It's About Time that I Came Clean with You
Chapter 2:
No, I'm Not Giving Up
Who knew that strategic surrender could be so fun? I wonder if General Lee had a cup of cocoa and a churro with General Grant. I doubt it, but I have conceded that cocoa – with the help of Ellie – is different than hot chocolate. We decided, as we figured it could be our own definition, that it was about the chocolate used. She used those little semi-sweet morsels and heavy cream. I watched her, in marveled speechless awe, as I often do with her, as she used the stove and cooked. She had cues and set a timer to know when the burner reached its maximum efficiency. She makes me laugh. I like that too.
Tomorrow it might be back to war - perhaps this is a temporary truce, only long enough for me to get my senses back and plan my defense. In fact I'm pretty sure tomorrow will be. Maybe she knows voodoo, not that I believe in that, but just maybe she does - to keep me from letting my guard up. Whatever magic she has it works and I enjoy her control.
"I don't suppose a city boy like you knows what it's like to cut grass, huh? Hell I bet you've never even smelled fresh cut grass." She taunted me and I bit. I felt myself puff up in defense but it was a playful one as she hardly meant harm by it. The only harm that would come from it was my heart hammering against my chest so hard because of caffeine from the coffee and me trying to make myself bigger than I was in my shell, as if that would prove my worth even if I never had mown a lawn.
"Well..." I paused. Come on Don! Something...say something. "I have," there was another pause as I fought for words. I was drowning and we were talking about land matter. Only I would drown on land, in front of her...now. Then they tumbled out of my mouth ahead of my brain, "...seen grass."
"Oh honey," she laughed and I felt myself deflate. Her exuberance and smile kill me, particularly when they're genuine. "Don't go all out on a limb with all that grass you've seen. Don, it's not about seeing it - it's about experiencing it." I felt stupid, even though I know she didn't mean it half as bad as I took it. In fact I felt even more like a moron because I know Ellie - and I know she experiences things. She hasn't seen grass so my explanation sounds even more retarded. I might as well peg myself to the cross and hope martyrdom doesn't hurt because if I open my mouth I know I'll screw up and degrade her deficiency.
She's told me time and time again that she's comfortable talking about it but for some reason I'm not comfortable talking about it. It's like I have the biggest skin disorder on the planet what with it being green and the whole shell business yet I feel more normal than her sometimes because I have an advantage she doesn't. It's yet one more completely dumb facet of this thing that baffles my mind. I'm entirely bemused by how I can feel normal when I'm faced, literally, with a perfectly normal human woman.
"Don?"
UGH! I did it again, thatsilent thing where she thinks I either passed out or left and she somehow didn't hear me. I forget that there's no one to pick up the slack when I get caught up in my own mind. I count on Mikey for the distraction when I doze off into Don-land and have to be reeled back in by one of them.
"Don...?"
AGAIN? Already? "Yeah."
"Oh that won't do honey." She always calls me honey. Call me a romantic or a sucker, but it makes me warm in my cheeks and sometimes I even catch myself with a stupid smile on my face. Never mind that she can't see it. In fact, I consider that an advantage I have in this battle. She heard the tone in my response and she responded in kind. "Yeah that boring 'Don yeah'. I wasn't picking on you. All I'm saying is that you should experience it sometime. Reminds me of summers and lemonade. Don't you have something like that? You beat yourself up too much Don, honey. It's not fair and I aim to hear one day when you answer my use of your name with a vivacious 'Yes Ellie, sweetheart!'" She does love her pet names.
"Because I'm a 'sweetheart' sort." I found some courage, enough to taunt.
"Shoot honey, you're an everything sort - you just don't know it yet." There was more of her Georgia drawl in her words then as they spilled from her lips in excitement and her tactic worked - she thoroughly distracted me from my foul and subsequent feeling horrible for it. I even smiled.
"Has anyone ever told you that you sound like you're from the south?" It sounded goofy when it left my mouth.
"Everyday." She beamed and I couldn't help but let a moment of intrigue cross my face. She was rarely put off by anything, even the intruder that I'd been, and it confused and interested me. She had every reason to be skeptical of the world. She could be bitter and yet she wasn't. This science experiment is getting personal.
"How do you do it?" I blurted out and she tipped her head to the side. I figured I'd have to expand but she started to speak and I suddenly didn't care how much of my question she answered, so long as she kept talking. I like our conversations.
"With a little bit of lucky and a lot of heart. Friends and family. Hell Don, honey, ya just do it. Nike's got the right idea. And a dash no fear." She added on the end. "I figure if I'm going to have a life, I might as well live it. You should consider doing the same. And of course some fertilizer." My brow ridges came together in confusion and I stared. She did it again, that thing where she sensed what I was feeling. I swear she can smell it. "You were talking about cutting the lawn right?" Just as I was about to protest she smiled and I returned her expression with a laugh. She teased me again and I bit. I always bite. Damn her for being cute.
"Yeah El, that's what I was talking about."
"Oh honey you gotta try it. For me - just this once."
I was suddenly struck, like a deer in headlights. Somehow she can bridge the conversation without batting an eye but I'm left floundering when I try and keep up with the last thing she said. If I wait long enough she'll rescue me. As expected and on cue...
"Say it with me. Sweetheart..." She prodded me and I grinned.
"Oh no Miss Ellie, you're going to have to try harder than that to get me to yield." Success! I deflected her attack.
"Oh no, honey, that just means you have to come back so I can keep training you."
Score one for Ellie, Don - zero. How the hell does she do that?
::Author's Note::
School started for both of us. With that said, we apologize about the delay in this chapter. We do hope you enjoy it as much as we did writing it. We are trying to catch up on all of our stories and keep them rolling for those of you reading. As always thank you so much for doing so. We appreciate it very much and would love to hear what you think - if you think anything of this. Like other chapters this title is a bit of a cheat. It's from Dan Andriano's side project the Emergency Room. The song the lyric is borrowed from is called On Monday. ^_^