𝟐𝟑

♕

𝑎𝑢𝑟𝑜𝑟𝑎'𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑣

I truly had been trying my best.

My ex-wife randomly showed up, work has been tough during the holiday this year, and I'd recently just discovered the fact that my grandmother had passed.

Daniel and I's parents were too selfish to tell us about the sudden, yet deadly, sickness that overcame my favorite family member.

After receiving the devastating phone call I'd poured myself a glass of wine while Iris was still away at work, but I remembered my promise to her and quickly used the liquid for other purposes.

As much as I tried to seem like this confident, put together woman I couldn't help it at times to just fall apart.

The wine in my pantry just always happened to be there when things got tough.

I blew out a deep breath, wiping at my tired eyes with trembling hands.

"Ro."

I didn't turn around. I only continued to shield my face from Iris and any other living thing that roamed the backyard of my home.

The sound of soft footsteps grew louder and louder until the presence of my lover settled right beside me.

"I'm sorry." Iris breathed out, "I know work has been hard on you recently, and I'm not helping you as much as I should in this situation. Instead of getting angry at you for coping in the only way you know how, I should've been a shoulder for you to lean on. It's just that I've seen what drinking does to even the sweetest of people. . . and I don't want that to happen to you. I love you Aurora and it's time that I help you rather than drag you down even more."

Iris didn't have the time to release another breath before I folded forward with my head in my hands, tears rapidly falling from my eyes.

The warmth of her arms surrounded me immediately, and all I could do was continue to helplessly bawl.

"It's okay, my love. Let it all out." she cooed.

So I did what was asked of me.

I let it all out.

The gentle breeze of the outside air mixed with the affectionate squeeze of Iris' arms around me truly brought me the upmost amount of safety.

I felt understood.

It took a while for my emotions to calm down, but the grip around my shaking body never fell on the end of my lover.

This was one of the many moments that I truly knew that I loved Iris Heather. She wasn't like anyone that came before her. Her heart and soul was sincerely pure, and I'm honored to be able to experience her love.

I dabbed at my eyes whilst turning to face her, "Thank you."

The dimples in her cheeks appeared as she sent me a gentle smile. Her eyes sparkled with concern but god were they the most beautiful things I'd ever seen.

"Let's talk." she murmured softly, reaching her hand forward to caress my cheek.

I nodded and stood up after her as we made our way back inside, leaving the vulnerable moment we'd shared outside underneath the night sky.

We entered the kitchen and I immediately plopped myself in the first barstool that my eyes landed on. Iris, however, rounded the kitchen island and began to search for glass cups.

"Tea or wine?" she questioned.

I laughed at the challenge, "Considering you just shoved me away after thinking I was drinking the later. . . I'll go with the safer option."

Silence followed for a brief second before the sound of mugs being placed infront of me broke it.

"I'm sorry." Iris repeated once more.

My head lifted and I was met with her soft features. She truly seemed regretful.

"I made a promise and you thought I had broken it. You had your reasons to be upset. I just wish you'd let me explain earlier." I softly smiled, placing a small peck on her pouted lips.

I was greeted with a full on grin, causing my heart to ache at the sight.

"Tea it is."

I allowed my eyes to shamelessly follow the brunette's movements as she prepared the water for our teabags.

It was an odd observation; but it really did seem as if Iris' personality came out when she was in the kitchen, specifically when baking. Her eyes glowed with joy, and she nearly pranced around the kitchen with the biggest smile supporting her face. She was so skilled at what she does and it's such a satisfying experience to see her feel so comfortable within herself.

I looked to my left once I noticed her sliding into the chair beside me, hesitant eyes on my face.

She knew that there was more on my mind.

"It's not just about work." I sighed out, clasping my hands together under my chin in order to avoid playing with my rings.

The brunette hummed, "I'm all ears, Ro."

As the tea kettle continued to heat up by the minute, I told Iris everything that was currently on my mind. That included the worry that has been pounding in my head ever since Evelyn returned and my poor relationship with my parents.

