The Misunderstanding of Fate

Chapter 25 - Boxing Day Parties

Cleaning.

    That's how we spend our Boxing Day morning. George has his music on throughout the house as we tidy the mess we made yesterday. The loud noise is welcomed as I think back to the text I received from my father at nine this morning saying 'Merry Christmas'. If I had any doubts about how he was spending his time, that message confirmed it. He didn't even know what day it was. I shake the thought from my mind as I place the mop back into the bucket and return to the kitchen.

    Despite the loud music, I am engulfed in his silence as I enter the room. He stands by the counter with a look of determination on his face that has me slightly confused. My confusion is quickly overtaken by something else, some unknown or unfamiliar emotion, as he reduces the distance between us. George's brown orbs scan my flushed face, from cleaning and from this surprising encounter, as I find anything else to look at - anything to make me less nervous. I'd been close to George before, hell I'd been close to other guys before, so why was I so unsettled? Why did George, and that look in his eyes, make me so nervous?

    Those always-warm hands rest just under my bra, slightly holding onto that area of my side to keep us close. The exposure from my risen top threatens to increase my flushed face but I keep my attention on the near wooden table. Anything to avoid those eyes. From the table, my eyes move over to a small bookcase in the corner of the room as I examine it thoroughly. On the bottom of the self are letters addressed to George. What's interesting is that there are more than a dozen with similar handwritten addresses on them. The G in his name is slightly curled on each of the letters that I can see. Why hadn't he opened them? Who were they from? As I look closer, I see that all of the ones I can see have a tiny heart after his name. Now I really am interested and not just in order to avoid whatever was happening in front of me.

    With furrowed eyebrows, I look back at the mystery in front of me. He too seems startled by the changing atmosphere as his eyes trail back to where mine once were. I can feel his body stiffen and his muscles tighten when he realises what I was looking at. I could either ignore the new elephant in the room, pretend I hadn't noticed how uptight he suddenly was, or I could face this head on. Honestly, I should go for option one because, well, it's us. But... I want that to change. If things between us were evolving, surely that meant our conversations had to evolve with it.

    "Who are those from? Why haven't you opened them?" I offer him a small smile to defuse the tension.

    George exhales before he faces me again, "They're from a... an old friend. Someone I don't really want to be in contact with anymore."

    I debate how far to push him. I wanted to know more but I should be thankful he even told me that. "Why... Why don't you just read them and then decide?"

    "I love your positive attitude," he means that and it's shocking to me, "but there's nothing in those envelopes that can change my mind about our relationship. Or lack of."

    "Okay..." I pause, "Why don't you get rid of them, then?"

    George pulls us closer, he looks and feels a little more relaxed now, "I might not want to read them now but, I don't know, if something ever happens... I'll be grateful that I kept them. Besides, maybe in a year I will throw them. But right now that's not a decision I can be completely sure of."

    That made sense. It's still surprising to me how much sense this bad boy made. Before I get a chance to ask even more question, I hear his phone vibrate on the counter as the music momentarily pauses. George's sigh is audible over the music and I almost giggle at how fed up he looks. I pat his chest, come on, it says.

    Leaning against the counter, we both check his phone. Before he checks his messages, George lowers the music so that it's a nice, soft sound in the background. It seems to defuse any remaining tension and I'm thankful for the decision. At the top of his messages is a text from Elliot: