Chapter Twenty-Seven: Interlopers
Eric smiled to himself as he practically had to carry his new wife off the plane. The flight attendants gave him pitying smiles as the drugged woman could hardly move her legs.
"Would you like me to get you a wheelchair?" An attendant at the gate asked kindly.
"I'm okay," Sookie sighed sluggishly.
"She should be coming out of it soon. Thank you," Eric smiled pleasantly before refocusing on his wife.
Take off had been nerve-wracking for Sookie, and Eric berated himself at forcing her on such a long flight when she had never flown a day in her life.
"I'm sorry," Sookie mumbled.
"Don't be sorry," Eric crooned. "I should be sorry for putting you through something that stressful. I should have chosen to do a summer semester somewhere closer."
"Thanks for grabbing my Xanax," Sookie leaned her head against Eric's shoulder as she shut her eyes. He had put twice her former dose in her hand when Sookie had broken into a sweat and begun to hyperventilate.
"Thank you for not throwing it out," Eric replied with a smile.
"Amelia convinced me to keep it full for emergencies," Sookie told him. "She upped the dose to handle bad attacks as needed."
"How long does it keep you like this?" Eric asked as he remained crouched in front of his wife, rubbing her knees and thighs soothingly.
"Mmm," Sookie tried to remember her first time taking a dose as large as this one. "Maybe ten or twelve hours."
Eric let out a relieved sigh. Sookie's coherency was already coming back, and he was grateful to know that she was already past the active period of the drug. She was apparently experiencing the climb back to alertness.
"Do you think you can walk a bit?" Eric asked. "We have to get through customs, and then we can grab some food over there," he gestured to the food court.
"Okay," Sookie let herself be pulled back to her feet.
Together, the young couple made their way through customs and had their passports stamped. Afterward, they headed to a food cart and split a salad. Finally getting some food in his wife's stomach, Eric was happy to see her perk up.
"Feeling better?" Eric asked as he cleared away their tray.
"Much," Sookie assured, feeling embarrassed about her display on the airplane. "Was everything alright once I passed out?"
Eric smiled and brought her hand to his lips. "Yes, you slept like a baby the whole rest of the way."
"I can't believe I made such a scene," Sookie frowned as her eyes cast downward. She had never been prone to anxiety attacks before starting her medication, but she realized it was probably because she used to experience a perpetual state of nervousness up until that point.
"It wasn't nearly as bad as you think," Eric assured her. "Since we were in first class, hardly anyone knew what was going on except the flight attendants."
"Really?" Sookie asked hopefully.
"I promise," he gave her a reassuring smile. "And now we know to drug you before takeoff on the return trip."
Sookie gave playful pout before accepting his wise words. She still felt silly for her reaction to the flight, but Eric didn't seem bothered.
"Maybe while we're here we can try a short plane ride to France?" Eric offered. "The length of the trip might have been what got to you."
"I don't know," Sookie confessed. "It just came on me so suddenly."
"We had a very long day," Eric reminded. "We got married, the Brigants bombarded us with money and news, you went on your first flight which just happened to be an international one…"
"Okay, it was a long, stressful day," Sookie accepted.
"And you're already sensitive to stress," Eric added. "Stop being so hard on yourself."
"I just want to be a normal wife for you," Sookie mumbled.
Eric paused in their stroll through the airport and pulled Sookie into his arms, "Sookie, I wouldn't have married you if I wanted you to transform yourself. We'll both change over time, but we'll do it together. Just keep talking to me like this. Tell me what scares you, and I'll protect you from it."
Sookie smiled in relief. "You are amazing, you know that?"
"I had my suspicions," Eric teased with a wink.
Leaning her head against Eric's arm, Sookie wrapped herself around the appendage as they made their way onto the street.
"How long do we get to stay in London?" Sookie asked.
"My semester starts on the seventeenth, and it's the ninth. We'll probably leave for Sussex on the fifteenth so we can get settled into the apartment before my orientation," Eric rattled off.
"It's the eighth," Sookie frowned.
"No, it's the ninth. We lost a day traveling," Eric reminded.