I hugged the warm cup of tea in my hands, watching as Iris struggled to hold back her words. Although she understood my feelings about Evelyn— I hadn't given her a full explanation as to why Daniel and I's parents weren't the best, yet I could see that she wanted to ask. I took a sip of the drink before setting it back on the countertop in front of me.

"My dad is an abusive asshole to put it simply." I ignored the frown on the beauty's face at my words, "When I first came out to them he beat me for it. Daniel was away at a friend's house and my mom was too much of a doormat to do anything about it. It was harsh and it left me bruised for weeks. After that, I spent a lot of nights at my nonna's home to avoid the toxic household. It seemed that was more preferred anyway in order to not have a "sinner" living in the house. My nonna was the closest thing that I had to a mother figure at the time, so to hear about her sudden death is heartbreaking. We'd have weekly check ins with another, but I also know that the woman was too stubborn to say anything regarding her health that would worry me. It just fucking sucks to hear about it from a cousin who I've never met before."

It took a while for my words to settle in but once they did I felt slightly relieved.

"You're so strong." Iris whispered into the cool air, standing to pull me into a tight hug.

I closed my teary eyes and allowed her warmth to once again engulf me. It was so nice to have a person around that could sense your soul needing comfort and being able to support it.

"I don't know how I'm gonna tell Ariella. She loved visiting nonna's during the summer." I sighed, squeezing my lover closer to me out of instinct.

"We can do it together." she declared, pulling away to gather my face in her hands, "Whatever you need to say I will be there by your side to help make it all easier."

A tear dropped from my eye that the brunette was quick to wipe away with her thumb.

"Did you know that I adore the living hell out of you?" I asked, pulling her even closer by her hips.

"You only tell me like every day." she giggled, pecking at my lips for a brief moment.

"I mean it every time I say it." I mumbled.

"As do I." she winked, "Now let's discuss that painting that you have upstairs."

To both of our surprise, my face suddenly heated up at the mention of the bold painting. I wasn't exactly thinking of what I was going to paint once I sat down. I just sort of let the brush guide itself. Sure it might've been a bit. . . much, but it was just so hard to not think of the brunette every second of every day. She was such perfection in my eyes. In every element.

I managed to go into a deep rant about how beautiful I find Iris to be before we ended up in the same bed, asleep in one another's arms, at last. Sleep overcame the both of us the moment we hit the sheets, and as the night grew darker we lied a tangled mess underneath the warm comforter.

The next morning after breakfast we revealed the news to Ariella. As expected, she cried her little eyes out. I, myself, even began to cry again once her tiny body was in my arms shaking and trembling from her whimpers.

Iris was there as promised. She respectfully gave Ariella and I a moment alone once things escalated— which I insisted wasn't necessary since she wasn't a burden— and came back around once Ariella had calmed down a bit. She claimed that she just wanted to give us "air to breathe in".

"Can we go see her?" my princess sniffled into my chest, hiccuping from her recent breakdown.

"I'm going to talk to Uncle Danny and let you know the moment we have everything situated, stellina. I promise." I stuck my pinky out and smiled when my little girl's finger wrapped around my own.

"Well can Iris play the piano? I really want to hear nonna's favorite song now." Ariella asked, glancing over to the brunette who was leaned up against a wall watching our interaction.

"If she knows it, I'm sure she'll be glad to play it for you." I surely announced.

Iris laughed and made a move to begin our journey upstairs. I took notice of the fairy lights and pillows that were in the living area. They weren't there before and I was going to ask Iris about it until I saw Disney+ pulled up on the flatscreen TV. I held back my smile as much as possible once realizing why Iris had given us space at the dinner table.

Once we arrived inside the infamous room, Iris and Ariella wasted no time in sitting at the piano together. Instead of joining them and crowding up the bench, I stood slightly leaning against the instrument. The morning sun shone into the room, lighting up the side profile of Iris' face. I resisted the urge of cradling her face by watching my two girls talk.

There was a window of silence.

And then Iris had began the intro of Once Upon a Dream.

♕

-E

Iris played the piano version of the original song, but I just love Lana's version so much that I included it above :)