Page 116 of Fervency Love

Ve steps closer once more. I’m still sitting on the washing machine. He places his hands on my waist with such tenderness that my heart skips a beat.

“We’re so horny,” I say. “I love our energy, our temperament.”

“Most definitely.”

“Should we go back?”

“Yeah, let’s see if the house is still standing.”

He lets me through. I grab the handle and discover that the door was unlocked the whole time.

“One day I’ll kill you. You get off on that risk, don’t you?”

“I was sure I locked it…” he says with an innocent smile.

Five minutes before midnight, we all go downstairs and outside to watch the fireworks. Ve gets us a bottle of champagne. There is a large crowd around. I can hear the pop of opening bottles.

“Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one!” Everyone is counting aloud.

“Happy New Year, baby.” Ve pulls me in for a hug and kisses me deeply.

“Happy New Year, Ve! I love you!”

We drink the champagne straight from the bottle. Ve takes my face in his hands and kisses me again, wildly and deeply. Oh, how I love him! The cloudy sky lights up with hundreds of fireworks. It’s beautiful. We hold hands and others keep coming over, wishing us the best in the new year.

Around three, the last dregs leave the apartment, and we start cleaning up. It takes us three more hours. We go to bed and fall asleep in each other’s arms.

In the afternoon, we visit my grandma for dinner. She cooked a feast! There are potato pancakes in mushroom sauce, chicken soup, pork chops, fries, a salad, and two glasses of carrot juice on the table.

“What’s the occasion, Grandma? You outdid yourself! It’s delicious. And we’re ravenous after yesterday’s party.”

“Who else am I supposed to cook for, child? I’m glad you like it. Just make sure to eat it all!” She wags a finger at us.

An hour in we’re so stuffed we can’t move. We do so, however, as soon as the food has settled in our stomachs.

“We have to go, Grandma. Nikki is coming over.”

“Alright, honey. Have a good night.”

I give her a hug and kiss her on the cheek. Nikki really is coming, and Connor leaves. He returns late. We watch TV and kiss.

“The party was a success, wasn’t it? What do you think?” I ask.

“Oh, sure. I liked the part in the bathroom most,” he jokes and licks my neck. I pull him in and we lose ourselves in the embrace before falling into deep sleep.

When I open my eyes, it’s nine. Ve is still sleeping soundly. I extricate myself from his arms and go make us coffee. I’m about to put the milk back in the fridge when I feel his hands on me. He hugs me and leaves kisses on my neck, hair, and shoulders.

“Good morning. Did you sleep well?”

“Oh, yeah.”

“I made us coffee.”

I reach for the mugs and hand him one. He drinks deeply, keeping his eyes on me.

“What?” I ask, smiling shyly.

“You’re so cute.”

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