A Morning Scene

The morning sunlight began to trickle in through the openings in the curtains. My legs were overheating in the places where the sunlight fell directly on them. I tried to curl up to move them out of the light and accidentally hit Nick in the process. He didn’t make a sound and I thought maybe he didn’t even notice until he reached his arm around me to pull me closer to him, kissed my head through all my bed head, and whispered ‘good morning’ in my ear.

‘Morning,’ I sighed back to him as I opened my eyes. I turned my head to the right to see his face sheepishly smiling at me.

We had stayed up well into the night, or rather the morning, exploring Montreal before heading back to the little room we had booked at a hostel. It was a last minute decision to come here for the weekend but it was an easy one to make since we wanted to travel and neither of us had ever been to Montreal. The downside was that neither of us spoke French, a seemingly minor detail before which when we got here no longer seemed minor.

‘So, Laura, what did you dream about in our incredibly refreshing four hours of sleep?’ this was the tradition of every single morning since the first time we had spent a night together, about four months now. Even if we were apart Nick would text me in the morning to ask me. He was a writer, and claimed that others’ dreams were his source of inspiration.

‘Let’s see. I remember being in my old elementary school. It was creepier, though, with the feeling of a thriller movie. I was walking around looking for a specific room but I couldn’t find it so I kept walking the hallways. There was a new secretary but I could only see the top of his head. And I can’t remember why I was there but it freaked me out so I continued to wander as if I knew what I was doing. That’s it.’

Nick pondered my response for a minute or so then quickly grabbed his notebook from under his pillow and began to frantically scribble something down. Also a morning tradition of his.

 I waited for him to put down his pencil before asking, ‘what was yours, mister?’

‘It started with me being alone at that dock we had found up in Muskoka. You know, that night we were so drunk we accidentally ended up on the other side of the lake? Yeah, that one. Anyways, it was sunrise and I was standing there feeling so lonely because the view was so beautiful and the colours so vibrant. The only thing was that the sun never rose. It was stuck, hidden behind the massive trees. So I knew the sun was there and that it was supposed to be visible soon but it never came into view. And for an unknown reason I wasn’t able to leave until the sun was in the sky. It was frustrating and I cried out to God for how unfair the situation was. To put me in a beautiful scene and leave me there forever waiting.’

His words gave me goosebumps as I closed my eyes to imagine the scene. I could hear his scribbling pick up again.

‘It’s so unfair how creative you are,’ I said to him, ‘every morning you have new ideas and can write an entire novel series in weeks. I try to sit and write and I’m lucky to get out 200 words that are even coherent enough to be decent.’

‘I have so many ideas because of you, my dear. And the reason I write all the time is because if I don’t the words will get trapped in my brain and drive me mad. It’s a necessity, not a choice,’ he was only half joking about this which only made me half annoyed.

‘Whatever you say, Nick. We should get some breakfast, I’m starved.’

He didn’t respond for a few minutes so I climbed over him to get out of bed. I began getting dressed in the same clothes I had worn the day before and had only taken off a couple hours previously. Black, high waisted, skinny jeans, a black and white striped crop top, and black and brown peep-toe wedges. Paired with all my gold jewellery I didn’t bother taking off, yesterday’s make-up, and my red bowler hat I felt stylish, comfortable, and ready to embrace anything the day would throw at me.

Nick looked up just as I was checking to see if my bag had everything I needed before stepping out to get us coffee and bagels. He cleared his throat and I turned to look at him, our eyes connected and we both just stood there stupidly grinning at each other.

‘Laura?’

‘Yes, Nick?’

‘Do you remember the time when we were still only friends and you wanted to accept that job offer in Vancouver?’

‘Yes, Nick.’

‘Well, I didn’t tell you but when you told me that my heart broke. I almost blurted out my feelings for you right then and there. I wanted to ask you to stay so badly but you had that jealous ass of a boyfriend at the time. And in those two weeks when you were deciding I didn’t write a single word. It was as if all my inspiration evaporated the moment you told me. That’s when I knew I loved you and needed to be with you, because without you in my life there was no reason for me to write anymore.

‘And you stayed with that guy for far too long, in my opinion, and all I could do was wait for you to leave him so I could tell you how I felt. Then it happened and I couldn’t stop crying when I found out. I don’t think there was a happier moment in my life so far besides when you said yes to our first date.

‘Now being here with you I am greatly overwhelmed with joy and love. And one day, maybe very soon, I will ask you to spend the rest of your life with me. I will wait because you’ve told me you’re not ready. But I know that someday I won’t have to wait anymore. I just needed you to know this.’

Our eyes hadn’t broken contact the entire time he spoke nor during the time it took me to walk back over to the bed, sit down beside him, and kiss him.

My heart was bursting and there were tears forming in my eyes as we smiled at each other between kisses.

‘I love you, Laura.’

‘I love you, too, Nick.’

‘Now let’s get you some food.’