by Trinity Lemm
My excitement levels were too high throughout the next week that it made the week go by much slower. I hadn’t stepped foot in Illinois since leaving for school, so I was thrilled to show Axel a little bit of where I came from.
We loaded up the car with our bags, preparing for a nice weekend getaway. And like usual, I had packed way too many things.
I stared out the window, watching the highway go by. The weather had gotten nicer over the past week, spring finally setting in, so I was glad that we would be walking around the windy city in decent weather, rather than the cold.
“Whatcha thinkin’ about?” Axe asked, one hand on the wheel, one on my left thigh.
“How excited I am,” I responded, turning back towards him, away from the window.
His dimples sunk into his cheeks. “I’m excited too.”
I gasped as one of my favorite songs came on the speaker, leaning forward to slightly turn up the volume. I yelled out all the words, laughing as Axe’s eyebrows jumped up to his hairline by how terrible my voice sounded.
I turned down the volume, just enough so that Axe could hear me. “You like my singing voice?”
He chuckled, biting his lip. “I love it.”
“Oh, good,” I laughed. “I’m sure you’re reconsidering what you said about being stuck with me forever last week on our walk.”
“Not at all,” he smiled, shaking his head.
“I’ll wake you up every morning to the sound of my wonderful singing voice.”
His eyes widened for a second. “That’s okay. You don’t have to do that.”
I threw my head back, laughing. I covered his hand that was on my thigh with my own, grabbing it and bringing it up to my mouth. I planted a little kiss on the back of his hand, holding onto it as I placed it back into my lap.
The song changed to a slower one. My mouth turned upwards, watching Axe as he began to sing along. His voice was so beautiful. Deep and raspy, yet delicate and smooth. I turned the volume lower.
“Why’d you turn it down?” he asked, shifting his eyes between the road and I.
“So that I could hear you singing,” I replied. He smirked, happy with my answer. “Do you want me to sing with you?”
“Oh, God,” he chuckled.
The sides of my mouth turned upwards as he caught back onto the music, continuing to sing along as if he never stopped in the first place.
About two hours later, the skyline came into view. I could tell Axe was struggling to keep his eyes on the road, distracted by the beautiful sight of Chicago.
I used the GPS on my phone to navigate us towards Michigan Avenue. I had been to Chicago dozens of times before, and I knew my way around Michigan Avenue itself, but the roads to get there still confused me.
Axe was getting a little fed up with the city drivers, annoyed by their impatience and fierce driving. I drove all the time in Chicago, almost every time I went there, so I was used to it, but Axe wasn’t. I felt kind of bad. I should’ve offered to drive so that he wouldn’t have to deal with it.
We parked in the parking garage that was alongside our hotel. Axe had made reservations for us at the nicest hotel in the city. I told him it wasn’t necessary to spend nearly four hundred dollars to stay in a hotel for a single night, but he wouldn’t listen, claiming that he wanted us to have a luxurious time and that he needed the “full Chicago experience.” Whatever that meant.
My jaw immediately dropped when we walked in. The tall ceilings and marble floors were most definitely luxurious, matched with the bright chandeliers that hung along the ceilings. Damn. This was double fancy.
I stood next to Axe as we checked in. Guilt consumed me as Axe handed over his credit card to the man working at the front desk, bothered by how much money Axe was spending without letting me help out.
I clung onto his arm with one hand as we brought our bags up to the room.
I set mine down and took a look around, still amazed by how nice everything was. It was hands down the best hotel I had ever stayed at. I collapsed onto the bed for a few minutes, positioning myself up on my elbows as I watched Axe stare out the window.
I got off the bed and walked up next to him, wrapping my arms around his middle. He looked down at me and beamed, bringing an arm around my waist.
“Pretty view, right?” I said.
“Yeah,” he agreed, observing every inch. “Do you want to go walk around soon?” he asked eagerly.
“Sure,” I said with a smile.
He checked his watch. “Okay, it’s almost four and our reservation is at six, so—”
“Reservation?” I lifted a brow.
“Yeah, I made us dinner reservations.”
I tilted my head. “It better not be at some crazily expensive restaurant.”
“Nah,” he said, waving it off. “Just go ahead and change or get ready or whatever you’ve gotta do and then we can go walk around for a bit before dinner.” He kissed my forehead and toppled onto the bed.
Axe had his arms behind his head as he lay there, looking over at me. The gray t-shirt he had on under his blue unbuttoned flannel rode up a bit, slightly exposing his dragonfly tattoo. I couldn’t help but want to rip the shirt off. But I knew I needed to wait until later tonight. We had places to go.
I quickly changed into a nice purple sweater and jeans that didn’t have any holes in them. I stood in front of the bathroom mirror, brushing through my long hair before applying lip gloss.
The second we began walking around, Axe’s eyes were everywhere. He took everything in, watching angry taxi drivers pass by and walking around the pigeons on the sidewalk. Axe glanced upwards at the buildings, amazed. It was cute that his first time in Chicago was with me. It made the experience even more special.
“The buildings are so… tall,” he said, his eyes still lingering around.
“Good observation,” I laughed. “You wanna go by the bean?” I asked as we made our way down Michigan Avenue.
