Sunday.

[Etrius]

I woke up, freeing myself from the nightmare, my eyes flashed open and as I gasped I felt the sweat I bathed in, I exhaled deeply and closed my eyes as I placed my hands over them I suddenly realized I still had them, I removed my hands for a moment and looked at my ceiling just to be sure.
I'm often haunted by nightmares but this one had really disturbed me; grotesque and horrid, the land of misery and dread.
When I felt something move next to me I jerked straight up into the cold morning air, away from the warmth that the sheets kept inside and I turned to see what that something was.
You have to understand that I was in a very confused and defensive state, acting on instinct so I had yet to regain my bearings.
And then I saw it, I saw her.
Many stories talk about special women in history like Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty or Helen of troy over who a ten year war was started, but also in art pieces such as the great red dragon and the woman clothed in sun by William Blake, or the Mona Lisa by Leonardo Da Vinci, the list is vast.
Such women are incredibly rare, you could search your whole life for one and never find her, but me; I had her right next to me, naked in my bed.
Long brown hair like the darkest of wood with a hint of red, spread around her like flames; skin soft like silk but endlessly more valuable, flawless; a face sculpted by Aphrodite herself, so fair and serene.
And she was right there, not 2 inches from where I laid dreaming.
What I felt then is very similar to looking at a sunset for instance, or a full moon in a star-filled night sky, or sunlight beaming through the clouds in the distance.
As the last remnants of compiled body heat slid of my body I stretched my arm to touch her just to make sure she wouldn't just vanish into thin air when I noticed my arm, no lash marks, no tendons had been removed and I still had my fingers.
Another  sigh of relief went through my mind as I took another step closer to reality.
I rested my hands on the bump under the sheets that was her hip and I felt her warmth through the sheets spreading trough my palm.
I noticed my heart rate, which was impressive, slowing down from it's insane start, looked down and moved my hand from her hip onto my stomach.
No gaping hole, no split sternum with broken ribs and I was pretty sure I still had my spleen, a cold shiver went down my spine.
Suddenly she took a deep breath and turned on her back with her head sideways, her open left hand next to her, and I finally noticed a scent in the room, it was hers; a subtle and indescribable scent.
Memories filled my mind, triggered by that scent, I first smelled it on April the 25th 10 years after the start of the new millennium...

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'Well, mission complete I'd say, we're completely lost. I congratulate you.'
I smiled widely as I pushed some branches out of the way, I looked behind me to make sure none of them lashed her beautiful face.
She smiled also, it was obvious she was having the time of her life.
'I told you I was quite good at that.' She giggled.
'I know, and I told you it was much more fun to get lost.' I said as I stepped over a long forgotten tree root.
'You were right.' She replied and tripped over said root.
Now there are countless of random events and things that happen every moment: someone sneezes, falls, shifts gears, nods, chooses to get out of bed with his right leg first, and sometimes, somehow, actions match.
In this case 2 actions happened and matched seamlessly: She tripped over the root and I turned around because it was more then 2 seconds since I looked at her.
The result?
She landed right in my arms, her head softly landing in my chest, right on my heart and as a result, in my embrace.
Now, when a young lady falls in your chest you close your arms around her instinctively to protect her, which was exactly what I did.
My heart decided to dance the hoki poki in my ribcage and I knew she could feel it on her face.
There we just stood.
She was in the safest place possible listening to my racing heart and me?
I kept holding her tight for what seemed like a lifetime, with a new-born intention to never let her go.
Then I felt the moment was right and looked down, she had felt it too apparently since she looked up at the same time.
We looked each other in the eyes for a few seconds.
And then we kissed.

