You're My Favourite Sound

I awoke to the warm sun peering in from the gap in the curtains, casting shadows across the bedroom, and looked over to the night stand where the clock read 9.30.

My tired eyes moved down to the tattooed arm that held me tightly around the waist, afraid to let go, and then to the knuckles that read 'HALLO'. I smiled and gently turned around in his grip to face the man I never thought I'd ever wake up to. His sleeping face gave me the sudden rush of butterflies it always did, as his chest moved in and out slowly. The beam of sun that was seeping in made the dull silver chain around his neck sparkle.

I carefully reached up and brushed the backs of my fingers against his soft cheek, stroking it adoringly. This made him inhale deeply, causing the only sound in the apartment, and then exhale just as loudly. He stirred a little and his eyelids slowly opened, the gorgeous hazel staring back at me.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you," I whispered.

Frank just grinned at me and whispered back, "I could feel you."

I giggled, making his grin widen. He moved a strand of hair that had fallen in my eyes, and tucked it behind my ear.

"This is so surreal, waking up next to you," he added, and I softly nodded in agreement.

Just then, a vibrating could be heard beneath us and it took me a couple seconds to realise it was my cell phone. I began to sit up, but Frank pulled me back into him.

"No, no, no," he said, holding me close, "They'll go away."

I sighed as he closed his eyes, keeping a firm grip around me, and the vibrating stopped. Not five seconds later, though, it started again and I actually sat up this time.

"I'm getting it," I told Frank and turned away from him, leaning over the side of the bed to route through my clothes sprawled across the floor.

My pants were missing, but it didn't take me long to spot them right in the middle of the space under the bed, so I leaned forward more to reach them. My body was curled around the side of the bed, half of me ontop of it, wrapped up in the duvet, and the other half under the wooden frame. I must have looked ridiculous because I heard Frank giggling above me.

I finally grabbed the bright blue pants and brought them back up with me to sit on the mattress, digging my cell out from one of the front pockets. How it didn't get ruined under the shower water last night was a mystery to me, but the pants seemed to have dried.

The name that was flashing on the screen made me silently curse to myself, instantly feeling horrible about what had happened last night.

"Babe, where are you? You didn't come home last night..."

"Ethan, I'm so sorry, I crashed at a friend's," I said quickly into the phone.

"Who's?" he asked me, and I racked my brain for answers I should have thought about before he called.

"Just this girl, um, I go to school with her."

"What, did you meet her from work or something?"

"Yeah... Yeah, she surprised me after work and we, we went out for a couple drinks, you know, and then we ended up back at her place and... uh, I dunno, I just fell asleep." Shit, lying had been my thing as a teenager. The fact that I could feel Frank's eyes burning into me didn't help the situation.

"Well you could have called me, I mean, I was worried when I woke up and you still hadn't returned from work..."

"I know, I'm sorry," I apologised, my heart going crazy.

"Okay, are you coming home anytime soon?" he asked, and added, "I need to talk to you about something."

"Yeah, um, I'll come now," I replied, leaning back over the bed to grab my underwear.

By the time I'd hung up, I was half dressed, standing on the soft carpet, pulling on my black and white striped shirt. I went to reach for my pants on the bed, but Frank got there first and kept them.

"Do you have to go?" he said, his morning hair sticking up at odd angles. I sighed lightly through my nose, glaring at him a little. "October, you ignore me for two weeks, you sleep with me, and then you disappear again? I can't be your play thing."

I tutted, "After last night, how can you think I'd treat you like that? I wouldn't, ever. I'm sorry I have to go, but I can't have Ethan suspecting anything, okay?"

Frank sighed. "So I'm gonna have to be your dirty little secret, huh?"

I smirked and said, "You can't deny you don't like that," receiving a chuckle. "Can I have my pants now please, I kinda need them?"

"Are you sure you don't want to go as you are?"

"Well, I'm pretty sure I'd get some weird looks from people who see a girl walking around in no pants."

"I dunno, I kinda like that look on you," Frank grinned, his eyes moving up my bare legs and causing me to blush.

"Stop it," I hissed, bending down and snatching my clothing from him.

When I was finally able to get home, it turned out that Ethan had wanted to talk to me about tonight. We'd planned to go out for a romantic meal and, to be honest, I'd forgotten that it was Valentine's Day (obviously because I had other things on my mind this morning), but Ethan just found out he had to work tonight so we couldn't do anything, to my secret happiness.

He'd asked me if I'd wanted to do anything for the occasion tomorrow night instead and I'd simply told him no, that it was perfectly fine. He knew I wasn't a fan of Valentine's Day anyway.