Best
Friends Forever, Chappie Twelve
Nadia
took roll silently as her class hunched over their papers, the walls
covered
with a collage of past paintings and drawings. Someone had made a
sculpture out
of rubber bands, someone else had painted
someone
painting a painting of someone painting a painting etc etc.
Nadia smiled carefully as a few of her fifth hour students gazed up
over
finished tests to her, eyes wondering as she placed her left hand on
her lower
back and pursed her lips. The seven month mark had reached its glory,
and she
sat shifting in misery as she stretched her aching muscles. Frank
Alejandro, absent. Nadia Idle's
brain, moved
to another school.
They'd
picked out names only three days ago? She felt like it had been ages,
years maybe. As an ode to her brother, they'd
decided a
Nathaniel Joseph would be proper enough,
and a tiny
Lorena Abell if the gender suited her. The
more Nadia
went through the awful ordeal, the more she was certain a tiny boxing
boy was
nestled there, impudent frown on his face, like he wasn't happy he was
there
either. Every now and then, particularly when Nadia had a frown on her
face or
a hand on her stomach, Eric would put his ear to her stomach and grin
up at her
like he could hear the baby talking. "It says lay off the salads,
babe." Either she cracked a smile or she would become the moody giant
she
was and want to burst into tears, not always sucessfully.
Sixth
hour was nothing but seniors, easy-going seniors. They presented their
projects, took their tests, and were allowed to see how well their
grades went.
Nadia wasn't failing anyone at that point and congratulated them. It
was
probably the last good news she'd hear or give for about six months.
Her eyes
ached as she locked the door of the building, her swollen frame making
her feet
hurt with a grumbling passion. As she walked across the street, a
squealing car
managed to skid around her, but Nadia's racing heart still made her
lean up
against her car with fear. Shaking off the encounter, she shook a fist
at the
car and shouted a quick curse word before turning into her car. It felt
like a
bad omen to Nadia and she paused as she stared at the interior of her
vehicle;
she didn't have a good feeling about this. Normally she'd listen to her
intuition and back away until the feeling subsided, but she had that
urge to
see Eric's face and to smile at him, to cause his eyes to dance and
alight with
relief and happiness. She climbed in and buckled herself
half-heartedly. The
wheel pressed a bit on her stomach but she ignored it and started the
engine.
Turning in the same direction the ruly
driver had
gone in, she sped off with a bad feeling in her mind.
Eric
crunched himself behind Terry Gilliam in the shopping cart, and,
looking both
ways, shoved off from the lamp post. They soared around a mother of
four and
around a stack of shopping carts before a wild-eyed clerk rushed
outside and
chased them and the boys with the cameras off the property. They
lingered menacingly
just off the parking lot's grounds until a sudden feeling hit Eric
square in
the stomach. He doubled over with an inarticulate look of horror.
"Something's
wrong!" He managed to choke out.
John
gave him a soured look. "You lose your baby?"
Eric
gave him a wild-eyed look, one that showed horror and anger. "Don't say
that! I just know-Nadia, something's wrong with Nadia!"
He
turned, all thoughts of creeping back into McNoughtan's for another
joyride in a shopping
cart gone.
Gray had enough heart to follow him and crept in behind Eric as he
bolted into
his house. She wasn't home yet, a strange occurence.
This did not necessarily mean she was laying somewhere bleeding to
death, but
today it did.
The
blue car had swerved out of nowhere and Nadia had, for the briefest
moment,
thought: "There's that ass with the driver's liscense
again," before the steering wheel crushed her already smushed
stomach and she felt blood trickle from her nose. A resounding fear in
her head
kept sobbing out that she wanted her baby to live, she needed it, and
she'd
always known it though she'd been so afraid at first. God's punishing
me, she
mused as the paramedics tried to fit her face under a plastic mask. I
didn't
want this child and now he's taking it from me.
As
Eric turned to pick up Nimue and Merlin,
the phone
rang. He stared at the shaking set until his brain reclaimed him; he
snatched
it up. "Hello?"
"Mr. Idle? This is Doctor Gerald Beamer in Cambridge Hospital. I regret
to inform
you-" The
rest didn't matter. Eric's heart felt far too big to be in his body as
it
thudded, and all he heard was "car accident" before he and Gray took
off for the door. His hands were shaking too badly to even get a key in
the
door of his car, let alone drive an hour. He was so terrified he
allowed Gray
to take his arm and shove him into the backseat of his car. For a
moment he lay there, whole body in tremors,
and then it tired him and
he felt a black swallow him. Pity, he thought as he came to, it can't
last
forever.
He
stumbled
from the car to the pavement, which he stared at in awe for a good
minute
before managing to walk and fumble his way to the nurse's station. All
he had
to do was mention her name and the nurse had a regretful look on her
face.
"She's
in the O.R. right now, if you'll just take a seat on those benches over
there." She pointed carefully.
Eric
cleared his throat, knowing how ashen he must look. "Why's she being
operated on?"
"Why,"
the nurse gave him another sympathetic look, "they have to-" And the
rest didn't matter, Eric's heart had blown out of proportion again.
He
sat heavily on the bench with his hands in his lap, wondering just what
he
planned to do. Gray put a sympathetic hand on his shoulder, yet angry
as he
was, he couldn't bring himself to smack the limb away, to discard the
comfort.
The hollow between his lungs ached dully and before he could figure if
it was
his heart breaking or the fact he wasn't breathing, the operating room
doors
clattered open and a scantily clad Nadia with many tubes and wires in
her mouth
and body glided out. She was deathly ill and a good amount of blood and
I.V.
was strapped to her. Gray shoved him to his feet and they walked behind
the
somber nurses and doctors until she was situated in the room. Eric sat
by her
side and took her hand, glad she was alive though his body ached. Some
nurse
handed him her glasses which he put on her face; it helped him believe
she'd
open her eyes any second, like she'd just closed them in annoyance and
would be
perfectly fine any second now.
Hours
passed like nothing as Eric stared heatedly at Nadia. He felt like he
was being
impatient and crude when he stared at her, but he couldn't relent the
feeling;
didn't she know what had happened? How could she sleep on when he need
consoling?
