You'll Always Be My Baby

Frank’s Point of View

I flicked through the channels aimlessly, becoming increasingly frustrated as more and more late night documentaries about how monkeys reproduce or the history of trains appeared. I’d always hated late night TV, but since my beautiful girlfriend had fallen asleep on top of me, I had no choice but to watch it.

I tossed the remote to the floor exasperatedly, my mood worsening as the panel which held the batteries in flew off and snapped. My hands instinctively tightened around Kat in an attempt to pacify myself. Seeing her sleeping form instantaneously calmed me. Her head rested on my chest and her arms were wearily slung around my neck. I kissed her head tenderly, breathing in the strawberry scent of her platinum hair. She looked so content; her eyes closed as she slept peacefully. I would have woken her up as it was only ten to ten, but I knew that she hadn’t slept very well the previous night. My hand slipped under her top, caressing the silky skin at the small of her back, causing a satisfied sigh to escape from Kat’s moist lips.

I hadn’t realized that she had woken up until she tiredly stretched her limbs out, yawning into my chest as she did so. I kissed her forehead affectionately again, making Kat smile even though her eyes were still tightly shut.

“Come on, let’s get you to bed,” I whispered into her hair. A brief ‘mmm’ was muttered into my torso, subconsciously enlightening me to the fact that she had no intent of moving from her comfortable position. I chuckled silently to myself, knowing that once she got to the bedroom she’d fall straight back asleep again.

“You can’t sleep here all night, honey,” I said, moving my hands around to her stomach to encourage her to move. This seemed to work as she eventually rolled off me and stood up slowly, screwing her eyes shut again promptly after she opened them.

“Too bright,” she murmured sleepily; simply too tired to form a logical sentence. I stood up behind her, taking her hand and leading her into the bedroom. It wasn’t a long journey; our apartment was only tiny. It consisted of two rooms (well, three if you counted the bathroom); the bedroom and the lounge/kitchen. Kat immediately collapsed onto the double bed, still keeping her eyes closed as she was too weary to open them. My heart melted at the gorgeous woman in front of me, reassuring me that my love for her was still as strong as ever.

“I’m just gonna brush my teeth,” I whispered, but I wasn’t sure that she was even awake still.

I lifted my shirt over my head as I walked into the en suite bathroom. The shower looked so inviting after my day working hard at the restaurant, but I didn’t want to keep Kat awake so I settled on showering in the morning. I picked up my toothbrush and squirted some toothpaste on it, watching my actions in the mirror in front of me. My eyes wondered around the small room, taking in the flaking paint work and old fashioned tiles. It could’ve done with a make over I suppose, but we were struggling as it was.

See, although my job was well paid, living in Newark was expensive. The restaurant I worked as a waiter in, called The Willing Well, was a relatively posh restaurant. Instead of being paid monthly, I was paid in cash at the end of each day. Admittedly, this worked to my advantage because the owner was extremely generous as he had no problems with money. I also got to keep any tips I was given from the customers, the majority of whom were very wealthy. However, the satisfaction and relief I felt as my wages were handed over to me was always soon overruled. Most of it was spent on bills and rent, leaving me and Kat only just enough money to survive on. We were happy though, just me and her. We couldn’t have been much more perfect...

I finished brushing my teeth, splashing my face with cool water to bring my daydream to an abrupt end. I clambered back into the bedroom, stripping my pants off as I went.

“Kat?” I whispered, gently shaking her shoulder. She groaned drowsily in reply, burying her head further into the pillow.

“Come on, honey, you have to clean your teeth and get changed.”

“I’ll do my teeth in the morning.”

“You still have to change,” I told her softly. She moaned delicately in response and I knew she was too exhausted to cooperate, causing me to take matters into my own hands. I hooked my arms around her and pulled her into a sitting position to take her top and bra off, before struggling with her jeans. It took some time to get them off as she obviously didn’t have the energy to even move, the poor thing. I smiled coyly to myself as I tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. A few years ago I would have thought that this was sickeningly sweet, but I suppose I didn’t understand what love meant back then.

I silently grabbed my iPod, shoving it under my pillow before snuggling up next to Kat and pulling the covers over us. I kissed her jaw softly, before wishing her sweet dreams and proclaiming my love for her, smiling as she mumbled a barely coherent ‘I love you too’.

I watched as Kat’s eyes closed, her breathing gradually slowing as she lulled herself into a well-deserved, deep sleep. Her face still embraced a youthful, elegant element; her soft features highlighting her compassionate personality, her unblemished skin reflecting our flawless relationship. I loved everything about Kat. I think deep down I always had. We had always been friends, ever since I can remember. We had been best friends through our entire education, and although we had plenty of other friends, all we needed was each other. It was only four, nearly five years ago that we realized we were destined to be together, and that time hasn’t been wasted.

Soon it would be our fifth anniversary, and I still hadn’t got anything planned. I pondered what I could do. I was intent on doing something special, as five years was half way to ten. It just seemed so much more significant than four or six. Last year we just brought each other small token presents, but I really wanted to mark the occasion this time.

I sighed, realizing that I had been awake for longer that I anticipated. I wasn’t feeling tired at all, but I didn’t want to wake Kat up again by getting up. I reached under my pillow and switched my iPod on, turning the volume down low. My favorite artist, Gerard Way, came on with his song ‘Infatuated With Love’. I inwardly grinned to myself. I thought Gerard’s voice was so amazing; it was smooth and rough and soft and powerful all at the same time. It was such a shame that he was so manufactured. I thought the media were always too harsh on him though; portraying him as a callous and arrogant asshole. I bet underneath his façade he was a lonely, vulnerable young man, but who am I to judge?

I sang along with the chorus in my head, relaxing as Gerard’s whispers soothed me.

It’s what I live for
It’s what I’d die for
This venomous thing called love
It’s everywhere but I can’t find it

I was reluctant to admit that it was a good song. I mean, he didn’t write his own lyrics so how could he relate them to his own life or make them personal?

Me and you
We could be something
Together as one
Alone in perfection
I’ve never felt this way before

Yet somehow he did make them personal. They way he sang was so heartfelt; the passion saturating each word as it escaped from his lips, the emotion that manipulated his body, giving a hint of despondency at every mention of the concept of love. It gave the song depth and passion – something which it previously lacked. In fact, it’s what made the song, as I reluctantly say, good. The lyrics weren’t amazing, the tune wasn’t particularly great, yet his voice was so mesmerizing that people listened it.

The song reached its climax; the ending, and came to an abrupt stop as I felt my eyes droop.

You wouldn’t sacrifice your heart for me
Your dignity
It was all too much
Lost
Touch