“Is it around here?”
“Yeah. Right up the road.”
“Okay,” he smiled, his childish, adventurous side coming out.
We crossed the road, huddled in the middle of a crowd of people that were doing the same. Axe held onto my hand, not daring to let go. I led the way, knowing my way around Michigan Avenue.
As usual, giant groups of people and tourists from everywhere surrounded the bean, touching it and taking pictures. Axe was eager to get there, almost tugging me along as we got closer.
His eyes widened as we approached. “How do you think they built this thing?”
“I’m not really sure, honestly.”
“And why a bean? Why not a carrot or something?”
“Or like an apple.”
Axe’s eyes zipped over to me. “They can’t do an apple.”
“Why not? Fruits are better than vegetables.”
“Because it’s the Windy City.”
“Okay…and?”
“Not the Big Apple.”
“Okay,” I rolled my eyes, “I see what you mean. But fruits are still better than vegetables.”
“I don’t even think beans are vegetables.”
“Whatever. No need to get all technical, dork. Go stand next to it,” I insisted, positioning him. I slid my phone out of my pocket and backed up. Axe flashed his most charming smile as he stood next to the bean, allowing me to snap a perfect photo.
We continued to explore the city, walking into whatever stores we came across that looked interesting. There wasn’t a single second that passed that we weren’t overjoyed and smiling and laughing. It felt like after everything, the world was finally on our side, as if the universe was finally working in our favor.
Western was filled with people who knew Axe and I. It was filled with a handful of people who had been trying to rip us apart. But Chicago was filled with millions of people who didn’t know who either of us were. Nobody here was out to ruin us.
Axe and I made our way to the restaurant. It was only a fifteen-minu
te walk from where we were, so we didn’t bother getting a taxi. When we walked in, my eyebrows shot up. I hit Axe’s arm as the hostess led us to our table.
“What?”
“You said it wasn’t gonna be fancy!” I yelled in a whisper.
He waited until we were seated in our booth to respond. “It’s not that fancy.”
I shook my head as I looked around. “The marvelous chandeliers hanging from the ceiling say otherwise!” I took a deep breath as I picked up the menu, taking a look at all the options. My eyes jumped out of their sockets. “Fifty dollars for a steak?”
Axe grinned. “Who cares? Just get whatever you want.”
“Axe. You spend more money on me than you do on yourself.”
“And what’s wrong with that?” he asked, skimming the menu. “Do you want the steak?”
“I mean, yeah, but not for fifty dollars,” I replied, my eyes moving from the steak to the other options on the menu.
A few minutes later, our waiter appeared. “Welcome,” he said, bowing his head. I zoned out for a second as he read off the specials, my mind too consumed as I studied every inch of Axe from across the table. “What can I get for you tonight ma’am?” he asked, snapping me out of my daze.
“Oh, um,” I started, retreating back to the menu to repeat what I had chosen.
“We’ll both have the filet please,” Axe budded in. “And can we also get mashed potatoes and a ceasar salad, please?”
“How would you like your steaks cooked?” the waiter asked.
“Medium well, please,” Axe responded.
Damnit. He even knew how I liked my steak.
“Very well, sir. I’ll have that right out for you.” Our waiter took our menus and walked off, leaving me to shoot a disapproving look at Axe.
He sipped on his drink. “What?” he asked, laughing as he put it down.
“Now you’re spending over a hundred dollars on dinner.”
He sighed, eyeing me from across the table. “Baby,” he said firmly, “I don’t care about money. Stop worrying about it, okay?”
I exhaled, letting it go. This was our trip, and I didn’t want to ruin it by complaining about how nice Axe was being.
I rested my hands on the table. The scene reminded me of the first time we went out to dinner, the first time I ever got any real idea of who Axe was. We barely knew each other then, and at that point, I was too scared to get to know him better, too scared to fall for him or get too close to him. And now, we knew each other better than we knew ourselves. We had conquered everything that had been thrown at us, and we had done so together.
My taste buds were beyond happy as I ate my steak, satisfied with the fact that it was most definitely the best steak I had ever had. Axe and I finished eating, and after paying the check, we left, reentering the windy city air. It was dark out now and all the city lights were beaming, causing Axe to look around, once again amazed by the view.
After walking around and exploring the city for a few more hours, we headed back to the hotel, content with how our day went.
I shimmied off my jeans and plopped onto the bed, my feet tired from how much walking we had done. Axel placed a knee onto the bed, reaching over for me. He scooped me up and threw me over his shoulder, tickling me.
“Axe,” I said in between laughs, “stop tickling me!”
He placed me down on the bed, collapsing next to me as he hugged my middle. I played with his hair, feeling more peaceful than I ever had in my entire life.
My hands slowly lingered over his abdomen before starting to tickle him. Revenge.
His limbs flailed around, trying to free himself of my touch and after a minute, he flipped over, smashing his lips onto mine.
I gripped the back of his neck as his tongue slipped into my mouth, analyzing every inch of it. He reached down and pulled my knee up towards my chest, running his hand along the inside of my thigh. I fell onto my back, allowing him to position himself on top of me as he slid my thong off. I kicked it off once it reached my ankles, diverting my attention back to his lips.