He wanted dearly to hold her and see her eyes again, her vibrant green
eyes.
They
flicked open and blinked a few times, and without a word between them,
a knowledge took them both.
Nadia
stared at her side where stitches were, to her wrist with the blood and
I.V.
She looked up to Eric, and felt a panic and sickness in her. The
heartbeat, the
second heartbeat which she'd grown accustomed to the last few months,
the
constant kicks, the hiccups, they were gone. Raw fury and panic took
hold of her
and a strangled cry escaped her.
"Eric!"
She turned to him and touched her stitches. What little courage he had
left had
fled his body and he fell onto her lap, a cry of his own stampeding
from his
throat. Nadia wept over him, holding him for her own comfort and for
his; his
very soul ached it seemed, and he hadn't realized how much he'd loved
the tiny
person he'd never met. His daughter, they said. My little girl, he
mused gently
and thought about how much trouble he'd gone to make sure she'd be
happy. He
and Nadia had fought, had cried, and had worked hard to make sure they
would
love and care for this child, and now she was taken from them.
"Christ,
Nadia, I didn't realize how much I wanted her until they said we
couldn't have
her!" Choked Eric and Nadia's back bristled.
"Her?"
She looked him in the eye.
He
nodded and felt a tear on his face, not sure whether it was his or
hers.
"They say she was a girl. I told them to put Lorena Abell
on the death certificate." He felt surprisingly calm.
Nadia
coughed and let out another little sob. "Unreal,"
He
felt his face start to scrunch up. "I wish,"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The
four walls were driving her insane. Flowers, cards, a few visits from
nosy
students, the works. Nadia had never felt more dead
inside in her entire life. When her mother had been inches from death
she had
been able to smile, to make her family laugh and believe they'd all be
fine if
the worst did occur. They had been prepared for the death of the
keystone of
their lives, and when it didn't happen, the tears and laughter flowed
freely.
Nadia couldn't force a smile, it looked
like she was
bearing her teeth, and her eyes only shot daggers. Eric was afraid of
that
smile, the one that said the cold truth, the truth that the second he'd
left on
the first day she'd tried to take her life from herself, she'd
tried to do it and almost did. A bandage was wound tight around her
left wrist;
it itched. She scratched at the coarse fabric and rubbed her tired
eyes.
She
was dead inside. The reality was that! Something that had been living,
had only
been two months from life had died because of her ignorance! Her
daughter,
Eric's little girl, the only thing she could give him and she'd let it
slip
through her fingers all because of her first reaction to the prospect
of having
her. She would sell her soul to hold her little Lorena in her arms just
once,
the baby she'd never seen the face of. They'd offered for her to see
the body,
but her chest-shaking sobs had skewed her words so that she could only
managed to say she didn't think she could bear
it. Eric had
seen her, and her dark hair had been scant but so alike to Nadia's he'd
felt an
insurmountable urge to smile.
Good
news had yet to knock on their door.
"Good
afternoon, Mr. Idle." Doctor Gerald Beamer took his seat on the
revolving
stool in the center of the room at the foot of Nadia's bed.
Nadia
stared at him with an uncontained hatred. He'd been the one that had
taken from
her the only thing that mattered. It didn't matter it was to save her
own life,
or that Lorena Abell had been dead before
they
arrived. If a doctor tried to play God, he should be able to avoid
things like
that.
Eric
stared at the doctor as well, nothing inside him. He felt empty, sort
of like
an autumn leaf that had crunched under a toddler's foot and was about
to blow
away. The reference to a toddler made Eric's head spin. He'd never know
that
feeling, to watch a toddler growing up. Not from the news that Beamer
brought.
"In
order for us to avoid a sensitive bruise to remove your daughter, Mrs.
Idle, we
had to make a deep incision on the Fallopian tube, and since the
healing has
begun, it looks like we feared." He cast somber eyes on the couple.
"What
does that mean?" Eric asked in a tired voice, fingering his wedding
band.
He'd lost weight, watches, rings, anything
of the sort
tended to spin right around on his lanky limbs. Now it was to the point
where
he was afraid to lose his wedding band; it was all he had left. She
hadn't
spoken in three days now.
"It
means that the scar tissue will shred and therefore miscarry
all future impregnated eggs. Therefore, you are unable to conceive now
or ever
again." He pocketed a pen and stared at Nadia's murderous eyes. "I'm
really very sorry."
Thoughts
rampaged Nadia's head. "He killed my baby,
he
took her from me! Now he has the audacity to tell me that I can't ever
have
children! In one hour my life has changed so dramatically that I almost
wish I
didn't have a brain, I was nothing at all or didn't know enough to know
what I
could have. Oh, what it'd be like to have an empty head, to not know
what's
going on, to forget all that's happened. How could I do this to Eric?
Why does
he look at me so?"
And,
truth be told, Eric did stare at her strangely. Balefully,
if
anything. Like he wished he could shake her until she was well,
but it
was a sad anger. Like he was sorry he was so impatient with her
devastation.
Though, he thought, I'd kill her if she recovered from this and was
just as
buoyant as ever. This is the one thing that could really tear us apart.
With
that, Eric's mind his overdrive; that had been Lexi's
intent all along. She'd done all the bad so far, done all the damage,
struck
almost every blow. Was it inconceivable to think she'd been the
reckless
driver?
The
next day she was home. It was strange to be home, and the second day
she sat
there, her feet tucked under her skinny body, someone had come and
taken Nimue away. It seemed they'd heard
there were still kittens
in the house, and had offered a good price. Nadia stared at Merlin. He
mewled
weakly, like he'd lost something and needed very badly to find it.
Stumbling
around without a direction, the kitten searched, meowing and crooning,
searching all of Nimue's previous hiding
places. He
flopped down on Nadia and let out a cat-cry, of pain and anguish. Nadia
stared
at the cat. Eric watched the always-silent Nadia stare at Merlin until
the
unthinkable happened.
