A/N: Hey guys sorry it's taken so long for this update! Since classes started back up, I haven't had a lot of time to write. Things have been really hectic. On a lighter note,I just saw my favorite movie Amelie! It gave me a little inspiration for this chapter. If you haven't seen this wonderful film, you can watch it with subtitles on netflix and probably youtube (not sure if it will have subtitles). Otherwise you can watch it in French on any free website. I did my best with the translation!
Chapter 7 So the Words Eat Themselves
-Amélie suddenly feels in perfect harmony with herself.
everything's perfect: the softness of the light,
that little scent in the air, the peaceful sounds of the city .
Life seems so simple and cristal-clear that she's swept
by this desire to help the all mankind.
I take a big bite cream cheese frosting and twist my head sideways at the tv. Why cant I stop crying? I mean who care about what I do in my personal life? Fuck Jacob and his stupid face!
-I'll help you. We go down and there we go!
There's the widow of the drummer of the brass band.
Hey, the horse's lost one ear!
The husband of florist is laughing.
There's lollipops in the shop window!
Can you smell the scent?
A man is offering melon to his clients to taste.
There, they make wonderful ice-cream!
We're passing in front of the butcher's.
Ham on the bone costs !
Here we're at the cheese merchant's .
for a Picodon d'Ardèche ! At the butcher's,
a baby's looking at a dog, that's looking at the chicken.
Here you are, now we're at the metro station.
I'll leave you here, goodbye.
"She was never able to enter into relationships with others ."
"I hate you so much! sdvhndbidkvbkdufjxbv I'm such a filthy ho-ho-whore sdivo zbsvn." Maybe I should stop chewing, talking, and crying at the same time. I'm starting to choke on my own tongue. Why can't I be like Amelie, adventurous, and free. Why can't I have a happy ending.
You're looking good !
-Really ?
-A woman without love, it's like a flower without sun. It dies.
-Strange weather today!
Did I say something wrong?
-No. Everyone gives me the weather forecast.
-Talking about the weather to forget that time goes by.
-No, to avoid talking nonsense.
*buzzz! buzzzz!*
This is the seventeenth time my phone has rang tonight. I thought putting it on vibrate would help but it's just making it worse. I close my eyes and take a deep breath. I might as well answer the phone. Leah won't stop calling.
"Leah, I'm so tired and embarrassed right now. I'm laying on my couch, half naked, shoving my last cupcake down my throat. What could you possibly want from me." I cry into the phone.
"Uh it's me, Seth-" God he sounds mortified. If I didn't scare him earlier today, I'm sure he's running for the hills right now.
"Oh God that was way too much information. Can this day get any worse?"
"No, no, it's fine, you're fine," he rushes.
"Seth-" I groan into the phone.
"Jacob is a stupid asshole and everybody knows it! Leah and Billy tore him a new one after you left. There wasn't much of a dinner after that. I mean, Kenny started crying for you and Paul started laughing at 'Jacob and his cry baby son'. It was just a mess. I just left after that. … Anyway I'm pulling in your driveway right now, so open the door."
"Seth, go home. It's late and I look like crap."
"Nope, not leaving."
"Seth, you have work tomorrow. You need your sleep."
"Baking isn't work! I can make scones in my sleep."
*knock, knock, knock*
I look through the peephole and see Seth running his hands through his wet hair. I take a deep breath and open the door slightly a peek through. He rolls his eyes and waits for me to open the door completely.
"Were you just gonna make me stand in the rain all night?"
"You were on the porch! And you didn't have to come."
"Yes I did. I shouldn't have let him talk to you like that. Bella, he will never talk to you like that again. I'm tired of everyone making excuses for Jake. He's not a twenty-two year old kid with a newborn baby anymore. If he ever does that to you again he's gonna have to deal with me."
I lead him into the kitchen and hand him a towel from the dryer. "Slow down there cowboy. I don't want you getting into any unnecessary fights just because of me. I can take care of myself." I head back to the living room and plop down on the couch.
"So you really like my cupcakes, huh?" He wipes a smudge of cream cheese from my lips with his thumb. His unsubtle change of subject did not go unnoticed, but I wasn't complaining. Seth takes a seat next to me on the couch. His lips have a slight smile, but his eyes are heavy. He looks happy and sad at the same time.
"I love everything you bake. Every time you make your marshmallow mermaid pie, It makes me feel like I'm floating in the sky. It could be the most horrible Monday, but when I take a bite of that pie, nothing else matters."
His face lights up and a small "really" falls from his lips. He lays his head on my lap and lets his legs hang off the end of the loveseat. I brush my fingers through his damp hair and smooth out the whispers that frame his velvety face. I take his right hand and observe the heat blistered fingertips. I run it across my cheeks and try to feel something. Feel alive, but only feel a lull of heat beneath my heart. Maybe it can grow into a flame that spreads from my body into my soul. Or maybe it will grow from my soul into my veins, prepared to perfection as opposed to charred and overdone. Empty pie shells can always be filled with love and protected with a honeyed glaze. He pulls my face down for a gentle kiss and I can't help but think: Is his sugar meant for me? I hope his heart is as hardwearing as his fingers.
His eyes start to close and I shake him awake. "Come on it's time for bed."
"I don't want to take my eyes off of you."
"You can sleep in my bed tonight."
We spoon under the covers and fall asleep together.
"Seth, wake up."
"Babe slow down." he grunts as his arms tighten around my hips. I elbow him in the stomach and cringe as he yells, "What?"
"Seth, I don't think we should do this."