"Wait, what time is it our time?" Sookie asked suddenly.
Glancing at his watch, Eric replied, "About four A.M."
Sookie groaned, "Oh no, I already screwed up my birth control." She had been working her time for her pill back for the past week so she wouldn't mess it up with the time change, and now the bride discovered she was already off the new schedule thanks to the knockout her prescription had given her.
Eric chuckled to himself, "You can take it now."
"You don't seem worried," Sookie frowned.
Her husband shrugged, "What will happen will happen. There's no use worrying about it now."
Sookie's jaw slung open, "Something you didn't plan for happened and you're not a wreck?"
Eric laughed again, "You really think I didn't consider the possibility we could lose track of your prescription routine with that big of a time change?"
"I'm confused," Sookie admitted.
As they came to a crosswalk, the pair stopped to wait for the light to change.
"Sookie, I'm not so scared about when the parenthood part of our marriage happens anymore," Eric confessed. "After everything that we went through this year, it's hard to be scared about something so beautiful. With the way things went down between Fintan and Gran, I'm already considering the idea we should stop using birth control altogether. At least if there's a problem, we'll know about it now and can make alternative plans."
Sookie's jaw gaped even further as she stared up at Eric in surprise, "I just can't believe you're the man I agreed to marry. Who are you? Where's my husband?"
Eric leaned down to hug his wife tightly. "I had a lot of time to myself to think on the plane. The money your… The money that Fintan gave us plus my monthly stipend is more than enough to start a family and live beyond comfortable while I finish school. I could even take fewer classes a semester and spend time with you and the baby without it affecting us financially."
"Eric," Sookie choked, "if you're not completely serious right now-"
"I am entirely serious," Eric assured her. "If you want to forget about your birth control, I'm ready when you are."
Sookie took a deep breath and distracted herself with the fact the light to the crosswalk had changed. When no one moved to cross, Sookie looked to her left and took a step past the curb.
"Sookie, wait!" Eric snapped and pulled his wife back by the strap of her dress as a little coop zipped through the intersection.
"WANKER!" someone amongst them shouted after the motorist who had blown through the red light.
"In the UK, Sookie," Eric reminded her as the color slowly came back to his face, "the traffic is going to come from the opposite direction."
Sookie nodded, stunned at the red blur that had nearly hit her.
"Are you alright?" Eric asked.
"Yeah," Sookie nodded again.
"Let's get to the hotel and rest a bit. Then we can grab some more food," Eric told her.
{†}
Eric was quick to pass out once they arrived at the hotel and checked in. Sookie was convinced it was because he had to take care of his mentally unstable wife for the last fourteen hours.
I wonder if he slept at all on the plane? Sookie began unpacking their luggage to feel more settled in for the next few days.
Although Sookie felt like she'd been bumbling through the past twenty-four hours, it was comforting to know that her husband didn't seem put off by her. Even when he'd pulled her out of the way of the car, he didn't seem angry about her lapse in judgment.
And I knew that they drive on the other side here! Sookie bemoaned the incident. Muscle memory had worked against her, and she had instinctively looked to the left and began taking her step before glancing to the right. If Eric hadn't anticipated she would do that, she could have spent her honeymoon in the hospital. Worse yet, Eric could have spent his honeymoon as a widower!
Lastly, there was the real thing keeping her awake other than the near-death experience. Eric had told her he was ready to start trying for kids whenever she was. In reality, Sookie's birth control was burning a hole in her pocket, but after spending a year apart, she wanted time with just the two of them. If her mishap with her pill brought a bundle of joy into their life, she would love it and be grateful, but Sookie wasn't ready to give up their first year together for nausea, mood swings, and swollen body parts.
Going to the bathroom where she'd put their toiletries, Sookie grabbed her compact and popped her overdue pill in her mouth.
With their clothing put away and her birth control routine restarted, Sookie stripped out of her dress and crawled into bed beside her husband. As if he was waiting for her to join him, Eric's arms wrapped instinctively around Sookie, and the young woman smiled to herself as she let herself rest naturally. She doubted she would be able to fall asleep after her Xanax induced coma, but the act of shutting her eyes felt like a relief.