"I
know how you feel," Nadia croaked, her voice having to get itself used
to talking again. "To
lose something dear to you, to have it taken away without your consent.
I know exactly how you feel. Misery loves company."
Eric
tightened his jaw and scooped Nadia, who was frail feeling to the
touch, into
his lap and held her tight, comforting her silent eyes. At least she
had
spoken. It had been an unthinkable thing never to hear her rough and
ready
voice, deeper than most women's. He nuzzled her gently, surprised to
feel her
hug him back.
Nadia
didn't want to come off as needy, nor did she want to give a whole lot
of
anything to anyone. Still, with him there cradling her, she felt glad
he knew
her so well. It was probably best. Guilt plagued Eric; throughout the
entire ordeal
he'd been sitting and staring, knowing he accounted for nearly 100%
percent of
it. She'd been careful about her pills, he
hadn't done
a thing to insure anything. She'd worried and fretted about the baby
when her
discomfort subsided, he'd stared
thoughtfully and
opened doors for her. She'd cried herself to sleep fearing the pain and
the
life their child would live with two working parents (and such
eccentric
parents at that), he'd held her as tight as she'd allow and tried to
keep
lustful thoughts from him. Indeed, it had been months since anything
had
happened between them, and he'd been sort of easily irritated outside
of the
house; everything reflected in his social life. Straight
to
work, straight home, nothing in between.
The
guilt only tripled with this new development.
"First,"
he thought, forcing his eyes from hers, brimming with unshed tears,
"she
finds out the one thing she wasn't ready for has happened, half of it
my fault
in the first place. Then she finds out that her best friend did it to
win me
back even though it'll never happen. Then we decide that the baby will
be a
piece of joy and happiness in our lives and start to get over the shock
and
terror of having a baby. Then she loses her and discovers she can't
ever have
children now that it's what she wants. I can't give her what she
wants!"
He felt a panic inside him. Not to be able to give the woman he loved
the only
thing she wanted then, which was the knowledge that someday she could
have
children, because now she wasn't ready. Just
someday, never
was not a word Nadia liked to hear.
She
stared at him. There was no word to describe the chaos in her eyes, the
utter
pandemonium that showed what was going on so deep in her mind behind
the
intelligent and kicky frames.
"I'll
take care of you," infamous words, Nadia mused as Eric spoke them.
They'd
moved in together and she'd taken a new job, unsure if she'd be able to
split
the rent evenly with him at first. He'd only said :
"I'll take care of you," and she'd been filled with an unidentifiable
security. She was invincible and gradually worked her way from a
thirty-seventy
split to a fifty-fifty split.
She
felt her chin tip up and down carefully, agreeing, thanking, everything
all at
once. Though Eric felt necessary to touch her, to hold her to know she
was
there and to know she was real, he still felt tentative about anything
more
than a friendly embrace, nothing more than friends again. Her pouted
lips were
tightened in a thin line, as if she was trying to smile normally but
didn't
remember how. Finally she turned to him and the corners of her eyes
crinkled an
almost forgotten way. She smiled a genuine smile and put her head down
under
his chin, listening for the beat of his heart.
"We'll
be okay, I know you'll take care of me,
Eric." He
took his left hand in her own and stared at
the gold
band. "I'm so lucky."
He
laughed. "You! Ha!"
Instead
of refusing his compliment she looked at him with a beaming pride and
kissed
him shyly on the cheek, unsure if he'd accept the affection. He only
beamed
right back at her like she'd aced a test of some kind and then an
imaginary
curtain closed the scene as they curled together on the couch with the
tiny,
exhausted kitten between them and slept.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"But why July?" Nadia asked, staring at Tanja Wiltjer with
a furrowed
brow.
Tanja only shrugged. "The entire system was
designed
by people who could have the most time off in July,
I guess. Can you make it?"
Checking
her watch, Nadia nodded. July thirty-first, a college reunion! Like,
yay! She felt
a dead weight
in her chest; they'd seeked her out
because she
taught at the school, but what about Eric? Would he be getting a formal
invite
at the house? After all, her invitation still said "Nadia A. Smart"
on it like she was a young lady and nothing at all like she was now.
The name
itself sounded like a little girl's.
"Looking
forward to seeing Eric, are you?" Tanja
teased,
smiling at Nadia's seemingly nostalgic personality.
Nadia
smiled coyly. "Maybe,"
"He's
on telly, maybe he'll be your buddy again-"
"Oh,
I've bumped into him a few times over the past few years, we're all
caught
up." She barely suppressed her smile as she carefully slid her left
hand
into pocket of her jeans.
Tanja shrugged. "Suit yourself; I'm off to
deliver the
rest of these to the others around campus. Ta!"
So,
three days and she'd be sitting in a banquet hall surrounded by her
friends and
classmates, and no one knew she was married, least of all to Eric!
Despite her
initial worry they'd be ridiculed, it occured
to her
that it's what they all wanted in the first place. A few taunting "I
told
you so's" were bearable. A small titter of
excitement exploded into her; oh, to see their faces when-!
She
snapped into her brain and folded her documents drearily. Class lists
as early
as July; it was a nightmare. She had to get home, to see if Eric's
invite had
arrived yet. Her lip curled into a smile as she slid into the car and
tried to
take off without a squeal of rubber on pavement. She didn't succeed.
And yet,
as she pulled into her driveway, she didn't squeak her brakes. Eric had
a
bemused look on his face as he spread out on the lush grass of their
tiny front
yard. He folded his hands behind his back and smiled up at her as she
knelt
next to him.
"We
got a party to go to, Naddy."
She
smiled. "I know! Tanja Wiltjer
cornered me in the administration building of Cambridge while I was
getting my
class
rosters; isn't it unreal?"
"Surreal,"
he replied with a smirk.
Nadia
folded herself into the crook of his arm and hugged him tight,
remembering
vaguely a time when she'd been reluctant to have him touch her, to
cradle her
so close in case he felt the growth of stomach against his side and
knew what
was going on. Au contraire! He'd normally force a buoyant smile and
tell her he
felt kicking, or complain that she was too athletic because she was
hardly
gaining any weight. Sweet Eric, she thought now and kissed the corner
of his
mouth.
