Changes Two
By: Agent Newbeau
Note: This picks up where Changes One left off. Read that first or this
won't make sense.
Ellen looked at the ring and then at Mike. She loved him, trusted
him, but she didn't think he
would ever do anything like this. This wasn't right. "Mike, I love you,
but no, I won't marry you. Not
now."
Mike felt like he had been punched in the stomach. He hadn't
expected her to say no. He let go
of her hands and the ring fell to the floor. He didn't pick it up.
"W-why not?" he asked her finally.
"Because you're asking for only one reason. You may love me, but
you only want to marry me
because you feel like you have to now," she told him. She was surprised
at how easy is was not to cry
in front of him. "If we did get married how long would it be before you
regretted it, before you wanted
out? Tell me that, Mike."
"I wouldn't feel like that," he said. "I'm not my father, Ellen.
I'm not asking just because you're
pregnant. That's my baby, too and I want to be a part of his life
whether you want me to or not. And I
want you to be my wife. I've thought about this for a long time, not
just last night. I'm lonely without
you. I can't sleep unless I'm holding you. When you were gone I slept
maybe three or four hours a
night. I was up most of the night tossing and turning wishing you were
there with me. I'm incomplete
without you." He gently cupped her chin in one hand and rested the other
hand on her stomach. It was
too soon for any movement, but somewhere in there was his child. "Tell
me it's not the same for you
and I'll leave, but I can't abandon my child like my father did to me.
We belong together, Ellen. I've
known that for a long time. I bought that ring in San Francisco, but I
wanted to wait to give it to you.
I've known for a long time I've wanted to spend the rest of my life with
you. I love you more than
anything and I would marry you even if you weren't pregnant. I hope you
understand that."
Ellen didn't know what to say. Had he really meant what he had said
or was he just saying that
so she would change her mind and tell him yes? The look in his eyes told
her he was being sincere
about his feelings. "This is all happening so fast," she said. "I need
some time to think about everything.
If you love me, give me time."
He didn't say anything, just nodded and kissed her softly on the
cheek. He let go of her and
turned toward the door. He opened it and turned back to her. "Call me
when you make up your mind,"
he said, not even trying to disguise the hurt in his voice. Then he
stepped into the hallway, closing the
door behind him.
She noticed the ring still laying on the floor. Why had he left it?
She picked it up and looked at
it. The diamond looked real. The ring must have been expensive. Mike
couldn't afford a ring like that.
Most months he couldn't even afford to pay the rent on time. He had
gotten $375 from the job in San
Francisco and he had spent most of it on an engagement ring for her.
That proved he had meant all
those things he said. Maybe if she hurried she could catch him. She
opened the door and saw him at the
end of the hallway. She called out his name and he stopped when he heard
her. She walked up to him,
holding out the ring.
"I guess I forgot about that," he said, taking it from her.
"Thanks."
"No, I wanted to tell you I changed my mind," she said. "I will
marry you."
"What made you change your mind?" he asked as he slipped the ring
on her finger.
"I realized you meant all those things you said when I noticed just
how expensive that ring was.
You spent most of the money you got in San Francisco, didn't you?"
"Yep and you're worth every penny," he said and kissed her right
there in the hallway. He
didn't care who saw them. They were lost in their own little world.
When the kiss finally ended and they pulled apart they were
surprised by the sounds of
applause around them. A few people had stopped in the hallway to watch
them. "Guess we better get
back to your apartment before we get arrested," Mike said.
"No, I think we need to go to your place. We have to break the news
to the guys sometime."
"Later," Mike said, taking her by the hand and walking back to her
apartment. "Right now I
want you all to myself."
"As you wish," she said.
The End!
Okay, I know this one is really short but I think the heat has killed my
brain. The next one will be
longer. It's going to be in first person. Everybody gives their thoughts
on the news from Mike and Ellen
that not only are they getting married, but that there's a baby on the
way, too. Everybody reacts
differently and not everybody is happy about it.
That's coming as soon as I get it written. I'll probably send out the
parts one at a time because it's
going to be a lot of characters. So far the list includes Mike, Ellen,
Micky, Davy, Peter, Ana, Judy,
Joey, and Mr. Babbitt. And the story after that will be Home where Mike
and Ellen go to Texas to visit
his mother and Ana.
Well, hope you liked the story. Let me know what you think, good or bad.
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