I stood on the tip of my toes to kiss him.  It would be unbelievable that he was what he was. I expected him to lose his... To lose himself. Instead, he held me in his arms and pressed me for more. My silky black strands uncovered my face and he got his few seconds. I sighed, stepping back a little. My breathing was heavy, as I wasn't used to that at all. He almost looked happy. My mind could only think of how good his touch felt.

~_~

I moved out of my parents house just yesterday. I did all the packing myself and had everything moved to my boyfriend's house in advanced. I was 19, but it didn't matter. I remember walking down the stairs to say goodbye to my parents. They were in another huge argument as usual. I left and it was as if they didn't even notice.

I was an outlier. Invisible to my own blood and my opinions meant nothing when I even held a casual conversation, if I bothered to anymore. My boyfriend pulled up in front of the house and we drove away. I didn't even look at him, which was rude, considering he was the sweetest most amazing-est person in the world. Anthony Aaron made my world go 'round and soothed my heart. I knew he wanted to know what had happened.

But I also knew if I told him right now, I would bawl my eyes out in his car, as I'd done countless times before. He waited to exit off of the highway and drive a mile or so to the left before we got home.

I had so much self-hate, I had enough to give to everyone on the face of the planet who didn't already hate themselves. Anthony understood I harboured all of my pain inside until it burst out in full blown panic attacks, and I was so afraid that he would soon come to hate me, even though we'd been together for more than 3 years now.

I grabbed my keys and opened the house door and patiently waited for him. As soon as he approached me form behind, I waited for him to get in and locked the door behind him. I was shocked when he carried me all the way upstairs. But than again, I weighed close to 120 pounds. I wasn't very heavy to him.

He playfully threw me on the bed and was on top of me in seconds. I squealed and chuckled as he showered me in kisses and tiny love bites. My sadness and resentment practically dissolved when I remembered the tremendous amount of love and support he alone provided me with. They were sweet little kisses that made my heart skip beats.

He finally stopped and just stared into my soul with his baby blue eyes. I didn't know what he was looking for, but he surely didn't care. " I love you, Zoey." He whispered, kissing my forehead. I wrapped him in my arms and hugged him. " I love you too, Anthony." I added dearly. He really was more than I could ask for.

He sighed deeply in my arms " You smell amazing, baby." I chuckled and tried to push him off, but he wouldn't, chuckling and disabling my perception by continuously kissing my face. My biggest weakness was the man I loved. I believed for so long the world hated me. Everyone wanted to see me cry, or see me hurt, or even worse. I still believed the world hated me sometimes. 

" So, what happened with your parents this time?"

I sat up and looked at my knees " They were arguing again. About the refrigerator being left open. They couldn't even say goodbye to me. They probably didn't even notice." I sighed, making it seem like no big deal. It wasn't a big deal, and nothing for him to really worry over. But it made him scowl. He'd known of my parent's abusive/ negligent ways since we started dating when I was 16. My parents were always too busy for me, so they didn't even know, or if they did, remember I had a boyfriend. He smiled at me, sweetly. Of course I giggled when he made goofy faces at me.

I slipped off my flats and let them drop on the opposite side of the bed. I stretched out a bit more and yawned.

" I unpacked your things and I found something I probably shouldn't have seen." He chuckled slightly.

My brows drew together in confusion.
" What did you find?" I asked. I was kind of curious as to what he was talking about. I got even further confused when he reached behind the pillow. He looked at me as if to ask ' are you ready?' I shrugged.

My entire face turned  red. It was my sleek black vibrator. It suddenly got way too hot. I tried to take it from him, but he was faster. He looked at me, almost interested. " How long? And... Without me?" My face was fully red at this point and I couldn't even tell a proper lie. I averted my eyes from his gaze " Since I was 14." I grumbled. " I limited using it when I was with you. And I still barely use it."

He seemed satisfied with my answer, but I knew he was hiding something else. " What else?"

"The lingerie?" This time, I didn't blush, but rather was disappointed. " They were for you, idiot." His eyes widened. He seemed to not exactly understand but was trying very hard.

