the Presleys

chapter 5 - 1946

Cecilia hadn't seen Elvis over the weekend. Considering the two were inseparable, it was odd seeing them apart. Gladys claimed that Elvis had to catch up with school work and help her around the house. She had only seen him at school with his friends. Cece wasn't in a good mood, that was certain.

Either way, that dreadful Monday was slowly coming to an end. She finally started walking home, after having waited for Elvis to go home together. They've always walked each other home, no matter the time the other was done with classes. Sighing, Cece squinted at the sun hitting her as she sped up, just wanting to lay down in the comfort of her bed. But as she reached her home, she noticed the door being ajar and one of the windows being broken. Her hands started shaking at the thought of an intruder being home with her mother. Until she heard shouting from inside. She quickly bucked down the window as her chest went up and down, desperate for some oxygen.

"I don't care, Pandora! She's going with me!"

The voice was vaguely familiar, but she couldn't recall who it belonged to. One of her hands was tightly pressed against her beating heart and the other against her mouth, to muffle any sort of noise that might've come out.

"You left, John! You left and you don't get to come back now!"

A voice she could recognize was definitely her mother's. The bickering continued, until it started to sound like shouting again. Cece knew she couldn't stay there any longer.

"I'm taking her to California as soon as she's back from that goddamn school—"

That was her cue. With her hands tightly wrapped around the straps of her backpack she ran away. She opened the little garden door of the Presley house and ran to the door leading the kitchen. "Gladys!", Cece called for her as sudden tears started rolling down her cheeks. Gladys turned around with a sweet smile on her kind face, though once she took notice of the little girl's tears, she dropped her rag and embraced her in a hug.

"Oh, baby, who's done this to you?", she pulled away, placing her hands on her cheeks, but in vain the tears kept rolling. Her fingers delicately brushed them away as her sobs started getting louder. "Where's Elvis? He ain't here with you, darling?", Cece shook her head and hugged her once more. The door opened as a familiar voice called:

"Mama, I'm home!"

Though when Elvis walked in the kitchen, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion at the sight of his friend crying in his mother's arms. Gladys looked at him with a raised eyebrow, almost silently asking him if he was the cause of her tears. Elvis breathed out worried.

"Cece?", his tone was careful as he put his hand on her shoulder. "What happened?", but Cece shook her head and kept hugging Gladys until she was out of tears. As Elvis was about to ask another question, someone furiously knocked at the front door, making the three of them jump at the sudden sound.

"Mrs Presley? I swear to god if you're lying to me, Pandora."

Gladys pulled Cece away and crouched down in front of her. She brushed her tears away and kissed both of her cheeks. She looked at Elvis, who also seemed to have an inner battle with himself. "Booby, take Cece out in the tree house. I'll make sure whoever's at the door goes away soon, alright?", the two kids nodded at her words. Gladys stood up, kissed her forehead and shooed them away. Elvis grasped Cece's hand and pulled her out of the kitchen, leading her to the familiar tree house. They silently climbed in and sat down, the walls being able to hide their figures.

Elvis looked at her, frowning. With his finger he brushed a lone tear away. "Who did this to you, Cece?", the little girl simply sniffled at his words, not giving him an answer.