A Piece of My Heart (Ella)

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Milan cared for Ella, more than he had probably managed to express as of late. With them being together for over a year now, the man was pretty much convinced that she was the woman he didn’t want to risk losing. The fear of doing so, made him sensitive to ‘mistakes’, to ‘failure’. The fact that their planned date to the petting zoo had to be canceled due to a recruitment fell under that category in his opinion, and so he dedicated himself to making it up to Ella.

The planning itself went rather smooth. The recruiter had managed to involve one of her friends into the little setup, letting her trick Ella into believing a mini-event was taking place at the petting zoo that evening, hence the reason they headed down there after the closing hours. Of course the parking lot was empty, no other visitors still there.

Knowing the manager worked out in Milan’s advantage. What was there, however, was a path of tea lights. It wasn’t exactly dark out yet, but it probably would not be too long before the evening fell over the petting zoo.

“I should had to give you this as well, in case you might want to use it.” With that, the friend held out a flashlight, giving the dorm monitor a reassuring smile. “No worries. I am sure you’ll have a great time.3

With that, her hand made a little shooing motion for Ella to get out of the car.

[Ella Robbinson]

Understanding the life of a recruiter took definite effort. Ella knew for herself she'd struggle to be ready to assist anyone in such need on a whim, and so she easily admired the word Milan managed to do. Whenever he had to leave, she wore no ill feelings for him. It was a life he'd committed himself to, and being cross over things out of his control was selfish. If he had a choice on given days, she knew where he'd likely stay.

It made building the foundation of a defined relationship difficult, but then, so did she. Self-depreciative as she was. Undeserving as she believed herself to be.

An empty parking lot raised the obvious alarm bells for the hemokinetic, but she settled the rise in her pulse at the obvious confusion. Perhaps there was some kind of miscommunication? It was an obvious train of thought. At least, until her eyes landed on a familiar face. Door opened, handing her a flashlight. Her gaze struck him momentarily before she looked away to the array of lights nearby.

"I thought you were busy tonight." She said lightly, taking his direction and leaving the car. Her hand curled around the extended light, taking it from his hand. "What've you got planned?"

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If Ella were to ever request it of him, there was quite a chance that Milan would adjust his work to his private life. With that in mind, he also knew that it was doubtful it was in the dorm monitor’s personality to ever request that. Nevertheless, at this stage, the man was willing to consider it. In his mind, their relationship had reached a steady level, oblivious to exactly how Ella viewed the bond they had built up during the last year.

When blue optics landed on the woman’s face, a smile immediately tugged at the recruiter’s lips. “I was.” A hand gestured behind him. “Busy planning this.” The grin held pride, but at the same time it was very gentle as the hand that had not been holding the flashlight was now offered to Ella.

“I’m taking you to the petting zoo, just like promised.” It might not have been the day he had originally planned it on, which possibility could have disappointed her some, but he very much hoped to make it up to her. After all, his boyfriend skills needed some polishing. He felt like he had been failing her lately, and that brought along the fear that her feelings for him might diminish and that other men would try to swoon her.

“If you had other plans tonight, I wouldn’t want to keep you from them though.” He was, of course, hopeful she was willing to let him keep her company the rest of the evening (and possibly night).

[Ella Robbinson]

It was impossible to hold in the small breath of laughter Ella offered at his response. That he was busy planning this; so full of surprises was he that she often had to take a spare moment to catch her breath. Without a look to the hand he offered, the hemokinetic took it, always noting how comfortably hers fit within his own. Like second nature, now.

She recalled the promise in question, her expression devoid of any ill feelings. They both worked at the school. They knew exactly how things could change on a dime, and they worked to accommodate that.

"Absolutely no plans." Ella replied lightly, offering a small squeeze to his hand for good measure. "Don't you worry about that."

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After his hand received the small squeeze, he brought hers up and placed a gentle kiss on top of it as they walked. “I often wonder what I did to deserve having a woman like you in my life.” The compliment might have been completely random, but that didn’t eliminate just how genuine and full of love his words were. If the tone didn’t make it clear, surely the look on his face did.

“And I am very surprised that other men didn’t jump at this opportunity while I was gone.” Milan was jokingly adding that as part of the compliment. While not too serious about it (since he would not have been amused had it actually occurred), little did he know one guy was actually trying to poach on his preserves.

Either way, features lit up as being at the petting zoo sparked his inner child some. “So, what animals do you want to see?” Animals first. Then the suggestion to make the playground equipment unsafe.

[Ella Robbinson]

The compliment offered forced a definite kick to her heartbeat; such small moments where he shone so perfectly and Ella felt just that little bit unworthy. It was hardly anything he put on her, but it was simply the way when it came to her.

That shift in her pulse ignited in a new way as Milan continued. It was true, as of late she'd found herself in different company more frequently than she would have expected. After a quick run in with an indifferent person from her high school years, he continuously had the means to find her. Or perhaps she somehow just kept finding him. He made her nervous, but she'd hardly adhere James to the idea that someone was actively looking for something concrete from her.

So she stayed silent. Because why not?

"Do you know much about this place?" Ella asked, raising her eyebrows. She had to wonder just how much he'd put into this plan, "Is there a path we follow, or do we just wander to what we want to see first?"

