Mended Hearts x Revised

Memories X Flashback

*FYI: Y'all this is a filler chapter. It will give you another glimpse into Annie and Johnny's past!*
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~FlashBack~

The Leblanc kids were in their yard, playing with Luke and Sydney. Caleb and Luke were playing basketball, while Sydney and Annie were swinging.
At first they were oblivious to the moving trucks pulling into the house next door. Then, they heard voices and laughing coming from the neighboring yard. "Woah!" Luke exclaimed, as Caleb hit the ball over the fence and into the yard next door.
"Caleb, you gotta go get that. Mom says she's tired of you losing them." Annie reminded him. He groaned but said, "Fine. But if I go, you're coming with me."
He grabbed Annie's hand, before saying, "We'll be back soon." He pulled his sister along after him, making his way next door. He stopped when he noticed people.
Sure, they'd heard voices coming from door but they hadn't thought about it. He sighed and walked over to one of the people, still towing Annie behind him.
"I'm Caleb Leblanc and I live next door. My friend Luke and I were playing baseball and I hit my ball into your yard by accident. Could I look for it?"
The girl smiled, "I'm Maddie Orlando, my family and I just moved in. You can go look for your ball, I'm sure my parents won't mind." He nodded and dropped his sister's hand. "Could you watch her?" He didn't wait for an answer, as he ran off to find the baseball.
Annie stared shyly at Maddie, remaining silent. Maddie smiled, "What's your name?" With a sigh, she slowly said, "I am Julianna Grace Leblanc. But I don't like being called Julianna, I like Annie. I'm five and a half."
Maddie smiled and said, "My younger sister, Lauren, is also five. I think you'd like her." She turned and waved her sister over. The little girl came running, a smile on her face. She looked at her sister, before holding out her hand. "Hi, I'm Lauren. I'm five and I like making new friends."
Annie shyly smiled back, "Hi. I'm Annie." They began taking, as Maddie watched over them. When Caleb came back, his sister was reluctant to leave. Caleb sighed and said, "Annie, c'mon. Let's go. Sydney and Luke are waiting." He tugged on her hand and she softly said, "Ok. Bye Laur-" Before she could finish her sentence, two more kids came over.
"Hey, I'm Darian." The girl said, smiling. "I'm Johnny." The boy said. Annie stared at the two of them, her shyness quickly returning. She moved closer to Caleb, holding onto his hand tightly. "I'm Caleb Leblanc and this is my younger sister, Julianna. Everyone calls her Annie though. We live next door to you guys."
Tugging on her brother's hand, she whispered, "Caleb, what about Sydney and Luke?" He frowned, "We should probably go back, huh? Well, it was nice meeting you." Johnny smiled at Annie, who shyly returned his smile with one of her own.
Caleb led his sister back to his house, glancing over his shoulder at their neighbors. They smiled and he smiled back. Something told him he'd be seeing a lot of them in the future.

~ Time Skip ~

Annie rang the Orlando's doorbell, glancing back at her brother. He was standing on the sidewalk, waiting for her. The door flew open, as Annie came face to face with Johnny. He grinned, "Hey."
      "Hey." She replied, "Caleb and I are going to the park, our mom sent us over to ask if you guys wanted to come. We're meeting Sydney and Luke there."
      Johnny thought for a few seconds, "Wait here, I'll ask my mom." She nodded, as he disappeared back inside the house. He appeared a few seconds later, smiling, "She said yes. Lauren's coming along too."

