Page 590 of Rock Me All Night
She motions to the table and everyone takes a seat.
Ellie continues. "Spider-Man's power, slinging webs from his hands, is a metaphor for ejaculation."
I bite my lip. "What?"
Ophelia laughs. "Let's not scare the poor girl off any more than we have."
"No, I'm interested," I say.
"Most fiction aimed at men has phallic imagery—a man with a machine gun, spraying bullets. Or he's using this huge sword to destroy his enemies. All his power comes from his metaphorical penis." Ellie laughs. She turns to Pete. "He's quite virile, Spider-Man."
Again, Pete blushes. My heart melts. He looks adorable with his cheeks flushed.
I barely have time to consider how adorable he looks with his cheeks flushed. The door opens and a loud, excited voice booms through the room.
"We're here," Tom says. "You can finally enjoy yourselves."
He's dressed the same as Pete, only his button up shirt is white and his slacks are grey while Pete is in all black. It's strange seeing the rock star brothers dressed up like the nice boys next door.
Willow looks beautiful, as usual. Her pink tipped hair contrasts against her flowing ivory dress.
After a round of hellos, Tom turns to Willow and whispers something in her ear.
"Are you sure?" she asks.
"Go for it, kid," he says.
She turns to the table. "We set a date. In two weeks. In Maui. Everything is booked. It's going to be small, family and a few friends."
Tom slides his arm around her. Both of them are beaming.
"Wow, sweetheart, that's fast," Ophelia says. "Are you sure you don't want more time to plan?"
"Yeah. I don't want a big wedding. I don't want to fuss about the colors or the dress." She turns to Tom. "I just want to be with Tom forever."
It's sweet enough to make me sick. But the feeling of dread in my stomach isn't from the syrupy display. Tom and Willow are adorable and in love.
And honest.
They're practically transparent.
You're a liar, a big fat liar. They're sharing their happiness with you and you're a liar. My thoughts scream at me. I shouldn't be here. I shouldn't be sharing their happiness when I'm lying to their faces.
I bite my tongue and take a deep breath. My gaze goes to Pete. There's frustration in his brow. I know he's happy for them. I know he loves his brother.
So what is all that frustration doing in his brow?
He shakes it off, stands, and hugs them, one at a time.
Then everyone is hugging. Tom squeezes me. Then Willow. She hugs me so tightly I can barely breathe.
"I'm so glad you're here," she whispers." And that you and Pete are happy."
He addresses the table. "She's not pregnant."
Willow turns red. She barely manages to take a seat next to him. "Tom, they weren't thinking that." She studies expressions, one by one. "Okay, I guess I'd jump to that conclusion."
Ophelia laughs. "I'm surprised you two didn't fly to Vegas the night you got engaged."
