Hello, This is a double update! Make sure you read this first!!!

Feels like I'm all the way back where I belong.

The following month moves at the speed of light. The flower shop is such a success that Aliza almost lives there. She comes home late and exhausted, barely able to keep her eyes open. It's no better for me; I'm at the point where I want to sleep for days. 

Elijah is a huge help, and so is the crew Sam hired. We're nearly finished with the house. If it wasn't for the crew, I don't think I'd ever finish it. The band is performing every second weekend, and the bar is always sold out. 

We've started to charge a cover fee to control the number of people. She's always there. In her special little corner, joined by Elijah to support me. 

Keeping Aliza away from the farm isn't as hard as I thought because of the hours she spends at the flower shop. 

It's a rare Sunday afternoon where we're both home, and Elijah is catching some sleep in my apartment. I'm lying on the balcony on a thick blanket. Aliza is lying with her head on my thigh, curled like a cat. She's playing with my fingers that rest in front of her on the blanket. 

Her hair is pulled back into a braid. She's so stunning. The gleams of the sun catch her perfectly, and my fingers itch to touch every part of her. Warmth spread through me. "God, I love you." The words filler through my lips. Her head snaps up to meet my eyes. 

"I love you too." She doesn't hesitate because how can she not know I love her? I don't even know why it took so long for me to say it. She moves a little closer, resting her head on the same pillow mine is on. "Since I was nine." She adds, and I grin at her. "Since the first week when you took me to the pond."

"I think maybe... Maybe my hearts loved you since birth." I tell her honestly. She consumes everything about me. "Maybe even before, when we were stardust." I continue. She kisses me softly. She savors the moment between us. "Move in with me?" I ask her. 

"Well, technically, I'll move in with you. Since Elijah pretty much owns my apartment now." I laugh, a little nervous. "Okay." She states simply. "Yea?" She hums. What she doesn't know is we won't be living here. "Yea, now I can smother you." She has a sparkle in her eyes. I grab her and pull her onto me, falling on my back.

Her sundress rides up, and her thighs are exposed as she straddles my waist. We've been slow with the physical stuff. I want Aliza to take control of this.

It's the first time where it's not demanding in a relationship. She bends down to kiss me. Her hands go to my hair like it usually does. "I've been living here anyway, but. Now I never have to leave." I whisper against her lips. "I won't let you go anyway." She says. 

"She lays flat against me. Her chin on her folded arms. "I'm thinking of asking Elijah if he wants to work at the flower shop part-time." I wasn't expecting this. It's perfect timing like always. 

"You feeling worked out?" I ask her. She nods. "It just feels like... I love the shop, but I don't have time to grow my flowers. I haven't been on the farm in months. I want to start fixing the house. I don't get much time with you either. It's just too much. I don't want to be the person who works their life away." She explains. 

"Well, I have some good news; in a  few weeks, my double shifts at the bakery ends." If I can capture the smile she's giving me right now; it'll be the prettiest picture ever.  "I'm thrilled to hear that." She says it almost looks like she wants to cry. She looks away, sniffing. "Hey, love, hey Aliza... What's wrong Tiny Dancer?" I ask her, worried. 

I get up, moving her with my so she's sitting on my thighs. "I'm just tired and... We've both been working so hard; it's like. I thought maybe you weren't as into it anymore like I am... I know you are, you show me every day but not being able to... Not being able to see you makes me so sad."

Fuck, I screwed up. She needs reassurance too.  "But you asked me to move in and told me you love me. I promise that you show it every single second we spend together, but I just..." She trails off, hiding in my chest.

 I lift her chin with one finger. "I'm sorry... I'll. It'll all be worth it, trust me. I love you so fucking much I can't breathe." I tell her, meaning it right to the core. 

"I love you that fucking much too." She replies, and her chest vibrates from her kept laughter. "Can I... Can I share something with you?" I ask seriously. If my opening up to her will help, then I'm about to do just that. 

"You can tell me anything." Where do I even begin? "I was homeless once." She stays silent. "From the middle of 2014 up till maybe the very start of 2016. Shit... Some bad stuff happened to me about a year before that, maybe more. I went on a bender, a year-long bender of drugs and alcohol abuse. I lost everything. I didn't have much, to begin with, but the little I had was gone. I cut off communication with my parents. Didn't tell anyone where I was." I blow a breath and look at her. 

Her eyes are furrowed in concentration, the tip of her tongue is sticking through her lips as she plays with the button of my shirt. Please don't let this be the deal-breaker. 

"I slept in abandoned hotels, random people's couches. I hustled on the streets for drug money. I was the definition of low life." She has tears in her eyes. "I hit rock bottom in one big swoosh. I made the wrong choices, didn't see the line."

