A Lover's Concerto
Title: A Lover’s Concerto
Pairing: Novak Djokovic/Ernests Gulbis
Rating: PG-13
Word count: 3,072
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters and this is a fiction.
Summary: Ernests waits for Novak to come back home.
Author’s note: This is an Ernests’ POV story, inspired by Sarah Vaughan’s “A Lover’s Concerto”, and set right after the Dubai tournament. I would like to dedicate this story to a dear reader agua21. Thank you so much for your kind support :)
Thump-thump.
My heart beats.
Thump-thump.
It beats a little faster.
And, before it goes all thump-thump-thump, I put a hand on my chest to calm it down.
There, it’s better now. My heart beats fast enough when Novak is around. I don’t need it to beat this hard when I’m only thinking about him.
Well, I usually spend a good amount of time thinking about him, but today, it’s a little different. I’m waiting for my dear love to come back home to me. It’s not like we had a fight or anything, he just went to play in Dubai while I was losing miserably in Delray Beach. In a way, I’m glad that I lost early. Four straight tournaments alone in the States didn’t suit me well, and I think that I was even a bit homesick.
“Haha…”
I laugh out as I remember him getting a little jealous at me teaming up with my good old buddy, Igor, for doubles. Well, if his ranking wasn’t that high, perhaps I would have asked him to play with me but I know that it just won’t work. I’ll be too busy licking his legs with my eyes while he’ll be too busy wishing that I would be using my power for something else than a serve.
Woosh.
I’m sitting on my side of the swing that he and I had a world of trouble setting up in the corner of our front porch. It started out as a romantic idea when I had seen it in the neighborhood but it turned into a nightmare as we had difficulties putting the pieces together as instructed in the manual. It was only about a few pieces of wood, but at that time, we were even younger and hornier and just couldn’t concentrate five straight minutes to open both eyes to see what kind of wood we had in our hands.
“Hehe…”
Usually, when we sit here together, either listening to music or reading short books, there are a couple of birds singing on the nearby trees. If I think about it, I’m already living my dream life when people get it only when they already have white hair or never even make it. Reading a crazy cartoon with my head on Novak’s lap, listening to the cute birds serenade. What more could I possibly wish for?
Well, I could always wish for some nice physical interaction with my spiky guy but when I want him to recognize my earnest desire, I simply lift his T-shirt a little and give him a peck near his belly button. Then, he gets the message and looks down at me with a knowing smile. I smile back at him and slowly get up from his lap to go back into the house. Of course, the important thing is not to forget to sway my hips, but even on the few occasions that I forgot, I don’t think he treated me any less passionately.
Woosh.
I check my watch which he bought me from Paris last fall. He knew that I wasn’t fond of wearing watches, but he said that he couldn’t resist it when he found one with a smiling hedgehog on it. Being such a fan boy, I adore anything that reminds me of him. So it was no surprise when I immediately fell in love with the childish watch. It was rather cute of him when he told me that he asked for a longer band to fit my wrist. I take it that it really was for children then. Well, who cares? I like it and I showed him that night how much I liked it with all sorts of kisses.
Tick-tick.
Why is he late? He left me a text message from the airport half an hour ago. Monaco is a small country. There’s absolutely nothing called heavy traffic but then, it just started raining. Perhaps that’s why his cab is coming slowly. At first, I told him that I’d go pick him up myself but he couldn’t trust my driving skill. The last time I was behind the wheel, I almost hit a stray cat. So I told him that I’d take a cab, but he wanted me to stay home, getting more rest after a demanding month.
Hmm… It’s too bad that I’ve never been great at sitting patiently. I have to do something to see his face earlier. I did watch his Dubai matches on TV and saw his interview here and there, but that’s no match to the real deal. He looks even better than his younger years and I just can’t wait to jump into his arms.
I get up from our swing and hurry inside to fetch an umbrella. I’ll walk a few meters out to the streets to see if he’s coming.
“Ahahaha…”
I spot the Smurf one and pick it up. Taking a good look at all the umbrellas we own, it looks like we only have a few decent ones. Both he and I like to walk in the light rain and Monte Carlo is clean enough not to worry about losing our hair in the acid rain. Besides, neither of us likes to spend money on boring-looking items, so I suppose that’s why we have such eye-catching umbrellas.
“Let’s go say hi to him, smurfs.”
I almost run out of the house and open the navy umbrella. I remember that he took an umbrella in his bag but even if he lost it, I guess this could cover both of our heads at least.
Plic-ploc.
I’m glad to see that it’s only drizzling. I wouldn’t want him to come back home in a thunderstorm. If the rain gets any heavier, I might have to go back inside and get a bigger umbrella.
