Sophie and Clint
The soft patter of rain on the window filled the room. A young man with short, black hair and a slight balding spot on top of his head dozed on a cozy waterbed. A soft blue blanket had wrapped itself around his jeans and shirt sometime during the night. With a sudden jerk he rolled the remaining few inches onto the floor with a thud and a slight grunt.
Sluggishly he rose to his feet and staggered through the house to the bathroom where he took a shower and changed, rubbing the rest of the sleep from his eyes. His black jeans and azure shirt rippled as the air conditioning kicked on, flowing through vents in the ceiling and throughout the house.
The living room carpet tickled his toes slightly before the cool linoleum floor of the kitchen relieved that. He completely ignored the coffeepot as he walked past the marble counter and over to the refrigerator. The can of Pepsi hissed and cracked as he popped the top and took a gulp of the bubbly, soda.
"What are you up to this morning?" A young woman, with strawberry blonde hair and hazelnut brown eyes, asked from the kitchen window. Her soft lips creased in a smile as she noticed him jump and splutter, before he managed to swallow the mouthful of soda.
"Trying not to choke as my beloved sneaks up and scares me. And what of you Sophie?" he asked, his brown eyes smiling as he took another sip, before she walked in through the front door.
"You know me Clint. Stopping by to scare a loved one before I head off to school and finish these last few days up, quickly." she said before giving him a kiss. Her blue jeans and green t-shirt rippled as her body bent to sit in the proffered chair.
Clint dropped the can of soda in the recycling bin before going to the stove and to cook them both a breakfast of bacon, eggs, and some pancakes.
"You want a ride to school, I'm off to work soon anyways." he said placing a plate down in front of her. He looked up at the atomic clock as it switched over to 6:30am with an outside temperature of sixty five degrees and June third 2013 for the date.
"Sure, if you don‘t mind." was all she said before they began to eat.
Four months later...
The sound of birds and crickets flittered on a gentle evening breeze through the open window. The wind moved, unseen across the seafoam green carpet and moved its way up across the waterbed and the two figures laying in each other's embrace. Sophie's seafoam green nightgown rippled as the breeze stirred it. The blankets lay crumpled on the floor.
Clint's jeans and shirt rippled slightly to, before he began to wake. He looked over at her beautiful sleeping face and kissed her softly before reluctantly withdrawing from her embrace. He took the time to run a hand along her side and arm before he grabbed a change of clothes and slipped out of the room. He took a shower before Heading into the kitchen to cook breakfast. A half hour later he took a tray in and set it down on the nightstand before placing his hand on her shoulder.
"Wake up Dear Heart." he said nuzzling her ear playfully with his nose.
"Do I have to?" she asked with a teasing tone before sitting up in the bed and gave him a kiss.
Smiling, Clint put the plate of bacon, eggs, sausage and pancakes on her lap, leaving the glass of milk on the nightstand, before he took his own plate and sat next to her. They ate in relative silence as they allowed each other to awaken at their own pace.
"Still want to go to Church today?" he asked when they had finished eating and leaned back against the bed, holding each other in their arms.
"Mmhmm, you can stay here. I know how Churches make you queasy. Though why is a mystery to the both of us." She said with a smile before they kissed again.
He got up from the bed, a bit reluctantly, before he went back into the living room and booted up the computer. He had to bite down on his hand to prevent his laughter, after he heard her shriek from the bathroom as the cold water hit her. After a short while later she came into the living room, brushing the last few knurls from her hair. She pointed the brush at him and took on an irritated look before she spoke.
"That was a mean trick to play! Why did you do that anyways?" she asked putting the brush down as her curiosity got the better of her. He stood from his chair and wrapped her in his arms and held her, ignoring the cold skin on her arms. Her light blue jeans and black blouse rippled as he held her close.
"So I could do this." he whispered into her ear as his body slowly warmed her up. He turned her around and gave her a soft, yet passionate kiss that dissipated the cold as quickly as any hot shower could of.
"I should've known." she said smiling, snuggling closer to him. Their shoes thudding softly against each other's feet. "Where are you going?" she asked when she noticed this.
"It's a surprise." he said as he headed out the door. "See you in a little while and make sure Buddy and Kelly stay inside!" he called over his shoulder before the door shut.
