I close my eyes in regret. I don’t know what he wanted me to say, but I obviously didn’t get it right.
“Goodnight, Nathan.”
9
Eliza
There’s a knock at the door.
I frown as I try to focus my eyes. “Hello?” I call.
The door opens, and Neil comes into view. “Ready for our walk, Eliza?”
I smile. “Sure am.” It’s our little ritual when I’m here. Neil gives me the walking tour around the property and shows me all the baby animals that have been born since I was here last. I glance over and notice Nathan isn’t in bed with me.
“Give me a minute to get dressed, I’ll be right down.” I smile.
“Sure thing. I’ll put the coffee on.” He disappears down the stairs, and I get up and peer into the bathroom. “Nathe?”
He’s not here. I open the door and look down the hallway, left and right. It’s still nearly dark. Where would he go?
I walk down the hallway and notice a bedroom door is closed. I slowly open the door and peek in.
Nathan is asleep in the bed.
My heart drops. He didn’t want to sleep with me.
I quietly close the door and tiptoe back down the hall to sit on the edge of my bed in the semi-dark room. I drop my head in sadness.
He didn’t want to sleep with me.
Nathan
My mother’s laugh rings out through the house, and I stop on the spot and listen for a moment. She loves Eliza. Both her and Dad beam with happiness when she is home.
Home. What a joke. This isn’t her home, this is my home, and she’s not my girlfriend. I need to stop this fucking nonsense before I drive her away forever.
I walk to the doorway of the kitchen and lean on the doorjamb as I watch them.
Eliza is wearing an apron that my mother bought her for her birthday one year. She’s chopping up vegetables and smiling as she talks.
“Yes, you wouldn’t believe the things that people get fixed. The other day, someone had their labia cut off. Well, trimmed, actually.”
“Oh God, like with scissors?” Jessica, my brother’s girlfriend, winces.
“I think so.” Eliza shrugs.
“Are you serious? Can you imagine how much that would frigging hurt?” Jessica is sitting at the stool icing cupcakes while my mom is mixing something in a bowl. They listen as Eliza relays the ins and outs of her new job.
“And what’s your new boss like?” Mom asks her.
“He’s really nice.” Eliza smiles. “Although, I got the wrong idea about him in the interview.”
“Why?” Jessica asks.
Eliza stops chopping. “He’s just really forward, and I kind of got the feeling that he liked me.”
What?