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Description
“So, you're sure this is the one?" Liam looked over at his girlfriend as the two of them descended the outdoor stairs to the street. Rhea had been lugging him around the city in search for the perfect new apartment to live in as they transitioned into their new lives.
"Yes, I'm sure," she replied happily. She grabbed his hand and squeezed it. "It's perfect."
That was probably the best news Liam had heard all day. He loved her, but when it came to important decisions she often got real picky, and needed everything to be as she saw fit. As long as it was a permanent place to live, Liam was content; he had being getting sick of staying in cheap motels every night. It sent a shiver down his spine just thinking about it. They hadn't been the cleanest of places, and he thought it was a miracle that he hadn't contracted a disease from those rooms.
"That's great!" Liam exclaimed, returning the squeeze of the hand. "I will contact the landlord first thing tomorrow, so we can start moving stuff in."
Rhea let go at the mention of moving stuff in. She had completely forgotten that she was going to need to go back to her parents’ house to pack her things. It wasn't them she was worried about. It was Liam meeting her parents that worried her. Her parents were ok with the two of them living together, but just meeting in person always made everything awkward.
Liam could tell something was wrong. "What is it Ray?" turning to look into her troubled eyes.
"I just realized you're going to need to talk with my parents again," she replied with a lack of enthusiasm. Liam had met them only a couple times, and although it was acceptance both ways, Rhea was worried that Liam would have to sit through another one of her parent's hour long conversations. Those things lasted forever, and they usually weren't interesting topics either. You always had to watch out what you said, because sometimes it would spark a whole new talk for another half an hour.
"What? Frank and Vivian? They'd love to help move you in," Liam stated, but from the incredulous look from his girlfriend, he reconsidered. "Ok. We'll try not to talk for a long time. I just thought that they could help make it easier to move in."
Rhea could see that Liam was alright with meeting them again and her mood lightened. "As long as you're ok with it…" He nodded in affirmation. "Ok. I'll call my parents tonight and have them start moving the boxes into the garage for us to meet them tomorrow."

That night, with an air of celebration, Liam treated Rhea to a night out downtown at a popular restaurant, Giovanni's. He had read about the food and the excellent service, and wanted to commemorate their last night before getting a new place.
"Liam, you didn't have to do this," Rhea gasped seeing all the effort he put in to have a nice dinner.
"It's my treat, my love," he replied smiling, the dim table light reflecting off of his eyes. "I wanted tonight to be special."
After looking over the abundant tasteful dishes on the menu, the two ordered and received their drinks.
"How was your first few days at your new studio?" Liam asked as the two waited for their meals to arrive, trying to start up a light conversation.
"Oh, it's wonderful," she replied. "I finally have a space to call my own, which is great, compared to the shared rooms in college. Although, I'm not certain, but someone may also be using the space...the studio seemed split into two separate areas." She didn’t know if she should be disappointed or happy.
"That's a great opportunity for a friendship," Liam chipped in, trying to bring a positive side to her statement.
"I guess I never thought of it that way," she shook her head, "What about you?"
"What'd'ya mean, what about me?" he smiled laughing a little.
"Oh, c'mon, you. You and your fancy new job here too?" Rhea pressed playfully, wanting him to admit how fortunate he was with his job.
He laughed again. "I know. Man, it's great! I can't believe my internship got me a job at the architectural firm. I'm finally on the design team!" his excitement palpable in the room.
Rhea couldn't help but laugh herself. The way he smiled and laughed always made her more cheerful. The couple conversed more until their waitress came with their steaming plates of food. Rhea was given her Chicken and Broccoli Alfredo, and Liam was given his Bruschetta Steak Ziti.
They thanked their server and looked hungrily down at their meals. "This smells so good..."Rhea closed her eyes sniffing deeply. She stabbed a piece of broccoli and placed it in her mouth, a look of pure delight forming on her face.
He smiled, doing a mental fist bump, glad that his girlfriend liked the place he chose. Taking a bite of his own, he too was blown away by the great flavor. "Oh, wow. Ray, you've got to try this," holding out a small forkful to her.
She gladly obliged and engulfed the food in her mouth as Liam held it out to her. She chewed it, savoring the flavors, analyzing all the different ingredients.
Then she tasted it.
She stopped chewing for a split second and stared down at her boyfriend's plate.
The bruschetta.
She wanted to spit the food out right then and there but that would be extremely rude. Rhea swallowed moments later and smiled to make him think she liked it. However, spitting the food out would have been way less embarrassing than what usually happened.
It all started when she was in her last two years of high school. Like most girls she had started to develop and over the course of it she began to notice abnormalities in her changes. They weren't anything that affected her initially, but were often brought out upon various actions. The one at play right now was something that brought her back to memory of her family eating out at a Mexican restaurant.
She had ordered a nacho dish with a big bowl of salsa to use for dipping. She had been famished, and ate the whole thing including the last scrapings of the salsa. None of it happened until she was home, when a couple hours later she was in the living room on her back sweating as her and her family watched. Right before their eyes, Rhea's chest expanded, and kept growing until it ripped open her blouse.
Horrified, her parents rushed their nearly unconscious daughter to the emergency room where she received treatment. Upon hours of examination, the doctors concluded that Rhea would have to be milked, in order for the pressure built up within her breasts to be released.
Frank and Vivian watched helplessly as their engorged daughter was hooked up by a milking machine. A glimpse of hope came amidst the scary and alien ordeal as they saw Rhea's size return to normal. Rhea was released and the family returned home to recover from what happened. No one, not even Rhea, understood why that happened. Nevertheless, Frank and Vivian altered Rhea's eating habits and lifestyle in order to protect her.
Over the course of her last two years before college, Rhea's life was a system of trial and error. When anything changed about Rhea, her parents would analyze the effect and weed out the cause so they could stop her from doing it again. Things she consumed, such as tomatoes, were removed from her diet completely. However other things, besides food needed to be watched for. Her sleeping patterns, what clothes she wore, her emotions, and other things needed to be monitored so Rhea didn't experience it again. As she went off to college, her parents had prepared her with as much knowledge that they could give her on what to and what not to do. Through her four years at college and meeting Liam, her secret had been kept safe.
But now, she threatened to ruin everything by eating a measly piece of tomato. It was only a matter of time before her chest would expand, only a little.
The two ate the rest of their meals, Rhea politely turning down Liam's offer for another bite of his pasta. "I'm good," she laughed, pushing the thought of expanding in public at the back of her mind. "I've got the rest of mine to finish."
Liam smiled and shrugged. "You're missing out," putting a forkful in his mouth.
Yeah, I'm pretty sure I am.

