Chapter 11: I Got Mine
"So it's not gonna be easy. It's gonna be really hard. We're gonna have to work at this every day, but I want to do that because I want you. I want all of you, forever, you and me, every day." –The Notebook
EPOV
I woke up Sunday morning with Sookie asleep on my back. I had no idea how she got there but ask me if I cared. We'd spent most of Saturday in bed, or at least fucking our way around the house. We got up mostly for food or to go to the bathroom. Muscles were sore that I didn't know I had but again, ask me if I cared. I was more concerned about her than I was myself and since she was sleeping soundly, I didn't want to wake her by getting up.
Unfortunately nature's will was a little stronger than anything else and I slipped out from under her as gently as I could. I kissed her forehead before going off to the bathroom to pee and brush my teeth. When I came out of the bathroom Sookie had rolled onto her back. I groaned at the sight of her all naked and completely passed out on my bed. Damn she looked good.
Her sex hair/bedhead was going to be epic when she woke up. That meant I would just have to help her wash her hair in the shower. Bummer. I wanted to get back into bed with her but I'd talked to my mother the night before and she requested that Sookie and I get to her house at 1:00. It was already just after ten and it would take about an hour to get to my parents' place. Waking Sookie up was necessary, as much as I didn't want to.
I went back to the bathroom and started the shower before climbing back into bed and trailing my fingers across her stomach. She shifted and her lips curved up into a smile. It took a few more strokes of my fingers before her eyes flitted open. "Morning," she purred and rolled onto her side.
"Good morning," I leaned over and kiss her. "I'm sorry to wake you up but it's already ten and we have to leave by noon to get to my parents' place on time."
Sookie pouted a little and shifted herself so her head was on my stomach. "Can we cancel?"
I laughed and said, "We'll never hear the end of it if we do."
She sighed and said, "It wouldn't be so bad if we could take this bed with us. This bed is really comfortable."
"Yes, it is. I promise, the second we get back, we can get right back in it." I tried to run my fingers through her hair but it was a lost cause. "I started the shower."
Sookie groaned again but then propped herself up on one of her elbows. "Can we stop at the store on the way? I want to pick up flowers for your Mom."
I smiled at her and said, "Sure we can. Shower first though."
"Will you make me coffee?" she stuck her bottom lip out at me, as if she would need to beg me for it. I knew her well enough by that point to know coffee was mandatory first thing in the morning. But hey, if I could maybe get a little something fun out of the deal…
"For a price," I smirked at her.
"Mmmm…what do you want?" Sookie rolled onto her back again, showing me absolutely everything I wanted.
"Just you," I pounced on her, which I knew I shouldn't have but couldn't help myself. There was something addictive about her and I couldn't get enough of it.
"Shower," Sookie gasped when my kisses moved from her mouth and started down her neck. "We don't have time."
Little hands pushed at my shoulders and as much as I didn't want to get off of her, I did. "I'll go start the coffee."
"Thank you, baby," she giggled at the face I made when she called me that.
"Sookie, I can handle pet names if I must, but not baby," I told her.
"Well then, I guess I'll have to try out different ones and see what sticks… pumpkin," she giggled again and then vaulted herself off the bed before I could pounce on her again.
I left her alone while she showered because as much as I wanted to be able to convince myself we would be doing something good for the environment by conserving water, I knew it would end up wasting time we didn't have. I was starving but when Mom did brunch, it was something like having Thanksgiving dinner, but with breakfast foods. So I grabbed an apple and munched on that while I waited for Sookie to get out of the shower.
When I heard the water turn off I poured her a cup of coffee and brought it upstairs to her. While she started on drying her hair, I got in the shower. Shock of all shocks, we were able to keep our mitts off each other long enough to get dressed and ready to go. We were out the door fifteen minutes early to compensate for the stop at the store Sookie requested we make.
"What kind of flowers does your mom like?" She asked once we were browsing the floral section at the nearest grocery store.
"She a mom; she likes any flowers," I shrugged since Mom had never complained about any flowers I'd brought her.
Sookie snorted and said, "All women have a favorite kind of flower."
It dawned on me that I didn't know hers, so I asked.
