A/N: As always, I only own the storyline. I would not owning some time with Alexander S. though.
Chapter twelve:
School was busy and annoying, when all I wanted to get to my appointment. Finally, I am on my way to Lewiston. I wait for the doctor in the room and hope he will agree on a date early in the week. The date is set in four minutes of the doctor being in the room. I call Eric and he in turn arranges for his plane tickets. He calls me back.
"I'll pick you up at school that Friday and stay until the following Sunday. See you then baby." He hangs up.
I toss and turn all night. Probably, from not having Eric there. I wake and start my routine for the day. I get to school and am met by Jason at my door. Great, just what I need after a sleepless night.
"So, what do they do that is better in your mind than Basketball and Football?" He asks rudely, as we walk into the building.
"That's got you hung up huh?"
"Yeah, I can't think of any sport more dangerous than football to a high school kid." I laugh. "It's not a school sport; they do it for a living. They break horses, and if that's not bad enough. Eric rides on the PBR circuit. Thus that huge buckle. You can't buy that puppy, you have to earn it. Eric and Alcide are not fakes, they are real cowboys. So, as he said, you can't compete with him. Well, unless you get in the ring."
His face twists up in disbelief. "Hey look it up. I'll wait." We walk into the library. I text Eric and tell him about this. He calls a few seconds later, while the computer boots up. "That yahoo doesn't stop does he?" He laughs. I tell him I love him and we promise to talk later. By the time I get off the phone, Jason has pulled the PBR site up. I give him Eric's number to type in. What pops up blows him away. My man is ranked in tenth place out of fifty for the season. His last ride lasted 7.5 seconds and was his personal best. The next ride is in Vegas, during my April break. My head starts churning ideas.
"So, like I said no competition. See you in class." I walk out of the library. At lunch, Alcide sends me a joke. I show my friends and we have a good laugh. I get an apple and water from the lunch line. I have tried to eat better since I found out about my gallbladder. In doing so, I've noticed that I'm losing more weight. By the time Eric comes up, I'll be down another dress size. I might even be a 12 by Graduation. My phone beeps with another text.
If ever you wanted me, I'll be your man
I'd be a fool to let you go with someone else
Whatever you want from me, I'll be your man
I'd give it all up just to have you for myself
I love you baby :) Eric
"Sook, did he write you a poem?" Jess asks. I laugh and shake my head
"No it's from a song from one of my favorite bands." I smile and text him back.
Thank you my prince. I love you too! :) Sook
Some of the popular girls including Crystal walk by. She sneers at me and I glare back. "Gunpowder and Lead" plays from my phone.
"Hey, Pam! What's up? Not for another month and half. How about a bash in N.V., that's where Eric's next ride is. No, I have that covered. The one we picked out at Miss Ellie's. I just need some alterations done. Do you think we could put a cutout at the small of my back? It'll become obvious why when I get down there. Cool. See you there. Are you kidding me? I just need a small one, no bigger than a salad plate. Ivy, roses and lilies. That's up to you. Not too big of one, please. I have an idea for when we get back. We will have to wait for a month between but we've waited before. As far as that goes; just you, Sam and Alcide, everyone else is here. It's theirs too, so they'll be there. I'll take care of this end. No, dinner here. We'll go to the Village Inn again. Okay, love to Sam. The girls say hi. Love ya."
"Pam says hi." I tell the table. My friends pepper me with questions. I smile mischievously at them as the bell rings.
The weeks pass and I get more nervous as my surgery gets closer. Eric calls me right before he steps on the plane.
"Hey baby, I'll be there soon. Don't worry, I'll pick you up at school and we'll go find a spot to talk, Okay?" He croons in my ear. I relax for the rest of the day after listening to the message. I ask my teachers for the next week's assignments, most tell me not to worry. I have a valid reason to be out of school, so I should let myself heal and then come back feeling better.
My last class is chorus. They all wish me to get well soon. I open the classroom door and there stands Eric, Alcide and Sam. All looking like western stars, leaning against the wall with one boot placed on the wall, arms crossed and the heads down. I gasp at the sudden sight of them. Eric brings his head up, smiling like a fool.
"Hi honey." He then rushes up to catch me, when I faint to the ground.
I come to on the way down the stairs. I am cradled in Eric's arms and the other two are running down the stairs behind us. Before we get to the bottom of the first flight, Alcide jumps the railing and lands halfway down the second, scaring the kids around him. He then runs down the steps outside and fires up the Merlotte's crew cab truck. Sam opens the doors and Eric hops in the back with me still in his arms, he then jumps in the passenger's seat and tells Alcide to punch it. My strength comes back and I try to sit up. Eric lets me but, keeps me in his arms.
