Everlasting

17

1899

Winnie walked out of her house as her mother congratulated her again for her 17th birthday. It had been a long and happy day, but Winnie had been distracted the whole time. 

Her mind flashed back to the day that had been on her mind for the past six years.

"Drink it when you turn seventeen and then find me, I'll leave directions somehow. And I'll be planning great adventures for us."

Jesse's voice rung out in her head. God, she missed him. How would she find him again? But instead of contemplating the many questions inside her head, Winnie ran upstairs to pack.

*

The dust had piled on everything over the past year Jesse had been staying at the old house in Treegap.

Jesse had no clue when Winnie's birthday was, so he had decided to stay at the cottage the whole year so he could be there when she came.

That is if she ever came. His father had told Jesse he talked to Winnie about it and seemed to convince her not to drink, but Jesse held out hope, even though that hope went down every year.

Still, he missed her. So much. Sometimes he would sit at the door and wait for it to open, and now he knew why Miles spent so long waiting for his son to come home.

And so Jesse sat at the extremely dusty chair facing the door, watching for any sign of movement. He picked up a nearby book, one he had probably read hundreds of times, and flipped to a random page, immersing himself in the book.

*

It was only hours later that Jesse became bored. He missed roaming around and climbing large buildings and trees, but he wouldn't risk missing Winnie. So instead he set his book down and decided he would sit on the porch and feel the breeze, away from the stuffy house. He watched the dust rise as his footprints ruffled them.

As Jesse went to open the door, it swung open, revealing a teenage girl holding a small suitcase.

"Jesse?"