Who is Eli? is a story that is set directly following the newly released Let Me In film. Owen casually finds one of Abby's puzzles and notices the name "Eli" etched upon it. Abby decides the time is right to reveal more of her mysterious past.

NOTE:

I have seen both Let the Right One In and Let Me In and have also read the novel. I feel this story is one of the most beautiful tales I've ever come to know. This work of fan fiction is an attempt take what, in my humble opinion, are the best elements from both movies and the novel and bring them together while at the same time revealing my version of what happens when the train stops. I hope you enjoy the first installment of the story. Please leave comments on what you liked and didn't like!

-Naitouk, among the ranks of "We The Infected."

Chapter One: Revelations

Owen sat staring out of the window as the landscape raced along side of the train in a blur of colors. Throughout his life, Owen hated the day. The daytime was when he went to school, it was when he was bullied, and it was when he had to do things he didn't like to do! Although he was surrounded by people during the day, he never felt more alone. After having left all of that behind, he still hated the day, but for a much different reason.

He was lonely, especially right now.

"Excuse me, can I see your ticket please?" asked the ticket checker who walked up.

Owen fished into the back pouch of his bag and offered his ticket to the clerk for validation. As he handed the ticket back to Owen, the man took notice of the large trunk that sat in front of the boy.

"This trunk yours, son?"

"Yeah," responded Owen as he chewed on a piece of Now and Later candy. With a polite nod, the ticket checker stepped back into the aisle and continued to move through the train. Owen was alone again.

He sighed heavily as he reached into his bag to remove the Rubik cube he managed to hastily grab last night. All of the sides were solid, just as he and Abby had left it before things got so crazy. Life was crazy. There he sat looking at the cube in amazement, turning it from side to side. With a little work, he knew he could even do it again if he wanted. The Rubik cube was but one example of how the impossible now seemed possible since Abby came into his life.

He heard a soft tapping and looked down at the trunk. Owen grinned. Abby had tapped something only they were likely to understand. She had tapped the word "K-I-S-S." Owen no longer felt alone. He knew that a wooden trunk and the blazing sun outside the window was all that kept him from being besides her. He liked her. A lot. Owen had always thought girls were gross, but with Abby, he felt differently.

Reaching down discretely, he tapped out the word "K-I-S-S" back to her. Night could not come soon enough.

The sun began to creep down in the sky. It was almost safe for Abby to come out from her hiding place. Owen kept wondering where they were going, and more importantly, how they would survive. He knew that Abby had managed for a very long time, and by now, was good at what she did. He could not help but wonder if she would take care of him.

Of course she will, he reassured himself. After all, she had just saved his life. The boys had always picked on him, but this last time was different. They were out for blood. Without Abby, he would now be dead. He tried to force himself not to remember, but the tightness in his lungs was inescapable. He was a heartbeat away from death, one second away from filling his lungs with water. Of all the people in the world, it was Abby who saved him.

Owen did not think of himself as a very independent boy. He always had his mother to watch over him, to make sure he ate, to make sure he did his homework, and to scold him when he made bad decisions. Now, he only had Abby.

He began to think about all of the things he had taken for granted in his life, mostly school. What would he do about school? How would he learn? After all, he had quite a passion for the sciences, and loved to learn things. What would he be when he grows up if he doesn't go to school? These were questions that suddenly became very important to him, but questions that would nevertheless have to wait. More urgently, he began to wonder what he would do when the train stopped.

When he and Abby had arrived at the train station early that morning, he had randomly picked a town that seemed far away. Abby had already taken refuge in the large trunk which he locked. He wanted to be sure no one would open it when he was not guarding it, though that was rare. Owen had approached the ticket counter, summoning every ounce of courage he had, smiled as sweetly as he could to the agent, and bought his one way ticket. Owen thought about their conversation as he traced his fingers along the ornate lock attached to the large trunk:

"You're going on quite an adventure, huh? Almost an entire day on the train!" the nice lady had asked him as she collected his money.

