Eden (15 page)

16

The next morning I awoke clear and refreshed.  It felt wonderful now that everything was back to normal, or as normal as dating Eden could be; but now I knew the truth, I knew everything and it felt glorious.  Was this what love was like?  I couldn’t be sure, but I knew that I liked this feeling.  I also knew that I couldn’t wait to see Eden today.  With a spring in my step, I made my way downstairs.

“Good morning,” my mother greeted in her usual tone until she noticed how energized I was, “What’s gotten into you?”

“Nothing,” I admitted.

“Or should I say, what’s gotten into Eden?” she asked with a conspiratorial grin, “if you get my meaning.”

“Mom!” I screamed, “for the millionth time – I did not do it with Eden last night, or any night before that!”

“So why the sparkly eyes this morning then?” she pushed.

“Because you look so beautiful today, Mom,” I replied in an earnest voice.

“Just eat your breakfast,” she said sliding a cereal bowl in my direction, but I could detect the fleeting smile on her lips.

“Are you going to Eden’s again tonight?” she asked after a few minutes.

“Yeah,” I told her, “I’m not sure what we are doing.” Translation – I don’t know if I will be eating dinner at home tonight.

“How about I give you a few dollars and you take Eden to Mighty Burger?” my mother suggested.

“Sounds like a plan to me,” I agreed, “Thanks, Mom.”

“Don’t thank me,” she replied, “Just make sure that you two keep a spare bedroom ready for me when I am old and gray.”

I laughed and took the money from my mother.  As I made my way out the door I secretly thought of when that day came – my mother, old and gray; me, middle aged and balding and Eden, still sixteen, young and beautiful.  I suppressed a shudder as I made my way to the bus stop.

The image of the eternally young Eden was still fixed in my mind when I reached my locker.  It wasn’t like Eden didn’t age at all, I argued with myself, in reality when I was middle aged, around forty, Eden would appear to be at least eighteen or nineteen.

At least then she would be legal, I thought to myself with a laugh.

When I finally entered my homeroom class, I wasn’t the least surprised to find Eden already seated and waiting for me.  She was always early to school, it was just a given to me now.

“Good morning, handsome,” she called to me with a smile.

“Good morning yourself, beautiful,” I replied, trying to match the brilliance of her smile, but knowing that I failed miserably.

“How was your night?” she asked.

“Last night was wonderful,” I told her, “until I had to leave you.”

“You’re so sweet,” she gushed.

“What do you want to do tonight?” I asked, “Its Friday night.”

“Don’t you still have to be home by nine?” she reminded me.

“I don’t know,” I thought, “maybe I can get a reprieve for the weekend.”

“If you can, maybe we can go to a movie?” she asked hopefully.

“That would be awesome,” I said, ‘The Dark Night Begins’, opens tonight.  I’ve been dying to see it.”

“Then we’ll go see that if we can,” Eden agreed.

“We can go to Mighty Burger for dinner,” I told her, “my treat.”

“Only if I can treat for the movie,” she said.

“Deal,” I announced extending my hand.

Eden took my hand in hers and shook it, sealing the deal.  I really hoped that I could stay out later tonight since it was Friday; dinner and a movie with Eden sounded like the perfect evening to me.

The rest of the class began to file in and I took my seat across the aisle from Eden.  It was going to be a long day.

When lunch finally rolled around, I was starving.  I had spent the entire morning dreaming of taking Eden to Mighty Burger and then to the movies; as a result, images of Big M burgers had been flying through my mind.

I met Eden in the cafeteria and we went up together to get our lunches.  Today was Pizza Friday!  Of course it was plain pizza, but beggars can’t be choosers.  Grabbing two slices and a juice for myself, I walked with Eden over to our usual table.  When Matt and the others got their lunches, they decided to join us.  As they sat down I reluctantly introduced them all to Eden.  She seemed pleased to meet my friends, and they were certainly more than pleased to meet her.

“So what are you lovebirds up to tonight?” Drake asked in his usual casual tone.

“We might go to the movies,” Eden informed him.

“Are you going to see The Dark Night Begins?” Drake asked, “We’re going to see that too!” He exclaimed, motioning around to Kyle and Matt, “Want to come with us?”

My romantic night alone in a darkened theatre with Eden had just been ruined.  Even if we didn’t go with them, they were sure to find us once inside.  It looked like tonight’s movie night was going to be a bust.

“We are not sure if Thomas can go yet,” Eden explained.

My friends already knew all about my curfew, so they understood immediately what Eden was talking about.

“If he can’t go you can still see the movie with me,” Drake offered with a leer.

I was about to say something, but Eden beat me to it, “Well, thank you for the offer, but I can’t go without my boyfriend.”  She explained wrapping her arm in mine.

Drake looked a little disappointed, but I didn’t care in the least.  Even if we didn’t have the movie anymore, we still had Mighty Burger.