"Do what, Bella?" His left eye barely opens into a slit as he stretches out on his back.
"Seth it's time for you to get up. If you get in the shower now, I can have your clothes washed and dried before you have to leave for work." I slowly get out of bed and grab his shirt from off the floor. He slowly get up and heads to the bathroom in his blue boxers and grey socks.
I come back to the bedroom with his clean clothes in hand. He tries to catch me eye but I look away before it's too late. He pulls his pants on and grabs his leather belt. He misses a loop in the back and I find myself in front of him unbuckling the buckle. He gives me a light gasp as I look up at his lips. When both of his hands grab at the sides of my hips, I can't help but lean forward. He kisses the side of my neck once, twice, three times.
I reach up on my tippy toes and breathe into his ear, "There's always someone better."
"I don't want better."
I think I'll have a banana for now. I should get some work done while I'm waiting for to come pick up his angle . Tomorrow we should start with the daily journal and then the number line, or maybe we should try telling the time on the big clock I just got. I bite the butt of my pen and look up towards the ceiling.
I hear small feet and feel a small tap on my shoulder shortly after. Looking down, I see my beautiful Kenny looking up at me with those doe eyes. He opens his arms up to me and I gladly pick him up and place him on my lap. He slides closer to me and tightly wraps his arms around my neck.
He muffles, "I'm sorry," into my neck as I wrap my arms around his growing frame.
"What are you sorry for, baby?"
"Daddy was being mean to you. I told him to say sorry and take the mean words back, but he said he couldn't." I'm not sure how, but he hugged me even tighter.
I need this love. So warm, innocent, and unsuspecting. I pull him back to take a look at his face. Trying to get a dose of his spirit, I look into his eyes, and see something's wrong. He looks peakish green. "Are you ok, Kenny?" He shakes his head and heaves. I grab my bucket of pencils and dump them on my desk. I place the bucket in front of him just in time to catch the vomit. I can see the thin sheen of sweat start to appear on his forehead as he violently vomits into the bucket again. "What did you have for lunch today?"
"Some leftover chicken salad daddy found in the fridge this morning." Is Jacob serious? Is he trying to kill his child! This is unacceptable. And speak of the devil, Jacob walks into the room.
"I know, I know , I'm late. Paul was supposed to pick him up, but he bailed." He finally takes a look at the scene in front of him , realizing that his son is sick. "Um, gosh," he runs his hands through the hair at the nape of his neck. "What happened?"
"You should know! You're the one that made him sick. Old chicken salad, Jacob, really? I'm starting to think you have no business raising a child on your own." It slipped out before I could stop it. I promised myself I would be courjal at the workplace. Kenny moans and starts to vomit into the almost full trick or treat, makeshift pencil bucket. I rub his back while he's straining for air. "Look I'm sorry. That came out wrong."
"Yeah, I'm um, I'm sorry too." His eyes wander around the room for a minute. "I'm going to get him some gatorade or something." He looks so helpless. Does he even know what to do?
"If you need help or you're not sure what to do, just give me a call." I try to catch his eyes but he keeps his head down. I help him get Kenny to the car. I gently kiss Kenny's forehead and hope he feels better soon.
*Brrrrrrrrrring! Brrrrrrrring!*
I clear my throat and try to relax. I pick up the phone with as much gusto as I can. "Hello, this is-"
"Bella! Bella listen, Ken won't stop throwing up. I gave him gatorade, water, and juice. He can't keep anything down. All he's been saying is mommy. I know it's late at night, but I don't know what to do. I can't keep calling Sue or my dad. I just, I need some help. I'm really sorry I'm calling you this late." Jacob is talking so fast, I can hear the panic and inner turmoil. He sounds so young and helpless. "I know you're um, working right now but-"
"Ok...um" I grab the school directory and look up his address. "I'm gonna run to the store. I should be there in 30 minutes."
I pull on my yellow rain boots and grabbed my jacket on the way out the door. Running into the store I grab some pedialyte, popsicles, jello, chicken broth, and saltine crackers. That should do it. Maybe I should have asked Jake what Kenny's favorite flavor is. Oh well, I'll take a wild guess and get cherry. You can't go wrong with anything red when it comes to kids. Cherry and strawberry should be good.
I hear a throat clear and turn around to see Edward. The douchebag doctor gives me an inviting smirk. How charming. "Oh, Hello ."
"Hey there Bella! Please call me Edward. How are you? You seem like you're in a bit of a hurry." He takes an appraising look into my cart. "It looks like somebody is sick. Gastroenteritis, maybe?"
"Um, if you're talking about food poisoning, then yes. My poor baby is sick so-"
"Your baby? I didn't know you had a kid." I didn't realize what I said until after it slipped out.
"Uh no. I don't have a kid but my friend's kid- well he's not really a friend but- look i gotta get going. It was nice seeing you. Take care ok! Bye bye." I scurry down the aisle and to the checkout line.
I pull up to a modest, grey house at the end of the road, 4715 kwáshkwash lane. Kwa- kway… how do you even pronounce that. I take a deep breath and turn the ignition off. I grab the bags out of the car and run up the porch to ring the doorbell. I start to fidget as I wait for Jacob to answer the door.
The door is swung open and my nose is invaded with the sickly smell of bleach. "Hey, you came." He answers the door with tousled hair and dark circles.
I will try to update as much as I can, but it won't be as often as I'd like. Hopefully I can sort my life out and get on a schedule that gives me some amount of free time to write. Tell me what you think about the chapter. Things should start to speed up in the next few chapters. I hope it has not been too slow.
