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“Son, I didn’t say she did.”
“But you implied it.”
“Did you see it, Elliott?”
I grumbled in vexation.
“I saw the note the first time they violated her security and that was enough to back up any claims, as you say, she has made. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be in my room.”
If she had anything further to say, I couldn’t hear it. I meant no disrespect but I was so hurt that she, above anyone, would think anything different than what I had told her. I was so hurt that she didn’t trust me. I launched myself onto my bed and let the weight of my body sink into the mattress, heavy with stress.
My parents never told me I was grounded but I was pretty sure leaving the house after my curfew was out of the question, whether I was or not. I had to check on Jules though. I hated that she was sleeping alone and tonight would be the perfect night for Jesse to terrorize her regardless if people’s guards were up. He reveled in that sort of thing. It was critical that I protect her, so I waited for the snores and tucked out of my window and onto the roof below. I swung from the Oak by my window and landed on the frozen ground. My boots pierced the snow and the sound was deafening. I braced myself to hear a rustling through the house but no one woke.
I was grateful it hadn’t really snowed for a couple of days. I treaded lightly through the parts where the snow had melted and my tracks wouldn’t give me away when my dad left for work in the morning.
I walked to Jules’ house because my missing truck would have given me away. I nearly froze from the bitter cold. I wrapped my coat as closely to my body as possible.
The night was dark, too dark for me to see but I followed the sparse streetlights and used them as a makeshift guide. Each time I’d pass underneath one I saw my breath freeze in mid air. I wondered if I would make it there in one piece. I hadn’t even thought about how I was going to get in without scaring her half to death. I’m sure she was on edge as it was. Not to mention, she was probably sleeping in the living room.
I reached her house in twice the time it should have taken me but the cold made me move more slowly. I looped around the corner to her room in the back. I pressed my face against the glass and saw her figure underneath the covers in the light of her blinking alarm clock. She hadn’t yet reset it from the power outage last week. She was so cute.
I sighed in relief as I watched her sleeping. I thought about leaving and coming back every hour to check on her because the idea of waking her pained me, but standing in the cold brought me back to reality quickly and I decided to take a chance. I pushed up her window easily, the old locking mechanism was worthless after being broken by Jesse and the new one had yet to be installed.
I clumsily toppled onto her floor making a loud noise and lay frozen on the ground afraid I woke her parents. I didn’t hear any stirring in the room or across the house and then decided shut the window.
I crawled toward her bed and stared at her angelic face for a moment but she woke and sucked in a breath to yell. I plastered my palm to her mouth and that calmed her instantly. The electric shock gave me away and we both waited for either her mom or dad to come streaming into the room, but they were obviously as deep a sleeper as Jules was, must have been inherited.
“What are you doing here Elliott?!” She panted.
“I couldn’t stand knowing you were here alone and that Jesse knew it. I’m here to stay with you until I feel it’s safe enough to leave again.”
She threw her hands around my neck and kissed my cheek.
“My parents picked tonight of all nights to demand I start sleeping in my room again. I haven’t told them about the nightly break ins. They thought it was a one-time deal. I’m surprised I even fell asleep.” She hugged me more tightly, “I’m so grateful you came.”
“I wouldn’t have been able to sleep without knowing how you were.”
I fixed her alarm clock to display the correct time and set the timer for four thirty, half an hour before my dad woke for work. Jules gave me one of her pillows and a few extra blankets and made me a comfortable pallet on the floor. I fell asleep quickly knowing I was near Jules and we both dreamed until the deafening pulse of her electric alarm clock woke us both. I kissed her on the neck my goodbye and she squeezed my hand. I slipped out of the window and ran back to my own bed, my parents none the wiser. I did the same thing Christmas Eve.
Christmas Eve, we decided together, since tangible gifts were out of the question, thanks to Jesse, that our Christmas gifts to each other this year would be a question we couldn’t say no to. It was Jules’ idea, and a good one at that. I got really excited at the prospect of the question but she informed me of the limitations so that ruled out ‘Will you marry me?’
I tried to think of a question and could come up with no loop hole to her addendum. I thought of ‘Will you wear this ring?’ but that would mean it was only a piece of jewelry and not the commitment I wanted from her. (Besides, I didn’t want to trick Jules into marriage. Although, I wasn’t above faking a pregnancy. She’s a traditional gal. She wouldn’t leave me hanging. Nyuck. Nyuck.) So, a ring would have to be at the bottom of my list unfortunately, for several years, I was starting to feel. I was so disappointed.
Surprisingly, my parents hadn’t grounded me for hitting Jesse so I took Jules out to Charleston in the morning so we could finish our own shopping for our families.
“I’m dying to know your question,” I said while we walked hand in hand.
“I’m dying to ask you,” she said.
“You could ask me now, you know?” I teased.
“It wouldn’t be much of a Christmas gift then would it?”
“No, I suppose not,” I sighed.
I had figured out what question I wanted to ask her while laying in bed the night before and I was so proud of it. I couldn’t wait to ask her.
“Elliott?”