Buddy poked his orange and white head around the corner and meowed in castigation at his master, before padding over and rubbing his back against Sophie's shin. She went over to the window and watched her love climb into the cab of a seafoam green truck with a white line along the sides. The ‘96 Chevy Silverado's engine revved a bit before he pulled out of the driveway and headed in the direction of one of the bigger cities.
Shaking her head and taking a moment to scratch the cat behind his ears, she headed out the door, making sure he stayed inside, as she headed off to church. The rays of the sun falling upon the land, added to the cool and gentle evening breeze, made the day seem almost perfect as she walked up the steps and disappeared inside of the church to the accompaniment of it's clamoring bells.
After church and a chat with her family Sophie walked back to the house to see if Clint was home. The Truck was gleaming in the driveway with a fresh coat of wax on it as she opened the door and slipped inside.
"Clint! You home?" She hollered into the house.
She walked into their room and pulled out a turquoise two piece halter top swimsuit, from the dresser on her side of the room, before slipping out of her clothes and into the swimsuit. Buddy jumped up onto the bed and mewed for her attention before she could leave the room. Smiling to herself she stroked the tom before going out into the backyard.
Sophie didn't see Clint take a breath and hide under the water as she came out of the sliding glass doors. She climbed the ladder and stood on the small platform when he burst out o the water and dragged her in, making sure to keep her head above the water as he did so.
Their laughter Split through the quite afternoon air as he came up coughing out water. One of her feet had connected with his stomach after he pulled her into the pool. They hugged each other close before breaking apart to do a few laps around the pool. Clint swam towards the shallower end of he pool and jumped out of the water, making dolphin noises before plunging back into the soft blue waters.
Sophie's laughter was garbled underwater as Clint swam around her, popping his head out of the water and imitating various aquatic animals every now and then.
"Her smiles alone are worth more to me than all the gold and diamonds on this planet." he thought to himself as he hopped up onto the ladder-platform to sit, exhausted by his antics.
He sat their watching her strawberry blonde hair billow out behind her as she swam a few laps. He couldn't help but think of how lucky he was to share his love with her. Her lithe body arced slightly as she somersaulted underwater and swam back in the direction she came from. After a few more minutes with the sun beating down on them, she swam over and sat on the ladder platform.
She snuggled closer to him, her soaking wet body, felt nice against his warm, sun-dried skin as their feet stirred the pool water. The birds where singing again, drifting on the wind as it swirled through the trees. The corn stalks in the garden to their right, swayed in the wind as it tugged at their skin and clothing.
Their skin shone in the sunlight, hers a slight milky paleness tinged with pink, his with a tanish-white tone. Clint's hand moved down along the side of the pool to a rack hanging by the ladder. He picked a container of sunscreen up and placed a blob in his hand. Sophie's back was turned as she trailed a hand in the water before the cold liquid touched her skin, with a slight yelp of surprise.
"Hold still, don't want a sunburn do you?" he asked, his voice shaking with suppressed laughter as he massaged the cool sunscreen onto her skin. His hands moved slowly over all of her bare skin as he held her close and kissed her earlobe.
"I love you." he whispered into her ear before he started massaging her neck and shoulders, eliciting a soft moan as the muscles trembled and relaxed one by one.
She turned on the platform and kissed him on the lips before taking the bottle, putting a blob of the sunscreen onto her palm and then onto the sun-heated spots on his back. He gasped as the cool liquid was lathered into his skin as she returned the favor, both of them smiling and giggling at her attentions with the sunscreen.
She started massaging his shoulders and neck, her hands moving in slow rhythmic circles on some knots in his back. He slumped over an arm rail, completely relaxed until she pushed him into the sparkling blue water. The resulting wave splashed over her, drenching her swimsuit again.
"Well if that's how you want to play." he laughed before he pulled her back in with him.
She came up spluttering before she grabbed him by the shoulders and pushed him under. He returned the favor by grabbing her ankles and pulling, sending her toppling over into the water. A small brown, feathered bird squawked with indignation as a wave of water splashed across the side where it had been perched.
After an hour, of where they continued to dunk, kiss and hold each other, they climbed out of the pool and relaxed into the white hammock. The lay snuggled next to each other as the sun began to set. The sky's blue shade retreated into the orange, yellow and pink light, Shadows fallowing closely before the dark of night encompassed the land.
They lay there and watched the full moon rise into the night sky, casting it's pearly brilliance down upon the land. She went inside and came back out after a few minutes with a plate full of ham and cheese sandwiches, a few Pancakes wrapped around a sausage on a stick, and a couple oranges.