After dinner, the couple returned to their motel to spend their last night before getting an apartment. As Rhea looked herself over in the mirror, she could tell her breasts had grown slightly, noticing they felt just a tad bit heavier. Relieved, she brushed it off and got into bed and waited for sleep.
It never came.
All through the night, Rhea couldn't help but think about how she was keeping a huge part of her life a secret from Liam.
As she progressed through college her outgoing teenage-self had changed into a more reserved personal self. Her 'problem' made her not as sociable, the threat of swelling like a water balloon always looming over her shoulder. It wasn't until her junior year, when she met Liam that she began to open up more. As their relationship strengthened, her worries about her body lessened, and pretty soon she and Liam were thinking about moving in together once they found jobs.
But all that time, her secret, was kept a secret from her boyfriend, her best friend, in fear of being abandoned and deemed a freak. Rhea wanted so badly to tell him, she just didn't know how or when.

Rhea woke early like she had always done, and stared at the ceiling feeling exhausted. The tighter feeling in her shirt held the answer as she slowly got up to sit quietly on the edge of the bed, making sure not to disturb Liam. She covered her mouth in terror seeing that her breasts had grown again slightly. Her sleeping pattern had been disrupted with the lack of sleep last night and her body paid the price.
She quickly got up and crept over to the bathroom and looked at herself. To her they still looked like C's, right? She second guessed herself, hoping to God that Liam wouldn't notice. Rhea slipped back into bed just as Liam was about to wake up. "Good morning," she whispered to the still half asleep man. He mumbled something and slowly sat up against the headboard.
"Good morning," he said sleepily with a smile. "Time for the big day."
Rhea got up again and told Liam that she was going to text her parents that they'd be coming down, and headed into the bathroom again. She yanked out her phone and sent a text to her mother.

We'll be heading down in about an hour or so, and have dad pull the moving truck up next to the garage. She paused before continuing, guilty that she had to write what came next. Mom, I'm going to need you to pack my milking machine. Make sure it's somewhere already packed so Liam doesn't have to find it. Sorry about this.

