Elvis Lives

Chapter 19 - Elvis Gets A Smartphone

Mom, Dad and I sat at dinner in the dining room that evening. We all stared off at Elvis sitting in one of the sofas in the sitting room as he talked on my phone with Drake. He had called before dinner was even put out on the table, and wanted to talk to "Aaron" about the day and a possible event the two of them wanted to put on. They had been on the phone for a good hour. The dinner of spaghetti and Caesar salad was already through, but there was still enough for one more serving of both dishes.

"I think you should make him up a plate," Mom suggested to me.

"I will."

I still watched Elvis as he talked with Drake. He looked so hot just sitting there, doing a normal thing. I rested my chin on my hand as I stared at him, a small smile on my face.

"Uh-oh," Dad remarked. "I know that look."

I took my eyes off of Elvis for the first time in the past hour and looked at my parents. "What?"

"You have hearts in your eyes."

Heat rushed into my cheeks, and I attempted to not be impacted by his comment. "So? I'm not the only one. You should have seen him with the kids at the library. They were charmed by him immediately, and a little girl even gave him a hug after he sang to them all. It was the most adorable thing I've ever seen."

"Yeah, but you're not a little girl," Mom countered. "You're a grown woman who loves Elvis, and a boy who looks and sounds like him happened to pop up out of nowhere. Just be careful, hon."

I tried to play innocent. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, don't fall in love with that boy just because he looks and sounds like your favorite singer. I don't want you two to get hurt."

"I agree," Dad said. "That boy has had hearts in his eyes since the first day he came here, and they sure weren't aimed at me or your mother. Don't break his heart, okay? I like him - he's a nice boy."

I got why they were giving me a warning, because my last relationship didn't turn out so well. "You guys don't have to worry about all that. He knows I like him for him."

"Isn't he too young for you?" Dad asked, and I couldn't help but let out a bit of laughter. "Isn't he twenty-two or twenty-three?"

He was a good fifty-four years older than me! "That doesn't matter," I said, still chuckling. "Age is only a number. Plus, like you said, Elvis is a really nice guy, and..."

"See, see?" Dad demanded, cutting me off. "You even call him Elvis. This is why I'm worried."

Oh my goodness, I call him Elvis because he is Elvis! But they didn't believe it since, to the world, time travel was fantasy. Not real. Even if Elvis was in 2021 for a year, they would still not believe he was him. "He's fine with being called Elvis. He would rather people call him that."

"I bet he does," Mom said. "Does that Drake guy like to be called Elvis, too?"

"He's fine with Elvis or Drake, whichever people like to call him."

"These Elvis impersonators go a little over-the-top with the whole Elvis thing," Dad said. "They should just go by their birth names."

I really needed to try and convince them. "Remember when he stood next to the TV when we watched King Creole? Do you blame the guy in there for wanting to be called Elvis? I mean, c'mon."

"He's only a guy who looks like Elvis."

I frowned.

"You really believe he's him, don't you?" Dad asked. "Really, Hannah."