We're still in May. Finally the story slows down...
At 5:35, his usual five minutes late, Rudy exploded into the door, cheer creating a rosy blush in his cheeks. "Liesel, love! My pal Johnny from work says he has hand-me-downs from his children if you'd like 'em. He's got infant clothes, even some for up to darn near six years old. We'll be covered for years, a real money-save—"
He stopped, dead silent, staring at the blanketed form on the couch, puzzled. "Liesel?" Taking one cautious step forward, he peered back toward the kitchen, but his wife seemed nowhere to found. "Is that you under the blanket?"
Just then, Liesel materialized from their bedroom, golden ringlets bouncing as she glided toward him on the worn floor. She slid right into Rudy's arms, and he laughed in slight relief. "Graceful and beautiful as always," he greeted her.
"Enjoy it, because before you know it I'll be a whale." Liesel broke apart from him to spin around so that the edges of her dress fluttered upward. She stopped and blinked at him inquisitively. "What do you think? I had to buy these new."
Rudy took her in, his eyes gleaming. "Well, I mean… you look breathtaking, love, but— you can't even tell you're—"
"Good. That's what I want, to preserve my youth as long as I can." Liesel paused when she noticed he wasn't listening, instead staring with an arched brow at the blanketed shape on the couch. Her gaze trailed his, and her face lit up as she recalled earlier events.
"Rudy, you will not believe who I ran into on the street today," she began, gliding cheerfully over to the couch. Softly, she tapped the lumpy shape, and a few moments later the tousled head of Max popped out. He blinked the bleariness of sleep out of his eyes and nodded a friendly hello to Rudy.
"Who is—" Rudy started, but then stopped dead, his eyes sizing up the vaguely familiar man before him. "Is this… Max?"
Liesel nodded excitedly, her curly waves untamed and tumbling like golden waterfalls down her shoulders. "Can you believe it? He's come all this way to find me— well, us, and I begged him to stay— I mean, look at him! All he's brought is a tiny bag with a change of clothes."
Rudy placed his hands on his hips and laughed stiffly. "I can hardly believe my own eyes, dear. Aye, well, welcome to America, Max. Has New York treated you well so far?"
Max grinned, glancing calculatingly between the couple. "Well, the trip over here was hellish— my stomach does not agree with the sea, I'll leave it at that. But wow, this city, it's… impressive. Tall buildings, more being added every day. It's really a different place, when you're on the winning side of a war."
Rudy nodded, a fading grin the only thing remaining on his face. "Well, welcome, Max. Welcome."
OoOoO
Later that night, Rudy lay in bed, uninterestedly skimming through a crumbling book. Liesel entered their room wearing a short ivory nightgown. She crawled into bed, eyeing her husband's old book with a smirk. "You've been 'reading' that same damn book since before we got engaged."
"Nah, this is a different one," Rudy disagreed, not looking up.
"I remember seeing that same title on your nightstand back in Germany, saumensch! You really think I didn't steal that and read it at least once?"
His shoulders shrugged up and down lamely, his gray, very form-fitting t-shirt, barely allowing him to do so. The lean muscles of his upper arms were peeking out from under the tight sleeves.
Liesel sat up on her shins, using one hand to snatch away the wrinkled book and the other to stroke his arm. "What do you say we do something fun tonight?" she whispered, her seductive tone about as obvious as blood on snow.
Rudy did a double take, scanning over her also form-fitting mini gown. He then met her sly gaze incredulously. "Are you kidding? With him right outside our door?"
With a sigh, she flopped down against her pillow, rolling her eyes as she blew a golden lock out of her face. "If we're quiet—"
"I'm not doing it. Knowing he's out there… he can probably hear us talking right now! I'm not in the mood anyway." With that, Rudy turned away from her and shut off his light.
In the dark, Liesel scowled bewilderedly at him. "What's your problem? You seemed fine at dinner, and now this attitude?"
There was silence for a moment, and Rudy silently prayed she had fallen asleep. Then, out of the dead silence, there came a single sniffle. Rudy held back a sigh and rolled back over, squinting to see his wife's hunched form. "What is it?"
"I knew it! You don't think I'm pretty enough because of this… this stupid belly, and you're using Max being here as an excuse!" Liesel cried, burying her face into her hands.
"No, no, no," Rudy immediately corrected her, propping himself up on an elbow so he could rub her back with the other arm. "Liesel, that's not it at all. The fact that you're carrying our child inside of you makes you all the sexier to me. I'm serious about Max."
The sobs quieted, and Rudy could feel Liesel freeze under his hand. "So… you're not alright with him being here? I'm so s- sorry, I should've asked first…"
"Don't worry about it, it's too late now," Rudy sighed, removing his hand from her and laying back down. "It's just…"
"Just…?"
"Well, I mean, when you told me you were pregnant, you were so concerned about eventually having to feed a third mouth. But right away this third mouth, adult third mouth is welcomed into our home."
Liesel shrugged sheepishly and leaned back against the headboard. "I felt bad… he told me how he was flat out of money. I couldn't just leave him out on the street after hearing that!"
Rudy rubbed his temples, closing his eyes as he gathered his thoughts. "And… I'm not saying you should've left him with nothing, maybe just… I don't know, given him money for a hotel?"
The old box springs groaned as she laid the rest of the way down. "As if I had enough money for that," she scoffed.
He wisely chose not to answer, instead shifting the rest of the way under the thin blanket, staring at the fuzzy darkness above him.
OoOoO
As worried as Rudy was about their guest overhearing his conversation with Liesel, the reality was that Max's ears had not captured a single syllable. He slept soundly the entire night, his quietly snoring face buried in the cushions of the ratty old sofa.
Well, I lied. See you in June!