Eden (21 page)

It was a little scary, I had coasted through school by not drawing attention to myself and I was comfortable being hidden in the shadows; but now that I was dating Eden, I would be dragged into the spotlight whether I liked it or not.

“Come on in,” I heard Eden yell from inside her house as I raised my hand to knock on the door.

Did her Deva powers extend to super-hearing, too, I wondered as I opened the front door and let myself in.  I found Eden in the kitchen.  It looked like she was getting ready to prepare something.

“What are you doing?” I demanded sternly.

“I was making dinner,” she said innocently.

“You just got on the cheerleading squad and you are making dinner?” I asked in amazement.

“Well, it won’t make itself,” she laughed.

“It most certainly will,” I argued, “because tonight we are going out and the sky’s the limit!”

“Really?” she asked suspiciously.

“Well, as long as the sky is only twenty dollars high,” I mumbled.

Eden laughed as she packed everything away.

“Give me a second to get changed,” she said when she was done, “I’ll be right back.”

“Take your time,” I assured her, “I made reservations.”

“Mighty Burger takes reservations now?” she joked, heading upstairs.

“Very funny,” I called after her.

I was planning on taking Eden to Benny’s tonight.  It wasn’t as bad as Mighty Burger, but it certainly wasn’t the type of restaurant that reservations were needed.  Now that Eden and I were officially going out, I felt comfortable bringing her to Benny’s to meet the people that worked there like Angeline.

A few minutes later Eden sauntered back downstairs; even though the outfit that she had picked out was simple, it looked spectacular on her.  I could almost feel the eyes pop out of my head.

“So where are we going tonight?” she asked.

“I reserved a window seat at Chez Ben-nee’s,” I announced proudly in a fake French accent.

She stifled a giggle behind her hand as she reached the end of the staircase and extended her hand to me.  Taking it atop mine, I raised it to my lips and lightly kissed the top of her hand.

“Such a gentleman,” she giggled.

“Only in the presence of ladies,” I corrected with a bow, releasing her hand.

“Let us be off then, young Romeo,” she said.

“Hey, Romeo wasn’t that much older than me,” I argued.

“That is true,” she acknowledged, “but men seemed to mature so much quicker back in those days.”

“You act like you were there,” I laughed, “even you are not that old.”

“Watch it, buster,” she laughed.

It was a short walk to Benny’s, or maybe it just seemed that way; but we reached the restaurant before we knew it.  Opening the door, I ushered her inside with a flourish.  I was shocked to see the waitresses that weren’t busy and they were watching for us as if I really had made a reservation.

“Congratulations!” I heard a waitress named Katie cry as Eden entered the restaurant.  The other waitresses joined in on the cry to a round of applause.

I must have turned a million shades of red at that moment, yet Eden looked thrilled.  How could they have possibly have known, I wondered.  Then it occurred to me, my mother, she must’ve called and tipped them off.  As Katie showed us to our booth, Angeline slid up beside me.

“Congratulations are in order for you too, Tommy,” she whispered, “A cheerleader?  She’s gorgeous, good for you.”

Katie giggled as she seated us and my face discovered yet another new shade of red to turn.

“Sounds like they all know you here,” Eden smiled as the waitresses left the table with our drink orders.

“Yeah, I come here a lot,” I admitted.

Katie came back with our drinks almost immediately and asked if we were ready to order.  I ordered a hamburger and fries and Eden ordered a chicken dinner.

I briefly wondered why we ate out so much, when Eden was such a terrific cook.  Obviously, any dish that Eden whipped up would be better than anything that any restaurant outside of Manhattan could provide us; but celebrating at home was just not as exciting.

“So when do you get your uniform?” I asked making idle conversation while we waited for our food.

“Tomorrow at practice,” she announced.

What I really wanted to ask her was if she would model it for me after practice, but I couldn’t think of a way to ask without sounding perverted.

“..and yes, I will model it for you after practice,” she said with a suspicious smile.

I looked up in shock.  Was mind reading part of her powers, too?  She hadn’t mentioned it if it was; though maybe the thoughts of a sixteen year old boy were transparent enough that the ability to read thoughts wasn’t needed to tell what I had on my mind.