"You scared us baby." He swears in my ear. I nod and lean against him. "Sorry guys, I don't think I've eaten at all today. I've been so worked up about Monday." I then notice Alcide still driving like a maniac. "Alcide, I'm fine. Please slow down. I don't want you to get a ticket. Plus even if I let you three take me there, you still don't know where the hospitals are." He slows down and asks me where I want to go. I give him the directions to the mall. When Sam groans, I say I don't need to buy anything. I just want to walk around and the place is warm.
"Okay, Sis. Let's get out, and get in there." Alcide opens the back door and pulls me out himself. 'Oh fuck, Sook!' "Eric, I don't want you to bitch, but I'm paying for her food. You are way too light, Sook." He sets me down and Eric glares at him as he jumps out and lands beside me. "I know. I was able to carry her all the way out of that school and get in without a thought. Baby, I know you've had some trouble with food this week, but you are eating today and tomorrow anything you want. Even if I have to hold you through attacks for the next two nights." Alcide and Sam tell me that they came up to see me but they are leaving for R.I. as soon as we get back to my house. Alcide goes to the ATM and takes out some cash and gives it to Eric. "I'm serious, she needs to eat. I know you could pay for it, I just want to do something." We leave for my house.
The three amigos split up and my "brothers" head out for Sam's parent's house in Rhode Island. We wave them off and Eric grabs my hand, so I look at him. "You and I are going to talk about this afternoon later. Right now, I want to get you inside and help you with anything that needs doing before we can escape for the night."
We go inside. I get started on supper for my family and do about half of the homework that I was given for the week. Eric has brought some homework with him also. He tells me that he actually needs some help with the English assignment, he is working on. We work on the paper together; all he needs to do is print it out now. After I get my grandparents and uncle's dishes cleaned up and them into the living room. I tell Eric that I am taking a shower and will be ready to go soon.
We leave the sleeping house and go out to dinner at Mac's Grill and then head to Club Texas. Eric leads me to a table in the back. We are in the dark and far enough away from the speakers that we can talk. Eric pulls out a chair and sits down. I shrug it off and go to sit in another. He shakes his head and pulls me into his lap. "I am not going to let you sit anywhere but with me tonight. You are lucky that I left you alone at dinner.
Okay, lay it on me. What's going on? You've lost almost ten pounds in three weeks. Is it just the worry or is something else going on? I love you. I'll be here for you no matter what." His eyes are pleading with me to tell him. 'I can't help, if I don't know what is wrong.'
"I am so worried about this thing on Monday. My family is not helping at all. I can tell they're worried too, but they are showing it wrong. Their fighting is increasing and I am counting down the days until my April vacation. Then I'll be counting down the days until Graduation. So, I have lost my appetite for the most part. When I do eat, I have been trying to eat as healthfully as I can. If I don't, I pay for it at night." He takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly.
"I thought so; well I am going make sure you eat this weekend. Enough talking, let's dance. I have gone too long without dancing with you in my arms." He takes my hand and leads me to the crowded dance floor. I rest my head on his collarbone as we drift to the music. "I have loved you since that first day of camp. You were talking with Pam and all I could do was stare at you. I sat down on the beach with you in hopes that I could get you to talk to me and hopefully date me. You looked so sad, yet so beautiful. You will always have my heart.
Please don't change anything, thinking I would want it. If you lose weight, fine. I will say something if you look unhealthy either way, and you don't. Please remember that." He kisses my brow. "As far as your family goes, Once you turn eighteen, we will be together as much as possible. We have all week to talk about our marriage." He dips me and we sit down again. His phone starts to ring.
"That's probably The Pain." He goes to answer it, when a disgusted look crosses his face. "How did she get my number? Hey, babe how about a role reversal of a couple of weeks ago?" He hands me his phone, I smile sourly when I see Sophie's number. I stand up and excuse myself to the bathroom. I can't take going through this all over again right now. He looks up to see my face. 'This is not happening again. Sookie, please I have no idea how she got my number, but I will rectify this right now.' He grabs my hand to stop me.
"Hello."
"Hi Eric, why don't you come pick me up and we'll go the club. Maybe, you will get lucky. It's spring break and that girl is out of town, what she doesn't know won't kill her." Eric looks like he's going to be sick. I pat his knee and turn on the speakerphone. "Let's mess with her" I mouth. He nods, thankful that I am in a playful mood. It is more that I am just too tired to give a shit right now.
"Sophie, I am already at a club."
"Really, I'll be right there." She jumps on the bait. The sound of her engine roars through the phone.
"Sophie?"
"Yes?"
"I don't think you understand. I'm already in Maine, I got here this afternoon."
"Oh, you know you could have the best of both worlds. I don't mind sharing you, occasionally. I mean how often will you see her this year?" I could have thrown up. Is this girl for real? Eric rolls his eyes, before he answers. He pulls me into his lap and sinks his head onto my shoulder.
