Page 4 of Generation Omega: Revealed
He lifts me and holds me, my feet dangling over empty air. The holes in my heart aren’t filled, but they are soothed. Steady… I feel steady and safe.
“I have something to show you. It’s part of your surprise birthday weekend extravaganza.” His words rumble through me, relief and excitement competing.
I don’t release him. “You’ve done enough. The flight. The tickets to the convention that sold out in like fourteen seconds. This tutu-wearing bear sanctuary. It’s enough.”
“Nothing could ever be enough to prove how much I love you.”
I melt, just a puddle of foolish fears and embarrassing doubts, in the face of perfectly imperfect love. “I’m sorry that I doubted you. I was…”
He pulls back and his face is stern. “No. Never be sorry. Ever. You have every reason to doubt me. I’ve made you wait so long, when all I wanted was you. Always.”
“Well, I’m yours now, buddy, so let the chaos begin.”
“Right.” He gives the sketchy attic a boyish grin, like they are old friends, possibly partners in crime. “So, are you ready to see your next present?”
Again, I stare into the blackhole at the top of the metal steps. “You know how I feel about spiders, right? And varmints that live in attics? I’m not a fan.”
“I’m aware.” He’s stuffy now and then a little goofy. “It’s areallygood surprise. If you make me go alone because you’re too chicken to embrace an adventure… well, that’s not ideal. I mean, I was hoping for sexy time with the love of my life, not by myself. But a man’s got to do what a man’s got to do.”
“Wait. Tell me more about this sexy time with the love of your life.”
“I will.” He tilts his head toward the hatch. “Up there.” He’s laughing as he starts up the ladder and so am I, though I mumble some snarky warnings to any potential varmints.
Sexy time in an attic is still highly questionable, but my curiosity has always been a lighthouse and I’m letting that thing shine on all the possible paths around me, even whatever haunted adventure awaits me in the freaking roof.
At the top of the ladder, with the light from below barely making a dent in the darkness, Ethan waits until I’m standing beside him in a room with no features I can discern. It could be a football field or a closet and I wouldn’t know.
“Okay, now what?”
Ethan doesn’t answer, but his arm surrounds me, his confidence comforting. He’s waiting for something and I finally realize what he wants but won’t demand. My trust. My acceptance. For me to relax and embrace his surprise instead of acting like an edgy doubter. Hasn’t he already surpassed any other birthday I’ve ever had or even imagined? Definitely yes.
I’m standing directly in the unknown, but I’m not alone. He’s with me and whatever—hopefully not spiders—he wants to give me, I’ll be grateful to receive.
I lean into him and close my eyes. “I’m sorry. I love you and I trust you, but I don’t trust us yet, that we’re real. I heard you and I believe you, and I’m trying. But I think my fear of losing you and us, and a lifetime of certainty about the future, really fried my ability to react appropriately to random ladders to nowhere.”
He kisses the top of my head, while I listen closely to his steadily beating heart. “It’s been a big day. We could just go back down, order something to eat, and then go to bed in the guest room. This can wait until tomorrow.”
I kiss the space over his heart. “Nope. You promised me sexy time and I want sexy time, somewhere without so many stuffed, tutu-wearing spectators.”
His laugh is easy now and I realize that even though he knows me better than I do, he still needs the confirmation of my words. My tension finally waves a white flag, replaced instantly by giddiness.
Light reaches me behind my closed eyes and I immediately open them and stare in awe at what I find. Stringed fairy lights, warm white covered in rattan balls, lead up a wrought-iron, circular staircase. A closed door to another room awaits us at the top.
“What is this?” I whisper breathily.
“Your next surprise.” He gestures grandly at the antique staircase. “Ladies first.”
I take a moment to study his face, softly lit by the decorative lights. His eyes shimmer in a way I’ve never seen, like he’s more present with me right now than ever, more at peace with his place in my life.
When I finally manage to pull my gaze away from him, I rush to the steps like a contestant in a reality TV show and then up them with Ethan right behind me. Soft light greets me as I step from the top metal stair onto thick, lush cream carpet. Propelled by delight, I open the door and enter a round room, instantly knowing where we are.
This funky, mismatched building isn’t just odd beside its modern, high-rise neighbors. Its architecture is wacky all on its own, with only one turret room and a variety of features that confuse the mind. I can’t believe I’m standing in the turret room that’s been blocked off for years, with only attic access. But more than that, I struggle to accept what this room is and what it means.
Ethan watches my reaction as I take in the sight of the most marvelous bathroom in the history of the world. My birthday surprise is a bathroom, which defies understanding in one way, but in another, it’s pretty incredible because this room represents a miraculous escape from the real world. I’m sensing a theme and I love it.
The light is gentle, coming from frosted fixtures in the circular ceiling. It’s much larger than I thought it would be and my gaze locks on the enormous jacuzzi tub that’s big enough for Ethan, me, and a few friends. Noticing the object of my rapt attention, Ethan grins as he uses a remote to turn on the jets and the lights in the bottom of the tub.
I force myself to quickly survey everything else: a curved sofa with two robes over the back, both the same cream color as everything else, two curved wardrobes, a curved vanity, even a curved mirror. The windows are covered with delicate curtains and the only recessed space contains the private toilet. Beside that is a door, probably to a closet or something.