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Had Milan suspected something was off, he surely would have asked. Of course he trusted Ella, but that didn’t mean he didn’t want to know details involving other men. Not having had any steady relationships before this one, it was difficult to say whether or not he was the jealous type. That, however, didn’t take away the fact that he judged them to be serious. Worries involving this were the last thing on his mind.

“Well, there are paths, but it sounds more adventurous to wander around and to see which greatness we come across. In other words, wherever you go, I’ll follow.” The second after that statement, he forced a serious look onto his face. Based on what he said next, Ella should be able to tell he was faking that. “The playground, however, is an obligatory stop along the way.”

With a small chuckle, features softened. “You’ll have to tell me when you’re getting cold though, or when you want to go home.” Milan would pay extra attention to any signs, but he was not flawless when it came to reading women.

What he could predict though, was her probably loving to see the rabbit hill they were approaching now.

[Ella Robbinson]

As Milan explained the lax rules of their date, Ella took the notion in with a small nod. There were countless ways to go, she knew. But still, she was hardly ever one to lead. Following was her primary protocol. It was interesting to know the tides were about to change, even for one night.

"The playground, Milan." She repeated with a small, amused laugh. Of course it was a stop, and of course she'd happily obliged. It just sounded so very much like him.

But that was hardly the point. With a small stall, Ella briefly considered her options, filtering light across proverbial paths for a spare second. "This way." She finally offered, her smile only widening as she shone the torch down a particular path to the left. What she might find that way, she hardly knew. She suspected he knew a little more about the track than she could have.

"I'm glad you have time tonight."

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Milan wasn’t the kind of person who would go ballistic once he lost control on mundane situations like this. He more than happily allowed Ella to make some decisions. If she rather didn’t, however, he wouldn’t mind. As long as the young woman was happy, his day would be flawless. And visiting the playground surely could contribute to that. It were small details like that which made life worthwhile.

“I am positive you were secretly hoping that I would suggest that.” The recruiter mused as his hand gave hers a loving squeeze. They could relive childhood memories, or, in case she missed out on that, create new ones. He wanted to do things that were not to be expected, to show her new things.

For now, however, he began to walk down the path she had picked out, making sure to maintain the same pace as she did. A few steps in, his hand let go of the contact and instead the arm loosely draped itself around Ella’s shoulders, gently and carefully hugging her a bit closer into his side while also successfully planting a kiss on the side of her head.

“For you, always.” And he hoped the addition to that statement would erase the couple of times that he had failed to live up to promises from her memory. “I’m cutting back on my work load. Make more time for what’s truly important.” Ella.

As a small barn appeared on their left sides, he looked down at her with a big grin. “You’re going to love this.” Letting go, he stepped over to the door that had been left ajar, pushing it open further for the brunette to enter.

Inside, two lambs could be spotted behind wooden bars, suspiciously raising their heads for the strangers had interrupted their sleep.

[Ella Robbinson]

It was always daunting to know someone was shifting their lives - even only slightly - to compensate for her. Ella knew of her own track record; of how long people lingered before they would make the inevitable move away. Yet there he was, perfect as ever and cutting away at his usual work load in order to make himself available.

She glanced towards him to catch the grin he wore, her own smile growing as a result. She took steps to follow as he pressed the door open. Quiet as it was, it was impossible not to get completely drawn in by the small, sleep-riddled animals inside. Ella was stagnant at first, but with generous encouragement she took short steps towards them, extending her hand out delicately.

As much as she thought to let it go, she couldn't. Distracting as the adorable nature of such animals were.

"Are you sure you should be cutting back on your availability?" Ella asked, her voice dropped to a lower tone for the sake of the moment, "I know how important it is for you to be there for new students." And it was so like him for his heart to exceed his own needs for the sake of others.

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The last on Milan’s mind was to make a move away. The current length of their relationship was not something he went over lightly. It effortlessly indicated just how invested he was in her. It wasn’t just a fluke of the moment thing. And, if given the chance, he would keep proving that to the young woman. She was worth every single second of it all.

When Ella approached the two lambs, the recruiter turned to an old drawer which had the most simple of microwaves standing on it. Something was placed within before the man turned around to address the question asked.

“Positive,” he replied. “I will still be there, investing more in my current recruited students. And in us.” Milan didn’t want her to feel responsible for that decision. His heart was in this one. Work was important, yes, but it definitely was not everything. Having her in his life contributed to it, and he was incredibly grateful for that motivation. His heartbeat was steady and relaxed at that moment, backing up the decision; this was what he wanted.

When the microwave beeped, the man spun around and took the item out. He twirled it between his hands while spinning around, stepping forward to offer it to Ella. It might be an incredibly stupid activity, but he hoped she would appreciate it nevertheless.

“Did you ever bottle-feed a lamb?” His grin goofy when he opened the fence for Ella to step inside the box. Of course this were things they could not have done had they visited on a normal day during the opening hours.

He then turned to pick the second bottle out of the microwave before entering the pen, making sure to close it behind them, even though he doubted the lambs would skip out. They were crying at the sight of food, darting around their legs. It made Milan squat down, giving a loving chuckle when one of the little animals immediately suckled on the pacifier.

Features did soften when he looked over at Ella though, observing that pretty face of hers. He didn’t speak; he just took her all in. Perfect.