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Mae
"Wait what does that mean?" I asked from my seat in front of Anatoly. Today he was finance beginning to teach me his native language. In exchange, I will help him improve on his English.
"My name Mae," he explained. I smiled, nodding before straightening back up.
"Let me try again okay? Menya zovut Mae." The nod of approval I got only helped to make me happier. I clasped my hands together before throwing myself onto Toly in excitement. His chest vibrated, hands holding my hips and moving me around.
He settled for me being in his lap, my back to his. I blushed, squirming a little. Resting in his arms, he spoke again with me repeating after him. It was far from perfect, I was positive of that but Toly always made it seem like I had accomplished the impossible.
Next we moved onto me teaching him. I turned in lap, we were now face to face.
"Again," he basically commanded. I giggled, shaking my head. He never asked and I knew he never had to ask for anything. He probably just took it.
"Say it again, please," I corrected making him huff but he still repeated it, including the please which made me squeal in happiness.
"I like vanilla ice cream and oreos." His head shook in amusement but he copied me, nonetheless. I didn't really know how to teach English so I opted for saying basic sentences and having him do the same. Maybe if I help him speak simple sentences, the more difficult ones will be easier. His English was already pretty good it was just his sentence structure. He needed a little help with linking the words together but overall, his English was very understandable and straight to the point.
"Okay, okay um...Mae is the most amazing and beautiful person in the world. She's pretty and smart and my best friend!" I looked at him waiting for him to respond but he didn't. I slapped his shoulder.
"Repeat it!" He chuckled, eyes gleaming bright. He leaned forward, holding my hips.
"Mae is the most amazing and beautiful woman in the world. She's kind and smart and my best friend." I gave him a firm nod, approving of the slight change he made.
Leaning forward, I kissed his cheek before laying my head on his shoulder. We sat on the bridge. It had quickly become our go-to place when he visited.
"Toly what's Russia like?" He looked down at me, the corner of his mouth turned up just a bit. His eyes sparkled as he spoke about his home country. He told me about everything from the unique buildings to the history and their variety of foods.
I honestly couldn't wait to go there. I had talked to mama and told her about the future I had hoped for. I even threw the idea of going to Russia with Toly at her. She still hasn't agreed to it yet but I wasn't going to give up on the idea until she said yes.
With Anatoly, time just seemed to fly. Before I knee it, the sun had set and the stars were shining brightly in the night sky. Toly held me to his chest while I hummed a song mama used to sing when I was younger.
It was a Jamaican hymn that she heard from her grandmother. She always talked about her grandma, even though she had passed over a decade ago. Her name was Edna and mama said she had the kindest soul in the world. She practically raised mama after her parents died. She didn't talk about them much, only saying she couldn't really remember them and I understood exactly what she meant.
Sometimes I allow myself to imaging my parents and what they looked like, how they talked, what made them laugh and what made them happy. Obviously it wasn't me and when those thoughts crossed my mind, I moved on to another topic. I tried to never let the negativity get the best of me. Happy thought, good vibes, and maybe a little sage burning.
Every Saturday we would burn sage. It wasn't exactly allowed in the hospital but what boss doesn't know won't kill him. Or at least that's what mama would say. I laughed just thinking about it. She would always place a hand on her hip and roll her neck when she said it. Sass would drip from the words and her eyes would roll right before she flicked the lighter and lit the sage, waving it in the air. The smell of mint and smoke would feel the room and my senses would calm automatically. Just thinking about it made me sigh in content.
"What you thinking of?" I grinned at Toly as his eyebrows furrowed as he spoke. It was clear he thought of the words before he said them, trying to correct them.
"What are you thinking of," I lightly corrected before answering. I babbled on and on about mama and the stories she told me about her granny. My topics jumped continuously but Toly didn't seem to mind. He nodded along with me, adding his say so every so often.
"I'm tired, Toly." I blew out a breath, rubbing my cheek against his jacket clothed chest. He exhaled, both of his arms wrapped tightly around me. He moved around, one arms hooking underneath my legs and the other around my back, lifting me up effortlessly.
I could feel each step he took, the slight bounce lulling me to sleep. It only took minutes to get back down to my room but I had quickly fallen asleep. It wasn't a deep sleep, however, it was too deep for me to open my eyes. I could still feel and everything around me as if I was awake.
A warm blanket was pulled over me as I laid in the bed. I whined, rolling over yet my eyes stayed closed. I was looking, searching for his body heat that had become my own personal source of warmth.
I heard shuffling before his chest pushed against mine. I scooted closer, throwing my leg over his hip and cuddling into him. I sighed in delight when his swung around me, pulling me as close as he could before I settled into a peacefully deep slumber.
*****
Woo this chapter took too long to write but that's my fault. It's kind of short but it's here. Next one will be better, I promise.
Just a short little psa: Wattpad is still ass. This app pisses me off so much but I also love it so I will have to suck it up.
I also wanted to let everyone, who reads this book, know that I published another book. It's called Monochromatic Hearts. I don't really like the name and it might change later but add it to your library please and thank you. It would be greatly appreciated.
Give me your thoughts on the chapter and your favorite part(s). Do you think the pace of their relationship is too fast? Slow? Just right? I will try to update one of my other two books tomorrow, well basically later today, but it's not solid so we'll wait and see.
Sorry the update is so late/early. I don't know why I'm still up but I'm sure I'll be sleep right after publishing this chapter. Have a good night and I hope you all are being safe and doing well.
