To Be Beautiful

"Ellie!"

The doorbell rung, the adults chattered, and the steam from freshly-cooked spaghetti and garlic bread coiled within the tense air.

"Ellie!"

And from across a fabulously decorated dinner table, all that mattered was that he smiled at me.

"ELLIE!"

I really should have dressed to impress.

The sudden pinch that came to my bare forearm startled me.

"Ouch!" I squeaked, swatting away the hand that dared to cause me bodily harm.

Of course it was well-manicured with fearsome french tips.

Thus, the only conclusion to be made was that Tatum had reached across the table to injure me.

"So, Ellie. I was going to introduce to my boyfriend, Jack. But, clearly you'd rather stare at him instead." Tatum concluded, her face scrunching up in frustration.

At her accusation, the beautiful brunette from a few days ago merely grinned.

"Hey, Ellie was it? I'm Jackson, Jackson McKinley." The boy spoke politely, treating me completely different from his alleged girlfriend.

I was so startled by his charming demeanor, that I scarcely remembered how to react when he reached across the table to shake my hand.

"Uh - erm - yo." I stuttered out, barely gripping at his hand.

"How classy, Eleanor! Oh, that reminds me, Jack. . ." Tatum began, a smirk etched across her pretty face.

My eyes went wide in panic as she turned to Jackson.

Shit. She was obviously planning something.

"Didn't you say that some little kids were Ding Dong Ditching you the other day, Jack?" She began, raising a brow in her inquiry.

Obviously curious as to why she was bringing it up, Jackson nodded.

"Yeah - it was really weird. . ." He began, chewing on his bottom lip in thought.

Suddenly, I had the feeling I knew where this little ploy of her's was going.

"Well, the kid may have been a bit older than you thought. . ." Tatum continued innocently.

It was clear that she was about to humiliate me in front of the whole table.

So, naturally what could I do but beat her to it?

"I was the one who rang your doorbell the other day, Jackson." I sputtered out hurriedly.

In response everyone turned to look at me, not just Jackson and his girlfriend.

"Eleanor? Why would you play such a childish prank?" My mother chimed in, always eager to scold me.

Under everyone's heated stare, I nearly faltered.

"Well. . .it wasn't a prank, I just. I just found myself missing all the old house and all the great memories I had there. With Great Aunt Kim and Grandpa Kevin, you know?" I elaborated carefully yet earnestly.

At the gasps of "Awhhh!" that suddenly escaped from the mouth's of most the females in the room, I suddenly felt successful.

"Old house? You used to live there?" Jackson inquired, giving me his full attention.

Turning to him, I smiled softly.

"Yeah, I just sort of missed the place I grew up in. . ." I replied thoughtfully.

In response to my definite avoidance of embarrassment, Tatum scoffed.

"I can understand how you'd miss Kim and Kevin, Eleanor. They really were such remarkable people. . ." Aunt Lauren proclaimed with a somber smile.

Her statement lingered in the air, before my father decided to speak up.

"Speaking of which, Jackson. Have you lived here long enough to hear the story of the boy on the hill?"

In response Jackson's brow furrowed in confusion.

"I've lived here for a couple years, but no. I've never heard it, sir." Jackson replied honestly.

Almost immediately Tatum's lipped curled upwards in a smile.

"It was my favorite bedtime story. . .~" She proclaimed, smiling still.

It didn't take a genius to see that I was doing the same.