Chapter Five : It's A Small World

After dinner, the trio merged back into the car. The dinner was actually nice, and Emma and Jay continued finding they have more and more in common. This time in the car, for a short time the car was booming with conversation. Ellie felt a lot better it seemed about Sean. They got to Sean's house, and dropped off their first person, Ellie. They stayed there long enough to see her get inside. Ellie waved with a smile and a thumbs up to let them know she was okay, and they could go. Jay looked back at Emma, "Yo Greenpeace, you can take the front seat."

Emma hesitated. Jay smiled lightly causing her to smile back and open the door slowly, shut it and join him in the front, "Thanks." Emma said filling up the silence as Jay put the car in reverse, followed by drive leaving the Ellie's house and back to the street.

"And so that leaves you, Greenpeace. Where do you live?"

Emma pointed in the direction of her house, "Right down to the left, my house has a big number 13."

Jay turned into the driveway which was notably empty. The house was dark, and Emma just remembered that her parents weren't going to be home, they took Jack to grandma's. Earlier in the morning they almost cancelled but, they really needed a vacation after last year and Snake's cancer. Emma said she could handle the house on her own for a day or two, but as she dug in her purse for her keys she noticed that she had forgotten them. She sighed, "Shit." Dropping her purse on her lap and reclined her head on the seat looking up and not looking at Jay.

"What?" Jay asked.

"I forgot my keys."

"Look, it's alright."

"My rents lock the doors when they leave. They left for vacation."

"You could stay at my house."

"I couldn't. . ."

"I wouldn't be able to sleep if I knew I left you outside."

"Really?" Emma asked.

"Really. Seriously. It's not like my mom would mind, she works late. Besides, it'll give me a chance to get to know you better. Today was a lot of fun."

Emma nodded grinning sideways, "Alright."

- x -

Emma got a little confused and mistaken at first when they were driving into the next town, by large Degrassi is a small town, but the district is pretty big. It continued to confuse her when they were going into the small upscale section of town. She thought she was even more mistaken when she saw a large metal black gate surrounded by trees and two fountains on each side, and lovely displays of all kinds of flowers along the sides of the drive way. Jay pressed a button on the side of the brick wall by the opening and said his name the gates opened and he drove in. Emma didn't say anything she just was too captivated for words. Straight ahead was a fairly large home and Jay parked to the left where two other upscale cars were parked. Emma glanced at Jay.

"What, Greenpeace?" Jay said after a few moments of Emma's silence.

"I didn't know you lived in Lakeview." Emma wondered out loud still gazing out the windows. Everything about Jay's living arrangement was everything she never expected from Jay. She thought Jay lived alone, like he had no family, no authority, she half expected him to live in a hotel, or an apartment but never in a large gated home.

"Yeah, don't tell anyone. I don't want people knowing about where I live."

Emma didn't say anything to Jay. She remained quiet, aside from a quiet, "I wont. And thanks for today."

"No problem, let's go." Jay exited his car and shut the door, he then went around to Emma's side and open the door for her and see that she got out. They walked up the long driveway paved with brick pavers. The trail to the house was lit with lovely outdoor lamps and the landscaping was flawless in their garden. Jay took out his house key and unlocked the door with Emma behind him. As Jay opened the door the barking of his pet yellow lab, Gigi greeted them at the door. She started barking and sniffing Emma. Emma knelt beside the dog and pet her, in turn she calmed down, "Cute dog." Emma told Jay.

"Yeah, that's my girl. Name is Gigi." Jay said as Gigi slid down to lay down by the door, as Jay walked in the house some more to shut the door, and Emma sat up and adjusted her purse strap following Jay to the kitchen."she loves visitors. Little attention seeker." Suddenly Emma and Jay heard the voice of a young girl, "Jay Jay is home!"

"Jay you promised your sister you would take her to the park, and you did not." Connie called from the kitchen. Emma stayed back and listened quietly. She couldn't help but recognize Jay's mother.

"Connie - I don't want to take her. I had plans. Couldn't you get Darcy or someone else to do it? She's a girl." Jay grumbled in a rude voice on a nice yet hazy evening in the large airy home where he and his mother Connie lived.

"But Jay, you're her big brother. You disappointed her. She loves spending time with you, you know that. And please stop calling me Connie, I'm your mother. Don't forget that."

Jay had never really gotten accustomed to his new living arrangement nor does he like it. He hates all of it, the house, the walls, how everything is so unmistakably clean how there are butlers and maids griping and devastated if there is one stitch of dust on one small cranny of a shelf or the large great-rooms mantle, everything had to be in tip-top shape to them, Jay lives with a bunch of neat freaks where he feels all alone in a crowd of people and he doesn't want anyone to know it. Jay lives in a large house, he has maids, butlers, he has a new step sister named Darcy and her father is a minister, his mother is Connie. . former stripper now getting into her second childhood - god bless her all of which is true. Rolled his eyes when Darcy's father, Lyle came into the room in his 'so-called suave' tie and shoes ready to go to a church meeting, wouldn't you normally think a minister would wear black, not him, they're church is . . different Jay likes to say without believing in them. Connie and Lyle kissed each other on the cheek, before turning to Jay and giving him that look that he was trying too hard to play dad with him, "Cya Jay. Goodbye Christina."

