Thanks again for all the wonderful reviews! I have a lot of ideas racing
through my head write now - I really should write out an outline, but I
have never been one to do that while writing. I am a bit upset because I
feel like so many things in this have been moving too fast. Like, I haven't
been able to develop the characters much, but we have all watched Once and
Again, so is there really a point to character development with Eli and
Grace? I also feel uncomfortable with the black and white scenes. I
sometimes think I have too many, other times not enough. If not for the
integrity of the show, I could do without them because the way I use them,
it just seems so obvious and almost too comical. I don't know. Any input
would be much obliged! Hope you enjoy and please, keep reading! - K
Chapter Nine
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Eli stared into Grace's eyes, still unable to answer her. How could he live with her, feeling the way he does and not her knowing? Then, he thought that he basically had been doing that since they shared that almost-kiss.
"Are you sure?" he asked her.
She let out a sniffle and nodded her head. "You need somewhere to live. I need a roommate. We've lived together before. What do you say?"
**Eli - jumps up and down, excited.**
"If you really want me to, then, I'm in," he responded. Grace threw her arms around him again and gave him a tight squeeze.
"Thank you so much, Eli! I will feel so much safer with you here," she replied.
**Grace - "I know Eli won't desert me like Heather did. Grrr! I can't believe she moved out and just left me a letter! She knew I would be at home this weekend and she could have told me she was doing this, but no. She just went and did it!"**
Eli looked around the empty bedroom. The walls had been painted a light purple and the pink, yellow, and purple striped window coverings had been left behind. "Can I. um. make this room less feminine?" he asked.
"No. But you can make my room less feminine," Grace smiled.
Eli gave her a questioning look and Grace shrugged her shoulders, "This room is a tad bigger, but it has a huge walk-in-closet."
"I see where you're going to. Fine, I'll take your room."
**Eli - looking around, "I'd live in a barn if that meant seeing Grace everyday!"**
They moved into the kitchen and sat at the table. Eli looked into the living room where most of the furniture was gone. No sofa or television. A large bookcase was only half-full. Two lamps sat on the floor, six feet from each other. Eli assumed that is where the end tables once were.
"I'll buy some furniture for this place," he said, quickly. Grace smiled and then started to frown. "What?"
"Please don't turn this into a swinging bachelor's pad. No animal striped sofa and no black laminate furniture," she said, seriously to him.
Eli playfully punched her on the arm. "I guess my huge poster of Carmen Electra is out?"
"Definitely out."
"Tell you what, why don't we go furniture shopping together. That way you can approve of everything before I pay for it?"
Grace smiled. "That would be fun." She got up from the table and got a notebook out of a kitchen drawer. She placed it on the table, then, startled, she started opening the cabinets to see just how much was left.
"I forgot that Heather had bought the plates and glasses. I bought the silverware, pots, and pans," she said, frowning and sitting at the table again.
"Then, I'll replace her stuff."
Grace started making a list of everything Eli would need. He had never lived away from home, so he would need some new bed linens, towels. just basic necessities.
"This is going to cost a fortune, Eli," she said after they finished naming everything off.
"Grace, I was going to move in by myself so I would have had to buy the stuff anyway. and then some more. It's no big deal. I have been saving for this."
Grace looked at the clock and yawned. It was almost twelve thirty and she knew she had an early morning lecture. Eli took the hint and decided it was time for him to leave.
"When do you want to go shopping?" he asked.
"I have Tuesdays and Thursdays free. When would you want to move in?"
"Can you stay by yourself until Wednesday?" he asked, concerned. "I mean, I could sleep on the floor tonight if you don't feel safe."
Now Grace laughed. "Eli, even when Heather was my roommate, she was never here. I once went a month where she didn't stay here at all. I'll be fine."
He gave her a quick hug before leaving, finalizing their shopping plans for Tuesday.