Rhea swallowed clearing her throat; feeling like a burden was on her shoulders that only she felt. She found Liam in the room talking on the phone with the landlord seeming excited. He ended the call and turned to face his girlfriend in the bathroom doorway.
"We got it!" he exclaimed overcome with joy, embracing Rhea in a long warm hug. "Finally a place to call our own Ray."
Rhea hugged back reflecting his happiness with a huge smile, a sigh of relief coming from her lips. She too had been getting sick of hopping around the city staying a few nights here and there. Finally, something permanent.
Packing their things, they left the hotel and started on the road before noon and headed to Rhea's parent's home two and a half hours away. Liam looked over at his girlfriend in the passenger seat with a knowing look. "You can sleep for the ride down if you want. You look like you hadn't slept much last night, I'll handle the driving."
Rhea was glad he noticed that she didn't sleep and within minutes was reclined in her seat fast asleep.

Liam shook her shoulder gently and watched as she lifted her head up from the back of the chair. "We're here," he told her.
Rhea turned to see a familiar sight. It was her parent's tan suburban home with the beautifully manicured lawn and huge oak tree. "Home sweet home," she whispered to herself with a smile. She looked out and found her father already starting to load a box onto the empty moving van in their driveway. She hopped out and hugged her father and greeted him with a smile.
"I can't believe you're already getting your own place," Frank smiled down at her releasing her from their hug. "You grew up too fast."
Rhea blushed, knowing that her not being home anymore was going to be tough on them. Going back, she knew her mother was going to start crying immediately, and she'd have to reassure them that she would call and visit sometimes.
"Oh, you're mother wanted to see you when you got here," Frank snapped his fingers in remembrance. "She's in the living room. You don't mind having Liam here helping me load stuff do you?" He looked over at Liam hopefully.
Liam gladly obliged. "I'd be happy to help out," shaking Frank's hand firmly. He bent down and grabbed a box at his feet and hefted it onto the truck bed. Within seconds the two men were deep in a conversation.
Rhea found her mother and the two hugged. "Dad said you wanted to see me." She watched as her mother glanced behind her and at the door.
"Liam's outside, right dear?" Vivian asked, continuing when she got a silent nod from Rhea. "Ok. I got your text. I packed your milker in the bottom of this box," pointing down at the large cardboard container. "I wanted to show you, so you can know where it is, or if you wanted to hide it from Liam." Rhea glanced down and was glad that it was well hidden underneath the stacks of blankets and clothes.
"But, Rhea, I really think you should tell him," Vivian told her, holding her arm. "You shouldn't keep something like this from him, if he's that important to you."
Rhea sighed sadly. "I know I should, mom. I just don't know how to tell him, without scaring him. I'll see if-" Her sentence was stopped when she heard Liam and her father walk through the front door. Vivian quickly closed the box and gave it to Rhea to take out to the truck personally.
She passed Liam as he was stooped down picking up another box and hurried out the front door without him noticing. She jumped when he tapped her on the shoulder as she was pushing the box along the van floor.
"Easy there Jumpy, when'd you get so excited all the sudden?" he teased, resting the two boxes he was holding on the ground.
Rhea turned and smiled sheepishly, trying her best to cover her nervousness. "I just can't wait to be in our new apartment, Liam. It's going to be great!" hopping off the van and running back inside.
Liam couldn't help himself. He loved when Rhea was enthusiastic and excited about things; it made things that much more interesting.
Once the milking machine was packed away safely, Rhea began to loosen up again. The rest of the loading went smoothly and the couple was ready to shove off by 3pm. However, that also meant the painful goodbyes. Vivian broke into a sobbing fit as she stood there seeing her daughter ready to leave her home.
Frank and Vivian hugged their daughter for what seemed forever, but Rhea let them go for however long they wanted. After some last minute kisses and words of encouragement, Frank and Vivian stood there in their driveway, watching as their only child drive away to face the world.

The ride back to the city was uneventful, with Rhea following Liam in the van with her car. They unpacked easily, littering there living space with countless boxes. After Liam had parked the moving van and returned upstairs, the two took their first looks at what they'd be living with for their first few years; a nice open family room, with a small kitchen, bathroom, and a large bedroom. It was a pretty good deal, considering how much they paid for it.
Without even getting to work with unpacking, Liam coaxed Rhea into having him cook for her. "Don't unpack just yet, I want to make dinner for you and I,” he stated putting a hand on her outstretched arm which was about to open a box. "You like curry? I'm feeling a like Thai food kinda night."
Rhea smiled gladly accepting his offer for a home-cooked meal. "Never had it, to be honest," sounding a bit weary.
"Oh you'll love it, trust me," he assured. "But first, we have to go and buy the ingredients, unless this apartment has a stash of food I don't know about." Liam eagerly pulled her out the door and back to their car so they could do a little shopping.