I take a few steps out in the rain and enjoy the fresh scent of the air. It’s somewhat peaceful, standing in front of our cozy place, feeling the drizzle wash away anything that’s not pure and clean. I’m happy to the point that I have to ask myself since when did I manage to be happy with such simple things.
Love can be very simple sometimes. I love him and he loves me back. We didn’t have a huge argument, only had little brushes on trivial matters. I’m no doubt a person with a complicated mind, but I feel like Novak counterbalances it nicely and, maybe I’m getting dyed by his color.
Tick-tick.
Seriously, why isn’t he already here, kissing me with every ounce of his passion? I crane my neck out to check the yellow cab that’s slowing down.
Oh! It’s him! I see someone wave at me behind the window and I wave back. I can feel myself brighten up and I call out the dearest name in the world.
“Novak!”
“Ernie!” His voice sounds as jolly as mine and I can’t be more thankful for that.
We run like giggly teenagers and I throw away my umbrella to grab any part of his body that would touch me first.
“You came out here for me?”
I get a hold of his left hand and shake it hard.
“Yes! A winner deserves a nice welcome!”
“Aww, does he get a kiss?”
“Sure!”
Our arms are entangled in a blink and we eagerly go through the same yet special routine of our kiss. Raindrops can’t dare bother us. They’re just there to prove how well our lips fit, without letting even a drop of water between us.
“I knew you’d get that title.”
“Haha, really? I wasn’t sure.”
He gives the driver a generous amount of tip and I pick up the abandoned smurfs and help him with his bags.
“Would you like to carry this one?” He points at the huge trophy that’s in a glass case with a handle on top.
“You’re serious? But it’s yours.”
“You like ships, right?”
I nod and lift the case with a goofy grin on my face.
“Wow, it’s not one of the lightest trophies on tour.”
“Tell me about it. But I’m definitely not complaining, haha.”
We walk very slowly towards the house, trying to enjoy the walk for as long as possible.
“So… any visitors in your hotel room?” I figure I waited long enough to ask this one.
“Oh. Is this some sort of a leading question?” He laughs but I’m serious.
“Well… depends. So, any visitors?”
“Andy came over a few times.”
“A few times?!”
And, if that information wasn’t alarming enough, he gives me even more threatening words.
“And, I invited Richie over too.”
I can’t close my mouth in the middle of this massive shock and I have to put down his trophy on the steps of our porch.
“Aww, you’re so adorable when you’re fuming in jealousy. I love that you have that much passion for me.”
“I can’t help my jealousy!” I cry out in frustration and his soothing palm is quick to caress my cheek.
“You know they just visited me as friends.”
I open my mouth but he adds, “Friends with no benefits.”
I close my mouth and take a deep breath. I’m learning to control my emotions better but it’s still a long way to go.
“You’re doing fine, Ernie. And, I mean it when I say you’re adorable.”
“Does that call for another kiss?” I try to bat my eyelashes in an innocent way but I know that he doesn’t buy it anymore.
“You little kiss monster.”
He pinches my nose but soon gives me what I want. I make sure that my arms are firmly around him so that he won’t back away before I fully enjoy our kiss.
I don’t bother wondering how much time has passed while we were breathing in our own little world. The drizzle has stopped and it seems like the sun can’t wait to take a peep from behind the cloud. I look up, frowning lightly at the shiny voyeur, when I see something special.
“Nole, look over there! It’s a rainbow!”
I don’t know what he feels about rainbows but I have a silly belief that getting to see a rainbow brings good luck.
“You want to go and take a closer look?”
I look at him, relieved that he’s not mocking at me.
“But it’s not like we can go touch it.”
“What about taking a picture then? You’ve been taking some good pictures lately.”
“What a brilliant idea!”
I give him a quick peck on the lips before running inside to get my camera. I’m going to get the rainbow alone first, and then ask someone passing by to take a picture of me, him and the rainbow all together. Perfect! When the picture comes out, that’s so going to be on our wall in the living room. Or maybe we need more good stuff in our bedroom? Hmm… I’ll have to ask his opinion.
I run back outside and he knows why I’m in such a hurry.
“Don’t worry. It’s still there.”
“Oh, good!”
I quickly snap a few pictures, wondering if I’m calm enough to take steady pictures.
“Your hands are shaky.”
Of course, my knight comes to rescue and puts his arms around me and holds my hands in place. I can’t help giggling.
“What? I’m not tickling you, am I?” I can hear him chuckle too.
“No. It’s just… I’m happy to see you again.”
“Same here. I missed that giggle.”
“You did? Hehe, my mom still thinks that I giggle too much and a little too loudly.”
“Haha, I think it suits you.”
“Can I take that as a compliment?”
“Hmm… we can think about that after taking the picture.”
“Oh, right!”
