𝚂𝚞𝚖𝚖𝚎𝚛𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎 𝚂𝚊𝚍𝚗𝚎𝚜𝚜

Chapter 38

I spent the entire ride back home talking my head off, asking him about how his day had been and just how happy I was about the way this day had been.

"My house is...not very clean right now." I said opening the door.

"It's fine! As long as there's a surface I can sleep on I'm good." Charles smiled.

My flat didn't look half as bad as it was around the time I started writing, there was just a lot of things out of place- that's the fun part of living on your own, no one can tell you where to put things!

"It's so cute, I like the way you've decorated it." He said setting his bag down.

"You've had a long day, go clean up I'll make you some tea." I said heading to the kitchen.

We spent some time curled up on the couch with our cups of tea, he looked so much more refreshed after a shower and I loved how he smelled after one. He was tired, there was no denying that, so we headed to sleep. And I was right, he fell asleep before his head even hit the pillow.

***

A good night of sleep later, I woke up to my bed being empty. I heard rattles and slams in the kitchen, if I didn't know better I would have been convinced someone had broken in.

"What are you up to?" I walked into the kitchen rubbing my eyes.

"Good morning!" He kissed my forehead. "all these time zones have me messed up, I couldn't sleep so I figured I'd cook you breakfast." Charles smiled.

"Awe." I grinned, "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Well, I wanted to make you an omelette but all I have managed to find are eggs and a pan." He said sheepishly.

"Was all the ruckus from-"

"Emiko, I've searched through your pantry and caused a hurricane." He laughed.

Everything he was looking for, to me was placed in the most practical location possible. I wanted to just make myself some tea but he had managed to cover all the kitchen counters with things, he would need, he was done using and he was using.

"Why don't you watch TV or read the newspaper, I'll brew you your tea too." He shooed me out of the kitchen.

"Please don't set my house on fire I'll never get back my security deposit." I joked.

"Very funny." He rolled his eyes.

I switched on the TV, looked at current affairs for a while and then gave in to watching local news and their gossip segment. None of it was interesting, it gave my mind an excuse to just drift away. I looked at Charles, with his eyebrows furrowed in determination as he flipped the omelette.

And then I wondered what living together would feel like, would I wake up to great breakfast when he was around, shop for groceries weekly with him and call it a day falling a sleep in his arms? It sure did sound nice.

We ate breakfast, got ready for the day ahead and then caught up with work related things for a bit. This was fun, sitting opposite to each other, while I typed away on my laptop and he answered one call after another.

"It's the first time I'm visiting your parents, should I bring something?" He asked.

"Nonsense! It's my parents you don't have bring them gifts."

"Of course I have to! I did bring dry fruits from Jeddah, can we stop by a florist and take a bouquet along?" He said.

"Dry fruits?" I looked at him in confusion.

"They were actually for you but I can always get you more."

With that settled, a trip to the florist later we were standing outside the gates of my parents' house. I knew Sofu would quite like him, he got along with pretty much everyone. It was my mother I was worried about, she would start quizzing him the minute we stepped in.

She was already waiting at the door, Charles handed her the presents and she was already looking a little impressed. I introduced him to Sofu who gave him a firm handshake and was already asking him questions about what he did as a driver, why did he choose motorsport and all that. My dad just watched their conversation unfold from a corner, clearly judging the answers he was giving.

It was time to sit down for lunch, at first it was awkwardly quiet but Charles took it on himself to make things going again. He praised my mother's cooking, Sofu's pickles and the way my father had cooked the meat, clearly all of them were very flattered. He had a way with people, and I loved to watch him charm them.

"How did you both meet?" My mother asked.

"I've actually known her since high school." He started, "Never had the courage to even talk to her outside school and then we lost touch."

I wasn't expecting him to start from the very beginning, every time I heard about it, it really made me believe that we were meant to be. It felt nice to know the vulnerability and pining was not just one sided, he too cared about me. My mother was listening to all of this with great concentration, a smile curling on her lips hearing him talk about me with so much admiration.

"So you met again, after what? Nine years!" She exclaimed.

"It could have been sooner, if I took the chance." He looked at me, "but I have no regrets, I've never felt so at home with someone since the start."

A good lunch later, I started clearing the dishes without any sort of hesitation Charles helped. It felt like any other meal at home, Dad and Sofu getting something sweet ready for us to eat, mom getting seating in the garden ready and I was cleaning up, but with him around to help out.

He had meddled his way into their hearts too, laughing at my dad's horrible jokes, showering my mother with compliments and patiently hearing Sofu's thoughts. All I did was sit back and admire, what in the world had I pulled off to call this pretty boy mine?