Dearest readers, it has been FAR too long since I've had a chance to write/update the story! I just really wanted to thank all of you for your reviews, especially the few people who took the time to remind me you're still interested in where this story goes! It's really the best motivation to keep writing whenever my 4 month old takes a nap, haha. You are all the best.
Hopefully will actually notify people a new chapter's up this go-around!
Chapter 7
"Sookie! You look HOT! Doesn't she look hot?" Claudine was addressing Eric, but Claude and Alcide came out of Sookie's bedroom to see for themselves. There were a few approving grunts and Claude actually clapped softly at Sookie's appearance.
"Please, hold your applause.." Sookie pretended to blow kisses to Claude and the rest of her fake adoring fans. Claudine smiled then Sookie hooked arms with the birthday girl before they strut into the living room. As they trekked down the hallway Sookie chatted excitedly as Claudine looked back over her shoulder at Eric. She made "obvious eyes" at three different points of interest: his eyes, his prominent erection, and a quick glance to Sookie. After her eyes did the rotation a good two or three times, she wiggled her eyebrows at him before joining in on Sookie's game-plan for the evening.
As soon as they were safely in the living room and the guys were back in Sookie's bedroom building the wardrobe, Eric adjusted his junk.
"Sookie, that all sounds fantastic, but how about we just go back to that club, Valkyrie? I promise, I'll keep you safe from the Big Bad Lesbian!" Sookie smiled.
"That's actually a great idea! Did you know that that's ERIC's club?" she asked excitedly. Claudine faked surprise.
"Are you serious? No. Way." Sookie's eyes narrowed a bit, Claudine definitely had something up her sleeve.
"Yeahhh, well. I should probably warn you, I invited some people. Just the guys and a new friend, Nancy. I hope you don't min-"
"Of course not, Sookie! The more the merrier!" Claudine dragged Sookie out the door.
"I'm pretty sure it's clean." Eric snapped out of his thoughts and he looked back to Pam. She had her hip cocked out as she smirked evilly. She pointed to the rag Eric was using to rub down the bar, and sure enough, he had been rubbing the same spot for the past five minutes.
It wasn't exactly his fault. Sookie was out on the dancefloor swaying her sensual hips to the music in the most hypnotic way. It was impossible for him to watch her dance without imaginig her moving without clothes on, especially since he knew exactly she had on underneath that dress. Claude and Claudine were out there dancing with her, so of course everyone at the club had their eyes glued to them. (Men and Women both...)
"You do know that I called dibs on her about two months ago." Pam brought out her phone to text Chow and ask for some help behind the bar. That night Eric was about as useful as a hat full of busted-assholes.
Eric crossed his arms in front of his chest as he continued to watch Sookie dance. How was it possible that he never noticed this woman before? She was hands down the coolest girl he had ever met, and somehow he had overlooked her where as Pam spotted her potential, months ago no less. It was bullshit.
"Yeah, well, NOW she's off limits-to both of us." Eric began wiping down glasses while Pam worked circles around him.
"Why? You've gone after married women before. Oh, wait, she's somebody's girlfriend. Alcide? Really? I swear, you boys and your bro-code..." Pam rolled her eyes and picked up another tip off the bar.
"Why the fuck does everybody keep thinking that? Alcide is a mile away from her, surrounded by other women. Obviously, she isn't with him." He ran his hand through his hair to regain his cool demeanor. "She's our new roommate."
Pam stopped what she was doing to look back at the vision on the dance floor. The first time she had come in, she was wearing very thick glasses and a knit beanie. This new look was far more tantalizing. It was hard to believe Eric was so preoccupied with the girl, she was sure it was only temporary.
"Sorry Eric, it's just that she's Sweet. CLEARLY not your type."
"Yeah? What is my type, Pam?" She smirked while handing out another drink.
"Oh, you know, you're an easy, cheap, and gullible kinda guy." Eric turned to her, only slightly offended since she was right about his usual tastes.
"Yeah? Well you're not HER type, Pam. She's more of a dick, cock, and balls kinda girl..."
-Now the thing about clubs and the loud pulsing music was that you never could hear people sneak up on you.
"BALLS! Yeah, I'mma HUGE fan!" Eric hung his head feeling somewhat embarassed about Sookie catching him. Pam was giggling, or making a noise somewhat like giggling since beings as Evil as Pam aren't quite capable of making cute giggles. He figured it'd be easier to introduce them than try to explain himself.
"Sookie, meet Pamela Ravenscroft-the cousin. Pam, this is Sookie Stackhouse, roommate extraordinaire." Sookie smiled and extended her hand out to Pam.
"It's so nice to finally meet you, Sexy Stackhouse." Pam purred as she grasped Sookie's extended hand. It was sort of out of character for her to "shake hands", but this blonde who had Eric in a twist seemed quite charming.
"Oh, I'm sorry. You must Not have caught my name, it's SOOKIE. Sookie Sexhouse, and we've met before." Pam laughed and looked back at Eric.
"I like her." It was Eric's turn to smirk.
"Yeah, that's a phrase I've been hearing a lot lately." Sookie looked confused. A paying customer at the bar signaled he needed another drink, and since it was technically Eric's establishment, he nodded for Pam to take care of him. Sookie asked for another gin and tonic and Eric wasted no time in pouring one out for her. As he slid the glass towards her, Sookie cupped it with both hands and leaned forward towards Eric.
"Eric," she whispered, "I'm not gonna lie, I feel like I need to go home and scrub myself down with some heavy duty chemicals." With his height and the angle which she was leaning, he had the most spectacular view of her cleavage, but Eric leaned foward against the bar between them and mirrored her position.
"Well, I've washed all of the clothes in that box." He whispered back. Sookie was taken by surprise.
"Really? Why?" Eric shrugged and continued washing glasses in front of him.
"Just in case any of those women showed up the next day for their stuff." Sookie sipped cautiously.
"So you actually wanted some of these ladies to come back?"
"Not exactly. Some might have been good for an encore performance, but I mostly washed it to avoid confrontation..I guess? It's kind of the least I could do, for their services."
For a moment, Sookie's face looked disgusted, but then her eyes travelled up to the ceiling, as if thinking, and then smiled and nodded in agreement. Her face could be QUITE expressive.
"I guess that makes sense. If they're gonna put out that easily, they should be prepared for the fact you're obviously not gonna ask them to move in or fall madly in loooooove!"
