Rule #28
REST ASSURED THINGS WILL PROBABLY WORK OUT
CAI
This night is magic. The magnificence of the scenery and the gorgeous man who made it all happen feels like a dream.
The desert night is chilly, but I feel warm, enveloped in the evening’s glow and company.
I’ve seen The Princess Bride a million times, but never like this; never with someone to whisper lines as if they are being written for me.
“This is true love,” Sonny parrots during the fire swamp scene. “You think this happens every day?”
“Death cannot stop true love. It can only delay it a bit.” I whisper to him.
And of course, “As you wish,” which we say in unison.
We also laugh and call out together with Inigo, “You see, I am not left-handed!”
A little later we exclaim, “Goodbye! Have fun storming the castle!”
We keep trying to outdo each other with our knowledge of the movie.
I’ve never dared to be this goofy with a guy, especially on a first date.
I’m sure I would never see them again if I were.
Sonny, however, seems impressed, like he’s found his counterpart in me. In fact, we’ve found it in each other.
I try not to read too much into the romantic lines he is repeating to me. I know I have a penchant for dramatizing the ordinary; I don’t want to delude myself into thinking this is more than it is.
The movie finishes, and a second starts. “It’s a short documentary on Andre the Giant,” Sonny explains. I lay back, happy to stay here a little longer.
“I know I’ve said it a lot,” I whisper, “but thank you. This was the perfect ending to what could’ve been a terrible day.”
“Why terrible?’ he asks, an edge to his voice.
“Oh, nothing with you or today. Just… life stuff. Work is letting me go, the apartment lease needs to be renewed at a premium, and Trevor is being difficult. But honestly? I’m weirdly ok with all of it. Basically, since the hurricane, I’ve had a strange feeling that things are going to work out.”
Sonny pulls me closer, his arms strong and steady. After a quiet moment, he speaks softly into my hair.
“Stay with me.”
I’m not sure I hear him right. “What?” I turn to look at him.
“Stay with me, Cai. In my house, or we can get a new one if you don’t like it. You can take the job at the company or not, but either way… stay with me.”
I want to scream a resounding yes, but I feel like this is insanity! We’ve known each other for only a week! How can this be this serious this fast?
“I… It’s too fast, right?” I say.
Sonny nods and says earnestly, “It is. I know that this is fast. Christ, if anyone ever told me they were moving in with someone after only a few days, I’d call the loony bin myself.
But this just feels different. I’ve basically been writing and creating fake worlds my whole life.
And nothing feels as real to me as this feels to me.
” He is shaking his head, looking for the words.
“I know I’m not perfect, but I’m perfect for you. And you are perfect for me.”
I smile through sudden tears. “That’s from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, isn’t it?”
He wobbles his hand. “Eh… kinda.”
I laugh, then grow serious. Looking into his eyes under the starlit sky, with the desert stretching out around us, it doesn’t feel crazy. It feels right. Whether it’s the setting or I’m just getting wrapped up in the moment, I really feel okay with this.
“Okay,” I say.
Sonny’s face lights up. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.” I lean in and kiss him, pouring everything I feel into it.
When we finally pull apart, he rests his forehead against mine. “Maybe,” I add only half-kidding. “We can get a dog!”
“You’re here,” he says softly, echoing the line from the movie. “If you want, I could fly.”
SONNY
I can’t stop smiling as we drive back to the house later that night. Cai is curled against me in the passenger seat, her hand in mine, humming along to the radio.
Every few minutes I glance over at her, still half-convinced this is a dream. This woman, who has survived a hurricane, a terrible ex, and her own self-doubt, has said yes to staying with me.
I am all in. No hesitation. No second-guessing.
As we pull into the driveway, I kill the engine and turn to her.
“Cai?”
“Hmm?”
“I want to say something to you before we go in there. Before I take you upstairs and everything gets… euphoric. I don’t want you to think it’s just the heat of the moment.”
I pause, thumbs brushing over her knuckles, eyes steady on her.
“I love you. Not the version of you that you think you’re supposed to be.
Not the polished or perfect version. I love the real you, the one who shows up with the wrong song, who cries at video game side quests, who quotes movies with me like we’ve known each other forever. I love you, Cai. Exactly as you are.”
I see her eyes fill with happy tears.
I jokingly add, “Please don’t say it back. This is my moment.”
Cai laughs and then says, “As you wish.”
I lean across the console and kiss her. Slow at first, then deeper, hungrier. My hands slide into her hair.
Cai pulls away and looks at me through hooded eyes. “There was some mention of things getting euphoric, I believe?”
I smile back and command, “Inside.”
We barely make it through the front door.
Clothes come off in a trail from the entryway to the stairs, her red dress left in a puddle on the bottom step, my shirt somewhere on the landing. By the time we reach the bedroom, we are laughing and breathless, hands exploring with growing urgency.
I lay her down on the bed like she’s something precious, then spend the next long while proving just how much I mean every word I said. I worship every curve, every soft inch of her with my mouth and hands, until she is trembling and whispering my name like a prayer.
We move together in the quiet dark, slow and sweet at first, then faster, more desperate. Every touch, every moan, every kiss feels like a promise.
Afterward, we lay tangled in the sheets, sweaty and smiling, my fingers still tracing lazy patterns on her hip. She curls into my chest, listening to my heartbeat.
“Are you done being a prima donna? Have you had your moment? Can I say it now?” Cai teases.
“Go for it,” I say, closing my eyes, committing this moment to memory. She kisses me softly and says, “I love you too, Sonny.”