Things They Don't See

That evening, I ordered from the Inn's room service dinner menu. I chose the mac & cheese, which is made from a Civil War Era recipe, with homemade garlic bread on the side. For the delightful dessert, I ordered their famous peach crisp in a jar. Apparently, Eli's mother made it first, and Amelia found the recipe in the old kitchen, hidden behind a cupboard when she was renovating the home into what it is now. I turn on the TV and look at the guide to see that the 2011 Stanley Cup run is being replayed. The Bruins just won the Cup earlier this month. Now, this excites me. It's game one against the Flyers. There's more on after that too! Now, I actually get to enjoy my meal and have an enjoyable night. When I hear a knock on the door and the traditional "Room service!" call, I jump up and trot to the door in my Bruins attire.

A handsomely-dressed waiter walks in with my food on a cart. "Put it on the table in front of the TV please," I request. "Sure, miss," he replies. He picks up my plates and walks them over to the table. "Thank you very much," I say as he leaves. "No problem, miss," he exits. Just after I head back to the couch and cozy up in my Bruins blanket, my phone rings. "Hello," I say when I pick it up. "Hey, Abby," Annie says at the other end of the line. "How are you?" "Well, I'm heading to the restaurant, and I just wanted to see how you're doing?"
"I'm doing great actually. I spent the day looking at all the different roses and flowers they have in the garden. Then, I picked a few roses."
"Oh, that sounds wonderful. Hey, tomorrow I have a day off. Do you want to hang out and go to the spa I found?"
"Uh...um...yeah! That's sounds great."
"Oh, awesome. I'll see you tomorrow, Abby."
"Okay, see you when I wake up. Have fun!"
"Thanks, sweetie! Bye!"

After I hang up the phone, I reacquaint myself with the couch and start digging into my mac & cheese. The minute my taste bud soak it in, I groan in foodgasmic pleasure. "So freaking good," I mumble to myself. I think I might actually try to savor the bites of this or I'll have to order another plateful of it. Just as I take another bite, the game comes on. This is going to be good. Thank goodness my stomach doesn't have to go topsy turvy with nervousness because it's a replay of the game. It's still as intense though. All my feelings come back. I'm so happy they won though. The parade was completely amazing. I saw it from the front row on the sidewalk because I got there at eight in the morning. I laugh to myself as I think of that. It was completely worth it.

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It goes into the first intermission of the game, and I'm into my second slice of garlic bread. It's extremely delicious. Homemade food is always the best. I remember when my mom and I would make actually make pasta. Really make it before cooking it. Then, we'd make our own pasta sauce. My mom loved making things from scratch. Any cookie or baked good would always be homemade. She refused to buy birthday cakes or pre-made cookies from the supermarket. Cooking was always fun when it was with her. I bite a piece off of the bread and dip it in an rosemary-infused oil that came with the bread. It just tastes so good. After I finish the piece, I sit for a moment, and my phone rings. I look at the caller ID, and I see my friend Kyla's name. "Hey, Ky!" "Hey, Abs. I kind of have something to tell you," she says warily. "What? What's up?" I say a bit frantically. "Sammy has kind of been spreading a few lies about you," she admits shyly.
"What has he been saying?" I say calmly even though I'm filled with enough anger to kill.
"He said you left the state to go have a baby that you made with him and that you two made a sex tape. He's threatening to release it. Did you make a sex tape with him? I don't think you did, but I don't know," she blabbers.
"Of course I didn't. Who the hell do think I am? I would never with him. We only had sex three times, and I made sure he was protected and that I was too. Who the hell does he think he is?"
"I'm sorry, Abby. I think it's best if you just keep doing what you've been doing. It'll die down. Hopefully."
"Oh god, Kyla. How can this happen to me?" I cry a little bit.
"Abby, all I can say is I'm sorry that this is happening, but I think you just have to go on like you were. Update your facebook statuses normally and just enjoy yourself while you're there. People keep asking me if it's true, but I tell them I have no knowledge of what they're talking about. I'm so sorry, Abs."
"Thanks for telling me. I'm going get back to watch replays of hockey games and drown my misery in my peach crisp that I got with my room service order."
"Okay, I'm sorry, Abby."
"It's okay. It's not your fault, Ky. I'll talk to you later."
"Okay, bye."

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Why is this happening to ME? What did I do to deserve this? I cry into the palms of my hands. I cuddle into my Bruins blanket and cry. The second period starts, but I can barely pay attention to it. I grab for my jar of peach crisp and the spoon that came with it, and I do exactly what I told Kyla I would do. The crumble made me feel a little better. I stopped crying, and I was able to pay attention to the game a little bit more. "It's okay, Abby, please don't cry," a familiar voice whispers into my ear. I look to the right, and I'm staring straight into Eli's eyes. He's standing behind the couch and bending over to see eye-to-eye with me.

I smile when I see his face. "Hey," I say to him. "Don't cry, sweetheart," he says before giving me a peck on the lips. "Did you hear everything I said and the phone conversation?" "Yeah," he looks almost puzzled, "why do men say things like that in your world? It's a silly thing. Women used to say that to get the man to marry them because the man had money. Is that why he's doing that? Are the roles reversed in your world?"
"Hell, no. Women still do that though, but now it's for child support payments, and we have DNA tests. We have shows like Maury and Steve Wilkos to figure out paternity too," I laugh at that comment, "men just do things like that to ruin a girl's life and reputation. Mine's already tattered enough from when my mom died."

"I can't believe he did that just to ruin your reputation," walks around the couch and hunkers down next to me. He looks at my Bruins attire and accessories. "Who are the Boston Br...Bru...Bruins?" he stumbles on his words while trying to pronounce the name. "They're my favorite hockey team. I'm watching a rerun of one of their games right now," I point to the TV. "Huh," he says as he watching them go up and down the ice, and he watches my boys score. "I'm assuming the Bruins did something very well because they're all hugging. Why are grown men hugging like that?" I laugh. "They're congratulating each other. You should see the athletic buttslap," I wink at him. "Are you kidding with me, Abby?" he says wide-eyed. "Not at all," I say while laughing. He bursts out laughing with me, and we continue watching the game, while I teach him all the players names.

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After the game, I told Eli I had to get ready for bed. I told him how I was going to the spa tomorrow. "I'll wait until you go to sleep to leave. I want to make sure you're okay," he informs me. When I finish up washing my face, I walk back out to my bedroom. Eli is sitting on my bed. "Eli?" I ask. He looks up at me, "yeah." "Will you lay with me and bed until I fall asleep?" "Abby, are you sure? My mom would kill me if I forced this on a girl." "Eli, just take off your shoes and jacket and lay with me, okay? I need you." "Give me a sec to get out of my sweatshirt and bra," I turn around and pull my sweatshirt over my head. Then, I unhook my bra and slip it off through my sleeve and throw it next to my sweatshirt on the dresser.

When I turn back to Eli, he's looking at me. "What?" "No girl has ever undressed in front of me." I blush, "Well I guess I'm your first." I pull the blankets and sheets down to get in. "Come on, I'm tired. Please," I whisper. "I'll get the light first," he says and pulls off his shoes and jacket before walking back over to the bed. He pulls the sheets and blankets down as I had. We both settle and pull the covers up. We lay apart for a moment before I say, "you know you can hold me?" I blush a little. He slowly pulls me against his chest and stomach. "Don't worry about what Sammy alleged. He is not a right-minded person." "Okay," I smile before falling asleep.