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“Hey, Steve. Mind if I eat up here with her?”
“Ah, yes. I insist. Don’t forget about our deal, yeah?”
“Yes, sir,” Elijah says, setting both plates on the dresser.
“Good guy. Merry Christmas Eve. I’ll see you both tomorrow.” He leaves the room and closes the door behind him. I’m left with the image of Elijah confessing his love for me to Dad, and Dad just sitting there, listening. Why does that make me feel so strange?
“Deal?” I say, scooching to the end of the bed to grab my plate of honey ham, mashed potatoes, and other goodies.
“You know, take care of my daughter or else,” Elijah says, eating the ham.
“That’s weird,” I say, taking a bite.
“Not really. Just the typical dad speech.”
He brings his plate to the bed and eats off his lap. “I helped glaze the ham,” he says, taking another bite.
I pick at it with my fork, feeling a bit nauseous. “It’s really good,” I lie. I’m not a fan of ham. I am a fan of Elijah, though.
He busts out laughing. “You’re such a bad liar. I know you don’t like ham. Remember that time I bought you a ham sandwich in high school and it made you throw up?”
I cringe at the memory but laugh with him. After we eat, Elijah lays in bed next to me while I decide to call Mom.
I tell her about the accident and how I’m recovering. She tells me that Elijah already filled her in, and I give him a look. He pretends he’s not listening as he plays on his phone, his back to me. Her voice sounds more tired than usual and rough, like she’s picked up smoking since Thanksgiving. Although, I know she’d never do that. When I ask about her boyfriend, she says they broke up because he didn’t want to commit. I’m proud of her decision. Even though she’s sounded better before, it seems like she’s taking care of herself and setting healthy boundaries.
I wish her a Merry Christmas after about half an hour of talking and finally hang up.
Elijah rolls back over to face me. “Third movie time?”
“I’d love to. I think I need to shower, though. And maybe throw up.”
“Throw up? You didn’t eat enough, baby.”
“Good thing I have you to eat the rest for me, right?” I say, standing up onto my wobbly feet. I try to make my walk to the bathroom look as effortless as possible but I’m still feeling pretty weak. “Set the movie up, I’ll be out in a second, okay?”
I carefully undress and find myself a new, cuter outfit. I’m not even sure what I was wearing or when I put it on exactly. The hot water feels good on my skin, but I’m careful to avoid getting all of my hair wet where I assume my stitches are. My stomach is churning as I reach for my razor and make sure I’m silky soft for whatever might come my way. My body aches as I lean down to shave my shins, up my thighs and to my bikini area. Elijah knocks on the door to check on me when I start taking too long.
“Almost done!” I yell over the water, finishing with a coat of conditioner. Carefully stepping out of the shower, I change before drying my hair and putting on a negligible amount of makeup where I have small bags under my eyes, and on a new zit that’s forming on my chin.
I crawl back into bed, feeling a bit better as I snuggle in next to Elijah. He is so warm, but his solid body is almost hard to cuddle against. He plays the third movie, rubbing my hair as I get settled into my position for the night.
We both end up falling asleep after the movie, but I’m awakened by his arm jerking into my side.
“Elijah,” I whisper, nudging him back. He’s passed out with one arm tossed over his head and the other twitching at his side. I settle back down just for his arm to swing into me again.
“Elijah!” I whisper-yell, jolting him awake.
“Huh, what?” He wipes his eyes as he sits forward. Tears linger under his eyes as he leans over to kiss me.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, touching a tear.
“Oh.” He sniffs and lets out a forced laugh. “Nightmares, I guess. I don’t always remember them. Go back to sleep.”
“You still get nightmares?”
“Sometimes, yeah.”
“About…about your dad?” I ask. I know his father died when he was young in a plane crash, but that’s it. He's always been so secretive about it. In high school, he used to get nightmares all the time.