Eric was going to compliment her ability to reason, but Alcide chose that moment to shake off the women hanging all over him to make his way down the bar to sit on an empty stool next to Sookie.
"Eric, I still can't believe you let Sookie wear some other slut's dress." Sookie tensed and looked to Eric. He was even more perturbed than she was. Eric gripped the cloth he used to dry off the glassees in his fist. It wasn't the first time he had ever wanted to punch Alcide, but for some reason this moment just felt different. Sookie could taste the tension in the air and did what she did best, diffused the situation.
"Aww, what's wrong Alcide? You don't think it looks good on me?" She leaned back on her bar stool, shifting her chest towards Alcide. While his eyes were transfixed on Sookie's breasts, she shot a wink at Eric; he could thank her later.
"No cher, you uh-Y-you look great." Sookie threw the rest of her drink back feeling on top of the world! It wasn't everyday she could make someone as handsome Alcide trip over his words. Eric filled her drink and she mouthed a "thanks".
"Omm!" she exclaimed with her mouth full of booze. "Alcide, why aren't you with those ladies from earlier? Do you need a wingman? I'm an excellent wingman." Alcide just laughed and took a swig of his beer.
"Sookie, are you volunteering to help me get laid?" Something about the way he said it irritated Eric.
"Of course! I wish great sex upon All my friends!" While they were immersed in their conversation, nobody noticed a small man sit in the other empty seat beside Sookie.
"Why, Miss Stackhouse, you are the last person I expected to run into tonight!" As soon as Sookie spotted his thickly framed glasses and crisp buttoned down shirt, she launched her tipsy-self at him, wrapping her arms around his small frame.
"Stan! What are you doing here? How's your summer going?" He smiled as she pulled away from him.
"Three months off, I can't complain! Did you come here with that boyfriend of yours?" Stan started to scan the crowd in search of Bill's face.
"No, actually. We broke up." Sookie gave him a closed-mouth smile and his eyes widened in surprise.
"That's great! Oh, well that's not GREAT, but I mean...You broke up!" She laughed and nodded. Eric cleared his throat and she suddenly remembered they weren't alone.
"I'm so sorry! Where are my manners? Stan, I'd like you to meet Eric and Alcide, my roommates! Guys, this is Mr. Davis, a fellow educator!" Stan smiled and tried to hide his discomfort as the guys took turns crushing his delicate and clammy hand in their strong, manly handshakes.
"Call me Stan, please. We don't really work in the same area, I'm actually the Sixth Grade Life Science teacher, but we're both frequent volunteers at most functions or fundraisers. Miss Stackhouse here is almost always requested as the female chaperone on our field trips!" She blushed. It was easy for Eric to imagine all the young boys falling in love with her and the girls wanting to be her.
"So Miss Stackhouse, you're single now! I guess that means you'll finally be able to attend Comic-con this year! It's in October you know!" Sookie threw her head back and laughed.
"Comic-con! Haha! That was actually one of the first things I thought about when I broke it off with Bill. They say Stan Lee is gonna be there!"
"I HEARD!"
Alcide leaned over to gossip in secret with Eric.
"My god, there are TWO of them!" The guys sat back to watch their nerdy exchange.
"I don't know, if I decide to go I know I want to cosplay, but I have no idea who I'd dress as..."
"Comic-con?" Eric asked. Sookie bit her lip, too uncomfortable to explain it to him.
"Oh Eric, It's not really your scene. Believe me." Stan looked stunned.
"Seriously? Eric looks like the kind of guy they would PAY to dress up and take pictures with!" Eric stood up proudly and puffed his chest out smugly to Sookie. She just rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to Stan.
"Please, his ego doesn't need any more stroking, Stan." Eric held back from letting Stan know exactly how she had stroked his ego just fine earlier in his car.
"Hey man," Alcide interrupted, "you want a beer or something?"
"Oh no, but thank you, Al!" Eric and Alcide made incredulous faces towards each other. Al? "I actually came here with a few friends of mine and they already took off, I really need to catch up to them. You know how it is, starting out a new MMORPG..." They looked at him like he grew a second head.
"Well, it was great running into you Stan. I'll see you when class starts up again."
"Or, actually, I still have your phone number. How 'bout I just give you a call and we can go out for lunch, or breakfast as I like to call it, sometime later this week?"
"That sounds like fun!" Eric hid his growl by drinking the rest of Sookie's gin and tonic. They waved their goodbyes and Stan took off. Alcide elbowed her lightly.
"So Sook, you've only been single how long, and you already got a date?" She rolled her eyes and slid her empty glass back to Eric to refill.
"He's my co-worker, it's not a date."
"SOOKIE, YOU'VE GOT A DATE?" Claudine slid into the seat Stan had recently vacated. "Was it the blonde I sent you up here for in the first place?"
"What blonde?" Eric asked. Claudine eyed him suspiciously and he quickly resumed cleaning some empty glasses that Chow had silently slid in front of him earlier. That guy was a ninja.
"The blonde guy at the other end of the bar," Claude joined the conversation and took a swig of Sookie's drink. She pouted at her recent lack of booze. "Yeah, he's been watching Sook almost the entire time we were out there dancing." Leave it to the Crane twins to embarass her properly. Of course EVERYONE turned to see the mystery guy (At The Same Time) which made Sookie blush all over again. The guy looked alright, sort of like a shorter version of Eric with a bit more bulk to him.
"Sookie, please go flirt with him, it's the only thing I want for my birthday present!" Claudine stuck out her bottom lip to persuade Sookie with a super-model pout.
"Oh, I bet that's the ONLY present you want seeing as you're already WEARING those Gucci heels I bought you! I almost used an entire paycheck on those shoes, Claudine!" Claudine smiled an all too guilty smile.
"Sookie, I'm telling you it's a sure thing. Just go for it."
"This isn't even ME." Sookie threw her arms out and motioned to her entire ensemble. It was true, none of what she was wearing was actually hers. "Even if he WAS interested, once he saw the real me he'd run for the hills! I bet you anything I'm not his type."
"I'll take that bet." All eyes snapped to Eric behind the bar. "What, she just bet anything?"
"Barmaid, bring me another..." Claudine slid her empty drink glass to Eric to shut him up. He quickly refilled it with a fruity concoction with an orange slice on the side for decoration.
