A Second Chance
By Jiberty Fan
Author's notes: If you haven't seen "Rock This Town", please be forewarned that there are spoilers for that episode in this fanfic and in this author's note as well as previous episodes in Season six. This is an AU of those events where some things will stay the same while others will change. I wasn't big on having Liberty see J.T. die in her arms. Even though I know that Ryan Cooley wanted to leave "Degrassi" to go to college. I would've written J.T. out of the show, but, definitely not killed him off. Thank you and best of luck to you, Ryan Cooley. You will be missed. The songs that I used are "(You Want To) Make A Memory" by Bon Jovi and "Far Away" by Nickleback. The characters thoughts are in Italics. I don't own any of the characters or the songs that I used.
Toby could see and hear it in J.T.'s face and voice, after he went on for it seemed like forever about his latest chat with his so-called "Ex-girlfriend" Liberty Van Zandt. You just don't talk about an ex-girlfriend that you're completely over like he does, but, when I called him on it he compared obsessing over her to oatmeal. Nonetheless, I'm not buying it. He still likes her and I just wish he would talk to her honestly even it were only for his own sake. He can't deny how he really feels forever. Mia Jones is a nice enough person, but, she doesn't have J.T.'s heart.
J.T. Yorke was a changed man. Sure, he still had a sense of humor and loved making others laugh, but, now J.T. moved and did things with more of a purpose that hadn't been there a year ago. Maybe it was dating Liberty that did it and that some of her seriousness rubbed off on him. Sure, she could be demanding and never liked to show weakness, but, they complimented each other well. He made her laugh and relax and she made him see that he could have fun and be serious too. She was the first girl he truly loved and he really didn't care about how she dressed or if her hair wasn't perfect, that was Liberty. Mia Jones was a nice girl and a wonderful mother to Isabella who made me see that I like being with children and that someday he could be a wonderful father, unlike his own. But, no matter what he did with Mia or how much time he spent with her, something just wasn't quite right.
He couldn't quite put his finger on it or express it into words, but, something was just missing. It sometimes felt like he was keeping up appearances so to speak. Sure, he would hold Mia's hand and walk her to class and display affection and he made sure to reemphasize it if he thought Liberty had seen them together. If it had been Liberty, there would've been no need to reemphasize anything, it would've been perfectly natural and he would remember in detail every word and thing that she did like his trusted best friend Toby mentioned to him or tried to at least. Now, for some reason, he decided that Liberty should have a birthday party in order to cheer her up, despite knowing full well how she felt about celebrating her birthday. It's the thought that counts, right? Yeah, you keep telling yourself that. Maybe all he wanted all along was a second chance to make things right and that this party would give him the perfect excuse to talk to Liberty especially with Mia out of town for the weekend.
Liberty Van Zandt had thrown herself back into her work in school and especially her job as student council president, anything to keep her mind preoccupied and off of J.T. For the life of her she didn't know why J.T. despite having a new girlfriend decided that she had to have a birthday party. I'm sure as hell not going to be J.T.'s fall back girl and this party just seems like it's a disaster waiting to happen. Well, he is thinking of you, even if you don't know exactly how to feel about that. I'd want a second chance, a second chance to try and make things right, but, it's a little hard now with Mia in the picture. Maybe it's true, maybe you never really get over your first love.
After school and before the party.
"Liberty, you look absolutely beautiful without your glasses." Manny looked at her friend in the mirror and wished that Liberty could see just how beautiful she could be with a little makeup and without her glasses. Liberty quickly put her glasses back on and said simply, "That's not me."
"I beg to differ with you there, Liberty. Come on all of your friends will be here. It's only going to be for a few hours." Despite reassurance from Manny and the others Liberty was still a little nervous. Just breathe, Liberty openly sighs. It's ironic that the only person I want to see tonight is also the person I couldn't be honest with and is yet the only person who really matters to me.
The first thing that Liberty noticed after pretending to be surprised by her birthday cake and her friends was the look on J.T.'s face and the fact that he really did seem to want her to have a birthday party.
"You look beautiful, Liberty."
"Thanks, J.T. I think."