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The next morning, while Grace was busy with classes and taking her botany test, Eli began to pack up his garage room. He decided it was time to throw out a lot of his stuff, time to start a new. When he was cleaning out his closet, he found his old letterman jacket. Not one to be sentimental, he threw it in the pile to donate to Goodwill, but then decided against it. He then made a pile of things to store at his Mom's house. He hadn't had a chance to call his parents and tell them that he was moving to Chicago with Grace before he had to leave for work. He was sure they wouldn't mind. He left for work, excited about his future moving plans.
Meanwhile, Grace entered her apartment shortly after her botany test. She threw her keys on the console table near the door, only to remember that the console table was no longer there. She bent down and picked up the keys, then placed them on the breakfast bar.
**Grace - "Am I making a mistake? Should Eli live with me? What if he brings a girl home. or, and I know this is a far-fetched idea, but what if I bring a guy home? Could I have sex with someone while Eli was within earshot? Of course, seeing as how there are no other alternatives, this will have to work. We'll be fine. We'll manage."**
Grace went to the kitchen to pour herself some wine when she saw the answering machine blinking. She quickly pressed the 'Play' button.
"Grace? This is Spencer. I got your phone number from your aunt today at work. Eli has been really helpful with my training. I think I'm going to like it at Book Lover's. Anyway, I was just wondering if you'd like to get together soon. You know, catch up and whatnot. Give me a call back. My number is." Grace ran to the table and wrote his number on the notebook she and Eli had used the night before, smiling.
Not eager to look desperate, she decided to wait until Tuesday to call Spencer, but couldn't help but wonder what would happen on their date.
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The next morning, Eli knocked on the apartment door. He had his arm full of bagels and coffee. A sleepy Grace, still in her pajamas opened the door, surprised to see him.
"I didn't realize you were coming this early," she said, smiling. "Come in."
Eli put the stuff on the table. "Sorry, I just thought we could start early. I have a lot of money to spend today!" he joked with her.
They sat at the table, drinking the coffee and eating the bagels. Grace explained to Eli that she had spent the night moving her furniture into the larger room. Eli, worried, asked if she hurt herself doing it.
Grace laughed, "Come on, E. I don't need some big, strong man to help me at all times. just when there are spiders or mice."
Eli looked around the apartment, "You don't have mice problems, do you?"
Grace laughed even harder. "Not so much since the cockroaches started showing up," she responded, winking at him.
"Let me go shower and we can get on our way," she declared, once she finished her last drop of coffee. Eli waited for her by looking through the bookshelf. He knew Grace was a very avid reader, but was surprised by how few books she actually owned, until it dawned on him that she had grown up at a bookstore. He knew Grace was always "borrowing" a new book, something she got scolded on until she mentioned that many people just sit and read the books in the store and don't buy. Still, Jake and Judy always said to her, "This is not a library, Gracie!" He picked up an older book that must have gone untouched for quite some time because there was a great deal of dust on the pages. Unable to make out the title because of it's weathering, he opened the first page and there, he saw in neat writing:
To the girl with the loneliest eyes. Love always, Augustus
Eli quickly returned the book to the shelf, realizing it was the infamous Chekhov book that Mr. Dimitri had given Grace.
"I haven't looked at that book for quite some time," Grace said, startling him. He quickly turned towards her. She was wearing a silk robe, squeezing the water from her hair with a towel.
"I didn't mean to pry, I was just looking your books over and that one looked so different from the others."
Grace walked over to him, grabbing the book from the shelf again, "This was such a different time for me." She looked deeply into Eli's eyes and smiled. "While I will always hold a special place in my heart for Augustus because he taught me so much, I know that I have truly moved on with my life."
Eli gazed into her eyes. "Your eyes are still lonely, though, Grace."
She smiled at him again, "I know. Sometimes I wonder if they always will be."
Eli looked at her so intensely. "They don't have to be, Grace."
**Grace - "What is happening?"**
She turned her head away. "I know that, E. I know that." She looked at the clock. "Let me go and finish getting ready."
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Coming Soon to Perspective
"I wasn't sure if you received it or not, so I decided to try again. So, what do you think?"
"About?" she asked, not remembering the message at all now. Her heart was still beating in a steady staccato, her lips warm.
"Going out with me. Catching up," Spencer responded.