“I can’t wait,” I replied nervously as she laughed at my reaction.

Katie came back with our food and placed it on the table.

“Enjoy, you two,” she said happily, “Let me know if you need anything else.”

“Thanks, Katie,” I replied.

We spent the rest of the meal chatting about school, friends and Eden’s cheerleading schedule.  She learned that she had practice three nights a week and was worried that we wouldn’t be able to spend as much time together as we have been.

I assured her that she would be home from cheerleading by six o’clock every night and that she could copy my homework; we would have plenty of time to spend together.  I, also, informed her of my mother’s offer to cook dinner for us on the nights that she had practice; Eden was thrilled.

My only worry was that Eden would get used to hanging around the football team and forget about me.  It was rare for a cheerleader not to date a football player, and Eden was the most beautiful cheerleader on the squad.  I secretly wished that Eden had never been asked to join the squad, but what could I do?  Eden was obviously excited at the idea of being a cheerleader and I had no reason to try and talk her out of it, other than my low self esteem.

After we finished our meal, Angeline and a few other waitresses presented us with a complimentary Chocolate Mudslide.  A Chocolate Mudslide was a huge dish filled with about four scoops of chocolate ice cream laid upon a bed of chocolate brownies and covered with whipped cream, nuts and hot fudge.  I could see Eden’s eyes light up when she saw it.  Poking out of the dessert was a tiny banner that read “Congratulations Eden.”  She looked about ready to cry.

“Thanks everyone,” Eden finally managed.

“Your welcome,” Angeline replied smiling, “You just make sure that you take good care of our Thomas.  He’s a really special guy.”

I could feel myself blush at Angeline’s statement.

“I know he is,” Eden said looking me in the eye and smiling to me.

We left Benny’s stuffed; I was so full that I could barely walk.  We had spent a little over two hours in the restaurant and as a result, it was almost nine when we made our way home.

“Everyone there was really nice,” Eden commented as we walked.

“Yeah,” I agreed, “My friends and I had been going there for years.  We know just about everyone that works there.”

“I was so surprised that your mother called and told them about my try out today,” she said shyly, “That was really sweet of her.”

I nodded in agreement, too full to talk any more.  We walked the rest of the way in silence.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” Eden said when we reached her front porch.

“Of course,” I smiled.

“I have practice tomorrow,” she told me.

“Then I’ll go with you,” I offered.

“You will not,” she replied, “You’ll have our homework to do.”  She laughed remembering my promise to let her copy my homework.

“That’s right,” I told her, “don’t forget that my mother is cooking dinner for us tomorrow night.”

“How could I forget that?” she laughed, “I can’t wait.”

“Well, good night,” I said leaning towards her and giving her a kiss on the lips.

“Good night, Thomas,” she said after our kiss, “I love you.”

“I love you, too,” I told her as I stepped off her porch and headed to my house.

23

The next morning came much too quick for me.  I stumbled into the shower and emerged a few minutes later feeling a little more human.  I hadn’t been sleeping well lately and it was starting to take its toll on me.  I wasn’t having nightmares every night; but even on good nights, I was stressing over my relationship.

I still had trouble believing that such a beautiful girl like Eden was interested in me.  I’ve never had any girl give me the time of day before and now to have the total attention of such a wonderful girl was overwhelming to me; besides the fact that she was immortal and super powerful.  I couldn’t help but have the feeling that some horrible event was waiting for us just over the horizon.

Eden and I met at school as usual.  Having all our classes together should have made me feel more at ease, but I couldn’t help but think that Eden would be having cheerleading practice after school, so I wouldn’t see her until after six tonight.  I wanted to go with her to practice, but Eden was insistent that I needed to do our homework during that time, so that we could spend the evening together.  It sounded good and logical, but I was a sixteen year old boy; logic had a way of escaping me.

“What’s the matter?” Eden asked.

I hadn’t released that I had been brooding long enough for it to be noticed.

“Nothing,” I replied, “I was just thinking about how much I am going to miss you this afternoon.”

“I’m sorry,” she smiled, “I’ll miss you too, but I really want to do this.  I have to squeeze in all these teenage experiences while I still can.”

