Chasing the Sun

A month later, Gerard and Lilly were unpacking the handful of boxes that contained all of Gerard’s stuff. The school year had started, and so far it had gone okay for Lilly. The kids were well behaved, and easy to keep in line, for the most part. Lucy had left, with a few tears and reassurances that they would stay in touch. She had kept to her word so far, talking to Lilly more since she moved out than she had in the last six months. Things were going well for her and John, and it gave Lilly hope that she and Gerard would get along. He didn’t appear to be freaked out about them living together, or maybe he was just very good at hiding his feelings. Lilly was the one with nerves, even though it had been her idea. She tried to quash the anxiety away, refusing to let it get to her like it so very often did. She was going to make this work.

“You have too many clothes.You know that?” Gerard groaned, shuffling through Lilly’s wardrobe to make room for his own clothes.

It was ‘moving day’, and Lilly hadn’t quite anticipated just how much stuff Gerard had. Granted, he actually didn’t have that much to lug around, but it seemed like a lot when Lilly had to reorganise her room for him to fit his stuff in, namely, her wardrobe and dressers, which were already packed to the brim.

“I don’t have too many clothes. I have just the right amount. It’s you who has too many.”

“You’re gonna have to move some of this into the spare room,” Gerard ignored her comment.

“Why don’t you put your stuff in the spare room?”

“You’re the one with a ridiculous amount of shirts and dresses in here, not me. Do you really need this many?” he questioned, his hand flittering through her collection of shirts.

“Yes, I do.”

“Somehow, I really doubt it,” he muttered. Lilly picked up one of the pillows on her- their- bed, and aimed it in the direction of Gerard’s head. It didn’t quite hit its target, hitting him directly between his shoulder blades.

“What did we say about domestic violence?”

“That you think it’s cute?” Lilly smiled innocently, before quickly ducking at the pillow being thrown back at her.

“Hey, that was uncalled for!”

“You started it,” Gerard reminded her.

“That doesn’t mean you have to finish it,” Lilly scolded him.

He smirked.

“Sugar, I always finish what I start,” he drawled in his filthiest, sexiest voice, that always made Lilly shiver with want. It was the voice he used in bed, and it never ceased to fry Lilly’s brain whenever she heard it.

“Really?” Lilly asked huskily, biting her lower lip and coyly looking to the floor. She knew it would drive Gerard wild, and within seconds he had her pinned on the bed, his rough hands roaming her clothed body while she mewled in contentment.

**

Lilly slammed the door behind her, cold blind fury flooding her veins. The day was one of those days that reminded her how much her job could suck at times. Six weeks into the school year, and the kids were already acting up. Or, to be more specific, one child was acting up, thus distracting and influencing the others to follow his lead. Normally they were a good bunch, but that day they just wouldn’t settle. Every two seconds she was interrupted by inane questions in an attempt to distract her from their lessons, and the constant whispering and sniggering had grated on her last nerve. She felt a little guilty for the extra homework she gave them in her anger, but they needed to learn that she was not going to be a walkover. She made herself some tea, using the time it took the kettle to boil to take in a few deep breaths and calm her anger. She knew she shouldn’t let the kids get to her, but it was one of the hazards of the job. Sometimes, kids were a pain in the ass, no matter how much you loved them, or how adorable they were. The day’s shenanigans just reminded her of that fact. The fact that she had stayed behind for close to two hours, making revisions to her class plan to fit in with a revised school calendar hadn’t helped either. It was now five thirty, and all she wanted was a cup of tea and some mindless television to make up for her lousy day. She made her tea and went to get changed into something more comfortable while she left it to cool with the teabag still in the cup.

She found the loosest pair of jeans she owned, and then grabbed one of Gerard’s oversized tops. She had grown to love wearing his clothes- they felt more comfortable than her own, and there was also a bit of pride in the fact that she could wear them. They now lived together, and she was able to just steal one of his many shirts and t-shirts when she felt like it. It didn’t matter that nobody else could see it - the fact that she knew it was all that mattered. She sauntered back into the kitchen, stirring her tea once more before removing the tea bag from the cup. She popped the lid of the bin open, carelessly upturning the spoon to drop the now used teabag in. She deliberately ignored the cans of beer that were lying on top, hand crushed in the middle and shiny from the light of the kitchen, which reflected off the gold and blue painted metal. She forced her mind to think about other things, like what she should make for dinner when Gerard came home. She wondered if he would spend time with her, or lock himself away in the spare room to ‘work’. Work meaning drawing while gulping down a few cans of beer with his headphones turned up loud to shut out the world around him. Lilly had been surprised by just how often Gerard drank, which was on a daily basis. He didn’t always drink to excess- sometimes it was only three beers while they curled up on the couch. Other times, though, he could drink an entire eight pack while he locked himself away. Lilly had kept her mouth shut, hoping that maybe it was just stress from work getting to him. They had a deadline coming up on a newly commissioned cartoon, which was airing in a matter of weeks. They were a small company, and everybody felt the pressure, according to Gerard. Lilly had to tell herself that it was only temporary- and if he was still drinking when the deadline was over, then she would bring it up. She refused to be the nagging girlfriend, no matter how much her stomach knotted when she saw yet another can in Gerard’s hand. They were still adjusting to living together, and the last thing they needed was for her to rock the boat. So, she would keep her fears to herself, for the time being.

She allowed herself to slouch on the couch, relaxing her tense muscles with a loud sigh. She caught up on some of the soaps she had missed recently, and lost track of the time. It felt like only a few minutes had passed since she had sat down when Gerard came home, but the time on the television told her it was a quarter to eight. Gerard dropped his bag on the floor in front of the couch, before flopping down on the other end of the couch. He released a loud sigh, and Lilly could smell the familiar scent of cigarettes and alcohol that informed her that he had gone out to the bar with his co-workers when he clocked out.

“You have fun?” Lilly asked.

“It was alright,” Gerard responded, barely looking at her.

“Will I make some dinner?”

“Sure.”

Lilly held in the angry sigh that threatened to escape, and stood up from the couch. She knew it was going to be one of those nights, where Gerard would be distant. He would probably lock himself in the spare room again, with the cans of Dutch Gold that had a special place in the fridge. Lilly quickly rustled up some pasta, with a tomato and chilli sauce. She handed Gerard his plate without a word, who took it with a mumbled ‘thank you’. She ate her own food and kept her eyes on the television, afraid that if she looked at Gerard that she wouldn’t be able to hold her tongue.

“I’m going to do some work for a while,” Gerard told her the second his plate was empty. He made his way into the kitchen, grabbing his cans and promptly took refuge in the spare room.

‘Quite the picture of domestic bliss we have here, huh?’

Lilly ignored Inner Voice, afraid that she would crack under the pressure.

Notes

The end is near...anyone have any thought how how this is gonna end?

Lyra xx