The minute Elizabeth went into three year olds' play room at Loving Hands Day Care, Skyler spotted his big sister. "SISSY! SISSY!", the little brown hair boy exclaimed happily and jumped into his sister's arms hugging her. Elizabeth held her baby brother tight and breathed in Sky's little boy smell,of sweat, dirt and a hint of chocolate mixed with the Snuggle detergent their mom used.
"Hey buddy, she said, kissing his chubby cheek, "you ready to go?"
Sky's face filled with worry and his eyes grew wide, "Sissy you never come get me till nap times over. Why you not at your big school?"
"Its okay buddy, Sissy just had a bad day and needed one of your big hugs."
Sky hugged her tightly and when he was pulling back he noticed Jesse standing beside Elizabeth watching them. "Who are you?", he asked Jesse.
Jesse bent down to Skyler's level, "Hi little man, my name is Jesse.", he stuck his hand out and shook hands with Sky's little one. This seemed to delight Sky. "I'm Skyler. I'm three". Sky held up three fingers. "Why are you with MY Sissy?", Skyler asked wrapping an arm around Elizabeth, who was trying not to laugh while waiting to hear Jesse"s response.
"Well Skyler, Jesse began, I go to school with your sister and she's my best friend," Jesse looked up at Elizabeth to see she had an expression of utter shock on her face. He flashed her his trademark smile and turned his attention back to Sky. " Boy Skyler I sure could go for a burger and chocolate shake right now. What about you?
All Sky needed to hear was chocolate and he was off of Elizabeth's lap in a flash to grab his book bag and say goodbye to his friends Landon and Ethan.
Jesse and Elizabeth waited for Sky, both laughing at the kid's mood change at the mention of chocolate.
"You don't know what you just got yourself into. That kid is a hurricane when he gets chocolate in his system.", Elizabeth warned laughing
" I think I can handle it. Two five year old sisters, remember?
Elizabeth nodded. "So I'm your best friend huh?", she teased knowing Jesse only told Sky that to make the kid feel safe.
"Yep, you sure are Bethie. You're stuck with me now."
One look in his eyes and Elizabeth knew Jesse was telling her the truth. Before she could say anything, Sky ran and climbed on Jesse piggybacking him, " Let's go Jesse I ready to get a chocolate shake".
Jesse laughed " Okay cowboy", he said, "let's go".
***
"You play football?!", Sky asked as he took another sip of his medium sized chocolate shake. Jesse had insisted on getting it for Sky instead of the "kiddy" size. Elizabeth had tried to warn Jessie that just the smallest amount of sugar made Sky bounce off the walls, but Jesse said he'd help her watch Sky and assured her everything would be fine.
"Yep, I sure do little man, and if you're good today maybe Beth will let you come to the game tonight with us."
Sky looked confused, "Beth who?"
Elizabeth and Jesse both started laughing and Elizabeth explained so that Jesse could finish his burger since he hadn't had a chance to because Sky was asking him a question every five mintues. "Sky, Jesse means me," She wiped his chocolate covered face with a napkin.
Sky started laughing and turned to Jesse and said, Her name isn't Beth silly. It's E- Liz-A-Beth.", Sky said.
Jesse wink at Elizabeth. "I know but to me she's Beth", said to Sky. " Finish your burger little man and if it's okay with your sister you can go play in the tunnel mazes".
Sky looked at Elizabeth, bouncing in his seat, "Can I Sissy?!" "Can I"?!
Elizabeth nodded. "Yeah, you need to burn some of the sugar out of your system, but stay where we can see you and finish your burger first"
Sky downed the burger in three bites and ran to the play area at the back of the Burger King.
