Rettung *edited*

The sun peeked slyly through the windows. She groaned and rolled over onto her back, cracking open an eye to peek at the warm invitation. She heaved a sigh and flopped onto one side, glancing at the clock. It read back 6:30. She shook her head and tumbled out of bed—cursing her ability to be up with the sun. Her cat heaved a growl and glared out of one eye—unhappy at being disturbed. She chuckled and reached out to stroke the offended beast. The cat responded with an enthusiastic chorus of purring. She smiled and stood up, stretching out. Taking a deep breath she realized that she wasn’t the only one up; someone else had gotten up and brewed some coffee.
She stood in the doorway of her room, savoring the gentle, warm pulsing of sunlight on her back and shoulders. She closed her eyes and took another deep breath—holding in all the smells and sounds of the house. The scent of coffee energized her and woke her other senses, preparing them for the long day ahead. She could hear the distant orchestra of sleeping that drifted through the walls and danced down the stairs, reaching her ears in the basement. She let her mind wander, and found that she was curious about what her family was dreaming about.
She opened her eyes and began to walk to the bathroom. She frowned—trying to remember what her dream had been about. She reached the bathroom and started brushing her teeth. When she finished she glanced at herself in the mirror, smiled, and then went upstairs.
She walked softly across the wood floor into the kitchen. In the soft morning light everything looked fragile—almost as if a single breath would diminish its nostalgic beauty. She peered further around the corner and saw her uncle pouring himself a cup of coffee. She tip-toed up behind him and caught him in a big ol’ hug. He reacted quickly—throwing his arm behind her and catching her in a one-armed hug. She buried her face in his chest and breathed him in. He nuzzled her hair roughly—she could feel him smile.
“Good morning, Sunshine,” he said. She could hear the smile in his voice. She grinned.
“Mornin’,” she replied, muffled by his shirt. She pulled away from him and looked into his amber eyes. His smile broadened.
“Are you ready for today?” he asked, stirring vanilla cream into his coffee.
She grabbed a glass out of the cupboard and pulled the orange juice out of the fridge. She glanced at the eggs, “Do you want some eggs? And, no, not really,” she added as an afterthought. She grabbed the eggs and set them on the counter.
She heard him stirring his coffee. “Sure, I’ll take a couple. What’s wrong?” He sat down across from her and the stove, watching her.
She took a long drink of her orange juice, mulling over what she wanted to say. “What do you think is bothering me?” She topped off her orange juice and set the carton back in the fridge. He was quiet for the time being while she looked around the kitchen for a good egg pan and spatula. After she found what she was looking for she looked over at her uncle and chuckled, “C’mon, Uncle Teddy, I’m not that hard to figure out,” she teased.
“No, Ellie, you aren’t. But you’re also a girl, which makes a big difference,” he smiled and took a drink of his coffee.
“How do you want your eggs?” Ellie asked, opening the egg carton.
“Surprise me,” he said. She shrugged and continued on in the kitchen.
He took a sip of his coffee and watched her. She met his eyes briefly. The sunlight spilled across his face, making his eyes glow like liquid gold. She stood motionless, for a moment, trapped in his eyes.
“I think,” he began cautiously, “that it’s the wedding—simply because you’re too excited for our road trip.” She nodded, that was true. He continued, “What I can’t figure out is why. You’ve shown nothing but support and excitement during the whole process,” he made an enveloping gesture with his hands.
Ellie sighed and cracked an egg. “It was one thing for Mom to get remarried—she deserves to be loved that much. She deserves a second chance. But, my dad,” she paused, then violently seized the next egg, “is a completely different situation!” The egg shattered in her hand, sending debris into the pan, onto the floor, and herself. She looked up at her uncle—expecting him to rebuke her for her negligent actions.
Instead he was looking out the window. His smiled disappeared—she felt a distance open up wide between herself and him. Then he looked at her. She felt her breath catch—his eyes were sad, forlorn, almost lost; his eyes pierced straight through her heart. “I’m sorry,” she stuttered, “I didn’t think about—” he held up a hand, she stopped.
“Don’t,” he began stiffly, “don’t worry about it.” She walked over to him and wrapped her arms around him. He put his head on her shoulder.
