“Babe, do you eat fast food?” I asked. He nodded.
“Yes, babe,” he replied.
I know he doesn’t eat fast food often, but he had no choice but to follow whatever I wanted. If he didn’t do it right away, I’d sulk.
When I asked him about his grandfather, Thomas, he changed the subject, which meant they still weren’t on good terms.
“What!?” I exclaimed when he showed me the next movie we were about to watch. My cheeks turned red and hot because it seemed like Arlo had some plans for this afternoon.
“Babe, why are you so surprised? We’ve done much more than what they’re doing in this movie. I know my friend is tougher than Massimo’s friend,” he teased, smirking.
“What are you thinking?” I asked as he pulled me and made me sit on his lap. When the movie started, the doorbell rang. Arlo stood up to open the door. At the same time, our phones rang. My eyes caught the screen of his phone—an unknown number. I grabbed my phone because it was my sister, Big Sister Violet, on the line.
“Arlo, if it’s not important, no one should be ringing the doorbell,” I heard him say. I gestured to let him know I was answering my phone.
“Big Sister, is there a problem?” I asked.
“No, I just wanted to check on you. If you’re not busy, I’d like to talk to you and see you,” Big Sister Violet said.
“Tomorrow, sis. Come over here if you want. I miss Ethan too,” I replied. I didn’t mention that I was with Arlo because I didn’t want to ruin my entire day with him.
“Have you told him who you really are yet?” she asked.
“Not yet, sis, but I’ll tell him later,” I assured her.
“That’s good to hear,” Big Sister Violet said.
“Are you with someone, sis? I feel like I heard someone talking in the background,” I asked, sensing something in her tone.
“No, it’s probably just the voices of the neighbors. You know how noisy it can get in our area—like there’s a fiesta, even though this isn’t a subdivision,” she joked, making me laugh.
“I miss joking around with you, sis.”
“Me too,” she replied until we ended the call.
I returned to Arlo, who was now shirtless. When I saw his masculine body, my mind quickly wandered, unable to stop admiring him.
“Arlo,” I said, giggling as he suddenly lifted me.
“Let’s eat first, and then we can continue the movie. I missed you, babe. It’s like you’re the one I want to eat,” he teased.
“Stop it, Arlo.”
We happily ate together, and sometimes, he would feed me French fries. It felt like I hadn’t eaten in weeks because I ended up eating more than he did.
“I want rice, babe,” I said. Arlo’s eyes widened because I hadn’t even finished the pizza on my plate, yet I was already craving rice.
“Babe, are you still not full after all that?”
“Careful, or there won’t be a movie tonight, and I’ll sleep in the other room later,” I threatened. Arlo quickly stood up, saying he’d cook rice for me. I stopped him, afraid he might burn something in the kitchen.
When we were in the kitchen, I checked the fridge first to see if there was any leftover rice.
“Success!” I shouted.
Arlo rubbed the back of his neck as if amused by how I looked like someone starving. After reheating the rice in the microwave, I ate it immediately, almost like a monster that couldn’t be satisfied. For almost two weeks now, my mind has been consumed with thoughts of what delicious food I could eat in the kitchen.
I caught Arlo watching me as if he were counting every bite I took.
When I finished eating, we cleaned up together. As usual, Arlo was so professional at tidying up—not a single sound, as in completely quiet.
“Babe, your phone is ringing. Just a minute, stay there. I’ll get it,” he said.
“Who’s on the line?” he asked.
“It’s someone named Leo,” I replied.
“I’ll talk to him later. He’s just going to pester me, but he’s a good guy. I’d like you to meet my friends too,” Arlo said with a smile.
“I’d love to meet them. Do any of them have wives?” I asked.
“Only Gilbert so far, but some of them are taken, like me,” he said.
I slapped Arlo’s hand when he quickly tried to grab at me inappropriately. He laughed and pulled my hand, leading me back to the living room. He turned on the TV and sat beside me, gently stroking my hair from top to bottom.
I looked up at him, noticing he seemed deep in thought.
“Is something wrong?” I asked.
“No, babe. I was just thinking about what it would be like if you became my wife. I’m sure you’d be the perfect mother, and I’d be a loving husband. Being with you makes me so happy. My exhaustion disappears when I hear your beautiful voice and see your breathtaking smile,” he said.