"Yep!" he responded. "Going to see my dad. He's picking us up at the train station and bringing lots of candy!"

"Us? Is someone with you?" asked the lady as she counted out the change to Owen.

Damn! He had made a mistake, and he knew it. Owen had been too busy staring at the money the lady had put down on the counter. He wasn't used to having so much. "My sister is coming too. Mom already bought her ticket."

"Oh? Well you two have fun! Don't talk to no strangers or nothing."

Owen offered a small smile, and with a quick "Bye," left the office to wait for the boarding call.

The sun had just finished its descent. Good. Soon, Owen would no longer be alone. Although he was exhausted, he knew that he and Abby would have to find a place to stay for the night. How would they do that? He was just a kid, and even if Abby wasn't really just a kid, she looked like one. As he realized that he didn't know anything about renting apartments or hotels, fear and panic began to set in until he heard a gentle tapping from the trunk.

I.S.I.T.S.A.F.E

Reaching into his pocket, he fished out a long, metallic key. Glancing over his shoulder to make sure no one was coming, Owen moved the key discretely into the lock and turned. The inner mechanisms of the lock echoed throughout the quiet compartment culminating in a CLICK. Owen cursed inwardly for making so much noise as he reached down and quickly raised the lid to the trunk. Abby quickly rose from within the trunk, stepped over the side, and sat down beside Owen just in time to avoid a young woman who was passing by. Closing the lid to the trunk, Owen wondered how Abby often managed to move so precisely without making a sound.

"What are we going to do, Abby?" Owen whispered.

"We have to find a place to stay, and get you something to eat." Abby looked towards Owen tenderly. Raising her hand slowly to his face, she brushed her fingertips lightly against his cheek.

"What about you? Are you hungry?"

Smiling softly, Abby responded, "I had plenty at the pool."

Owen understood, and gave a sigh of relief. He had just left everything he ever knew, and with the exception of Abby, he was alone. He could not deal with seeing Abby feed tonight.

Abby slowly ran her fingertips down Owen's cheek, down his arm onto his hand where she softly squeezed his hand. He was freezing. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah..." responded Owen as he lowered his eyes.

"Owen, thank you."

"For what?"

Abby simply smiled at Owen as she leaned in against him and kissed his cheek softly. Owen simply looked at her. He was getting used to it. Used to trusting Abby completely, even if he didn't yet understand her reasons.

The sound of the arrival announcement brought Owen out of the daze he had slipped into. It was a reality: he and Abby had arrived in a new town. What were they going to do? Questions were plentiful in his young mind, but for each that popped up, the answer was always the same: trust Abby.

The arrival of the train was heralded by the symphony of the groans of weary travelers as the doors to the passenger cabin slid open. Most of the passengers were quick to grab their affairs and rush to the doors to be the first off. Abby sat still for a moment, her eyes, overflowing with concern, remained fixed on Owen.

"Owen? Are you okay?"

Looking away from the now open doors, Owen managed to stammer out "Yeah."

"Its all going to be okay. I promise."

"I know," he nodded to her.

"We need to get off the train now. Look, there are some benches right outside. Lets go sit down there for a minute," Abby said as she pointed to a series of small benches on the arrival platform. She stood, picked up the backpack from the seat beside Owen and slung it up over her shoulder. With a reassuring smile and a quick wink, Abby headed towards the exit door. Owen quickly stood and followed Abby, dragging the large trunk behind him. Truth be told, it wasn't terribly heavy, and he had no problems dragging it.

They were the last off the train.

Owen kept his head down, afraid that by now, he was likely reported as a missing kid or a runaway. He didn't want to risk the possibility of someone recognizing him. Abby was already scouting the area. She took his hand into hers and squeezed it tenderly.

"Owen, do you trust me?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Stay here and wait for me, okay? I've got an idea."