They started when they heard a door open upstairs. She unwrapped her arms from around him and walked back to the stove to clean up her mess. He watched her walk back—the raw feelings in his eyes dissolving into that black place where such things are hidden. He cleared his throat and whispered loud enough for Ellie to hear, as footsteps were heard coming down the stairs into the kitchen, “We’re not done with this conversation just yet,” he raised his coffee mug in a salute and drank.
She rolled her eyes and smiled. Then she spoke to the newcomer, “Good morning, Grandpa. Sleep well?”
Her grandpa smiled and yawned, “Of course I did. Did you?” Ellie smiled and nodded then went and gave him a hug.
“Couldn’t have slept better. Want some breakfast?” She gestured towards the eggs. He nodded in affirmation and opened the fridge.
“Mind of I add to the menu?” he asked, holding up a package of bacon.
“Good idea, Frank,” Teddy said over his cup of coffee.
“Well, good morning, Teddy! I didn’t even see you there. How long have you been up?”
“I was up long enough before Ellie to brew some coffee,” Teddy replied simply.
“Did you two catch any worms?” her grandfather enquired looking from her to her uncle. Ellie gave him a blank look. Teddy chuckled at her blank expression.
Ellie caught on and replied, pointing to the eggs, “I prefer poultry.”
“Well,” Teddy jumped in, matter-of-factly, “that means more pork for us.”
“If you prefer clogging your arteries that way,” Ellie countered quickly. Her uncle smiled and her grandfather laughed. She smiled in spite of herself, and began cleaning out the pan.
She set the pan on the stove as her grandpa sat down next to her uncle, also with a cup of coffee. He took a sip then looked at Ellie, “Your grandmother was right behind me, and I’ll bet she’d love some eggs.”
Ellie chuckled, “Maybe I should make something more filling?” Uncle Teddy and her grandpa shook their heads. She held up her hands, “Alright—just throwin’ the option on the table.” She smiled again, and picked up some eggs. She listened to her grandpa and her uncle strike up a conversation about the latest happenings in golf and a possible game between the two of them.
After awhile her grandmother came downstairs smelling soft and gentle. She turned on the radio and danced over to Ellie. “Morning, mi hija.” Ellie smiled, and gave her grandma a hug. ‘At this rate things are going to be difficult to get done,’ she thought.
Uncle Teddy got up, with his coffee in hand, and set up a pan next to hers.
A short while later the four of them sat down and ate their breakfast. Ellie was careful to etch the details into her memory and savor the moment. The sunlight wandered in—harmonizing with the warm feelings that puddled around everyone and shone in their smiles and eyes. Ellie let her mind wander. She finished her orange juice and excused herself from the table to go and shower.
She walked into the bathroom and turned the radio onto the oldies station. She smiled and turned the shower on. She undressed and got in, letting the steam relax her. She smiled when Louis Armstrong sang ‘What a Wonderful World’ and even started singing along with Louis Prima when ha sang ‘Oh, Marie’. She let the coconut, vanilla, and jasmine seep into her, cleansing the remnants of her anxiety and anger.
Ellie climbed out of the shower after rinsing and wrapped a white towel around her. As she walked by the mirror she stopped and gave herself a solid look before smiling and walking back to her room.
She was putting on her shorts and belt when she heard someone coming down the stairs. She ran over to the closet and was able to grab a shirt before she heard the knock on her door. She paused with the shirt in her hands, “Yes?”
“Are you decent?” the voice was muffled through the door, but it was definitely male.
“Not quite, uh…hang on a second,” she said distractedly, spraying on some perfume and throwing her shirt on. She ran her fingers through her hair and flipped it, then opened the door.
Uncle Teddy smiled at her. “You smell good.” There was an awkward pause, then he gestured with his hands, “May I come in?” Ellie shrugged, slightly unsure.
“Yeah, I guess so—as long as you don’t mind me finishing up here.” She turned around and walked back into her room.
He chuckled, “Of course I don’t mind—I’m used to it,” he finished offhandedly. Ellie smiled, and then thought sadly, ‘But it’s been awhile…’ He sat on her bed, extended his legs, and putting his hands behind his head, fully reclined himself on her pillows. Ellie finished drying her hair and pulled out her hair curler and straightener and turned them on. As she was waiting for them to heat up she turned to Uncle Teddy, “So.”
“So?” he replied, looking away from the ceiling and meeting her even gaze.
“You came down here for a reason…” he nodded. She continued, “Well, might I ask what it is?”
“Yes, you may,” he said, smiling.
