Time for some cute stuff~
Mrs. Barr was every bit as lovely as her daughter. Long, red hair and pretty green eyes, if Kellie didn't turn heads, she sure did. The woman was like a nymph, desirable and sweet, an echo of beauty almost louder than her daughter. After they'd dropped Edd off at his light blue home, they pulled into their driveway, the mother daughter pair moving to the house.
"Would that happen to be the boy you've been so head over heals about?"
In truth, Edd was not her ideal date. Sure he was cute, but he wasn't… stunning. Not in beauty, no, outer appearance wasn't something Kellie looked for immediately. There was that sort of confidence that she liked in a guy and Edd really didn't have that, sure what he'd done for her that day was wonderful, but it likely wouldn't happen again.
"Not really. He's nice, but not so much my type." Kellie sighed.
"Ah, I see. Well is he at least a friend?" Mrs. Barr asked, sitting in her chair and grabbing for a book.
"Kinda. I mean you remember, he's been here since elementary school."
"I remember. I just remember you disliking him."
"Suppose I did… can you blame me though? I mean those dweebs were always after our money. Double Dork over there built half their stuff out of things he got from his empty house." She groaned.
"Empty?"
"Yeah. His parent's are never home."
Mrs. Barr put the book down. "Kel, why didn't you tell me this sooner, the poor boy is going without family for so long… must be hard on him."
"I dunno, he never mentions it." Kellie sat up.
"I want you to go over and invite him here for dinner."
Kellie's green eyes widened and she gaped for a moment. "Mom… no, that's embarrassing."
"How?"
"Oh I dunno, how about I just go over and say 'hey, sorry your parents don't love you, come eat with us'." She ranted sarcastically.
"Kellie Delilah Barr you march right over and invite that poor child over. I'm sure he'd be happy for the company, and he did do something nice for you, think of it as doing something nice for him in return."
Kellie groaned and got up. "Fine, but I'm not clearing the damn table." She slipped her jacket and boots on and trudged out of the house.
~.~.~
"Y-you want me to come over?" Edd blinked.
"Did I stutter, dork?" Kellie's tone was bitter, her red face from cold and not embarrassment. "Mom thinks it'd be nice to have you come eat dinner with us."
"I'm flattered, Kellie, but may I inquire as to why this suddenly came up, and not before?"
"Mom found out your parents are never home, happy?"
Edd swallowed, he didn't like this. Being reminded of his situation, and being pitied for it wasn't fun. "I do not think that it's such a g-good idea."
Kellie sighed. "Come on, I don't want to wait out here much longer." She began dragging him across the street to his house.
"A-ah! Kellie! Please let go of me!" The next thing he knew, he was being pulled through white doors to a home that smelled fondly of pumpkin and vanilla. The moment he was inside, he stopped struggling, looking around the environment and craving what Kellie had. A family. He loathed that he didn't have it. The smell of fresh cooked food made him nostalgic, yearning for when his parents weren't so busy with their lives for him. It was around this time his thoughts were interrupted by Mrs. Barr's sweet, high pitched voice. The woman really did look like her daughter.
"Ah! I'm so glad you're here!" She smiled. "I know it's rather last minute but I just couldn't let you eat alone. Must be upsetting…"
Edd just nodded quietly. He didn't feel like speaking, afraid his voice would crack from the pressure of the lump in his throat.
"Well kick off your shoes and take a seat! I'll be out as soon as I put this in the oven!" She smiled and left, Kellie had already taken her place on the couch.
Edd awkwardly kept standing there before wandering to the far end of the couch. This was far out of his comfort zone and he couldn't help but be happy about the situation, even though it made part of him sad. Mrs. Barr moved to her usual, blue lazy boy, sitting on the end and chatting Edd up immediately.
"Goodness it's been so long since I've really seen you." She fawned. "I remember when you and Kellie were kids you know, I just blinked and everyone here got older."
Kellie's face was on fire as she tried to ignore her mother and turn the TV on.
"Y-yes well… I suppose a lot of parents feel that way." He added, voice meek, staring at his bony fingers that were folded together in his lap.
"Oh, honey, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you. You're welcome to come join us for dinner any time you want." Mrs. Barr placed her hand over his.
He smiled brightly, it seemed as if he were still to cry in mere moments but held on by a thread. He nodded. "I thank you for that. It means a lot."
Kellie's head turned to look over at him, he really seemed happy… it made her happy to see that she'd done something for him that made those sad, sorry eyes brighten. Smiling a little herself, her head turned when the door clicked open and a big, burly man with darker skin, tanned by working outside, brown hair and big, brown eyes, stepped through the door. Kellie bolted up out of her seat and launched herself at him.
"Dad!" She grinned, the man's large arms encompassing her.
"It's good to see you too, Kellie." He laughed, his voice deep and thick. It took him a moment to see Edd sitting there. "Who's the runt?"
Mrs. Barr coughed, sounding agitated. "This is our guest for dinner, Eddward lives across the street."
"Ah I see then, he's so puny, he looks like he needs some meat on his bones! You'll take good care of him, eh, Irene?" Mr. Barr's belting laughter nearly shook the house. Edd's face went slightly pink at the comment, embarrassed at his small stature.
"Henry, be nice." Mrs. Barr sighed and got up. "Come on to the kitchen with me, Eddward, I need help with dinner and you look more capable than Kellie is in the kitchen."
"Hey!" Kellie snapped.
"Oh, honey, you could burn water." Irene laughed, a light, bubbly sound that brought a small grin to Edd's face as the two walked off into the large kitchen.
~.~.~
Dinner was amazing, everything tasted so wonderful and the company and laughter was nearly too much for Edd to handle. They laughed and teased, joked and prodded at each other and included him in their fun. It was so warm and inviting, and Mr. Barr frequently hinted at how much he liked Edd, joking to Kellie that he was 'a keeper', a comment that made both senior's blush. Once dinner had ended, Edd helped Mrs. Barr clear the table.
"Thanks for the help, honey, Kellie hates clearing the table." Irene smiled.
"It's no problem… I'm used to cleaning up after myself." Edd commented quickly, washing dishes off.
Thin arms hugged around his shoulders, "you're always welcome in our home, Eddward. No matter what." She felt such affection for the boy already, affection that only a mother could feel.
It was then he broke, the tears finally falling. "Tha...nk you… thank you so much… I'm glad I got to be a p-part of someone's family..."
Kellie had been standing in the doorway the whole time, frowning at the scene sadly. He was quite the lost puppy, just praying that someone would be there and tell him he was doing a good job, to hold him and love him and… he never had that did he? Kellie couldn't remember the last time she'd seen hide or hair of his parents. She grabbed a tissue from the box and headed over to where her newfound friend and mother stood and handed it to the boy, she said nothing as he took it and dried his eyes.
"I'm sorry… I shouldn't be crying… I really am happy." He sniffed, smile vaguely ghosting over pale lips.
"It's quite alright, dear." Irene smiled, stepping away from him.
"I should head home then. I really appreciated this." He smiled, heading out of the kitchen and for the door.
"Double Dork!" Kellie called, catching up with him. Once he'd looked over, head tilted, she spoke. "Come back again tomorrow, got it? I'll drag you out here if you don't!"
He paused, then smiled. "I wouldn't miss it for the world."
I actually have a pretty nasty plan in store so stay tuned and please review! If I don't get review's, I'm likely to grow bored of a story and stop writing it.
- The Goddess.