Tuesday, November 21.
Incredible fondness.
Read this. Go on. Just read it, d*mmit, we shan't ask thrice. Perhaps we can articulate it another way: sit down, grab a warm mug of something comforting, and give your eyes the word nourishment they so deserve.
It is just so very lovely. So fuzzy. So scrummy. It is, to quote Barbie (2023), to feel achy but good. So treat yoself to some achy but goodness by reading this reflection on fondness. Once you're done, and you find yourself swelling with mysterious warmth, get out there and share it. Spread the word. Tell loved ones. Bestow it on beloveds. Manifest it upon moots. Get fond or die tryin'.
Grab a moot. Tell 'em you're fond of 'em x
(@sunbloomdew)
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The drive to Marrakech had been long and dusty, and by the time they reached the hotel, Joe could feel grit between his teeth and toes. He let Nicky exchange pleasantries with the front-desk clerk; he was so close to showering, and to sleeping somewhere other than the passenger seat while Nicky took his turn at the wheel, that he had no words left to offer anyone. He did some clumsy mental calculations and decided he was exactly two minutes from crawling out of his own skin when, a second later, Nicky turned toward him with two keycards in his hand, and Joe felt his shoulders drop a fraction with relief.
The suite was stunning, bursting with color and natural light. Joe barely paid attention, dropping his bags inside the door and tugging his shirt over his head as he headed directly toward the bathroom. He flipped on the shower and toed out of his boots, left the rest of his clothes in an awkward heap, and stepped beneath the spray to let out a groan of pleasure that rose up from the very soles of his feet. The water was warm, and pounded against his shoulders, and Joe lowered his chin to watch dirt and sand wash down his body and swirl into the drain. “Alhamdulillah,” he murmured gratefully.
There were bottles upon bottles of luxurious products, as well as a thick bar of sweet-smelling soap tucked into a recess in one tiled wall, and Joe used everything, multiple times, just for the sensory pleasure of his own slick hands skimming over wet skin. He altered the angle of the spray before working conditioner into his hair and then stood, body slack and heavy, patiently waiting as water sluiced down his chest. When finally he could rinse one last time and tear himself away from the pleasure of being clean, it was to pull a towel from a hook on the wall and groan again at the thickness of the weave, burying his face in it before squeezing water from his hair. He dried himself clumsily, blinked at his reflection in the mirror, then wandered into the bedroom, climbing directly into bed.
“My love,” said Nicky, turning away from the windows where he’d been enjoying the view, or scouting for sniper points, it was hard to say.
“No talking,” Joe mumbled, collapsing on the delightful mattress.
“Your hair,” Nicky offered simply. “You will regret . . .”
“I will regret nothing,” said Joe around a yawn so large that his eyes scrunched closed. When he opened them, it was to find Nicky leaning down toward him, and Joe clutched the sheets to his chest with one hand, and held up the other to stop Nicky from coming closer. “Do not think of kissing me right now, you filthy Frank.”
Nicky chuckled warmly and straightened. “I’ll go wash.”
“Do,” said, Joe, turning onto his side and rubbing his cheek against the pillow.
The low hum of the shower was soothing, and Joe was tired, and a ray of sunlight had pooled on the bed directly over his feet. He drifted, mind blank, not quite willing to sleep for all that he had no interest in being awake. Instead he catalogued the luxury around him—the softness of the sheets; the perfect loft of his pillow; the movement of air across his skin from the fan that circulated air in the room. He thought idly of Andy and Booker, of being reunited in the morning, and a bubble of joy rose up through his chest and made him smile.
“Is this better,” whispered Nicky some time later, the bed creaking under his weight as he slipped under the sheets behind Joe. He smelled faintly of citrus, and eased in close, wrapping arm around Joe’s torso, spreading his fingers over the rise of Joe’s belly. When Joe breathed, he could feel the reassuring pressure of Nicky’s hand.
“You smell better,” he said fondly, and Nicky hummed in agreement.
“So do you.”
Joe laughed softly, so full of affection that his heart squeezed with the force of it. “We’ll sleep a little,” he offered. “Then we’ll eat.”
“A good plan,” Nicky replied, his voice muffled from having his face pressed against Joe’s shoulder. It was quiet, and it was cool, and they were safe, and would soon be with others they loved. Joe let out a long, slow breath, and sleep took him gently, gathering he and Nicky both in tandem, coaxing them to fall.
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