Soon the apartment was filled with the decadent aromas of curry and chicken. Rhea watched over Liam's shoulder amazed at how well he knew his way around a kitchen. "Never suspected you for a cook," she chuckled, brushing his hair with her hands.
"I'm full of surprises," he laughed stirring the pan of curried chicken vigorously. He moved onto a pot of rice boiling and took out a spoonful to look at the tenderness of it. "Almost there...oh, hey, Ray? You wouldn't mind cutting the bread for me?"
Rhea turned to look at the loaf he was pointing at, and nodded in agreement. "No problem," she replied getting out a knife, and began slicing. Dropping all the bread in a basket, she began setting the table for their "date." She laughed to herself, liking how Liam had described it.
Dinner was complete and on the table, waiting to be dove into.
"This looks fantastic Li," Rhea gasped scanning the table. "You really outdid yourself,"
Liam smiled, accepting her praise with gratitude. "Let's eat!"
Rhea took a chunk of yellowed chicken and a spoonful of rice, and poured a generous amount of extra curry sauce on top. Taking her first bite, she knew she'd been missing out, as the spicy sweet taste filled her mouth. "This is absolutely amazing..." she sighed in delight. She eagerly ate more, loving the taste just as much. By the end of their meal, there was nothing left to be consumed.
"Guess you liked it," Liam smiled, looking at the empty dishes, happy that she liked his cooking.
"Yes. Very much, yes. Thank you for the mea-" her compliment was interrupted by the ringing of a phone.
"Oh, excuse me," Liam apologized as he took out his ringing cell phone and answered the call.
"Hello? Yes.....Sure....Be there shortly." Liam hung up and turned to his girlfriend, "You wouldn't mind if I go into work for about an hour or so, would you? There holding a client meeting and they want me to be there."
Rhea shook her head, "I was going to take a nap anyway. Take your time, I'll see you when you get back," she stated smiling to make sure that he didn't have to feel bad for leaving.

Description
“So, you're sure this is the one?" Liam looked over at his girlfriend as the two of them descended the outdoor stairs to the street. Rhea had been lugging him around the city in search for the perfect new apartment to live in as they transitioned into their new lives.
"Yes, I'm sure," she replied happily. She grabbed his hand and squeezed it. "It's perfect."
That was probably the best news Liam had heard all day. He loved her, but when it came to important decisions she often got real picky, and needed everything to be as she saw fit. As long as it was a permanent place to live, Liam was content; he had being getting sick of staying in cheap motels every night. It sent a shiver down his spine just thinking about it. They hadn't been the cleanest of places, and he thought it was a miracle that he hadn't contracted a disease from those rooms.
"That's great!" Liam exclaimed, returning the squeeze of the hand. "I will contact the landlord first thing tomorrow, so we can start moving stuff in."
Rhea let go at the mention of moving stuff in. She had completely forgotten that she was going to need to go back to her parents’ house to pack her things. It wasn't them she was worried about. It was Liam meeting her parents that worried her. Her parents were ok with the two of them living together, but just meeting in person always made everything awkward.
Liam could tell something was wrong. "What is it Ray?" turning to look into her troubled eyes.
"I just realized you're going to need to talk with my parents again," she replied with a lack of enthusiasm. Liam had met them only a couple times, and although it was acceptance both ways, Rhea was worried that Liam would have to sit through another one of her parent's hour long conversations. Those things lasted forever, and they usually weren't interesting topics either. You always had to watch out what you said, because sometimes it would spark a whole new talk for another half an hour.
"What? Frank and Vivian? They'd love to help move you in," Liam stated, but from the incredulous look from his girlfriend, he reconsidered. "Ok. We'll try not to talk for a long time. I just thought that they could help make it easier to move in."
Rhea could see that Liam was alright with meeting them again and her mood lightened. "As long as you're ok with it…" He nodded in affirmation. "Ok. I'll call my parents tonight and have them start moving the boxes into the garage for us to meet them tomorrow."