"Get out there Sookie, have some FUN. You're single now!" She looked up into Claude's encouraging eyes and smiled. Steeling her resolve, She stood and adjusted her dress. The more she slid the material down her thighs the more her breasts fought to escape the top. Beautiful. She grabbed what was left of her gin and tonic and swallowed what remained in one gulp, slamming the glass back down on the bar.
"Eric, you be sure to put these on my tab," she motioned to her empty glass and Claudine's fancy booze.
"Of Course," he smiled. She squared her shoulders and sauntered off towards the blonde man at the other end of the bar. As soon as she was out of ear-shot Claudine turned to Eric with fury in her eyes.
"Eric Northman, don't you DARE add these to that poor girl's tab! She is a TEACHER, do you know how much she ma-"
"I'm not gonna charge her." That shut Claudine up real quick. "We just took her card so she'd think she has a tab running. I've instructed everyone Not to charge her for the rest of the evening, too. Had to keep this a secret from her or she woulda made a HUGE scene about paying her dues or some shit. I figure by the time she goes home she'll be too wasted to even notice anyway."
Claudine was shocked. That sounded EXACTLY like Sookie Stackhouse. It was weird how well Eric seemed to know her so well after only a few days, all of the guys for that matter appeared to have fallen in love with her. It was comforting to say the least. When she had first volunteered their spare room to Sookie, Claudine was sure they'd harass her about her nerd-ways and bizarre fashion sense, but even though they ran in completely different circles everyone had really taken well to Sookie.
"Hey guys, while she's off...flirting, I wanted to run some things by you." Once Eric had everyone's attention he continued. "Why don't we all go and help her move out her stuff from Bill's house tomorrow?" Claudine choked on her beverage. It was actually a great idea and she almost hated herself for not offering to help Sookie out already.
"That's not your JOB, Eric!" Claudine shouted. "I'm her best friend, that's MY job!"
"Yeah? Then why haven't you done it yet?" She shut her gaping mouth and sneered at him. Why did Eric Northman always have to be right?
(Meanwhile) Sookie sidled up next to the blonde man and stared into his dark brown eyes.
"Hi, I'm Sookie, can I get you another-" Sookie glanced at his glass to see what he was drinking. She tried to hide her disappointed face when she saw he was drinking wine, at a club. Bill used to be the creepy guy that ordered wine at clubs, like an old man.
"No thanks, I'm good. I love your shoes, Sookie!" He sipped his wine and Sookie wasn't quite sure how to proceed. She had lived in the city long enough to spot the signs that this guy wasn't really interested in a woman like herself.
"Um, thank you?"
"Listen, Sookie, sweetie, could you do me a favor?" She nodded warily.
"You know that guy you were dancing with earlier? Your friend with the black hair? Yeah, do you think you could give him this for me? Thanks, you're a doll!" Then he sipped his wine and completely ignored her.
She bit her lip to keep from laughing on the walk back to her group. She should have known better than to put herself out there, she was destined to be alone. Everyone was hunched over the bar whispering, most likely about their mission to get her laid, so Sookie cleared her throat to warn them of her arrival. Claudine spun around the fastest and gripped Sookie's shoulders as she maneuvered them further away from the boys.
"SOOKIE! WOW, HEY! THAT WAS FAST! HOW DID IT GO?" Sookie raised her eyebrows at her friend before leaning around Claudine to hand the phone number to Claude.
"Yeaaaah...I don't quite think he was interested." Everyone grimaced and made regretful 'aww' sounds so all she could do was shrug.
"Philippe'?" Claude read off the business card. He scowled at the card and ripped it in half, leaving it on the bar for Eric to clean up.
"What's wrong? He's a good looking guy," she offered.
"Phil? Please. If I was into that, I would just date Eric." Eric laughed. "Besides, he's obviously blind. The way you're dressed and the way you work that body, even I'm beginning to question my sexuality!" Eric had stopped laughing. Sookie flashed Claude a smile of thanks for his funny compliment.
"You're so sweet. But, this isn't really me..." she motioned to the outfit again. "It's a gorgeous dress, but there's a reason it belonged to one of Eric's rejects." He winced at her words. "I think this just means I need to be alone for a while-"
"Oh FUCK that! Eric, get us some shots!" He magically pulled out five shot glasses at record breaking speeds and twirled a clear bottle of booze classily in his large hand before gracefully pouring the liquid equally into each shot glass. It was like art. Claudine shoved the shot into Sookie's hands and Claude shouted "WORLD PEACE!" before they all swallowed.
"Come on Sookie, I wanna DANCE!" Claudine took Sookie's empty shot glass and slammed it onto the bar. "You boys carry on with your...chat...about...sports?" Sookie quizzically studied their reactions and didn't miss Eric's narrowed eyes before Claudine dragged her out onto the dancefloor.
They had been dancing for what felt like forever. Sookie was actually having a blast even after her epic fail at picking up a man for the night. It had been so long since was actually able to go out and dance, Bill wasn't a dancer and would guilt-trip her like crazy, so if she did go out with her friends she would have a horrible time and would head home early.
As they danced, Sookie and Claudine worked out a system for over-eager dance partners that got too handsy. As soon as things became REAL on the dancefloor, the dance victim would shoot the other girl a wide-eyed expression so the dancefloor hero would jump in and rescue her with bizarre dance-moves. It was actually hilarious to see a stunning model like Claudine run up to said groper and challenge him to a dance-off with expert moves like the sprinkler or a high-heeled running man! Sookie's moves always got a huge laugh, too. The few times Claudine was dance-molested, her blonde best friend would bust out a Russian Hat Dance or the Pee Wee Herman-like fist bumps in front then behind her back. These moves always caused a big enough scene for the manhandler to "electric slide away" from the crowd.
With their steady flow of booze and all the dancing, Sookie actually started to regret not coming out with Claudine sooner.
"Sookie! Tell me, what do you think of Eric?" Sookie kept on dancing to the music but glanced back to the bar. He was handing two very pretty ladies their drinks and looked up just in time to catch Sookie looking his way. He smiled as their eyes connected and she turned away to hide her blush.
"He's surprisingly sweet. Probably my best friend in the house, but don't tell that to Claude!"
"Ugh, not what I meant! I mean, why don't you hit that? Because, IThinkHe'sReallyIntoYou!"
"What? Eric? No. No! We're just friends."
"You can't be friends with these guys! You don't think that EVERY single one of them has thought about sleeping with you?"
"No, I don't. You just think that everyone just wants to sleep with everyone, all the time!"
"They DO. That's why I think that."