"Stargazer lilies," Sookie said and then pointed to a bouquet of them to her right. I made a mental note of it for future reference. "Well what's your mother's favorite color?"
That was easy. "Orange."
Sookie beamed and then reached for some orange flowers. "Tiger lilies, Gerber daisies, tulips, gaillardia and roses," Sookie pointed to each flower type and before I could ask how she knew all that she said, "My Gran was big into gardening and I was her favorite helper, whether I wanted to be or not."
"Then you will love my mother's garden. She used to grow those," I pointed to the tulips.
Sookie snorted and said, "She probably still does. Gran and I spent hours digging up every tulip bulb we could find and even so, a whole crop of the little buggers came up the next spring. We called them zombie tulips."
We walked to the registers hand in hand and had a small argument over who was going to pay for the flowers before I ultimately pulled the man card and simply pushed her back behind me. She repaid me with a pinch to my side and what would have been a much cuter pout of she didn't look so pissed. I was reminded of that Indian princess in Peter Pan when she made that face.
"Are you really that mad at me for paying for the flowers?" I asked her once we were in the car. I didn't want to show up at my parents' house with the two of us being on a bad note. Mom would ask a million questions and I didn't want my parents getting in the middle.
"I'm not mad," Sookie insisted and folded her arms over her chest. Sure as fuck coulda fooled me.
"You look mad," I argued with her.
"Eric, I appreciate you wanting to pay for the flowers but that was something I wanted to do for them. Because you paid for them, it doesn't count." Sookie explained and stared out the window.
Oh. Well, that made sense, I guess.
"Sookie, isn't it the thought that counts? Mom will love them no matter who paid for them," I pointed out.
"But I'll know who paid for them, Eric. Just forget it," she sighed and kept her face aimed at the window. She slipped her aviator sunglasses down over her eyes so I couldn't see what was going on there.
Fuck. I really didn't want her to be pissed at me. Mostly because we'd never fought before. I had no idea how long she was going to stay mad or if she was going to let this argument taint the rest of the day. I really didn't see what the big deal was.
The drive to my parents' house was silent for about half of the way before Sookie turned toward me and said, "You know this isn't about the money, right? I mean, you get why I'm upset, don't you?"
"Sookie, I was just trying to do the nice thing. If I had known it was going to really upset you, I would have let you pay for the flowers. I don't see it like because I paid for them, your intentions don't count. We both know this was your idea and what you wanted to do. That's all that matters," I reached for her hand and she let me take it, which I took to be a good sign. "I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings; that wasn't my intention."
She was quiet for a few minutes and let the words sink in, or maybe she was contemplating her own apology since I felt I was owed one as well. It really hadn't been my intention to hurt her feelings or steal her thunder, or whatever it was she thought I was trying to do by paying for the flowers. We drove on in silence, both of us stewing in our own frustration. I had planned on using the trip to my parents' house to bring up the Black Keys concert I'd bought tickets for but that was clearly out the window.
Sookie would barely look at me and she wasn't talking so it wasn't the right time to mention the idea of spending a weekend together in Dallas. As I was pulling off the highway, I knew we had about another ten minutes before we'd get to my parents' place and I really wanted things to be resolved before we got there.
"Sookie, can we please talk about this?" I asked her.
"Why, so we don't upset your parents?" She asked bitterly.
Okay, now I was pissed.
"What the hell is your problem? I get that I fucked up, although I don't really see where I went wrong. I apologized for hurting your feelings. What else do you want from me?" I glared at her as I came to a stop at the end of the ramp.
"Nothing. I don't want anything from you," Sookie looked out the window.
Right, that didn't go as well as I'd hoped it would. Good work, Northman.
o.O.o.O.o
As excited as Mom was over the flowers Sookie had presented her with, I could see a hint of disappointment in Sookie's eyes when Mom turned and headed for the kitchen to put the flowers in water. I grabbed Sookie's hand to keep her from following Mom.
"She loved them. Why are you still upset?" I asked her.
"Just forget it, Eric," she shook her head and looked away from me with tears in her eyes.
"Dammit," I muttered under my breath and cursed in Swedish.
"Eric, Sookie, come in and meet everyone!" Mom called from the living room.
