CHAPTER 36
“Are you ready?” Arlowe asked.
“They’d send an email if it was approved or denied,” she replied. “I don’t know why I check every day.”
“Because you know the email will hit after the approval, and you want to know as soon as possible, so open the page and check, babe,” Arlowe said.
Arlowe had been home for a month now, and it had been hard for them.
The time difference already made things difficult, but Arlowe was also incredibly busy at work as they’d pushed a major feature release during the past month and had issued the initial smart glasses to a school district, so they’d been gathering performance data and working on improving things in their next updates.
On top of that, Arlowe had told her that a company had been interested in possibly acquiring the business, which they hadn’t been expecting.
It turned out, they were a large education tech company, and they wanted to buy the app and hardware technology.
Arlowe and her friends hadn’t been interested at all, but they were still doing their due diligence since their investors wanted to get paid, so the four of them, as well as Gabi and even Stella, who had her own employer, had been hard at work trying to prove out why this company buying them at this stage wasn’t wise unless they more than tripled their offer, which Arlowe had explained they hadn’t been willing to do.
Eline had been happy to hear that because she knew that if the company got acquired, she likely wouldn’t have a job for very long, even if her work visa got approved, since the acquiring company typically started letting people go pretty quickly after signing on the dotted line.
She’d kept her opinion to herself, though, while they worked through it because it was important that Arlowe and her friends make their own decisions on any acquisition.
Eline had been working, too, if she could even call it that, but she hadn’t been very happy about it.
The professor-turned-entrepreneur told her repeatedly that she was doing a great job and that he was impressed with her work, but he still had her reporting in every day so that he could review it, and, in the end, she wasn’t all that passionate about encryption software.
She’d thought it would be different, working for him and building something like this, but so far, she’d only been happy with the paycheck and not much else.
In addition, the woman from whom she was subleasing the apartment had gotten sick and ended up in the hospital, so she planned to return early and wanted her apartment back, and since there had been no official lease document with Eline’s name on it, she didn’t have much of a choice but to move out before the woman returned to Amsterdam.
Nothing seemed to be going her way, and she missed Arlowe.
She actually found herself glad that she’d have to give up the apartment because being there without Arlowe wasn’t helping.
She could still picture them walking up and down the stairs for their walks or trips to the store and dinners out.
She could still see Arlowe working on the sofa.
She could still feel Arlowe’s presence in the bed that she considered theirs, so it was a good thing that she had to move.
Eline didn’t want to move back in with her parents, but she also didn’t want to try to find an apartment here since she was hoping that her visa would be approved and that she wouldn’t need it.
Arlowe had worked things out with Enya, and the moment Eline could move back, she would be living with the two of them, falling asleep next to her girlfriend again and finally planning the life they wanted together almost thirteen years after they’d met.
For the past month, they’d done their best to text and keep up their at least once-daily video calls, trying for two on the days when they could, and Eline had continued to check her visa status.
Arlowe had the ability to check from her end as well, and Eline knew that she probably refreshed the web page a hundred times a day.
All they both wanted was to be together, and she only hoped that they got a chance to do it in the same country because while she knew that they’d get married one day, she hoped they wouldn’t have to be long-distance like this until they could.
“Oh, my God…” she said, covering her mouth.
“What?” Arlowe asked.
Arlowe had been changing for bed in her room back at home, and Eline looked from her laptop to her phone, where she saw Arlowe topless over by her dresser.
“Babe,” she said.
“What?” Arlowe repeated.
“Babe!”
“Eline, what? What the hell?”
Arlowe picked up her tablet, so all Eline could see was now her face.
“It’s approved.” She pointed to her laptop, which Arlowe couldn’t see, so she decided to hold it up and show her. “Babe, it’s approved! The status had been changed twenty-four minutes ago. Oh, my God.”
“Approved?” Arlowe said almost in disbelief. “Really?”
Eline moved the computer in order to read more than just one word.
“It says I can expect an email with the information within the next twenty-four hours and can proceed from there. I… I can move back.”
Arlowe slipped into a T?shirt and sat down, holding the tablet back a bit so Eline could see her better now.
“You’re moving back?”
“I hope you really meant it when you said that I could move in, because it looks like I’ll be there soon.”