"But I wanna go with you," protested Owen, his pleading eyes overflowing with fear and uncertainty were fixed upon Abby.

"It won't take long. Promise. Please?"

Owen reluctantly agreed. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small candy. A grape flavored one, his favorite! He quickly unwrapped the candy and slipped it into his mouth as he watched Abby walk away from him. The platform was much smaller here than it was back in Los Alamos, it was also much darker. Owen found himself pulling his coat tighter around his body to shield himself from the bitter cold. Looking around, he noticed there were several more benches around the area, each having elaborate advertisement for anything from fine dining to visiting a local museum. He wished he could take Abby out somewhere during the day, even if it were just a boring museum.

The gray brick building was surprisingly large for such a small platform. Owen could see inside of it by looking through the series of large crystal-clear windows that spanned the length of the building. Looking inside, Owen could not see many people other than a few travelers being reunited with their families, or people sleeping as they awaited their departure.

Owen began to push the fear of the unknown from his mind. He was a man now and had to start acting like it. He needed to be brave not only for himself, but for his new girlfriend. Pulling his coat tightly around him again as he shivered against the bitter cold, he pondered how lucky Abby was to not feel the cold. As he looked up, he could see Abby talking to an older man who was sitting on the ground near the side of the building, probably to stay out of sight of those inside. The man looked like a drunk or perhaps a beggar who had taken up refuge for the night at the train station. Moving closer, Owen began to hear some of the conversation.

"Two hundred dollars, plus whatever is left after you pay for the room," Abby said to the man. His head slumped back against the cold, gray brick wall as he considered her offer.

"Where ya get that kind of money? You screwing with me, little girl?"

The man's eyes sparkled like diamonds as Abby withdrew a large, folded stack of bills from her pocket which the man instinctively reached for. Abby took a small step back.

"Do we have a deal then?" asked Abby as she waved the bills around in front of the man.

"Yeah," stuttered the man as he struggled to his feet, still watching her.

Jonathan was once a proud man with dreams and aspirations that would have taken him to the moon. Literally. How did he end up here, sitting outside of a train station drunk again? Begging had been slow today, and with the exception of three dollars in change, he had "earned" nothing. Nothing until this little girl had come along, that is. Who was she? Where were her parents?

"Want to make a little money? Me and my friend need a hotel room and we can't buy it ourselves," the girl asked him.

He glanced up from his drunken stupor to look at her. She was a pretty little thing, he thought, but she was more than likely playing a joke on him. Damn kids, he thought to himself, maybe her parents will be along soon to stop her from talking to me. Don't parents teach their kids not to talk to strangers anymore? Screw it. This may be my only chance to eat tomorrow. He responded, "How much?"

"Two hundred dollars. Probably a little more."

"Whatcha want me to do again?"

The little girl sighed as if annoyed. Taking a small step back from him, she rested her hands inside the pockets of her sweater. Jonathan studied her for a moment as his vision came into better focus. The girl was wearing only a thin pink and blue turtleneck sweater and nothing to keep her ears warm. Wait. She's wearing a skirt? Isn't she freezing? No shoes? What the hell? Something isn't right here.

"So ya want me to go with ya to some motel," the little girl nodded her head as he spoke, "and rent ya a room for ya and a friend? How much ya gonna pay me?" he asked. By this point, he could see another small child, a boy who seemed to be dressed appropriately for the weather, beginning to walk in their direction.

"Two hundred dollars, plus whatever is left after you pay for the room." the girl responded, nodding her head.

This must be a joke, Jonathan thought to himself as he snorted, "Where ya get that kind of money? You screwing with me, little girl?"

His luck had been non-existent lately, he was not in the mood for jokes. His anger began to grow. The little girl withdrew her hands from the pockets of her sweater. He studied her briefly, until he saw the folded stack of bills in her hand. She must have a few grand there, Jonathan thought to himself, as he instinctively reached for the bills.

