Mr. Americana and the London Boy 07

Author's Message: I know the holidays can be hard for so many (myself included). I hope this story has brought and continues to bring you the same escape it brought me writing it. xoxo

***Matt's Point of View***

I can't believe the day is finally here, Oscars day. Eric is absolutely amazing, he deserves this so much. I make a few mental notes on things to say and do for all outcomes, but my heart is desperately begging he wins. I know I have a personal stake in it, but he truly does deserve all the praise for this movie, and his work in general.

I'm waiting in the massive foyer of his home in LA, he's just texted me he'll be right down, all morning has been a whirlwind, dozens of people flying in and out of here. It's funny, I know who he is, and I love who he is but sometimes I forget that he's a movie star. I know he is, but when it's just the two of us, we can snuggle on a couch and enjoy each other's company as two humans. It's an interesting dichotomy, I love him in both settings because he is the same in both worlds. Well, as much as one can be, I suppose.

I hear footsteps upstairs, a group of people reach the top landing. There he is, looking absolutely marvelous. He's in a wonderfully fitting black tux that has this overlay of intricate lace material that is exquisite. Every inch of him looks perfect. "Hi." He smiles down at me from the top step.

"Hi." He makes his way down the stairs. "You look gorgeous." I tell him when he nears the bottom, holding my hand out to help him.

"So do you." We share a quick kiss on the lips, then we're ushered out of the house and into a van.

I stay off the carpet tonight, just watching him from the sidelines. I didn't want anything to take away from him tonight, no news articles about the two of us or memes or whatever the internet can cook up nowadays. He looks beautiful on the carpet, and when he spots me, his smile brightens. I give him a little finger wave and blow him a kiss. He blushes and waves back. The photographers, completely unaware of me behind them, love it.

Inside, I get to sit next to him. It's very weird and nerve-wracking sitting in the front row at one of the biggest awards shows in Hollywood. But then I remember I'm here with my baby and that's enough to settle my nerves. Plus, they're all looking at him, not me.

The movie is doing well, winning one award after another. The supporting actors win! And then when his - Best Male Lead - finally arrives - I feel his hand clench mine. I cover it with my other and lean in to whisper, "No matter what happens, just remember you deserve this, and I love you so much."

"I love you, too." His voice is shaky and nervous, his hand is squeezing mine hard.

There's a short pause before the presenter speaks again. "And the Oscar goes to... Eric Bennett, Maybe in Mayfair!"

Oh my god, he did it! I'm so happy, I knew he deserved it! Everyone stands up and starts clapping. We stand up and I give him a quick kiss and a hug. "I'm so proud of you, Eric. I love you!"

"Thanks, Matty. I love you, too." He smiles, he looks absolutely beyond happy, he's on cloud nine. I let him go so he can hug his cast mates and director.

He walks onstage and accepts the golden award. He steps up to the mic. "Wow, uh, wow. Thank you to the academy, this is such a big honor. I also want to thank the incredible cast and crew and everyone who worked on this project. It was an incredible experience and I've learned so much from each of you. I enjoyed every day on set with you guys getting to make this film. I want to thank everyone on my team, especially Liz, Justin, and Kelly! And I also want to thank Matt, for believing in me and for loving me. You're the reason I took this part, you're the reason I'm here, and I'm so grateful I have you in my life. I love you," he lifts the Oscar up, just like you see all of them do on the tele. "Thank you!"

The rest of the night is a blur, we hit up two after parties before calling it a night around 3 a.m. When we get home, we FaceTime my parents. My mom is so happy she's crying.

"We're so proud of you, dear." She says through a sniffle.

"Right, we are. And what a lovely speech." My dad chimes in.

"I didn't get a chance to tell you..." I look at Eric. "I loved your speech, thank you for saying what you did."

"I meant it." He leans into me and hugs me.

"Alright, my loves. We'll let you go. It's very late there. Congratulations, Eric! We're so proud!" My mom says.

"Thank you! We'll see you guys soon!"

"Bye, love you!"

"Love you!"

***

Eric had to stay in L.A. for a project. He's so busy right now, and after the Oscar win, he's got a hundred people reaching out with prospective projects.

Almost six months pass by, we're able to spend a few sprinkled long weekends with each other but overall it's a bit of a long distance situation at the moment. We FaceTime and text every day.

After a particularly hard Friday to put the cherry on a rough week, I get home to find Eric. "What?!" I ask, reaching out to pull him into a hug.