     "C'mon Annie, you can do it!" Lauren cheered, clapping her hands. "Luke's gonna win, no doubt." Caleb said, grinning.
      Luke was doing a handstand and so was Annie. They were as usual, competing to see who could do it longer. "I just know I can beat you." Annie taunted. "Ha, is that so? You're going down Leblanc." Luke teased. She stuck her tongue out at him. "If I win, you buy me ice cream. If you win, I'll buy you ice cream. Deal?" She asked.
      "Deal." He replied. They teetered around awhile longer, before Luke reluctantly gave up. Annie laughed, "Told ya, I'd win!" He only grinned, holding out his hand for a high five. She gave him one, before brushing her hair out her face. Sydney was ready with a hairbrush, which she happened to be carrying in her bag.
      After her hair was brushed and braided, Annie sat down on one of the nearby swings. Lauren and Sydney joined her, sitting on the swings next to hers. Their brothers pushed them for awhile before they got bored. "How about we go get ice cream?" Luke offered, "Before you ask Annie, yes, I'll still buy yours. A deal's a deal."
      They walked to the nearby ice cream shop, and got some ice cream. Annie chose to get a vanilla milkshake, while Lauren got popsicle. The others got ice cream, Sydney and Caleb deciding to get a sundae and spilt it. "Thanks for milkshake, Luke." Annie shyly said. He only shrugged, "Hey, you beat me fair and square. I made a deal and I'm a man of my word."
      She giggled, "You're hardly a man, Luke. You're just a kid." He pretended to be offended, "Ouch. That hurt, Leblanc." He tugged on her braid, smiling. She laughed, returning his smile.
"Can I talk to you outside, Anns?" Johnny asked. She looked over at him and shrugged. "Sure, I guess." They stood up and walked outside.
She titled her head to the side, "What did you want-" She was cut off, as Johnny kissed her. It lasted only a few seconds, and when he pulled away, she stared at him in surprise.
"I-I...why?" Annie mumbled. He glanced at her, "C'mon, I like you. What else was I supposed to do?" She bit her lip. "Caleb's gonna kill you."
He just stared, "Is that all you're gonna say?" She shyly looked at him, "Nooo. I like you too, John." He held out his hand, "Will ya be my girlfriend?" She giggled, "Sure."
She took his hand and they walked back inside. Annie was right, Caleb was furious. It wasn't that he didn't like Johnny, it was that he was very protective of his sister. He eventually gave in, but it took a lot of convincing.
They were a "couple" and for a nine year old and ten year old, they were pretty serious. They held hands a lot, and they did everything together.

~ Time Skip - 1 year later ~

The moving trucks pulled into the Orlando's driveway, and they began loading boxes into the trucks. The Leblanc's had gone over to help them, everyone except for Annie.
      Johnny went over but couldn't find her. He went back outside and found Mrs.Leblanc waiting for him. She smiled sympathetically, "She left awhile ago. She's at the cemetery and doesn't plan on coming back anytime soon." He could tell she was trying to gently tell him, Annie didn't want to see him.
"Oh." Was all he said. Mrs.Leblanc sighed, "It's been a rough year for her. I hope you can understand. She's hurting on the inside and I think this would of been the last straw. Her childhood is coming to an end and I don't think she's quite ready. She did, however, tell me to give this to you." She handed him a package and squeezed his shoulder, "She wanted me to tell you she loved you and she'd miss you."
He nodded miserably before he turned and left. He walked over to his house, where his siblings and parents were loading the moving truck. He sighed and walked inside the empty house. No one stopped him, so he headed up to his old bedroom.
He opened the package and found a bunch of envelopes. He also saw a few pictures and sticky notes. There was one loose letter, in Annie's neat handwriting. He shut the box without even looking at the letter. If she didn't want to see him, it wasn't his problem. As far as he was concerned, she no longer mattered to him. She was just his childish next door neighbor. If he ever saw he again, he'd do just what she'd done to him.
He would avoid her and make her feel the way he felt. Who cared if she was his first kiss, first girlfriend, and best friend? Not anymore. As far as he was concerned...she meant nothing to him anymore.

~ End of Flashback ~

ꕥ 𝙽𝚘𝚠 𝚠𝚎 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝙹𝚘𝚑𝚗𝚗𝚢'𝚜 𝚜𝚒𝚍𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚢. 𝙸𝚝 𝚜𝚎𝚎𝚖𝚜 𝚊𝚜 𝚒𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚗'𝚝 𝚖𝚎𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚎...𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝? ꕥ
♥︎ 𝚡𝚘, 𝚋𝚛𝚒𝚊𝚗𝚗𝚊 ♥︎