23

Tears and loud sobs continued to come from the new apartment attendant in apartment 108 on the 9th floor. The continuous hiccups and sobs couldn't stop falling from the Maltese woman's lips.

She had locked herself away in the apartment, trying not to throw a bigger fit, as she had already broken, and cleaned up, two china plates.

She sat on her new sofa, now stained with tears and snot, as she couldn't stop the wails of hurt and terror rumbling from her chest.

Outside her apartment door sat a business man, hands in his hair. Wishing he thought about getting a spare key for the woman's apartment beforehand when buying it for her.

The cries were continuous like this for about 3 and a half hours, as he could hear her throat going raw and the fit of coughs that came in between the sobs. Multiple people in the apartments around her began to give complaints to the noise, but quickly stopped when Alistair explained to them that the woman had just lost her mother.

Alistair finally stood when he heard the locks on the door begin to open, then the door. What stood in the doorway broke his heart into a million pieces. Rosalinda stood there in a huge sweatshirt, a puffy face, and fuzzy socks.

"I-I'm sorry I locked you out for this long. That was wrong of me." She said in a soft, but hoarse voice. Her head was hanging low, as curls fell from her messy bun into her face, obscuring his view of his girlfriend's face.

He shook his head, and picked her up, wrapping her legs around his waist, as she hugged him tightly. She buried her face into his neck, breathing in the faint smell of his cologne. He walked inside, shutting the door with his foot, as he walked to the bedroom. He lied down on his back, keeping her tightly to his body.

"All I can think about is how alone I am. But, also how she's not in pain anymore, on that positive note." She mumbled into his neck. He rubbed her back, covering them with the blanket.

"You'll never be alone, I'm here. And my own family as well. They love you so much, my mother and sister always say that they hope I'm smart enough to marry you." He chuckled, as Rosalinda let out a small snort of humor to his words.

"Thank you." She said softly, sitting up and straddling his lap. She leaned over to her nightstand, grabbing a few tissues, as she blew her nose. He raised a brow, rubbing small circles on her hips.

"What are you thanking me for?" He asked, genuinely confused by her words.

"Thank you for being there and going through my maniac moment when we were first heading to the hospital." She laughed nervously, as he sat up, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"You know if you called me for anything, I'd be there in a heartbeat. No matter how serious or silly. But, I'm sorry if I'm not very good at the comforting thing." He said softly, kissing her nose and smiling.

"Well, I think you're handling my breakdown better than anyone could. So, thank you for your patience." She gave him a small, but genuine, smile, causing him to smile back.

"I can't help it. You have to be patient with the people you love." He said softly, resting his hand on her cheek. Rosalinda's smiling face turned into one of shock and redness, as she began to stumble over her words.

"What?" He asked, raising a brow.

"Y-you love me?!" She asked in shock, as Alistair just realized the words that just fell from his lips.

"Oh God! I-I'm so sorry I-" He was cut off mid-sentence by lips crashing against his own. His eyes widened in shock, but he melted into the kiss after the moment of shock.

"I love you too, dumbass." She smirked, as he smacked her ass, causing her to jump and yelp.

"Damn right you do!" He said, as they burst into a fit of laughter. After the laughter died down, they lied down, facing one another.

"Her funeral is in 5 days. I gotta make sure my employees know I won't be there that day and start to set up the viewing. There won't be a burial, as she asked in her will for me to cremate her." She sighed, as Alistair pulled her to his chest.

"Well, I'm here if you need help setting up and getting everything together." He sighed, rubbing her back, as she wrapped her arms around his torso.

"Thank you, I appreciate it, but I feel I need to do this alone. But you'll be there at the viewing, correct?" She asked, looking up at him, as he looked down at her in shock.

"Why the fuck do you think I'd miss it?!" He said, hurt from her words. She smiled and kissed his lips softly, and rubbing his back this time.

"I know, I just wanna make sure." She mumbled, yawning softly. Alistair scoffed, as she laughed tiredly at his actions.

"Can you spend the night? I decided earlier that the diner is gonna be closed and maybe I'll leave it closed until the day after the funeral." She mumbled, as he smiled and hugged her tighter, as she coughed and gasped for air.

"Of course I'll stay in your new and lovely apartment!" He hummed, snickering a bit at her actions.

"Drama queen," he laughed, as she smacked his back.

"Am not!" She gasped for air, as he loosened his arms a bit. The couple lied there in silence, as he could hear Rosalinda's breathing turn into even and deep breathes. He looked down to see the sleeping woman, leaning over to her bedside lamp and turning it off.

The room went completely dark, as he grabbing his phone and began to make a call.

"Hey mom, could you do me a favor and ask Eli to cover for me at the office for the next few days?...No, nothing really good right now...Her mom just died, just wanna make sure I'm available when she needs me...Thank you, I really appreciate it...Alright, love you too, goodnight." He said at the end of his call, putting his phone on the dresser and curling up to the Mediterranean woman beside him.

"Goodnight, love."

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Sorry if this chapter seems a bit short! I just wanted to write about what happened after they got back before just skipping head to the funeral like other stories. I love to express more of each of a character's feelings, and this was a bid development! That magical three letter word finally came out and I'm so excited to be able to express it more between the two of them!

Thank you for reading! Vote and comment please!