by Sarah N. Ham
“What’s up?”
“These are the keys to my father’s condo in Nashville. We want you guys to go and spend the evening there together.”
“What!? We can’t do that! How could we be any more obvious to her folks!?”
“We’ve already told them that you’re staying the night at my place and Maybelle with Naomi. I got permission from Dad. Just don’t make a mess of it, be back in time for Sunday school, and none of them are the wiser.”
“You got your dad involved in this!?” I cried out.
“Sorry, I accidentally blabbed, but see, I’ve been talking to him, and he said that if you two would like since you want to go to Vanderbilt, he’ll rent you the condo for $400 a month. Plus, he said if you want to go there to be alone until your folks know, he’s okay with that. He only asked that by the time you move in for real that your folks know.”
Maybelle and I were left stunned.
“Wh-why would he offer something so generous?”
“Because you two are married, and he’d rather you two have a safe place to be together than sneaking around your parents’ backs in their house or trying to sneak around the law to get hotel rooms. Besides, now that my folks are back together, they have no real use for that condo. It’s either he rents it out or sells it.”
“Yeah, and my mom offered to agree to the story, too, if your folks asked.” Naomi explained.
“Huh!? Naomi, you told your mom!?”
“I can’t lie to her. Besides, it was an accident. Maybelle and I were discussing the marriage, and I guess she overheard us. I tried to cover up, but she knows how bad a liar I am and threatened to ground me from the dance…”
I groaned and said, “Okay, okay, so let’s get our stories straight. The only ones who know are Naomi, Eddie, her mother, his folks, and Mr. Churchill, right?”
“N-no, Drake Parker knows, too…” Maybelle confessed.
“Wh-what!? Since when!?” I asked, shocked.
“Since the night he showed up at our house… After you stormed out, I was so mad that I sorta snapped and told him not to call me ‘Belle’ because only my husband got to call me that…” She explained.
I groaned at the headache the transfer student’s name instantly gave me and said, “Of all the people to know I wish he would’ve known last, but that’s okay because it means he might get the hint and leave you alone.”
She gave me a half-hearted smile, so I dropped the subject and said, “I guess, we ought to get in the car. It’s a half-an-hour drive to Nashville.”
She nodded and hugged her friends goodbye, saying, “Thanks for everything.”
***
We got to the familiar condo very soon. Once there, we explained to the condominium manager the situation as to not surprise her, but she simply said with a smile, “Mr. Sanchez has explained this to us. He said that he may be renting it to you guys in a year or so.”
“Yeah, he offered it.”
“Well, he’s a good man, so you must be, too, otherwise I wouldn’t see him doing this.”
“Well, his son is my best friend, his son’s girlfriend is my wife’s best friend, and we all attend the same church as well as school.”
“Very nice… well, welcome. We’re mainly here for safety and regulatory reasons, so if you see something suspicious or if you have a neighborhood complaint, we’re here. Any issues with the condo itself go to Mr. Sanchez as he is the property owner.”
“Thanks, and sorry to bother you this late.”
“No problem.”
With that, we went to the condo and let ourselves in. It was rather bare from where he’d moved most of his stuff back into his home. However, there was still various appliances and one queen-sized bed in each of the two bedrooms. There were brand new looking comforters in the bedrooms and a new set of bathroom towels and toiletries. This all made me wonder how long Eddie and his father had planned this.
I placed the keys on the kitchen countertop and said, “Well, what do you think? Do you think we could make this work for the first few years of our lives until I can get a proper job and get us a house?”
“It’s more than I could ever dream, and his offered price is so generous…” She whispered.
“Wh-why don’t we get comfy? It’s kinda odd being together in another home.”
“Yeah, I could use a shower and some water from all the dancing.”
“Yeah, good idea. Let me put the bag of snacks we bought in the fridge. Do you want to go first?” I asked.
“Um… I was actually hoping you’d join me.” She mumbled, fidgeting a bit in embarrassment.