A second later there's a knock at the door and Manny opens the door and while Manny and especially Emma had wanted to keep this party small that just wasn't apparently going to be in the cards tonight. Emma and Manny look at each other as they see many uninvited guests come in. Music, loud talking, the smell of alcohol, and laughter filled the air.
This definitely wasn't the birthday party Liberty had in mind for herself. While she was trying to have a good time because of all the trouble Emma and Manny went to have a birthday party for her, but, to say that it just wasn't happening was the understatement of the year. J.T. was the one who noticed the birthday girl's lack of enthusiasm.
"Like the song says, "It's your party, you can cry if you want to." Where's your hot date?"
Liberty gave J.T. a weak smile. "We were no love match, he's a nice guy and all but, something was just…missing."
Do I ever know that feeling? If she only knew.
J.T. and Liberty talked about old times like when he taught her how to drive, classic he said. Right now it did seem like old times but, she really wondered why he was spending all of this time talking to her. Truth be told she'd probably would've have liked Mia if J.T. hadn't been dating her. She also knew that maybe telling Mia about her past with J.T. had been a little desperate and childish. Desperate times called for desperate measures she kept telling herself. The fact that she never really got over J.T. really wasn't helping her tonight. For the first time in a long time, Liberty seemed to relax and smile.
"The time at the drive in where my car roof leaked, not so classic." J.T. could now smile and laugh about that.
"Oh, but, it was to me like every day with you, classic." Way to go, Liberty, take that back. He has a girlfriend. Yeah and you know that girlfriend should be you.
"Liberty, are you drunk?"
"No, I just want to tell the truth; no more lying. I still love you."
If he wasn't shocked before, that confession was going to do it.
J.T. did indeed look shocked.
"I have a girlfriend, that I love very much, Liberty."
"Do you really love her?" Liberty didn't wait for an answer, she just continued talking. Patience was not one of her virtues. "Then why are you still here talking to me? Why in the world did you want me to have a birthday party in the first place?"
J.T. was fumbling for words. Liberty could do that to him quickly and easily and in a way that no one else could.
"I…I don't know." He stammered. Okay, exactly, how much longer are you going to keep putting on this charade? She's not buying it and you both know it and she has the guts to call you on it. She's giving you an out. Now would be a good time to tell her how you really feel.
Liberty begins to walk away and J.T. tries to block her in and keep her from leaving him.
"Liberty, can't we talk about this?"
"What's there left to talk about J.T.? You already gave me your answer." He couldn't and wasn't about to let her leave him.
"I still love you, is that what you want to hear? That Mia just isn't you? That Isabella isn't our son? That I feel this way even though I think I shouldn't after all of this time? That this is just so stupid and I don't know how to fix it?" J.T. let out a big sigh. Man, you're so screwed now.
"Is all of that true, J.T.? Don't you want a second chance before it's too late?"
"Yes, but, how do we do that?"
"This isn't a test; I don't have all of the answers, J.T. There are so many things I'd do differently, if I could. That's why I was afraid that I'd lost you for good when Mia came along. I thought I'd lost my second chance."
"You didn't lose your second chance and you never lost me, Liberty. We can't go back, but, we can go forward."
"What do we do now?"
"Can I have a dance with the birthday girl?" J.T. looked so hopeful like a child on Christmas morning.
"What about Mia?"
"I'll break up with her first thing tomorrow morning. Tonight is and should be all about you. I want you to have a least one happy memory from this party."
"I didn't think that this would be us, J.T."
As if it was completely planned, a slower song, the kind of song for couples only came on for the first time that night.
"If you don't know if you should stay
If you don't say what's on your mind
Baby just breathe
There's nowhere else tonight we should be
You want to make a memory."
The song ends, but, J.T. wants another dance with Liberty especially when he hears the beginning of the next song. This song unknown to Liberty has a special meaning to J.T. because, it reminds him of her. J.T. looks at Liberty with a pleading look in his eyes, even though they both know that she wouldn't say "No" to him and that all would be forgiven quickly in this case.
"This time, This place
Misused, Mistakes
Too long, Too late
Who was I to make you wait?