"Shall
we plan our entrance, Mr. Idle?"
He
smirked heavily at her. "I think we should appear separately and then
make
a long, dramatic, cinematic run towards each other towards the front of
the
building and snog heavily in front of
everyone."
"I
was thinking more along the lines of in a clown car, but your idea
works."
Quipped Nadia and Eric laughed gently, not wanting to disturb her
peaceful
perch on his chest.
"Well,
separately certainly adds to the surprise, but we've never really been
ones to make
a big deal out of relationships, have we?" Eric pressed on, more
serious
now.
Nadia
shrugged one shoulder. "You're a huge deal to me, Eric. I'm showing you
off one way or another."
"Thanks!"
He chirped in a bright voice.
She
smiled and pulled the folds of his shirt tight around her head to
shield her
face from the sun. "Tanja mentioned
something
about having me help set up on Friday since I work at Cambridge, but I
know she'd
probably make a
huge deal out of us; you know her. 'YOU'RE
WHAT?!'"
Eric
snorted. "So don't tell her! She can't find out if you don't."
"You're
no fun anymore." She pouted.
Preparation
was slow and tedious. Eric did little or no thinking about the upcoming
event,
citing the best things were spontaneous and then pretending that he was
being
spontaneous when he "spontaneously" made dinner. Nadia would only
roll her eyes and agree to save herself a tiresome argument. Deciding
the dress
the same as she would have if she'd been going to some sort of event
for
school, Nadia dressed Friday afternoon in a set of black jeans with a
black
tank top, a white dress shirt of Eric's over that. Hair was styled with
liberal
amounts of gel, and then her makeup. With a pout she changed her nose
stud to a
green gem and checked her bared navel. Everything was matched, almost
scary. A
pair of purple flip flops and she was all set. It seemed that they
would be
making separate entrances.
Nadia
walked into the auditorium and felt a yawn on her mind as Tanja
bounded up.
"Great,
you're here! Where can we find tables? And a slide projector for the
photo
presentation-" Tanja's fingers wrung
together
anxiously.
"Just
make a list of the things you need and I'll get them before five,
'kay?" Nadia relented under the yawn.
A
bouncy looking girl, one that Nadia couldn't place a name on, bounded
up much
like Tanja had. "Can I fill out a questionaire while you're not busy,
Naddy? We're
giving
them to everyone tonight, but you might have more time now-"
"Sure,
what do you need to know?" It was clear the woman wasn't handing over
the
sheet when she could orally obtain the information as well. The face
was a
familiar round shape.
"I've
got occupation-"
"Kelly
Wright! Oh, God, I didn't recognize you!" Nadia exploded. Next to Lexi,
this girl had been her absolute best friend. In fact, now that Lexi was
the
living Satan to Nadia, this girl WAS her closest female friend.
The
woman beamed. "Stopped dying my hair; almost no one recognizes me! You
haven't changed much in five years-"
"Not
much," she admitted, grinning happily.
"So,
what's your full name? I never remember middle names."
Nadia
smiled with a bit of apprehension. "Nadia Abell Smart Idle."
There
was an ominous silence as Kelly looked over the clipboard. "Not as
in...Eric Idle, Naddy?"
"You
could say that."
A
smile erupted over Kelly's face and Nadia was yanked into a tight hug
with a
girlish shout. Someone was excited for her, and not with that leering
face
accompanied by the shouting taunts of "I told you so" or, "We
knew it and you didn't, you dolt!"
"This
is going to be so much fun tonight; so many people are going to find
that
hilarious!" Kelly cried, smiling happily at Nadia.
Nadia
giggled. "I was a bit worried, honestly; how many of them are going to
laugh
at Eric for marrying the artsy foreign chick?"
"Hey,
your accent's gone; who'll remember you that way?"
Short,
stubby-fingered Zac Gregory walked in and
removed his
coke-bottle lenses, smiling carefully at Nadia. "Bonjour, Madame! It's
been ages, hasn't it?"
Nadia
smiled and cast a wry look at Kelly, who had been defeated with this
quick
greeting. "Too long, Zac.
So, what have you been up to?"
There
was some catch-up, stuff that Nadia liked to hear about. It seemed no
one had
really drowned in despair after College, even Lexi, who had taken three
of the
five years to go to Law School, seemed to have
surpassed all
expectations. Two of their professors would make grand appearances.
Philosophy and the art/music director. The tables
were set
up, the chairs put out, name-tags set up with all the maiden names of
married
girls left. A short program had been devised for the evening, and just
before
five, Nadia was allowed a glimpse.
5:00 Arrival/Questionaire
Fill-out
5:30-6:30 Free
Mingling
6:30-7:00 Announcements of
greatest expectations and success
7:00-8:00 Slide
Show
8:00-9:00 Prepared
Speeches
9:00-11:00 More Mingling
Nadia frowned. It sounded a little hokey to her, maybe a bit too
nostalgic for her taste. Christ, they'd only been out of college for
five years, most of them were still in
their twenties, still
going to school, maybe! It was just a catch-up, to see who was doing
what, who
had jobs, who'd married whom, who was dead already, stuff like that.
But what a
shock it would be when Eric made his appearance and they sought each
other out!
She was looking forward to it with a passion. The only other highlight
would be
when Tanja sadly announced Lexi Bishop
wouldn't be
joining them because she had been submitted into a rehablitation
ward to cure her of a cocaine addiction. Nadia had to fight hard not
dance and
laugh, to outright leap in jubilation at Lexi's
hell.
Five o' clock
approached and a few people walked in
right on time. Mostly the punctual kids Nadia remembered, one who was
working
at Cambridge. Tony Donell
had been working there for a little over seven months, and she'd seen
him a few
times. Once at a reunion of any kind, though, it was instant friendship
again.
They promised to get together at some point, and then it was when Tony
noticed
her wedding band.
"You tie the knot,
Nadia? Sheesh,
no offense, but I never expected that!"