"Do we have a deal then?" asked the girl as she took a small step back into the light of one of the station lamps. For the first time, Jonathan could see her face clearly. He looked into her eyes and saw something, something that could not be put into words. It took every fiber of his self control not to reach out to her. It was in that moment that Jonathan fully noticed the haunting beauty of the child. To him, she appeared to be the embodiment of perfection, like one of those porcelain dolls his grandmother used to keep.

Struggling to his feet, Jonathan could not tear his gaze away from the girl's face. He managed to stammer out, "Yeah," his eyes still locked on the face of the child.

"Who is that Abby?" asked Owen as he walked up beside Abby.

Turning to Owen, Abby reached down and slipped her hand into his, lacing their fingers together. Her other hand slipped discretely back into the pocket of her sweater. She offered Owen a reassuring smile before turning her attention back to the man standing before them.

"He's going to help us."

"Oh." Owen responded as he looked at the strange man for a moment, he could smell the alcohol emanating from him. The man's smell reminded Owen of the high school kids who would hang out with Tommy back home in their downstairs hideout. The man steadied himself against the wall for just a moment as he continued to look at Abby. Owen felt a rush of jealousy surge through his body as he noticed the man staring at her. He decided not to say anything. Abby knew what she was doing, and he trusted her.

The man took a small step towards the two children and nodded his head as he shifted his eyes from Abby to Owen. "There's a motel right down the street. That good enough for you?"

"Yes. Take us there." Abby responded as she gave Owen's hand a reassuring squeeze.

If Jonathan would have had a home, he would have wished to be back in it. He had problems. Lots of them. He was a smart man, on track to achieve his aspirations of becoming a physicist. Yes, it all seemed to come together for Jonathan. All of the key elements for success were in place: the proper family, the proper cohorts, intelligence, and motivation. It was all there. Life was good until the incident. One evening of mistakes caused by large quantities of alcohol had brought his carefully constructed world to its knees, and now he suffered for it.

What the hell am I doing? Who are these kids? Why are they all alone?

Jonathan had been surviving by doing small odd jobs for people in the area. When he couldn't find anyone that needed his workman skills, he'd go to a public place and beg. Business was good for the most part, and he often found himself making a decent amount of money each day. All except today, until he had met the two children. Although he knew that something was seriously not right with his current situation, but the thought of two-hundred dollars blew away most of his apprehensions.

I'll take them to the hotel, get my money, and go find a place to stay.

Are you an idiot John? If anyone sees you with these two kids going into a sleazy motel.

But they look young enough to be my kids.

Jonathan was relatively new in town. He was a loner who preferred to live a nomadic "off the grid" life due to his past. He was a man who believed that science held the answers to the great mysteries of the universe. To him, there was no higher power to answer to. You were crazy if you got down on your knees and prayed. After all, you were ultimately talking only to yourself. Life was a mixture of extremely complex, multifaceted interactions. It was all very logical for him until you threw alcohol into the mix.

He hated kids. They were needy, menacing, ignorant, and annoying little monsters as far as he was concerned. What was he doing now entering into their service? These questions swam around in his mind as he sobered up, and the more he thought about it, the more it aggravated him.

Two hundred dollars. Gotta keep my eye on the prize.

The trio had exited the train station and began walking through the large, gravel parking lot towards the main road. Thankfully, the train station was not far away from a motel, and there were not many cars on the road to see him with the kids. Jonathan could collect his pay for the evening and go find himself a place to sleep until the morning when he would begin another long day of begging. Soon, maybe he could afford to get the hell out of the United States and move to Canada where he could begin a new life. His mind relished the thought of a new beginning, and he constantly was searching for the big, red "RESET" button that life had been keeping from him. A smile had formed on his face, that is, until he was assaulted by hundreds of tiny objects. Twice.

