You and I - part 4

Christmas had come and gone, and the chilly days and night of January made the world seem cold and black. The apartment seemed to have lost some of its light and life when she had left, and he would sometimes just sit there and listen to the silence. Sometimes, it seemed the silence was so loud it made his head hurt. He holds his hands up over his ears, wanting to block out the screaming silence. It was a completely different feeling when she was there, the entire place felt lighter and warmer and happy. Howling winds causes the windows to shiver, and he goes to the stereo to put some music on. One of her CD's are in the player, and he pushes the play button and turns up the volume. It is as if she was suddenly there again, the place feels better almost at once. He smiles as he walks into the kitchen and openes the freezer in search of something he can make dinner out of. There is a plastic container in there, a note taped to the lid. He lifts it out, seeing his name printed in her handwriting on the note.
"Darling,
I made your favourite so you won't go hungry. God only knows what you would cook up on your own! ;o) Don't be sad, sweet, I won't be gone long.
I love you so much xoxoxo"
He smiles to himself, popping the container into the microwave. She has been gone for five days, due to arrive home tomorrow. Her father's aunt passed away, and she was called home for the funeral. He had taken her to the airport, kissed her many times and whispered he would miss her. Then she had walked through the security check and she was gone. He sits at the kitchen counter, thinking how he misses her. On the table in the living room, her papers and wedding plans are all put neatly to one side. Everything organized in folders and plastic sleeves. He smiles as he picks up a folder, noticing a red book near the bottom of the stack. Carefully, he takes it out and carries it with him back to the kitchen. The microwave beeps, and he removes the container. He grabs some cutlery, a beer from the fridge and balances it all as he walks to the sofa. Sitting down, he takes a bite of the lasagna she made for him and smiles.
"Thank you, honey." he says aloud to no one but himself. He carefully opens the book, quickly noticing it is a scrapbook. The first page has silver words printed on it, and it reads Happily Ever After. She has written it herself, he notices her writing. He turns the page, seeing pictures of wedding dresses that she has glued in. There are many pictures in the book, some are drawings. He lets his fingers run over the pictures and drawings, feeling like the luckiest man alive getting to make her dreams come true. As if she knew his thoughts, his phone rings beside him. He smiles as he answers.
"My angel, I was just thinking about you." he says, and she laughs on the other end.
"I was thinking about you, too. I wanted to hear your voice." she says softly, and he closes his eyes picturing her face.
"Are you okay, sweetheart?" he asks. She sighs softly on the other end, and he can hear the duvet on her bed softly moving as she lays down.
"Yeah." she says.
"Tell me..." he says, his mind picturing her in one of the dresses in her book.
"It's not been too much happiness. She was my granny's last sister-in-law. She and my dad are basically the only ones left of their line, and I think my granny is a bit upset." she says, running her fingers through her hair. "I wish you were here..." she whispers, and he can sense her tears. "Not to be amidst all this sadness, but... I..." she says, not sure what to say.
"You need me." he finishes for her, and she nods.
"Yeah." she says, smiling a little. She closes her eyes, pretending she can feel his warm hand stroking her cheek.
"I know, angel. You'll be home tomorrow, and I'll be here for you." he says.
"Yeah, I can hardly wait to see you again." she says smiling, and he laughs.
"Me either!" he says. "Oh, and thanks for the lasagna. It was lovely!" he says, making her laugh.
"I thought I'd have to leave you some food. If not, you might be surviving on cereals and water." she says smiling, a teasing tone to her voice. He smiles.
"That's what you think!" he says grinning, and they laugh.

He stands in the arrival hall, shifting his weight from one foot to the other as he scans the screens of arrivals and the crowd around him. Whenever the sliding doors open and people walk out, he stretches his neck to see whether or not he can see her. The information on the screen changes, and her flight now has a status of 'arrived'. The feeling inside him is almost the same as the day he picked her up from the airport when she came to live with him. He wonders for a moment whether or not his happiness is clearly visible for those around him, if they can see the butterflies in his stomach. A blonde head catches his eyes and he turns, but it isn't her. His heart sinks a little, but the feeling is only momentary. She walks out the doors, keeping her head slightly down. His heart soars again, feeling like shouting out loud, but he holds his tongue and calls her name instead. She looks up and smiles when she sees him, hurrying over to him.
"Baby, you're home!" he says as he wraps her up in his arms, squeezing her tightly.
"Hey honey." she says smiling, kissing him softly. He gently strokes her cheek, looking into her eyes as he smiles.
"I missed you, beautiful." he whispers, and she giggles.
"I missed you too, baby." she whispers back. He hugs her again, holding her close.
"Come on, let's go home. It's been so dark and lonely there without you." he says, letting her go. She smiles as he takes her bag, and she slips her arm under his as they walk out to the car.
"How was your flight? Are you tired?" he asks as they drive home.
"It was good. I'm not too tired, I fell asleep on the plane." she says, smiling when he puts his hand on her knee. His hand is warm, and it seeps through her jeans.
"Would you like an ice cream and movie night, then?" he asks, looking at her sideway. She smiles and laughs.
"It sounds perfect!" she says, feeling butterflies soar in her tummy when he caresses her cheek.