The Red Lounge

Chapter 26

The bed bounced up a bit when Elijah climbed to bed. It was a smaller bed compared to the one he had at his apartment so we were pressed against eachother. He wrapped his arm me and nuzzled his head against my neck.

"I'm good for you, right?" He asked in a soft whisper. His heavy breath had a mixture of scents - cigarillo and rum. It was a scent that just barely lingered so he hadn't smoked or drank too much.

I was so mentally drained from all the questioning and coming to the realization that I didn't even know myself. Elijah continued nuzzling his head into me and rubbing my arms. I wanted to sleep, but it was obvious something was bothering him. Elijah wasn't the obviously cuddly type.

"Are you okay, Elijah?" I asked, turning around to face him.

"No, not really," he sighed. "Are you okay?"

"I have a lot on my mind," I admitted.

He laid in his back and stared at the white ceiling. "I'm sorry for my dad. It seems like coming here was a bad idea. I forget he can be a bit critical."

"It's okay. At least your dad is in the picture," I sighed.

He brushed my heated cheek with the back of his hand. "I don't think you've told me about your dad."

"No, I haven't."

He gave me a sympathetic smile. "It's okay. Do you want to talk about it tomorrow?"

"Sure," I sighed.

"Maybe tomorrow we can go on a nice walk by the Potomac river and talk about ourselves," Elijah suggested.

I wasn't much of a talker unless I held something in for so long and felt like I was going to explode. I supposed I didn't have the healthiest way of communicating.

Elijah and I didn't spend much time talking, we kind of just kept eachother company and slept together. I was fine it, but I knew at some point I will crave a deeper relationship especially as I emotionally mature.

I looked at his beautiful blue eyes, that almost begged me to go all in. Elijah needed this, he needed an emotional and intellectual connection. I'm sure his past relationships depended more on those attributes considering nothing truly sexual happened. I had to give him this part of me, even though it was one of the scariest things I had to do. It was so easy to undress and show my naked form, but not my naked soul.

"Okay, we can do that. I'd love to get to know you more," I whispered. I leaned over and kissed his forehead. He closed his eyes and savored the peaceful moment.

The following morning, Elijah and I were awaken to a mixture of aromas such as bacon, vanilla and coffee. The food smelled so good and it immediately made my stomach growled. I couldn't remember the last time I had a homemade breakfast.

Elijah and I changed into our everyday clothes and ran into the kitchen like hungry children. Nicholas laughed as we slid across the kitchen and plopped the plates onto the table.

"Con tiempo!" He spoke in Spanish. His pronunciation was impeccable, perhaps even better than mine.

"Hablas espanol?" I asked.

"Mas o menos. Estudia en Espania por un año."

Elijah looked at us with a clueless expression.

"Your dad said he studied in Spain for a year which is how he knows some Spanish. I think that's awesome, I would like do that next year."

"Well, you should! Anywhere in Europe would be fantastic for traveling and studying."

"I'll think about it. It's just an idea," I responded and glanced over to Elijah. He grabbed my hand and placed a gentle kiss on it.