What couples do...

While Anthony was in his own little blissful world, he hadn't noticed that there had been a silence between them as they walked. But his earlier encouraging squeeze, had helped Rebecca. After clearing her throat, Rebecca broke the silence as she asked, "So, where are we going? What do you have planned for the day?" Anthony was pleasantly surprised by Rebecca's question, and his excitement took over in the way he decided to answer said question. He bent down a bit and turned his large torso in to look Rebecca in the eye, and face her with his big bright smile, since she had yet to turn to him.

His strange pose allowed him to make eye contact with the clearly startled Rebecca as he said, "I'm glad you asked. I am giving you the grand tour!" Then he straightened his body again as he told Rebecca, with as much excitement and movement as you usually only see in a herd of Labrador puppies, "We are going to visit the schools I attended. The parks where I used to play with my friends. Everything you can think of from the years I spent here growing up. Consider it a walk through time. With a grand finale at the end if you are up for it, but I'll tell you about that when the time for it has come." His story was accompanied with many hand gestures that raised Rebecca's arm up and down along with his, which she couldn't help but find amusing, and his excitement, contagious. By the end of his explanation she had long since forgotten that she was holding the hand of the man she loved for the very first time, and was simply caught up in the happiness of the moment.

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Anthony's sudden appearance in front of her had surprised Rebecca initially, but she forgot all about that once Anthony started speaking. Seeing him look so excited and happy to show her around, made her expression soften up. She stared at his side profile with a gentle smile and love-filled eyes. Which turned into her shaking her head with a smile on her face as a reaction to Anthony's final words, where he again insisted on keeping their plans a mystery.

She was feeling a bit bad earlier because of how she had reacted yesterday night, and felt she might have overreacted a bit considering how she was feeling halfway through the night. Even more so by how well he took it all, and how sweet he was being this morning. That is why she went along with them holding hands despite feeling nervous to do so. She figured, if she had been fine, and in hindsight happy even, at sharing a room with him. She would also be fine holding his hand. After all, she wasn't some giddy school girl, holding a guy's hand for the first time. Or so she thought. But the moment she held Anthony's hand, her heart skipped a beat and her face grew red instantly.

She had been worried that her hands might be feeling sweaty or that he would be able to feel the pounding of her heart through the tips of her fingers. But to her surprise, holding his hand was calming her down. She was feeling secure.

Holding his hand surprised her, as she now realized how large Anthony's hands were compared to hers. And how warm his hands were. It was almost like she was holding onto a handwarmer. Holding his hand had made her feel shy and self-conscious at first, worried that he would be able to feel the pounding of her heart through the tips of her fingers. But once she was past the beginning jitters, she noticed that holding his hand, made her feel quite safe and like they were really a couple. This whole weekend was making her feel that way. Because saying you are a couple is one thing, but doing things that couples actually do, was another.

In the past whenever they walked together, Anthony would gain a lot of attention. People would look at him as they passed by. Although he didn't even seem to notice the eyes on him, she certainly would. Because whenever they stared at him with fawning eyes, she would get the matching glares for standing so close to him. They would whisper things like, "Who is she? Do you think she is his girlfriend. She can't be, right? Compared to him, she is like a shrimp. She must be his sister or niece or something." But now they wouldn't be able to say that. They would have to accept that she was indeed his girlfriend. No, his fiancé.

As this conversation took place inside her mind, they arrived at their first destination. Anthony pointed at a building in the distance and said, "Look, that is where I went to primary school! I spent four years there and I had the most wonderful teachers." Rebecca saw the large colorful building, and as they moved closer and she heard his stories, she began to envision little Anthony walking around the grounds. His mother had shown her some of his childhood pictures, so she was using those images to create the four year old Anthony in her mind. Although it wasn't easy to imagine a man this tall being a small, endearing child.