passing the time imagining cooking for a partner... they've had a hard day at work, put in extra hours, and when they come home all they want is to fall onto the couch and relax for a while. i've spent the afternoon cooking, making sure they'd have a warm, filling meal to come home to. something savory, heavy. comfort food. i know my baby has a big appetite, especially after work, so i bring them an overfilled plate, hot, everything direct from the oven, and perch on the arm of the couch to watch. they eat fast, at first, starving and still working off some of their stress. i'm careful to keep their plate filled -- devoted to it, really. soon enough they start to slow down enough to taste their food, and they moan with pleasure. they're getting close to full, but everything's so good they don't want to stop. i keep a quiet, loving watch as they clear the rest of their plate. pantingly, a little abashed, a hand resting on the curve of their belly -- they've put on some weight, lately, and they teasingly blame my cooking, but we both know the real cause is how much they like eating my cooking -- they ask for more. i bring it (with a kiss, and a fond pat to their stomach, which is starting to strain against their waistband, full of everything i made them), and go back to watching, and waiting. we both know the night will end with them stuffed full, warm and drowsy, fly unbuttoned and shirt riding up the curve of their belly -- firm and full, for now, but getting softer all the time.