"We'll be right there, Mom!" I called back and pulled Sookie through the mud room and into the garage.
"Eric, come on, let's just go do this brunch thing," Sookie pouted behind me.
"Not until we sort this out. What am I missing here, Sookie?" I stood in front of the door, trapping her in the garage with me.
She stayed silent for a few more seconds before finally answering me. "I have a thing about money, okay? My Gran raised me to be an independent person and I've worked really hard to get to a point where I can support myself just fine without any help from anyone. I know you were trying to do a nice thing and I appreciate it, I really do, I just don't want you thinking I can't take care of myself."
"You think I think you can't take care of yourself?" That kind of hurt, to be honest. "You think I think so little of you? Wow. Well, here's something you should know about me, Sookie. I like doing nice things for people I care about and it has nothing to do with trying to undermine your independence and it's not some underhanded statement about how well you can take care of yourself. I want to be able to buy flowers or take you out to dinner without you thinking you're in debt to me because that's not all the way I see it. So if that's going to be a problem for you, then we're going to need to rethink this relationship."
"Eric, I'm not suggesting we…I don't want us to fight over this," she hung her head and I winced when I saw a tear slip down her cheek.
"Come here," I pulled her into my arms and hugged her tightly. "So then why are we fighting?"
She hugged me back and said, "Because I'm stubborn and bullheaded."
I couldn't argue with that.
"Sookie, I love that you have morals and values that mean so much to you. I would never ask you to compromise yourself to make me happy. I'm just asking you to try and see things from my point of view," I kissed the top of her head.
"I know," she sniffled and then gasped. "Dammit, I fucked up your shirt."
"Don't worry about it," I tilted her head up and wiped away her tears. "I really am sorry I hurt you."
She nodded and said, "I'm sorry I'm such a pain in the ass sometimes."
"You're not a pain in the ass," I leaned down and kissed her. "And even if you are, you're my pain in the ass and I love you."
She kissed me back but before we could get too deep into the whole making up process my father knocked on the garage door. "No fucking in the garage!"
We both froze and Sookie turned ten shades of red before burrowing her face into my chest. "Thanks Pop!" I shouted back with a shake of my head.
"Oh my God," Sookie shook with laughter and I couldn't help but laugh with her.
"We better get out there before Dad gets the hose or something," I kissed the top of her head one more time. "Are we good now?"
"Yeah, we're good," Sookie smiled up at me and stepped back so I could get the garage door open.
o.O.o.O.o
As predicted, Mom had just about every breakfast food known to man all spread out on the buffet table in the dining room. A co-worker of my father's was there along with his wife, as well as my mother's best friend and her husband. I'd known Aunt Connie, as I called her, for my entire life. Since my mother's only brother had died in the Vietnam War, Connie was the closest thing Mom had to a sibling. My father's siblings all lived in North Carolina where my father was originally from, and he wasn't particularly close with any of them.
There was way too much food for just eight people and I had no doubt Mom would be sending me home with leftovers. Just as it had been at the awards thing on Friday night Sookie continued to charm my mother, asking for her recipe for the French toast casserole Mom made. When we were done eating Sookie volunteered us to do the dishes but Mom wouldn't let her.
"Nonsense! You're a guest here and while I appreciate the offer, I won't put you to work. Why don't you and Eric take a tour of the house or a walk around the neighborhood instead?" Mom suggested.
"Yeah you should show her your comic book collection," Dad smirked my way.
"I want to see the school picture from when you were twelve," Sookie poked my side and Mom gasped.
"He told you about that?"
"He thinks it's cool," Sookie provided for me and Mom narrowed her eyes at me.
"Yeah well, one day when you two have kids-" Mom cut herself off there but it was too late.
Sookie blushed next to me and I grabbed her hand. "Come on, I'll show you around."
Mom couldn't look me in the eyes after that while Dad sat at the other end of the table, chuckling quietly at the whole exchange. All in all, it was pretty much exactly what I had expected brunch would be like, minus the fight with Sookie. I showed Sookie around the house and I wasn't at all surprised when her jaw dropped in the library. My parents had put an addition onto the house so they would have room for their collection of books. In fact, it was with them that I stored the more valuable books I'd managed to track down.
