Schatzi

Epilogue II

Eli woke up to the sun streaming in through the wide bay window opposite their bed, the light turning the white sheets golden as it danced over the sleeping couple. The windows were open slightly which made the billowy curtains rustle slightly in the gentle breeze. From outside, the city was beginning to wake up and the sounds of distant traffic far below on the ground mixed in with the soft sounds of their apartment.

Eli sat up and rubbed his eyes sleepily. He kept his eyes shut to block out the light but he could still see the shifting yellows and whites through his eyelids, the colours pulsing in his head. He dragged his hand up from his eyes over his forehead to run through his bedhead. His back cracked as he reached his arms high into the air and arched like a cat. He sighed and flopped back down on the bed, opening his eyes and staring at the ceiling.

To his left, Peter was sleeping right on the edge of the bed, his arm hanging off so his curled fingers just grazed the floor. It was like that every morning. They'd fall asleep right next to each other, limbs entwined like vines that had been twisted and conjoined for centuries, but Peter always said Eli moved too much in his sleep, plus it was too hot in the Summer to be cuddling all night. And it wasn't like Peter was particularly hard done to when he was banished to the edge of the bed since he always stole all the blankets during the night, leaving Eli with none.

Eli noticed that yet again, Peter was wrapped up in a bundle of sheets and that he could see the corner poking out from under his shoulder. He grabbed a hold of the corner and was about to tug harshly to get some blankets back before hesitating. Peter looked too peaceful in his sleep to wake him up. It was still early - he could push him out of bed and steal the blankets back later.

His feet padded softly against the shiny wooden floor as he crept out of the bedroom and into the kitchen, closing the door softly behind him as he left so he wouldn't wake Peter. As he looked around the silent apartment he remembered the day they first moved in. The walls had been barren and bare, the floors scuffed and splintered. It had taken several months of work but eventually their new home felt almost as perfect as the one back in Berlin. It was a lot more modern, and a lot smaller, but it was theirs. Their new safe space, and this time they weren't just pretending like the outside world didn't exist. They were actually safe.

They'd left Berlin almost immediately after the war ended, and after a lot of paperwork that confused them both, Peter claimed his inheritance that he'd never officially been written out of. It wasn't huge, but between that and the small amount of compensation they received, they were able to make their way via several buses and trains to Paris.

The streets far below were already teaming with the hustle and bustle of the early morning rush. People were on their way to work, dodging the cracks in the pavement and the puddles from last night's rain. He grabbed his usual mug from the cupboard that his uncle had given him for his 30th birthday. It was much too big to be sensible and was decorated with little modelled sheep that encircled the painted grass at the bottom and grazed on the rim of the mug. They kind of got in the way but Eli loved it all the same.

He poured his coffee, still being careful to not bang the mugs too hard on the counter so he wouldn't wake Peter, and then walked back to the large window above the sink. The sun was slowly rising higher into the sky so it breached the tops of the buildings opposite, the shadows shrinking back in on themselves. He reached over the sink to grip the handle of the window and opened it with a short and sharp twist.

The tiny balcony outside of the window was completely stupid and completely impractical. Some idiot had installed the kitchen counter right in front of the only way to get to it so you had to clamber over the sink which was hard enough when carrying hot drinks for a bit of early morning fresh air, let alone in the dead of night and pissed. Eli was actually banned from going onto the balcony after consuming even a drop of alcohol after the time he put his foot in the sink, tripped and almost fell over the railings. It nearly gave Peter a heart attack but Eli was more concerned about his wet socks than his near death experience.