When the sound of Eric's even breathing had lulled Sookie into a half-slumber, her mind filled with images of babies. Not just any babies. They were undoubtedly Northman offspring. Blond hair and blue eyes filled her vision, and Sookie found her lips tugging into a bemused smiled. Every one of them was a boy. One, two, three, four, five. Five little children scuttling around in different phases of life. The boys seemed to range from eight to zero, judging by the little bundle in her arms.
"What are you dreaming about, Sookie?" Eric's voice murmured in her ear.
"Mmm, babies," Sookie mumbled. "I was daydreaming. I wasn't asleep."
"I see," Eric smiled.
"What time is it?" She wondered as she opened her eyes.
"Almost two in the afternoon," Eric replied. "I slept quite a bit on the plane, I just needed a pick-me-up."
"You managed to sleep with the chaos I caused?" Sookie teased.
"Once you were out, I knew you'd be fine," he taunted right back. "So, you were dreaming about babies?"
"I took my pill," Sookie told him.
"Really?" Eric was surprised to hear her decision.
"I want a year of the two of us being Eric and Sookie Northman," Sookie explained simply. "I was thinking I could stop taking it on our one year anniversary?"
"What if," Eric's eyes lit up with an idea, "we do a second honeymoon during our anniversary? Something nearer home and we can practice making babies the whole time?"
Sookie giggled at his suggestion, "I like the sounds of that."
"It's a deal," Eric gave her a lingering, slow kiss. He wondered if this plan would go any smoother than the others they had made in the past.
"Are you still keeping me restricted to three babies?" Sookie wondered.
Eric brushed his nose against the bridge of hers. "How about we keep going until I give you one of each or until you say stop? Whichever comes first?"
Sookie's mind filled with the daydream of the little boys running around. "What if I have one of each right away and I only get two?" she pouted, though she had faith in her fantasy.
"What if you give me five girls?" Eric pointed out. "Then I get to deal with six menstruating women for the rest of my life."
Swatting at his chest, Sookie pointed out, "I'm not mean on my period."
"No, you're not," Eric agreed as he leaned in for another kiss. "You're miserable and can't stand to be touched for the first two days. Those are sad days for me."
"You can rub my back," Sookie offered, batting her eyelashes. "I just don't like being hugged."
"You're weird," Eric chuckled as he stole a kiss from her lips.
"We know this," Sookie agreed as her lips moved against his mouth. "Mmmph!" she huffed as his fingers began to rub between her legs.
"Baby dreaming made you this wet?" Eric asked in confusion.
"Ah!" she squirmed as his fingers wiggled briefly against her clit. "No, being in bed, naked, with my husband kept me this wet."
"Kept you wet?" Eric liked the sound of that. "How long have you been turned on?"
Sookie's face reddened, "Since you said I could go off my birth control."
Eric laughed harder at her reply as he layered his body over hers. "Then you are turned on by baby making."
"I guess," She grumbled in defeat.
Eric settled between his wife's legs and allowed himself to sink deep inside without further preparation. "I love that you're always ready to welcome me home."
Sookie giggled, "I'm glad that this is your home."
Their mouths fused after that, and Eric enjoyed capturing her little moans and gasps with his lips. Sookie's body rolled beneath his, her hips twisting for the most pleasurable angles. She would happily spend their days in London doing nothing but this!
{†}
"Good afternoon, Mr. and Mrs. Northman," the hotel manager nodded at the newlyweds. An excited blush came over the young bride's face, and the manager couldn't help but smile as well. It was nice to see a woman so happy about her new name. He had only seen them once since their arrival, and it had been Sunday morning when the husband had asked where they might find the nearest Baptist Church. Since then, the manager hadn't been surprised not to see them again.
"Good afternoon," Eric nodded back as a grin split his face.
"Hi," Sookie offered as well, surprised by how easily the word sprung from her lips.
With no Xanax over the past two days spent in their hotel room, Sookie didn't think she'd be able to utter a word to a stranger.