"I was able to get away for the weekend. They don't need me, and you seemed like you did."

He smells like a fresh spring, like he always does. He smells like home to me now. "I love you so much. Thank you for being here. I've missed you."

"I've missed you too. I'm just happy I was able to come."

He stays still until I'm ready to let go. When I do, I spot a burst of colors out of the corner of my eye. I turn to see a massive bouquet on the counter. I let out a big sigh. Just his presence and kindness has lifted my spirits.

"How are you feeling?" He asks.

"Exhausted, honestly. It's not like anything bad has really happened, but I just feel like I'm not doing things well. I'm just having a bit of a down time at the moment." I tell him. "You being here has already helped." I add.

"I'm sorry, baby." He runs his hands up and down the sides of my torso. "Is there anything specific you'd like right now?"

"A quick shower and then just to hang out here with you." I answer.

"You hop in the shower then, I'll order some food, and then we'll put something on. That sound good?"

"Indian? Our usual?"

"I'll order it right now." He rubs my arms, then sends me off to shower.

After a hot shower, I put on a pair of shorts and a hoodie. "That felt good." I tell him.

"Good, the food will be here in ten."

"Mmm." I hug him to show my appreciation. We make our way to the couch where he hands me the remote and lets me pick something to watch. "I have something in mind." I tell him.

"Put it on." I get up and grab a DVD from my collection. One of his movies.

"Wait, isn't that corner where you keep my movies?" He asks.

I know he doesn't like to watch his own movies, but I do. "It is..." I turn around and show him the box. "Please?" I give him my puppy dog eyes.

"Okay, but don't think I don't know you're slightly taking advantage of the situation." He grins.

"Oh, I know. Thanks, baby." I put the DVD in and get back to the couch. Just as I do, the intercom rings.

"I'll get it!" He offers.

Our takeaway in front of us, we start the film and dig in. After dinner, he curls himself into me. I kiss the top of his head and rest my chin on it. Having him in my arms is such a stress reliever, he is like a miracle stress-forgetting drug.

We end up cuddling on the couch all night, watching some comedies after his romcom. He eventually dozes off, his head slowly moving down my chest and landing on my lap. I reach for the blanket on the back of the couch and do my best to cover him.

As I sit here, caressing his arm and admiring his adorable sleeping face, it starts to really hit me. Maybe it's the long week, I don't know, but I'm now completely certain of the fact that I want to spend forever with him. I've always been the type of person to take a long flight for someone I love. I always knew he'd do it too, but seeing him here, knowing he has to fly back in a few days, all because I had a rough week, I just love him. And I want to marry him. Yeah, I think it's time to start planning to ask him. We've been dating for almost 18 months now, so it's not been very long, but long enough to know it's time. We've talked about it, we both want it. It is just a matter of when.

I find myself dozing off too. His head on my lap is like a weighted blanket, calming me down and easing me into a deep sleep.

I wake up to a sunlit room and the smell of pancakes. "Good morning!" He smiles at me from behind the counter. "Knew these would wake you up."

I rub my eyes and stretch. "Good morning, babe." I get up and join him in the kitchen. I rest my hands on his waist and kiss his neck. I close the space between us, hugging him from behind. My arms wrap around his tiny waist. His tiny, adorable waist. He's cutting up strawberries.

"Want a strawberry?" He asks.

"Mmhmm." I open my mouth and wait for him to drop a strawberry in my mouth. I take a good bite, he pulls the stem away. "Delicious." I mumble. I place a kiss on his cheek, leaving a strawberry flavored wetness in the shape of my lips.

"Thanks for that." He chuckles.

"Would you like me to feed you a piece of fruit?" I tease him.

"I'd love a banana." I see the corner of his lip curl up.

"There's none here, and I don't think I have any."

"Oh, I'm certain you do." He grinds his ass into my groin. It hits me.

"Ah!" I laugh. "There's something about you in this kitchen, you're always extra frisky in here."

"That's because this room is for eating and you're a full snack." He puts the knife down and turns around in my arms. He looks up into my eyes, smiling flirtatiously at me. He pushes me backwards until I'm pushed up against the oven. "Time for a morning treat." He grins, lowering himself down onto his knees. His seductive eyes look up at me, he runs a hand up my thigh. Then he pushes me to the side, grabs the oven mitt off the counter, and pulls out a cake.

"Whoa, babe, be careful." I instinctively grab the other mitt and help make sure it reaches the counter. "You could've burned your face."

