London

12 - "Ellie and Dave."

Harry

Shame isn't even the word to describe how I'm feeling right now. Certainly I thought that seeing Alex meet my mother and father would be difficult since she's the only person in the world who knows everything about my relationship with them, but it had felt even worse than my imagination. 

Seeing her trying to please them, feeding them with little lies that I surely understand, but right then only angered me, was painful. My mother of course accepted everything she said. She was always weak for girls. Sometimes I even wondered if she had want another girl instead of a boy. As if she could make up for her mistakes with Liz and make it better with me. The same goes for Alex who she believes has no job. If that would have been me, I would never hear the end of it, but Alex can get away like it just like my precious sister who wasn't even home for Christmas. 

Christ, it still pisses me off and mostly because it caused for another argument with Alex. The things I said were out of line and most of them not even meant for her. But I said them and I know she doesn't forget easily. Turning around in bed, I find her looking at me, just as awake as I am, but I'm glad to see there is no anger on her face. She looks happy and it makes me smile too.

"Want to order room service?" She asks and I nod my head, watching her naked body get out of bed. The way the palmtree I tattooed on her all those years ago stretches over her back mesmerizes me just as much as it did the first time I saw it. I want to tell her all the compliments I have in me, all true, but I know it won't help her forget. All I can do is stay calm and prove to her that I'm here like I have been trying to do since she's back. Only failing a couple of times, I remind myself. I hear her talk on the phone, ordering some breakfast before she lets herself fall back in bed again. 

The moment she slides under the sheet, I get out and put on some boxers and search the room for a robe only to be disappointed. Whoever will bring in the food will have to deal with my almost naked body.

I shoot Alex brief glances as she settles back in bed, but she still looks happy. Maybe my words didn't have the effect I thought they had. They did shake me up though, that I was able to say them, hurt her, when I love her so much. She thinking that she wasn't worth staying shook me and for the first time in awhile I felt tears prickling behind my eyes and I let them come. I showed her my emotions hoping that maybe that way she can see how much I love her and how much she means to me. It worked and I have to say, the sex afterwards was as fine as ever. The knock on the door keeps me from tackling her on the bed again and I open it to find an older man pushing a trolley inside. 

"Did you get room service at your mother's?" Alex asks as she lies naked under the duvet.

"It wasn't a hotel," I tell her, tipping the waiter.

After we're alone in the room again, I hand her a serving tray filled with pancakes, fruit and yoghurt. We both settle under the sheets and I lean against her as I take a strawberry to place it in her mouth.

"So you never had breakfast in bed?" She wonders and I shake my head.

"No, we needed to be down at seven-thirty every day except for Sundays. Then it was nine."

"Nine?" She sounds shocked. "How awful."

"It was. It all were stupid rules without any good reasoning. She always said it was because of the cook and the maid. As if they didn't want to sleep in sometimes."

"You never went down later?"

"Yes, that's when I learned to cook and take care of myself. My sister can't even fry an egg, she's simply go down to eat and fall back to sleep after," I tell her, feeling the anger I feel for her slip back in.