The King and I

My nose began to run as he slowed his hips. He gently removed my leg from his shoulder and lay on top of me, wiping my tears and calling me Peaches. He shushed me and kissed me over and again. He was still inside me, but no longer moving.

I didn't worry about the vein that pops up in the middle of my forehead when I cry, or how red my nose must be, or where the copious amounts of snot that were running out of my nose were ending up. I was almost hyperventilating. I wanted to die. It was too much.

He didn't say anything, just smiled and wiped my tears. "I'm o-gay, uh-huh, I'm o-gay." I tried to get my shit together. I needed a tissue, I wanted to hide. I am no dainty sweet little thing when I cry, like some elegant lady in a movie. I am a sloppy red mess and I know it. I couldn't help it or stop it.

He wrapped his arms around me, burying his face in my afro, murmuring in my ear, He held me until I calmed down. We lay quietly, savoring the moment.

We took a bath in a tub as big as a pool. We played and laughed and made love again. We didn't get any other work done that day.

The year of 1973 was when I truly became a woman. I came into my own as a designer and was sexually awakened. I was never shy with Elvis, never ashamed of myself or my impulses. We had fun. He was a great lover and with him, I was too.

He told me I was beautiful, he sang softly in my ear. We alternated between slow sweet love and hard dirty fucking. We always fit, we always matched. I was crazy. I was alive. I felt different. I know I looked different, acted differently.

My mother looked at me funny sometimes but never asked me any personal questions. "Are you okay Jeannie?" she asked one day.

"Just Peachy," I answered and couldn't stifle a giggle.

"This is a job, do the best you can, but never forget who you are Jeannie, never forget."

No one could kill my high. I didn't fantasize about a life with Elvis. We wouldn't get married, have kids. I only thought about today, and maybe tomorrow.

We went on tour for six months. I saw a lot of new cities, created a lot of great looks. I slept with Elvis every night. We were together whenever, wherever and however we could be. I was having the time of my life.

When the tour ended I was thankful, not sad, not longing. I had grown a lot, learned a lot, and I was happy. My fantasy life came to an end. I was really busy with work, eternally a fan of Elvis and even now, 37 years later, I can never see, smell or even think about Peaches without smiling.