Axe’s mouth broke away from mine and I impatiently watched as he stepped out of his black jeans, throwing them onto the ground along with his flannel and grey t-shirt. He slipped my purple sweater off of me, a satisfied grin appearing on his face as it joined the pile of clothes on the floor.
We woke up early the next morning and after quickly eating breakfast in the hotel, we got ready for the day.
“Where do you wanna go first?” I asked.
“Wherever,” Axe shrugged. “I wanna see everything,” he grinned.
I thought to myself for a second, thinking of the best places that Chicago had to offer. “Okay. I know where we should go first,” I smirked.
An hour later, Axe gripped my hand as we took the elevator up to the Chicago Skydeck at the top of Willis Tower. The elevator doors opened, revealing the one hundred and third floor of the building.
I led Axe over to one of the glass cases, which gave an entire view of the city. I stepped onto it, taking in the beauty of Chicago and all its entirety. My eyes drifted down, looking through the glass beneath my feet before I turned back to Axe.
“Come on here with me,” I smiled.
“It’s so high,” he said, unsure.
“I know that. Now come on here with me,” I repeated.
“But, it’s so high…”
“Oh, so now you’re afraid of heights?” I rolled my eyes.
“Maybe.”
“Since when?”
“Since they built that shit out of glass,” he pointed.
“It’s not gonna break.”
He raised his brows. “You can’t guarantee that.”
I held my arms out. “I’m standing on it right now.”
“Yeah, but you’re small.”
I rolled my eyes again and reached for him. “You’re being a wuss. Get on here.”
He finally complied, holding onto me for a minute until he got comfortable enough. His dimples began to sink in as he took a look around, finally giving him the understanding of why I loved Chicago so much.
“Would you two like a photo of you?” a voice called from behind us.
We both turned, seeing an older woman smiling at us.
“Sure,” I smiled, handing her my phone. “Thank you.” I leaned into Axe, placing my hand gently on the center of his chest as the kind woman snapped a photo. I had been taking pictures of Axe throughout the trip, documenting his cute reactions to the places we went, but Axe and I didn’t have a lot of photos together, definitely not as many as I would’ve liked for us to have.
The woman handed the phone back to me. “Thank you so much,” I said again.
“Of course,” she grinned. She turned to Axe. “She’s a very pretty one,” she whispered loudly. “Sweet too. Make sure you keep her.”
“Planning on it,” Axe smirked. I glanced over at Axe, his eyes bringing a feeling of fullness to my heart.
“Next stop?” I asked.
“Yeah,” he agreed with a beautiful smile as he gripped my hand.
After the Skydeck, we went to the Shedd Aquarium, spending a decent amount of the day there, checking out all the exhibits they had. I had been to all of these places numerous times throughout my life, but it was fun exploring the city with Axe. It was almost as if I had never been there before, as if it was my first time. He made everything feel fresh, brand new.
“Now where?” Axe asked as we exited the aquarium.
“Dinner?”
“Bet, I’m hungry. Where do you wanna eat?”
“Uno’s,” I replied.
He brought his eyebrows in. “What’s that?”
“Pizza,” I responded. “Chicago pizza.”
Axe nodded, taking his phone out of his pocket. “I’ll turn the GPS on.”
“We don’t need that thing,” I waved it off. “I know where I’m going.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah,” I ensured him.
; We swung our intertwined hands back and forth, walking towards Uno’s Pizza. It was one of the best places to get some genuine Chicago deep dished pizza, so it was necessary that Axe tried it. After all, he kept claiming he wanted the “full experience.”
“I like it here,” Axe said, glancing around.
“Me too. Greatest city in the world.”
“Well—”
“You can’t change my mind,” I insisted.
“Guess we might have to just live here someday,” he said, his eyes dropping from the buildings to me.
I raised my brows. “City living? Eh, I don’t know if I could do it.”
“What? Why not?”
“Too many people. So expensive. You gotta walk everywhere and we all know I can be lazy.”
“The laziest,” Axe said. I shot him a glare. “You said it!” he chuckled. His eyes wandered around again, brows coming together as he took a look around us. “Are you sure you know where we’re going?” Axe asked.
“Yeah, yeah,” I waved him off.
“Tate, do you really, though?” he chuckled.
“I mean, I’ve been here before,” I shrugged.
“But have you gotten there from the Shedd Aquarium before?” he questioned.
“Well… not necessarily… but I know where we’re going.”
“You do realize we passed this same exact t-shirt shop fifteen minutes ago.”
“It’s Chicago. There’s the same store a couple blocks apart throughout the entire city.”
“Yeah, but does every t-shirt shop have a guy standing outside of it wearing a shirt that says, ‘Fuck you, I’m from Chicago’?”
“Well…no…”
Axe stopped in his tracks, causing my feet to stop as well. “You got us lost, didn’t you?” he said, the sides of his mouth slowly turning upwards.
“We’re not lost,” I insisted. “I just wanted to take the long way so we could go sight-seeing.”
“Mhmm,” he hummed, swinging our hands.
“We aren’t lost.”
“You can admit that you got us lost,” he smirked.