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The memory ended.
That kiss was still our favorite up until today, and we were right about it, it had been one in a million, like a real high budget romantic movie, I'm talking cupids and hearts here people.
Later she had told me she could indeed feel my heart racing, I smiled as my heart assumed a more sensible rate, I looked at my back and was relieved to see I still had my spine... Just wanted to make sure.
I enjoyed her scent a bit more and sat on the side of the bed, my legs over the side, my alarm clock claimed that it was a little over 7 in the morning.
The twilight had passed so little darkness remained except for the most remote corners of the room, she wouldn't be awake for at least an hour, birds and early cars sounded in the distance, I turned my head and observed her quietly, I could hear her soft breathing, combined with the other noises it was an excellent mix for peace, she looked so serene, so quiet, sleeping in someone else' bed without a care in the world, while wearing nothing but her skin.
This I knew not because I could see it but because I remembered what happened last night.
I looked at my back again and this time I noticed the scratch marks, deep ones too, and I grinned, no dream caused those.
She had changed so much since we first came in contact, she had evolved and grown and now bloomed like a cherry tree.
But this was not always the case.
When I found her she was broken and torn, hurt in the past, but I picked her up, took her home and nursed her back to health.
I put a lot of time and effort in her, still do, but I got so much more in return, still do.
I cared for her with the utmost intensity and she loved me back and offered herself to me freely, and when that happens and continues to happen, passion blooms...

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It was warm in the garage.
Her body heat and my roaring heart certainly didn't offer any kind of cool down.
Our lips kept locking without a moments rest, our arms moving over each others back and pulling  the other closer as if we couldn't hold each other close enough.
There we stood in the semi-darkness of the old garage building, wooden beams covering the ceiling, I placed my hands on her butt and pulled her up, she followed closely, jumped and wrapped her legs around my waist.
I carried her effortlessly towards the old expandable couch we stored there, without giving her lips a moments rest I stepped over my shirt  that we cast away carelessly earlier.
The couch was quite low so when we arrived I bent my knees and leaned back to counter her weight with my own, then I gently shifted it forward making me fall forward and placing her softly on the pillows.
Our relationship was quite young so I kept my hands in control, caressing her face, neck, arms and back; not that this lowered our game of passion for a fraction.
I loomed over her and started kissing her neck when suddenly we changed positions; she now loomed over me with her knees on both sides of my legs, pushing me down but never stopped kissing.
As we kissed I started to lift her shirt up, she sat up straight, raised her arms without a moment of hesitation and when moments later the piece of cloth fell next to us, I beheld the majesty of womanhood for the first time in my life, neatly supported by a most lovely looking bra.
For me everything came to a halt and grew silent as a pleasant heat spread itself through my body.
We started kissing and hugging again but slower this time, I slid my hands over her back and my fingers found the fastener.
After 15 seconds of hopeless fumbling she understood that I was no match for the dreaded fastener, giggled, pressed me back and folded her arms around her back as she looked deep into my eyes.
I stared right back at her with big eyes when suddenly the bra slid off her voluptuous chest and I looked down.
I was enchanted, stunned, dumbstruck, in other words, completely flabbergasted.
How could I not be?
What I saw that day is still the greatest memory I posses.
The bra accompanied her shirt as I embraced her tightly and pressed our hearts together.

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With a deep breath I snapped out of the memory and noticed the empty plastic bottle next to the bed, partially covered with various pieces of clothing.
As I picked it up the pair of panties slid off, I snickered and went downstairs to fill it up, she was always thirsty when she woke up.
I put on my trousers and gently went down the stairs trying not to wake anyone up, the cool morning air had spread through the house. I realized I could use my legs which meant that my kneecaps had in fact not been forcibly removed which, needless to say, made my morning quite better.
I arrived in the bathroom and filled up the bottle, then I turned and looked in the mirror to see the havoc she had wrought upon my back and to find a few hickeys of considerable size.
Later I noticed the bite marks... What a woman.
Back upstairs I stepped over the clothing-scattered floor of the seemingly exploded room, the scene reminded me of a certain beach in Western Europe 1943.
We never did get the hang of "taking it easy"...
Fully back to reality now I took off my trousers hopped in bed, after taking some sheet from her private collection (she always stole them while asleep), I just laid there on my side, looking at her, my head resting on my hand.
She moaned quietly in her sleep, a random noise, and I was reminded of her voice.
She had a voice made for talking, laughing and singing.
Singing...  She loved to sing, off key, a lot, couldn't keep tone if her life depended on it.
But it was precious to me, if she was singing everything was alright.
Plus the fact that I love teasing her about it... repeatedly.
I caressed her arm softly and enjoyed the softness of her skin, "body lotion" she says but I knew this young woman was made for touching and kissing... And poking.
I poked her.
On the shoulder of course, I didn't want to wake her up, I smiled at the sight of her peaceful expression.
We slept over every weekend but it wasn't always like this.
I still remember the first time, it began with some clinging and a sad face.

