Mimi had been pulling the old, striped wallpaper off the living room wall for two hours. She was almost finished with the long wall that stretched the length of the large living room. To her right were the long floor to ceiling windows that looked over the river and behind her, not ten paces back was a small step where the carpet melted away into faded parquet and the kitchen beyond. There was a loud thud and Sven sighed happily behind her.
"Done." He sighed, the satisfaction tainting his voice, "Table finished. Come and have a look."
Mimi looked around and felt an odd sense of nostalgia. She finally felt like this apartment belonged to them and not the couple in their middle sixties who had lived here previously. She wiped her hands on her jeans and trotted over to admire Sven's handiwork.
"Oh. Good." She smiled, wrapping her arms around his waist, "It's back."
"Yep." Sven beamed and rubbed her shoulder. "See, two hours and it's like it was never gone."
"Thank you." Mimi said again, "It's so nice to have some of our old stuff back. It really makes it feel like...home, you know."
Sven nodded and walked around the counter and into the kitchen. He pulled a beer from the fridge and let the lid fall onto the counter with a resonant clink. "Do you want one?"
Mimi nodded and he took another bottle from the fridge, pulled the cap off and handed it to her. She took it and drank quickly, the cool, brown liquid washing the dust from her throat.
"Well," she sighed, "I think that's us done for today."
"Hmm." Sven nodded and planted the bottle on the pale table behind him. It was old and ridged with time but sturdy and heavy. Held together with thick wooden grooves that hammered together at the legs. It had taken Sven, his brother and Mimi to carry it in pieces into the apartment the day before and most of the afternoon for Sven to hammer it back together, the old wood having warped and dried slightly. But, finally, it was done and the grin on Mimi's face was enough reward. He ran his hands over the marked surface of the table and smiled, satisfied by his work. He had always said that if he wasn't in music he'd be animating but there was something which always drew him to fixing things, to hard work and the smell of dust and manual labor; The pride in having made something from scratch. He wondered whether it was just the people-pleasing streak he had, and with the table, he couldn't help but feel...
"What?" Mimi nudged him and gave a wry smile, "Why are you grinning like that?"
"Oh." Sven looked up and tried to pull his best poker-face again. "I was just thinking about how glad I was to get this built today." He answered, "I'm pretty proud of it, actually." He admitted, "And...you looked so happy." He threw his arm around her shoulder and kissed her temple.
She smiled to herself and nodded, taking another sip from her beer. "You know I love it. Didn't carry it across the country for no reason." She answered, "And it's a great table. I've cooked on here, it takes a real beating, it's strong, it's reliable, it's..." she stopped and smiled to herself and then looked up to Sven again, "It's like you in table form." She answered, her laughter rolling like glass beads around the room, high and sparkling and catching the light.
Sven raised an eyebrow, baffled. "Thanks." He answered, "That's...good to know. That you think I'm just a piece of furniture."
"NO!" Mimi slapped him on the chest playfully and wrapped her arms around him again. "You know that's not what I mean! Just that you're strong and reliable and comforting."
"And you want to chop vegetables on me." Sven added.
"No." Mimi laughed again and looked up, a mischievous smile twisting her lips, "I want to have hot, hot sex on you."
Sven smiled. "Yes, do you remember... at the old house by the lake," He ran his thumb over her cheek and grinned, "You were baking and-"
"Yes." Mimi smiled and kissed him gently on the mouth, "and you showed up and ruined everything."
Sven blushed, giggling like a naughty child. "Sorry." He answered, absent-mindedly running his hand over the smooth, scarred wood. He drained his beer and stretched out, picking up the empty bottle and walking back to the kitchen and dumping it in the bin, the thoughts of the previous summer flickering around his mind, lighting up the rainy February afternoon.
"You know," Mimi sighed, "We could always have a repeat performance if you like." She put her bottle on the worktop that separated the dining area from the kitchen and leant across to rub Sven's arm.
"Oh really?" he smiled and walked around the kitchen unit, a little more spring in his step.
"Yes." Mimi breathed, "You've worked so hard today and I think it's only fair that we unwind a little." She laid her head on his chest and smiled demurely, "I've got some new toys too." She whispered, "Perfect time to try them out."
The breath caught in Sven's throat and it turned into a low, hearty purr. "What?" he asked, "I didn't know." He pulled out a chair and sat down.
"Hmm." Mimi followed, planting herself on his lap, "Well, while you have been off bar-hopping with your brother these past two days, I have been doing a little shopping and aside from the girly stuff like a couple of new dresses and those to die for shoes I saw last week, I also bought a little something for you."
"Oh yeah?" Sven smiled squeezing her tight, "And what would that be?"
"A new cock."
Sven snorted. "I'm sorry?" he said, "What's wrong with this?" he gestured to his own crotch and Mimi rubbed his thigh.
"No silly, that is fine. More than fine. But I just thought you were...ready."
"Oh?" Sven looked up at her quizzically, "What do you mean?"
"Well," Mimi replied, "It's a little bigger than you're used to, but it's just so hot and it really turned me on and I just had to buy it."