She rolled her eyes and sighed, frustrated, “Why did you come down here…into my room?” He sat up and looked at her innocently.
“We didn’t finish our conversation earlier,” he replied simply. “I told you that we would.”
Ellie sighed. “What is it that you want to know?” She turned back to the mirror and started straightening her hair. He moved to the edge of her bed—leaning towards her.
“I would like to know, Ellie, what’s wrong—what’s hurting you,” he paused, almost uncertain of himself. “Since the accident…I’ve found that the only will I have to live…is…” She stopped straightening her hair and turned to look at him. Her eyes started stinging, she knew where he was going with this. His eyes were brimming with tears. He took her hand tenderly in his, “…is you.”
Ellie remembered that night a couple of years ago as if it had just happened moments ago.
There had been an accident…Uncle Teddy had been at work—working some big breakthrough on an important project late into the night. Her Aunt Allie—who was pregnant with a little baby girl—had gone to take her uncle dinner. A drunk driver had swerved onto her side of the road—colliding head on with Aunt Allie and killing her and the baby. Her Uncle had been lost and broken for a long time. Ellie dropped all of her extra- curricular activities in order to spend more time with him and so that he wouldn’t be so lost and lonely.
Eventually he came around—and he became a father figure to her—he certainly treated her like he would have his own daughter. She appreciated that—he acted more like a father to her than her own dad had. Her dad had left Ellie and her mom when Ellie had been between one and two.
It was as if Ellie and Uncle Teddy completed each other.
Ellie fell back into the present. Uncle Teddy still had her hand. She let go, stood up, and wrapped her arms around his neck. He held onto her arms, and spoke quietly—trying to keep the tears at bay. “When I see you hurt, I hurt…Ellie, you’re all I have,” he whispered.
A tearing sensation ate at her chest, and a tear slipped out of the corner of her eye, “Uncle Teddy, it’s nothing that I can’t get used to,” she whispered—almost choking on her words. “I can’t be daddy’s little girl forever…” She tried to shake off the awful feeling in her chest by chuckling. “I’m glad that you’re coming with me tonight…I don’t think that I could do it without you.” She paused, feeling bile rise in her throat. She felt an ugly monster, which was normally kept behind the well-guarded door of her heart, raise its stiff neck and roar. She clenched her fists and let the following words seethe through her teeth like acid, “It’s not like he deserves me there anyways—he’s never been there for me…”
She let go of Uncle Teddy as he stood up. He placed his hands gently on her shoulders and looked her in the eye. “Ellie. He’s trying to make an effort.”
“I don’t care! Why bother—I leave for college in less than three weeks! He had eighteen years…” She glared over his shoulder at the empty space above her bed. Then she crossed the room and turned her back to her uncle, glaring at her reflection in the mirror. “It’s too late,” she muttered darkly. She heard him sigh, she looked down at the floor out of shame.
“Ellie,” he started cautiously. She turned around slowly, and uncrossed her arms. He took her hands in his and peered down into her eyes, she looked into his brilliant amber eyes.
Her thoughts began to race. The anger was uncalled for—her uncle didn’t deserve it. Besides, she was more mature than that and she shouldn’t let her emotions best her. She sighed and apologized. Uncle Teddy carefully led her to the edge of the bed. They both sat down. She wrapped her arms around him and laid her head on his chest—willing him to continue. He put his arms around her while looking for the right words. When he found them he took a deep breath and spoke softly.
“There’s always room for second chances…” She looked up at him, questions burning in her eyes.
“Ellie, I’m proof of it—you saved me from myself and the demons that I was struggling with. Without you I would probably be six feet under…”
He looked compassionately into her eyes, silently answering her burning questions. “You love your dad deep down. And you want him to love you like he should—like you deserve to be loved.” His voice broke, but he continued on, “Give him a chance to love you and be your dad—it’s taken him eighteen years to step up to the plate—he’s new at the whole father thing.”
Despite her efforts, Ellie felt hot tears trail down her cheeks. The monster began to rip away at her insides. All of her defenses crumbled under the staggering blow of Teddy’s truth. She tried to pull away from his arms—from him, but he wouldn’t let her go. He pulled her closer to him, and gently began to soothe her. Her last defenses, physical strength and will, gave way into the love that she could feel emnating from him.