"Stop it, your brother's GAY, Claudine! I seriously doubt he's wanted to sleep with me." Claudine was still dancing but shaking her head in disagreement. "No, you are not going to ruin this! I'm Happy! I like these guys! I like where I live!"
"I'm telling you, HE. GETS. YOU. Trust me."
"Yeah, and I trusted you about that Philippe' guy, the asshole at the bar! And how would you know 'he gets me'? You guys talked about sports for like, five minutes, tops! And I suck at sports!"
"Sookie, just promise me you'll keep an open mind about it. He's there, he's available, and he looks like a good fuck." Sookie laughed and kept swaying to the music. "It's an option. A girl could do a lot worse for a rebound."
"Claudine, it's just not a good idea. I have to live with the guy! MORE IMPORTANTLY, do you really think a guy like Eric the Northman would ever go for a girl like me?" Claudine eyed Sookie from head to toe, lingering on a few choice curves before striking a pose in her dance and cocking an eyebrow at Sookie. Somehow, quirked eyebrows always seemed sexier on Eric...
Claude slipped in between the two bickering ladies and stole his sister away theatrically as they waltzed about the dancefloor. Sookie fanned herself with her hands and made her way back to the bar for a drink and chat with Eric and Alcide. Eric had her drink waiting for her by the time she sat down.
"Alcide! What are you doing still SITTING here?" She took a swig and kept bouncing to the beat. "Do you wanna dance?" Alcide stiffened in his chair.
"Oh, I uh- I don't dance." Sookie laughed and slapped a hand on his shoulder.
"We're going to a WEDDING next weekend! People dance at weddings."
"Not me, I'm from that town in Footloose." She laughed and took another sip.
"That's fine Alcide, let's just go pick up chicks." He set his beer down and stared at her. "I'm serious. I'm an amazing hype man! We've developed this foolproof plan. You just go chat with some girl you think is hot, buy her a drink or whatever, and then Eric here can call you over for a "chat" (she said while actually making Air Quotes). Next, i'll drag Claudine over and we'll sit within earshot and talk about what a stud you are! Trust me, 90% of the time, it works every time." Alcide just laughed.
"Sounds like a good plan, man" Eric quipped. "Hey, if it works out well, you might actually have a real date to Tray's wedding instead of pretending with Sookie." Everyone probably should have been offended by his idea, but Sookie was nodding and smiling like it was a fantastic idea!
Alcide finished his beer, nodded at Sookie and made his way back to the same group of ladies that were all over him when he first entered the club.
"You play wingman often, Sookie?" Eric slid her another glass and she slid her empty one back at him.
"Why? You have any available positions?"
"I'm sure I could find plenty of positions for you." She laughed but the blush was still present. "Hey, sorry about that guy earlier. I swore he'd be all over you the rest of the night."
"Nah, I have that effect on guys. THAT REMINDS ME, I believe you owe me, what was it? -anything..." Eric spread his arms along the bar and leaned forward to whisper to her.
"You're right, a bet's a bet. So tell me, what does your little heart desire?" Sookie couldn't stop smiling. He was VERY good at this seduction stuff. She figured she might as well try it back, hell, winking at Barry earlier was actually really fun!
"Hmm, anything... there's just so many things I could do with you, Eric..." He swallowed and his eyes bore into hers. Sookie sat up off her seat, her weight resting on her arms. She leaned even closer to Eric, her lips brushing against his ear lobe. "I can't help but think of all the things you would have asked me to do for you if you had won the bet. Oh, Eric, I bet you'd have a big load for me.. mmm, yes... That sounds good." He felt her smile into his skin before she pulled away from him. "Yep, You can wash my laundry for a month." She took a sip of her drink and looked away like nothing had transpired between them.
Eric was stunned. Who the fuck was this girl? How could she possibly be so awkward and geeky one minute then have him hard on his side of the bar the next? He was so confused by what had just happened he didn't notice Nancy run up and engulf Sookie in a hug.
"Sookie, wow! You clean up nice under pressure! Oh, hey Eric." Sookie complimented Nancy's deep green dress and dangerously high heels before she spotted Alcide looking at them from the other side of the bar.
"Oh shit! It's time, Eric! Attack Pattern Delta!" Nancy looked at Eric but he looked even more confused than she did. Sookie rolled her eyes. "It's go-time! Nancy and I are gonna hit the dancefloor and you gotta summon Alcide!"
Sookie dragged Nancy out into the crowd and introduced her to Claudine. They had heard plenty about each other from Claude so the introductions went smoothly. After a few minutes dancing, the girls sat at the bar close enough to the brunettes Alcide was chatting with and started to gush about how sexy, sweet, and funny he was. Claudine took it the extra mile by incorporating how great he would be in bed. Apparently she had an eye for things like that.
Four minutes later, pretty lady #1 gave Alcide her number.
The next morning...
Eric woke up far too early for his liking but had a plan for the day and didn't need to lounge around in bed. When he looked at the clock, he was surprised to see it was already 11.
At least Sookie would still be asleep. Last night Claudine had left her on the small loveseat in Eric's office to get herself some "birthday sex", so Sookie curled up into a ball and passed out until Eric finished up minor paperwork and carried her to his car. She was quite light and easy to maneuver around, the only time he received any suspicious glares was when he carried her past the doormen at the loft and entered the elevator. So usually Eric's dates could walk in (and storm out) of the place on their own, that didn't mean he had to resort to hot unconscious women.
He threw off his covers and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. He stumbled into a pair of jeans and threw on a white t-shirt before making his way to the bathroom. He took care of the majority of his morning hygiene issues and moved to the kitchen for a cup of coffee. Sookie's bedroom door was still closed, but Claude and Alcide were already up. Claude was dressed and sweetening his own cup of coffee and Alcide was at the dining room table lacing up his sneakers.
"Think we should wake Sookie? She'll probably want a cup of coffee before we force her to do this." Eric said as he reached for a mug.
"No need." Claude said before taking a sip. "She's not in her bed, we woke up and she was gone, but she started the coffee maker before she left." Eric actually became worried. She hadn't said anything about PLANS on a Sunday morning. When they discussed everything the night before, surely Claudine would have told them if Sookie wouldn't be available?
Just then, Sookie, with her great timing, walked through the front door. She was wearing black yoga pants with the hot pink elastic waist, a white tank top that read "Aperture Laboratories" (no one at the apartment understood), and a very visible black and white sports bra underneath. In her hand was an enormous "Big Gulp" from 7-11 that she was taking sips from.