“Babe, you’re moving here!” Arlowe said.
“Yes,” she replied and felt something running down her cheek, so she wiped it away, realizing it was a tear only after the fact. “God, Arlowe, we…”
“I know,” Arlowe said. “Come home to me.”
“I am, my love.”
◆◆◆
It took another few weeks for everything to be completely taken care of and for her to move out of her apartment.
She’d also had to quit her job, which had been surprisingly easy because, as it had turned out, the professor-turned-entrepreneur was a bit of a perfectionist and wanted to do the work himself, at least for the next few months, or so he had told her upon her letting him know that she wanted to leave.
Eline’s parents had dropped her off at the airport, and she’d hugged them both hard just like she had the first time.
Her mom had cried. Her father had given her a strong shoulder squeeze, and Eline had made it through security, managing to hold back her own tears because she would miss her parents dearly.
It felt like a day later, but it was less than twelve hours, really – after security, boarding, the flight itself, and customs – that Eline made her way to baggage claim, where she knew Arlowe would be waiting for her.
She was starting her job at Arlowe’s company the following Monday, but Arlowe had taken the week off before then so that they could have time together.
Eline had been surprised that Arlowe had offered to take time off when things had been so busy for her, but she shouldn’t have been because Arlowe loved her how she loved Arlowe, and they both wanted as much time together as possible after losing so much.
When she spotted Arlowe, she actually stopped walking for a moment just to take her in.
Arlowe was wearing a T?shirt that Eline recognized as her own – one that Arlowe had, apparently, stolen from her during her most recent trip to Amsterdam – and she was holding out a single red tulip.
As soon as Arlowe’s eyes met hers, her shoulders dropped in relief the same way that Eline’s had a moment before, and they walked toward each other briskly.
Then, when they were only about a foot away, Eline stopped and shook her head.
“I’m here,” she said, barely able to believe it herself.
“You’re home,” Arlowe replied and pulled her into her arms, holding on tight now.
“I love you,” Eline said, minutes later, still not moving out of their embrace.
“I love you,” Arlowe said back before pulling away a bit just to kiss her. “No more goodbyes at airports unless we’re the ones saying goodbye to other people because we’re traveling somewhere together. Deal?”
“Deal,” Eline replied and pressed her face to Arlowe’s chest, breathing her in. “But you have got to stop stealing my shirts.”
“That’s cute,” Arlowe told her, chuckling, and rubbed Eline’s arms up and down. “We live together now, baby. Your shirts are my shirts.”
Eline laughed before she pulled Arlowe in for another long hug.
“I missed you so much,” she said.
“And I’m hoping you never have to miss me again,” Arlowe replied. “But we should continue this hug at home, and maybe horizontally, without clothes on, because it’s been too long since I’ve touched you.” Arlowe kissed her neck. “You wouldn’t let me come back for a visit.”’
“You were too busy.”
Eline pulled out of the embrace just as a buzzer sounded, indicating that a luggage carousel was about to deposit some flight’s luggage, possibly hers.
“I know, but it’s been seven weeks.” Arlowe pressed her lips to Eline’s, gave her a brief kiss, and pulled back only an inch. “I missed you.”
“Me too,” she replied before going in for another kiss. “Let’s get my bags. Then, we can go.”
“Home,” Arlowe reminded.
“Yes, my love. Then, we can go home.”
◆◆◆
About an hour and a half later, Arlowe pulled up to the house, where Eline saw her car parked on the street. Arlowe parked in the driveway, popped the trunk, and they worked together to get her three large bags to the front door, where Arlowe held something out to her in a closed hand.
“What’s that?”
Arlowe opened her hand and replied, “Your key. This is your house now, too.”
Eline smiled, took the key from her, unlocked the door, and Arlowe nodded for her to walk in.
“Shit. They’re here,” Sarai said, or at least, Eline thought it was Sarai.
She couldn’t actually see her or anyone else in the living room that looked exactly the same as the day she’d left. Arlowe walked in behind her, carrying one of the bags, and then Eline saw Sarai and Gabi emerge from the kitchen.
“Hey. Welcome home!” Gabi said.
“Gabi?” Arlowe asked.