Holy moly! Sookie thought in near shock. She didn't feel any sort of pressure to speak. It bubbled forth almost naturally. Sure, a few holdbacks to her years of silence encouraged her to merely nod and smile, but her throat didn't tighten when the young woman moved to speak.
"That sounded rather natural," Eric commented as he held the door open for his wife as they exited the hotel.
"It felt natural," Sookie confirmed. "Strangely natural."
"Maybe it's because no one here knows your life story? The pressure isn't as strong?" he guessed.
"Maybe?" Sookie tentatively agreed before shaking her head and disregarding the possibilities. "What's on our agenda now that we've finally left our room?"
"That depends on you," Eric grinned down at her. "Do you want me to take you to the tourist circuit, or do you want to see my old hangouts?"
"Your old hangouts!" Sookie decided without a second thought.
The pair spent the early afternoon at a shabby diner, and Eric told Sookie about the times he had there with his old 'mates.'
"There was Rose," Eric began ticking off his finger, "who was seeing Steve. He was in a band with Miles, Jimmy, and Davie. I was friends with Rose first, actually, and she introduced me to the rest of them."
"How did you meet Rose?" Sookie wondered.
"Don't laugh at me," Eric mumbled.
"I would never," Sookie was already smirking.
"We met at a tattoo and piercing shop that's right up the street," Eric confessed.
"You don't have any tattoos or piercings," Sookie remarked with a frown.
"Yeah," he looked gloomy.
"That's a story in itself."
"Godric found out where I went and dragged me out by my ear," Eric told her.
Sookie snorted on a laugh just visualizing the shorter brother snatching Eric by the ear and leading him back out of a tattoo parlor.
"Anyway," Eric grumbled, "she spotted me at school the next day and said her friend could do my piercing for me if I were still interested. I said 'sure,' and went home with her. That's when I met the band that practiced in the garage next door. We all got to talking and forgot all about the piercing."
"Wow," Sookie chuckled. "Why were you getting your ear pierced anyway?"
"I was hoping to get Hep C," Eric grinned.
"What?" Sookie gawked.
"To disqualify me from joining the military," Eric told her. "I spent weeks finding the dirtiest, cheapest shop to better my chances."
"You were going to destroy your liver just so you wouldn't have to stand up to your father?" Sookie demanded.
"Sookie," Eric sighed, "I'm kidding. I wanted to get a piercing because I was bored and new in town with no one to hang out with. When I met Rose and her crew, I wasn't bored anymore."
Shaking her head at his reasoning, Sookie rose from her seat, "I'm going to use the washroom."
"Hurry back to me," Eric grinned as she walked away.
As he waited for his wife to return, Eric busied himself with watching the passersby beyond the window of their booth. Everyone was bustling around on their lunch breaks or enjoying their summer holiday.
A shock of pink hair made Eric jolt in his seat. Of all the colors to see on someone's head, it felt impossible to think it would be that one person.
Jumping from his seat, Eric ran out the door and shouted, "ROSE!? ROSE GREEN!?"
The pink head turned, and the familiar face of his friend split into a broad grin. "Eric Northman!" Rose shouted as she ran back the way she had come and flung her arms around Eric's neck. "Where have you been, Mate?"
"Everywhere, Rosie," Eric held her tighter for a moment before pulling away. "You got a minute?"
"No," she groaned. "Here," She took Eric's hand and reached in her bag simultaneously. "My work number. Call me after nine. Okay? I'll let the boys know you're home when I get back to the shop, and we'll throw you a welcome home party!" She pulled a pen out of her mammoth of a purse and wrote down her phone number. "I can't believe it's you! Come out and see us tonight!"
Rose spun on her heel and began running down the street, apparently in a hurry to get back to work.
Eric shook his head as he walked back into the diner just in time to see Sookie returning to their table. She looked around worriedly before spotting her husband and letting out a relieved sigh.
"Here I thought you'd already abandoned our marriage," she joked as she sat back in her seat.
"No, you won't believe it, though," Eric grinned at her. "Guess who I saw on the street while you were in the toilet?"
"Washroom, please. Have manners," Sookie groaned.
"Rose!" Eric ignored her request.
"The Rose you were just telling me about?" Sookie was equally surprised.