“Let it out, Ellie—I’m here for you,” he cradled her in his arms. She finally gave in and cried, letting out all the anger and sorrow that had been dammed up inside of her. Teddy held onto her—he was her anchor in the flood of confusion from the emotions being exorcised from her. He closed his eyes, feeling her pain, but willing her to feel his love for her. Slowly Ellie’s tears began to dissolve into dry sobs, and finally into dry hiccups. She looked up at him, a silent apology spoke through her red-rimmed, tear stained eyes. He had never noticed how blue her eyes could be. She gave him a rueful smile.
He smiled back at her, “Should we finish getting ready?”
“Yeah,” she said grudgingly, “I guess I should give myself a second chance to get ready.” They both chuckled. He went upstairs to get ready while she finished.
She looked at herself in the mirror and chuckled half-heartedly at her appearance. She began to carefully remove the tear stains from her face. She glanced outside and, seeing the cloudless sky, decided to wear a fiery red dress. Ellie shed her clothes and felt relief seep through her as the silky dress graced her skin.
When she finished getting ready she went back upstairs. A strong smell of cologne bore down on her when she walked into the kitchen and saw Teddy waiting patiently for her. He smiled when he saw her. He was wearing the same exact shade of red that she was, with a black tie that matched his suit pants and jacket. She could tell by how the light glanced off his shirt that it was made from the same silky material that her dress was. She went to get her corsage, and his boutonnière. He quietly followed her.
She grinned when the light smell of roses tickled her nose. She took Teddy’s boutonnière out of its plastic container and turned towards him, “Shall I?” He smirked, and stepped closer to her. She carefully pinned it to his chest.
When she finished he reached around her to get her corsage. He held it up and cleared he throat, “May I, m’lady?” She chuckled and held out her wrist in response. He gently slid it into place, then, like the gentleman he was, he offered her his arm to escort her to his car.
They drove his white Lotus Exige to the wedding. On the way there they were mostly silent, preferring to listen to jazz and letting things be as opposed to trying to make small talk.
When they arrived Teddy escorted Ellie inside, where they had to part to be with the respective bride and groom parties.
Ellie couldn’t remember most of what took place at the wedding. She was glad to be there, and she was even happier that that which she felt was true. She was happy for her dad.
At the reception she told her dad how much she loved him while she was dancing with him. He apologized for hurting her and told her that he was going to make amends. She smiled and kissed him on the cheek.
After the next song had started her dad left to dance with his new wife and Ellie went to look for Teddy. She found him at the edge of the crowd, watching her with something akin to pride in his eyes. Wordlessly he kissed her forehead; then offered her his arm. She took it and they slowly wandered off into the garden.
They watched the sun set in passionate scarlet hues that set everything on fire. The night silently accompanied them as the moon began to rise. Ellie began to reflect quietly; Teddy’s warmth encompassed her, the faded scent of his cologne gently wafting through the air next to her. She peered at him through the corner of her eye. He was quietly watching her, waiting for her. She turned and looked at him.
They stopped walking. A stream gently played at their feet and the trees trilled their leaves ever so slightly above their heads.
Impishly a song stalked quietly into their space. Both Ellie and Teddy began to sway slowly to its tempting beat. He held out his arms to her; she snuggled into his chest and inhaled his scent. She could feel his warmth inside of her—healing what had long been broken for so long. He pressed himself closely against her and held her tightly against his chest.
Slowly they began to dance to the soft melody of the night. She began to feel a quiet harmony of stars enclose them. Teddy began to croon a lullaby softly in her ear. She closed her eyes and began to feel. The velvet sky pressed down on their shoulders as the ground underneath slowly shifted with their dance. Teddy was warm, the silk of his shirt comforting. She could hear him breath and feel his heartbeat.
Ellie paused in their dance, looking up at Teddy; he took her face softly in his hands. She stared into his eyes. He watched her—almost as if trying to read her soul. His eyes poured into hers. Ellie carefully reached up and kissed him on the cheek. When she pulled away she carefully looked back into his eyes to see his response. He smiled carefully and leaned into her, and kissed her tenderly.
Ellie laid her head on Teddy’s chest—listening closely to him breathe. “Uncle Teddy?” she called softly. He set his cheek gently on her head.
“Yes,” he answered gently.
“Thank you,” she closed her eyes, listening to his heart.
“No,” he whispered, feeling her heartbeat. “Thank you.”

From the family...

Merry Christmas!!!