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She clang to me with a sad face, she really didn't want me to go.
We were at her dad's place all Saturday and now it was time for me to go home, the train would leave the station in 7 minutes, it was the last one to home.
If there was a top 10 of most dramatic 7 minutes in a station before the train departs this would be number one, since I'm rather sure that, due to the unique and random combination of events, no such similarity has ever taken place before and it was pretty dramatic, I'm talking puppy eyes and swelling tears here people, and I'll admit, I'm not a hard guy to persuade, especially when faced with a crying lover.
She wasn't playing or overreacting, those tears were real, she was genuinely torn over the fact that I was about to leave, when you cling to someone that hard you're not acting.
I can tell you, I was heartbroken, without saying a word I took my right arm off her back and reached for my cellphone and called home.
The sad creature in my chest looked up to me with big eyes.
'Hey Mum' I said with little joy in my voice and no expression on my face as I knew what I had to do.
I lied.
I told her I missed my last train and if she would mind me staying over at her dad's for the night, I would return at first light.
I'm a rather good lair when I have to, I don't hate lying, but I don't like lying to my mom, and I absolutely despise lying to her about important things, the fact that I was being hugged tightly, and received mouthed thank yous didn't make me feel any less rotten.
My mom admitted she didn't like this sudden news but she gave me leave to stay, inside I felt she knew I was lying.
'Thanks Mum, I'll see you tomorrow morning. Bye.'
I hung up and was immediately grabbed by the sides of my face and kissed.
'Thank you, thank you so much, tha-'
'Don't ever make me do that again, ok?' I told her sharply.
I wasn't angry at her I just felt horrible, she promised me it wouldn't happen again, that was good enough for me.
That's how we spent our first night together, on a couch, in each others arms; she: the happiest girl in the world, and me: feeling guilty.
That didn't take away that I enjoyed that night very much so.
It was a good night, we were young and the moon was ours.

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I was raised to be good, I liked that.
Lying to mom hurt but we had our first night in return.
Was it worth it? Was she worth it?
I looked at the sleeping beauty, all I could do was smile as I answered that question in my mind.
I pulled her closer to me, spooning and her warmth spread through my chest, feeling her heartbeat against my skin.
She could never stand cold but rarely flinched in heat, as for me, I could take a few zeros but quickly overheated with high temperatures.
We had our differences, few as they were, and we've had arguments, which were even fewer in number, but we always made it through, the thought of leaving each other never even occurred.
I thought back of how we first came in contact, it was over the internet, I soon noticed she was scarred deeply by heartbreak and betrayal in her early teens by multiple people.
People who toyed around with her, people who rejected her, or couldn't keep their hands to themselves.
It took me many months to mend her soul, I did it with great care and patience, something I'm rather good at, saving the damsel in distress.
I helped her face her demons and she helped me face mine, a most charming lad; you'd love him, and from this symbiosis a strong bond grew.
Now she's strong again though long separation undermines this. 
It was getting brighter, she'd soon wake up.
We've been together for over a year now, it really flew by...
Like that vacation in Portugal, she left with her family for 3 weeks, I would follow her for the third week, she really hated the thought of that 2 week period so before she departed I prepared a surprise for her.