"Oh. right. Yeah, we could go out for coffee sometime," she attempted to say, quietly so Eli wouldn't hear her. He did, however. He stood up and walked out into the living room, deciding to give Grace some privacy for her phone call. He softly closed the door behind him.
**Eli - "It was going so well. until she got that call."**
Chapter Nine
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Eli stared into Grace's eyes, still unable to answer her. How could he live with her, feeling the way he does and not her knowing? Then, he thought that he basically had been doing that since they shared that almost-kiss.
"Are you sure?" he asked her.
She let out a sniffle and nodded her head. "You need somewhere to live. I need a roommate. We've lived together before. What do you say?"
**Eli - jumps up and down, excited.**
"If you really want me to, then, I'm in," he responded. Grace threw her arms around him again and gave him a tight squeeze.
"Thank you so much, Eli! I will feel so much safer with you here," she replied.
**Grace - "I know Eli won't desert me like Heather did. Grrr! I can't believe she moved out and just left me a letter! She knew I would be at home this weekend and she could have told me she was doing this, but no. She just went and did it!"**
Eli looked around the empty bedroom. The walls had been painted a light purple and the pink, yellow, and purple striped window coverings had been left behind. "Can I. um. make this room less feminine?" he asked.
"No. But you can make my room less feminine," Grace smiled.
Eli gave her a questioning look and Grace shrugged her shoulders, "This room is a tad bigger, but it has a huge walk-in-closet."
"I see where you're going to. Fine, I'll take your room."
**Eli - looking around, "I'd live in a barn if that meant seeing Grace everyday!"**
They moved into the kitchen and sat at the table. Eli looked into the living room where most of the furniture was gone. No sofa or television. A large bookcase was only half-full. Two lamps sat on the floor, six feet from each other. Eli assumed that is where the end tables once were.
"I'll buy some furniture for this place," he said, quickly. Grace smiled and then started to frown. "What?"
"Please don't turn this into a swinging bachelor's pad. No animal striped sofa and no black laminate furniture," she said, seriously to him.
Eli playfully punched her on the arm. "I guess my huge poster of Carmen Electra is out?"
"Definitely out."
"Tell you what, why don't we go furniture shopping together. That way you can approve of everything before I pay for it?"
Grace smiled. "That would be fun." She got up from the table and got a notebook out of a kitchen drawer. She placed it on the table, then, startled, she started opening the cabinets to see just how much was left.
"I forgot that Heather had bought the plates and glasses. I bought the silverware, pots, and pans," she said, frowning and sitting at the table again.
"Then, I'll replace her stuff."
Grace started making a list of everything Eli would need. He had never lived away from home, so he would need some new bed linens, towels. just basic necessities.
"This is going to cost a fortune, Eli," she said after they finished naming everything off.
"Grace, I was going to move in by myself so I would have had to buy the stuff anyway. and then some more. It's no big deal. I have been saving for this."
Grace looked at the clock and yawned. It was almost twelve thirty and she knew she had an early morning lecture. Eli took the hint and decided it was time for him to leave.
"When do you want to go shopping?" he asked.
"I have Tuesdays and Thursdays free. When would you want to move in?"
"Can you stay by yourself until Wednesday?" he asked, concerned. "I mean, I could sleep on the floor tonight if you don't feel safe."
Now Grace laughed. "Eli, even when Heather was my roommate, she was never here. I once went a month where she didn't stay here at all. I'll be fine."
He gave her a quick hug before leaving, finalizing their shopping plans for Tuesday.
^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
The next morning, while Grace was busy with classes and taking her botany test, Eli began to pack up his garage room. He decided it was time to throw out a lot of his stuff, time to start a new. When he was cleaning out his closet, he found his old letterman jacket. Not one to be sentimental, he threw it in the pile to donate to Goodwill, but then decided against it. He then made a pile of things to store at his Mom's house. He hadn't had a chance to call his parents and tell them that he was moving to Chicago with Grace before he had to leave for work. He was sure they wouldn't mind. He left for work, excited about his future moving plans.
