Fix You ~Completed~

Act Seventy-Five

"Honey, are you okay?"

No. No. No. No.

I nodded, gesturing to Coraline's hair just as she was about to dip in inside her paint. She shrieked in surprise, stepping towards me to avoid contact. "Well, jeez! I am just a klutz today!" she sighed, clapping. My boyfriend's mom must have noticed my confused look because she smiled and explained, "Aria and Georgie went to grab some more paint. We didn't seem to buy enough to cover the whole fence. My estimate is we're about a bucket short."

"That's too bad," I said quietly. There was less than two feet of fence that needed new color. "The tan looks really nice."

"Thank you, sweetheart! We used to paint it blue every year, for the kids, but now that they don't live here we settle for boring tan. The paint is a bit cheaper," Coraline explained to me. I tried to imagine the whole yard lined in blue and it had me smiling despite the churning in my stomach.

On instinct, I reached for my wrist and squeezed, promising myself it was okay.

"Wanna sit with me for a while? I was just about to take a break!" Coraline offered, already leading me over to the deck. The woman was in a pair of faded jeans and a Journey t-shirt, both splattered ruthlessly with paint. There was some tan, some infamous blue, and violet, keying me in this was not the first time she'd used them as paint clothes. "How was the hike?"

I took a seat beside her on the edge of the deck, fisting the sleeves of my shirt tightly. Gripping felt too obvious. If I accidently jolted and moved my sleeve up any, she'd see my scars. She'd know what kind of person I was.

"It was wonderful," I admitted, hoping my cheeks weren't as red as they felt. "The view from the top of the hills is gorgeous."

"I know! Augustus and Joel have been taking the boys there for around a decade now. None of them ever seem to tire of it. Always wished Georgie would have gotten in on it too; it'd be nice bonding for him and his brother."

Just the thought of that, of having such a neat little tradition, made my eyes wet.

"Oh, sweetheart," Coraline cooed, reaching over to take my fist. My muscles relaxed and I allowed the woman to take my hand. "What is it?"

"It's just... it's really sweet," I covered, laughing lowly. "I-I cry easily. Sorry."

Something in her sweet face told me she didn't quite believe my words. It wasn't as if it was a lie. Truly, the fact the four of them had something like that was beyond sweet and I loved that.

With a sigh, Coraline reached up and pushed some hair out of my face. I flinched, glancing away. "Honey," she murmured, causing me to draw my hand back out of her grip. "Clem, it might seem like I'm overstepping here, but are you honestly okay? When you ran out of the house you looked ready to tear yourself into pieces."

"Eddie and Gale's friends came over to see them," I blurted out, attempting to hide how upset it had really made me. Yeah, I failed.

"Uh-huh. Gale had called them up yesterday to see if they wanted to visit."

So it was Ale who had them come over. Did Eddie know too and just not care enough to warn me?

"I take it, by your reaction, the meet-up didn't go so well?" Coraline spoke up when it became obvious I wasn't going to. I shook my head, any and all words I had forming inside of me too vicious to be let out in front of Ed's mom. "Did some of Eddie's old lady friends come over?"

If I didn't feel completely ready to bang my head into a rock, I would have laughed at the fact she said "lady friend." I loved Eddie's mom.

I swallowed hard, forcing out my words. "Adriana hates me."

"I doubt that."

"And I-I don't think Eddie wanted to tell them about... about us at first." I stole at glance at the woman, hoping to find a face of disbelief. I prayed she'd chuckle and tell me I was crazy. Eddie loved me, he was proud of us. Why would he feel any shame at our relationship?

The brunette woman let out a soft sigh and wrapped one arm around my shoulders. Oddly enough, I didn't tense. I leaned into her grip, actually, which surprised both of us in equal measure. "Honey," Coraline murmured, "you have to understand that Eddie probably isn't the same person to you as he is to them. His friends see him differently than you do."

I sniffled, hating myself for being this way. It shouldn't bug me. Eddie did tell them, but it took some pushing. "Maybe he wasn't necessarily trying to avoid saying it, he was just waiting for the right time?" I suggested quietly.

Coraline's smile made me feel so much better. "I bet that's what it is, sweetheart," she promised, giving me an affectionate pat. "Just let him deal with them. His friends aren't exactly the most accepting people, especially Adriana."

"They used to date, right?"

"Uh-huh. I think they were together for two months, then she got bored and cheated on him with an old hockey-mate of Eddie's. To say the least, those two stopped speaking and Ed dumped her," Coraline explained to me, careful to be as gentle as she could. I nodded understandingly, sighing.

In other words, the chances of Eddie wanting her again are pretty slim if she did something so crappy to him. Thank the gods. (Although, knowing someone did that to my Ed made me wanna cry. He deserved better.)

"Don't worry about any old flames. None of them were very serious. You're probably the first real, stable relationship Eddie has ever had," Coraline went on, placing her other hand on my knee. I blinked, shocked. Ed and Ale had joked about Eddie's failed love-life, but I assumed he just had a losing streak. I never imagined he didn't have any significant relationships before me. "You make him happier than Adriana or any of those girls ever did."

"I-I do?" I stuttered helplessly. I tucked my lip in between my teeth, attempting to suppress the grin that was clawing its way onto my face.

My joy was evident to Coraline. "Aw, yes. Eddie is good with you and I have the feeling you're good with Eddie."

"He's the b-best thing that's ever happened to me," I admitted shyly, leaning back a little. My boyfriend's mom hugged me even harder, laughing sweetly. "I'm being serious."

"I know! Why do you think it makes me so happy?" she sighed, pecking my cheek. "I'm gonna have four sons! I'm so excited!"