24. Forever
MICHAEL
If love is ecstasy, making love is MDMA?LSD? I have no idea about drugs about, it's something higher, something more potent, it leaves you feeling so high and that's how I am now, high on love. The other thing about making love is : it's addicting, very very addicting. It makes you want to do it all the time and for the past two days that's what we've been doing. Making lots of love everywhere. On the floor, against the wall, on the couch, in the kitchen, in the living room, up in all possible ways, from front, from back, sideways, everything. We've used a lot of condoms, even the dotted ones;) And she's loud in bed, thank God we have the house to ourselves. My favorite is when she is in my lap or when I'm top of her, it's feels more intimate. We've been eating a lot too and laughing about all the mess we've created. Her body is covered in hickeys and bite marks but she doesn't seem to mind it at all. Even I have hickeys all over me, scratch marks on my back and my ass. I personally cut her nails after yesterday. The only time we've been away when was when we were using the bathroom or when we were having a shower. I did suggest her to shower together
" Why not! We've seen everything at this point!"
" Nope, no way, there's still time for that" she said everytime shaking her head. She seemed to be very insecure about the stretch marks around her bum. Come-on, I have them too, everybody has stretch marks! To me she's perfect like literally perfect. It's Christmas and we just made love on the floor near the fireplace.
El stretched out her legs beside me and winced
" Oh god I'm sore" she said turning on her stomach.
" I told you that we need a break, you didn't listen to me dumbass" I smacked her ass. She turned towards and sticked her tongue out.
" Come here" I opened my arms and she settled on top of me. We called my mom everyday, separately but today we plan on calling her together, it's Christmas after all, she knows we would meet each other.
" Oh wait, I have something to give you" she said and got up. She grabbed my t shirt and raced to the couch where she kept her bag. Oh she's giving to give me my present!
" Wait, I have something for you too" I grabbed my boxers, put them on and went back to my room. Good thing I had it gift wrapped earlier.
When I came back she was curled up in the armchair near the fireplace. It's so huge, she looks like a kid in that thing. I settled down with her in my lap in the same armchair.
" Me first" she said squealing with excitement. Such a kid
" Okay" I obliged , technically she remembered first. She produced a chain from her hand and put it around my neck. It looks like silver? Platinum?
" Silver or platinum?"
" Platinum" she said and smiled looking at the chain on my neck.
" It looks so good on you" she said and kissed my chest.
" It does actually, thank you baby" I said kissing her cheeks.
"My turn now" I said and gave her the gift box.
" Oh my god you had it gift wrapped" she looked so excited. She peeled off the wrapper in no time and opened the box.
" It's a snowball" she laughed. It was a snowball with a boy and girl dancing.
" There's a small button underneath, slide it" I said and she did. The dance figurines moved to the tune of Frank Sinatra's fly me to the moon.
" Michael" she looked at me surprised.
" They said we could customize it"
" Oh my god, this is so beautiful, reminds me of-
"- the day we danced together right here, I pointed to the place in living room where we danced, the day I knew with absolute certainty that you loved me as much as I did" I said
" I've never danced before that, ever in my life" she said and kissed my lips softly.
" This is lovely Michael, thank you" she said pinching my cheeks and kissing them. We lay there for a while, none of us speaking anything, basking in the comfortable silence.
" Let's watch something" she mumbled into my chest.
" What do you want to watch" I said rubbing her arms, kissing the top of her head.
" I don't know, we can find some old DVDs" . With that we got up and started rummaging through some of the old CD collection.
" Hey look what I found" she said
" What is it? Please don't tell me it's Titanic"
" No it's better, it's your parents wedding video" she was beaming with joy holding the CD like a trophy.
" I haven't watched it in forever you know" I said looking at it
" Now's the perfect time to watch " she said and started playing it.
" Speaking of marriage, do you believe in it?" We never spoke about marriage before.
" I don't know Michael, my parents didn't have the brightest marriage and for the longest time I did not"
" So you do now?"
" I don't NOT believe in it now, I don't know where I stand at this point. When I asked your mom what went wrong in their marriage, she said when two people are together for a long time, sometimes they grow in different directions as opposed to the same one. That made me think a lot you know" Wow that definitely sounded like something my mom would say.
" What about you, do you believe in marriage?"
" I believe in people and I believe in love. So when two people vow to be together till the end of the time, I believe in it too"
" Well that's marriage for you" she said laughing.
" No I'm telling you, you need not be married to be with someone forever you know, it's a promise with out rings involved. I believe in promises is what I'm trying to tell you" I explained.
She smiled and nodded her head.
The video started and my mom was looking beautiful in her wedding dress. My dad was wearing an suit that didn't quite fit him properly, still looking handsome. He was wiping his tears at the sight of my mother walking down the aisle. I saw El's mom as the maid of honor and her dad as the best man. Wow. She looked exactly like her mother.
" You look so much like your dad " she whispered.
" And you look exactly like your mom" I said my eyes never leaving the screen.
It was the time for my dad to tell his vows. They wrote their vows themselves. My dad's vows were nothing out of the ordinary.
I, Robert , take you Rose
to be my wife
to have and to hold
from this day forward
for better , for worse
for richer, for poorer
in sickness and in health
with children or no children
to love and to cherish
As long as we both shall live.
According to God's holy law.
And this is my solemn vow
Dad was a Christian and went to church every Sunday. But he never rubbed off his opinions on me or mom. He always told me that all religions are essentially the same, they were created to make man have faith and hope, to make us better human beings, be more grounded.
Mom told me how they always wanted to have children even before they got married and how having me made her believe in the Universe later on. The universe has given her signs she always said. I never thought much about God or religion or the universe. Anyway when he said his vows, I knew dad meant each word. He was the man I aspired to be. He was worthy of mom, he deserved her.
But it was mom's vows that had us both crying.
I Rose, take you Robert as my lawfully wedded husband and
I promise to love you unconditionally
like a mother
Guide and protect you
as a father
To tease and argue with you
like a sibling
To love and cherish you
forever as a lover and
To never leave your side
as your lawfully wedded wife.
I could see dad holding back tears.
Dad was an orphan. He was in and out out of foster homes while growing up. All he ever wanted was a family and my mom was his family. She promised to be his family. I remember asking my dad as a child where his family was and he pointed at my mom. Your mom is my family he said and I'll always remember that day. I miss my dad everyday. He would've loved El. Not a day goes by when I don't think about him meeting her. Beside me, El was wiping her tears from the corners of her eyes and I pulled her into my lap. She wrapped her arms around me and kissed my chest. I could feel what she was feeling, she was feeling how my dad felt. All she wants is a family because she did not have one. That was when I promised myself that when I grow up, I'll be the man who gives her that, I'll be the man who gives her a family, I'll be what my mom was to my dad. I'll be the man worthy of becoming her husband. One day, I will marry El.