Loving Eleanor(BWWM)

Chapter Nine

Location: New Haven, Connecticut
Date: November 11th, 1949
Name: Eleanor Hazel Bush
Age: twenty-three

"Hazie, how was your night?" Mildred asked kindly over breakfast.

Eleanor sighed and recalled the night before. When she made it home she went straight to bed.

"It was awful. Michael called me out of my name and the rest of them just sat around. They always just sit and let him talk to me like I'm some kind of animal," She closed her eyes and shook her head. A smile grew on her face as she thought of Dale following after her. It was surprising, yet sweet.

Mildred's eyebrows furrowed. She didn't know what could be so good about her friends being horrible.

"After he called me those things, I ran outside and I was coming home, but Dale stopped me. He asked me why I stormed out like a babe," She giggled and continued. "He was kind and surprisingly pleasant with me," She whispered dreamily.

Mildred was confused. She had no idea who Dale was. "Hazie, who's Dale?"

Eleanor laughed and grimaced. "Oh, Professor Curtis. He told me to call him Dale last night after he walked me to daddy's car," She explained, making Mildred even more confused, but she was glad.

"You called him pleasant and kind? Thank you, God. Having an open heart goes a long way," She sighed happily.

Eleanor shook her head, but she was smiling. Her mother was silly, but she was right. "I'm going to start on some homework," She said and excused herself from the room.

-

"I'll be over soon, don't worry about it," Dale said to the Pastor of his church.

He was going to fix a few things over at the church, but he had a stop to make before heading over there.

"Alright, I'll see you." He put the phone back on the wall and grabbed his keys.

He had to get a few things from the gas station, along with some gas.

"Honky!" Dale heard once he stopped his car at the station. He didn't have time to deal with a crazy colored person this morning, he just wanted to get his gas and leave.

Dale ignored the man and went to pump his gas.

"You need to stay away from my woman," The man huffed and walked over to Dale.

Dale squinted at the man in confusion. He didn't even know his woman. "Look here, I don't know your woman."

"The name, Eleanor Bush ring a bell?" The man asked with a smirk.

Dale took one more look at the man and realized that he was one of the friends she was with last night. As far as he knew, they were all crappy to her.

"Just stay away from her. She hates honky's, especially honky men." The man continued.

Dale just wanted the little man to go away. He didn't know who he was, but he knew that his facts were off.

The man clenched his fists at how unbothered Dale was, and he quickly thought of a way to make him react.

"The rumors you hear about colored women are true. Eleanor is as freaky as a colored woman could get, she's like a n-" The man couldn't finish his sentence because Dale's fist landed on his face.