Still Loving You

Part 30

The next Friday, Elizabeth was getting a ride from Steve to go to Hawkins to visit Eddie. She had gotten over his ridiculous need to punch Brian. She had to agree with Robin, as much as she felt it was stupid, it had also been rather sexy but she had no intentions of telling him that. Besides, there was no way she could stay mad at him. He was just too goddamn adorable with those sweet puppy dog eyes and soft smile that melted her heart every damn time.

She had seen Brian throughout the week a couple of times, and he had pointedly acted like she didn't exist. He definitely got the worst of it. His jaw was swollen and completely purple. He was also sporting a black eye, and it was a vibrant shade of purplish yellow the last time she had seen him. She knew he probably deserved it but she couldn't help feeling empathy for him as he ducked his head down and walked quickly past her.

Elizabeth hated that she had hurt him so much. She knew his rage was actually coming from a place of grief. She also knew he wasn't really a bad guy. But an injured heart and alcohol never made for a good combination and seeing her with Eddie couldn't have been easy for him. She had told him she still loved Eddie but had adamantly stated that she wasn't breaking up with him for Eddie and then the two of them were all cozy right in front of him. To be fair, she'd been honest at the time. She hadn't thought that her and Eddie were a possibility at that time. She'd thought she couldn't trust him anymore. She hadn't seen any of this coming.

"So, am I dropping you off at the trailer? Do you have a key to get in?" Steve asked. "It's kind of early. Didn't you say he works until five?"

"Yeah, he does," she replied. "But I am not going to his trailer right now. You're not dropping me off at his place. I want you to drop me off at my mom's house."

"Uh-oh," Steve mumbled. "I am guessing this isn't for a friendly visit?"

"No, I have some things to say to her that are long overdue," Elizabeth stated.

She had been thinking about this since Steve had spilled the beans on her mom. She knew Eddie wanted her to let it go because he didn't want to cause a rift between her and her mom. But it wasn't his fault. He hadn't been the one who had caused anything and she couldn't just let it go. Her mom needed to know that what she did was unacceptable. In fact, it was deplorable.

Now that she and Eddie were back together, it was only a matter of time before her mom found out about it, if she didn't already know. She needed her mom to understand that she needed to keep her nose out of their relationship. Elizabeth wanted to make certain she knew that nothing she could ever do or say was going to come between them again. And, if she couldn't be happy for them, then maybe she wasn't welcome to be a part of her life anymore.

"Elizabeth, I am not disagreeing that your mom was completely out of line," Steve cautioned, "but are you sure you want to do this? What does Eddie think?"

"Eddie doesn't know," she stated. "He's worried because he feels guilty, but he shouldn't. He's not the reason I am doing this. I mean, he is, but not like that. My mom was wrong. For her to say those things to him..." She trailed off, blinking back tears. "You don't understand. I spent four years trying to build that man up. He never saw himself as worthwhile. People judged him because of his parents, and it was bullshit. He was harder on himself than anyone else ever could have been, and for her to take everything positive I tried to fill him with and just drain it like that...it makes me so angry."

"I get it," he agreed. "I mean, you do what you have to do. If this will bring you some peace, then go for it. Just, remember, she is your mom."

"Yeah, and because she's my mom, she should want me to be happy," Elizabeth snapped at him. "She shouldn't want to rip my whole life to shreds. She shouldn't be okay watching me fall apart, knowing she was the cause of it."