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After that our relationship progressed very quickly, her situation throwing us together faster than if we did just meet and start dating. So when her counsellor suggested we take a step back, and learn to just be a couple without all the extra drama, of course we agreed. But, in addition to that, Emmaleigh needed some time to work on herself.
When Em found her will to fight, it was a magnificent thing to witness. It was like the dark cloud that had descended over my beautiful girl finally lifted. Obviously she has a way to go, and each time her MS symptoms flare up, she’s faced with new challenges. But overall, she’s fighting them head on.
She made such great progress in her counselling, it only took around a month before her MS team felt she was well enough to begin treatment. She takes a pill called Tecfidera twice a day. In all honesty, even after reading every leaflet I could find, I have no idea how it works. And after listening to her neurologist, I don’t think they really understand how it works either, all they know is it does.
Em has had to get used to taking it, and learning how to deal with the side effects that come along with it. If she eats or drinks too soon after taking it, her stomach cramps so badly she has to take deep breaths to try and control the pain. She also suffers really badly from flushing when that happens. Whenever she describes it, she says it feels like fire is ripping through her body and setting fire to her from the inside out. Thankfully, the side effects pass quickly, and the longer she’s been on the medication, the more she’s getting used to it, which is helping a lot.
Just under a month ago, she made the biggest step, which was going back to work. Emmaleigh was absolutely terrified to return. She’d been off on sick leave for a couple of months, and was worried too much would have changed. Her boss has been really kind, and agreed for her to go back on a phased return, to build up her strength and get her ready to be back there properly.
I think the other thing that really upset her, and that she was worried about, was going back to her so-called friends. None of the people who claimed to be her friends stood by her. They came to visit her once in the hospital, and once at home when she was diagnosed, but after that, she rarely heard from them.
Gemima actually said to her that having MS means she won’t be able to go out and have fun like they used to, and that’s boring. My beautiful girl was struggling to come to terms with a life changing condition, and her so-called friends—who are all nurses, may I point out—actually called her fucking boring. I wanted to skin them alive. I’ve never felt such rage until I had to hold Emmaleigh in my arms while she cried over that. Thank fuck it didn’t take her too long to realise they weren’t her real friends to start with.
So, when she finally went back to work, she made it clear they were nothing more than her work colleagues. In fact, given her seniority status, she was their boss, and they may not have respected that before, but they sure as shit did after Em stood up for herself. Before, they used their friendship with Emmaleigh to get out of doing jobs they didn’t want to do, and because Em saw them as her friends, and she didn’t have the confidence she does now, she let them manipulate her. But not any more. If anything, they got even more of the shitty shifts to make up for what they missed out on before.
My phone pings again, pulling me out of my reminiscing.
EM
I will be there in about five minutes. I’m stuck at the lights around the corner from your house.
Emmaleigh has been to my house many times, but we’ve always been sneaky about it. She either comes when my parents are out or away, or she sneaks out while they’re sleeping. Generally we prefer to hang out at her house. We can be as loud as we want when nobody else is there, and the walls at my house are far too thin for any sexy time.
Mum has been pestering me about meeting Emmaleigh since we made it official. She stopped talking to me for two days when she found out I met her parents last week. It wasn’t even planned. We were supposed to go by her parents house and pick up their little Daschund, Milo, and Shih-tzu, Hector, to take them for a walk while they were out at the football match they were going to. But when we got to the house, they hadn’t left yet. Her dad was running around trying to get ready, which I quickly came to realise meant he had to find as many items of clothing as he could that featured his football team's logo.
The meeting was quick, and her mum made me promise I would come over and meet them again properly when they weren’t in such a rush to leave, given they were already late. Since I fell in love with Hector and Milo from the moment I met them, I knew I’d be back. Those little dogs may be crazy, and Milo literally eats everything, but from the first moment they met me, and started licking my ear, I knew I had friends for life.
