Ronit's suitcase had been sitting by the door for only a day, but each time I noticed it I felt sick. She was leaving tomorrow, and yet again she was taking my heart with her.
'It's only a week.' She reassured me one evening, after she noticed me staring at it.
'I know.' I rubbed my eyes. 'I'm still sad.'
Her lips pursed together. We were sat on the sofa, something was on the television that she'd been watching but I couldn't focus on it.
'I'll bring you back presents.'
'I don't want presents, I want you.'
'Esti, please.' She groaned, and her head lolled back against the cushion behind her, exposing her long throat. 'I already feel guilty enough.'
'I'm sorry.' I exhaled, trying to get rid of the sadness that was clogging my chest. 'Do you have your speech ready?'
'I've not practiced it. It'll be fine though.' She turned her head and smiled at me. 'Will you behave while I'm away? You know the rules. No wild parties, no strippers, no drugs.'
'You spoil all of my fun.'
'I know what you're like.'
I sighed but I tried to disguise it as a yawn. 'I'll barely do anything.'
'That's not good. Why don't you invite Felicity over one night? Or take Daniel back to that restaurant?'
'Maybe.' I said, reaching out to touch her leg which she shifted towards me.
'How's... how's Beth these days?'
It was the first time she'd asked about Beth since I'd told her about the proposal. 'I've barely spoken to her. And she's barely spoken to me.'
'I feel a bit bad for her.'
'Why?'
'Because, it must be hard. You little heartbreaker.'
'Hardly.' I said, staring at her eyes, her nose, her lips.
Her attention returned to the programme; it was a documentary about a singer from the 1960s, she'd been recently commemorated for her work for women's rights and equal pay; that's all I'd garnered from it.
'I'll miss you too, you know.' She spoke quietly, still allowing my hand to stroke her leg.
'What will you miss the most?'
'Going to sleep next to you, waking up next to you.'
'What else will you miss?' I asked, increasing the pressure of my fingers above her knee. She glanced down for a second and then back to me, she was smirking.
'I can't think of anything else.' She feigned ignorance.
'No?' I shuffled closer to her, my hand moving up her inner thigh and my face steering past her hair. I gently allowed my teeth to graze her neck.
'Still nothing.' She said, respiring slightly.
'Nothing?' I was rubbing in between her legs now, my hand curving under her.
'We should go to bed.' She exhaled unsteadily.
'Do you not want to finish this?' I gestured towards the television, but she shook her head.
'I'd rather go to bed.' She reaffirmed.
She was talking in such a husky way that I felt a twinge, and I had to swallow to dampen a rise of emotion in my throat.
I tried to complete my bedroom routine, but each time I passed Ronit, and each time she passed me, we ended up kissing. She would push my hair back and bring my face closer to hers, our bodies would press together and the throbbing I felt in between my legs grew stronger and harder to ignore.