"Abby! Look! It's snowing! Pshhhhhhh," Owen exclaimed as he kicked at the loose gravel sending a shower of tiny loose rocks in front of them as they walked.

Giggling profusely, Abby also kicked at the gravel and created her own cloud of tiny rocks. "Mine's bigger! Mine's a blizzard!"

"Nu uh!" Owen protested playfully.

Jonathan sighed and angrily snapped his head around to face the kids after having been assaulted by two showers of gravel. "Watch it," he scowled.

The two of them attempted to hide their playful laughter as they muttered "Sorry" almost in unison. Abby winked at Owen.

It wouldn't be too long now. Not too far ahead of the trio, one could see a large florescent sign that read "THE RAINBOW MOTEL." Jonathan stopped a moment and pointed to the sign and said, "That's the place. Its a real shit hole, but that's what you were going for, eh?" a smirk forming on his face as he glanced back at the children who were following him closely, but not too close.

Abby, who was still calming down from her giggle fit, managed to nod her head and say, "Lets keep going."

Owen, who was also calming down from the nuclear gravel attack launched on the man, was no longer trying to prevent himself from laughing. He was beginning to get tired, but the sheer excitement of being with Abby in this new place allowed him to temporarily ignore his fatigue. He couldn't help himself from stealing little glances at her when he thought she wasn't looking. She looked extra special tonight, almost as if her skin was glowing dimly in the pale moonlight.

Maybe I'll kiss her.

A big grin had formed on his face as his thoughts began to wander. He began to walk a bit more confidently until he noticed Abby was looking at him. Quickly turning his eyes away from her, he gazed at the large drunk he was dragging. His cheeks quickly flushed with embarrassment. Luckily for Owen, they were very close to the motel now.

The motel was not very large and was laid out like a giant square with the rooms facing an interior parking lot. The parking lot, if you could call it that, was in a horrible state of disarray with several giant potholes near the entrance and scattered throughout. A tall pole with a large sign attached to the top sat in the center of the parking lot. The florescent sign provided some additional lighting to the dark area, but not much. A small office sat just outside of the entrance to the lot as if it were some sort of guard tower or checkpoint. There was a sign affixed to the wall of the building that read, "$45/NIGHT. AIR CONDITIONING. TELEVISION."

"Get us a room for five days," said Abby as she again reached into her pocket and fished out a stack of bills which she offered to Jonathan.

Snatching the bills into his hand, Jonathan looked over the children for just a moment before counting the bills. He seemed content with the amount Abby had given to him.

"Well?" asked Abby, her eyes locked on Jonathan. Owen swallowed hard as he too watched the man. He was nervous he would simply run off with their money.

With a smirk, Jonathan turned away from the kids and headed inside the office.

When he was gone, Owen breathed a heavy sigh of relief. Turning to Abby, he whispered, "You think he'll call the police?"

"I don't think so," responded Abby, a slight smile forming on her face.

"You aren't going to," his voice trailed off as he raised a finger to his mouth and ran it across his teeth, "are you?"

"No!"

"That's good." Owen secretly wished she would, while at the same time, he was somewhat relieved she wouldn't. He didn't trust the man not to call the police and report the two children as runaways, but he also was not too fond of Abby's "food restrictions." His stomach growled. He was quite hungry.

"You hungry?"

"Yeah. I'll just go find something tomorrow."

"You sure?" she asked, a look of concern taking over her expression. Abby had forgotten what human hunger felt like. To her, The Hunger was the worst part of existence. A voice that could not be ignored. She had to remind herself that it was much more bearable for Owen since he was … not like her.

Owen looked to Abby for a second, then looked away down towards the ground as he said, "Abby?"

"Yeah?"

"You look real pretty." He blushed.

Just as Abby was about to respond, the door to the motel office opened and their temporary adult "helper" stepped out with a triumphant grin on his face and holding a key in his hand. Walking over to the pair, he said, "Easy as pie, or cake. One of them."

