On the Edge (8 page)

             
“I’ll be right back.  Stay here, ok?”

             
“Ok, Tommy.”

             
He disappears off into the bedroom.  It’s quiet for a while before I start to hear music playing.  What is he up to?  A few moments later, he’s back by my side.  He takes my glass and places it on the counter next to his and takes my hand and leads me to the bedroom. 

             
“Close your eyes,” he says.

             
I do as I’m told and he lifts me into his strong arms and carries me into the bedroom.  He places me back on the ground and whispers,

             
“Open your eyes, angel.”

             
When my eyes open I am surrounded by the most beautiful scene.  The room is lit by dozens of tiny little candles placed around the entire room.  The bed is covered in rose petals.  I look up at Tommy and find him smiling down at me.  He holds out an open velvet box and inside is a ring with two hearts intertwined together. 

             
“Abigail, I love you and have since the day I saw you.  You make me smile when I don’t want to smile.  I want to protect you forever.  I’m not asking you to marry me, but I am making a promise to be the man you deserve and to be your rock when times get tough.  Will you do me the honor of wearing my ring?”

             
I nod my head because I cannot utter any tangible words and he places the tiny ring on the ring finger of my left hand and looks, longingly, into my eyes.  He places his lips against mine and I wrap my arms around his neck and kiss him back.  I, officially, have Tommy’s heart and soul.

Chapter
Seven

Sunlight is pouring through the bedroom.  It feels warm against my skin.  I open my eyes and look toward Tommy.  He looks so peaceful while he sleeps.  My Tommy made my prom the most memorable night ever.  He was so sweet and romantic.  He danced to almost every song with me and even helped Katherine out when she was so wasted that she couldn’t even walk.  Oh, and the promise ring he gave me was the icing on the cake.  How did I get so lucky to land a man as good as him?

              I am in awe of this creature lying next to me.  He’s absolutely gorgeous.  The comforter is lying over the lower half of his body while his naked chest lies exposed.  Last night was the most magical rendezvous I ever experienced with him.  I am sure we made love for several hours before falling asleep in each other’s arms.

             
I gently kiss his cheek before crawling out of bed and throwing on some pajamas.  I’m really glad Katherine reminded me to drop off some clothes here earlier in the week.  With the rally on Friday and the prom on Saturday, I would have forgotten to grab my bag for my overnight stay with Tommy.

             
I make my way into the kitchen and open the refrigerator.  Tommy has quite a bit of food.  I grab the eggs, cheese, and bacon, and head to the stove.  I grab a bowl and crack eight eggs and whisk them together.  I grab a skillet and turn the stove on.  I place a few slices of bacon in the pan and grab my cell phone from the nook where I left it the night before.  There are no missed calls but I decide to call Katherine to check on her.

             
“Hello?” Katherine says.  She sounds about as bad as she looked last night.  I know I should feel bad, but for heaven’s sakes, she did this to herself.

             
“Hey, Katherine, how are you feeling today?” I ask as I try to mask a chuckle.  I already know she feels like she’s on death’s doorstep.

             
“Oh, Abby, I feel like I’ve been run over by a big rig and then it was put in reverse and backed over me,” Katherine explains as she lets out a moan.  Her head must really be throbbing.

             
“Well, that’s what happens when you drink, sweetie.  Take some pain reliever and rest.  You’re just lucky your parents were out of town or you would have been in a world of hurt last night for sure.”

             
“Please, none of that judgmental bullshit right now.  I feel awful.”

             
“I’m sorry.  Would you like me to come over this afternoon?” I ask as I pull the bacon out of the pan.

             
“Yes.  That would be nice.  I have a question; how did I get home and into bed last night?”

             
“Tommy and Chris brought you in last night and I dressed you and tucked you in.  Tommy found some Ibuprofen and water for you and we put them on your nightstand.” I answer as I put the eggs in a clean pan and sprinkle cheese and bacon on them. 

             
“Thank you for what you did for me last night.  It made life a little easier this morning.”

             
“You’re welcome.  I’ll see you this afternoon.”