"Someday I'm going to have to come visit you at work," Sookie leaned into me. "I love the smell of old books. Oh! You know what? There are tons of old books up in my attic! You should go through them and see if there's anything you can use up there."
The excitement on her face was adorable to witness. "Next time I come over I'll take a look," I promised her.
"Okay, now show me your old room." Sookie grabbed my hand and pulled me back toward the door.
I led her up the stairs and we paused in the doorway of each of the two guest rooms. Mom had converted one of the rooms into an office/closet that I really considered was just a clever way of hiding her slight tendency toward hoarding. She claimed it would be wasteful to throw things away since she never knew when she might find a use for them but I failed to see the point in holding onto old typewriter ribbons and copies of some Swedish magazine that went out of publication before we left the country. But that was Mom for you.
My old room was a shrine to my childhood. All of my old comic books were sleeved and kept in milk crates on my closet floor. Dad had passed his collection over to me but the ones in my room I wouldn't sell for anything. They were collectible first editions that some people would cream themselves to get their hands on. They were all in pristine condition and would stay that way.
"Wow," Sookie said as she looked around.
The walls were painted navy blue and there were various stills from different comics framed and hanging on the walls. I had a couple of trophies sitting up on a shelf from the different sports teams I'd played on as a kid. I even had a blue ribbon from my fourth grade spelling bee up there. The room was spotless, which was clearly Mom's doing since it never had been when I lived in it. I wasn't necessarily sloppy but I hadn't come to realize the value of a clean house until I was living on my own and was responsible for my own surroundings all the time.
"So, Mr. Northman," Sookie plopped down on my childhood bed and curled on her side in a pose that was far too alluring for my parents' house. "Which comic is your favorite?"
Damn, that was a hard question to answer. It was sort of like picking which kid was my favorite and I wasn't sure I could do it. I closed my bedroom door just in case things got a little out of hand and Mom came looking for us. Actually, it was Dad who was more likely to come up and I knew he would have absolutely no problem just walking into the room. He'd had a strict policy about locked doors and I was never allowed to have girls in my room. It was probably a good thing too, because chances are I would have ended up a father before I graduated from high school.
My parents could be pretty bohemian about a lot of things. Living in Sweden had mellowed them out in ways I would never know, but Aunt Connie had no reason to lie about them being more conservative before the move. But there were some things my parents just weren't willing to bend on, and me having girls in my room was one of those things. At the time I thought it was stupid but that was before I really had any sort of understanding just how big of a responsibility it would be if I ended up getting a girl pregnant. At seventeen, it just wouldn't have hit me until it was too late.
My mind shifted back to Sookie's question when her hand landed low on my stomach, hovering just over the button on my jeans. She was wearing a dress. It was a cute little summery thing with a full skirt. My mind wandered over to the x-rated section and I started wondering if she was wearing panties under said skirt. If not, I wondered how quiet we could be. But no, I chased that thought away. No way would Sookie have sex with me in my parents' house while they were right downstairs. Would she?
"You still with me?" Sookie asked with amusement.
"Spiderman," I blurted out and then launched into some totally off-the-cuff explanation as to why I had chosen that particular superhero. Sookie listened with rapt attention but had nothing to offer.
"I've never even seen the Spiderman movie," she admitted with a shrug. "My brother never got into that stuff," she said by way of explanation.
"Well, next movie night we'll just have to fix that, won't we?" I suggested and then leaned in to kiss her.
Almost like he had radar for when I was about to really get busy with Sookie, Dad pounded on the door. "No fucking in your bedroom either."
My father, the cockblocker, ladies and gentlemen.
Right, so I'm not sure which of Eric's parents I love more. Good thing I don't have to choose. It should also be noted that the whole "zombie tulips" thing is a piece of my own life. Mom used to grow them out back and when she decided she didn't want to anymore we spent pretty much an entire weekend digging up the bulbs. We were sure we got them all and yet, the next spring we had a crop of tulips come up so we called them zombie tulips. Anyway... the argument they had here wasn't the angst I was referring to in my previous warning, just so we're clear. Reviews= love & teasers. Thanks for reading!