I can’t believe that I forgot about such an important task. We need all the good luck in the world. We will probably go through rough times like all other couples and, as young as we are, it won’t be easy to survive them even if we love each other like nothing else on earth. I can’t afford to see him stop loving me one day and I don’t want to see him walk away, showing his back at me.
“Ernie, pictures.”
“Oh, yes.”
I push away my insecurities and thanks to his strong arms, I manage to take decent pictures of the slowly fading rainbow.
“Nole! We need to ask someone to take our picture with that rainbow in the back!” I cry out in urgency and Novak gets an old lady who was walking by with a bunch of kittens.
“Cheese, boys.”
I try to smile but, as my confused mind likes to play tricks on me, I suddenly feel a little sad, sad that our good times like this won’t last forever. We’ve only been together for a little less than a year now, but I already know that everything I do with him is what I want for a long, long time.
“The taller boy with cute hair, smile, dear.”
“Ouch, I’m hurt! What’s wrong with my hair? It’s much softer than it looks like!” Novak tells the old lady and that makes me laugh.
I can see her press the shutter at the right moment and I place a kiss on my sweet savior’s hair even if we’re with a stranger.
“Aww, you boys need that picture too. Do it again.”
I look at Novak with my tongue slightly peeping out in embarrassment.
“Well, she’s offering.”
I nod and try not to be shy about this. It’s just a small peck on the hair; we’re not French kissing in front of a seventy year old woman.
“I’m waiting.”
Novak rushes me and now I look at the old granny. She smiles with such warmness that I feel much better about this sudden photo shoot.
“I love you, Novak.”
For some reason, I feel like whispering in his ear before letting my lips come into contact with my personal black lawn. I stay like that for a few seconds in case the lady needs time. Novak’s facing the lady when I’m completely turned to my right, hands around his shoulders.
“Okay. It’s getting chilly now. You boys go inside and get some cocoa.”
The granny returns my camera and pats me gently on the arm as if I was one of her kittens. “Rainbow brings you good luck.”
I gasp at the fact of meeting someone who shares the same belief as me and turn around to face Novak.
“Did you hear what she said?” I ask, all excited about it.
“Sure. I guess we could use some good luck.”
I feel alarmed. I thought that he was the cool type when it came to luck and I was hoping that he would say something like ‘Ernie, we don’t need any luck when we have each other’.
“You think? Maybe I’ll get some more lucky charms. I knew that I had to buy that Chinese doll even if it looked scary. The guy said that it really brings you good luck. And, what about that Swedish…”
“Ernie. Ernie!” He raises his voice a little, just to catch my attention.
“Let’s stay like this… for a very long time.”
He holds my hand and the warmth can’t be more overwhelming. I feel the sudden urge to hug him so tight.
“Say that again.” I’m running out of air as I wrap myself around him.
“We’ll stay like this for a very long time.”
His tone is reassuring as if he’s a hundred percent sure about it.
“Again?”
I know that I’m being childish and hopelessly mushy, but hey, I bet anyone would do the same in my place.
I don’t hear him say anything so I choose to look him in the eyes even if I’m a little worried that he finds my requests annoying.
“You feel unsafe about us?”
I drop my eyes, not sure if I should tell him the truth. I’m aware that it must be hard to date someone with such a confusing mind.
“Don’t be. Just trust me each day and I’ll do the same.”
I nod. I can do that. Hell, I’d rather trust him than myself when it comes to important issues. He has a stronger mind than me and I believe that he knows what’s best for me. I still haven’t figured out how he does that but I guess there’s a reason why people call us a match made in heaven.
“You’re blushing, Ernie.”
He caresses my cheek as he always does whenever I blush, and that makes me blush even more.
“Oh, I missed the timing to say it back.”
“Huh?”
He takes me in his arms and I relax in his warmth.
“I love you too, Ernie. You’re my special rainbow.”
“Bwahaha…”
I have to laugh at the sappy comment but somehow I find myself having little happy tears in my eyes.
“What? I got that gigantic ship because you gave me good luck. Every time the net helped me or my opponent hit a double fault, I thought about you.”
“Talking about serves, I loved that ace you hit at championship point. I was so proud of you.”
“You did?”
“Yes!”
I put one of his hands over my heart and let him know how proud I am.
Thump-thump.
There, my heart goes again.
Thump-thump.
It’s in love.
Thump-thump-thump.
This time, I leave it beat as fast and hard as it can. My love came back home to me and I found out that I’m his special rainbow, hehe.
I lean forward to kiss him and he meets me halfway. He uses his free hand to pull me closer and I happily drive out the oxygen molecules that stand in the way. As our lips find each other’s, I see bright colors sparkle under my eyelids. This must be the color of love.
‘Love you, Nole…’
‘Love you, Ernie…’