Absolution(80)

A couple of weeks ago, he couldn’t imagine what the past few years had been like for her. Now, he was starting to get the picture, even if the image was still fractured and hazy.

“Anyway, it’s fine. If I wasn’t up to it, I would’ve said something. It was fun, I enjoyed it,” she assured him. “Now, let’s get this movie cranked up.”

He smiled, rubbing his hands together. He had ditched ‘Armageddon’ for a new release instead, reasoning that it might be better to watch something that didn’t have so many memories attached to it.

“I ran into Callum when I was picking up dinner,” he said, popping open the DVD cover and inserting the disc into the player.

“You did?” He caught the hint of anxiety in her voice, even though he was sure she had meant to hide it. “Everything okay between you two?”

“Seems to be,” he lied.

The last thing she needed to worry about was him and Callum. He sank into the couch, on the side closest to the armchair. Was she deliberately trying to put some distance between them by sitting separately, or was that just a practical decision? He noticed she relied heavily on the arms of the chair to sit down, now that she was wearing her braces. That was probably it.

Stop seeing things that aren’t there.

They settled in to watch the movie, and once again, he was sucked into some kind of surreal vortex. He was sitting in her living room, watching a movie with her. What the hell had happened to bring this around full-circle so quickly?

Then he remembered his father.

His heart felt like something was tugging on it, pulling it down into his chest cavity. He missed him so much. He wished he were here to see this. God, he hoped he was watching.

He smiled as she giggled at the screen, oblivious.

When the credits rolled, she stretched and he grabbed the remote to switch off the DVD.

“That was awesome,” she smiled, settling back into the armchair.

“It was, wasn’t it? Not a bad choice, if I say so myself.”

“Your choice in movies has certainly improved.”

“Ah, there it is. I was waiting for that crack,” he smiled. “I can’t say I’ve watched a lot of movies lately. It was more of a coin toss, really.”

Talking about his life before he came home made him feel uncomfortable. She might ask questions. He didn’t have any answers for her yet. She was stretching again, slowly, side to side.

“You sure you’re okay?”

“I’m good, just a little stiff. I’ll be fine tomorrow.”

“If you’re getting tired, I can get going.”

“I’m not tired.”

Stay a little longer.

He smiled despite himself. “Me neither.”

He got up and ejected the DVD, popping it back into the case. He spied her iPod and picked it up.

“Music?” he asked over his shoulder.

“Sure, why not. You choose, seeing you had so much success with the movie.”

He scrolled through the options, settling on something he knew they would both like. He slotted it into the dock and music filled the room. He saw her approving smile as she rolled her shoulders again.

“Y’know, I’m sure I could rustle up a half-decent neck rub.”

She seemed to mentally weigh up the offer. “It’s more my shoulders than my neck, but thanks anyway.”

“Same principal, right? I’m nothing if not flexible.”

“Show-off,” she smiled. “But, since you put it that way – thanks.”

He rubbed his hands together and perched on the arm of the chair beside her. Bowing her head, he gently swept her hair aside, pushing the silky tendrils forward over her shoulder. He stared at the naked base of her neck for a moment, a thrill of anticipation buzzing through him. Trying to focus, he laid his hands on her shoulders lightly. She was trembling.

He took a deep breath and began to knead the muscles, not really paying attention to anything at first, except the fact that he had his hands on her bare skin and it was doing things to him. They lapsed into silence. He realised he was holding his breath, and made an effort to breathe normally. He was grateful for the music filling the void. Slowly, he kneaded deeper into the knotted muscles beneath his fingertips, tight and solid.

A little moan escaped from her. “God, that feels good.”

He smiled, enjoying the moment even more. He slowly increased the pressure.

“You’ve got a bunch of rocks between your shoulder-blades,” he said, digging deeper.