"Morning Boys!" She smiled cheerfully. Everybody was checking her out, even Claude. "Went for a morning run, wayyy overdue for a workout." She took another sip of her soda.
"Sookie, I'm no expert, but I think you're doing it wrong." Claude pointed to her Big Gulp cup and Sookie laughed loudly and shrugged.
"You guys are up early! What are we doing today?" She took a seat at one of the mismatched chairs at the dining table next to Alcide. Claude and Eric exchanged somewhat worried glances.
"Well it's a good thing you're sitting down while we tell you this." Eric set down his coffee cup and continued. "Sookie. We're gonna go get your things." It was silent for a minute, not even any sounds of Sookie slurping from her giant cup.
"What? No no, that's alright, guys. I was just going to go another day, ya know, whenever Bill isn't home?" Sookie was immersed in dejavu' as all three of the guys crossed their arms in front of their chests. Sookie set her drink down and looked at the floor, avoiding their angry glares.
"We're all going with you, Alcide's bringing his truck so we can even get the big stuff you left behind. The twins are taking Claudine's Audi, and I'm going to ride with you, just in case you decide to turn back."
Now Sookie was pissed. How could he possibly be so high-handed? She crossed her arms over her chest and huffed childishly.
"So you just planned this all out? Why don't you just plan out my entire life while you're at it?"
"I'm glad you said something, I have you set up all the way to 2016, maybe we can pencil in some spontaneity, maybe a trip abroad two years from now."
"ERIC! I don't see why this is so important to you! Why is this important to ANY of you? Just who do you think you ar-"
"We're your friends Sookie." Eric said softly. Well that was unexpected. It actually touched her heart hearing it out loud. During her years with Bill she had lost plenty of friends, especially those of the male persuasion. Growing up she had always had more in common with boys, what with the action films and video games, but Bill had put his foot down about her associating with any guys when they were together. It had just been so long since she had actually madea friend, much less three. She had to blink back the happy tears.
"Come on Sook," Alcide nudged her. "You don't really want to do this alone, do you?" She shook her head. Claudine then burst into the apartment with large sunglasses on and a large coffee in hand, fighting her hangover no doubt.
"Well, let's get this show on the road ladies! I've already vomitted most of the fruit decorations from my drinks last night, so I'm good to go! Oo, Sookie, good idea! I figured you'd dress it up a little before running into your ex again, but yoga pants show you're just FINE without him! It's perfect! You wanna be dressed nice and comfy when you move out of his life for good." Sookie's shoulders slumped.
Everyone started making their way out of the apartment and Sookie grabbed her enormous soda as she trudged behind them. It took everything she had to focus only on their good intentions and not the anxiety she felt about really confronting Bill.
Almost everyone was already in their respective vehicles except for Eric. He stood, lost, checking out all of the cars in the parking lot. Sookie stood next to him for a few minutes since he was the brains of the operation, but soon realized he had stopped because he had no clue which car was hers. She blushed again and led him to a very old white Toyota with crazy Asian characters along the side. Eric raised a puzzled eyebrow as he nodded to the Japanese decals on his side of the vehicle.
"It's sort of a long story." Sookie had never been that nervous over her car before, but for some strange reason, Eric's opinion mattered to her. He slid into her passenger seat and started laughing as he buckled himself in. She found it next to impossible to make eye contact. Finally Sookie took a deep breath then drove out of the lot, the other cars in tow. Eric noticed everyone else's confused expressions (except for Claudine) over Sookie's vehicle.
She was nervous, that much was painfully obvious. Her hands were gripping her steering wheel so tight her fingernails were leaving impressions on her palms, and her jaw was clenching every few minutes.
"Sooooo, Sookie, how'd you end up with this car? Steal it from someone in China Town?"
"No. Those are Japanese letters on the door, Eric. It's Kanji. And, it's just- No, ya know what? Forget it. I don't think you'd really get it, anyway!" She shifted gears and started driving even faster while weaving through traffic.
"Why do you always do that? You act like I'm not cool enough for your-"
"What?" She turned on him, anger splayed across her features. "It's YOU, you're the one who's TOO cool to understand my nerd...quirks! Eric! We're from two different worlds. Listen, I've known guys like you my whole life, and guys like you make fun of girls like me." Sookie had started out yelling at him, but by the end her voice was barely above a whisper.
"Guy's like me, huh?" She nodded, still fuming. He sat back into his seat. Sure he probably wouldn't have pursued a girl like Sookie based on her appearance before, but every day just being in her presence only made him want her more. If it were possible, he'd travel back in time to kick his own ass for not noticing a woman as seemingly perfect as Sookie. Who cares if she was with Bill at the time? He couldn't help but wonder just where he'd be if he had somehow found her first.
In any case, there was no way he could win her over in their present state: not speaking. She actually thought he'd judge her for being too nerdy but the reality was he wanted to know everything about her, starting with her bizarre connections to Asian culture.
"I had horrible acne." Silence.
"What?" she asked incredulously.
"I had acne," he shrugged. "And I was tall, too tall. I had to drink weight gain shakes with tons of icecream during high school. Probably didn't help with the acne..." Sookie continued to gape at him.
"Oh yeah, Sookie. It was rough. I spent my entire allowance on Doritos and games at the arcade every week. I had every Nintendo game ever made and practically slept with my GameBoy, except you couldn't really see the screen at night. Then my cousin, my very gay cousin, Pam, had to be my date to Prom. My first real date wasn't until college-" Sookie interrupted him with her soft laughter. She put a hand on his shoulder while she continued to giggle.
"Eric," She looked at him and he shot a pathetic smirk her way. "Aww, things couldn't have been that bad!" He blinked at her, obviously disagreeing with the statement. "And Pam's HOT, I'm sure all those other acne covered teenagers were OVERCOME with Jealousy!" He chuckled.
"You know, Sookie, I wasn't sure how you'd feel about us all springing this "Operation Moving Day" on you, so I- I sort of...made you something." Sookie found his uncertainty endearing.
Eric leaned towards her, actually his entire body was suddenly angling towards her. She stiffened as her eyes went wide, suddenly focusing comletely on the road, unsure of his movements. Then he pulled a disc from his back pocket. He opened it's case and slid the cd into her car stereo and turned the volume up.
