Couple's Counseling

Chapter one

I felt terrible, broken all over as if I had been lying on rocks the past month,

My body ached in places I didn't know it could, I was sour in muscles I didn't know existed, just overall super tired and ready to hit my bed and enter hibernation mode, but first,

First I have a whole lot of making up to do.

That's exactly what I thought as I stepped into my apartment,

Dropping my bag on the ground I sigh as I'm faced with the assortment of blue shades, white, and gold as all colors greeted me in the form of furniture,

I sigh in satisfaction as my nostrils are hit with the scent of lilies she uses in the house, a smile stretches my lips as my brain finally processes that with a few short steps up the stairs in the far left corner of the room, I'll finally be in contact with the woman that owns every cell of my being,

Who am I kidding, I'm happy just knowing we're in the same house, I'm more than ready to hit the bed and curl my body around hers, feel her scent, the contrast of her tanned skin against my lighter one, simply have her in my arms, that's what I want right now, more than anything in the world.

The sound of paws hitting the marble floor calls out to my attention, and sigh anticipating what is to come, and as soon as my breath is released, loud barking feels my ears, and I crouch down, my index finger against my lip in a shushing motion,

"London, you God-forsaken dog, don't you know what time is it, stop barking," I say as I pet his head lightly,

I don't like the thing, no I don't,

I usually get along with dogs, the little four-legged pets are something God certainly took a little more time creating, with how cute they came out but, London,

Well, London is a completely different story,

I don't how he always managed to foul Al, with that wagging tail of his and tongue out,

It was clear to me he did it on purpose whenever he came to us to play when I was enjoying time with my girlfriend,

He had been a gift purchased at the spur of the moment, she had smiled so broadly with the thing in her arms that I just couldn't resist buying it for her,

If I had known he'd end up being such an inconvenience I would have never gotten it.

"London, we love the same woman here, help a guy out and tell me how much trouble I'm in"

London stared at me, tilting his head to the side as if he could see right through me, since my desperation and had chosen to do nothing to help,

It was there in his eyes, he was ready to sit back and enjoy the show while I sweated bullets to make up to her,

Mean little thing.

I stood up no longer in the mood to play nice to it, so leaving my bag right there, I walked away from the dog,

As I walked up the stairs, I knew I'd probably regret that in the morning, when I woke up, given the fact that London seemed to take extra enjoyment in ripping my stuff apart,

But I had more important things to tend to, more important people.

It was now around 2 pm, just the time Al usually sat down to right,

She usually liked to do it in loud places, for some reason, movement and crowds always sparked her imagination, but,

When an idea came, she had to write, and unfortunately for me, those had been coming at absurd hours lately.

Alice Morris sweats bullets to deliver the best to her fans,

She works like the woman in mission she is, jumping from universe to universe, creating different worlds with different people, different stories,

It was amazing how much she could come up with, how far she could dream, inspiring really,

How she worked to turn every moment into something unforgettable, every character into a friend and somebody you just hope life will treat good,

That's how good she was,

And I worked my ass off to keep being a part of it all,

I know it might not show, especially lately with how absent I've been, but my work doesn't give me the same freedom she gets,

She works a lot mind you, but around people who are there solemnly to make sure her creativity sparks, that she keeps jumping from story to story and see if it sell, whereas I jum from one studio recording session to another, autograph session and meetings, I drown in melodies before they're even fully composed,

City to city, collaborations and parties, and although it might seem like the best life,

It leaves me with barely enough time to sleep,

And I'm not comparing our professions, because I've seen Alice when she's blocked, or just about to launch another book, she goes crazy,

But that's crazy on her own time, crazy on her own terms, not Cherie's,

I shake my head ridding myself of those thought,

I can do better.

Taking in a deep breath, I opened the door to her bedroom, ready to hear something about me bailing again, but was greeted instead with total silence,

I walked in, not bothering to close door,

Taking slow steps towards our bed, already imagining she was asleep,

I smiled to myself, as I found her all curled up in blankets, knowing that if I was beside her, I would have, most likely, been left without any to shield me from the cold,

I sat down on my side, getting as close as I could without waking her up,

Tucking a stand of her unusually curled hair, I caressed her cheek as she unconsciously leaned into my palm,

I made note of every single detail of her face,

Her relaxed featured reminded me of how long I waited to be able to see her like this, how many years I spent knowing this girl would one way or another, be the sure end of me,

But suddenly, my phone rang, braking through my thoughts, stopping the slideshow of memories going on in my mind,

I cursed the device silently as Alice stirred in her sleep,

Jumping from the bed, I hurriedly went out of our room, this time closing the door,

Having already looked at the caller ID when I took the phone out of the back pocket of my pants, I answered with no effort to hide my irritation,

"Cherie it's 2 in the morning here" I said, not bothering with pleasantries,

"I'm well aware of the time thanks, just needed to pass on some information" my eyebrows furrowed, already predicting what kind of information she'd want to pass on,

"Cherie, we agreed a month at least" I reminded her wearily,

"Yes I'm aware of that, but this is an opportunity you get only once in your life"

"Cherie" I warned,

"Anderson Kanes wants to make a collaboration with you, he wants you on his new project" her words left me mute,

Anderson Kanes, now that was one hell of an achievement,

He is a legend in the industry, this would surely spread my name,

It would give me the final boost to be among the topers,

It's just huge.

"See, I knew you'd like it, so much so you can't even say anything" I shook my head at her words,

"No, no Cherie, we agreed-"

"Oh come on, I'm sure that little girlfriend won't mind, she'll understand how important this is"

"Cherie, no I-" she interrupted once again,

"Don't worry. I'll call you in a few days with more details" and with that she ended our conversation,

I leaned against the closed door or our bedroom,

She'll be so sad,

Cherie is right, she'll probably understand, but it doesn't mean she won't be sad.

It's Anderson Kanes though, the Anderson Kanes, I'd be stupid to pass on such opportunity,

Maybe this time I could convince her to come with me,

We could spend time together and I could still do this collaboration,

Yes,

I just need to find the right moment to ask.

With that new resolve I reopen the door, already taking off my shirt,

I'm more than ready to get some sleep while holding her,

Stripping off to my boxers, I'm about to get under the covers, when something catches my yes at the corner or our room,

A black piece of fabric is draped over the arm of a plush poltroon,

I shake my head as realization hits me,

"Lace, that's what she meant" I said to myself, chuckling softly,

Well, if there's one thing, is that Alice can't stand that kind of thing, just like she can't stand planes,

So maybe I'll be able to convince her after all.

I get under the covers, with some fight of course, she loves to hogger them,

Pulling her body to mine, our laced our legs together, smiling as she unconsciously brought her hand to my chest with my mine tightly wrapped around her waist,

I sighed, nuzzling my nose on the crook if her neck, I closed my eyes inhaling the scent of her,

I'm home.