She only smiled
and shrugged. "I didn't expect
it out of him, either, but we all amaze ourselves, don't we?"
"So, this guy, do
I know him?"
"Intimately," she
retorted and smiled
lavishly.
He raised his
eyebrows. "Really?
I heard some rumors from the students, but it was mostly around a
miscarriage
or something like that."
Nadia put her chin
down a bit and nodded, smile faltering.
"Yeah, I had a miscarriage a few months ago. It must have been for the
best though, I'm far too busy to have the
stress of a
child added to it."
"I'm sorry to
bring it up, come on, let's go tease Becky
Shanahan for old times' sake, eh?"
He helped her up and gave her an apologetic smile. Nadia allowed him to
lead
her over to Becky Shanahan's table, and they sat next to her, talking
along
with Tanja and Kelly, noting her wedding
band, her
swollen stomach, and her cute wardrobe. She was selling television
advertising
in America and happened to be in
town for the
week on business. She bragged about canceling two appointments to make
the
event and was immediately scolded. She had always been notorious for
not quite
being able to sort out her priorities.
It had been a
small graduating class, about
eighty-seven, maybe ninety. In any case, the auditorium was huge, and
nearly no
one sat in their assigned seats or wore nametags, which Tanja
and Zac had labored over for hours. Kelly
and Nadia
sat at the foot of the stage while newcomers filled out their
questionaires and tried to keep conversations
going,
frowning as Tanja eagerly scooped up
finished papers
and giggled, pointing and asking a lot of nosy questions. For a minute
Nadia
fretted. It was almost time for the next
"activity" began (two years of teaching at that elementary school had
tainted her vocabulary).
Finally, just as
she was excusing herself to go look
for him, he walked in and caught her eye, pointing exuberantly to his
nametag,
which now read "Harold Frankenwerter," for
what reason Nadia didn't know. It might as well have said "Engleburt
Humperdinck!"
She
smiled proudly as he edged around a few people, saying polite hellos
and such
until a comfy hush fell over the nearest of the people, smiling as, to
them,
old friends were reunited. They hugged and Eric kissed her on the
cheek, but
then they were talking about daily things, things that people that
haven't seen
each other in years don't really say. It was puzzling. A microphone
blared that
everyone please take their ASSIGNED seats so they could begin the
taunting of
those with jobs and those without. The most interesting ("Geoffrey
Dorsey
is working for a cigarette company in London after pledging his life
to making
cigarettes illegal because of the toxic waste they put in the air...")
jobs were read aloud, and then it was made clear that the key point of
focus
was going to be the last year of their schooling. The yearbook was
pulled out,
and the corny but laughable awards were given out.
"Most
likely to become the
dictator of a small, foreign country...Jonie
Carson!"
All the funniest
things were given out first, then
the "most likely to be married in five years" was given out, and
oddly enough, the marriage of the two college sweethearts had ended a
few
months prior. They stared at each other from across the table like dogs
ready
to tear each other's throats out, and lucky Nadia was next to Claudia,
the wife
of the marriage from Hell.
"I can't believe
you, of all people, tied the
knot, Nadia! It only makes you vulnerable to be stepped on. Cheated
on me, the limey bastard!" She shook her fist with a curled lip.
Nadia smiled
weakly. "I took a risk and I know
it."
There was an odd
silence as Kelly approached the
microphone and she clutched a strange looking man to her side. "As you
all
know, we have a few of our lovely Cambridge grads that couldn't
pull
themselves away. Tony Donell works in the
accounting
part of Cambridge, dealing with the
budget, and has been kind enough to let
us poke a bit of fun at him and his wife, Hailey-"
A loud, thunderous
applause burst up and Tony was
physically shoved to his feet, laughter in his friends' eyes as he
walked with
a sad sigh to the front of the stage. As he started to mount the
stairs, he
paused and shot an evil smile to Nadia. She tried to duck his grasp,
but was
shoved from her seat as well and tugged into the hot lights to be shown
to
everyone, to be ridiculed by those who had always laughed at her. She
was
yanked roughly to the stairs, and there was pulled up, where a few
shouts
greeted her.
Kelly seemed to be
possessed by the devil in seconds
as her devilish smile descended on Nadia and Tony. "So, Nadia teaches
the
Surrealism In the Arts class here at Cambridge, and has also been so
lucky as to
tie the knot. Why don't we have her husband come up as well? Eric,
don't you
want to-?" She cut herself off as a startled silence enveloped the
audience.
Nadia winced.
"Thanks a LOT, Kelly!"
Laughter steadily
started, and Nadia wasn't sure if
they thought it was a joke or found it funny she was married to him,
and they'd
known it! In any case, the laughter stopped and applause started as
Eric nimbly
took his position by Nadia's side, grinning at her impishly.
"How are you, luv?"
He asked in a very perverted voice, striking up gales of laughter. A
loud
"I told you so!" resounded and more laughter commenced.
The echoing chant
of "kiss!" seemed
infantile to Nadia, but she felt that giddy college-aged happiness
swallow her
in the moment and obliged the crowd, planting a kiss on Eric's lips, a
thing
which had been very rare the past few weeks. She felt like Nadia Smart
again,
only Eric's hands were on her and she loved the feel of his callused
fingers on
her sensitive hips, and especially loved his lips on hers. And, if she
was
asked in an all-telling sort of mood, she may have confessed that the
only
interaction she cherished more than his kiss,
was when
she had him all alone in a dark room. This thought often reminded her
that it
had been ages since she'd engaged any sexual activity with him, or he
with her,
his only excuse being polite for her healing, hers only that she was
sure she'd
feel ugly and tainted when her clothes were shed. If her mood continued
the way
it was, she'd be able to go on making love to him for days straight,
and the
best part was, she was certain he'd have no problem at all with that
predicament.
When the short
presentation ended and the slide show
began, Nadia and Eric were allowed to sit next to each other, though
the second
chair was fully ignored as Nadia sat on Eric's lap and cuddled him. As
the
photos rolled along and laughter came, Eric leaned into Nadia's ear.
"What's going on? You coming
out of your shell at last?" He kissed her neck once to show her what he
meant.