"Quite often. I am up here until late next Sunday. Then she is coming out to Vegas with me in April. We are going to be talking a lot for the next few months. I will be going to her prom. I don't think either of us will be marching." He looks at me and I nod. He goes on. "As far as I am concerned, she is the only one. I am not a toy to be shared. To suggest that only degrades the three of us."
"I am not giving up. She won't be here long. We are all graduating school. What makes you so sure she won't meet some guy at college? I will see you around town and she won't." Okay, thank you Sophie, for raising my suspicions even more. I take the phone, take a breath and kiss him before I rip her a new one. He shakes his head. "I can handle it." he whispers.
"Sophie, listen and listen good. She will be in my life for a while longer than you will. Your call interrupted us discussing our wedding plans. We are getting married next month and she and I will be moving her stuff down the day after her prom. We won't be marching because we will be on our honeymoon. I'll see you at school Sophie." He hangs up.
"I'm sorry about that. She has been a pain lately. Now her parents are trying to corner my parents about getting their kids together. What some people will do, when it comes to twins. Just because you share a birthday doesn't give you the right to go crazy." He sighs. "Where were we? Our wedding and marriage." He pulls me further onto his lap, dries my tears and wraps me tighter in his arms. Once I gain my self-respect again, I answer.
"I was thinking about doing it while we were in Vegas. The only problem is, going a month and a half without seeing my spouse before prom." I stroke a finger down his neck as I speak. He nods. "Yeah, that is a dilemma. We will work it out. We always do." He murmurs. "Let's get you to bed. I want to hold you all I can before Monday. I'll have to be careful of you then." He drives me home and we climb into bed. I wake up in his arms, and sigh.
"Morning baby, do you need to get up?" Eric loosens his arms. I shake my head and feel them tighten up again. His nose finds the notch between my neck and shoulder. He moves it up along my neck a few times. "Yes, I miss just lying in bed, like this and holding you while we talk." He lets me go when I shift away. 'I miss everything. You are on my mind constantly. I wake myself in the night, searching for you to bring you closer into my arms.'
"Getting up?" I nod and start getting dressed. "I want to get something to eat, even if it's just a yogurt and some toast." Eric gives me a weird look and dresses. I make some toast and take a yogurt out. I wash it down with some juice. He eats about three pieces of toast and tells me he saw some brush outside that he is planning on burning for my family.
My uncle welcomes the help and starts to actually talk to him. I help my grandmother with the laundry and vacuum the downstairs. I then grab my keys and walk out to see my fiancé and tell him I am going to the grocery store for some things I need for supper. He says he'll come with me.
"That uncle of yours is a piece of work." I nod, "What happened?"
"He has the tendency of being depressed. He was a lot better when I was a kid. Then his wife left him and cleaned him out. He is a broken, violent drunk now. I have become embittered when it comes to him. Since I was twelve, our house has been like a mad house. I have come to the conclusion that they will never kick him out, even if he is destroying them and me. You once spoke of a shell that you were in before me, well I was in hell. Still am. Before you start overthinking again, I have never asked you to rescue me. I am moving out after prom one way or the other. I have enough saved up to buy a house outright." I look at him as I wait for a line of traffic.
"I'm sorry." He whispers. Here we go; he's gone now. Well it's been a good ride. He stays quiet until we get to the store. When I put the car in park, he gets out and opens my door. He pulls me into his arms. "Now I know it's the right decision to get married next month. Can you really hold out for two months?" I nod as the tears start flooding down my face. "Baby, it's you and me against the world. Remember that, ok? I love you and in two months we will be together forever." He hugs me, dries my eyes and we walk into the store. Eric pushes the cart while I grab the pasta, cheese, crackers and milk for the mac and cheese. I pick up some more juice. My phone rings, when I answer it's my uncle. "I'll pay you if you pick up a case." The idiot.
"If I could, I still wouldn't. Neither of us are twenty one. Plus, Eric would have a tough time of it even if he was. Store Policy is to ask for a passport if you are from further than two states away. Last I checked, Tennessee is half way across the country." I tell him. Oh I cannot wait to get out of here. I pay Crystal and we walk out to my car. Eric opens my door and once I'm inside, he hops on the phone. After two phone calls he gets in and we drive home. He helps me carry in the groceries. While I make supper, he runs upstairs. He comes back down with all my suitcases and carries them to his car. I take the casserole out to cool. he pecks me on the cheek on his way through to the stairs again. My phone goes off with Alcide's song.
When I answer it, he gives me hell. "Tell Eric, we are on our way, with a U-Haul." I tell him I will. So that's what he's up to. He nods when I relay the message to him on his third trip out the door, muttering all the way. He has me pack my school things and grab my purse and steers me out to our cars.
A/N: The song blurb is from Zac Brown Band's, "Keep Me in Mind". They are one of my new favorites.