Page 93 of Only for the Week
“What are you up to?” I ask.
He hands me a glass of wine with a sweet kiss. “It’s date night, my love.” He leads me to the picnic setting and reveals a homemade spread: two different types of wings, potato salad, deviled eggs, rolls, fruit salad, and green goddess salad. The delicious aromas remind me that I haven’t eaten since breakfast.
One of my fears about dating Rome at first was our busy schedules. That we wouldn’t be able to make time for each other and would either drift apart or resent each other. After six months of being together, those fears feel like a distant memory most days, but weeks like this allow them to creep back up on me. I know it’s irrational because busy times come and go for everyone, but I’ve never felt this way about any man I’ve been with, so sometimes I get in my head. I don’t want something so trivial to be the end of us, but I should know by now that Rome would never allow that. I grab his hand and let him help me to the floor.
After we’ve both had more than our fill, I lean back on my hands. “That was so delicious. Thank you, babe.”
“I’m glad you liked it, J baby.”
“So who made what?”
He squints his eyes at me. “What?”
I chuckle, rubbing my foot up and down his calf. “Was it Mama or Jalen? I feel like these had to be Mama’s rolls, but I don’t know about the rest.”
“Now, why couldn’t it have all been me?”
My chuckle grows louder. I love fucking with him. “Oh, sweetie.” He grabs my foot and tickles me until I beg for mercy. I swear I’m going to google how to stop being ticklish so he can’t use it against me. “All I’m saying isss,” I drag out the word. “You can cook. But you ain’t throwin’ down like this.” He’s got skills in the kitchen. He’s made plenty of meals that I thoroughly enjoyed, but when we’re talking about who’s making the food for a cookout or cooking Thanksgiving dinner, we need someone who puts their foot in the food, and that’s his mama or Jalen. No question.
Sucking his teeth, he replies, “My mom made the rolls, deviled eggs, and salad dressing. Jalen made the rest.”
I thank him with a kiss and a boop to the nose, prompting him to pretend to bite my finger. We end the night slow dancing in the living room to “Anywhere” by JP Saxe. It’s the perfect date night.
Chapter Four
Rome
Eleven months after the wedding
This might be my favorite BlerdCon yet. I’m enjoying all the events, but most of all, I enjoy having my girl by my side.
I’ve been coming to BlerdCon for years, usually in a work capacity. I’ve spoken on a few panels. Some of the employees at Downhill Studios have run workshops or participated in cosplay contests here, so I’ve come out to support them, and the studio itself has partnered with the con a few times. I’m here solely in a support role this year, so I have time to show Janelle around.
This is her first con, so she wants to soak everything in. It’s been a while since I’ve gotten to relax and enjoy this, but seeing everything through her eyes has reminded me how much fun I used to have at these things.
She wanted to go to all the horror panels, so we’ve done that. Thanks to Micah, Eve, and Micah’s sister, Bailey, she’s been getting into anime, so we’re currently at the Anime Family Feud event.
Janelle is so cute, quietly whispering the answers she knows. A few other people watching from the sidelines come over to compliment her on her cosplay, so she spends some time bonding with them. She’s dressed as Numbuh Five fromCodename Kids Next Door,donned in a blue sweater, black bike shorts, red cap, and gold hoops. I tried to convince her to leave her thigh chain on, but she wanted to be authentic to the character. I did convince her to leave her waist beads on, though. I’m dressed as Numbuh One, and though Janelle called me a whore in my hoochie daddy shorts, no one seems to know who I’m dressed as until they see her.
Yesterday, we dressed up as Justice and Lucky fromPoetic Justice.Yes, we are that couple with the matching cosplays. No shame here. We were thinking about dressing up as Rogue and Gambit tomorrow, but it’s too damn hot, so we’ll probably wear our regular clothes.
After Anime Family Feud, Janelle texts Eve, Micah, and Bailey to tell them how many answers she got right. When we get to the lobby, we run into Eve. She’s dressed as Spider-Man, specifically Miles Morales’s suit.
“Evie!” Janelle shrieks as she squeezes Eve tight.
“Hey, boo!” she greets, then looks over her shoulder for a moment. She hugs me, checking over her shoulder again. What is she looking for?
“Did I know you were coming to this?” Janelle asks.
“No. Neither did I, honestly. I thought I’d miss it for work, but it worked out.”
“Oh, that’s good. You should’ve come to Family Feud!”
“I know, but I was at a video game/movie adaptation panel.”
They discuss that for a few minutes and then make plans to see each other at a Disney trivia challenge later.
“Hey, Eve, is Jalen with you, then?” I haven’t spoken to him in a couple of days, so I don’t have an update on him, but I have a feeling he’s here.