             
“Ok.  See you later, Abigail.”

             
I place four pieces of bread in the toaster as Katherine and I end our call.  I turn back to the stove to scramble the eggs.  I look up and see Tommy sitting at the nook.  He flashes me a genuinely handsome smile.  “Good morning, beautiful.”

             
“Morning, sweetheart, are you hungry?”

             
“That I am.  It smells good in here.”

             
“Thanks.  It should be ready in about five minutes,” I answer giving him my best beauty queen smile.

             
The toast pops up and I spread some butter on all the slices and then put the eggs on the plates.  I place the plates of food on each one of our placemats and then grab two glasses from the cabinet and pour some orange juice.  Once I served the drinks, I take my seat next to my man and we dig in.  I am hungrier than I normally am.

             
“So, graduation is at the end of next month, right?” Tommy questions as he forks up a bite of eggs.

             
“Yes.  It’s the last week of May.”

             
“What are your plans after graduation?”

             
“Well, I applied to Bayford University and was accepted, but I’m thinking about taking my required courses at the community college here and then transferring to Bayford in two years.”
             

             
“Really?  What changed your mind?”

             
“Well, my dad works so much to help support Michael and I and it would be nice for him not to have to worry about paying for my tuition on top of what he already has to pay.  If I go to the community college, the classes that I need are cheaper and I can live at home.”

             
“That sounds like a great plan.  You know, you could always move in here after graduation.  I could take up some of the cost.  I can buy your clothes and feed you and keep a roof over your head and your dad will only need to pay your tuition fees.”

             
Is he really asking me to move in?  I don’t even know what to say.  I love Tommy but I never thought about moving in with him.  I don’t think I’m ready for that.  How do I tell him that I prefer to stay at home and just spend weekends with him?  “That sounds good.  Maybe we can do a trial run through the summer or something,” I say.  I didn’t have brains enough to avoid the topic and I didn’t want to end up arguing about where I’ll live after high school.  If this is going to work out, I really need to tell him how I feel instead of beating around the bush or caving to his desires.

             
“Good.  This is a really good omelet.  I wouldn’t mind waking up to breakfast every morning,” he tells me before giving me a kiss on my cheek.

             
I blush and give him a smile of embarrassment.  I am glad I took home economics my sophomore and junior years of high school.  My mom had suggested it as an elective.  “Thank you.  I’m glad you’re enjoying it.  Would you like more orange juice?”

             
“No.  I’m good.”

             
As we finish our meal, I get up and take the plates and glasses into the kitchen.  I fill the sink with water and dish soap and start to wash dishes.  Tommy walks over and kisses my exposed shoulder and grabs a towel to dry the clean dishes with.  The mess is cleaned up in ten minutes and we head into the bathroom to take a shower.

             
After our shower, we get ready for the day.  Tommy is taking me home early so I can say goodbye to Michael before my parents drive him to Bayford.  Then Tommy’s going to hang out with Lucas and the troll, Jessica.  Tommy and I have agreed that I won’t be forced to be around Jessica any time soon.  I really can’t stand that woman and I don’t see me ever being able to even tolerate her.  She is a horrible woman.

             
Tommy drops me off at noon, just in time for me to spend a few hours with Michael before he leaves.  He’ll be home again on Friday but the next five days won’t be the same without him.  I take my dress and shoes to my bedroom and put them away and go to Michael’s room and knock on the door.

             
“Come in”

             
“Hey, Mike.”

             
“Hey Abby, how was prom?”

             
“It was great.  Katherine got drunk sometime during the night and we had to carry her to bed, but overall, it was a great night.”

“She got drunk?  Damn that woman!  I wish I had asked her if I could escort
her.  She is self-destructive,” he states as he shakes his head. 

             
“You have no idea.  Mike, can we talk about something for a minute?”

             
“Sure.  I’m all yours sis!”

             
“Well, I was thinking about what you asked yesterday.  I can’t stop you from asking Katherine out, but I want you to think about something.  If she hurts you, in any way, I will be forced to end a friendship with her because I won’t be friends with someone that hurts my brother.  Katherine is my only friend, so if I lose her, I won’t have anyone.”