I'm finally getting one on one time with her. Jesse thought to himself as he and Beth talked while Skylar played in the tunnels near by. He didn't know how it happened but he already really liked Beth. He could tell she was weary of him because he was a jock and was in the "popular" crowd at school, but what she didn't know yet was he wasn't the type of guy people normally picture as a high school's quater back. He was a Christian. Not a strict one, mind you, he cursed every now and then and he'd gotten in fights but he didn't drink at parties he went to and he was usually home before curfew and he was still a virgin. Though he believed in God he wasn't saving himself for marriage but just untill he found the right girl. The one and only girl he'd make love with. Ever. He'd had girlfriends. Plenty in fact but it never went beyond kissing and sometimes above the waist touching. It just hadn't felt right. He'd much rather sit with his little sisters and watch a movie or play his acoustic guitar instead of go to a party.
Jesse noticed Elizabeth had hardly touched the salad she had ordered. "You want a burger?", he said
"No thanks.", she said, "I'm fine. This new muscle relaxer I'm on kills my apetite ".
He raised an eyebrow. "Muscle relaxer?"
"Yeah, my legs tighten up and sometimes they spasm".
" Oh", so why'd your parents move, he asked not wanting to make her think about her disability. When she was around him he wanted her to feel normal.
"My dad is a coal miner and we moved to be closer to his job", she said, as she looked over to check on Sky. He was laughing while going down the tunnels. He was completely fine.
Jesse waved at Sky and turned back to Elizabeth. " My dad works in the mines too."
" I hate it", Elizabetn said, "Mom and me are always worried about dad getting hurt or worse.
Jesse knew how Beth felt he worried about his dad too.
They talked what seemed like hours stopping every now and then to check on Sky, who after awhile got tired of them checking up on him. "I'm not a baby guys.", he insisted.
Elizabeth learned that Jesse hoped to get a football scholarship to WVU after high school but he was going to major in medicine and hopefully be a pediatrician one day, which both suprised and pleased Elizabeth. She told him she thought he'd make a great doctor one day because he had been awesome with Sky. When he asked Elizabeth what her plans were after high school, she said she had a job at the library already and would probably just buy her own house and stay put. Jesse wondered why she wasn't going to college but didn't ask her.
He was more surprised that she had a job. He wanted to know more about her job so he asked her, "Elizabeth what kind of work do you do down at the library"? She looked at him and explained her job, " I am an instructor helping parents and kids getting enrolled into school for the very first time," she said. " I make sure they have all their shots updated and everything and help them be ready to go by teaching them to count and the alphabet," she explains to him. "that is a wonderful job Beth," Jesse tells her with a smile on his face.
When Jesse glanced up at the clock on the wall it was 3:37! They had been talking almost five hours! They'd talked about everything from favorite colors to childhood memories. They'd even discovered they had the same birthdate. He learned a lot of her likes and dislikes, for instance, she loved kids, salt and vinegar chips, her dog Presley, anything made of peanut butter. She dislikes math, pizza, hot dogs and rap. They'd also shared deeper things. She confined in him that she was afriad of always being a burden because of her disability and he told her he was afriad of his scholarship plans falling through and winding up with his dad. There was nothing wrong with mining and Jesse had a deep respect for miners but he saw what it did to his dad after twenty years of it. His dad would develop black lung, was semi deaf in his left ear, had a tons of back problems and had been taken to the ER more times then he could count after being hit by falling rocks. He couldn't imagine himself crawling in a hole every day. He felt like he really knew Beth inside and out and hoped that she felt the same about him.
"Beth", said throwing away their food wrappers, " it's almost four we gotta get going, I gotta be at the stadium at five."
Elizabeth's eyes widened. "We've been here five hours?? Wow, I took up your whole day."
Jesse smiled. "Don't worry about it. I had a great time with you and Skylar.
"Sky! Oh my God!", she had been so into talking with Jesse she hadn't seen Sky in awhile. She started looking in every direction panicking.
Jessie got up and went to the table behind them and picked a sleeping Sky up from the bench seat. "Found him.",Jessie said as Skylar cuddled into him. Elizabeth sighed in relief.