Just one chance
Just one breath
Just in case there's just one left
'Cause you know, you know, you know"
"Did you make a wish when you blew out your birthday candles?"
J.T. catches Liberty by surprise and kisses her before she can answer him.
"No, don't tell me. Then your wish won't come true."
My wish already came true, J.T. Liberty thought to herself.
By this time, their friends had more or less gathered around them.
Manny and Emma were grinning and clapping and Toby looked relieved more than anything else. It made them all happy to see the birthday girl and her prince happy and seemingly dancing to their own beat in their own little world.
J.T. later drove Liberty home and held her hand the entire way home. She secretly wanted him to stay with her that night, because, part of her was terribly afraid that all of this was a dream and that when she woke up things wouldn't be the same. The ride home ended too quickly for Liberty. The radio blared but, neither of them said much.
"I love you, J.T. I've always loved you."
"Even when you really shouldn't have."
"You can't control what the heart wants. No one can control that, J.T."
"You know that Nickelback song I made you dance to tonight?"
"Yeah, "Far Away?"
"It reminded me of you…of us."
"It did?"
"Yeah, I'm not the best at expressing my feelings especially with you, but, that song said everything I tried to, but was just too stubborn to."
"I would never have said "No" to you, J.T."
"What do you mean, Liberty?"
"You looked like a scared child when that song came on. It was funny to see you look nervous."
"That was funny, Liberty?" J.T. mocked being hurt.
"That and well you did look kind of cute, all at the same time."
"Cute, huh?"
"Yeah."
"I'll show you cute!" J.T. kisses her again, but, Liberty stops the kiss before it gets too passionate.
"Remember what happened to us last time?"
"Yeah, you gave me a beautiful son. Seriously, I know what you mean. We can take it slow this time. No pressure."
Liberty's cell phone rang. She looked down to see who it was. It's so typical of my father to try and ruin a moment between J.T. and me. She couldn't help but roll her eyes and let out a sigh. J.T. sees the expression on Liberty's face.
"Let me take one guess as to who that was."
"Guess Away."
"Your father."
"You win the prize, J.T."
"Don't look so down. Where's that overconfidence that I'm so used to seeing?" J.T. puts her chin up and stares into her eyes.
"My father still doesn't like you."
"Yeah, but, I don't think your father would like any guy that you chose to date. I don't take it too personally."
"Thanks, J.T."
"He just loves you, you know that, right?"
"I wish he loved the "Me" that wasn't perfect. If he loved me as much as you say he does, he'd trust me and give you a chance."
"Give him some time, Liberty." With that he gives her another kiss.
"Liberty, I hate to leave you here, but, I don't want your father sending out the S.W.A.T. team."
"J.T., let's not give him any ideas."
J.T. gives her another kiss and smiles.
"I'll see you around 7:30 A.M."
"Drive carefully."
"I promise and Happy birthday, Liberty."
Before he leaves, J.T. makes sure that Liberty gets into her house safely.
J.T. does get home safely, but, he does drive a little fast, but, it was out of happiness more than urgency.
His grandmother has left a note for him.
Dinner is in the fridge, James. Love, Grandma.
He eats his baked chicken, baked potatoes and green beans quickly and goes to bed.
Unfortunately, once he gets to bed, J.T. finds that he can't go to sleep.
Well, you told Liberty the truth and it went better than you thought it would. That was the easy part. Now you have to break up with Mia and you don't want to hurt her. It may be too late for that. I know that I don't deserve to have Liberty and that sometimes I think her father is right when he says I'm not good enough for her. But, I have to remember that she loves me and wants to be with me, even if I think I don't deserve her.
Not too far away, Liberty finds she can't sleep either. Her reasons for not being able to sleep really aren't unlike J.T.'s.
Instead of tossing and turning out of sadness or fear, Liberty is staring at her bedroom ceiling.
If anyone had told me that I would have such a perfect birthday party this year after all that's happened to me, I'm sure I would've laughed at whoever said it and called them crazy. I just wish I could thank J.T. for the birthday party. Sure, the Lakehurst goons showed up uninvited, but, Emma and Sean got them out of there quickly. I didn't really notice. Besides the only person I was paying any real attention to was J.T.