“Hi. Yes, this wasn’t my idea.”
“What wasn’t your idea?” Arlowe asked her, dragging a second bag in.
“We’re all here,” Sarai said. “Violet and Stella, too. Enya’s out back, setting the table.”
“For what?” Arlowe asked, hoisting the third bag inside while Eline just stood there, unable to move because this was her home now.
It was her home with Arlowe. Yes, they had a roommate, and they wanted to get a place of their own when they could, but she was finally home, and Arlowe was right there next to her.
“Just a welcome-home dinner,” Sarai replied.
“What?” Arlowe closed the door behind them. “I told you guys that we could do something tomorrow.”
“We know,” Violet said, walking up behind Sarai. “But Stella and I have a dinner for her work tomorrow night, and we wanted to welcome Eline home.”
“Yeah, so did I, and not with a dinner,” Arlowe stated through gritted teeth.
Eline looked over at her and ran her hand into Arlowe’s hair.
“Thank you all very much,” she spoke. “I feel very welcome.”
“I bet you would’ve felt more welcome with what Arlowe had in mind, but you can do that after we leave,” Sarai said.
“Which will be when, Sarai?” Arlowe asked.
Eline leaned into her side and told her, “It’s all right. We have the whole week to ourselves.”
“Yeah, Enya said that she was going to work from the office every day this week and come home late so that she doesn’t risk running into you two doing it on the kitchen table or something,” Sarai said before snapping a baby carrot in half and then putting the other half in her mouth anyway.
“Speaking of Enya… She and Stella are out back, and dinner is ready, so let’s eat, welcome Eline properly, and we’ll leave you alone. Enya is staying with Stella and me tonight, so you two can go at it everywhere, if you want,” Violet added.
“I’m so sorry,” Arlowe said, shaking her head.
“For what?” Eline asked. “I’m home, Arlowe. All that matters to me in this moment is that I’m home, right here with you.” She leaned over and kissed Arlowe on the cheek. “Finally.”
“Fine. I’ll do the dinner that could’ve waited.”
“Great. Let’s go,” Gabi said.
Arlowe locked the door behind them, and they left the bags there to deal with later.
Then, Eline followed Arlowe out to the backyard, where there was a rectangular patio table and seven chairs set up.
It was a little crammed, but she was just happy that there was enough space for them all to sit around the same table, because her most recent apartment had barely had enough room for her, Arlowe, and her parents.
This table was filled with food, and there were a few wine bottles as well as a six-pack of beer in the middle of it.
“Wow,” Eline said. “This is too much.”
“We wanted to do something nice for you since Arlowe’s been a pain in the ass, and now you’re here and have to deal with her even more than we do,” Sarai said.
“Can I at least have a beer before you all start picking on me?” Arlowe asked.
A few minutes later, they were all sitting at the table.
Arlowe had a beer in one hand, and her other arm was around Eline’s chair.
Eline was eating the food that had been delivered, since none of them had had the time to cook, and she looked over at Enya, who appeared to be staring down at her phone more than participating in the conversation.
Then, she looked over at Violet, who had a ring on her finger because she’d finally asked Stella to marry her, and Stella had already had a ring ready for her the night of the proposal.
Sarai was still picking on Arlowe how they always had with each other, so Eline put a hand in Arlowe’s lap, smiled, and shook her head.
Gabi met Eline’s eyes and did the same because of the antics of their girlfriends, and when Eline looked over at Arlowe, who was just so beautiful to her, she still couldn’t believe that she was sitting next to her right now.
Later, after the welcome dinner and after everyone had gone home, Enya had gone to Violet and Stella’s to give them the night to themselves, and they’d made love until well after midnight before Eline slipped under the blanket and over to Arlowe’s chest, where she rested her head and her arm over Arlowe’s bare stomach.
“Did you ever really think we’d get here after everything?” Arlowe asked into the silence.
“Honestly, I wasn’t sure there for a while,” Eline admitted.
“Me neither,” Arlowe replied. “But I know we’re going to be okay now.”
She kissed the top of Eline’s head.
“We’re going to be better than okay,” she said. “We’re together now.”
“Always,” Arlowe stated. “We’re together for always.”