Love in Theory and Practice: Chapters 1-13

Rome, Italy

Elin grumpily walks away from me in the Coliseum. She’s irritated because I’ve been rather lazy the last few days and have let her go to several museums alone. I’ve also been on and off the phone with Seppo and others. She’s been getting calls from work related people as well but decided to ignore them.

We had a little spat about when and where work related phone calls are acceptable. She still hasn’t forgiven me for saying that my work is always acceptable but making it sound like her work is never acceptable when we’re together. I’ve also been taking calls privately. She says I’m being shady and is getting suspicious.

“Elin,” I say and jog to catch up to her.

“Let me just be alone for a bit, okay?” she turns on her heel and causes me to stop short. “I’m grumpy Ville. I don’t know why but I am.” She’s never really been like this around me before and I’m wondering if this is the attitude that her father warned came form her mother.

She’s been moody, extra sensitive, and snappy for the last few days. But she’ll say something bitter and sarcastic then turn around and be cuddly two minutes later.

“Is it because you’ve been to several of the small galleries alone or because of our fight?” I ask.

“No, I actually enjoyed going by myself and the fight doesn’t really matter.” She says and lays her head on my shoulder. I know she’s still angry with me but small doses of affection are her way of letting me know that the argument is over and we’re moving past it.

“Alright, fair enough.” I say and put my arm around her shoulders. “I have a surprise for you tonight.”

“Oh?” she asks with a raised eyebrow and a slight scowl. I want to laugh at how adorable her scowl face is but I know that would just make it worse so I hold it back.

“Yes,” I say and kiss the top of her head. “And I know you’re going to like it.” She rolls her eyes, holds back a bitchy remark and moves a little way ahead of me. If she thinks that making me walk behind her is punishment, she’s sadly mistaken.

But something tells me that Elin knows exactly what she’s doing. She knows I love the way she moves so letting me walk behind her just reminds me of what I’d be missing if I fucked up enough for her to leave me.

We spend the rest of the morning looking around the Coliseum area and talking occasionally. Around lunchtime we head back to the hotel to freshen up and decide what to do next.

I know that we love each other but some times personal space is needed so I’m not offended when Elin tells me she’s going to go out shopping and that she wants to go alone.

She grabs her bag and gives me a small wave before leaving the hotel room. When the door closes, I immediately pull out my cell and dial.

“Hello?” the voice on the other end of the phone says.

“Are you close by?” I ask, biting my nails. I’m really hoping I can pull this off.

“Yeah, what’s up?” they answer.

“Well Elin just left the hotel for a while. Want to come on up?”

“Yes. Be there in a few minutes.” They say before hanging up.

I jump up and try to decide whether or not I should pack up our things so they’re not all over the room. I figure it’ll be nicer for my guest if the place is clean.

Three hours later, we’re just hanging out in the room but I know Elin will return shortly so I’ve been nervously checking out the window for her. Eventually I spot her walking up to the hotel.

“Shit,” I mutter, wishing I had just a few more minutes. “You better hide.”

At the exact moment that the closet door shuts and clicks, Elin opens the hotel room door. But she’s smarter than I planned on and she can tell I’m up to something. She was in the middle of a phone call but she quickly hangs it up and turns her attention completely on me.

“What are you doing?” she asks without a single note of laughter in her voice. I guess I’m not as good at hiding things as I thought I was.

“Oh, nothing.” I say, trying to sound nonchalant.

She puts her bags down on the bed but continues to eye me suspiciously. When she notices that our suitcases are packed, she turns to me again.

“Seriously. What is going on? You are being really strange,” she says with her hands on her hips. She’s so focused on me that she doesn’t notice the closet door slowly creep open.

Callie steps slowly towards her and grabs her shoulders from behind. Elin yelps and spins around. She wraps her friend in a hug and the girls begin to jump up and down together.

“You’d think they hadn’t seen each other in years.” Bam says with a laugh and emerges from the closet.

“I know right?” I agree with a small laugh.

“What are you doing here?” Elin asks, happily, hugging Bam.

“Ville’s idea. So don’t shoot me for crashing your honeymoon.” Bam says and points at me, placing the blame.

“Is this why you’ve been taking calls secretly?” she asks. I nod and she dashes over to me. She slips her arms around me in an incredibly sexy hug and kisses my cheek.

“Is it an okay surprise?” I ask with a laugh.

“Yes, but lord, I thought you were cheating or something.” she says, tightening her arm around my waist.

“Ville? Cheating on his honeymoon?” Bam asks through his laughter. “As if!”

“Well if you’d seen how sneaky he’s been the last few days, you’d probably suspect something too.” she says. I feel guilty for making her suspect that. I hadn’t even thought about how my behavior would come off.

“Love, I could never cheat on you.” I say with a wink. She winks back and Bam and Callie look confused over our private joke. Elin and I spend so much time hooking up that it would nearly be impossible for me to even have the energy to hook up with anyone else. And she knows it.

After catching up briefly in the hotel room, we all venture out into the city for dinner.

The girls quickly fall into their own little world so Bam and I simple follow a few feet back. They are whispering about something and both look excited yet nervous. At one point Elin looks scared and I’m unsettled but Bam and I just keep back and let them talk.

We only have a day or so with them before we have to fly back to Helsinki but I know that Elin is happy to see Callie, even if it’s only for a day or two. Bam and I also arrange for us all to take a trip to Sweden in October to see one of the girls’ favorite bands, Volbeat, in concert.

After Callie and Bam return to their own room, we’re lying together. My head is on her chest and she’s wrapped her arms around me. We haven’t spoken in a few minutes and neither of us feels the need to break the silence.