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'Ok, now close your eyes.'
This I said as I stepped out of the garage and placed myself next to her, I rested my right hand on her right shoulder and my with my other I took her hand, ready to lead her through the open gate.
She did as I said and let me guide her, I made sure she didn't trip over any obstacles.
'Wait here for a moment, I'm going to close the gate and then I'll be right back.' I said with a soft tone.
'Ok.' she whispered back.
I slid my hands off of her shoulder and hand, turned and closed the gate, it's rattling broke the silence for a second.
The room turned pitch black, she could feel it.
With a swift motion I stood behind her, close enough so she could feel I was there, I leaned forward and whispered in her ear.
'You can open your eyes now.'
I could not see her eyes but I knew she just opened them from the soft gasp that escaped her mouth as she gazed into the piece of starry sky I pulled down for her.
Dozens of candles filled the room, scattered around, surrounding us in the dark.
'Surprise.' I said softly looking at the back of her head.
She turned around and looked me in the eyes, her face lit by the candle light, it was ghastly in a beautiful way.
She placed her hands on both sides of my face and kissed me.
There we stood, kissing long and soft, surrounded by the stars, words were not needed in that moment.
'Thank you.' She uttered before placing her head on my chest and wrapped her arms around me, I embraced her tightly and rested my head on hers.
'It's what I do.' I whispered.
I think she felt the full force of the pending separation then because she hugged me very tightly.
We then laid down in the expandable sofa, now a bed, and just held each other.
'I'll miss you so much.' She whispered.
'I'll miss you too.' I replied. 'But I'll follow in 2 weeks and I will call you whenever possible.'
'You better...' She warned me and buried  her head in my chest.
She was in the safest place in the whole wide world right now, but soon she wouldn't, and it scared me.
We held each other for over an hour, preparing ourselves for the upcoming trial, it would be hard, but we'd make it through, this much we knew.

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Eventually we made it through.
I took the plane all by myself, my first time on a plane too, and that is, if I say so myself, not a small thing for someone with autism, that week in Portugal was really something,n I enjoyed it thoroughly.
She took a deep breath and I knew she was about to wake up, every movement she made brought forth another memory.
Our prom, we spend most of the time making out, ignoring everyone, I stripped on a speaker in front of the eyes of 100 people simply because she liked the idea, our magical ride home.
The time the trains screwed up causing her to arrive an hour late, she was pissed so with a few fast arrangements I had one of her favorite songs playing when she entered the car which made her smile again.
Our first fight...
Shopping for lingerie together.
The stories we wrote each other and the drawings we made.
Our 1 year anniversary and the awesome picture collection she gave me.
The feeling when her mom said she could sleep over every weekend.
Meeting her family for the first time.
Our first time naked together.
Our conversations online in the very beginning.
Mistakes I had made and subtle victories I had reeled in.
The first time she used her nails on me.
The first "I love you."

She rolled on her back, stretching and rubbing her eyes, looking very sleepy and rather crumpled.
Then she noticed me looking at her with a smile on my face.
'Good morning.' I smiled with closed eyes.
'Good morning.' she replied with a cute smile, stretching again.
'You're looking very lovely again this morning.' I smirked.
'Oh hush you.' she mumbled sleepy. 'How long have you been up?'
'About a minute or so, had sweet dreams?'
'A funny one, about mice and water melons, don't remember too much. And you?'
'Nope, dreamless sleep, just the way I like 'em. Water?' I offered her the bottle.
'Thanks.' She took a few good sips and returned it and I drank too before putting the bottle aside.
She moved a bit under the sheets.
'Hun, where's my underwear and top?'
'Well, if they didn't land on the lamp they must have scattered around the room somewhere, judging by the gravity of this planet I'd say the floor.'
The look on her face could obliterate a comedian's will to preform.
'Thank you Captain Obvious. Come on, give them to me will you.'
'Fine' I rolled over and looked over the edge.
'Found something.' I said.
'Hmm?'
'It's a note from your underwear, it says that they had to return to their home planet.'
I turned to face her again.
'So I'm afraid you must remain naked, how unfortunate...' A triumphant grin spread across my face as I closed my eyes to maximize the effect..
As the pillow hit me square in the face I thought: Gotta love Sundays.
      
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