"Thank you," Owen responded as genuinely as possible, happy to have a bed to lay in for the evening.

Abby lifted her hand up towards Jonathan as if expecting something to be placed in it. Jonathan smirked at the girl and chided, "Now what do we say?" Clearly not amused by his comment, Abby simply remained silent with her hand stretched towards the man, her expression becoming much less friendly. Muttering something under his breath, Jonathan handed the key to Abby.

"Thanks," Abby responded sarcastically as she took the key and looked at it for a moment. Turning to Owen, she motioned for him to follow her. Owen nodded and began to follow Abby into the parking lot of the motel dragging their large trunk behind him.

Jonathan stood there a moment watching the two children walk away hoping that no one had seen them arrive at the motel together. He was suddenly reminded of why he vowed to never have children.

"This is it," Abby said as she reached up to try the door handle, and as expected, it was locked.

"Owen listen. Always remember to lock the door, okay?"

"Okay."

"We can never forget."

Owen nodded and responded "Okay!" as he looked at the red door. It was tall and smelled strongly of fresh paint. Three brass numerals sat affixed near the top of the door right under the small peephole. To the right of the door, there was a large, glass window. The curtains within the hotel room had been left open, but it was difficult to see inside because of the dirt and grime that covered almost the entire surface of the glass. Disgusting! Abby inserted the key into the lock and unlocked the door.

"After you," she said smiling at Owen.

Owen opened the door and stepped inside the room dragging the large trunk behind him. It was bigger than he had expected and smelled distinctly of nicotine. A queen-sized bed sat in almost the center of the room covered by a thick gray comforter. To the left of the bed was a small writing table with two sheets of paper, a small pen, and a telephone on top of it. A small wooden stool that looked as if it would break if any weight was put on it was pushed in beneath the desk. Although Owen felt as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders now that they had found a place to stay, he began to realize more of the implications of his decision to follow Abby.

"You can come in," he said as he looked to Abby, a smile forming on his face.

Abby giggled for a moment as she said, "We live here together now. You don't have to invite me in here."

"Oh." Owen responded. There was still much to learn about his new girlfriend.

Abby followed him inside and promptly closed the door behind her, locking the large deadbolt. Reaching behind the curtains, she pulled down on a small drawstring which drew the dirty light yellow curtains together providing them with privacy. Tossing her bag beside the bed, Abby walked towards the back of the room where there was a large mirror situated just above the plastic counter top that housed a small sink. Placing her hands on the counter top, Abby gazed into the mirror.

Moving around was essential for her to survive, but this last move to Los Alamos had been nothing short of a disaster with the exception of meeting Owen. But that's how it usually went, minus the meeting Owen part. Abby's helper and "companion" was now gone as were most of her remaining possessions. Abby pondered this for a moment and decided that in losing all that she did, she gained something much more valuable. For the first time in a very, very long time, she had found a true friend. She had become very fond of Owen in such a short time, which confused her. Abby had learned long ago how to control her emotions extremely well. This was was a major component of her survival. Until she met Owen, the only emotions Abby experienced on a regular basis were were anger over the incompetence of her "companion," and despair at how unfair "life" was. She was as lonely as Owen, if not more so. Things were different now. It was in this short time with Owen that she rediscovered tenderness and compassion. Was what she was feeling love? Many people had tried to describe and teach her about love over the years, yet she was not sure of its true meaning. She was sure of only one thing about love, if she had it for anyone except her now departed family, it would be Owen.

One of the great mysteries that Abby struggled with was the fact that although she was over 200 years old, inside her mind, she was still a child of twelve. Sure, there were facts she was able to learn over her "lifetime;" however, with the exception of perhaps a refined vocabulary, she was not an old soul trapped in a child's body. She was a child trapped in the old body of a child. She had the same urges as a normal twelve year old with the exception of being more thirsty than hungry. Her candy was always red, and it was always liquid. She loved to play, and sadly, was not able to do so often until she met Owen because most of her "companions" had a much different definition of what it meant to "play."

