The babysitter

It's all okay

EVA
He taps his foot nervously as he sits beside me with such anxiousness, people sat talking and laughing amongst themselves as they sip their milkshakes and indulge in their freshly prepared food. "It's going to be okay Michael",I whisper as I take his hand in mine as we await my dreaded parents as we arranged to meet in the cities favoured cafe over the phone. My heart cries for him as all I wanted from our relationship was utter perfection as if nothing could go wrong although the two people that I love the most detest it. It's time we faced our biggest issue since they're back from their seemingly quick trips around the world that I wish they'd have just stayed on although needing to resolve the conflict between us for it sits upon mine and Michaels mind constantly. "Just be yourself and remember there's nothing that you or I are doing wrong... nothing",I comfort as I pull his hand to my lap and squeeze it with both of mine, making him feel at instant ease as I can feel him panic. "I love you",he abruptly speaks as we notice my parents walk through the door with wandering heads as they look for us, my heart sinking as my fathers face looks as cold as stone, my mothers the same. Michael stands as they approach us as if trying to win them over with his perfected manners although I'm sure they're past all of that. "Mr and mrs summers ... it's been a while",he speaks first bravely as he holds out a hand for them to sit adjacent to us. My father appearing more relaxed than that of my mother, his demeanour making me worry for is it the calm before the storm? "Michael ... Evangeline",my mother greets coldly as they sit, getting comfortable, my mother unable to look upon us as I left her on such bad terms, the words I used against her ever so cruel but she needed to hear them, I hold no regrets from that night. "How have you been?",I ask with a small false smile, my father huffing as if he's tired of the distance between us. "We've been okay since getting back, although I was disappointed when we didn't arrive home to you ... disheartened may be a more fitting word",he speaks sternly although sadness oozes from his voice as he holds my mothers hand the same way I do with Michaels, reassuring my mother that this will all be resolved. "I've found comfort living with Michael dad, it was time to move on I guess ... I'm sure you understand since you're the one always telling me it's time to move on from my past and find solitude in my future ...well this is my future",I speak confidently for they need to know how I feel, Michaels leg bumping mine gently as I know he appreciates my words. "I don't understand Eva, I don't understand this...",my mother pipes up with a broken voice as if she can't understand love ... wondering if she's as cold with my dad as she is about Michael and I. "What isn't there to understand mom? I love Michael and that's all you need to know, you need to stop acting like we've done something wrong ,as if I'm not old enough to know what I want",I tiredly exclaim for I need this to end now as I'm not going to beg for her approval. "Mr and Mrs summers I assure you that I love your daughter, I've only ever protected and treat her well, I'm failing to understand what it is that you seem to despise about that? What is wrong with that?",Michaels sweet voice chirps up as he speaks with such passion about the way he loves me, my mothers head hanging low as she fails to look at us together. "I tell you why I despise it, I despise it because I constantly fail Eva, I want what's best for her since she's been through so much Michael, I trusted you to protect her from herself and all you've done is wiggled your way into her delicate head that could go off like a bomb ... you weren't supposed to manipulate her into whatever this is because I promise that when you leave her, when you break her heart ,I'm the one that's left to keep her from hurting herself",she exclaims, my stomach clenching as she constantly brings up how fragile I used to be, as if she wants me to stay that way so that she can control my life, her words like a punch in the stomach and a blow to the head. "Let me stop you right there! With all due respect mrs summers, Eva has grown and progressed beautifully in my care, you need to stop holding on to what she used to be and accept that she has healed and may I add, much to my help, by loving her I have taught her to love herself and I can promise you that I will never leave her or break her heart I can't even bare to think about that... the only person that's hurting Eva, is you ,her own flesh and blood, the people she trusts and loves more than anything in the world",Michael speaks wholeheartedly, my eyes pricking with warm tears as he speaks up with such truth in every word spoken from his lips that I've never wanted to kiss more. My mother sits dumbfounded along side my father that simply looks to Michael with a somewhat approving look that has my spine tingling with an ounce of hope. There's a long silence before my mother breaks down into floods of silent tears that she frantically wipes away with a napkin, my fathers hand rubbing upon her back that shudders with every shaken breath she takes, "I'm sorry ... I'm so sorry",my mothers cracked voice emits, unable to speak as I want to listen intently to what she has to say. "I'm so sorry for not understanding ... I'm sorry for treating you like you aren't capable of having normal feelings ... I guess I'm just stuck in the same protective mode that I was in when you where at your worst, you can't possibly imagine how I felt when you where being kept away from me by those monsters ...",she sobs but I cut her off before she takes her mind into a dangerous place that will only make things worse, I take her hands in mine from across the the table, making her look at me like I'm her daughter for the first time since that horrific night, staying strong for the sake of all of us around the table. "It's okay to care about me mom, it's okay to worry at times but this ... treating me like I'm still stuck in my past has got to stop, there has to be an end to all traumas at some point in our lives, although it will always be there, those feelings I used to feel are no longer there, I'm the happiest and the most alive I've ever been all thanks to this man beside me ... so please, please, please accept that I have to move on at some point that doesn't mean that you stop being my mother, you'll always be number one to me, both of you",I speak while grabbing my fathers hand too, speaking directly to their distanced souls, feeling that they've come to terms with their once broken and fragile little girl, growing into a brave, secure woman that has every reason to be alive. "Oh god Eva I'm sorry",my mother cries before coming to a stand, me doing the same as we embrace in a hug that I've needed for so long from her, as there's nothing like a hug from your mother, bringing back every time she's been there for me when I've needed her the most, the way she cradles my head giving me such clarity and contentment. "I love you",she shudders as she pulls away and wipes at her falling tears, a small smile touching her lipstick stained lips as I say it back and I've never meant it more, "I love you too"...