That night, with an air of celebration, Liam treated Rhea to a night out downtown at a popular restaurant, Giovanni's. He had read about the food and the excellent service, and wanted to commemorate their last night before getting a new place.
"Liam, you didn't have to do this," Rhea gasped seeing all the effort he put in to have a nice dinner.
"It's my treat, my love," he replied smiling, the dim table light reflecting off of his eyes. "I wanted tonight to be special."
After looking over the abundant tasteful dishes on the menu, the two ordered and received their drinks.
"How was your first few days at your new studio?" Liam asked as the two waited for their meals to arrive, trying to start up a light conversation.
"Oh, it's wonderful," she replied. "I finally have a space to call my own, which is great, compared to the shared rooms in college. Although, I'm not certain, but someone may also be using the space...the studio seemed split into two separate areas." She didn’t know if she should be disappointed or happy.
"That's a great opportunity for a friendship," Liam chipped in, trying to bring a positive side to her statement.
"I guess I never thought of it that way," she shook her head, "What about you?"
"What'd'ya mean, what about me?" he smiled laughing a little.
"Oh, c'mon, you. You and your fancy new job here too?" Rhea pressed playfully, wanting him to admit how fortunate he was with his job.
He laughed again. "I know. Man, it's great! I can't believe my internship got me a job at the architectural firm. I'm finally on the design team!" his excitement palpable in the room.
Rhea couldn't help but laugh herself. The way he smiled and laughed always made her more cheerful. The couple conversed more until their waitress came with their steaming plates of food. Rhea was given her Chicken and Broccoli Alfredo, and Liam was given his Bruschetta Steak Ziti.
They thanked their server and looked hungrily down at their meals. "This smells so good..."Rhea closed her eyes sniffing deeply. She stabbed a piece of broccoli and placed it in her mouth, a look of pure delight forming on her face.
He smiled, doing a mental fist bump, glad that his girlfriend liked the place he chose. Taking a bite of his own, he too was blown away by the great flavor. "Oh, wow. Ray, you've got to try this," holding out a small forkful to her.
She gladly obliged and engulfed the food in her mouth as Liam held it out to her. She chewed it, savoring the flavors, analyzing all the different ingredients.
Then she tasted it.
She stopped chewing for a split second and stared down at her boyfriend's plate.
The bruschetta.
She wanted to spit the food out right then and there but that would be extremely rude. Rhea swallowed moments later and smiled to make him think she liked it. However, spitting the food out would have been way less embarrassing than what usually happened.
It all started when she was in her last two years of high school. Like most girls she had started to develop and over the course of it she began to notice abnormalities in her changes. They weren't anything that affected her initially, but were often brought out upon various actions. The one at play right now was something that brought her back to memory of her family eating out at a Mexican restaurant.
She had ordered a nacho dish with a big bowl of salsa to use for dipping. She had been famished, and ate the whole thing including the last scrapings of the salsa. None of it happened until she was home, when a couple hours later she was in the living room on her back sweating as her and her family watched. Right before their eyes, Rhea's chest expanded, and kept growing until it ripped open her blouse.
Horrified, her parents rushed their nearly unconscious daughter to the emergency room where she received treatment. Upon hours of examination, the doctors concluded that Rhea would have to be milked, in order for the pressure built up within her breasts to be released.
Frank and Vivian watched helplessly as their engorged daughter was hooked up by a milking machine. A glimpse of hope came amidst the scary and alien ordeal as they saw Rhea's size return to normal. Rhea was released and the family returned home to recover from what happened. No one, not even Rhea, understood why that happened. Nevertheless, Frank and Vivian altered Rhea's eating habits and lifestyle in order to protect her.
Over the course of her last two years before college, Rhea's life was a system of trial and error. When anything changed about Rhea, her parents would analyze the effect and weed out the cause so they could stop her from doing it again. Things she consumed, such as tomatoes, were removed from her diet completely. However other things, besides food needed to be watched for. Her sleeping patterns, what clothes she wore, her emotions, and other things needed to be monitored so Rhea didn't experience it again. As she went off to college, her parents had prepared her with as much knowledge that they could give her on what to and what not to do. Through her four years at college and meeting Liam, her secret had been kept safe.
But now, she threatened to ruin everything by eating a measly piece of tomato. It was only a matter of time before her chest would expand, only a little.
The two ate the rest of their meals, Rhea politely turning down Liam's offer for another bite of his pasta. "I'm good," she laughed, pushing the thought of expanding in public at the back of her mind. "I've got the rest of mine to finish."
Liam smiled and shrugged. "You're missing out," putting a forkful in his mouth.
Yeah, I'm pretty sure I am.

