The sun filtered in through sheer curtains, cascading onto Beverly’s sleeping form and causing her to stir. She groaned softly as she awoke, rubbing an eye and sitting up. For a moment, she was taken aback by where she was laying, before remembering. Her home. Their home. The house she and Ben finally bought together, out near Eddie and Richie’s home. But, if she lived with Ben, why was she alone in bed?
She rose to her feet sluggishly as she hugged herself and inhaled. She’d stolen a hoodie from Ben the night before, it smelt like him. After brushing her teeth and taking care of her morning skin routine, the smell of breakfast greeted her. Bev smiled; Ben’s family owned a coffee shop back in Derry, and Ben had worked there since he was young. He knew how to brew the best coffee, as well as cook up the best breakfast. Mornings when he cooked were often the best.
“Good morning!” Ben greeted as Bev walked into the kitchen, the dogs swarming around her happily. Ben worked for a pet rescue and adoption centre, so sometimes he would bring home dogs to foster. They’d ended up keeping three so far: a Great Pyrenees named KC, a beagle named Copper, and a sweet golden retriever named Egg. Beverly was pulled from her thoughts as a mug of coffee – one shot of cream and a sugar cube, just the way she liked it – and a plate of scrambled eggs and French toast were set in front of her. Her favourite.
“Benjamin, I’m so in love with you,” she grinned softly as she dug into her breakfast, and Ben couldn’t help but smile. He always loved when Bev stole his hoodies, partly because they were giant on her, but also because they smelt like her when she returned them. He knew she took them because they would smell like him to start, but it was a win-win for the both of them in that sense. Also, she always ate like she hadn’t in days when he cooked. It always made him want to cook more for her, learn new recipes, anything. He loved seeing her happy. She was the most beautiful to him when she was.
She finished quickly, of course, so Ben took her plate. “More?” he hummed as he decided to get a plate for himself. He had gotten lost in his own thought again. After a soft affirmation from Bev, he refilled her plate, then returned both to the table. “How’d you sleep?”
“Y’know, sleepily,” Bev joked through a mouthful of toast, “I kept having this one dream, though. So, you remember when we went to the beach with Richie and Stan the first time we came up here? Like, the road trip?” Ben hummed in acknowledgement. “So, it was that again. And Richie found this octopus, and he put it on Stan’s head. And Stan, he started to call Richie an idiot, but then the clouds opened and some voice from heaven declared Stan the octopus god. And then we all had to worship the octopus god.”
Ben had started laughing when dream Richie obtained the octopus, but by the end of Bev’s retelling, his face was in his hand. “Text that to them, oh my god. The octopus god,” he chuckled out. He took care of the dishes as Bev did so, and wrapped his arms around her shoulders upon his return. “I love you,” he murmured.
“I love you too,” Bev said easily. They’d been together for almost two and a half years now, and they were engaged to be engaged, as Ben had put it. Meaning they fully intended to get married, but Ben was saving up to buy a ring, so not yet. She could wait, though. She could wait forever if it was Ben, they were in love, and that’s all that she cared about. That’s all she could want right now, and she felt so amazing now that she was getting it. With a soft kiss to his bicep, she stood and found her way into his arms, strong and protective, but still soft and caring. Safe. Ben was her safe place. And she loved that about him.