They ate in relative silence as the crickets began their songs, accompanied by the hoot of an Owl and nightly dances of the fireflies before they fell asleep in the gently swaying hammock.
The soft steel of the oak side gate clicked almost inaudibly before a figure with dirty blonde hair walked into the back yard, a red water-balloon in hand. She approached the couple sleeping in the hammock and dropped the balloon on Clint's bare chest.
The sound of plastic hitting skin was quickly drown out by his yell of surprise as the chilly water ran down his chest and spilled over onto Sophie who also gasped at the coldness of the water, despite it being slightly warmed by his chest.
"Alley!" They shouted in unison, a smile tugging at the corner of their lips.
"I couldn't help it!" she laughed her green eyes sparkling with mischief.
Sophie got out of the hammock first, causing Clint to fall onto the ground with a groan as his back popped. He got to his feet, with the aid of Sophie and Alley, and shook her hand while Sophie gave her friend a hug. Alley's blue jeans and maroon T-shirt whipped about her as a sudden gust of wind tugged at their skins and clothing.
"You want to go over to Wal-Mart with me for a few?" She asked of them as Clint stood with his right arm around Sophie's waist. A position they favored whenever they where standing side by side.
"I'll drive." Clint said giving Sophie a kiss before disappearing through the sliding glass door, to change.
A few minutes later the roar of his truck could be heard from the driveway. Sophie went in to change while Alley relocked the side gate and joined Clint at his truck. Clint was at work taking lumber off the truck bed and setting it inside the garage when Sophie came out dressed in a pair of black jeans that matched his own and a sky blue T-shirt, his own was a shade of green.
Fifteen minutes later they walked through a bustling group of people on their way inside of the massive building. Clint walked arm in arm with Sophie as Alley walked a few feet ahead of them. He gave her two hundred dollars in cash before giving her a hug and strode of towards the electronics department, his mind already running through a few game and movie titles. He had a feeling they where going to go to the one section of the store where men where forced to go by their spouses, mothers and or girlfriends.
"Let's go Alley." She told her friend giggling, for Clint was walking that long and quick pace he uses to get away from uncomfortable situations. Alley looked bemusedly at her friend before they made their way to the center of the store where the clothes were.
Clint walked back and forth reading the separate game titles and asking the attendant to take this title or that one off the rack. He paid for them their before heading off to a different department. He had a secret project running and he wanted it to be a surprise for his love.
He paid for the materials he needed and another worker helped him haul it out to the truck. He pulled a tarp over everything and tied it down, leaving a space open towards the cab for their purchases, before getting into the cab to wait for the girls to finish up their shopping.
He was sleeping when they came out of the store, bags in hand and chatting back and forth. Though they where practically bursting with curiosity, contained themselves and climbed into the cab. Sophie, Sitting next to him, poked Clint in the ribs, before shaking him awake.
"You want one of us to drive?" she asked him smiling sardonically. She giggled as he straightened in his seat before turning the key.
"I'm good." He said smiling as they drove out of the parking lot and back home.
"You staying for diner?" he asked as they pulled into the driveway, Parking in between Alley's red Pontiac and Sophie's, cyan Plymouth.
"Yup. Sophie and I decided we'd go back to my place first though. I have a new painting I want to show her. Your welcome to come if you want." She said as the door swung open, guided by her hand.
"I have something I need to work on anyways." he said climbing out of the truck too. He had parked it with the tail gate facing the garage. "In private." he added, smiling to take the sting out of his words.
He watched them as they took Sophie's belongings inside before they piled into the Pontiac and drove off down the road. Once he was sure they where gone, he untied the tarp and began pulling materials out and taking them into the back yard. When he was done with that he carried the lumber back too.
He pulled another tarp off of a hot tub he had hidden and used a Dolly to position it in the back yard. He measured and cut the lumber, the air filled with the screeching of the angular saw and the "Cupoosh" as the Nail gun shot three inch deck nails into the wood.
Night had fallen when he finished cleaning up saw dust and scrap materials. A wooden deck was now wrapped around the hot tube. Solar powered lights hung from poles set into the wood and an elegant, metal railing ran around it. A small gap was left where a short staircase led up to the deck.
He sighed to himself and went inside, ordered three large pepperoni and sausage pizzas before taking a shower to get rid of the sweat, dirt and sawdust that clung to his skin. He changed into another pair of blue jeans, a green T-shirt and a maroon flannel shirt before sitting on the couch in the living room to watch the plasma screen TV he had bought, he was saving the games for a later time.