All of a sudden, I felt guilty that I was being so selfish, “I understand.”

“But I’ll see you tonight,” she beamed enthusiastically, “I haven’t forgotten about dinner.”

I only hoped that my mother’s cooking was up to Eden’s standards.

“And I’ll make sure that I have our homework done before then,” I promised, smiling.

“Good,” she replied, “then we can have the whole evening all to ourselves.”

That statement brought me right out of my depression.

“I’ll supply the dinner, you’ll supply the dessert,” I leered.

“Don’t get ahead of yourself, big boy,” she countered.

Other than the stares and muted whispers that followed Eden and me around the school, the rest of the day passed in the same uneventful way.  Word had gotten around about Eden’s amazing display at the tryouts yesterday and the fact that she was seen walking the halls with a dweeb like me, was causing quite a stir.

“I can hear every word they are saying, no matter how quietly they whisper,” Eden informed me when we entered the cafeteria at lunch, “Don’t let it bother you.”

“But now that you are a cheerleader, you’re popular,” I pointed out to her, like she was a child, “You are not supposed to be with people like me.”

“What do you mean ‘people like you’?” she demanded.  “I like being with you and I am not about to let a bunch of babies dictate who I can and can’t be with.”

I smiled in spite of myself.  It was true that to someone who was over two hundred years old; your average teenager seemed like little more than an infant.  I felt better that Eden didn’t mind being with me and we fell back into our typical lunch conversations.

The rest of the afternoon seemed to fly by; before I knew it, I was saying goodbye to Eden and heading for the school bus.  I had to remind myself that Eden wouldn’t be waiting for me once I got home.

“What are you doing here?” Kyle asked once I boarded the bus.

“What do you mean?” I replied, “I always take the bus home.”

“I mean,” Kyle insisted, “Eden’s got practice tonight, shouldn’t you be there?”

“And we have homework tonight,” I pointed out in the same tone of voice, pointing over my shoulder at my backpack.

“So you are just going to leave her alone with all those jocks?” he asked in astonishment.

“In case you forgot, Eden can handle herself,” I told him.

“It’s not that,” he shook his head, “It’s just that those jocks are so big and muscular.”

“You sound like you want to date them,” I laughed.

“You know what I mean,” he fumed, “What if Eden likes one of the players?  It is not out of the question for cheerleaders to date members of the football team.”

I knew exactly what he meant, but Eden was different.  She wasn’t interested in jocks or any other guy; she was only interested in me, right?  Or was it because I was really the only guy that she had talked to since she moved here?  If she met other guys, maybe she would realize that she liked them more.  Great, something else to stress about, thanks Kyle.

“Well, it’s not like I can sit around and worry about it,” I stated bravely, even though that is exactly what I was going to do, “if it happens, it happens.”

“Stop fronting,” Kyle laughed, “if Eden breaks up with you, you’ll be crying like a bitch.”

“Nice,” was all I could think to say in reply.

The ride home seemed to take less time than usual; maybe because I wasn’t anxious to see Eden when I got home.  Before I knew it, I was walking up to my front door.

“I’m home,” I announced as I entered the living room.

“Take your shoes off,” my mother screamed from the kitchen, “I just cleaned.”

Kicking off my sneakers, I was taken aback by the pleasant aroma wafting in from the kitchen.  That couldn’t be my mother’s cooking, could it?  Drawn by the delightful smell, I entered the kitchen to find my mother fretting behind the stove.

“What are you cooking?” I asked.

“Pork chops with garlic mashed potatoes,” she huffed.

“It smells great,” I told her.

She stopped for a second and smiled at me, “Thanks, I hope that Eden likes it.”

“I’m sure she will,” I assured her as I grabbed my backpack, “Well, I’ve been ordered to complete my homework before she comes, so I’d better get to work.”

“I wish you would be so diligent when I asked you to do something,” she called after me.

“Yeah, well, there are certain perks to listening to her,” I called down.

“Just make sure you use protection,” my mother ordered.

I had given up correcting my mother, it didn’t even phase me anymore; I just continued up the stairs and into my room.

