Tender

"Turn over everything. Time can heal us again."

(inspired by Tender by Feeder)

"NO. WE ARE NOT WATCHING ANYTHING NICHOLAS SPARKS. AGAIN." John shouted as he took the popcorn out of the oven. 
"But it's my turn to pick the movie!!! Don't be unfair! Whenever you're in charge, we always end up watching anything Marvel." I replied, my eyebrows meeting at the center of my forehead. "Besides, it's raining hard and won't it be good for our souls to watch some rom-com tonight?"
"NICHOLAS SPARKS IS NOT ROM-COM--"
"I'M SICK OF WATCHING MARVEL SUPERHEROES--"
"NO SANE MIND WOULD GET SICK OF MARVEL SUPERHEROES--"
"I'M NOT SANE!!"
"YES, YOU'RE NOT!!!"

Our nights always start like this: we always end up fighting what movie to watch and whether to order pizza or to cook on or own. We always end up shouting loud, our raised voices bouncing in the walls of his apartment, sometimes so loud that his neighbor Miss Jamie ends up knocking on his door to ask whether we're alright.  We always tend to argue about the smallest of things to the point where we people look at us like we are crazy. But I don't complain. Neither does he.

"Okay, fine. I succumb. Go choose your Nicholas Sparks, Carrie." He says, sitting beside me on his spot in my ever favorite leather sofa. He rests his feet above the table and puts the popcorn between us, then he gently puts his arm around me, cuddling me.
I look at him and I still feel so awestruck by how lucky I am. There was one point in my life where I thought it's over between him and I, that I would lose him for a mistake I never planned on making. It was such a dark period in my life, that one year of losing him. All because of five shots of tequila and one drunk kiss with his best friend. I ALMOST LOST EVERYTHING.

"How could you do that, Carrie? HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO ME?" John says, his fists clenched.
"I never meant to--"
 "But you did. That's the thing, Carrie. Drunk or not, meant or not. YOU DID. You did." John's eyes were full of tears but he blinked them away. 
"I'm so sorry..."
"He already took Lea from me once. And now, you...." He said, slowly walking away from me.
"I'm sorry..." I whispered as he walked away, not looking back, not even once.

"Do you think it's possible Nicholas is behind all these?" I asked him as I bored my eyes to his.
"What do you mean?"
"That maybe he's writing our story, you and I. I never thought you'd come back to me, John. This still feels like a dream." I held his hand and I put my head on his shoulder.
"I know. This all feels like a dream. But I'm glad I'm having this with you." He smiled at me, the kind that makes you want to melt and disappear from earth. Good lord, when will I stop having these feelings every time I see him smile?
I clicked the remote and right here in this moment, with the rain falling hard outside and with me curled up in his arms, I have never felt more blessed.

Listen to the song here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ptSLrnEiaeg

P.S. This snippet is inspired by the song Tender by Feeder. I shuffled my iTunes library and this was the song that came up, and I will be doing more things like this, tagged under "music" and "story story story". :)