Twilight Express, Chapter Six: Home

Last revised December 12, 2006.

When he returned to the living room, Melina had tucked one arm under her head and appeared to be asleep. Shinichi considered wrapping her in the blanket and carrying her to his bed, but feared waking her. But when he drew close, her eyes opened and she looked at him, a shy smile on her face.

He sat down next to her, peeled off his shirt and carefully washed her with the warm washcloths he'd brought. He looked closely at the tiny saint's medal she wore. It read Protect Us Saint Louise. Unfamiliar with Catholicism, he assumed the medal was a gift from a parent or relative. Then he wrapped the blanket around both of them and pulled her close to him, her head on his chest, until she fell asleep.

But Shinichi did not join her. He was wide awake, thinking of the evening's events and of Melina. What now? Would she want to stay until the weekend, or ask for a train schedule? And was she as attracted to him as he was to her?

He felt no less smitten with her after taking her; instead, he wanted her more than ever before. A song from his college days kept running through his head: ... see us together, chasing the moonlight with my cinnamon girl.

He kept thinking of their first kiss on the porch, how her face had felt between his hands. He remembered the first time she smiled at him, when he described his first days at Oxford and his various innocent faux pas. She had such a pretty smile.

And his varied memories of her on the leather sofa – arching her back as he entered her, whispering his name, cleaning his sticky fingers with her tongue – kept reappearing like a collection of pictures hidden in a bedside drawer. More than once, he found himself guiltily wishing she would awaken so that he might attempt to seduce her again before sunrise.

Finally he stood up, carefully carried her to his bedroom. She was even lighter than he imagined.

As he covered them both with a quilt, she stirred and opened her eyes. She touched his face with her fingers. The sight of Melina reaching out to him from his bed filled Shinichi with a pure joy, simple and profound. He lay down next to her, took her in his arms. He felt her slide her arms around him, holding him close, her forehead on his shoulder. He heard her whisper goodnight, Shinichi-san.

For the first time in years, he felt as if he were at home.