"I had it." He casually reassures me. "Plus, it was worth seeing the look in your face when I pushed you to the side." I help him up.

"Yeah, you really had me going for a moment." I sigh. "Knob." I mutter, making him grin. "No, sorry, 'Banana'" I joke. He starts laughing. His laugh lights up his face, he holds himself steady with a hand on my bicep. I absolutely love it when he touches me. "Seriously, you're such a tosser!"

"I love you. You still make me laugh and you still give me butterflies." He caresses my face. "And you still make me nervous when you walk in the room." He leans in to kiss me.

"I haven't brushed my teeth yet." I stop him.

"I think I've kissed you with your morning breath before." He laughs.

I tilt my head to one side and give that 'maybe not' look. "I don't think so." I say slowly.

"You mean all those wake up kisses were a ruse?" He smirks.

I nod. "I get up at like 5:30 every morning and brush my teeth." I open up.

He grins. "That's so funny, I'd get up at 5." We both chuckle.

"I'll be right back." I pull away.

"Fine. But we should consider taking the next step in our relationship..." he's saying it in a mock serious voice. "And cut out the early morning routines. You know, get used to each other a little more."

"No." I smirk. "I have too much pride." I leave the room and brush my teeth.

"Your breakfast is gonna taste minty fresh now." He places a plate of pancakes with blueberries and strawberries in front of me upon my return. "Eat up, mister."

"This looks incredible, love." I sit on the stool. I watch him as he makes his own plate. I pull out his stool for him as he walks around to join me on my right.

I keep my right hand on his leg, deciding I must maintain some sort of physical contact with him. Yeah, turns out I'm quite shite at using my left hand to use a fork. Still worth it.

"I love you, you adorable cutie pie." He kisses my cheek.

"I love you, too!" I grin. "And we never got that kiss." I pull his face back and give him a lovely, passionate good morning kiss. "There. Better."

"Much." He kisses me again, then plants a quick peck on my cheek before backing away. "Do you have any plans this weekend? I forgot to ask."

"I have a football match this afternoon. Are you interested in coming?"

"Yeah, I'd love to! I've barely gotten to see you play!"

"Cool, I think Grace and Ali are gonna be there too, so you won't have to watch alone."

"Oh, awesome, I miss them. Now, between you, Sam, and Tom, who is better?"

"Don't tell him I said this, but Tom is quite good, the little nutter." I reluctantly admit.

He laughs. "I'll never tell him."

"And he knows it." I add. "I refuse to admit it, but he is. And he'll love having everyone there tonight to feed off your energy and show off."

"How are you guys doing in the league now? You've got what, five games left?"

"Five after tonight." I answer. "If we win tonight, then we're still in the race to win. If not, it's not very likely."

He gives me a dorky thumbs up and a reassuring smile. "You've got this!"

"Thanks, love." I rub his thigh.

At the match, everyone is happy with the surprise appearance of Eric. His discreet bodyguard stands back on a nearby fence.

"Oh, how lovely!" Grace is the first to greet him with a hug.

"How's it going, mate?" Ali greets.

"Good, you?"

"Can't complain."

"How long are you in town?"

"Until tomorrow night."

"Oh, that's so short!" Grace replies.

"My boy came to cheer me up all 'cause I told him I had a rough week." I proclaim proudly. "Alright, I have to go warm up, is everyone still down for dinner tonight?"

They all say yes as I head off to join the team.

"Oi, is that Eric Bennett?" I hear someone from the other team ask as I jog by them. I chuckle to myself.

"Eric is here?" Sam asks cheerily. She and Tom wave at him from across the pitch.

"Yeah, for the weekend, he surprised me after a rough week."

"What a good lad. Maybe he'll be our lucky charm tonight." Tom grins while stretching.

"Isn't Grace your lucky charm?" I retort.

"She is, but Eric is our lucky charm, he has the power to distract the other team more." He explains.

"Good point." Sam chuckles.

With only two minutes left in the game, the score is 2-2. Once the other team got wind Eric is here and here for me, they started playfully and somewhat respectfully taunting me. But I didn't let them get in my head, and that won't change with these last few minutes.

Sam is able to block their attempt at goal, passing it off to our defense. I get the ball and dribble up the middle of the field, bypassing a defender. Having played with Tom for so long, I know where he will be. I do a quick check out of the corner of my eye, then send it off to him as he cuts in, perfectly timing himself to get the ball. He maneuvers around the defender with what looks like ease, then shoots the ball perfectly into the top left corner of the goal. Let's go!