I nodded, blushing and holding in the jitters myself. It had been a week since I’d gotten to even sleep beside her, let alone be with her, and though that would probably seem like nothing to others, the exhaustion from having to hide all of this made it feel like it had been an eternity.
So, as we stepped into the bare white bathroom, I had to loosen my tie, suddenly feeling like the room was a hundred degrees. She pulled out her hair clip, letting her scarlet hair fall onto her shoulders, and then, she asked me if I’d undo the zipper of her dress. I nodded and did so slowly. She pulled off her necklace before untying the neckline of her dress and allowing it to fall at her feet. My eyes widened at the seductive corset set she wore underneath it, and I couldn’t help it as I let out a husky groan, “W-well, that’s new…”
“Yeah, Naomi insisted I get it…” She muttered, blushing.
I ruffled my hair, trying to contain my hormonal brain’s thoughts and growled, “That’s not fair, and she knows it. That’s why she did it…”
Maybelle blushed but approached me. She began removing my vest, tie, and shirt. I shivered under her touch, and I took her hands in mine, kissing her fingers before holding them close to my heart.
“I love you, Belle.”
“I love you, too, Michael.” She said as I kissed her lips tenderly.
It took a lot of effort to get that silly corset off, but it was worth it when I saw my bride pure and naked before me. I couldn’t wait to take a shower, so I picked her up instead and carried her to the bedroom. That night, I made love to her, feeling like the night was absolutely perfect. As I held her in my arms, I thanked God for the amazing blessing.
Afterwards, we got up and took a shower together, kissing and acting like the love-struck teenagers we were before I lifted her up and carried her to bed. We watched some videos on our phones and soon after, fell asleep exhausted from the day’s events.
Chapter Seventeen – A Life-Long Consecration
When Monday came around, I was still bursting with giddiness over the memories from the dance and that night. I got my lunch earlier than the others and then, sat at our normal spot when Drake Parker plopped down next to me, saying, “Hey, Belle.”
“Drake Parker, call me that again and I’ll—.”
I was cut off as he shoved something into my mouth and said, “Take a chill pill, and calm down.”
To keep from choking, I swallowed what he’d forced down my throat, but I realized in horror at the taste, “W-was that chocolate!?”
“Yeah, all girls like chocolate.” He said, “Consider it a late Valentine’s gift. I have more if you want.”
My group of friends walked up right when he said this, and Michael panicked, “You gave her chocolate!?”
“Yeah… what’s the big deal!?”
“She’s severely allergic to chocolate!” He shouted. “Maybelle, where’s your pen?”
By this point, my throat was already swelling as I gasped out, “B-bag…”
“Okay, bag, bag… where’s her bag!?” Michael shouted, looking around everywhere.
“Oh no, she must’ve left it in Western Civ!” Naomi realized.
“Eddie, go get her bag since you’re the fastest of us. Quickly! Naomi, call 9-1-1! Drake Parker, get a supervisor!” Michael instructed.
“M-Michael, I c-can’t… I can’t br-breathe.” I rasped out.
; “Maybelle, Maybelle, look at me. Don’t speak; try to breathe through your nose. Keep your eyes open.”
I tried so hard, but I couldn’t as I soon passed out from the lack of oxygen.
The next thing I recalled, I woke up to Michael performing CPR, and Naomi jabbing my thigh with the pen injector. As I opened my eyes, grateful to the air invading my lungs, I stared at my concerned friends and husband. Even Drake Parker looked horrified. I could hear sirens in the background and realized what was happening.
I curled up against Michael, weakly as he turned me to the recovery position on my side. He glared at Drake Parker and shouted, “Don’t ever do something like that again! You never force-feed a person! You are lucky that I won’t accuse you of trying to drug or poison her because to the cameras, it will look like that! Think next time, d**mit! You almost killed my wife!”
