Again (Brandy Jeffus)

trays and pick our food.
    "Girl, I know. Believe me; it's weird for me too. The rumors hurt a lot, but you just learn to live with them. After a while they don't bother you as much." I reply as we sit down.
    We eat our dinner quickly, inhaling the tasteless hospital cafeteria food. We clear our trays and start back to the elevators.
    "What about all your stuff? Are you going to move back in with Mama?" Tatum asks.
    "I've emailed Mick's assistant to pack all my belongings and mail them to me. Mick might be a lot of things, but he's decent enough to give me that right. I'm not worried 'bout most of it though. I just want my paintings mainly," I say.
    Right before the wreck, I had been in talks with a major museum about having my paintings displayed. I had finally gotten the courage to dive into that realm of the business.
    "And yes, I'm going to move back, until Mama says she's okay to live by herself." Tatum nods in agreement. She is in the Army, stationed 100 miles away. She had gotten approved leave to come when the accident happened, but it was going to end quickly.
    "That's good. I won't worry as much then," she smiles at me and turns into the room. I walk right into her because she has stopped.
    "Hey girl, watch where you're…" I trail off spotting the reason why she’s still.
    A police officer is seated beside my mom's bed. Mama is sitting up and smiling. They both stop their conversation and look our way.
    "Holy shit on a shingle." I whisper. My heart flip-flops around and I feel my breath hitch in my lungs.
    "Hey, Bonnie," Eli says with an easy smile.
    ***
    The sun was shining and there was a light breeze. Bonnie shut her eyes and took a deep breath. It almost felt weird having things feel so perfect. She stretched her arms up high and Eli startled her by grabbing one of her hands.
    "Hey you, you swam out there pretty far!" Bonnie exclaimed, and stretched up to meet Eli’s face giving him a kiss.
    He smelled like lake water but he looked amazing. He sat down beside her chair, on the ground. Bonnie admired his strong torso and his handsome face. His tan skin was a stark contrast to her pale complexion and she loved it. He could have just stepped off the pages of a magazine in Bonnie's opinion. He was so good looking.
    "Yea, it was really cool. Eddie took me out to this buoy that isn’t used anymore. The water is so clear today. We were thinking about renting a jet ski for the rest of the afternoon, would you like that?"
    Bonnie smiled and nodded. Eli smiled big and jumped up, "Awesome! I’ll go tell him. Hey, is that a new drawing?"
    Bonnie was guarded with her drawings. If anyone else had asked, she would have covered it and made excuses. With Eli, she was never ashamed of her work or shy. She offered the sketch pad up to him. She studied his face while he viewed her drawing. She had drawn a portrait of Eli in the middle of the lake. It was a close up of his face and she had captured his off kilter smile perfectly this time.
    "Damn, I look good!" Eli joked as he gave the book back to Bonnie. He leaned down and whispered in her ear, "I love being your muse." Then he kissed her bottom lip and ran off. She stared at him running toward Eddie.
    That night, Bonnie was half lying on Eli in the chaise lounge chair in front of the bonfire. Eddie and his girlfriend Molly were making out in front of them, but Bonnie hardly noticed them. The lake looked so pretty in the moonlight, and Bonnie wished she had her sketchbook to try and capture it. She and Eli had a light blanket pulled over them and Bonnie was absent mildly rubbing Eli’s bare stomach. His abs were so cut and defined, she couldn’t help but trace over the lines and muscles.
    "You’re going to have to stop that soon or else," Eli whispered his voice gravely and sexy sounding.
    Bonnie paused and whispered back, "Why?"
    "You’re turning me on, that’s why. And we’re not exactly in the privacy of one of our rooms out here."
    Bonnie snickered, "You chicken. You don’t want to do it on the ground? You afraid of a little dirt?"
    "Nope, I don’t actually. You deserve the best experience every time," Eli's voice was low and sincere.
    Things were silent for a minute and Bonnie struggled to find her words. Sometimes Eli’s simplest statements were the ones that blew her away.
    "You mean that?" she whispered. She wrapped her arm around his neck.
    "Of course I do. Don’t get me wrong, it’d probably be fun to do it like that, but I just wouldn’t feel