Girl of Mine

Chapter 17 - Pink apron

There was no music, dancing, or Christmas tree in sight, just a wooden decorative scene from the birth of Jesus. The baby looked quite haunting, and Rachel felt really bad admitting she hated that thing.

Rachel was beyond herself for getting to join in on the fun this year.

With shared laughter, we reached my apartment building—walking past what felt like a sky-high Christmas tree stretching for the beyond. Lit up, around and around, it greeted us with the promise of tranquility and the holiday season. Taking upon the walk up to my door, snow was shoveled to each side to make room for feet wanting to get inside without much trouble.

Warmth hit my frozen cheeks, causing the redness to burn even brighter. Rachel had started singing a funny parody of a classic Christmas song. It had a few dirty words, and she blushed when singing it out loud—all the way up the stairs to the fourth and highest floor.

Reaching my door, I could hear a dark voice that I could swear did not belong to my father. It was half past six, so it would be unusual for my uncle to show up for a late visit without calling in the day prior.

Rachel continued singing the following line to the song, leaving the last humorously dirty word for me to sing the moment I opened the door.

On the other side of the door, lined perfectly with the kitchen door arch, stood Elvis in my pink and white checkered baking apron. My mom was right there with him, dressed in her kitchen scarf, protecting her hair from getting in the baked goods.

He turned around to face me with flour on his cheek and a smirk telling me he heard me singing. His thick black, knitted turtleneck sweater clearly wasn't that protected from the white of the flour.

«Elvis?» I shouted, completely blown away by the absurd sight of him in my kitchen. The sky blue and white checkered floor, blue counters, and kitchen cabinets stood in contrast to what I'd never thought I'd see in my home.

«Hi..» He said sweetly, looking from me to my friend behind me.

«Hi dear, I'm Elvis.» He said, closing the distance between us with a few steps to reach his hand out to greet Rachel.

Rachel was sweet as a muffin and very shy, but she made her way to my doormat next to me and shook his hand, with Elvis showing off his blinding smile.

«I'm Rachel.» She said kindly before sliding off her wet winter hat, caused by the now melted snow.

«It's very nice to meet you, Rachel. Now I've heard you girls were baking tonight. Your mom invited me to join you. I hope that's all right?» His charming self melted Rachel's heart—I could see it in her blushing cheeks that were no longer there due to the cold.

His gaze wandered from Rachel to me, and I thought I could see a worry go through him as his clear blue eyes landed on me.

I knew I hadn't picked up the phone in over a week, but I would have never imagined him showing up here because of it. In his eyes, though, I could just see that this was the sole reason for his sudden show.

After two nights, he quit calling in the late hours. Instead, he called about 7 o'clock, so someone other than me was able to pick up. My dad had told him I was sick whenever he'd call.

Being sick all week surely made Elvis feel some type of way for him to just be here on a random Sunday.

«Elvis, can I talk to you alone?» I asked before looking down at Rachel.«Will you be fine with my parents for a second?» I asked her, to which she nodded with a gentle smile. Rachel usually got along better with older people any day, so I knew she would be happy joining my mom's side baking.