When He Came Back

Spongar [Chapter Two]

"Cece, wait!" Claire's voice cuts through the empty parking lot as I dash to my car.

It might be him! It might be him...it might be him. My brain slows down as all the pain I'd pushed away all those years ago from when Jackson left me, comes back up again.

"Cece..." Claire pants, leaning her hand on my car. "I thought you...were over him...I didn't mean...to upset...you." She pants, and she rests a hand on her chest.

"I am..." I say blankly, gripping my keys tight.

"You're upset..? Oh, I'm sorry Cece," Claire says, finally catching her breath.

"No...silly. I am over Jackson. It might not even be him. But I want to greet the new neighbors that have put their dirty paws on Jackson's house." I say lightly, opening my car and hopping in.
I press the passenger side window down.

"Following behind, Claire?" I ask as she blinks her shell-shocked face back into her normal face.

"Sure, Cece. Please be careful." Claire says quietly, as she slips into her own car.

I furrow my brows, as I reverse out of the parking spot, with feverish hope.

                                                                            --

I put my car in park, and slide out of the car. I see Claire doing the same thing when I see my mom, Ruby Henderson rushing out of our house with a flustered expression.

"Mom?" I ask, walking across the street and walking halfway through the front lawn.

She pulls me into a hug.

"What's with the hugs?" I ask awkwardly.

"You're not going to believe this sweetie. Now. When you see our new neighbor, please try to refrain from punching him out. He only just got back into our town. Don't want him to have a black eye you see," my mom rambles, squishing me.

"Why would I want to punch out a guy I've never met before mom? Sometimes I think there's no faith, and personally I think that's rude." I pout, pulling out of my mom's grasp.

Claire snorts, and pats her hand on my shoulder.

"Do you remember the Bobby Reginald incident, or shall I remind you, my violent butterfly?" She asks, her blue eyes dancing.

"Fuck-" I start, but one glance at my mom, and decided to go for a safer word...for everyone's safety. "Fudger thought just cause you say one thing in the sixth grade you mean it forever..." I grumble, rolling my hazel eyes.

"The kid only asked for your phone number, Cece. You gave him a bloody nose. And you hardly knew the dude!" Claire exclaims.

"Yeah, exactly I didn't know him! Anyway, I was going through a rough time with - I was going through a rough time. Even he looked like a fudging snob." I reply, rolling my eyes.

"I thank the heavens everyday that he didn't sue, Cecilia May Henderson." Mom scolds, rolling her eyes. "I shouldn't have let you grow up with your brothers."

"You had no choice but to leave me with Nicky and Dex. Fuckin- Fudging sperm donor left us." I snap, rubbing my temple.

"Just don't start, Cece. C'mon, let's go meet our new neighbor...yay..." Mom mumbles, running a hand through her ebony hair that's streaked with grey.

I swallow a lump.

Please don't be Jackson...Please be Jackson...just this once...sweet baby Jesus what are we going to do if it's him? Deck him immediately? Cry? Scream? Emotionless? Or play it cool, as cool as you can be even when it feels like you're swallowing glass pieces?

I sigh, and hook my arm through Claire's. Mom has a little twinkle in her eye, which probably indicates I'm going to love/hate it.

The reason it was Jackson's house, and not his parent's was because he moved here when he was emancipated from his orphanage; He somehow got himself emancipated at seventeen. I was the only one who approached him and told him he's going to be my friend whether he likes it or not. I was the one who helped him find his birth parents. I was also the one he cried on when he found out the crippling truth of why he was put in the orphanage in the first place. His mother and father didn't want him, and even then, when they had another kid there already. I apologized so many times for forcing him to find his parents. He just pulled me in tight, and whispered, "Don't be sorry, little Cece. I'm glad we did that together, or else I think I would've fell apart." Then I felt wetness on my right shoulder, and as the awkward person I am, I just patted him on his back, and let him hold me for a while.

I was the person that he spent many days and nights with playing video games and shooting the shit

A doorbell, that I remember so sharply, rings, breaking my train of thought.

"I'll be right there," a deep voice calls from the garden area.

My mom grins at me. I curse my short height everyday of my life. I'm seventeen and only 5"3. I got my short genes from my mom. I'm inches taller than her, when we have Claire that's 5"6.

The door swings open and I see the familiar layout of this home. My heart stutters in my chest as a fresh wave of sad hope falls upon me and washes over me.

I bring my gaze to a man, that looks so similar to my Jackson. But Jackson always said that he was against tattoos and piercings and this man right here has a lip piercing, an eyebrow piercing and several tattoos on his legs and arms. I'd have to get up close, but that would be a very weird thing to do.

"Hi?" He asks, raising the un-pierced brow. A puzzled expression passes over the man's face.

Claire is aggressively poking me on the arm.

I look at her and frown.

"Hi, I'm Ruby Henderson, and this is my daughter, Cecilia Henderson, and her best friend Claire Lake. Say hi girls,"

I look at him, and see he has a pained expression. I grin, and put out my hand, with an innocent smile, as in the inside, I know it's my Jackson.  And I'm slowly killing myself on the inside. It's whatever.

"Cecilia Henderson.  And you are?"

"Jackson...um, Wells." He says, looking very Spongar at the moment.

I burst out in laughter. I realize it's hysteria.

Instead of going blank or something, or punching him out, or even playing it cool, I go all hysteria girl on my old best friend Jackson Wells.

I start to breath jagged breaths as I realize, HOLYSHITIMHYPERVENTILATINGGOTTOBREATHE when Claire screams out, "HOLY FUCK SHE'S HYPERVENTILATING!"

And then, if the universe hates me even more, I pass out, darkness enveloping me quickly.