dragging me along with her.

Her blonde hair was tousled from the couch cushions and my hands, and she reached to pat it down before I grabbed her wrist to stop her. "Don't, it's okay. You look beautiful."

She blushed, but finger combed it anyway and ran into the kitchen when she was done. "What're you making?" she teased, knowing that she couldn't full well that I would be the one cooking—the only things she could make were toast and cereal, and sometimes pasta, but only when I was helping her.

"I have to cook?" I gasped, fake offended. I quickly got over myself and responded with a real answer. "I'm making pasta."

"Yay!" she squealed, going over to the cabinets and taking out the dishes while I got started on the stove. "I'm helping, though."

"Of course," I chuckled. I had missed moments like this. Where there could be mindless banter between us, nothing to do with drama or unhappiness. Just the love between us.

Author's Note:
Sorry this chapter's so short.