She shifted her
hips twice in quick succession,
smiling evilly as he gasped and pushed her away from him for a split
second.
"I feel normal again!"
"I love it," he
admitted and kissed her
again. A few people giggled at them, and Nadia reasoned it was the
reason that
it was such an odd sight to see them together.
Claudia, AKA the
woman straight from the marriage
from Hell, caught Nadia's eye as Eric turned to converse with Jake,
who'd made
it late.
"You're making a
mistake, one flaw and you two
will never be friends again! You can't turn back now! Imagine that!
Nadia and Eric never friends again just because they
tried to
date!" She sipped her champagne. "What a tragedy."
Eric snorted and
kissed Nadia's cheek as she stared
angrily at Claudia. "Don't let it get to you, baby, she's just jealous
that we've got what she wanted."
This knowledge
made Nadia pity Claudia, but feel
happy in some way. "Shall we skip out early? I don't need to stick
around
for two more hours of mingling."
"Of
course, Madame.
Let's leave now, while it's dark. No more taunts or dirty looks!" He
laughed. "Or teacher's dirty looks, for that matter. My philosophy prof
thought I was daft for getting married,
he's the one
that taught me everything I know about not succumbing to a woman's
wiles."
"I'll show you a
woman's wiles, Idle, now drive
me home! I'll pick up my car tomorrow."
"Why's that?" He
asked playfully, grateful
to have this Nadia back, rid of the mopey,
depressed
thing that had been slinking around their
home.
"You'll have to
get in the car to find
out." She replied in a singsong voice.
Ducking from their
seats, Nadia and Eric escaped the
confines of the five year reunion, laughing to themselves
as they got into the car. Eric stared expectantly at Nadia, a thing
which
caused her to raise her eyebrows. With a hefty sigh, he started the car
and
started the engine, mumbling to himself about empty promises and
something
which caused Nadia to laugh aloud.
"Did you just call
me a cocktease?
Honestly, Eric, you're pushing it!"
He laughed at her
and put and arm around her
shoulders, loving her flippant feelings. "Ah, I was just kidding."
Still, Nadia felt
the corners of her mouth turn up in
an impish smile, and when he stopped at the darkened alley to turn onto
the
main road home, she pulled a dating stunt and shifted onto his lap. His
reaction was a little on the extreme
side, but
it wasn't unappreciated; he kissed her in such a way she knew what she
was
doing was pushing him over the edge, but she gave the same signals
back,
holding him close, letting his hands wander under and over clothing
without
much moving away from his touch, even if only to tease him. For a good
fifteen
minutes they sat in the street, bodies glued to one another's, thoughts
flying,
hormones raging; it was like they'd just become teenagers for Christ's
sake!
Eric finally pulled away as a car squealed around them.
"Let's get home,
Nadia, we can pick up when we're there." He tried hard to smooth his
hair,
a ploy used to help him feel more dignified when he was in an
undignified
position.
"Drive fast, loverboy."
She smirked at his wide and shocked eyes, leaving her hands on his legs
as if a
silent reminder. And it was silent, the only sounds were the tires on
the
pavement and the occasional gasp from Eric as he started to slow down
and Nadia
chastised him. She was sure he would start doing it on purpose if he
discovered
why she was doing what she was doing, but he only seemed to think that
he had
to keep some semblence of a laid-back
appearance
until they got home, and as a result, did keep a good pace most of the
way,
unfortunately they lived in a residential area, and stop signs weren't
counted
as reasons to stop or even slow, as he quickly found out.
"Christ, you want
me to run over a little
kid?" Eric shrieked, slapping her hand and flipping the turn signal
simultaneously.
"Right, Eric,
they'll be out at nine thirty! Now,
faster!" She slid up next to him. He shot her a
dirty look and slammed on the brakes, the second the car came to a full
stop,
she unleashed the "fury" and moved back to his lap. He made a
strangled sound of annoyance before squirming away from her and
punching the
gas.
He shot her an
alarmed look. "Please, Christ,
please!" He wiped his forehead with a bare forearm and shot her another
scared look. "Stop staring at me!"
"Can't handle the
pressure?" She teased,
smiling defiantly.
He made a face at
her. "No, I can't have you
staring at me all sultry-like, or some little children that are looking
out
their windows will be asking their parents why there was a car in their
front
lawn low-riding like a mofo-"
Nadia laughed and
lifted her hands in defeat.
"Fine, but I feel sort of tired-" She shrieked as he punched the gas
again, swerving around a mailbox to screech into their driveway.
"No more games,
Naddy," he growned, leaning over to kiss
her quickly. "Inside, no clothes, right now."
She smiled. "After you,
Monsieur."
He scrambled from
the car, a wild look of hunger on
his face, and carried Nadia into the house, jaw set in a determined
way. As if
she'd hold out on him now! Ha! Nadia groped as she passed by the floor
lamp and
managed to shut the light off just before Eric deposited her on the bed
and
eagerly began to pull her shirt off, pausing for a moment to kiss her
bare
stomach, running gentle fingers over her navel, a habit by now. When
his eyes
locked on hers again, she was surprised to see they'd softened
considerably.
Instead of the hungry, deprived look she expected, she saw a soft and
loving
smile in his eyes she'd neglected for a long time.
"I can't decide
whether to ravage you or to do
things nice and easy for you. See my dilemmas? And you think that being
a man
is easy!" He pouted his lip and pulled her jeans off, pausing to strip
his
shirt off over his head.
Nadia smiled. "Aww, as
long as it's you I don't care what the hell you do!"
"Ooh, I love you!"
He laughed and kissed
her quick on the mouth, pulling the covers back for her. Underthings
still on, Nadia slipped between the cool cotton sheets and awaited her
prince
charming eagerly, discarding her glasses both to eat up time and to
make sure
the frames didn't hinder the closeness of their faces. A
quick morning kiss could often times skew the frames, so it was
best
that when the passion sent them reeling to rid her face of all glass.