Several hours later the need for sleep took over for both J.T. and Liberty.
Oddly enough while J.T. wasn't what you would describe as a morning person, he was up before six A.M. today after a night where he didn't get much sleep. I didn't need it today. He reasoned to himself. He remembered that he had to break up with Mia and also pick up Liberty by 7:30.
He showers and grabs a bagel with cream cheese and leaves a quick note for his grandmother. He then sends Mia a text message.
As he gets into his car, his mind is racing. He then remembers Liberty's simple request to be careful and he wasn't about to let her down as he had in the past, even though in this case it wasn't a big deal.
He then heads into Degrassi even though he knows it's early and not many people will be there. As he walks to his locker, he sees that Mia is already there.
"You wanted to see me this early in the morning?"
"Yeah."
"I thought you'd never get here." J.T. can't help but smile at Mia's last comment.
"We have to talk, Mia."
"How come I'm not liking the sound of this?"
Now is the time to tell her the truth, even if she slaps me across the face. I can't lie to her. Time is ticking and remember what you promised Liberty.
"What is it J.T.? You seem distracted and distant lately. If I didn't know better I'd think you were still in love with Lib…ah, someone else."
Had it really been that obvious? Oh, dear. Toby wasn't kidding when he tried to tell me subtly that I still loved Liberty.
"I still can't believe that she told you about the baby and the drug dealing." For obvious reasons, he didn't love broadcasting his past drug dealing.
"It was so obvious that Liberty still loved you, even then. Then of course there was that lovely display at the student council meeting. She saw me as a threat to you and she did nothing to hide it. You, on the other hand were a little harder to read. But, the signs were still there. I was just a little slow to pick up on them, because, I didn't want to see the truth."
J.T. starts to interrupt her but, Mia stops him. You are so busted, J.T.
"You still love Liberty and I never had a chance with you; even after all you two have been through."
"Why are you so calm about this Mia?" Forget being a cheerleader, Mia should be an actress.
"I can't be sad or have a broken heart over someone who was clearly never mine to begin with."
"I'm really sorry Mia, if I did anything to hurt you."
"You did the best that you could and I know that you liked me, but, it just wasn't love. Your heart belonged to someone else and everyone knew it except for me."
"Why do I feel like I'm getting off too easily?"
"You're great guy, J.T. I don't hate you and I know that you can't change how your heart feels. It's corny, but, it's true. Goodbye, J.T."
I must be the luckiest guy in the world. That went well because, God, I really don't like hurting people. He looks at the wall's clock and it says 7:20 A.M. 10 minutes to get to Liberty's house. As he gets into his car, J.T. smiles and feels as if a huge weight has been lifted from his shoulders. J.T. miraculously gets to Liberty's house a few minutes early which he didn't expect given the heavy morning traffic.
J.T. debates whether he should call Liberty on his cell phone or go up to her house. He decides to go up to her house rather than call her today, even if it meant making small talk with her father. He rings the doorbell and Liberty answers the door. She doesn't expect to see J.T. this early in the morning despite his earlier promise.
"Wow, you can be on time when you want to be J.T."
"What no "Good Morning" or good morning kiss?" J.T. mocks being hurt.
Liberty gives him a smile and then goes into Liberty mode.
"Let's go, you know how I feel about being late. Bye, Dad."
J.T. opens the door for Liberty and like on her birthday he holds her hand during the drive back to school and they remain quiet during the ride to school.
When they arrive at school, Liberty gives J.T. the kiss that he's been waiting for.
"Good morning, sweetheart."
"I've been waiting for that."
"I know."
"Give me another kiss."
Liberty gives him a slow, sensual kiss.
"Think that will last until Kwan's class?"
"No, but this will." J.T. kisses Liberty again.
"We've got to go to class today, J.T."
"And we're going, don't worry. I want to walk you to your first class."
"Who are you and what have you done with J.T. Yorke? This is totally not like you."
"Well, we've got a second chance and I'm going to take advantage of it."
The End.