Little Bit of Truth

Eliza adjusted her hair as she walked towards Noah’s car. The dinner party was said to last three excruciating hours. Thankfully, cell phones nowadays were quite entertaining.

“Well, let’s get this over with.” She said to Noah as she sat in his car.

“If anyone asks, we’ve been together for three weeks and please, help me get Helen off of me. You seem scary enough.” Noah said.

“You know, complimenting women is the way to success, not calling them scary. But, what would you know? When was the last time you got laid, a year ago?” Eliza said not being able to keep the rude comment to herself.

“You only compliment the attractive ones.” Noah said knowing well enough that he was lying. Saying Eliza was not attractive was a lie. The girl was pretty, beautiful on occasion. However, the personality and sarcasm took away from her beauty.

“I only hurt the real twats.” Eliza said giving Noah a punch on his arm.

“I’m driving. Do you want us to die?”

“No, only you.” She answered.

Noah just let out a sigh before tuning the American bird out. However, no matter what he thought of, she always came back to his mind. He thought of what he had done last week and yet she came to mind with her green dress and long brown hair. He was surprised she had actually agreed to this. However, she needed him just as much as he needed her. He had never been to the States and thought it would be good fun.

Noah parked his car at the curb and opened Eliza’s door. “Come on love, let’s put on a nice little show for the guests.”

“What about your family? They must know that there’s nothing going on between you and I.”

“Ivy is in Manchester for school and Lucas is oblivious about anything that isn’t directly regarding him or Vivienne. Mother will be surprised and Father already knows about me and Helen.”

“Helen and I.” Eliza corrected.

Noah merely rolled his eyes and wrapped his arm around her waist as he rang the doorbell. Rose greeted the two with raised eyebrows.

“You said bring a date so I brought Eliza and we all love Eliza don’t we.”

Rose merely looked at the couple with questioning eyes before letting them in. Dinner at the Evansson’s was always guaranteed to be far from normal. Guests walked around the house making conversation while Noah led Eliza to a far corner of the house.

“We need to stay away from Helen as long as we can.”

“Who is this girl? I wouldn’t take Noah Evansson to be the sort of guy that was scared of a girl.”

“She’s not just a girl; she’s a crazy lunatic who has been stalking me since the beginning of time.”

“Stop right there, drama queen. I doubt it’s that serious.” Eliza said.

“So, that wedding, whose is it?” Noah asked in hopes of changing the subject of conversation.

“My brother Stephen, he’s the golden boy in my family. He met Amber while attending medical school at Yale and proposed the day before graduation. Everything he does is perfect and I can’t find it in me to blame him. I love him and he’s the only one who really understands me. He was there for me after the accident while my parents….” Eliza stopped herself. She mentally exhaled a breath of relief; thankfully she had not told him everything.

“Accident?” Noah asked questioningly.

“Accident? No, there was no accident unless you count the train wreck that is your attire at the moment.” Eliza said hoping he’d leave it at that.

“You’re lying.” He challenged.

“I am not.”

“Lie the liar.”

“Lie?” Eliza asked questioningly.

“Eliza is your name and Lie is a shortened version of it.”

“We’re not actually going out, you don’t need to come up with stupid nicknames, especially Lie. Normal people would go with Elle or Liza not Lie.”

“Whoever said I was normal.”

“That’s true. The only way Noah and normal would appear in a sentence together is if the words "is not" were in the middle.”

“Ha ha. You’re so clever.” Noah said in mock humor.

In the middle of their usual bantering, a shrill voice cried out “Noah!”

The couple turned from the corner only to be face to face with a tall red-headed girl with bright blue eyes.

“Helen, what a pleasure.” Noah said as if it were being forced out of him.

“Oh Noah.” Helen answered with a giggle before fixating her calculating blue orbs on Eliza.

“And who might this be?”

“I’m Eliza Marie, Noah’s girlfriend. You are?”

The look on Helen’s face resembled that of a kicked puppy. However, it was quickly replaced with a steely glare and a grimace.

“You? He’s going out with you?” Helen said looking Eliza up and down. “Did he hit his head?”

“Obviously not. If that would have happened he would be going out with you. Come on babe, I think I see Rose. I haven’t spoken to her since last week at dinner.” Eliza said lacing her fingers in Noah’s as she led the two of them away.

Noah tried not to think of the way his hand fit perfectly around Eliza’s. Her hands were so soft and delicate. He thought of the way she spoke to Helen. She was truly amazing although he would never admit it out loud.

While Noah sorted out his emotions, Eliza remained confused. Helen was gorgeous, almost model-like. Why would Noah not like her and why would he need someone like Eliza to help him out. Compared to Helen, Eliza was a plain Jane. She thanked the higher powers for the Evansson’s large house as she quickly pulled Noah into an unlit hallway for an interrogation.

“That’s Helen?” She asked.

“The one and only.”

“Why are you so scared of her? The girl’s gorgeous, albeit a bit bitchy but gorgeous nonetheless.”

“She’s a psycho! We went out in year 10 and then we broke up but she didn’t see it that way. The girl actually scared away my last girlfriend.”

“It’s a good thing that I’m not scared of anything, now isn’t it?”

Noah smiled at the girl and for the hundredth time that evening he thought of how gorgeous she was. But, it wasn’t just beauty. Eliza was broken but she refused to let that faze her. He did not know what it was that broke this girl but he was determined to find out one day.

He liked this Eliza, the one who was not insulting him every second of his existence. Suddenly, like a wave crashing over an abandoned beach, a realization crashed over Noah. Noah Evansson liked Eliza Barnes. Heaven save the two of them from the storm of emotions they were about to enter.