"The very same, and she wants us to drop by later tonight," Eric held out his hand, showing his wife the phone number.
"Our first day out as man and wife, and you're already getting other women's phone numbers," Sookie sighed and rolled her eyes.
Her husband smirked, "Yes, that's exactly how it happened."
"So, we're meeting up with Rose?" Sookie asked.
"And it sounds like the other guys are still around. She said she would throw me a coming home party," Eric continued happily.
"Oh, is it alright that I'll be there?" Sookie wondered.
"Sookie," Eric sighed, "like I would go without you?"
"Fair enough," Sookie laughed as they paid their bill and headed out onto the streets once more. "I hope I'll be able to speak well tonight."
"We'll just tell them you're shy," Eric shrugged. "Believe me, if Jimmy's there, you won't have to say a word. The guy never shuts up."
The couple spent the rest of the afternoon wandering the city, stopping by a few monuments for pictures as they walked nearby, and Sookie tried her hand at speaking to a few shopkeepers. Much to both of their surprise, Sookie was able to maintain a somewhat regular cadence in her speech. Every-so-often her voice would hitch, or she would have to pause to steel herself for the next word. All in all, though, they were both ecstatic to find that Sookie was vocalizing much easier with strangers than ever before.
As early evening came, Sookie and Eric returned to their hotel to freshen up before meeting with Rose and Eric's other friends from the past.
"Who all do you think will be there?" Sookie wondered as she hopped in the shower.
"Rose mentioned the guys. I suppose that means the band still hangs out. Whether or not they're still playing is a whole other story," Eric laughed as he stripped out of his own clothes to join his wife.
When his hands began to roam, Eric was pleased that Sookie didn't put up an effort to stop him.
"I could play with these all day," Eric whispered against his wife's ear as he fondled her breasts.
Releasing a satisfied sigh, Sookie stopped washing and let her head fall back to rest against Eric's shoulder. After a moment, however, she noted the strange pattern he kneaded her breasts.
"Eric," she began slowly, "are you doing a breast exam?"
"Uh," he fumbled as he realized he was caught.
Knowing Eric's mother had died of breast cancer, Sookie didn't question further. Instead, she reached behind her and began to cup and fondle her husband's package, "Weekly routine?" she suggested teasingly as she memorized the spheres.
Eric let a relieved chuckle tumble from his lips, "Sure." He was grateful that Sookie seemed to understand his worries and accept them.
"You're going to have to see a doctor for your prostate, though," she commented, making Eric laugh harder.
"Fair enough."
After their new shower routine, the newlyweds redressed and Eric went to the phone to give Rose a call. She picked up on the second ring, and Eric found his face splitting into a grin.
"Eric?" Rose's voice was excited.
"Yeah," Eric began but was immediately cut off.
"I got ahold of Steve, and he's got the rest of gang coming together at the pub across from the tattoo parlor. Meet you there?"
"That sounds great," Eric told her. "By the-"
"See you there in a few!" Rose hung up the phone and Eric sighed.
"I guess you will be a surprise," Eric grimaced apologetically at his wife.
Sookie smiled at his expression. "I'm actually looking forward to their expressions when they find out you're married."
"I can't even imagine," Eric frowned. "I hope they don't invite Naomi, but it's something you should be prepared for. We hung out with a lot of the same people."
Sookie frowned, "If she even thinks about bringing up her night with you, I can't begin to warn you about how I'll react."
"I understand," Eric nodded. "If she's there, I'll try to keep her away from you, but some of the guys can be tactless. One of them might bring her up."
Taking a deep breath, Sookie let it out slowly. She knew Eric wouldn't want his friends knowing the reality of that night, and allowing her anger to get the better of her was something she had a firm hold over.
"I'll do my best to remember my manners," Sookie told him.
Eric let out a relieved sigh. Even though he understood his wife's anger about Naomi, he didn't want his friends to know the truth. Whatever the truth might be. In a way, Eric was more worried that Sookie would find out what happened to him that night, and the young man wasn't sure if he wanted to know.
"So," Sookie wondered aloud, "how soon after Naomi did you go wild?"
