The Fire We Make Chapter Five
Summary: You and Elvis just can't keep yourselves away from one another.
Warnings: Still in the past. Readers need to know how Elvis and Y/N got to be where they currently are in the present. Sadness, fighting.
Author's Notes: Welcome to Chapter Five!
This one is super long. I need to get y'all to the next chapter! But in order to understand the future to gotta go back in time. See what happened to "Y/N" and Elvis.
With all your finals done, you had reasons to celebrate since you passed all your classes. Elvis is never far from your thoughts. His piercing blue eyes. His jet black hair. His sculpted features. His enticing scent. Oh and his pouty lips. Something about him set your soul a blaze. Elvis seemed like a mystery to you. You wanted more of him.
The following weekend Sandy invited you back to Graceland for the weekend party. This time they were celebrating the release of Elvis' new feature film Jailhouse Rock.
It was released earlier in the week, and you went to see it at the Memphian Theater. It was incredible. Elvis is a phenomenal actor and singer. While watching the film, you feel like you learned a little more about him. You know he wasn't as mean he was portrayed. No way. Elvis was sweeter than Vince. But she wonders about something she sees in his eyes in the film. It's similar to when she looked in Elvis' eyes the weekend before. Loss???
Jerry pulls the car up the driveway once again, and you feel your heart sink deep into stomach. The last time you didn't realize who's house this was. You were just going to a party. Now you know this is Elvis' place and your nervous to see him again, yet your excited as well. You made sure to look more presentable. You even did your makeup and painted your nails. You want to look your best for him.
When you walk in the house you don't rush looking for Elvis. You let him find you. Although, you want to tell him how much you enjoyed his flim. You realize you don't want to look to desperate. If anything, you want to start as a friend to Elvis and see where it goes. Although that kiss from last weekend has you believing otherwise.
You say hello to everyone you meet the weekend before. You grab yourself a small plate of barbecue. With your mind on eating, you don't think about anything else. But you do mind the way you eat you food. Just in case Elvis does see you, you don't want him thinking you're slob or pig.
"How's the brisket?" A voice asks you.
You look up and see Sonny smiling at you.
"Hi, Sonny," you answered. "It's delicious. Thank you for asking."
You silently question why you thanked him. He didn't cook it or bring you the plate. Nevertheless, you finish your last bite and wipe the barbecue sauce off your mouth.
"Could I throw your plate away for you?" Sonny asks.
"Oh, Sonny. You're so sweet, but I can find the trash can."
"Oh, no. It's okay. I don't mind, Y/N," Sonny says, taking the plate in from. "By the way, you're gorgeous tonight."
He walks away from you, and you use the opportunity to run out the backdoor. You take a sigh of relief even with guilt consuming your thoughts. You know Sonny could possibly have feelings for you, but your eyes are searching for another. You sit in silence for a moment then.
"Would you like a drink?" The voice says, catching your attraction.
Elvis stands in front of you with a bottle of Pepsi Cola in his hand. He offers you the bottle. You smile at him and take the bottle from him.
"Thanks," you say, taking a sip from the bottle. "I didn't hear the door."
"I didn't use the door. I walked out of the front door and made my way to the back on foot. Just... trying to escape."
"Understand wanting to get away," you say.
"Who or what are you trying to get away from, baby?" Elvis asks.
That term of endearment warms your and you feel your cheeks hear up.
"Well, no one now, but I'm a loner by nature. It just makes me appreciate the good friends and company I do get."
There's a pause between you both. Elvis sees more in you than you believe you let on.
"But, Elvis, the real question is who are you treating to get away from?" You ask him taking a long sip out of your bottle of Pepsi.
"How do you know I was running towards you?"
You gulp the remaining Pepsi that's in your mouth, and look at him in shock.
"How did you know I was back here?" You ask.
"Maybe I was watching you and I saw you scurry out the backdoor."
You finish your Pepsi. The words you could possibly say escape you. No man has ever taken your words away. He was paying attention too.
Elvis takes the bottle out if yoyr hand, placing it by the door. He offers you his hand. You hesitate for a moment then you take it. You notice how warm yet how rough his hands are.
"Let's go for a walk away from the house," Elvis tells you, guiding you away into the night.
You two walk the backyard quietly until Elvis breaks the silence.
"You said you go to UM?" He asked you.
"You finished this semester."
"I have. I passed all my classes."
"Congrats, baby... it's okay if I call you baby, right?"
You can't believe you just admitted that to him. Elvis stops you and has you sit with him in the grass. Close enough to see the house, yet far enough from prying eyes.
"Actually, Elvis, should be congratulating you. Jailhouse Rock is phenomenal."
Elvis closes his eyes, bows and shakes his head. His smile never falters.
"It... was okay. I wish Judy was here to see it. She'd be proud."