"How did you get better?" I smile at the next memory. "I walked behind the bakery one day, the one I work at. The smell leads me to the door, and I just stood there, hating myself, thinking how I'll never be able to do the thing I love the most. I'll die on the streets, full of drugs." I take her head in my hands and kiss her.

I want a break from the sorrow for a second. She holds me, making me feel so loved. I put my forehead on her shoulder. 

"Augustine found me, and instead of chasing me away as they all did, she gave me one hard look and said, 'Don't have time for thieves, and I don't do second chances, you be here tomorrow at 5 am sharp' I was dumbfounded. She was going to give someone, a bum, a chance. I've been working at the bakery since that day."

"It's a beautiful story Harry, thank you for telling me," Aliza murmurs. I kiss her neck, trailing my lips over her exposed collarbone. She pulls me closer to her as I make my way down the valley of her breast in the tight space she allows me. 

She moans into my hair. My hands trail her back, wanting to feel all of her again. "Just really love how you calm my demons," I say. "I'm so sorry that happened to you." She whispers. "It led me to you. Can't be too mad about it now." I continue to kiss every inch of skin I can. I graze her ear with my teeth.

"I'll never get enough of you. This is is it... This is the first time somethings felt like home." Her one hand weaves into my hair as she tilts my head up. I kiss her with fever, wanting to convey the things I don't have words for yet. I can kiss her for years. 

"Thank you." She smiles against my lips; her tears fall onto my cheeks. She's thanking me for being open, but somehow I think she thanks me for a lot more. My lips fold over hers, my tongue glides out into her mouth. She starts to rock against me slowly.

I'm not sure if she knows she's doing it, but I don't mind one bit. I want to stay like this forever, wrapped around her, feeling so fucking much by just being in her presence. Our teeth clash as passion grows around us. I grab her waist and take her as high as I can, joining her moments later. When she comes down, she slumps against me out of breath and glisters in sweat. 

"Gonna tell you this story every day," I mutter, my forehead resting against her as I catch my breath. She giggles, but I swallow them with another kiss. "Let's go on an adventure." She tells me. "Where we going Sunshine," I ask. "We'll go very far away but stay right here." She lets on. "Let me just sort this out first." I look at my waist. 

She giggles again. "Shower." She states, and before I can reply, she's already dancing through the door. I follow her like the lovesick puppy I am. 

The adventure turns out to be yoga... It's not going well for me. My hair is tied in a bun and pulled back with one of her headbands, one I found wedged into the couch. 

I'm currently in a position I didn't know my body can be in. That's why she can sleep like a pretzel. I'm huffing, completely red in the face.

It's a lot harder than running. She's the epitome of grace, swinging her arms and standing in the same position for what feels like hours. 

I'm like a lump of coal, falling to the ground when my muscles give out. I give up when my arm jerks below me, and I land on the floor with a thud.

I roll onto my back with a groan. Relaxing my ass. Namaste right here.  I laugh at my joke, and she peeks through her arm at me. "Show me something cool," I ask her. She's been keeping it simple for me, doing the basic movements so I can keep up, which I couldn't even do. 

She smiles and positions herself on her knees. She places her head on the ground, her hands on either side of her, palms spread out. Slowly, like she weighs nothing at all, her legs move to the ceiling, knees still tucked to her chest. 

It's like an invisible rope pulls her from the roof. Once she's balanced on her head, she gracefully, without any force push her legs out straight.

She balances in a straight line; none of her muscles shake. Her arms are dead still. Show off. She keeps it there for a minute or two, and I stare in awe at her. She just as slowly brings herself down, and when her knees hit the ground, she lifts her head. Her braid has come loose, and the hair has fallen into her face.

"That was pretty amazing." I stutter. She laughs and falls next to me, her head on my shoulder. I wiggle my arm around her shoulder and pull her closer. "Thanks, baby." My throat goes dry.

A shiver runs down my spine. "Can you, can you not call me that?" I stutter. She reaches out to me, taking my hand. "Harry, are you okay? I won't do it again." She asked, alarmed. I shake my head. "I'm okay; it's just a... it hurts." She nods. 

"Okay." She says, and that's it because sometimes it's that simple to talk about something. Sometimes life gives you an out, and that's what she is; she's my out. "I want to give you a gerbera," I tell her.

She looks at me for a reason. "Because you make me happy." She blushes. "I lied to you." She says. 

"Bout what," I ask, playing with her hair. "I take so long to open the door because I'm naked. I never wear clothes when I'm alone." My eyes shot to hers. "So you do sleep naked?" I ask, amused. 

She nods, taking her lower lip into her mouth. "Just thought you should know, seeing as we're going to live together."  Maybe the big windows weren't such a good idea. Once again, she's off doing God knows what, and I'm left speechless.

Mkay Bye!