When the EMTs came, Michael insisted on coming with us, saying that he was family. I was fine; they kept me in observation for a few hours once they treated the reaction, but it left me feeling drained.
***
When I met Drake Parker that Thursday, he apologized, saying that he would’ve never guessed about my allergy. Nonetheless, it caused him to stray off onto family health history as our topic, which I approved of over all the other arguments/discussions we had gotten into over sexual matters. I told him that the allergy was my only serious health issue and how my family was generally healthy, generationally speaking. Michael’s family on his mother’s side had been plagued with cancer. His mother, grandmother, one aunt, and his great-great-grandmother had all died young of breast cancer. His living aunt on his mom’s side had literally gotten a mastectomy to lower the risk.
This got us in an argument over if I could justify having children with him who could be carriers of such a risk. Then, he said that aside from some side-effects of obesity, his family was clean as a whistle health-wise, making me question his intentions with the statement.
Finally, our hour was up to my relief as I rushed out. I wanted to stay as far away from that creep. He may have been easy on the eyes to most girls, but he had the personality of a psychopath.
***
Michael and I were very grateful to Eddie’s dad for the condo to use, and it came in handy when we wanted to get away and be able to just show our true selves and love for each other. At home, Dad was being more overprotective than ever before, and I couldn’t tell why.
While we did use it for a place to be able to make love justifiably, that wasn’t why we loved it. We could be ourselves there. We began to buy furniture for it—with the permission of Eddie’s father, of course. We started to decorate it, as we liked it, build a future there, and make it our second home away from home.
At our childhood house that we grew up in, we were Michael Hawkins and Maybelle Lloyd, the childhood friends who always did as our parents asked and would never change, but there at the condo, we could be Michael Hawkins and his bride, Maybelle Hawkins—paperwork pending, of course—lovers, spouses, best friends, and soul mates.
He’d play his music for me as I lay across from him covered only by a sheet. I’d talk about how much I was looking forward to college or how I wanted to be the mother of his children. He would smirk mischievously and say that we could complete that goal now. Then, we would make love—with protection, of course—and spend the rest of the night talking about what we’d name them, how we would raise them, or how they would be in different clubs or activities. We’d laugh. We’d cry. We’d even fight, but we’d do it together and become closer because of it.
***
One day in summer, we were watching a movie, and I sat next to Michael, pretending that him calling dibs on the popcorn bowl was my reasoning. We snuggled under a blanket, holding just enough distance to lower suspicion, but as the movie continued on, I couldn’t help but sneakily take hold of Michael’s hand under the blanket, since no one could see us. I saw him holding back a gentle smile as he stroked my hand with his thumb. It took so much out of me, not to lean in and kiss his lips, but then, I saw my dad look over at me. I smiled at him to hide my actions. He eyed me for a second and then, smiled back before turning his attention back to the movie.
After the movie as we all went to bed, I couldn’t help but notice that Dad stayed by the door watching Michael and I go into our rooms, almost like he was verifying that we wouldn’t sneak into each other’s room. It was so frustrating hiding all this, and I couldn’t help it as I texted Michael.
ME: Did my father really just do what I think he did!?
MICHAEL: I know!? It was like he was watching us like a hawk! You don’t think he suspected that we were holding hands under the blanket, do you?
ME: I don’t see how he’d come to that conclusion since we put the popcorn between us to lower suspicion…
MICHAEL: True… Gosh, all this is too much. I just want to hold you and kiss you.
ME: I know. Why won’t they just tell us about the marriage thing so we can be straight with them? It’s been almost six months now since we found out about all this.
MICHAEL: I don’t know. Maybe they’ve been trying to find some other way around our signatures.
ME: You don’t think they’ll find a way to reverse it without us knowing, do you!?
MICHAEL: I don’t know, but I doubt it… I feel like there would be so sort of sign from them that would give them away. Man, this sucks. I want to hold you tonight so badly. Not necessarily for sex or anything. I just want to hold you. It’s been weeks.