MICHAEL
A smile paints my face as her mothers accepting embrace fills me with peace, as if my relationship with Eva has been fully ignited now that we have the approval of her beloved parents that have let her daughter flourish into what she has become. "Thankyou michael, I should have never doubted your intentions ...I've never seen her so radiant and full of happiness before ... she's a different woman, thank you",mrs summers whimpers as she looks to her daughter that exchanges conversation with her father that I'm yet to talk to. "There's no need to thank me, I've simply helped her become what she's created all by herself, she's the most lovable person I've ever had the privilege of knowing ,she just needed someone to show her", I remark with such warmth, she holds my hand in both of hers as Eva approaches with her burly father that holds a looks of such sternness upon his face. Gulping as he takes me to one side while Eva and her mother talk within the booth of the cafe that dies down as people leave and others simply take their food to go as the evening dawns in on us rather quickly. "Before you say anything I just want to thank you for protecting and taking care of our daughter, I can see how much she loves you Michael, I just hope and pray that you keep her that way",his deep manly voice courses through me as he shakes my hand, although his words seem nice there's always an underlying threat when it comes to dads and their precious daughters. "Like I said I'll always protect and care for her that's what comes with the love I have for your daughter sir",I respond truthfully for as long as Eva is with me there's nothing that can hurt her. "That's what I like to hear son",he approves with a hand to my back as he harshly and firmly pats it making his statement that he is still very much so her father, a protective one at that.

The smile doesn't leave Eva's face as she sits beside me hand in hand in the car, singing sweetly to the music that softly blurs our of the stereo, her dr marten boots tapping upon the the floor to the beat. "I'm so happy michael",she blurts out loud with a toothy grin as she winds down the window and sticks out her arm as I speed down the empty country lane as I preferred to take the scenic route home that overlooks the moonlit lake. I laugh at her as she seems to bounce back to her usual bubbly self, her wild hair blowing ferociously as the car picks up some speed before slowing down slightly as I feel that a night like this is too young to waist without stopping to admire it. "What are you doing?",she giddily asks as she grabs my free hand, kissing at my knuckles and at the back of my hand as I stop the car at the side of the road. "Come on",I shout as I slip out of the car and make a run towards the lake along the sandy beach kicking off my shoes in the process and unzipping my bomber jacket, throwing it to the ground. I hear her contagious laughter as she catches up with me jumping on my back as I spin her around like two children at play. "Baby!",she whines loudly with such giddiness as I tackle her to the floor, sand littering her hair in a way that it almost sparkles when the light of the moon hits it. "What did I do to deserve you?",I state in utter disbelief for I often gaze upon her utter perfection and ask myself. "I could ask the same thing", she responds as she cups my face in her delicate hands, exhaling softly as I feel that I have the whole world in my hands whenever I'm with her...