Morning After

“You have a scar on your chin.”

With the spatula he was holding, Eddus flipped the pancake he was cooking before giving Abbi a quick smile. She sat at the small table in the flat’s kitchen, wearing the t-shirt she’d put back on that morning. She watched him as he stood at the stove, cooking breakfast.

“I saw it while you were sleeping.”

“You were watching me while I slept?” Raising his eyebrows, Eddus gave her a wink. He stacked the fresh pancake on top of another on a plate beside the stove, then turned off the burner and placed the plate in front of the young woman at the table. “Would you like syrup or cream?”

Abbi’s eyes widened in surprise, her face lighting up.

“Cream?!”

“Would you like cream, then?”

“May I!”

Eddus chuckled softly as he opened the refrigerator and retrieved a glass bottle from it. He placed it in front of Abbi, then picked up a second plate of food from beside the stove and sat down across from her.

It was moments like these, watching the excitement on her youthful face as she poured the cream over her pancakes, that he was unable to stop himself, wondering again just what her age truly was.

Avoiding the cutlery beside her plate, Abbi used her fingers to tear off a small piece of the pancake. She put it in her mouth, raising her chin. Closing her eyes, she inhaled deeply as she chewed. Swallowing the food, she reopened her eyes, giving Eddus a half-smile, and glancing at her plate.

“I love cream,” she said, tearing another bite. “It’s my favorite!”

I can see that,” Eddus watched her with amusement. He poured syrup over his own plate and then picked up his knife and fork.

For a few minutes, they sat in silence. Eddus ate slowly, trying not to be too obvious in watching her.

Abbi was focused on her breakfast, eating at a quicker pace. When she’d finished, she used her fingertip to wipe up a drop of cream on her plate and licked it.

She stopped mid-motion, her fingertip still between her lips, as she noticed Eddus looking at her, his head tilted slightly. He said nothing.

“I love cream,” she said again quietly. She quickly dabbed her fingertips on the serviette next to her plate and folded her hands in her lap, straightening her back.

Eddus nodded, chuckling again. He put a bite into his mouth, prying his eyes away from her, not wanting to look away. He enjoyed watching her. But even now, after two weeks together, he didn’t want to make her uncomfortable.

“Where did you get it?”

“From the supermarket,” Eddus said, laughing softly. “It can even be delivered right to your house.”

Abbi looked at him blankly for a moment, then giggled, shaking her head.

“Not the cream, silly.” She wrinkled her nose. “How did you get the scar?”

“Oh. It was a bicycle accident.” Eddus smiled, shaking his head. “It was my first bicycle. My parents had gotten it for me on my fifth birthday. The first time I rode it, I went off the sidewalk in front of our house, and the front tire hit a large root of a tree in our yard. I wasn’t a very good rider, and I fell.”

Eddus dropped his gaze, a thoughtful look on his face as he recalled the past.

“I’m not sure whether I hit my chin on the handlebars or the ground.”

“It sounds awful,” Abbi said.

“I got seven stitches and had to stay a night in the hospital.”

Eddus shifted his gaze to Abbi, who shook her head and narrowed her eyes at him. She was trying to imagine him as a child. She wondered what he was like as a young man.

“It was great,” he said. “I was the first of my friends to get stitches. I also got three days out of school.”

“I wish I knew you back then.”

“That was a long time ago,” Eddus said, looking amused. “Before you were born,” he added, before feeling a touch uncomfortable at the thought.

Tilting her head slightly, Abbi shrugged. She glanced away, looking at the tabletop, then back at Eddus with a coy smile.

Eddus sighed, setting his fork down on the edge of his plate.

“You don’t have to go,” he said quietly.

The smile faded from her face, and Abbi nodded.

“You could stay here,” Eddus said, a hint of hopefulness in his voice. “You can stay, you know. You’re welcome... for as long as...”

His words trailed off.

“I have to go back, Eddie,” Abbi spoke softly, and her expression was somber. “At least for a little while.”

Eddus nodded silently. He didn’t look directly at her, as he thought about the last time they’d said goodbye, and how long it had been before they’d seen one another again.

“I don’t want to go,” she offered, “but I’ve been away longer than I should have.”

She reached across the small table, touching his arm. She could see that he was thinking about something.

“You know, I... I’m going to miss you.” Eddus’ gaze fell to Abbi’s small hand resting on the back of his. Moments passed in silence.

“I’ll be back.” Abbi’s fingers gently caressed his. She watched a look of worry come over him.

“Will you, though?”

“Why would I not come back to you, Eddus?”

“I don’t know,” he said, uncertainty in his voice. “We’re so different, you and I.”

“How could you think that?” Abbi gave him a smile, squeezing his hand.

“We’re- you’re a pixie. I don’t really even know what that means, but...” Eddus sat back in his chair, withdrawing his hand. “Abbi, I’m just a man. Just a human.”

“How could you think I wouldn’t come back to you, Eddie? I told you, I keep my promises.” Abbi spoke softly, lowering her gaze. “And I do promise. I will be back.”

“I know,” Eddus sighed, pushing the plate in front of him away.

“And you’re not just a human, Eddus Brandt.” Abbi’s voice had not risen. She looked up across the table. “You’re my human.”