Eric
kissed her again and again, pausing all
frantic
movements just to hold her close now and again. For a moment Nadia
remembered
her pregnancy and how supportive and loving Eric had been; he'd never
doubted
her, he'd been just as scared as he was and yet he hadn't reacted
so...brashly.
There was no death on his mind, no sorrow, just fright and
determination. She
admired him so much for that, for being able to look on the bright side
of
things when all she could see was shadows and tears. He was the yin to
her yang
in a sense, and yet he felt the same way about her. Whenever he got in
a twist
she was there and never failed to bring a smile to his face.
"So, what'll it
be?" He asked, pausing once
again to catch her deep green eyes in his vision. She stared at him
with wide eyes, shoulders back in a
dignified way though she was
scrunched down in a frightened way, like a brand had been laid across
her hide
and left a dirty scar. She managed a smile, and that weak resemblence
of a grin reminded him how fragile she was. Some internal part of him
wailed in
disappointment as he decided that a nice and easy go for Nadia would be
best,
to make her feel beautiful again. As if she needed reminding! The way
he looked
at her, he thought she could see the flames shooting from his eyes,
licking at
her skin, burning brightly at her face. Once she decided to stop
wearing
shapeless clothes over her form-fitting tank tops again, he'd be
absolutely helpless
all over again; sad, but he looked forward to it. Burying his face in
the crook
of her neck, he lowered his body to hers and held her shoulders tight
to him. A
weak hug went around him and he sighed softly into her soft skin,
trying to
memorize her smell, unaware she was doing the same thing. Something
about him
always smelled like security to Nadia, and ever since she'd first
experienced
the comforting hug from Eric's arms, she'd been addicted to his smell.
It was a
secret fetish of sorts; she couldn't help but inhale deeply whenever
she was
deep in his embrace, and as a result could probably identify him from
twenty
other men if giving a sample smell from each. His hands, which had
abandoned
their post at her shoulders, were lighting pleasant little fires all
over her
back and legs, leaving her aching for more contact, but he refrained,
biting
his lip. She could see his teeth against his lip, biting hard as he
resisted
her, his eyes narrowed on the task at hand. Now and again he'd kiss her
and bite
his lip again, as if that released tension. His arms hurt a bit,
crushed under
double the normal weight. With this added to the mix of her sexy
behavior
earlier, and the fact he'd been deprived of even a glimpse at her for
over six
months, well, it added up! He felt like he couldn't wait a second
longer, and
yet he wanted to wait and draw it out for her benefit. It was so hard
to think
only of her when he could close his eyes and float away without another
thought. No, he'd have to really concentrate in order to make this
worthwhile.
A small whimper issued from Nadia's slightly parted lips, and he darted
to her,
kissing her quickly to hush her whine, assure her he was almost ready,
that she
was almost ready. The moment felt right, but he waited for her eyes to
open, to
see him, and then he felt his entire body sort of tense up and their
eye
contact remained as he gently took her again. A few seconds, however,
and his
eyes shut in an ecstasy, leaving Nadia to her own, holding his
shoulders with
rigid hands, a small cry escaping her.
Had she FORGOTTEN
what it was like? He whimpered much
like a puppy and kissed her face and neck as many times as he could
before unintelligble words stole his lips
from her and made him
groan in a pleasant agony. A few "Jesus fucking Christ's" and a
variation or two of "I love you" were almost understandable, but
Nadia was somewhat busy keeping her mind on sounds when all she could
feel when
she closed her eyes was the union of she and Eric, a jubilee of a
friendship
turned for the better. Christ, if she'd miscarried with any other man
on the
planet she wouldn't have been able to live another second, but he was
ready to
give up all his dignity just to let her know he loved her, to let her
know he
needed her there and was nothing without her. It made her feel, despite
her
flaws, like she was something.
The movement was
slow, but Nadia didn't whine or moan
in agony, she only accepted this as his way of making it better for
her, though
it only felt like torture. She was helpless to do anything, too! Her
head
lolled back and forth until the inevitable happened and Eric began to
draw
back, hitching his breath in a worried way. The sweet release that
awaited
Nadia started to draw back and she arched her back to keep him from
moving away.
He only breathed deeper and seemed to give up on getting away. Pounds
and tons
of pressure settled on her chest, her stomach, her legs, her
fingertips. She
felt like at any moment she'd implode
and all
that would be left was a small pancake of a body, but a drifting,
dreamy
feeling took her and she opened her eyes to catch Eric's _expression.
He too opened his
eyes and grit
his teeth, as if it was keeping him from screaming aloud. A heavy
rasping
breath came from one of them, possibly both and then the millions, no,
billions
of pressure on Nadia's head and fingertips burst from her and she
shouted, mind
giving up on the prospect of leaving her eyes open to see the world at
the
second of her bliss, and Eric could only watch as she flailed in
perfection and
ecstasy. A few seconds of this private show and he too leaned over,
exhausted,
a happy sigh in his lungs.
"Remind me again
why we stop doing that,
ever." Nadia's voice crept up from under him, muffled.
Eric laughed,
tired and yet hungry for more. "Your legs, my
back, our jobs."
"Fuck them all,"
she muttered and he felt
his back fall back into a damp spot on the sheets. His eyes stayed
closed until
her body warmed up to his and all fatigue left him in a cartoonish
POOF. As quickly as it had come, it took flight and he was awake,
hungry, and
she was staring back at him without a hint of exhaustion.
"It's Friday!"
Eric exclaimed with a grin.
"What's it to ya?"
She asked, pulling the sheets up to her shoulders.
"That means that,
if we counted tonight, we have
three days of utter sex."
Nadia's face
pulled into an awfully impish grin.
"I hope it's not a problem-"
"Shut up," he
insisted and kissed her.
"Oh, now we're
talking about shutting up!"
She teased, lowering her knee. He made a strangled noise and narrowed
his eyes.
"Yeah yeah, you get a
penis and we'll fucking talk!"
If Nadia didn't
know better she'd say he was a little
cross, but seconds later he was perfectly normal again, if not helpless
and
weak. It would be a wonder if he could wake up at all for the final day
of
editing on Monday before the season break.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
It was a wonder
that he'd gotten up at all on Monday.
