Are You Sure? (Marina)

Thirty-One.

Maya

In her text Carina said she would come over around 6 and I told her to bring her overnight bag because I was not planning on letting her go the rest of the night. I told her we needed to talk at dinner considering the state of panic she left in after the hospital alarm. It made me wonder what else she was hiding from me about her triggers. That was a lot to think of and discuss before giving the woman a well cooked meal, and that is exactly what I was planning to give her.

I was busy cooking the only meal I had painfully mastered, cajun shrimp with brown rice. It was healthy and delicious and the only thing I knew that was remotely worthy of my amazing girlfriend. I picked up all the ingredients for dinner and had been at it all afternoon. Even looked up a recipe for a virgin sangria since the odds of Carina wanting wine tonight were slim, given her morning.

As if cooking wasn't nerve racking enough, all of it was because I wanted to ask Carina to move in with me and I was more nervous than during my qualifying races. There were ingredients on the floor and the apartment smelled like spice. It somehow seemed to be coming together, I think?

The clock said 6:05 when I finally finished, quickly running to the fridge to pour the carbonated water into the sangria before pouring it into two glasses. "Fuck! Where are the candles!?" I ran around my apartment only to find them in the hallway closet.

15 minutes later the table was set and everything was ready except for the guest of honor. It was another 20 minutes before a knock came by the door. I quickly turned off the stove keeping the food warm and ran to the door. I opened it to find Carina which finally allowed me to breathe normally, "Hi."

"Sorry I'm late. I had to go to therapy after work because I was feeling anxious." She kissed my cheek and walked in removing her coat, stopping in her tracks at the view of the table, "Maya... now I'm really upset I was late." Her eyes shined from the candle light bouncing off of them.

I almost got lost looking at her illuminated profile and the warmth the candle light brought to it, "I-It's fine, you have a valid excuse. Come sit!" I jumped and walked over to pull the seat out for her and take her coat to hang. Breathe Maya. I repoured the drink mix into wine glasses for effect and went to put them in front of our place mats.

She raised her hand to stop me from setting the glass down, "No wine for me-"

"It's virgin sangria, love. Same difference for all intents and purposes." Love? Get a grip Bishop. I served our plates and Carina nodded as she looked at the food in front of her. "I hope you like it, if not I will add it to my list of things to improve on."

"It smells good bella, thank you for this. I love it- all of it, all of you." She pulled my hand to lean over the table. We met half way and our lips connected.

"Anything for you." She smiled and turned back to her food. My eyes followed as she took her first bite and when I heard a low moan, my whole body relaxed. Like most times Carina started eating, I was the last thing on her mind as she went through her food.

Quickly she asked for seconds and half way through that plate she finally looked up at me still enjoying my first plate. "How was work yesterday? Also there is a clove of garlic by the island." Of course miss attention to detail would catch the one thing I dropped and didn't see when I was sweeping.

"I'm a mess in the kitchen, don't look at it- and it was good because I am here now," I reached out for her hand and she smiled, "Did you want to talk about earlier?" She pressed her mouth in a line after my question erased the smirk from her face, "We are supposed to communicate remember?"

She rolled her eyes and took a breath. "Pfff- I panicked and I'm sorry if I worried you. The child was fine by the way, she was hiding in a closet because she didn't want to get a surgery." Her eyes settled on the glass her fingers were tracing over.