Judy Tyler, Elvis co-star and love interest in the film. She was beautiful and talented with a bright future ahead of her. She got married right before the film started production. After the film concluded, Judy and her husband, Gregory Lafayette, died in an automobile accident in Rock River, Wyoming. She was twenty-four years old. So young and beautiful as Elvis sang at the end of the film. It made you cry.
"I'm... so sorry, Elvis," you tell him, rubbing his back.
"Me too. Nothing has ever hurt me so bad."
You don't know what comes over you, but you hug him. Elvis seemed to need some sort of comfort at the moment, and you didn't mind giving it to him. He leans into you, wrapping his strong arms around your waist. He lays his head in the crook of his neck. Your heart sinks again. You are so close to him. Elvis is so easy to speak too.
"I want to do a film where I'm not singing or dancing. I wanna be like Jimmy Dean or Tony Curtis," Elvis says. "I wanna be a serious actor. Not a singer pretending to play an actor."
"Elvis, I see your talent in film. You are a serious actor," you whisper to him.
Elvis raises his head to look at you. Your faces are so close to one another. There's a fire behind his eyes. An intensity that sets your soul a blaze. He leans in to kiss you; you meet him in the middle and capture his soft lips. Somehow, it's more intense than before. Not threatening at all. Sweet. Gentle.
Elvis slowly pulls away to look at you.
"You are so beautiful, Y/N."
"Thank you, Elvis," you say.
He lifts your chin up so you're looking into his eyes. You smile at each other.
"Why so shy?" He asks you.
"I didn't hear compliments on my beauty a lot growing up. I was bullied a lot. I was never popular in school. I was the girl who kept her head in a book. Not a beauty queen," you explain.
"You are a beauty," Elvis says, kissing you on your cheek.
First he kisses your right cheek then your left cheek. He kisses your eyes then your forehead. His fingertips gently caress your face. You kiss his right palm. Never in your life has a man made you feel so beautiful, so desired, so wanted, or so ... loved.
It can't be love. It just can't be. You've only met with Elvis twice.
Whatever this is you want it to last forever. Elvis kisses your lips again then pulls away to tell you something.
"You know, I wasn't a popular guy in school either," he confesses.
"I-I was different. I failed music. Ain't it funny? Me, a singer and I failed music?"
A wave of shock comes over you. How could this beautiful man be bullied? How could no one see the beautiful soul you're witnessing right now?
"That's... insane," you say, baffled at the notion.
"It's true. I once got cornered in the locker room by some guys. They were going to cut my hair by order of the football coach. He said it was too long."
Elvis holds you close as he tells you his story.
"Yeah, thank God for Red," Elvis says, smiling. You look at the relief on his face as he plays the moment in his head.
"Sonny's cousin. Red was my first best friend. He broke up that gang of guys and helped me."
"I'm glad he was there to help you. My god, children can be so cruel."
"Yeah," Elvis says, kissing your forehead. "Y/N, you're so easy to talk to."
You both talk and make out for the rest of the night on the same patch of grass. You both lose track of time and before you know it the sunrises. Elvis offers to drive you home; you accept. You wanted more time with him. You didn't want the butterflies in your belly to go away. Not yet at least.
Elvis walks you up to your door and gives you one last kiss.
"Y/N, baby, I had fun tonight with you," Elvis whispers.
"I had fun with you, Elvis."
"I'd like to have more nights and days like that to happen between us."
"Yes," you say biting your bottom lip.
Elvis kisses you once more.
"I'll call you," Elvis says, walking back to his car.
You walk inside your house and shut the door. Leaning against door, you think about all the good things that are yet to come. You count the hours.
For the next month, you and Elvis sneak around with each other. You spend random days talking on the phone when he's out of town. You spend weekends making out with him in the backyard at Graceland.
Three weeks into your relationship with Elvis, you realize that you weren't the only one in his life. It hurt at first because the other girls, particularly the blonde Anita Wood, you deemed more gorgeous.
The night you meet Anita, she has no idea about your relationship with Elvis. Most people don't actually know and yoh haven't told Sandy that your mystery guy is Elvis.
You sneak out the backdoor once again. Not for air, but for space. You start crying.
"Baby," Elvis asks, catching your attention. "What's the matter?"
"No, Elvis," you say, moving away from him. You turn back and look at him. "Walk with me."
You move far from the house so no one sees or hears you both. You try to keep calm.
"Elvis, what is this?" You ask.
"We're together," he answers you.
"Someone called Anita your girlfriend. I thought I was your girlfriend, but maybe I'm a fool to think you could... that I could be more to you."
"Y/N, you are so much more."
You cross your arms, closing yourself off from him. Tears pouring down your face from Elvis' betrayal. You don't know how much your tears break Elvis' heart.
"She lives here with you, Elvis."
"Y/N, I care about you so deeply. You are so special to me," Elvis explains.
"Do you love me, Elvis?" You interrupt him.
Elvis looks at you. There are no words. You feel so used. So mistreated. The opposite of what you felt the past few weeks.
"Elvis, I've fallen in love with you. You aren't like the last guy I was with. But then you are. You use me to make yourself feel better."