It only took me about forty-five minutes to finish all of my homework and I began to re-familiarize myself with all of the afternoon TV shows that I used to watch B.E. (Before Eden).  Soon it was six o’clock and I began to get ready for Eden’s arrival.  I was supposed to meet her at her house, where she would model her cheerleading outfit for me; I could hardly wait.  Fixing my shirt and checking my hair in the mirror, I headed downstairs.

“I’m going to meet Eden,” I called to my mother, “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

“You are so cute,” my mother laughed, “It’s only six ten.”

I ignored her and headed out the door.  Eden wasn’t at her house yet; my mother was right; it was kind of early.  So I sat on her front porch and waited for her.  A few minutes later, Eden came trotting up to me. She had on a long sweat shirt which came down to her knees.  She looked incredibly cute, but I still wanted to see her cheerleading outfit.

As if detecting my thoughts, Eden smiled as she walked to her front door, “Come on inside,” she whispered seductively.

Without a word, I followed her inside.  After she closed the door, she quickly pulled the sweater over her head, revealing the skimpy outfit underneath.  Her uniform was done in the colors of the East Harbor football team; red and gold.  I’ve seen this uniform many times on many different girls over the course of my life at East Harbor, but I am being totally honest when I say that seeing Eden in the uniform was like nothing else I had ever seen before.  The way the uniform hugged the curves of her body was indescribable.  The way the short skirt barely reached down to her mid-thigh took my breath away; I was speechless.  Eden laughed and struck a sexy pose.

“Was this worth the wait?” she asked in a seductive voice.

I must have mumbled something in response, although I can not for the life of me remember what I had said.

“Well, you think about it,” she said after a few minutes, “I’m going to go up and change into something more appropriate for dinner with your family.”

I nodded dumbly in silent agreement, watching Eden’s every move as she retreated up the stairs.  Eden came back down the stairs a few minutes later dressed in jeans and a blouse, by that time I had regained my composure and whatever dignity I still had left.

“Shall we go?” she asked with a smile entwining her arm in mine.

“Certainly, my dear,” I replied, fanning my other arm in front of us, ushering her onto the doorstep.

We made our way across the lawn to my house.  Entering my house, we were immediately assaulted by the odor of fresh garlic.

“Dinner smells wonderful,” Eden gushed as I closed the door behind us.

“Thank you, dear,” my mother beamed.

My mother wasn’t used to receiving compliments, I’m sad to say; but on the rare occasions when she did, she sucked up the praise like a thirsty man does a cold glass of lemonade.

“Sit down,” my mother said to me, “your father should be home at any moment.”

Eden and I took our seats next to each other and my mother set a place for her and my dad at the head of each side of the table. After a few minutes I heard the familiar commotion of my father’s entrance.

“How was work, dear?” my mother called from the kitchen, just as she did every night.

My father always answered the same, “Exhausting.”

I am thoroughly convinced that if every generation hadn’t grown up with the generation before constantly complaining about hard work, that people would generally be happier with their lives.  I know for a fact that my father doesn’t dislike his job, as I am sure a majority of adults don’t either; but it is almost like they feel that they have a duty to complain about it.  It is with this outlook, that most of today’s youth enter the job market and people wonder why we are so jaded.

“Well, have a seat and relax,” my mother replied, motioning to the chair at the head of the table.

My father looked as confused as I felt; my mother was normally never this considerate, but a slight shifting of movement to my right reminded me of the reason; Eden was here.

“Something smells wonderful,” my father complimented.

“I made pork chops and garlic potatoes,” my mother beamed from the stove.  She placed the meat on a large platter and the potatoes in a deep bowl.  She, also, placed a bowl of steamed vegetables next to them in the center of the dining room table.

There was plenty of food for the four of us.  I probably could have invited Matt, with his bottomless stomach, and we would have still had leftovers.

“How was cheerleading practice?” my mother asked as she took her seat, opposite my father.

“It was fun,” Eden answered, “I even got my uniform today.”

My mother glanced over at me and I could feel myself blush.

“That’s wonderful,” my mother said, “When is your first game?”

“My first game is Friday night at seven,” Eden informed her.

“Well, Tom is free to go,” my mother assured her, “just make sure that he is home by nine.”