Loving Eleanor(BWWM)

Chapter Ten

Location: New Haven, Connecticut
Date: November 14th, 1949
Name: Stephen Dale Curtis
Age: thirty-nine

"Eleanor! Stop running!" Dale yelled as he followed her out of the room. He wanted to talk to her about what just happened, but it seemed like she had other plans.

Eleanor whipped her head towards Dale and her face showed all of her emotions. "Why?" Her voice cracked as she spoke, tears clouding her vision. She wanted to stay and just be in Dale's arms again, but it wasn't that easy.

Dale walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her. "Eleanor, don't run away from what just happened. Don't run away from me," He wanted her to stay. They didn't have to even talk, he just wanted to be with her.

The tears that formed in Eleanor's eyes had now fallen and she took a deep breath to calm her heart. "Dale, I-i have to think about this," She whispered. "I have to think about this alone," With those final words, Eleanor removed herself from Dale's arms.

Dale didn't chase her because he knew that she needed to think. She needed to clear her mind, and he wasn't upset about it. He knew that they would get nowhere if both of their minds and hearts weren't all in.

-

She didn't know what to think, she didn't know what to say. She only knew that everything she once knew was now scrambled.

"Eleanor, dear, would you like some hot cocoa?" Mildred asked when she heard the door open.

Eleanor didn't respond, her mind was too scrambled to even put words together.

"Eleanor? Are you alright?" Mildred walked out of the kitchen with two cups of cocoa and took a seat next to Eleanor.

Mildred started to panic at the lack of awareness from her daughter. "Honey," She said and shook her body a little.

"Oh," Eleanor murmured and took the mug from her mother's hand.

Mildred wrapped her arms around Eleanor and pressed a kiss onto her temple. "You want to tell me what's wrong?"

Eleanor sighed and tried to figure out where to start. "I feel like everything that I know is a lie," She whispered. "Michael lied to us. Dale told me what really happened, Michael called me freaky, and Dale punched him for saying that about me. He defended me," She bit her lip and shook her head.

Mildred hummed and pressed for more information. "That was very thoughtful of him. But why are your eyes red and your face is streaked with tears?"

"I told Dale about what Michael said about me, and it just hurt to relive that day. His words cut me to the core even if I don't believe it now, but when I do feel insecure, that's how I feel. Like no man will want to stick around long enough to truly know me, and truly love me." Eleanor admitted while trying to keep her tears at bay.

Mildred's heart hurt at Eleanor's honesty. She didn't know that Eleanor felt that way. "My sweet Hazie, there will be a man who will come along and be worthy of your heart. It takes a truly dedicated heart to search out a matter. Which means that your one can't just be any man, he has to be someone who has the endurance and patience to truly love you right," Mildred reassured her daughter. "What happened after you cried?" She pressed.

Eleanor's cheeks warmed up and she tried to decide if she would tell her mother what happened. "Dale hugged me and told me that Michael was just upset because he would be missing out on someone like me,"

Mildred smiled. "A change of heart at its finest, God is so good." She hummed and Eleanor nodded. "Did anything happen after that?" She asked simply wanting to know more.