Jackson Overland. Who, exactly is this Jackson Overland? To most people he's that good for nothing prankster who always plays tricks on people. To others, he's an energetic young man, still finding his place in the dark world. To me, though? He was none of that. Yes, though most people would be surprised to hear it-Jackson Overland is my hero. Whenever I share that to someone, though, they always look at me strangely, as if I had said something on the lines of, That frog is my best friend. I just stare them back down.

The brave ones though, ask me why. I tell them it's a long story. More of them leave, but some, just the determined few, stay to hear the rest of the tale. I shoot the people who stay a smile, and not willing to waste any more of their lives, I begin.

"I remember, one day," I say, "I was...hiding under the bed. There was a thunderstorm, the biggest one I've ever seen..."

(x)

"Rosie? Rosie?" Jack called out. He looked around the house, but she wasn't there. He didn't panic though, he knew that his sister would never go out in a storm like this one. He pushed the door of the room they shared, it creaked open. He looked around the dark room. A huge bolt of lightning illuminated the sky, brightening the room for a second. He tilted his head to the side, he thought he had seen a small shivering figure under his bed.

"Um...Rosie?" he asked, advancing toward the furniture. He crouched down and saw a small dark shadow. It could only belong to his sister, "Hey, little lady, what'cha doing down there?" he laughed.

(x)

Some of the girls who were listening to my story perk up. If I hadn't known that they liked Jack, then I would've thought that they were actually paying attention. I bet they were only here to understand what her older brother was like.

"I crawled out of the bed and looked at Jack, he was looking down at me, smiling," I pause, "It-It wasn't a mean smile or anything! It was...really nice. A loving smile." I internally giggle as some of the girls shoot me a look that would have curdled milk. There was nothing to be jealous about, though.

"I told him that I was afraid..." I continue.

(x)

"Jack...I'm scared." the little girl looked up to him with big brown eyes. Just then, a flash of light, and a loud crackle of thunder. Rosie screamed and tackled Jack, embracing him. He looked down at her, confused for a moment, then, hesitantly at first, put his arms around her small, shivering body. He got down on his knee down to look her in the eye, "Look, Rosie, look at me," he tipped her face up so they were facing each other, "You're going to be alright, okay? It's just a little thunder and lightning."

Then another loud crash. Rosie winced, "No it's not!" she cried, her eyes still shut tightly. Jack nodded, "Okay, maybe it's a bit bigger than usual, but that doesn't mean it's a lot, yeah?" he said, soothingly, "It'll be over before you know it."

Rosie frowned, opening her eyes and looking at him, "But...I'm still scared." she murmured, now avoiding his gaze.

"Sometimes..." Jack started, thinking, "Sometimes we can't help getting scared. Nothing to be embarrassed about," he said, "But, you can always twist fear around," he held an open palm out, then snapped it shut. Rosie laughed and he smiled at her, "You can always change fear into something fun. Like...oh! Like that time when, who was it? Matt Tomas, right? Yeah. Like that time Matt Tomas came at me, he was about to hit me right there you know? He said, 'Overland, I'm going to punch your bloody nose until it's broken!' Remember what I did?"

Rosie giggled, recalling that time. Jack had gained tons of admirers after that particular event.

"Wasn't it scary at the start? He was coming right at me-"

"And he was so tall!"

"Yeah, he was pretty big. And he was talking in that loud voice-"

"Like an elephant!"

"Exactly," Jack grinned, "And you were afraid, right? You thought my nose would actually get broken?"

Rosie looked down, embarrassed, "Yeah..."

"But it ended up being fun, right?" he said, smiling softly. She nodded, grinning, "Yeah!" then she looked up at him, her brown eyes free from any tears, "Thanks, Jack." she said. He smirked, "No problem," then he looked out the small window, "Oh, hey! It's started snowing!" he said, "What about you and me go ice skating tomorrow, little lady?"

Rosie grinned, "Yeah."

(x)

"Wait, so you mean that that was the day before...uh, you know," one of the guys say. It was the one and only Matt Tomas.

"Yup," I nod.

"And...you're not uncomfortable talking about it?" a blonde girl says. She stares at me with amazingly blue eyes. I shake my head, "He's not really gone you know."

I hear whispers, rumors again, of how I was hallucinating my brother everywhere. That wasn't the case. He said he'd always be there for me, he would never leave me, he said. And I believe he'd never do that.

"He was like my guardian, you know." I say, smiling dazedly.


Author's Note

Just gotta get one thing straight, okay? This is 16 year old Rosie Overland. Yeah, some people say her real name is Pippa, but honestly I prefer Rosie. First fanfiction on this website! Please read and review! Sorry it's a bit, okay, a lot short. I hope you liked it!

-Lace