You Can't Always Get What You Want (Taylor Hanson)

Chapter 3

Essence spent the night in Justin's arms. Curled in the backseat of his car, kept warm by him and two blankets. The night was extremely chilly, but all she felt was the fire of his love for her, enveloping her in a warm cocoon.

Sleep wasn't easy in coming once they entangled themselves from the innocent embrace they had been in. Just enjoying being with each other.

But eventually they both fell into a fitful rest.

They got back to her house in the predawn darkness. She kissed him and hugged him tight, before she made herself unlock the back door and sneak up to her room.

She watched from her window until not even his car's taillights were visible. Then she slowly undressed and crawled into bed to fall into a sleep where she dreamt a blue eyed angel lookalike took her away from the man she loved.
She woke up at 11:00 that morning, her cheeks wet with tears.

When she finally managed to drag herself from the warm nest of blankets that she had subconsciously made to imitate her boyfriend's arms, she took a hot shower, scalding her skin to a pink. She dressed in jeans and a long-sleeved Eminem shirt, not able to wear her Hanson ones. She may have still been a fan of the band's music, but she couldn't bear to have anything at all to do with them right now.

She finally made an appearance downstairs for lunch at 12:30 that afternoon.

Both her parents were sitting in the living room, which she bypassed and headed straight for the kitchen. She grabbed a can of mountain dew and a ham and cheese sandwich with ketchup.

As Essence was trying to choke down her food, which her stomach didn't seem to want to accept though she knew she'd make herself sick if she didn't eat something, her mother and father came in.

She had managed to eat half of her sandwich and at the sight of them coming into the kitchen, she lost what bit of an appetite that she had had.

Her mother leaned against the doorjamb, frowning at her, while her father gave her a stern look.

"We know who you were with last night," he began,"we are very disappointed in you. We thought by now you'd see the light of reason, but apparently not."

"I suppose forbidding you to see that boy would do no good," her mother continued,"but we are forbidding him to come here. If we see him here, we will call the police. He dresses the part of someone with a drug problem, so I'm sure something could be arranged."

Essence gaped at these people who called themselves her parents,"Listen to yourselves! This whole thing is ridiculous! I can't believe I'm even related to you!" She threw her half a sandwich away in disgust and took the rest of her soda with her and ran upstairs, slamming the door.

"She is being so unreasonable," Karen said, shaking her head.

"She'll come around," Ben answered, thoughtfully.

"And if she doesn't?"

"Then she'll live in, what is to her, an unreasonable situation until the day she dies."

"Quite so."

In another part of town, Taylor sat on his couch staring at the TV, not even seeing what was on.

He was lost in thoughts on how to get Essence to agree to marry him. He couldn't believe she would choose some punk dude over him.

He shook his head, as if to clear away such disagreeable musings.

He decided he would just go see her when she was home alone and talk to her and make her see he wasn't the bad guy in all this. Though he supposed, in a way, he sort of was, but she didn't need to know that.