Eric groaned, "As soon as I got a clean bill of health. Most of my, uh…"
"Conquests?" Sookie offered as she hunted down a pair of shoes.
"Sure," Eric agreed. "Most of that happened while we were living in England. Someone might bring that up, too. Jimmy likes to rile people up. He thinks it's funny."
"Where were you living when you had sex with Freyda?" Sookie wondered.
"Oklahoma," Eric replied as he found his socks.
"Oh," Sookie frowned. "I expected it to be, like, China or somewhere far away."
"There are Air Force bases in the states too," Eric teased.
"I know that," Sookie frowned.
"A majority of the time, we lived in the states. We spent some time in Germany, England, and Italy," Eric told her. "We were only in Asia once."
Sookie nodded as she grabbed her purse, but she was beginning to wonder if Eric would find their marriage boring. With her inability to fly, it would make traveling all the more difficult.
Maybe I just need to try some shorter plane rides to start off, Sookie wanted to reassure herself as they left the hotel room.
"Do I look alright?" Sookie asked as they made it to the lobby. She knew if she asked in the hotel room, she'd feel compelled to change at the slightest criticism.
"You're gorgeous," Eric assured without hesitation. "I wish we were already back in for the night."
When he gave her a salacious wink, Sookie couldn't help but giggle and squeeze his hand happily. She was going to do her best to make a great first impression on Eric's old friends!
The cab ride, unfortunately, was uneventful, and Sookie could feel her nerves working up as they rode along. If it weren't for Eric occasionally kissing the back of her hand reassuringly, Sookie wasn't sure if she would have made it to the bar.
"Have you ever drank before?" Eric wondered suddenly.
"No," Sookie admitted.
"This should be interesting," Eric laughed. "I won't be drinking, so feel free to let loose."
Sookie frowned as she considered the possibilities. What would it feel like to get drunk? Eric would make sure she didn't do anything dangerous, and the idea of such freedom was liberating.
When they arrived at the pub, Sookie could see the neon of a tattoo parlor across the street, and a flash of pink hair jogging out the door.
"That's Rose," Eric gestured and slapped a new grin on his face. "Rose!" he called. "You work there now?"
"Yeah," The pink hair bobbed as she picked up her pace to hug Eric. "Who's this? You managed to scrounge up a date in a few hours?"
"Actually," Eric beamed, "I didn't have to scrounge up a thing. This is my permanent date from now til forever. This is my wife!"
Rose's jaw slung open before she howled with laughter, "Your wife?! Go on, pull the other one!"
"Not pulling your leg," Eric chuckled as he held up his hand and showed his friend the wedding band on his finger.
"Holy shit, Mate! When did this happen?" Rose demanded
"Just the other day," Eric told her. "We married on the seventh."
"Hi-i," Sookie waved nervously. "I'm Sookie."
"Oh my, God," Rose gawked. "She has a movie accent!" Eric snorted at his friend's astonishment.
"Yeah, you too," Sookie replied with a tight smile.
Rose smirked, "I'm liking her."
"I'm glad you approve," Eric replied dryly.
Rose answered by flipping him the bird, and Eric just shook his head with a smile as the three finally entered the pub.
As the trio came through the doors, a loud roar came from all around, and Sookie found herself taking a step back. Soon, Eric was torn from her side and pushed around the bar like a good luck charm. Men were clapping him on the shoulders, women were kissing his cheeks, and Sookie could only watch as she found herself utterly alone.
"Don't worry, they'll settle down in a minute and then I'll shoulder you back to him," Rose smiled at the smaller blonde. "What can I get you to drink?"
"I don't know," Sookie mumbled.
"How about I pick you something?" Rose offered as she tugged the girl toward the bar. "Two long islands ice teas," she told the bartender. "They're delicious."
"Okay," Sookie replied meekly. She loved iced tea and drinking right out of the gate seemed worrisome.
"You're the shy type, huh?" Rose realized.
Sookie slowly nodded. It was probably the easiest way to explain away her quiet manners without bringing up her past.
"Your lot is the most fun to get pissed with," Rose grinned. "You never know what a shy one will do when they get a few in 'em."