" For our first time, you dumbass!" I growled, playfully punching his shoulders and body. He quickly understood and burst into laughter.
He saw my embarrassed smile drop at his laughter and he immediately stopped. I looked away from him. " Did you see it?" I asked quietly. He nodded, not saying a word. I groaned and looked at the bedding. He looked at me remorsefully " Babe if it helps, I would have taken your clothes off with or without the lingerie. You look amazing either way." My cheeks turned pink at his compliment. He kissed my warm face endearingly and jolted up to my surprise.

He ran off, probably to the kitchen. It was close to dinner time anyway. His clock in the corner ticked quietly as I lie in his soft bed. His bedding smelled like downy fabric softener and was all soft. He had this gorgeous  brown checkered type of linen and a huge white comforter. It all smelled... Like my Tony. His plush carpeting was chestnut and I was living for his head board lights. The only thing out of place was his dark drapes

It was summer break, but I think we were still quarantined. This virus everyone thought was new ( but had really been around for a long time ) had everything from shopping centers to schools closed. I hated having to join in live to college but it saved me anxiety. And that guy that kept following me around.

Anthony was of course, older than me by more than 4 years. He double majored in Software development and Chemistry and already had a job at some company I hadn't bothered to remember the name of. He was the kindest person I knew and treated me like he cared. " BABY! THE FOOD IS DONE!" he called. I rolled over and got up and walked to the kitchen. I stopped at the kitchen doorway when I saw all the lights were off.

I walked further in and I was shocked at the  medium sized frosted chocolate cake sitting in the middle of the table. He held a lit candle in his palms. This isn't even counting the decedent meal he made us. He poured me a glass of lemonade, as alcoholic drinks were a no-no for me. He poured himself lemonade and white wine, as he was old enough to drink. I focused back on him. He approached me and got in close. " Blow out the candle." He whispered into my ear. He knew when I would blow and ended up blowing at the same time.

The candle smelled like clove and nutmeg and washed a deep wave of nostalgia over me. Back when my parents didn't fight over everything. Back to when my Terrier Janice was still alive on christmas eve and when my dad announced to the  family I was going to college. When my  parents invited all of my cousins over for dinner regularly and we talked and had a good time. Back to a time where I wasn't drowning under the wave that was called growing up. I hadn't even notice his lips deeply kiss my own. I kissed back with the same passion he gave me. After a while, he gently let my lips go, looking at me longingly but happily, he pulled me into his arms.
" Welcome home, baby."

He whispered. He placed the candle down on the counter top and pulled out my chair for me to sit. I thanked him for his kind and gentlemanly behavior. He pushed me in and sat close by. The food looked delicious. He made me chicken alfredo and steamed broccoli. We ate together, talking about random things.  Of course I continued to say that he didn't have to prepare me anything like this just for moving in.

He chuckled and dismissed it." Don't take this the wrong way, but I get lonely sometimes. Having you over much less you entirely moving in is celebration-worthy." It had just dawned on me. Things were a little spacey between us when I wasn't allowed to leave the house before I was 18. Even when I first turned 19 they found excuses so that I would have nothing to do. I'd spend the wee hours of the morning just talking to him, not thinking how much he may have missed me.

It was genuinely a lot to take in. We ate cake and drank and talked about pointless things. But it made me sad at how much I missed him when I was a freshman in college. He would pick me up after he got off of work and we'd spend time together after we'd have to part ways. His hand moved my chin and he made me face him. " When I say I'm so happy you've moved in, believe it. I loved you for a while now and now was no better time for you to move in" I smiled in glee.

The cake was beyond delicious but I couldn't shake this odd feeling that I was still being watched. I felt like kissing him but I didn't want to. But that bit of frosting on his lip did it for me. I sucked on his bottom lip gently but almost greedily. He laughed and we continued our meal, just enjoying that we finally had time for us. We were on our time. I didn't say much about feeling ike I was being watched. I didn't want him to worry at all.

Hey guys! I edited one of my ancient books ( from when I was 13 ) and I'm putting it out for everyone to read! The plot is quite different, but the names are the same ( somewhat ) and the characters were preserved. Zoey is still a sad introvert and Anthony cares way too much about her. Anyway, don't forget to vote, share and comment! It really helps!

~BYE😸😘