ME: Maybe we can figure out a way to get to the condo when they are running errands. Even if it’s just a nap or a little date.
MICHAEL: This was so much easier during the school year because they didn’t check up on us so much, but now that it’s summer, if we’re gone for too long at the same time, they start calling us. I can only have Eddie cover me so much before they’re bound to figure it out.
ME: Me too. I think it’s too obvious when we keep “sleeping over” at our friends’ houses on the same nights. I’m glad that their folks are in on it, too, but I don’t like lying so much.
MICHAEL: Me neither, but I don’t know what else to do. We still have 3 months till I’m 18, and roughly 9 until you’ll be 18. I’m starting to wonder if we should just ‘fess up, but your dad makes me so nervous. I’ve even tried talking to him just about what he thought of the idea of you going to the same college as me, and he seems to only like it for the idea of protecting you from going to parties and possibly getting raped. Seriously, I don’t know why he seems to have something against me.
ME: I don’t know. Maybe he knows that you are in love with me, so he’s going into protective dad mode.
MICHAEL: I wouldn’t be surprised. While I’ve never flat out told any of our parents about my feelings for you, I don’t think I’ve been the best at hiding it either… I think you were the last one to figure it out, to be honest.
ME: Sorry for being slow -_-;
MICHAEL: That’s not what I meant, Belle.
ME: I know… we should try to get to sleep… I don’t think staying awake all night, fantasizing about being each other arms is going to help.
MICHAEL: True… what are you wearing at the moment? //<.<\
ME: Michael Layton Hawkins, bad!
MICHAEL: Only for my wife, Dear. ^w^
ME: Goodnight, Mikey-moo!
MICHAEL: Goodnight, Belle. I love you.
ME: I love you, too.
I sighed, putting up my phone. I tossed and turned in my bed, imagining what Michael must be thinking about.
ME: What are you wearing? //>.>\
MICHAEL: Maybelle Juniper Lloyd… I think I’m a bad influence on you.
ME: Hey, that’s Maybelle Juniper Hawkins to you, Mister!
MICHAEL: Soon, my love, soon… And I’m in my fox pajamas… ;3
ME: Hot… ;P Okay, I’m going to bed for real. Goodnight, Mr. Hawkins.
MICHAEL: Goodnight, Mrs. Hawkins.
***
/> Soon the season went by, and we had just started our senior year. We’d been through so much in the past eight-and-a-half months since we’d learned we were married and decided to stay married. We’d had a lot of firsts, including one of our first big fights…
I’d known that I should have been straightforward with Michael about Drake Parker’s scheme, but it had taken seven months of this nonsense before sh*t finally hit the fan. Unbeknownst to me, Gwen had seen us meeting at some point, misunderstood the intent, and had gone to Michael’s work to tattle on me. That same night with our parents gone at bible study, he came home and very bluntly said, “Let’s have sex…”
I was surprised by his boldness but complied. However, it was different. He was rough, not loving and romantic as he always was. Suddenly, after a particularly painful interaction caused me to inadvertently let out a cry of pain, he paused.
“M-Michael, c-can we slow down…? You’re awfully b-bold tonight…”
He froze and pulled away from me with this frustrated look on his face, confusing me. Then, he growled, lowly, “Maybelle, why didn’t you tell me that you were meeting with that Alaskan?”
Realization set in, and I said, “I can explain that, Michael.”
Then, he angrily shouted, “How are you going to? When we agreed to stay married, it was on a vow of fidelity! Does that mean nothing to you!?”
“What!? I wasn’t unfaithful, Michael! We weren’t on a date or something!”
“I saw you! Gwen told me, and I rushed over there just in time to see you two kissing!”
Tears welled up in my eyes at the sickening memory. Drake Parker had brought up the topic of sex yet again, and when he’d made a rather detestable-level comment involving oral sex, I angrily hissed, “Scr*w you!”