Sookie accepted the drink she was offered. It really was good. There was a sharpness to the beverage that wasn't quite so enjoyable, but it was melted away by the blend of other flavors.
"Whoa, whoa," Rose laughed. "Slow down!"
Before Sookie realized it, two-thirds of her glass was gone. "It's good."
Rose waved for the bartender to give her another and Sookie downed the remainder of her glass.
"Slower with this one, okay?" Rose told her as she grabbed a mixing straw and put it in the glass. "Drink with that, it'll slow you down," she laughed, taking Sookie by her free hand and pulling her through the throng of people.
"I didn't realize Eric had so many friends," Sookie admitted as she was elbowed several times in the tight confines of the pub. Her body was already starting to feel warm all over from the extra heat coming off the patrons.
"Everyone likes being around Eric," Rose laughed as they grew closer to the tall blond. "ERIC! I brought your woman back to you!" She gave Sookie a shove, and the bride stumbled into her husband's chest, but she managed not to spill her drink.
"Guys, guys!" Eric shouted to his friends. "I want you all to meet my wife. This is Sookie," He placed his arm over Sookie's shoulder, pulling her tightly to his side.
"I can't believe it," A young man with reddish-brown hair snorted. "Eric Northman is a one-woman show now!"
Sookie took a deep swig of her iced tea and gave a tight, nervous smile. Her belly felt warm with nerves, but she felt remarkably steady despite her concerns.
Eric introduced Sookie to the men around them, and she realized that everyone in the pub wasn't here for the party. Only about seven of the packed establishment had come to welcome Eric back to England.
The man with the auburn hair ended up being Jimmy, and Sookie made a note to take his comments with a grain of salt. As people asked her questions or commented, Sookie took another swig of her drink and responded with nods and shakes of her head.
Not long after being thrust into the middle of the crowd, Sookie looked at her husband, "Is your fahce numb? Mah fahce feels numb." She patted the space between her nose and cheekbone experimentally, and Eric raised his eyebrows in surprise.
"What have you been drinking?" Eric asked as he reached for her glass.
"Ahced tae," Sookie replied.
Eric took a sip of what was left of her drink and laughed, "This is a long island, Sookie. How many have you had?"
Sookie frowned, "Three?" She vaguely remembered Rose handing her another one.
"Miles, get a glass of water for Sookie. She's overdone it," Eric called to his friend.
"Ah'm fihne," Sookie assured him.
The thickening of his wife's accent said differently, and Eric could only smile at the adorable way her face had glazed over. "Do you want to make an attempt to walk?" Now that he was focused on her, he could see the distinct sway as Sookie attempted to remain upright.
They hadn't even been in the bar for much more than an hour, and Sookie had unwittingly downed three long islands. Eric had the feeling he was in for a long night.
As if the world were fighting against him at that moment, a late arrival had appeared at the gathering, and of course, it had to be the last person on earth he wanted to see.
"Hey, there, Eric," Naomi played with her iron flat black hair. She had thick rings of eyeliner circling her eyes and tugged her plump lower lip between her teeth to leave a crimson lipstick stain.
"Hi," Eric replied distractedly.
Miles returned with a glass of water at that moment and handed it to Eric before wrapping Naomi in his arms. "Hey, Naomi! I didn't know if you'd make it!"
Sookie's focus returned to the name she heard, and she ignored the water her husband was trying to get her to drink.
"Naomi?" Sookie stood straighter and looked at the woman who responded to her name.
"Yeah, that's right. Who are you?" Naomi asked.
"Ah'm Sookie," the blonde replied. "Ah'm Eric's wife."
Naomi looked taken aback, "His wife?"
"Yeah," Sookie smiled sweetly, but her eyes were colder than ice. As delicately as she could, Sookie held up her left hand and showed off her wedding band. "He's told meh a lot 'bout you. Probly more'n anyone else here could know. 'Course no one knows more'n you."
Naomi's jaw tightened.
"So," Sookie leaned in closer, "cahn ya tell meh anythin' I dohn't know?"