He had just finished filling and bringing the hot tub up to temperature, when the sound of Alley's car reached his ears. The thud of car doors echoed around the backyard as he tied the hose around a hook that hung from the side of the house. The front door opened and closed as Clint slid the glass door open and stepped inside the living room. They had both plopped down onto the couch to watch Bolt when he placed his hands over Sophie's eyes.
"I have a surprise for you." he said helping her to her feet, keeping on hand across her eyes. He steered her out of the room through the screen door and into the backyard, Alley following out of curiosity. "You can open them now." he whispered into her ear.
She gasped when the solar powered lights stung her eyes and made them water. The fresh Oak panels where nailed into a hexagonal pattern around the six person Hot Tub. The water was steaming softly in the cool evening air, changing colors as a light underneath shone through different colored glass. A fog machine, built into the deck, cast a thin blanket of mist across the surface, to mingle with the steam.
Sophie climbed the stairs, running her hands along the black metal railing that circled the platform, stopping every time she came close to a pole that supported the Solar lights. She dipped her hand into the water and found it to be at just the right temperature, not too hot but hot enough to sit in during the winter.
"Thank you Clint." she said straitening and wrapping her arms around his neck. She pulled him closer, kissing him before pulling away to look the area over again.
"I left plenty of space for you to grow those purple Irises you adore so much." he said standing behind her, his chin on her shoulder and his arms wrapped around her.
"Ahem" Alley coughed behind them, smiling as they jumped and turned around. "Nice of you to forget about me." she laughed before going back inside.
Sophie gave the area another quick glance over before heading inside, pulling Clint along by the hand. A few minutes later the Door bell rang and the pizzas were delivered. Sophie took the money out of Clint's wallet, he was napping on the couch.
"Supper honey." She said gently shaking him awake. She smile tenderly at him, realizing he must have spent all afternoon working on the deck.
They ate and talked about work, art and a few other topics before Alley left for her own home and bed after they exchanged goodbyes. It was 8:12pm when Sophie headed to their room. Clint took the opportunity to pull a bag out from a cupboard and headed outside to place the contents here and there. He went back in and acted as if he hadn't moved an inch. When she came back she was in a new two piece swimsuit in the mix of a sea-foam green and a light turquoise.
"You want to try that Hot Tub out?" she asked smiling as they both began to blush slightly.
"Sure, long as you don't mind me waiting." he said getting up going into their room and changing into a pair of forest green swim trunks.
They walked arm in arm out into the yard and ascended the steps where he lit citronella and scented candles. He lit the incense, a combination of cinnamon, sage, pine, cloves and allspice, smiling as he caught her by surprise again.
He sighed as he slipped into the water, hitting the play button on the radio, as the heated water soothed his aching muscles. He closed his eyes and herd Sophie slide into the water on the other side as "Little moments" by Brad Paisley began to play.
She made her way across the Hot Tub and snuggled close to him as their song, "Amazed" by Lonestar, began to play on the radio. He draped his right arm across her shoulders and looked up at he full moon, it's rays falling from space accompanied by the sparkling white stars that filled the midnight blue skies. The orange-yellow flicker of the fireflies danced around them accompanied by cricket and bird songs. A few Owls hooted off in the distance as the song played and they hugged each other close.
He ran his right hand along her side and up to her shoulder, sliding the tips of his fingers along her back before resting them on her cheek. Their heart beats quickened as they allowed themselves to be lost in the moment, their eyes glittering with the love they shared.
She leaned in the same time he did, giving each other a kiss before pulling apart. She Closed her eyes and snuggled as close as she could and rested against him. A soft hiss caused her to open her eyes and watch as a finger descended and poked her lightly on the nose. He leaned in and kissed the ready whip off her nose, smiling as she giggled at the treatment.
She was grinning wickedly as she took the can from him and began to spray the contents over him. He picked up another can and started to spray her back until the cans emptied. They fell into each others embrace, smiling and laughing at the audacity of a whipped cream fight.
"I love you Sophie and there isn't a force in the entire universe that can change that." he whispered looking up at the moon before looking her in the eye,
"I love you too Clint." She said giving him another kiss before relaxing into his arms. They watched the moon together, enchanted by each other's presence and the spell that hat weaved itself around them.