"Glad you have a cd player in here, woulda been screwed if this old Toyota only had a tape-deck." The car was then filled with guitar intro to "Eye of the Tiger" by Survivor. A grin spread across her face.
"Eric! You made me a mix cd!" He had never seen her smile so brightly before. Honestly, it took his breath away a bit. "I don't think anyone has ever made me one before." He shrugged like it wasn't such a big deal but his satisfied smirk completely gave him away.
"Yeah, well. Just a couple songs to keep you pumped up, and maybe a few to make you laugh." Sookie was completely oblivious, but Eric noticed she started to loosen up. Her hands didn't have the same death grip on the steering wheel at least.
"So my car," she began, "it's sort of an inside joke." She glanced his way and her shoulders tensed when she found she held his complete attention. "When I was little, I used to watch this anime, er-cartoon? This, show, called Initial D. It's about this boy who's dad runs a tofu shop at the top of Mount Akina He has him make these tofu deliveries so he drives this curvey road every day and gets really good. He sort of become a badass at drifting. Anyway, he's just this nobody kid with no goals and ends up this legendary racer.
Anyway, not a whole lot of people in Bon Temps, Louisiana watch much Japanese Animation, 'cept for my brother and I, and then in middle school I found out my friend Tony had watched the show. 'Tone' was a major car fanatic and we used to joke about having dual ownership of a vehicle one day. Whenever I graduated high school, my Gran and Jason surprised me with this car, and Tony put the same decals on the sides like they were on Initial D! They say "Fujiwara Tofu Shop". I just thought it was so sweet, especially because we hadn't talked about the show for years!" Eric was smiling and did his best to disguise his jealousy towards this "tony" fellow. "Actually, I had just started seeing Bill at the time and he hated everything about the car, but since it was all a gift I convinced him to let me keep it."
"So he wanted to buy you a different car?" Sookie snorted.
"Hell no, he wanted me to trade it in and buy myself a new car. Ughk! All these years of dealing with his mega-Guilt Trips! I swear, the guy made more than enough to support us both, but would practically make me Cry if I ever spent any of my own money for something for myself. What a douche-box, how did I never notice any of this before?" Sookie was breathing crazy and driving fast again. She didn't realize she was ranting on and on until Eric rested a hand on her knee.
"I'm so sorry, Eric. You've just-you've done so much for me, and you're always helping me out, and I'm just here screaming, ranting, and man-bashing in front of you..." She blushed.
"Hey, you said it yourself, he's not a man, the guy's a douche." She smiled but didn't take her eyes off the road. "Sookie, do you mind me asking why you were with him in the first place?" She sighed and shrugged.
"Well, I wasn't very pretty or popular growing up. People called me "Jason's little sister" for as long as I could remember. Anyway, Bill was always around, he was our neighbor. He was sort of the first person to ever ask me out. Bill knew my family, and he was sort of popular, he played sports and was voted "most likely to succeed" so I didn't see any reason not to go out with him. I'm not sure how he did it, but man, he had me CONVINCED I had somehow won over this perfect man way out of my league! Gran kept trying to tell me I was too young to be tied down like that, and Jason hated every guy interested in me. I just assumed they didn't want me to be happy. Next thing ya' know, we were in college together, then he got offered a great position here in New York, and he had asked me to move with him.
My family and I fought because of it. We ended up not speaking for weeks when I moved here with him, but I swore he would propose. You don't just ask someone to move 10 states away with you without the intention of marrying them, right? But no, years went by. I broke it off with him a time or two before whenever my friends would remind me how crazy our whole relationship was. Somehow that asshole always managed to trick me into feeling bad for my indiscretions and FORGAVE me, I can't believe I was so dumb. How could everyone else see him as this scum bag while I thought I won some sort of prize?"
"I get it. This guy's your kryptonite." Sookie nodded and worried her bottom lip. "You still see this guy as you did back when you were an awkward and unconfident kid. Now you just need to see him as you are now. You're a smart, self-reliant, stubborn, stong, hilarious, stunning woman with an amazing rack who doesn't have the time to deal with an unfaithful douchebag too stupid to see what a great thing he had."
Now Eric was the one venting.
He cooly ran a hand through his hair. Sookie went over his words in her head, trying to focus and remember the parts that would help her stay strong through her meeting with Bill.
Eric's mix cd must have done the trick, because Sookie didn't freak out throughout the drive until she re-entered her old neighborhood. This was the place she had called home for so long. As she pulled up to their old blue and white house, she couldn't miss Bill's silver Sebring parked in the car-port.
She turned the keys in the ignition but didn't make a move to exit the car. Eric waited patiently but once he saw her hands shaking he couldn't help but place his larger hands over hers and give them a small squeeze.
"Eric," she whispered. Sookie bit her lip and risked looking up into his beautiful blue eyes. "I'm nervous."
Before he could tell her something encouraging like Mel Gibson in Braveheart, they both jumped as something Slammed into Sookie's driver side window. Sookie almost screamed before she turned her head to see Claudine's hot pink bra and cleavage smashed up against the glass. Sookie laughed as Claudine danced against the window, the naked skin of her stomach "squeaking" as it rubbed against the surface.
"Fuckin' Claudine!" Sookie took her hands away from Eric's so she could cover her mouth and stifle her laughter.
Claudine stepped away from the glass and pulled her shirt back over her exposed chest. She opened Sookie's door and like a gentleman she helped her out of the vehicle.
Sookie took deep soothing breaths as she made her way over what was once her front yard. Steve and Sarah Newlin, the neighbors across the street, were gawking at all of the strangers and the scene that would probably ensue.
"SHEESH," Claudine said, speaking loud enough for everyone to hear, "you'd THINK they could at least PRETEND to be doing yard work instead of just standing and staring!"
Sookie stood in front of her front door, tugging her tank top down. In a way it was comical yet comforting having four disturbingly beautiful people standing behind her as she shakily rang the doorbell. Moments later, Bill opened up.
"Sookeh," She internally groaned at the way he drawled her name. "I'm glad you've come to your senses." Bill crossed his arms over his chest as he blocked the doorway. He was wearing a deep green polo shirt, a loose fitting pair of khakis and some detestable penny loafers. Sookie rolled her eyes as she remembered how much Bill openly criticized her wardrobe when he dressed like a Florida retiree. His eyes lit up as he spotted her best friend's cleavage. "Claudine! Hey, you're looking good.."
