“Justin, stop fidgeting. You’re making me nervous.”
He sat uncomfortably on his make-shift bed, twisting his phone in his hands. Selena lounged just behind him, watching him shift awkwardly back and forth.
“I’m not fidgeting,” Justin muttered defensively. Selena smiled and slowly shook her head, deciding to leave him with his thoughts and looked over at the television.
They had been sitting in a plane for most of the day, traveling together like they always used to do. Selena sighed, a blissful grin on her face. She had been dating Justin for almost two years now, but the feeling she got with him never got old.
She glanced back at her boyfriend and as she watched him, he rolled his head on his shoulders to stretch the kinks in his neck and gave himself a brisk shake. She sighed a bit and sat back against the pillows as he faced away from her.
“Jay,” Selena said quietly, glancing at him. “Tell me what’s wrong. Please?”
He sighed heavily and she saw him slump forward a bit.
“It’s nothing, we’ve just… we travel for days on end,” he muttered. Selena frowned. He sounded tired and concerned. “And…”
Selena just smiled sadly, her concern for him growing. “What, you’re getting air sick?” she teased gently.
He allowed himself an insincere half-smile. “Well - we’ve been together for a while now, you and me…” Selena’s ears perked up at this. She hadn’t been expecting this. Was it her fault he was acting this way? Maybe he was getting tired of her…
He sighed again. “It’s just… I’m sorry, Sel…”
She swallowed hard. “Sorry for what?” she asked quietly.
“I’m just kind of scared,” he said abruptly. She blinked, unsure of how to respond. ”I won’t be able to provide for you.”
This, to Selena, had come out of nowhere. “What are you talking about?” she asked, genuinely confused as she looked over at him.
“We’ve been traveling for days,” he repeated nervously. She smiled a bit at his nervousness. He was so sweet, she didn’t think she’d ever get tired of it. “All we do is travel. I don’t think we’ll ever really have a home of our own.”
“Oh,” She said, everything suddenly becoming clear. She sat back, relieved. “That’s all.”
“What’s all?” Justin asked distractedly.
“Justin, a home is what you make it,” she replied gently. “We can live wherever we want.”
Justin fell thoughtfully silent. ”Well - Where do you want to live?” he asked at length.
Selena laughed lightly. He had missed her point, but she would get him there in his own time. She trailed her fingertips along his back and felt him stiffen a bit in surprise before he relaxed.
“Hm, that’s a good question,” she sighed thoughtfully. “We could go to Texas. Live in a little house on a hill.” Justin nodded, and her smile grew a bit. “We could - go to Canada and live in a house with a view, grow old together in your hometown.” He nodded again. She chuckled. “We could just stay in California and live not too far away, where all the people we know best are close.”
Justin didn’t nod this time. She could tell he was thinking hard about something. “You’re trying to make a point, aren’t you?” he asked with laughter in his voice. She grinned. He knew her so well. She got up and sat herself beside him on his bed. He shifted behind her, situating her comfortably between his legs so she could lean back against his chest and rest in his embrace.
“Home isn’t just four walls and a roof,” she said quietly. “Home is where you want to be. It’s where there are people who love you, some place you can always come back to.”
She glanced up at him and he smiled. She felt that familiar, fluttering warmth in her chest and closed her eyes comfortably.
“This is home, Justin,” she whispered. “I’m home with you.”
