Second Chances: The Return of Gollum

Chapter 1

Hayley was doing a little shopping at the mall. She stopped at Barnes & Noble to look around. She was thrilled to see an entire section dedicated to Tolkien, which included the books, the movies, and other great merchandise, such as T-shirts, hoodies, stuffed animals, action figures, and even artwork. She looked through the shirts, and chuckled at the one that read "Taters! Po-ta-toes, boil 'em, mash 'em, stick 'em in a stew!"

"I need that shirt in my life," said another voice.

Hayley turned around to see another young woman behind her, also looking through the Tolkien section. She smiled warmly at her. "I know," she agreed. "That's like, one of my favorite quotes in the movie."

"I know. Every time someone mentions potatoes, I always repeat that quote."

Hayley giggled. "That's automatically where my mind goes every time I cook any kind of potato. I always end up singing a little ditty, 'Boil 'em, mash 'em, stick 'em in a stew! Boil 'em, mash 'em, stick 'em in a stew!'"

The young woman laughed. "That is awesome."

They both picked the same shirt, but in their own sizes. Then, they continued looking. The young woman's face lit up when she saw a shirt with Frodo's face.

She squealed in excitement as she grabbed the shirt from the rack, and hugged it to her chest.

"I take it Frodo's your favorite character?" Hayley guessed.

"Oh, my God, yes!" the young woman said excitedly. "He is so cute!"

Hayley giggled. "He is adorable."

"I'm Sarah, by the way." Yes, she was the same Sarah Sméagol and I met in the park.

"I'm Hayley, biggest Lord of the Rings fan you'll ever meet."

Sarah grinned. "That's debatable," she teased. "I literally have all the movies and books, and every chance I get, I buy as much LOTR merch as I can find."

"Same here." Then, Hayley gasped with excitement when she caught a glimpse of some of the action figures. "Oh, my goodness!" she squeaked. "These look so real! They look just like the hobbits!"

Sarah immediately ran over to the display, and grabbed Sam and Frodo figures off the shelf. "Yes! Finally!" She hugged the boxes containing the action figures. "I used to have a Frodo action figure when I was a kid, but I gave it away when I got older. I always regretted it."

"Awwww, well, now, you have him again."

"Yep, and Sam, too."

"Those two are quite a pair, aren't they?"

"Yeah, they're friendship goals."

Hayley grinned and nodded.

"They got me through middle school."

"Oh, middle school was rough?"

"Yeah. I was bullied... badly."

"Awwww, Honey." Hayley was very saddened by this, as she always had to witness me getting bullied growing up. "My baby sister was bullied, too."

"I got bullied for being Autistic."

"So did my sister."

"Really?"

"And, for being visually impaired."

Sarah sighed in frustration. "People suck, honestly."

"Yeah, they do." Hayley tried not to cry. "I actually just brought my sister home from the hospital today, because she tried to commit suicide after yet another fucking idiot of a 'friend' abandoned her."

Sarah nearly burst into tears hearing this.

"If it wasn't for her incredible boyfriend..." Hayley swallowed her tears. "If he hadn't found her in time... I wouldn't have a sister anymore."

"Thank God for the boyfriend."

"Oh, he is a God-sent. She's always had problems with relationships and friendships... until he came along. Not only did he save her life multiple times, but when she was in the hospital... he stayed right by her the whole time. Never strayed, never even blinked. Literally, nobody else, none of her other friends or past boyfriends would even think of doing that. They'd probably tell her she was being too dramatic, that they can't take anymore drama from her, and run for the hills."

"Shit, I know that feeling all too well."

"You've had friends do that to you?"

"Friends, boyfriends, even my own family."

"Oh, Honey." Hayley gave Sarah a sympathetic, loving smile.

"Like, when my dog died, everyone told me to get over it. It's just a dog."

Hayley scoffed. "That's horrible."

"Or, when my best friend died last year."

"Awww, Sweetie––"

"Sorry." Sarah was very embarrassed. "You just met me, and I, um... I... have no filter."

"No, no, it––"

"I gotta go." Sarah hurried to the register to pay for her items before Hayley could say another word.

Hayley felt very sad for a moment. What is wrong with the world? She thought to herself. Why are people so dismissive of others' feelings? Why are people seen as a threat just because they're different, just because they think and feel differently?

As Hayley was about to leave, she caught a glimpse of something from the corner of her eye.