After dinner, the couple returned to their motel to spend their last night before getting an apartment. As Rhea looked herself over in the mirror, she could tell her breasts had grown slightly, noticing they felt just a tad bit heavier. Relieved, she brushed it off and got into bed and waited for sleep.
It never came.
All through the night, Rhea couldn't help but think about how she was keeping a huge part of her life a secret from Liam.
As she progressed through college her outgoing teenage-self had changed into a more reserved personal self. Her 'problem' made her not as sociable, the threat of swelling like a water balloon always looming over her shoulder. It wasn't until her junior year, when she met Liam that she began to open up more. As their relationship strengthened, her worries about her body lessened, and pretty soon she and Liam were thinking about moving in together once they found jobs.
But all that time, her secret, was kept a secret from her boyfriend, her best friend, in fear of being abandoned and deemed a freak. Rhea wanted so badly to tell him, she just didn't know how or when.

Rhea woke early like she had always done, and stared at the ceiling feeling exhausted. The tighter feeling in her shirt held the answer as she slowly got up to sit quietly on the edge of the bed, making sure not to disturb Liam. She covered her mouth in terror seeing that her breasts had grown again slightly. Her sleeping pattern had been disrupted with the lack of sleep last night and her body paid the price.
She quickly got up and crept over to the bathroom and looked at herself. To her they still looked like C's, right? She second guessed herself, hoping to God that Liam wouldn't notice. Rhea slipped back into bed just as Liam was about to wake up. "Good morning," she whispered to the still half asleep man. He mumbled something and slowly sat up against the headboard.
"Good morning," he said sleepily with a smile. "Time for the big day."
Rhea got up again and told Liam that she was going to text her parents that they'd be coming down, and headed into the bathroom again. She yanked out her phone and sent a text to her mother.

We'll be heading down in about an hour or so, and have dad pull the moving truck up next to the garage. She paused before continuing, guilty that she had to write what came next. Mom, I'm going to need you to pack my milking machine. Make sure it's somewhere already packed so Liam doesn't have to find it. Sorry about this.

Rhea swallowed clearing her throat; feeling like a burden was on her shoulders that only she felt. She found Liam in the room talking on the phone with the landlord seeming excited. He ended the call and turned to face his girlfriend in the bathroom doorway.
"We got it!" he exclaimed overcome with joy, embracing Rhea in a long warm hug. "Finally a place to call our own Ray."
Rhea hugged back reflecting his happiness with a huge smile, a sigh of relief coming from her lips. She too had been getting sick of hopping around the city staying a few nights here and there. Finally, something permanent.
Packing their things, they left the hotel and started on the road before noon and headed to Rhea's parent's home two and a half hours away. Liam looked over at his girlfriend in the passenger seat with a knowing look. "You can sleep for the ride down if you want. You look like you hadn't slept much last night, I'll handle the driving."
Rhea was glad he noticed that she didn't sleep and within minutes was reclined in her seat fast asleep.