The alarm had sounded like a pleasant bird until the drilling noise
finally
awoke him, and when he pulled into the car park, he felt dread. Given
five
seconds without some busywork, he had a feeling he'd be daydreaming or
possibly
asleep, down for the count, out for the day. His back hurt, and he
smiled at it
blandly; Nadia's legs were becoming tolerant, but not him. She never
ceased to
amaze him.
Another thing that
amazed Eric,
was how subtle the change could be in him and the others would
instantly notice
and be glad for him. When he walked in and sat down, lit up, and
grinned at the
other five, smiles spread on their faces.
"Good weekend,
mate?" Gray asked and
brushed the knee of his pants off a bit more.
Eric felt his face
light up more. "Yeah.
And why couldn't you make the grand appearance, John? I think there
were three
or four girls asking after you at the reunion. Doesn't matter you're
older..."
"Quit rubbing it
in, Idle, or I'll knock you
into next week!"
"Ooh, sorry, but
I'd still be younger than
you!" He teased and took a drag on his cigarette.
John growled
something fierce, but the peace-keeping
Python (Mikey-boy) managed to get a word in
before
total verbal warfare broke loose. "Eric, did you remember those
scripts?
For the movie we were working on?"
Eric's heart sunk.
As if getting out of bed this
morning hadn't been enough, he was supposed to remember the scripts?
What more
did they expect from him? He started to groan and turn right back out
the door,
the only thing he knew they'd make him do if anything all day,
surprised to see
Nadia standing there, eyes bright like a college student's.
"Forget
something?" She gestured
elaborately at the black folder tucked under her left arm.
Nadia's mother was
right; red was a gorgeous color on
her, a color she seldom wore. Now she stood in a bright red tank, her
black capris form-fitting, showing off her
summer-tanned legs and
tattooed foot. Her ankles started to buckle in a cutesy sort of unsure
way.
"Eric?"
He snapped his
head up. "Yes, I forgot those.
Thanks." He groped for the folder and managed to grab most of it before
yanking it away. Nadia made a pouty face
at him,
placing her hands on her hips, which only led the other boys to notice
a
winking zirconium chip in her navel.
"Wow, when'd you
get that done?" Terry
asked, pointing plainly.
She glanced down.
"Some student did it for me
last year, I forget when."
A paper fluttered
from the folder Eric held, and he
noted it was numbered. Thirty-seven. Either
the order
had been mussed during transport, or Nadia had rifled through it. He
bent to
pick up the paper and felt his stiff back immediately give him his
retribution.
He stifled the groan that had seeped from him and startled Nadia, but
then it
caused a sly smile to creep up over her face.
"You okay?" She
asked in a gentle voice.
"No thanks to
you!" He hissed and felt his
defensive tactics start to act up. People, in room, could find out, put
up
brick wall!
"Oh, sit down!"
She snapped and his
shoulders were yanked down as a soft couch met his back. He grunted
again and
settled back, eyes closing with tiredness. He muttered a few ill-given
death
threats, swiping at Nadia, moaning as she flipped him over, and then
the other
began to giggle at him. He didn't care how corny it looked, him
sprawled out on a couch with Nadia pushing her knowing hands onto his
back, it
was releasing tons of tension. He bit his lip against the pain,
splitting open
a scab that had been mostly hidden on the inside of his lip, but now it
bled
again. A few pops and knots worked out and he felt almost awake.
"All set? Want me
to go now?" She asked,
patting his shoulder in a finito sort of
way.
He sat up and
smiled at her genially. "Naw, don't go."
Gray smiled as
Eric's hands went around Nadia's waist
and he hugged her close; he'd seen this once before when at their
house.
Newlywed-itis, as he called it, only it had
faded and
they'd suffered a ghastly trauma, one hard to recover from. With each
other,
though, they'd come out the winners, and now Nadia seemed almost
herself again,
maybe a little nicer than she'd been before, maybe more conservative,
but
definitely herself. And Eric, whatever changes had reformed him, he was
a new
person. This was the welcome back sex stage. They'd be newlyweds for
another
two months, he wagered, and then it'd be the comfortable living
together status
they'd dealt with already, only they had the luxury of each other's
romance
when it was wanted or needed. He'd seen the same thing happen with
Terry and
Mike, mostly with Mike. John had seen even more or Mike's escapades,
since he'd
had to leave a rehearsal/writing session early in order to make his
honeymoon,
and in the weeks following, had been in an odd state-of-mind. Sort of
happy-go-lucky with a twist. In any case,
Eric's
bright and cheery face said more than any sentence could.
"I'm going to go
get-"
"I'll go with
you." Eric interrupted with a
quick look to his shoes. Mike snorted outright, as if he'd used the
ploy
himself, or at least knew it well. In any case, Nadia quickly exited
the room
and Eric followed, paying almost no mind to the funny looks surrounding
them.
As soon as the door closed behind her, Nadia turned and Eric pushed her
in a
firm but gentle way right to the rough brick of the building. She
giggled and
sunk into his arm, letting his thankful and pecking little kisses lay
over her
face, returning a few when he stayed long enough to give her a chance.
When the
amusement of their chicken-pecks died, the slow and graceful
reincarnation of
the same kiss was there, drawing out all sorts of non-work related
thoughts.
"Oh, I'll call
this a sick day, for Chrissake-"
"Eric,
no!" Nadia
tried to frown, but he covered it when he bent and kissed her neck,
pouting his
face as she tried to push him away. "I should go anyway."
"Where?"
He asked,
eyes narrowing.
She grinned. "To get my car.
Classes start in ten days, I should
probably get my
car, eh?"
"I'll go with
you!" He retorted brightly.
She shook her head
and led him back inside. "No,
I'll go and you get work done. Maybe I'll come back up for your lunch
hour."
She
kept her promise, though it pained her to leave Eric there, clawing at
the
window pathetically as she walked away, fighting a smile at his pitiful
and
amusing antics. Oh, they'd have fun at lunch, yes indeedy.