Meanwhile, Grace entered her apartment shortly after her botany test. She threw her keys on the console table near the door, only to remember that the console table was no longer there. She bent down and picked up the keys, then placed them on the breakfast bar.
**Grace - "Am I making a mistake? Should Eli live with me? What if he brings a girl home. or, and I know this is a far-fetched idea, but what if I bring a guy home? Could I have sex with someone while Eli was within earshot? Of course, seeing as how there are no other alternatives, this will have to work. We'll be fine. We'll manage."**
Grace went to the kitchen to pour herself some wine when she saw the answering machine blinking. She quickly pressed the 'Play' button.
"Grace? This is Spencer. I got your phone number from your aunt today at work. Eli has been really helpful with my training. I think I'm going to like it at Book Lover's. Anyway, I was just wondering if you'd like to get together soon. You know, catch up and whatnot. Give me a call back. My number is." Grace ran to the table and wrote his number on the notebook she and Eli had used the night before, smiling.
Not eager to look desperate, she decided to wait until Tuesday to call Spencer, but couldn't help but wonder what would happen on their date.
^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
The next morning, Eli knocked on the apartment door. He had his arm full of bagels and coffee. A sleepy Grace, still in her pajamas opened the door, surprised to see him.
"I didn't realize you were coming this early," she said, smiling. "Come in."
Eli put the stuff on the table. "Sorry, I just thought we could start early. I have a lot of money to spend today!" he joked with her.
They sat at the table, drinking the coffee and eating the bagels. Grace explained to Eli that she had spent the night moving her furniture into the larger room. Eli, worried, asked if she hurt herself doing it.
Grace laughed, "Come on, E. I don't need some big, strong man to help me at all times. just when there are spiders or mice."
Eli looked around the apartment, "You don't have mice problems, do you?"
Grace laughed even harder. "Not so much since the cockroaches started showing up," she responded, winking at him.
"Let me go shower and we can get on our way," she declared, once she finished her last drop of coffee. Eli waited for her by looking through the bookshelf. He knew Grace was a very avid reader, but was surprised by how few books she actually owned, until it dawned on him that she had grown up at a bookstore. He knew Grace was always "borrowing" a new book, something she got scolded on until she mentioned that many people just sit and read the books in the store and don't buy. Still, Jake and Judy always said to her, "This is not a library, Gracie!" He picked up an older book that must have gone untouched for quite some time because there was a great deal of dust on the pages. Unable to make out the title because of it's weathering, he opened the first page and there, he saw in neat writing:
To the girl with the loneliest eyes. Love always, Augustus
Eli quickly returned the book to the shelf, realizing it was the infamous Chekhov book that Mr. Dimitri had given Grace.
"I haven't looked at that book for quite some time," Grace said, startling him. He quickly turned towards her. She was wearing a silk robe, squeezing the water from her hair with a towel.
"I didn't mean to pry, I was just looking your books over and that one looked so different from the others."
Grace walked over to him, grabbing the book from the shelf again, "This was such a different time for me." She looked deeply into Eli's eyes and smiled. "While I will always hold a special place in my heart for Augustus because he taught me so much, I know that I have truly moved on with my life."
Eli gazed into her eyes. "Your eyes are still lonely, though, Grace."
She smiled at him again, "I know. Sometimes I wonder if they always will be."
Eli looked at her so intensely. "They don't have to be, Grace."
**Grace - "What is happening?"**
She turned her head away. "I know that, E. I know that." She looked at the clock. "Let me go and finish getting ready."
^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
Coming Soon to Perspective
"I wasn't sure if you received it or not, so I decided to try again. So, what do you think?"
"About?" she asked, not remembering the message at all now. Her heart was still beating in a steady staccato, her lips warm.
"Going out with me. Catching up," Spencer responded.
"Oh. right. Yeah, we could go out for coffee sometime," she attempted to say, quietly so Eli wouldn't hear her. He did, however. He stood up and walked out into the living room, deciding to give Grace some privacy for her phone call. He softly closed the door behind him.
**Eli - "It was going so well. until she got that call."**