Unrealistic goals

Laila was on her way to talk to Maria and invite her to join her business, this time officially. After her shopping spree she had returned home first to drop her spoils of the day. Rest up a bit in the comfy airplane chair Noah had bought her before eating something and heading out. She hadn't contacted Maria because she didn't want her to ask questions about her reason for visiting. Instead, she figured she should surprise her. Once she had her foot through the door, she could use her energy to persuade her like she and Noah had practiced. Of course she didn't come empty handed, as Maria's love goes through her stomach. With freshly prepared pastries in hand, she was sitting in the back of the car as she was being driven to Steve's residence. Giddy with excitement and nervousness, lost in a bubble of her imagination, while Maria was blissfully unaware and in a certain bubble of her own.

Having no witnesses around, nor people to use as distractions, Maria was forced to embrace her own feelings more and more as she shared a living space with Steve. She hadn't been too sure at first if moving in so soon after getting together would be a good idea, but now that they were, she was feeling quite happy with her decision. Sure there were awkward moments, and she wasn't necessarily in her comfort zone, but she and Steve were growing closer rapidly. She was finding out things about him, she would normally expect to find out months later into the relationship. Them having to spend all day, every day with each other, gave them a lot of time to talk and thus getting to know each other. Especially since neither of them could work much at the moment. Although in Maria's case, taking care of Steve was her current job.

They had been living together for a little less than two weeks now, and it almost felt like they had been dating for a year and a half. In that period of time, she had managed to fall in love with Steve over and over again. He had shown he possessed so much kindness, and he had made it so clear how much he loved her, that she felt more treasured than she had ever been. This in turn caused her to speak more honestly when Steve confronted her with his feelings. She even once uttered the words 'I love you' without even realizing it. The words had rolled off of her tongue before she could fully comprehend what she was saying, much less stop herself from saying it, but 'fortunately' for her Steve didn't hear it. When he asked her to repeat herself, she was pulled back to reality and she quickly changed the words. So, it is safe to say that there is still room for progress, but she did not once pretend she didn't like him during this past week.

In fact, she had learned to reciprocate his kisses, AND she even initiated one herself when he managed to surprise her in a good way last night. This time it wasn't a kiss on the cheek, but a real kiss on the lips. They were on the couch together and watching a movie. This movie prompted a conversation about one of her dreams of one day owning her own business. A business where she could help people who were less fortunate. Without showing a shred of doubt, without questioning it once, Steve just turned to her and said, "I can't wait to see it."

Maria did not expect that reply. She had only told this dream to one other person, and that person just said, "It sounds like a great idea and all, but with all your debts and the way your family is, it will probably always remain a dream. So, instead of filling your mind with unrealistic goals. Why not just focus on the job you have and continue to go through life like you have so far. Leave the charity work to others, because right now you are a charity case yourself." She could remember the reaction word for word, and it had gutted her. She hadn't been able to speak of this dream for years. But now that her days of being in debt were coming to an end, and Steve having showed himself as nothing but supportive so far, she decided to try and take another chance with him. She told him her dream and he truly did not disappoint.

Not quite believing his reaction, Maria asked, "You can't wait? So, you really think I can do this?" Steve shook his head. "I don't just think you can do it, I am confident you can do it, and that you will be amazing at it." He then looked back ahead as he seemed to be envisioning how this scenario would look, and said, "So far you have been successful at everything you have put your mind to. This will not be an exception. You'll be an amazing boss because you have worked for so many lousy ones yourself. You have an unlimited list of skill-sets, cooking only being one of them, so there are no problems on that front either." Then he looked at Maria, who was still snuggled up in his arms, and said, "And you have me.", before he smiled. "If there is anything standing in your way, and you can't get rid of it on your own, I will come running like your knight in shining armor, and do whatever I can to get rid of it for you."

That is when she felt an indescribable need to kiss him, making her body move on its own. Their lips were touching before she even realized what she was doing, and she broke it up as soon as she did. Slowly separating, while maintaining eye-contact. But Steve didn't let her get very far, and pulled her back in the first chance he got before locking lips once more as he was far from done kissing her.