"Bye Daddy." Connie ran and hugged Lyle as he left the house. Jay was perturbed that his baby sister calls him Daddy. He means Lyle does a good job at being a father figure, but considering that Mr. Edwards isn't even her dad it upsets Jay. Connie had a fling with a guy from her job a few years back, his name was Frank. Frank is really Christina's father. That affair caused the destruction of the Hogart family, caused the family to move from a home from the uptown city, to Degrassi's trailer park development called Ophelia Ridge where they spent many years in, before a few years ago when Lyle first entered their lives. Lyle and Connie had been married for about three years. Jay still hasn't forgiven his mom for ruining their family. She got sole custody of Jay and Christina, and their dad has no part in their lives. Connie makes it out that Jay's dad is a horrible person. Jay just plain misses his dad. Jay never lets his mother know how he truly feels, his distance and cold behavior to him is just about the only clue he has given her. It hasn't been the same since before his sister's birth. The thing is, Jay loves his sister but he can't stand how much she looks up at him. Jay knows he is no good.

"Well I refuse to take her, she'll just get hard to look after and all that. . I don't like it. . " Jay sighed as he looks at his family and shakes his head. Then looks down at his young five year old sister with her bright blue eyes and near-pearly, shiny platinum yet very natural hair gazing up at him and tugging on his blue Fruit-of-the Loom tee-shirt, "Go play Barbie's it's getting late Chris, you should be getting sleep."

Christina Hogart, Jay's little sister gazed up at her older brother whom she adored with her bright light-blue eyes. "But Jaaaayyy!" She whined. "You promised you would take me to the park!" She pouted, tears brimming in her bright blue eyes - which made them seem a steely gray. "I don't want to go with Darcy. I want to go with my big brother. Tell him Mommy!" She said starting to throw a tantrum. She was, no doubt, spoiled rotten, she always got what she wanted and she tends to abuse that fact. Every time she throws a tantrum the person caves in and gets her what she wants, takes her where she wants to go, whatever her heart desired.

Jay sighed.

Chrissy deferred her attention to the figure behind the action near the hallway, "Who is that?"

"Who?" Jay asked forgetting that Emma was here. Emma sheepishly waved at Chrissy.

Darcy walked in from the other side of the house noticing a girl in the house. Connie asked suddenly, "What's going on? I swear I thought I heard my name."

"It's my friend, Emma. Now do me a favor and go upstairs, Chrissy."

Chrissy at first objected until Jay reached in his pocket took out a lollypop, "Alright! A lolly." In a moment she was gone.

Emma couldn't help but like the way he referred to her as his friend. She really couldn't get over the fact she had feelings for Jay, and Ellie wasn't the only person to know. She even wondered what if Sean knew, though he probably did. But she couldn't help but notice Connie, the woman sitting on the couch. Emma thought back to a few summers ago when she helped out her mom at the hair salon, she swept hair, cleaned up and did the sinks, eyebrows and little things like that. "You're Connie. . I don't know how I didn't notice it before."

Finally, Darcy looked at Jay with daggers in her eyes. He returned them with a similar look. Darcy and Jay didn't get along at all. She was embarrassed that they were related, and everyone knows Jay and Darcy are like night and day. He didn't want it to be a big deal that Emma was staying the night. "Looks like Jay brought home a new experiment." rolled her eyes at Jay. Darcy and Connie got along exceptionally well for a step daughter and a step mother, "A-and you know her!?" Darcy stood up off the couch and sighed, "Please explain."

"Oh my gosh! You're Christine's daughter. How are you doing?" Connie quickly sprung to her feet and motioned Emma to sit down in the arm chair across from her before standing in front of her. Jay was confused but he didn't say anything.

"I hate to bring this up but, I heard about what happened at school. I'm so glad you're okay. Anyway, you're mother told me you were involved in that "Whack Your Brain" thing. You're very bright."

"Why thank, you." Emma smiled.

"Would you like anything to eat, sweetheart?" Connie offered.

Emma shook her head, "No thank-you ma'am. We just had dinner."

"Ma." Jay sighed walking closer to Emma and Connie, to avoid any more conversation. It was all making him awkward. "I told her she could spend the night. She forgot her keys, and her parents aren't home. It was the least I could do."

"Oh well that's perfectly alright." Connie smiled, and then looked over at Emma, "You are more than welcome here."

Emma and my mom were talking. About Emma's mom. Baby brother too? Never knew she had one of those. Wow this is awkward, I guess. A wedding maybe? Oh yeah, I forgot Simpson is her step dad. I just wanted her out of the room. "Mom, I'll take care of everything."

"Well alright. I'll see you in the morning, Emma. Darcy will take you upstairs to get you something to wear tonight. Wont you?"

Darcy nodded walking Emma upstairs to get the guest something to wear while Jay and Connie remained downstairs. Alone. He didn't like that in the least bit.

"She's a really good girl you know, Jay. Her mother and I are very close."

"I can tell." Jay said to his mom.

"How do you know her?" Connie asked curiously.

"Friends, around school." Jay shrugged.

"Oh well, I'm going to go to bed. Goodnight Jay." Connie told him giving him a kiss on the cheek before going upstairs.