             
“Sis, if Katherine and I don’t work out, I will end it amicably and I will not put you in the middle.  I don’t want this, whatever it is, to get in the way of your friendship.  If she gets angry, then just be her friend.  I’m your brother and you love me, but I am just a man and I’m flawed.  It’s okay for Katherine to get mad at me and upset and if she needs to vent about me to you, just listen and be her friend.”

“Okay, Mike.  I can do that.  I just wanted to make sure that there was nothing left unsaid between us before you ask her out.”

“Could you ask her over for dinner on Friday?  I want to see her and ask her out that night.” 

“I will ask her over for dinner and make sure she’s here.  I won’t tell her why or anything though.”

”Okay, sounds good, and Abigail, please don’t invite Tommy over that night.”

“Why not?”

“Because Jason is driving me that night and I don’t want a confrontation between him and Tommy.  You know how Jason feels about him and I don’t want a scene at Mom and Dad’s.”

“Alright, I wasn’t planning on inviting him anyway, but thanks for telling me.  I’m going to miss you to pieces when you leave.”

“I’m going to miss you too, but I’ll be home this weekend and, if Katherine accepts my proposal to date me, I’ll be home every weekend to see you girls.”

“Sounds great, I’m sure she will accept it and then I will hear about how fantastic you are for the rest of the school year.”

Mom calls for Michael.  They have just loaded the car up and are ready to leave.  Dad has to be back to work at five, so they need to leave now so they are home in time for him to shower, change, and head out for the night.  I give Michael a hug, but am careful not to squeeze too tightly as he is still healing from his injury.  I give him a peck on his cheek and see him to the car.  I stand in the driveway and wave them off before heading to my car.  It’s two in the afternoon before I pull into Katherine’s driveway.  I grab my phone and text Tommy real quick before I head inside.

Thank you for a magical evening.  I love you.

I grab my purse and head into the house.  Katherine is laying on the couch watching some show about models on television. 

“Hey, sweetie, how are you feeling?”
I ask, however one look at her tells me
exactly
how she’s feeling. 

“I feel awful.  I don’t know why I drank last night.”

I bite my bottom lip to hold in my laughter.  “I don’t know why either.  Do you remember making out with Davis from the debate team?”

“What?!?!?!  You’re kidding right?”
She asks as she grumbles and pulls the blanket over her head. 

“Um, no.  When I went to grab you, you were making out with Davis in the corner.”

“Fuck!  This is not going to be good!”

“Well, I don’t think anyone really noticed and if they did, they didn’t say anything.  Would you like something to eat?”

“Yes, but I would like something light.”

“Is soup alright?”

“Yes.  I would love some soup.”

I come back in the living room with her soup as the model show is ending.  I place the bowl of soup with a few saltine crackers on the TV tray.  I go back to the kitchen to grab a light colored soda.  Great, another episode with stick thin models appears on the television.  I swear, these girls would stop bickering with each other if they would eat something!  Most of them are far too thin, in my opinion.

“So, how did it go with Tommy last night?”

“It went great,” I hold my hand out and show her the ring.

“Did he propose to you?”

“No, this is a promise ring.  He promised to love me and protect me.”

“Abigail, that is so, um, sweet yet corny at the same time.  I don’t know whether to laugh or cry.”

I ignore Katherine’s snide comment and put my hand back in my pocket.  How is it that
she can be so shallow sometimes?  Is it because she’s jealous?  Whatever the reason is behind her attitude, my patience is starting to wear thin.  I try to shake the feeling of anger.  I’m not an angry person, usually, and this is abnormal for me to feel like this toward Katherine.  “So, do you want to have dinner at my house on Friday?”

“Well, I don’t really know what my plans are for that day
,” Katherine says, matter-of-factly.

“If you come over for dinner, you can stay the night and we can go shopping for graduation dresses on Saturday.”
  Mike owes me.  I just offered myself up for a day of torturing at the mall so Mike could ask my friend out.
             

“Ok, I’m down for dinner and a sleepover.”