Off Camera

Meet the Parents part two

later that day (dinner time) 

"mum can you pass me the salt please?" i asked my mum as i was standing over the stove mixing the pasta sauce. 

"yeah, sure, here you go honey" my mum who had her back turned to me, stopped cutting the tomatoes and turned to me. "liza, have you told David about Reagan?" my mouth instantly became dry and my heart stopped. just hearing that name made me feel sick. 

i stopped stirring the pasta sauce and turned off the stove.

"no, and im not going to. he doesnt need to know about that" i played it cool and pretended to wash my hands in the sink but my mum clearly wasnt buying it.  

"Liza, david deserves to know about your history. i think he would rather find out from you than someone else." i was starting to lose my temper. 

"mum! he doesnt need to know and he won't find out. Reagan doesn't even know where i am. " 

"liza he deserves t.." before my mum could finish her sentence my dad and david walked in through the door with the soft drink in their hands. i went back to the stove and pretended as if nothing had happened.

"hey the boys are back! just in time to, dinner's nearly ready!" david walks over to me and gives me a kiss on the head while my dad goes over to my mum and they start whispering about something. i was still a bit uneasy about the conversation that i had just before with my mum but i didnt want to think about it anymore or ever for that matter. 

"dinners served i say as i bring the pasta with the sauce mixed into over to the table where everyone was now seated." we all dug in and before we knew we were finished. i didn't say a lot at the table which caused david some suspicion that something was wrong. 

after dinner we all sat down and watched a movie together and then my parents left for their hotel. "you sure you guys don't want to stay here for the night"

"no sweetheart it's fine, the hotel is closer to the airport anyway and we have an early flight tomorrow." my mum said.

my dad and david shook hands while my mum pulled my in for a hug. as we were hugging she whispered in my ear; "tell him because he deserves to know, if he loves you like i think he does, he wont leave" we pulled away and my dad hugged and then left. i was left speechless. i was scared more than anything to tell david about Reagan, about my past, about my mistake. 

"babe did something happen between you and your mother while i was out because when your dad and i got back things seemed a bit strange and you were really quite." i wanted to tell him but i was too scared so i played it off. 

"no, im just tired babe it's been a long day" he didn't buy it. David moved closer to me this time.

"i know thats not true liza, because you only fiddle with your ring if something is wrong." i didn't realise that i was doing it but i looked down and i was slipping the ring david gave me on and off of my finger.   

"david i need to tell you something, can we sit down?" he followed me to the couch and we sat down next to each other. i took a few deep breaths in and out to make sure i was ready for this, but to be honest i dont think that i ever will be. 

"liza whats wrong, im really worried about you" 

"david before i tell you can you promise that you say anything until the end." i looked pleadingly into his eyes and he nodded in agreement. "ok well, two years ago, the year before i started senior year, a guy in my class that i had known for a little, his name was Reagan well we got quite close and he eventually asked me out, i said yes and we dated for just over a year. well, half way through senior year, so last year, he wanted to take our relationship to the next level but i told him that i wasnt ready. He got mad but didn't hurt me or anything. so any way it was my birthday and he asked me again, i was nervous to say no so i agreed. we did it..."

i could feel tears coming on at this point and i could see that david was really confused. he wasn't sure as to where i was going with this.

"after we had done it, he started acting weird around me and wasn't as interested in me as he used to be. i would ask him about it but he would always say i was being stupid. two weeks later i found out that he had been cheating on me with various girls even way before we had started dating. but the worst part of it was the day that i found out that he was cheating on me, i also found out that i was..." 

i took a deep breath and i couldn't hold back the tears anymore, they were escaping my eyes and i had no control over them. david reached for my hand still confused as to what i was going to say. 

"i found out i was pregnant. i was going to tell him but i broke up with him instead realising that he never loved me from the start. he was only ever after one thing and as soon as he got he left for the next girl. i told my parents and my friends and eventually i got the courage to tell him. he didnt believe me and he told me that it wasnt his and that i was faking it so he wouldn't leave. he pushed me and i fell. i waited a month until i had made my decision as to what i was going to do and finally i had an abortion." 

we stayed silent for a little while before i made the first move. i could already see that david was in shock and that his hand was now looser on my mine than before. i already knew that he was going to leave me. i knew that i shouldnt have told him. 

"david look im sorry i didnt tell you sooner but i was scared and..." he cut me off and said something that i was not expecting. 

"he didnt believe you and pushed you and he cheated on you?" he sounded more shocked at those things than he was with the whole i was pregnant part. i nodded slowly, keeping my eyes glued to the floor not wanting to see what his facial expression was. 

he got and i felt his hands wrap around me so tight and he kissed my head multiple times. "liza i would never leave you, no matter what the circumstance. god if i ever see him i will do some damage." i was still crying from before. 

"but aren't you mad?" 

"baby, why would i be mad. you didn't do anything wrong. i know you and i know that you would have used protection and sometimes accidents like that one happen, im only mad at the dickhead for not treating you right and not treating you like a princess. i am so sorry that i wasnt there to protect you. Liza i promise you that i will never leave you ok, never." i finally lifted my head to meet his eyes and his lips crashed into mine as he was still holding me in a tight embrace. 

i couldnt believe that he was ok with it, well i could believe it because it was david, the best boyfriend in the world and this kinda just proved it. this was the first time in my life where i could actually feel safe and happy and reassured that he wasn't going to hurt me like Reagan did. i had find my happy ever after and thats all a girl could ask for.