No matter how much I told Mum the meeting with Em’s parents wasn’t supposed to happen, she was still pissed. That’s when Emmaleigh accepted the invite to come to their party. She was invited weeks before, but had been on the fence about coming. She’s nervous about meeting all my family in one hit, and I have to admit, it’s not something I’m thrilled about either. Family parties—specifically my family—are always a bad idea, in my opinion.
They always drink too much, then a petty squabble from years ago will turn into a big drunken argument that I have to spend months trying to fix. So of course I don’t want Em exposed to that. But I want her to meet my family. I think it’s the next logical step in me showing her how fucking serious I am about our relationship.
EM
I’m outside your house. Fuck! Lee, there’s an older lady with white hair, holding up a camera heading straight for me. You better get out here quick!
Shit! I need to go and rescue Em from what I’m sure is one of my crazy aunties. I quickly look at myself once more in the mirror, smoothing down my tight black jeans, and the plain black T-shirt I’ve paired them with. I twist a few rogue strands of hair until they’re standing up perfectly, and dab on a little of my Calvin Klein Defy because I know Em loves it.
She often comments that the woodsy scent topped with hints of lemon and lavender always reminds her of me. As soon as I’m ready, I run as quickly as I can down the stairs and out the front door to intercept my auntie.
Sure enough Em is sitting in her car, while my Auntie Connie knocks on the window. Em’s eyes are wide, like she doesn’t quite know what to do, and my aunt is holding her ancient camera up as though she’s going to take Em’s picture.
“Aunt Connie, what are you doing? Back up so she can at least get out of the bloody car?” I shout, as I run across the driveway.
My aunt, who is in her early nineties, though you wouldn’t know that, turns to face me, pointing her finger at me as she does. “Don’t use that language with me, young man. You are not too old for me to give you a clip around the ear,” she threatens and I can’t help but chuckle. My aunt’s had the same threat since I was a rowdy kid, but never once has she followed through with her threat.
“Auntie Con, please go into the garden. We will be along shortly,” I say, as I gently guide my auntie back across the road, down the path at the side of the house, and into the garden. Instead of following behind, I take Em in through the front door. I know Mum will want to meet her first, and I will never hear the end of it if she doesn’t.
Before we go into the house, I turn to Em and pull her in for a kiss. As soon as I taste her, I want more, but as I try to wrap my arms around her to bring her closer to me, Em pulls away, a blush spreading across her beautiful cheeks. As she moves back, it gives me a moment to properly take her in. She’s wearing a black dress that falls to just above her knees.
It’s a scoop neck with no sleeves, but it’s modest enough not to show off too much cleavage—not that I’d mind, but she thinks my family might. The dress is tight on top, and flares out from the waist down, showing off her amazing figure. She knows I love her curves, and now that she’s confident in her own body and can show them off, I love them even more. She’s paired the dress with some lace ballet flats, and I tell her I’m shocked to see she’s not wearing her Converse.
Chuckling, Em reaches up and pushes a stray strand of hair out of my eyes. “I’ve just changed out of my Converse in the car. I wore them to drive in, but didn’t think they were appropriate for meeting your family. I want to look nice.”
Now it’s my turn to laugh. “Beautiful, you could wear a black bin bag and would still be the most gorgeous person in the room. My family will love you, I have no doubts about that.”
Taking hold of her hand, I feel as she takes a deep breath, no doubt to help settle her nerves, and I pull her inside behind me. I lead her through into the kitchen where my mum is running around like a headless chicken. Every damn time she throws a party, we offer to help, but she doesn’t let anyone. She insists on doing it all herself, and then moans that the party was stressful. Every time she tells us she’s never doing another, and she always does.
“Mum,” I shout, trying to catch her attention. She puts down the bowl she’s holding, her face twisted in anger. No doubt she was about to chew me up for disturbing her, until she saw Emmaleigh standing beside me. Her face lights up and she rushes towards us. “Mum, this is my girlfriend, Emmaleigh.”