"Blehk." Claudine gagged as she brushed past Bill. "It's all back this way, guys!" They each walked into the house but whenever Alcide entered he shouldered Bill forcefully. Bill's body bounced off of the wall and it took him a few minutes before he gathered his bearings. Sookie stopped at the end of the hall, her anger overwhelming her.
"Bill! What the HELL? What did you do to all the stuff I packed?"
"I put it all back where it belongs, dear. Sookie, who are all these people and why are they in our home? Can we have a moment to talk?"
"Honestly, there's really nothing to talk about. These are my roommates and we're here to pick up the rest of my things." Bill was pouting like a child and Sookie began tugging at her hair in frustration. Claudine stepped in between the two of them to get everyone started.
"Well, I'll get to work packing up all your wardrobe, Sookie. Don't worry, I'll get those ghastly "teacher" clothes too! If you want, maybe you can start in the kitchen, I know you've been missing that coffee grinder. Have the guys get all the big or heavy stuff."
"Right. Alcide, think you can help me with this funky wing-backed chair?"
"Ooo, I forgot about that chair!" Claudine Squealed. "That's gonna look so good at your guys' place!"
"What? You aren't staying with Claudine?" The girls ignored him and shared a sweet secret handshake before walking in separate directions. Bill was starting to get angry, his fists opening and clenching.
"Come on, Bro," Claudine waved over at Claude, "let's get the boxes and tape from my car." Claude shrugged and followed her back outside while Alcide and Eric followed Sookie into the store room/spare bedroom.
"Sookie, please! Be reasonable." She held her arm out to keep Bill a good deal away from herself.
"This is the chair Alcide, it's kinda shaped too weird for me to carry on my own." He nodded and took it out the room effortlessly by himself. Sookie looked around and figured she should retrieve her large desktop computer hidden inside the closet since she couldn't very well take Bill's laptop.
The closet door always put up a fight. Sookie really put her back into sliding the broken door open enough to save her computer, but it would only move about an inch or so before rocking back into it's original place. Eric stepped up behind her, very close behind her, as he placed his hands on the closet door as well. The two of them struggled rocking it back and forth, and Bill actually grunted in indignation when he caught Eric sniffing and smiling into her blonde hair.
Finally the door slid open and Sookie lost her balance from wrenching it back, Eric caught her easily. The minute her back slammed into his chest, his arms instinctively wrapped around her over her shoulders. It all happened quickly, but he definitely felt her body relax into his embrace.
"Daddy's gotcha-" he joked. Sookie giggled before shimmying out of his grasp.
Sookie leaned down into the closet and tried to ease the giant box containing her computer towards her so she could lift it out. As she bent into the confined space, Eric blatantly checked out her ass in her tight yoga pants. Alcide came back into the room and also got a great glimpse and licked his lips, winking at Sookie's ex. Everything was going according to plan and Bill didn't know what to shout about first.
"SOOKIE! Jesus, what are you doing?" Bill stood in between Sookie's ass and the men's lustful gazes, seething.
"Damnit! This is too heavy, can one of you help me out a little?" Alcide pushed Bill out of his way and Sookie moved enough for him to reach into the tiny closet. Bill exaggerated the force of Alcide's push and threw himself into a wall and waited for Sookie's sympathetic response. That reaction never came.
Alcide hoisted the entire HP box up over one shoulder and waited for Sookie to give him something else to carry. Her eyes widened in appreciation of his impressive male form. She reached into the closet and handed him the box that held her printer and a ream of printer paper. Alcide took the hardware to his truck. Sookie continued to pull boxes out of the closet and Eric would take them from her and stack them by size to pack into one of the many vehicles later. Bill was at his wit's end. He clutched Sookie's wrist tightly to keep her from securing any more of her old belongings.
"Sookie, I don't condone this! These men are hostile and violent, you're gonna stay here until you find a safer place to live."
"Excuse me...?" Eric dropped the box he was holding, fully preparing to kick Bill's ass. It was then that Eric realized Sookie wasn't like most girls and was fairly capable of taking care of herself. Sookie rotated her wrist around until she gripped Bill's wrist back, before he knew it, Sookie had twisted his arm around and had it pinned behind his back in a very awkward and painful position.
"Bill, just calm down!" He struggled against her. "Stop, you made me do this." She pulled his arm back a bit more until he half cried out in pain. "Bill, listen, you no longer have ANY say in where I live! So far the only person to even lay a hand on me has been YOU." Sookie released her hold on him, shoving him forward in the process. Bill stumbled a few feet away and spun back, rubbing his tender arm, staring daggers at Sookie. Once he noticed Eric's threatening stance he stomped out of the room, leaving Sookie and Eric behind.
As soon as he was gone Sookie let out the breath she didn't realize she was holding. Eric closed the gap between them and rubbed her (lethal) arms reassuringly.
"You're full of surprises, Stackhouse. Hell, you might even be able to kick my ass!" She gave him a weak smile before pushing her glasses back up the bridge of her nose. They both shared a laugh then started grabbing the boxes from the closet.
Alcide came back into the room sweating and started unbuttoning his green and white flannel shirt. Sookie tried in vain to hide her blush by picking up one of the many boxes her and Eric had compiled. Alcide simply laughed before grabbing a stack of surprisingly heavy boxes himself.
"I'm sorry Alcide, a lot of those are my books. Probably weighs a ton," she grumbled. Eric reached for the last pile of boxes and followed them outside to the vehicles. Sookie's couple of boxes were lighter than everyone else's, so she quickly dumped them into her Toyota before sprinting to help Alcide who was struggling to lower the tailgate of his truck.
"Let me help you, you're going to throw out your back!" Sookie lowered the tailgate and hop/sat on it before spinning on her ass to stand in the bed of Alcide's truck. Alcide and Eric dropped the boxes they were carrying onto the tailgate and Sookie made quick work of carrying and organizing the boxes efficiently. Finally, all those years of Tetris were being put to good use! The boxes she couldn't lift she simply pushed across the truck into their new location. Claude and Claudine even dropped off a few boxes full of Sookie's clothes and linens.
Finally, with the boxes and her fancy chair pushed out of the way for bigger furniture, Sookie stood straight and stretched her back. She found Bill's ominous figure scowling at her from the small porch and she couldn't help but stare daggers right back. Eric retreated from the sun into the house and Sookie could have sworn he was flexing, maybe putting on a show for Bill and the Newlins? As she was about to jump down from the bed of the truck, she saw Alcide's boyish grin then felt something sweep her legs. Sookie's hands covered her face and she squeezed her eyes shut, shrieking as she plummeted to her death, or so she thought-
Alcide magically caught her in his arms and was carrying her bridal style. His laughter made her bounce about and she struggled to catch the breath that her fear had stolen from her.