“What are you guys doing this weekend?” Matt asked, changing the subject.

“I hadn’t really thought about it,” I replied truthfully.

“They’re having the Labor Day Festival at the Fair Grounds this weekend,” Matt suggested.

“Wasn’t Labor Day last week?” Eden asked in confusion.

“Welcome to East Harbor,” Kyle said with a smile, “Where it takes the City Council forever to decide on anything.”

“That sounds great!” Eden exclaimed happily, “I’d love to go to a fair.”

She seemed so genuinely excited, how could I say no?

“Sure, we can go,” I told her.

Eden was so happy with my response that she flung her arms around my neck and kissed

me.  I could see my friends look away, embarrassed and jealous; that made the kiss so much more enjoyable.

I didn’t see my friends again until after school.  I caught up with Drake and Matt as they were heading for the school bus.

“Dude,” Drake called out to me in greeting. Approaching them, I could see that something was on Drake’s mind.

“What’s up?” I asked him.

“Your girlfriend is gorgeous,” he sighed, “What line did you use pick up a babe like that?”

“I didn’t use any line,” I laughed, “I’m just nice to her.”

“Nice to her?” he asked dubiously, “How do you pick up a girl like that?  Didn’t you sucker her in with some pick up line or something?”

“No,” I laughed again, “I didn’t use any pick up line, I always try to be upfront and honest with her.”

Drake looked at me in a stunned silence for a few seconds.  I re-thought what I had just said to him, trying to find some trace of bad language, anything that would elicit the kind of stare he was giving me now.

“Honest?” he coughed out, like it was hard for him to even say the word, “You’re honest with her?  What the heck is going on here?  First Kyle and his Hannah Banana fetish now you with the be-honest-with-your-girl routine; where am I, Wuss City?”

“Yeah,” agreed Matt, “population – you.”

“Real funny,” Drake grumbled.

“Hey guys,” Kyle greeted as he approached our group.

“I’ve been meaning to ask you,” Matt remembered, turning towards me, “Why doesn’t Eden take the bus with us?”

“She’s claustrophobic,” I explained using Eden’s story, “she takes taxis to and from school.”

“That must be expensive,” Kyle stated.

“I’m sure,” I agreed, “but her family’s got a lot of money, so I guess it’s not a big deal.”

“She’s beautiful and rich?” Drake exclaimed, “I might just have to kill you, bro.”

Laughing, we all got onto the bus, not noticing the suspicious look Howie threw in our direction as we took our seats.

Much to my surprise, Eden was waiting for me when I walked onto our street.  When she saw me, she dashed up to meet me halfway.

“What’s the matter?” I asked, wary because Eden had never waited for me like this before.

“Nothing, silly,” she smiled, “just that you didn’t seem too thrilled about spending the evening with your friends at the movies, so why don’t we just do Mighty Burger tonight and see if you can stay out late tomorrow at the fair?”

It was a good idea, I realized.  It might be a bit too much to ask to remove my curfew for two nights in a row.  The odds were better if I only asked about Saturday night; especially if I tell my mom that Eden had never been to a fair before.

“That would probably be our best bet,” I told her, “Are you okay with just doing dinner tonight?”

“What happened to dinner and a movie?” she asked with feigned hurt.

“But you just said…,” I fumbled to find the words.

“We can do the movie at my house,” she finished with a wink.

“Sounds like a plan,” I smiled.

“Now you just have to clear tomorrow with Mom,” she said, reaching up and kissing me on the cheek, “See you soon.”

Eden had disappeared before I realized that she had called my mother Mom.  It was a simple enough gesture, but for some reason it made me feel warm inside.  With a smile on my face, I made my way up my front walk and into the house.

“I’m home,” I announced as I closed the door behind me.

“Welcome home,” my mother greeted, “How was school?”

“It was okay,” I answered, “Can I ask you for a favor?”

“What it is?” she asked cautiously.

“This weekend is the Labor Day Fair,” I informed her, “Eden has never been to a fair before and she is really excited about going.  Can I stay out later on Saturday?”  I could see the doubt in her eyes, but I could also see that she was thinking about it. “The fireworks don’t begin until nine,” I pleaded my case, “And I am sure that Eden would love to see them.”

I found it surprising that I was able to use Eden as a sort of weapon against my mother the way that I did.  That was just one of the benefits of dating a girl that my mother approved of.  I’d like to tell her that Eden called her Mom, too; but that might be going too far, she might think I was trying to play her.

“Well, I don’t see a problem with lifting your curfew for just one night,” my mother finally said after a few minutes, “Sure; you can take Eden to the fair tomorrow.”

“Thanks, Mom,” I said excitedly, “You’re the best!”

“Are you and Eden going to Mighty Burger tonight?” she asked, embarrassed by my outburst.

“Yes, I’m going to pick her up after I finish my homework,” I told her.