Chaos beyond the grid

Eleanore spent the whole dinner stroking Charles's thigh, and she could see by how he adjusted in his seat that it was having the desired effect – one thing she didn't know was whether or not she could stick to the no-sex agreement. His apology to Kika had been so sweet and sincere, and she hadn't had as much time as his girlfriend to enjoy him the way she wanted to. She felt him looking at her with a hint of concern, and he took her hand – interlocking their fingers and bringing them to his lips to place a tender and loving kiss – in that moment when she looked into his eyes she knew there was no way in hell she would be sticking to the deal she made. The group finished their meal and decided to play some board games – monopoly was the first choice, and it turned out the boys did not like to lose – they all started complaining that the dice were rigged whenever they didn't land on their chosen property. Eleanore couldn't help laughing – knowing she was just as competitive, but better at hiding it. Surprisingly absolutely no one Kika dominated the game and thoroughly obliterated them all.

Eleanore: ok, Kika seriously you should consider world domination as a career path.

Kika: I know!

They had all laughed, except for Pierre who had refused to play and sat sulking in the corner because Kika was giving him the silent treatment. Pietra and Isa had continued lightly teasing Max and Carlos, but Eleanore had been sat on Charles's lap, comfortably and fallen asleep in his arms. Charles looked down when he felt her breathing had steadied and knew she was out cold. He kissed her head and lifted her gently up, bidding goodnight to the house guests before carrying her to the bedroom. He lay her on the bed and went to the bathroom to grab her makeup remover and cotton pads – he knew well enough that women didn't like falling asleep with their makeup on, and didn't want to get bad boyfriend points for letting that happen to Eleanore. he read the instructions on the bottle carefully and wondered what was so special about 'Micellar Water', when he poured a small amount onto the cotton pad he thought it was more oily than watery. Gently wiping the makeup from her face he couldn't help but notice that the product left a lot of residue on the skin, and thought that no one would enjoy that, so he went to turn the tap on and warm the water before soaking a washcloth – returning to his girlfriend with it in hand, he softly cleaned the residue off her face, placing a kiss on her nose when he was done. Taking the makeup remover, washcloth, and cotton pads back to the bathroom he grabbed her toothbrush and put some toothpaste onto it, then placed it on the counter. He didn't want to wake her up, but he was certain no matter how careful he was cleaning her teeth for her would wake her, so may as well let her do this herself. He sat on the bed beside her and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

Charles: mon amour, wake up, you need to brush your teeth.

Eleanore groaned in response and Charles laughed a little – even her annoyed noises were cute.

Charles: please, I don't want you to be angry with me in the morning, come on.

He kissed her nose and then her forehead and she pulled him down for a kiss, which he happily returned.

Eleanore: why are you disturbing my nice dream?

Charles: so you can brush your teeth and not be angry at me in the morning for letting you fall asleep without doing it.

Eleanore could not quite believe how adorable he was sometimes, and at that moment she was completely stunned – he was sitting on the bed looking at her with so much love, and all he was thinking about was that she would be angry at him for not making her brush her teeth. She kissed him and then slowly climbed out of bed, heading to the bathroom. When she looked up into the mirror she had to do a double take as she was no longer wearing any makeup, Charles came in and stood behind her with a proud smile on his face and she realized he must have removed it for her.