"What the HELL! Alcide, were you raised by WOLVES?" He continued to laugh as he twirled her about before dropping her feet back onto the ground. Sookie tried to adjust her clothing and hide her blush that appeared from her intimate embrace with her hunky roommate in his thin white wifebeater.
She really did want to be mad at the guy, but she couldn't help but laugh. The entire situation from moving out and accosting Bill (who had it coming!) had made her irritable and somewhat bossy towards all of her friends, and they were only there to help. At least Alcide's playfulness reminded her that this sort of behavior was unacceptable for a Miss Sookie Stackhouse!
Finally her giggles overcame her and Alcide's booming laugh soon joined her.
"I'm such an idiot, Alcide! Did you see me? What kind of person would cover their face while falling? Why the hell didn't I put my arms out to catch myself?" Her laughter brought everyone else out from inside the house. Bill glared at Alcide and stormed around his home towards the back yard. Alcide did a poor job of hiding his smile at Bill's retreating figure.
"What'd I miss?" Claudine asked innocently. Sookie just shook her head dismissively as she joined her friend, wrapping an arm around her waist.
"What else were you thinking of bringing Sook?"
Sookie pointed out the rest of the things to take including an eccentric mirror, framed artwork and pictures, peculiar fridge magnets, her Star Wars toaster that burned Vadar's head onto your toast, her bicycle, and a simple wooden table that had been painted white that she'd planned to use as her desk.
Bill had tried desperately to get Sookie alone but his every attempt was thwarted by her new housemates. It didn't take long for her to notice how overly affectionate they all became whenever he would lurk around her. Claude would massage her shoulders and remind her what a great job she was doing, Alcide would pick up her blonde hair and blow on her neck claiming it was "such a hot day", and Bill's last attempt at cornering Sookie ended with Eric hoisting her up over his shoulder as he carried (and spanked) her while she kicked and laughed right out of the room.
All in all, officially moving out had become practically enjoyable while Sookie found herself surrounded by so many people who loved her. Soon everyone was set to drive back to the loft, and JUST before Sookie backed out of the driveway she remembered one small thing she just couldn't live without. "Fuck," she muttered as she leapt out of the white Toyota and ran back inside the house. Eric never even got the chance to ask what was up.
She sprinted into the room, and sure enough, there it was. It was a beautiful antique key with a light pink ribbon laced through it. It had once belonged to Sookie's mother and Gran had given it to Sookie before she had left Home with Bill Compton. Sookie's hands wrapped gently around the key and she held it tightly to her chest chastising herself for almost forgetting such a beautiful gift. Just as she turned to leave the door slammed shut behind her and she nearly jumped out of her skin.
"What? Weren't even planning to say Goodbye, Sookeh?" She let out a shaky breath before they both jumped at the sound of Eric's fist pounding on the other side of the door.
"SOOKIE! ARE YOU OKAY? WHAT'S GOING ON IN THERE?"
"I'M FINE ERIC! It's fine..." Sookie gripped the key harder, seeking some extra strength from her family. "You're absolutely right Bill. This is goodbye." She tried to move past him but he blocked her with his body.
"You're being irrational, Sookie. You haven't even tried to talk to me! You haven't even given me a chance to explain. Did our relationship mean nothing to you? What would your Gran say if she knew you just threw all those years out the window?"
"Gran's fine with it." Bill's mouth opened in surprise. "We've actually talked more these past few days than we have in years." Sookie tried to leave while he was still confounded, but he stood his ground.
"I know what you're playing at here, I'm not stupid. I KNOW that Claude is Claudine's brother. These men you brought here, let me guess, his gay model boyfriends you hired to dote on you and touch you like some kind of whore?"
"BILL!" Eric growled from the other side of the door.
"IT'S OKAY," she shouted out to him. Sookie decided to approach the situation carefully. She held a hand out in front of her and spoke in a clear but gentle voice. "It's over Bill."
Bill shifted uncomfortably, he opened his mouth to speak but Sookie shook her head at him. "I have a place to live. And the guys, well...I don't know why they're all acting so handsy, but-"
"That's right, an ACT Sookie! Do you really think men like THAT would really be interested in a woman of your size and upbringing?"
"No, I suppose not..." Outside the door Eric could not believe what he was hearing. "That's not the point, Bill. It's over, I'm making a new life for myself. They're my roommates, and I love them." Bill started to grind his teeth together. "All of them. To tell you the truth, I'm glad you cheated on me! I would have married you, ya' know that? And then you would have hurt me far worse, wouldn't you Bill?"
Bill couldn't even look at her. He turned his attention to outside the window. Sookie gripped the Stackhouse family Key harder and moved to the door, this time
Bill didn't try to stop her. She silently unlocked the door and opened it to find Eric staring down at her with an expression she couldn't quite discern but before she could contemplate his look, Eric was all over her.
Her eyes shot open as one of his gigantic hands dragged the back of her head forward, his lips collided with hers as his other arm snaked around her waist, pulling her tightly against his body.
He smelled amazing.
From the way his fingers caressed her scalp to the way his tongue firmly massaged her soft lips, it was so easy for her to get caught up in the kiss. Sookie's hands involuntarily travelled up his chest over his neck and cupped the sides of Eric's slightly scruffy face as she pulled him impossibly closer to her as she opened her mouth for him. Her eyes rolled back into her head as his tongue conquered hers. Hands down, this was the best kiss Sookie had ever had! She moaned into him and Eric breathed in deeply through his nose, never wanting to take his mouth away from hers... that was until he heard Bill shout "WHAT THE FUCK" from the bedroom behind them.
Eric hesitantly pulled away and their blue eyes met. Sookie smiled, thinking about how looking into his eyes was like listening to the Beatles for the first time.
"Did that feel like an act, Sookie?"
Sookie was suddenly dropped back down onto the wood floors and felt almost a gust of air as Eric moved quickly past her into the bedroom and slammed the door behind him.
She stood there like an idiot, panting and touching her fingertips to her now swollen lips. Then, almost as if she was struck by lightning, she spun around and reached for the doorknob. Eric had locked himself inside the bedroom...with Bill.