"Yes! That's it!" I cheer as he comes over to celebrate with a high five. I hear the group watching cheer loudly. What a relief to not embarrass myself in front of my boy, and to get this big win for the team.

After chatting for a bit after the game, we disperse to clean up before reuniting at our favorite local pub. We spend a lovely few hours eating, drinking, and chatting. The stress from the week completely forgotten, I find myself thinking about how much I love this little life of mine.

The rest of the weekend flies by. He's lifted my spirits exponentially this weekend, I'm so grateful. But he has to fly back for what's gonna be a few months of intense filming and promotion while I have a massive trial coming up. He said by mid October he'll be on a few months break from any big film projects or major promotion. I don't know how the next few months will go, but what I do know is the next time he's properly back home with me, I'm going to ask him to marry me.

***

October finally comes. I've picked out a ring from an old British jewelry house that's made pieces for the royal family. My parents joined me when I picked it out.

"Matty!" He runs over to me in the airport, giving me a hug and a kiss on the cheek. There's quite the crowd today, they caught wind of him being here. We're surrounded by a team of security holding back dozens, maybe even over a hundred photographers and fans.

Finally back in the privacy of our apartment, away from all those eyes, I pull him in for a proper greeting. "I've missed you, love."

"I've missed you." His hands run their way up my back, neck, and through my hair. I moan in his mouth as we kiss. "Would you mind if I shower?"

"You don't have to ask, baby." I kiss him again.

"Sorry, let me rephrase: would you mind joining me in the shower so we can continue kissing?"

"Gmmm." I groan, pulling his legs up around my waist. I keep a firm grip around his butt, and take the hand of his suitcase in the other.

"Fuck, you're so strong."

"You act so surprised every time." I feign offense.

"More surprised at how much it still turns me on."

"Then let me take you to the gym and show you how much I can lift. Spoiler: it's more than double you."

"You'll make me cum just thinking about it."

"You're too easy to please." I grin at him.

"You're too gorgeous to handle." He cups my face and gives me one more solid kiss before I lower him back on the floor outside the en-suite. I put his suitcase in the corner and join him in the bathroom. He's already turned the water on.

We strip out of our clothes. My eyes stick to the smooth, shiny skin of his shoulder. When I'm able to peel them away, they find their way to his prominent clavicle. Every inch of him is soft like silk, begging for my hands and lips to touch him.

"Your skin..." I tease his shoulder with the back of my index finger. "You are absolutely beautiful." My eyes find his. His pretty brown eyes, oh my god, how I would do anything I could to keep them as bright as they look right now.

I grab his wrist and carefully unhook his bracelet. "Thank you." He smiles.

"Of course." I smile back. I steer him into the shower. I make sure the temperature is good before I guide him under the water.

"I'm so happy to be home." He looks up at me.

My heart absolutely melts. I've always called it our place, but hearing him actually call it home is... it's too splendid to properly put in words how I feel. I kiss his forehead and pull him in, holding onto him tight. "I'm so happy to have you home. I'd keep you here in London forever, if I could."

"Well, I'd love it. Maybe one day we could buy a house with a pretty yard for all our kids." He says.

"That would be amazing. I am so excited about growing older with you."

"I've missed your hugs. Whenever you hold me, I swear l feel any stress I have lift off my shoulders."

I pull my head back to look him in his eyes. "Then we shall arrange a way for me to hold you 24/7. No stress for my baby boy." I 'boop' his nose, then cup his face in my hand and give him another kiss. This one is long and intense. Our lips smack against each other, pushing and pulling and begging for more.

We keep it PG-13 in the shower. Mostly because he's not had a proper meal in almost a day. Out of the shower, I help him put his bracelet back on. Then we head to the bedroom to dress. I watch as he slips a pair of blue briefs over his perfect, perky little bum. "Can I trade this hoodie for another one?" He pulls out one of my hoodies from his carry on.

"That's where that one went!" I chuckle. "I thought you had the purple one!"

"I have both." He gives me his devilish grin.

I roll my eyes."Well, take your pick. It's not like I can say no."

"You mean, it's not like you want to say no." He places a hand on my lower back as he reaches a top shelf and pulls down a hoodie. His light touch is practically burning into me, it feels incredible. "Do me a favor? Wash this and then wear it a little." He looks sideways at me and grins, placing the old hoodie into my hands.