Liam shook her shoulder gently and watched as she lifted her head up from the back of the chair. "We're here," he told her.
Rhea turned to see a familiar sight. It was her parent's tan suburban home with the beautifully manicured lawn and huge oak tree. "Home sweet home," she whispered to herself with a smile. She looked out and found her father already starting to load a box onto the empty moving van in their driveway. She hopped out and hugged her father and greeted him with a smile.
"I can't believe you're already getting your own place," Frank smiled down at her releasing her from their hug. "You grew up too fast."
Rhea blushed, knowing that her not being home anymore was going to be tough on them. Going back, she knew her mother was going to start crying immediately, and she'd have to reassure them that she would call and visit sometimes.
"Oh, you're mother wanted to see you when you got here," Frank snapped his fingers in remembrance. "She's in the living room. You don't mind having Liam here helping me load stuff do you?" He looked over at Liam hopefully.
Liam gladly obliged. "I'd be happy to help out," shaking Frank's hand firmly. He bent down and grabbed a box at his feet and hefted it onto the truck bed. Within seconds the two men were deep in a conversation.
Rhea found her mother and the two hugged. "Dad said you wanted to see me." She watched as her mother glanced behind her and at the door.
"Liam's outside, right dear?" Vivian asked, continuing when she got a silent nod from Rhea. "Ok. I got your text. I packed your milker in the bottom of this box," pointing down at the large cardboard container. "I wanted to show you, so you can know where it is, or if you wanted to hide it from Liam." Rhea glanced down and was glad that it was well hidden underneath the stacks of blankets and clothes.
"But, Rhea, I really think you should tell him," Vivian told her, holding her arm. "You shouldn't keep something like this from him, if he's that important to you."
Rhea sighed sadly. "I know I should, mom. I just don't know how to tell him, without scaring him. I'll see if-" Her sentence was stopped when she heard Liam and her father walk through the front door. Vivian quickly closed the box and gave it to Rhea to take out to the truck personally.
She passed Liam as he was stooped down picking up another box and hurried out the front door without him noticing. She jumped when he tapped her on the shoulder as she was pushing the box along the van floor.
"Easy there Jumpy, when'd you get so excited all the sudden?" he teased, resting the two boxes he was holding on the ground.
Rhea turned and smiled sheepishly, trying her best to cover her nervousness. "I just can't wait to be in our new apartment, Liam. It's going to be great!" hopping off the van and running back inside.
Liam couldn't help himself. He loved when Rhea was enthusiastic and excited about things; it made things that much more interesting.
Once the milking machine was packed away safely, Rhea began to loosen up again. The rest of the loading went smoothly and the couple was ready to shove off by 3pm. However, that also meant the painful goodbyes. Vivian broke into a sobbing fit as she stood there seeing her daughter ready to leave her home.
Frank and Vivian hugged their daughter for what seemed forever, but Rhea let them go for however long they wanted. After some last minute kisses and words of encouragement, Frank and Vivian stood there in their driveway, watching as their only child drive away to face the world.

The ride back to the city was uneventful, with Rhea following Liam in the van with her car. They unpacked easily, littering there living space with countless boxes. After Liam had parked the moving van and returned upstairs, the two took their first looks at what they'd be living with for their first few years; a nice open family room, with a small kitchen, bathroom, and a large bedroom. It was a pretty good deal, considering how much they paid for it.
Without even getting to work with unpacking, Liam coaxed Rhea into having him cook for her. "Don't unpack just yet, I want to make dinner for you and I,” he stated putting a hand on her outstretched arm which was about to open a box. "You like curry? I'm feeling a like Thai food kinda night."
Rhea smiled gladly accepting his offer for a home-cooked meal. "Never had it, to be honest," sounding a bit weary.
"Oh you'll love it, trust me," he assured. "But first, we have to go and buy the ingredients, unless this apartment has a stash of food I don't know about." Liam eagerly pulled her out the door and back to their car so they could do a little shopping.

Soon the apartment was filled with the decadent aromas of curry and chicken. Rhea watched over Liam's shoulder amazed at how well he knew his way around a kitchen. "Never suspected you for a cook," she chuckled, brushing his hair with her hands.
"I'm full of surprises," he laughed stirring the pan of curried chicken vigorously. He moved onto a pot of rice boiling and took out a spoonful to look at the tenderness of it. "Almost there...oh, hey, Ray? You wouldn't mind cutting the bread for me?"
Rhea turned to look at the loaf he was pointing at, and nodded in agreement. "No problem," she replied getting out a knife, and began slicing. Dropping all the bread in a basket, she began setting the table for their "date." She laughed to herself, liking how Liam had described it.
Dinner was complete and on the table, waiting to be dove into.
"This looks fantastic Li," Rhea gasped scanning the table. "You really outdid yourself,"
Liam smiled, accepting her praise with gratitude. "Let's eat!"
Rhea took a chunk of yellowed chicken and a spoonful of rice, and poured a generous amount of extra curry sauce on top. Taking her first bite, she knew she'd been missing out, as the spicy sweet taste filled her mouth. "This is absolutely amazing..." she sighed in delight. She eagerly ate more, loving the taste just as much. By the end of their meal, there was nothing left to be consumed.
"Guess you liked it," Liam smiled, looking at the empty dishes, happy that she liked his cooking.
"Yes. Very much, yes. Thank you for the mea-" her compliment was interrupted by the ringing of a phone.
"Oh, excuse me," Liam apologized as he took out his ringing cell phone and answered the call.
"Hello? Yes.....Sure....Be there shortly." Liam hung up and turned to his girlfriend, "You wouldn't mind if I go into work for about an hour or so, would you? There holding a client meeting and they want me to be there."
Rhea shook her head, "I was going to take a nap anyway. Take your time, I'll see you when you get back," she stated smiling to make sure that he didn't have to feel bad for leaving.