The Expansion of the Universe

Fourteen | "We can both be fat together."

"Well, shit," Elijah said after she'd tugged open the door slowly, his eyes trailing over her figure carefully, and Liza tensed.

Had she made a terrible mistake? Was he already regretting this? Oh, God, had he just been biding his time until she opened the door so he could hurt her?!

Oh, God.

Oh, oh, oh, no, no, no, ohnoohnoohno—

"Shit," he repeated, his eyes snapping back to hers, and something in those dark brown orbs kept the panic from overtaking her entirely.

There was no malice there. No disgust, no hatred, and no trace of even the slightest bit of pity. There was simply stunned amazement, and Liza's fingers curled into fists at her sides, the action meant to stop her from doing something stupid, like touch him or slam the door in his face.

"Ah, damn it," he breathed, tilting his head back and eyeing the sky as though it had personally wronged him.

In the back of her mind, Liza was pleased to note that it was the very thing she had envisioned him doing back when a door had blocked her vision and all she could do was listen to the frustration in his voice and try to picture his expression.

Wait, was that frustration aimed at her?

No.

Stop.

She'd seen his eyes. He wasn't planning on yelling at her, she didn't think.

"I'm sorry," his voice was softer now, and she awoke from her daze to find his stare expressing honest warmth. "I don't mean to curse or sound mad. I'm not mad with you, anyway, it's just that I forgot how pretty you are, and I really want to hug you."

Liza took an involuntary step back at the suggestion. "Don't touch," she croaked her earlier words, taking comfort in Milo's presence and knowing she only had to say one word to get him to attack.

Elijah was quick to lift his hands in a sign he meant no harm. "I know, doll, and I won't touch, I promise. It's just my own selfishness, remember? But don't worry; I won't touch."

She paused, her eyes traveling over him from top to bottom carefully, and she was pleased to find no signs of deception. "Okay," she breathed, shuffling to the left so he could enter but still leave plenty of space between them.

He didn't move though, his eyes still sliding up and down her figure. Just as Liza began to grow uncomfortable, he blurted, "You're alarmingly skinny, you know," and Liza blinked, stunned.

Seeming to realize what he'd said, Elijah actually slapped his hand over his eyes and groaned. "Shit. Shit. I didn't mean for that to sound so bad. I just mean that we should definitely eat some Oreos and donuts together and whatnot, that way I don't feel so damn fat next to you. Then we can both be fat together."

Liza couldn't help but let her eyes wander over his frame, and she nodded to herself with satisfaction once she'd finished her onceover and confirmed what she recalled from when she'd last caught a glimpse of him through the window.

Elijah was in no way fat.

Rather, he looked like he worked out pretty regularly. He was no bodybuilder, and his build seemed naturally lean, but . . . well, she certainly wasn't going to accuse him of gaining weight anytime soon.

"Do you have a favorite flavor of donut besides chocolate cake with just the right amount of glaze?" He asked, and she brushed off his earlier comment. As anxious as everything made her, she knew he hadn't meant anything bad by it; at this point, it was almost fact that she was too skinny. Hell, she'd almost been readmitted to the hospital when her last therapist had realized just how much weight she'd been losing.