Eric stood frozen behind his wife, unsure what he should do. Drunk as she was, Sookie was still managing to allude without being obvious. It reminded him of her gran, how Adele could say so much without other parties catching on to the real conversation.
As the husband remained paralyzed by the possibility of his darkest secret coming to light, he reacted too slow to stop Naomi's hand as it lashed out to strike his wife's cheek. Sookie seemed unfazed by the slap.
Sookie's reply was to ball up her first, slug Naomi in the face and send her to her ass on the floor. "Takes a hella lot more'n that to put me down," Sookie told the woman. "If ya get up, you better be gettin' out."
Naomi scooted back on the floor, putting space between herself and Sookie. "He might have married you, but he'll always remember the girl he lost his virginity to."
Sookie looked down at the floor with a sour look on her face. "'Lost' would've been the right word," Sookie agreed, "if he hadn't given it to a girl named Freyda a month before he ever moved to England." Crouching down slightly, Sookie assured the girl, "Now, unless you wanna wear them raccoon eyes twenty-four-seven for the next couple weeks, I'd shut mah trap'n get outta here."
Without another comeback to retaliate with, Naomi scuttled out of the bar with her tail between her legs. Sookie finally took the water her husband had been holding and chugged it down. The anger that had been boiling inside her and the jolt of adrenaline from the confrontation had burned off some of the excess alcohol, but Sookie still felt foggy and disjointed.
Placing her head down on the bar top, Sookie promised herself she was only going to shut her eyes to make the world stop tilting.
Eric laid his hand between Sookie's shoulder blades as if to tell everyone in the room not to touch her.
"I should probably get her back to the hotel," Eric smiled awkwardly at his old friends.
"Yeah," Rose agreed uncomfortably. She wasn't Naomi's biggest fan by a stretch, but Rose was considering her decision about getting Eric's wife, so drunk had been a bad one. Rose wondered if he knew what a hair trigger his wife had when she had a few drinks in her.
"C'mon, Mate, just leave her there," Jimmy pleaded. "She'll be fine!"
"I don't know, she might pop back up swinging," Miles joked. "Does she always have such a temper?"
Eric frowned as he lazily ran his fingers over Sookie's spine. "No, she actually has a very long fuse."
"Just not with other girls who have shagged her husband in the past?" Jimmy teased.
"I'm surprised you'd go for a jealous type," Miles added.
The young husband was still looking at his wife contemplatively. He'd probably never see this group again after today, and part of him felt no sorrow in that realization. They were different people now and he wasn't the man they had known. Eric realized that he no longer cared about their opinion of him.
"I never shaggedNaomi," Eric told them as he scooped his wife into his arms. "I was passed out upstairs. I don't know what happened."
With that, Eric walked calmly out of the pub and onto the street. A boulder that had rested on his chest had seemed to finally roll away and let him take his first full breath. He had no more secrets or burdens to carry.
Standing on the curb, Eric waited for a taxi and was only moderately surprised when Rose followed him outside.
"What do you mean you don't know what happened?" Rose demanded as she confronted her old friend.
"Exactly that," Eric told her, staring forward and not at the pink head glaring up demandingly at him. "I was passed out. Either Naomi's full of shit and made the whole thing up, or she fucked me while I was asleep. All I know is my pants weren't open when I went into that room, but they were when I woke up."
Rose shook her head in disbelief, "Then why didn't you say something!?" She couldn't believe one of her friends could do something like Eric was saying. Even if it was Naomi. Even if they weren't the best of friends, it was still unimaginable.
"Sookie was the first person I ever told," Eric admitted. "She got me to talk to my family about it. The only reason I finally let all of you know was so you could understand my wife's anger. She's not jealous, and she doesn't have a temper. She was angry for me. She was upset with Naomi showing up like she'd done nothing wrong. Sookie was fighting forme because I was too weak to talk about it."
A few cars finally passed by, and Eric waved his hand to get the attention of an incoming taxi.
"I think running into you was my chance to finally say the truth, not my chance to renew an old friendship," Eric continued as the cab pulled up to him and he opened the door. "Thanks for the memories, Rose. The good and the bad; they all brought me to Sookie."
TBC
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