Fast Forward to us

24- Rewind to Them

Jeremy

Dawn was approaching as most of the night was spent researching which college to go to. At one point, I tried to set up the internet to visit the university websites. Of course, I couldn't figure it out as my dad had just ordered internet a month ago. We were still trying to figure out how everything worked. With little sleep that night, it became apparent that I was in for a rough and tiring day at school. Coffee was needed. Lots of coffee. With a large cup of coffee, my body sat at the kitchen table thinking about the upcoming day.

"Son?" asked my surprised dad who made his way to the kitchen. "What are you doing up so early? Did you just now get home?" He made his way to the counter where the coffee maker was. "Looks like you already saved me the work of having to make coffee." With him still in pajamas, my dad poured coffee and sat at the table with me.

"I couldn't sleep." Speaking was hard. My voice seemed to be dying. "There's a lot on my mind right now."

The old man took a sip of his coffee and kept his eyes on me. "Still can't figure out which college to attend?" With a chuckle, he continued to speak. "I'm just glad you're not calling that hotline again."

"Yeah, I'm still trying to figure that out." A large gulp of coffee was taken. "But there's also this girl. I don't know what school she's going to go to in the fall. There's just a lot of questions."

"Have you talked to this girl? Maybe you could ask where she's going?"

Not wanting to answer that question, a new question to turn the conversation was asked. "How did you know mom was the one? Like, didn't you guys meet in high school?

My old man couldn't help but grin while taking another jab at the coffee. "Yes, we met our senior year of high school. She was a new student that year. On the first day of school, I spotted your mother while sitting in Government and History. I wanted to talk to her, but I was afraid to approach her. When Christmas came around, she ended up being my Secret Santa.

For an entire week, I received a gift each and every day. At the end of it, it became obvious that she was the one sending the gifts. The last gift was a gift card to the local ice cream shop that her father owned before he sold it. That was my chance to talk to her. That day after school, I met her in the parking lot and asked if she wanted to go out that night on a date to the ice cream shop. She said yes. The date went so well that night. We were an official couple by Valentine's Day.

My dad just sat there in pure happiness thinking about all that happened in the past. The man was content. Crap, I could only hope that would be me in twenty years. Would life be shared with Hailey?

"Didn't you guys go to different schools after graduation? How did you make it work with her?"

Clearly, that answer was going to require more coffee. More coffee it was. "Yes, I had already accepted a scholarship and was planning on attending school in Florida. Meanwhile, your mother was already planning on going to New York. And believe it or not, being a doctor wasn't of original interest. I actually wanted to major in business. Anyways, during our first year in college, we would take turns visiting each other every other weekend. It was getting pretty expensive to do so. After an incident with your mother one weekend, I knew I was called to be a doctor and I was able to transfer to New York with her for my sophomore year. If it weren't for that incident with your mother, we would've likely have broken up at one point and go our separate ways.

"And what was that incident?" I asked out of great curiosity.

"Eh, I rather not discuss that with you right now. Let's just say that your mother went through a lot. Maybe she can tell you about it when she's ready."

"Oh," was my response with another gulp of my drink. "You weren't worried that she would be going to a different school? Why didn't you try to go where she was going originally?"

"Yes, I had some fear that our relationship could possibly go south. This was the first girl that I ever had true feelings for. All I wanted was to spend every waking minute of the day with her. I questioned every day if I should change my plans because of her. Of course, I came to the conclusion that if our love was strong enough, things would work between us."

My father stood up to put his finished cup in the sink. "Life is complicated," I claimed.

"Yes, life is complicated." He sat down and patted me on the shoulder. "But sometimes we complicate life more than we should."

With that, my father finished the conversation and headed for the shower. He'd given me a few things to think about. Somehow the coffee began to feel disgusting and hard to finish. I wasn't ready for today. If only I had gotten sleep. Going to my room, Melissa was still sleeping. Being tired, I felt it was best to let her sleep.

The next hour was a blur as it felt like my body was on autopilot. Somehow, my skin couldn't remember that hot water that came from the shower. Once I was ready, I looked at myself in the mirror. Crap, I looked like a crazy mess. Whatever. At least I was ready before the bus arrived. Finding myself outside, I waited. What would today bring? What would Emma say? What would Ted do? There were so many possibilities. My questions would soon be answered with the bus approaching.

Jeremy's dad is a smart man! Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Don't forget to comment and vote!

How did your parents meet?

Can things between Jeremy and Hailey work regardless of circumstances?