TEN
The couple walked up to us and stared pointedly at Cody. Lips curling back in what I had grown up to know as disdain. And pure, unfiltered snobbishness.
I sighed. Turning to Cody I grimaced and said "Cody this is Isabel and Henry Meyer. My parents."
I watched him carefully waiting for any sign of discomfort. When I was a teenager I had grown used to the fact that my parents took protectiveness to a whole new level. I usually refrained from inviting boys over until I felt the relationship was nearly over. My parents, particularly my father, would do a good job of scaring them away. And ta-da! No messy breakup.
"Its a pleasure to meet you again, Mr. and Mrs. Meyer. I hope you still remember me."
My eyebrows shot up and hid in my bangs. I turned to Cody and saw a polite smile etched onto his face. Not once in my life have I ever invited Cody to any event that included my family. To be brutally honest he's sort of a dirty secret. And for good reasons.
I looked at my parents and saw their brows wrinkle their forehead even more. They looked good together despite the fact they were always at each others throats, if they weren't at others. Their favorite throat to choke being mine.
What are they even doing here?
I was just about to ask them that when my mother suddenly smiled. She turned to my father and whacked him on the head, to which he gave her an evil dark look. My mother oblivious to his discomfort shouted "This is that kind boy who owns the garage where we service our car. Look at him, its gotta be him."
My father inspected Cody again, the frown on his forehead deepening. He turned to my mother and whacked her on the head. The smile on my mother's face melted and she glared at him. "Isabel its got to not gotta. Correct yourself and stop clogging my ears with your filthy grammar."
The dark look on my mother's face darkened and from the way her mouth was moving, she was cursing in a way drunkards wouldn't even think of doing.
Glad not hear whatever my mother was saying, I focused on my father, who was uncharacteristically smiling! He thrust out his hand and shook Cody's. I gaped.
Am I missing something here?
"Its a pleasure to meet you again, son. Never thought I would see such a well behaved man like you here."
My head spun. Those words came from my father. For a moment I considered the fact that he might be sick, but if he was, he wasn't giving any outward sign.
"Its a pleasure to meet you too, sir. Though I never thought I would see you here."
For some reason this was funny to both men because they burst into loud chuckles that could even be heard in the loud pounding music.
What tha fuck is happening here!?
Suddenly my father turned to me and said "Francine! I expect that kind of low class language from your mother but certainly not from you. Especially when you're in the presence of a gentleman like Mr.-"
He suddenly stopped and I turned to see a blank look on Cody's face. I looked closely at my father and saw his pants were now wet.
"Sorry about that. Here, take my handkerchief." Cody said.
My mother took the handkerchief and fisted it in her hand, in a flash her hand was buried in my father's... I hastily looked away but not before I saw the pained expression on my father's face. Beside me Cody chuckled and drew me to him, clasping my hands in his big meaty ones.
"Francine, what's going on here?"
Still not looking at them I shouted back "What are you doing?"
A moment later the answer came and I regretted asking, "I'm crashing your father's balls whilst he tries to act like it doesn't hurt. Now, honey, what are you doing holding hands with this young man."
"She's my girlfriend Mrs. Meyer. We came here to party." Cody said before I could say anything else. I finally looked at my parents and saw the shocked looks on their faces.
"Oh! Well..."
My father was now looking at Cody with an assessing gleam in his eyes. My mother likewise. Only she wasn't looking at Cody, she was looking at me. I knew from the way she was looking at me that she knew something was amiss. She always knew when something was wrong.
"Francine and I are happily engaged and as soon as the divorce is settled we can get married." Cody said.
I blinked. Then blinked again. And again.
Is this guy for real?
"Listen hear you flea ridden—"
"What do you mean engaged? Honey is this a rebound thing for Richard? Look, take your time and heal. Okay?. Its alright to want someone to hold you but for now...just take a breather. Both of you. Alright?" My mother said. The frown on her face intensifying the concerned look on her face.
I nodded, crashing the urge to slap Cody. Engaged my foot. One bad marriage is more than enough if you ask me.
"So...what are you guys doing here?" I asked hoping to turn the conversation to safer topics. If asking what your sixty year old parents are doing in a bar full of hip twenty year olds can be considered as a safe topic.
To my surprise, my father hugged my mother and said "We are here to party."
I blinked and looked at Cody from the corner of my eyes and saw him frowning. Thank God for that. I'd be worried if this made sense to him.
My parents were getting real cosy with each other and I knew it was time to leave before I saw anything I'd be ashamed of. "Well...we gotta go. Bye!"
To my surprise my father barely nodded and didn't even correct my grammar. We fled.
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I couldn't sleep. Three hours of turning about in my bed had made that clear. For some reason, the whole conversation earlier with my parents had been...enlightening. It had clearly shown me just how much of a stranger Cody was.
"Cody? Psst! Cody! Cody? You awake?"
Silence. Clearly the man was dead to the world. I sighed and rolled over in the bed, tossing blankets and sheets aside. I stood up and padded to where Cody slept. In the dim lamp light he looked...the same as always. Just less irritating and cuter with tousled hair. I plopped next to him and a moment later he sighed and said, "Came to interrogate me?"
I nodded and remained silent, waiting for him to continue. He didn't. "Fine. If I tell you something about me you'll tell me something about you. Okay?" I proposed.
"Splendid idea."
I racked my brain trying to find any interesting thing that would guarantee juicy details about him. Not surprisingly, I found nothing of importance. "Tell me what you want to know."
A minute passed by in silence. Then Cody said "Do you still love Richard?" He paused and rushed on "I notice that you keep referring to him as your husband when he isn't."
If the lights were on Cody would have seen me gaping like a fish out of water. Of all the things he could have asked me that was the last thing I had been expecting. I thought about my answer before replying with a simple "Yes."
Beside me Cody stopped breathing and tensed then as if it didn't matter, he patted me on the head. The way one would do with a redundant student. It was unsettling. "We had been together for about five years. Obviously I'd still feel something for him. He hurt me and abused my trust and faith in him. I won't and can't go back to him. Not now not ever."
Cody turned and looked in my general direction. "Then why do you keep calling him your husband?"
"It doesn't matter." I growled out. Suddenly angry, though at who I wasn't sure. I wasn't even sure who I was trying to convince. "I told you what you wanted to hear, now tell me something about you."
A hand, warm and heavy stroked my cheek. Brushing away wayward strands of hair. A warm breath fanned my face and a moment later, firm yet soft lips brushed against mine. Heating me up better than any night cap would have been capable of doing. I opened my mouth to better enjoy the kiss when the lips withdrew.
In a low tone, Cody whispered, "I was once married."
He turned and went to sleep.
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