Finally finished with scrubbing away all the food particles from the white plates, Anna handed the last one over to Titus, watching as he rinsed it before bending over with slightly stiff movements and placing the ceramic into the old dishwasher. When he rose back up again, his face was caught in a wince, his hands moving to rub at the lower part of his back.
“Do you want some ibuprofen?” she asked quietly, already standing on her tip toes to dig the large bottle from its place within the medicine cupboard.
“Yes, please.” He held out his hand, and she popped three pills into the warm palm before he threw them back as if they were candy.
“That bad?”
“Should be better in a few,” he said, smiling that megawatt smile that she would never get sick of seeing.
As if about to say something else, he opened his mouth but was cut short when loud stomping came from the front door and into the kitchen. Two bodies came around the corner, one taller and more muscled, the other a little short and very skinny. It was Thrane and Evan, both with large grins on faces that hardly saw any type of that action.
“Got the fire started.” Thrane clapped his hands together loudly, a devilish gleam in his eyes. “You got any Christmas lights? Ya know, the ones that aren't already up?”
“Back by the shed.” Titus motioned to the very back of the house where a small shed right next to the garden was barely visible by the overhead moonlight.
Still grinning, Thrane and Evan sprinted outside, slamming the sliding glass patio door behind them and leaving her and Titus in silence. He walked past her, digging around in the coat closet at the very beginning of the hallway before coming up with a large navy blue sweatshirt with Eagles in red lettering.
“Here.” He handed it to her. “It's a little cold outside.”
She accepted the heavy, soft material and put it on over her head, trying to – as much as possible – avoid messing up her side braid that her sister, Kalie, had put up in a neat side braid. It felt loose around her frame but comforting all the same, and, just like how she had been doing now more than ever, Anna buried her nose in the aged fabric and took a good, heavy whiff.
Her eyes almost rolled back into her head at just how good this old piece of Titus apparel smelled. She took one more good inhale before following him outside, hand in hand, to where everybody was sitting around the fire. On the ground a few feet away from the blazing warmth were a few thick blankets and some lawn chairs, the chairs being taken up by the old parents and the blankets being left for them.
She followed Titus onto a soft, plaid rectangle of padding and sat down next to him, hand feeling secure in his as they stared into the fire where a few dying marshmallows were still burning up on the blackened logs. The soft chatter of the two kids and the rest of their families filled the silence of the night air, introducing an inner warmth into the cold, night air.
Toying around with the beautifully simple necklace had given her, Anna's ears turned into her parents' conversation and then Callie's and Ashton's before focusing on one noise that seemed louder than all the others. It was the sound of Titus's quiet breaths. In and out they went through his nose, and in and out they captured her mind until all she could focus on was him.
The heat from the fire soon disappeared from her thoughts, and everybody disappeared. It was as if they were in their own little world. She didn't ever want to leave this place. Even with the wind that somehow managed to invade the thick fabric of Titus's sweatshirt, it just felt right. It felt comfortable being here with him and having her fingers interlaced within his.
With his long, jean clad legs stretched out in front of her and his elbows propping him up just so, he looked absolutely stunning in the moonlight. There was no other word for it. The way actual fire flickered in his eyes and the reflection it set on the fine bristles of his goatee and hair was simply stunning, and she found herself transfixed by the way his lips moved as he said something to Bradeyn.
Although thinner than what most women would have found appealing, those pale pink lips were a work of art, begging to be touched by gentle fingertips if only for a second. Begging to be caressed by lips for much longer than a mere second. Her own set tingled with the shock of awareness that was coursing from his hand, to hers, and into her body, pumping something through her body that she couldn't even begin to identify.
But she didn't have to identify it in this moment. Putting a hand against his solid chest, she applied just enough pressure to let him know that she wanted him to lay down. His eyes connected with her then, looking into her own as if she had all the answers in the world. In this moment – this moment of just being with him – she did, and it pushed her onward until he was laying on his back, his body an open invitation for her.
Unlinking their hands, Anna accepted that invitation and laid her head down on his chest. She could feel his hand resting on the small of her back, and she reached back to take it in hers, wrapping his entire arm around her shoulders until comfortably situated and cocooned in this place that just felt so right.
Here was where she wanted to be. In his arms with her face pressed into his chest and not having to think too hard about what came next. This was it. With every breath he took, his chest elevated just the slightest bit, his stomach making strange sounds from the dinner they had just eaten not even an hour ago.
“Hey,” he said from where his chin was now on top of her head, “how's it goin'?”
“Seriously?” Anna raised her head to find a boyish grin on his face, creating craggy lines and crow's feet at the edges of his eyes.
“What?” Titus asked. “I just wanted to start a conversation. You didn't say a word the entire dinner.”
She rested her head back down on him again. “Well, it's a little hard to do when Thrane's practically shouting over everybody to talk about his latest chemistry discoveries. I literally only knew what one of those chemicals was.”
“Oh, great.” Titus raised his arm over his eyes. “Here he comes. Seriously, look at him. He's psychotic whenever he's around fire.”
“Or acid, a beaker, and some sort of metal,”she replied, looking over to where a huge roll of lights was being cradled in Thrane's arms like it was his own child.
“Okay, everybody!” the very same man whom they had just been talking about said loudly, cutting off a piece of the lights with a pocketknife as he talked. “Are you all watching?”
“Yeah,” they all replied in unison, some a little grumpy from the late time at night, but most with excitement lacing their voices.
Even though she had seen this neat camping trip at least over a dozen times, she still found herself sitting up with Titus and watching as piece after cut piece of the lights was thrown into the wire, creating blues and purples within the red flames. She watched as Titus's younger brother walked around the fire with a proud gleam in his eyes, looking so happy at having created a chemical reaction within a simple object such as the bonfire.
“Never gets old,” Titus said from behind her, hot breath tickling the back of her neck just as it had a few days ago on Sunday at the movie theater.
“Uncle Titus?” Callie asked as she and little Ashton walked towards them with inquisitive, wide eyes.
“Yes, sweetie?”