"That!" Elvis shouts. "T-that is not true! Baby, I care about you."
"I'm leaving," you tell him, walking away from him.
How could he lead you on like that? Just when Elvis began to make you believe there were decent men in the world, he rips the rug from under you.
Before you realize it, Elvis grabs you tightly from behind.
"Baby, no. Stay. Please stay," Elvis begs you.
"Elvis, stop," you order him, trying to wiggle out of his grasp. "Let me go. You don't need."
"I need you, baby. I do."
"If you care, you'll let me go."
"I care, Y/N and I'll fight for you."
Fight for me? Am I even worth of him to fight for me?
You stop fighting him. He cares enough about you to fight for you. That's enough for now, but it doesn't stop the tears from falling from your eyes. It doesn't make you the only one.
Elvis holds you tightly, and he plants kisses your neck. You fall weak under this pressure, turning around in his arms and kissing him back. He eventually lets you go and you leave Graceland.
You get home and think about the words he said to you. He cared about you. He'd fight for you. You're special to him, but does Elvis love you? You came to the conclusion that he did in his own way love you. Even when he didn't say it. When you're alone with him, he makes you feel like you're the only girl in the world who matters to him.
The next day he calls to invite you to Graceland. You're confused because there's no party going on at ten o'clock in the morning, but you go as he asked. Elvis isn't there when you arrive, but Mrs. Presley is. She invites you in with hesitation. She warm and welcoming.
"Y/N, do you drink coffee?" Mrs. Presley asks you.
"Would you like water then?"
"A glass of water would be nice, thank you, Mrs. Presley."
"How do you survive the day without a cup of coffee?" She asks you, handing you the glass.
"The good Lord and water," you say, taking a sip.
You have Gladys laughing. Then you realize that's where Elvis gets his laughter from. You spend the rest of the day getting to know Gladys. She wants you to call her Gladys. You respect her wishes. She kind, funny, and down to Earth. All the good within Elvis is from her.
Gladys starts to cough and loses her breath. You walk her to a chair and hand her a glass of water.
"Are you okay, Gladys?" You ask, rubbing her back.
"I'll be fine. Thank you, darling," she says, taking a sip of water.
Gladys catches her breath as soon as Elvis walks into the house. She acts like nothing happened.
"Hey, ladies," Elvis says, walking up to Gladys and kissing her cheek.
"Hey, Y/N," Elvis says, kissing your cheek. "How are ya?"
"I'm well, thanks," you say.
Elvis comes home just in time for lunch. Gladys and Ms. Alberta made all his favorite: fried chicken, hoppin' John's rice, macaroni and cheese, and chocolate cake. It gave you insight into Elvis' personality and life. You were surprised that Anita wasn't present, but that made you all the more happier.
After dessert, Elvis walks you outside to your special patch of grass.
"How was your day with Mama," Elvis asks.
"Insightful," you reply. "Elvis, when a man has a woman meet his mama that's very serious. Like a future relationship serious."
"I know. I wanted you to get to know Mama, and I wanted her to get to know you."
Elvis kisses your deeply.
"E, I have some concerns about your mama," you warn him. "Before you walked in, Gladys lost her balance and her breath. She had me worried."
Elvis rolls his eyes and says, "I told her to stop drinking that damn alcohol. It's not good for her. Thank you for looking out for her."
Elvis kisses you once more, and you melt into his kisses for the rest of the afternoon.
The next few months, you two have this quiet relationship. A few people know you're with him that excludes Sandy, many of Elvis' friends, and Anita, of course. Your cordial when you go to the weekend parties. You don't go to many of the parties because you aren't fond of being the other woman.
Things begin to change when Elvis gets his draft notice in December. He knows it's his duty to serve his country, but fears for the loss of his career. The Army allows Elvis to do onr more picture before shipping him off to Germany. He calls you every night around eight oʻclock.
The movie is over. He goes to basic training. Gladys health is declining. She's in the hospital. He rushes to be by her side. Then the unthinkable happens. Gladys is gone. Elvis is beside himself with grief and so is Mr. Presley.
During the ordeal, you're present but cautious. You allow Elvis to know you're there for him as a friend, but you keep your distance. You weep with everyone and you place a rose on Gladys coffin. Before you know it he's gone.
During the two years that Elvis is in Germany, you write to him once a month. You finish school top of your class. You start working in the English department of the University of Memphis. You enjoy it and the check is amazing. You're able to help your mama with the bills and groceries and more. Life is nice even when you miss Elvis.
One day, you and Sandy are in a Malt Shop have a sinful lunch of chicken sandwiches, fries, and milkshakes. Sandy asks if you'd ever consider seeing anyone. She know you were seeing someone, but according to you he disappeared after experiencing a death in the family. You remain silent.
"Y/N?" Sandy says, alarmed. "You won't believe who just walked in?"
"Who?" You turn and see...
"Well, hi, gorgeous. How are you?"
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