"Ab-ee? Sommin' wrong?" asked Owen as he chewed on a piece of candy.

Realizing she had been staring into the mirror for several minutes now, Abby turned around to face Owen who was now seated nonchalantly on the corner of the bed looking at her. Abby could not help but giggle at Owen and how he sounded when he would talk and chew at the same time. "Nah! Just thinking."

Owen plopped down onto brown carpet beside the bed. He studied Abby for a moment who was laying on the bed in front of him on her stomach. He had never been so close to a girl before, and never had the opportunity to observe one. He liked to watch her, and so he did as she laid there on her stomach reading a book. Her legs flexed upwards at the knees and bobbed up and down as her toes wiggled randomly. Owen, who once thought girls were gross, found this kind of cute. Just like her smile, her laugh, and the way she idly played with her hair at times. The list could go on and on.

He sat there watching her for several minutes until Abby turned her head toward him and smiled. His cheeks flushed red with embarrassment as he realized he had been staring at her. He quickly turned his eyes away from Abby towards the small, red backpack that was sitting on the ground to his right. Reaching into the bag he had quickly packed the night before, he pulled out the Rubik cube and studied it for a moment as if expecting it to solve itself. The toy had always amazed him, but now, it held an even more special meaning. It was one of the first excuses he had to talk to Abby. Setting the cube down beside him, he reached into his bag again and withdrew an odd looking cube-shaped puzzle that belonged to Abby.

It must be so old, he thought to himself, probably one of Abby's favorites since made a point of taking it with them. Lifting it to the light to get a closer look, a quizzical expression formed on his face as he attempted to understand how it was intended to work. The puzzle was cube-shaped, each side having four rows of four blocks, each engraved with a small letter. Owen could tell that each individual block was once a bright, vibrant color, but now the colors were extremely dull and faded. On two adjacent sides, there were small wooden knobs that turned in both directions.

Was it some kind of old Rubik cube? He twisted the knobs that protruded from either side of the puzzle carefully to avoid breaking them. With each twist of the bottom knob, the blocks on the cube shifted to the left or right depending on the direction he turned. Each turn of the top knob shifted the blocks up or down. The puzzle responded sluggishly as if it had not been used in a long time or was beginning to break. Had Abby played with it when she was younger? How do you play it?

He turned the puzzle around from several angles as he wondered what made the puzzle to special for her.

… The Rubik cube is so much bett... What's this? …

Owen peered down quizzically at the toy. As he completed a left turn on the bottom knob, the newly revealed blocks contained the word "ELI" spread across three cubes. The letters were obviously not part of the game itself as they looked completely different then the letters that were on the rest of the cube. He gently rubbed his fingertips along the letters, feeling the etchings.

What's this? Is it part of the game? It can't be. He thought as he examined the strange puzzle and the letters upon it. He began to wonder if the letters were a name, like when his mom would embroider his name on his clothes. Who is Eli? Was this who gave her the puzzle?

"Abby?"

"Mm?" responded Abby sweetly as she closed the book she had been reading, lifted herself up to lean back on her knees, and struck a dramatic pose. Owen could see that she was reading his copy of Romeo and Juliet. Turning her head slowly in his direction, she offered a playful smile as she slid off the side of the bed and plopped down onto the carpet beside him making almost no sound at all. How does she do that?

"That is one of my favorite puzzles. Its very, very old."

"Who is Eli?" he asked as he turned his eyes up from the puzzle to meet Abby, a genuine quizzical expression crossing his face.

Abby slowly lowered her eyes down towards the floor. She had been caught off guard by his question. It was not one she thought she'd have to answer, at least right now anyway. She knew it would take a very long time for her to reveal everything about her past to Owen and resolved herself that it would be a painful journey for them both. "Eli" was a good place to start.

"Owen, I...That's my name."