Thanks so much to ps9906 and Mylee for their reviews on Chapter 3!
Now here's the next chapter...
The Girl Next Door
Part 4
Water had never felt so good, Jim decided, as he washed off several days' worth of grime in the Beldens' shower. The two girls he'd met since coming to Sleepyside, Trixie Belden and Honey Wheeler, had just headed back up to Uncle James's house, Ten Acres.
Or what used to be Uncle James's home, Jim thought sadly, remembering that the old man had been hospitalized and died just before he arrived in Sleepyside. Maybe I should've left earlier, he thought. But he quickly discouraged the thought. Coming here sooner wouldn't have saved his uncle; the old man was already very ill.
Grabbing a towel off the rack, Jim quickly dried himself off and put on the clothes Trixie had left for him. Walking down the hallway of the Beldens' cozy farmhouse, Jim stared at all of the pictures that decorated the walls. Photos of Trixie, her three brothers, and her parents smiled at him from their frames, brightening the hallway.
Speaking of pictures… Jim quickly reached into his pocket, breathing in relief as he felt Nicole's homemade picture frame graze his fingers. Jim headed downstairs to the living room, thinking of how quiet it was with no one around. Spotting the phone on the table nearby, Jim quickly picked it up and dialed a familiar number…
************
Nicole Sullivan lay on her bed, the portable fan blowing in her sweaty face. The hot mid-July sun streamed through her window, trying to disguise the worry that filled the room. Jim should've called by now, Nicole thought, not for the first time.
It had been only a few days since Jim had left, and since then Jones had been over several times to see if she or her family knew where Jim may have gone. Nicole had, of course, not told Jones anything. "Come on Jim! You promised you'd call! Lazy redhead." She muttered to herself as she once again stared at the phone on the table beside her. Laying her head down between her arms, Nicole wondered where Jim could be…
The ringing of the phone jolted Nicole out of her doze. I must have fallen asleep, she thought, as she quickly reached for the phone. "Hello?" She said anxiously. "Hey Nicky. How've you been?" the warm familiar voice reached her ear. "Jim! Oh I've missed you so much! Why haven't you called? Is everything alright? What-"
"Nicky, Nicky! One question at a time!" Jim's deep laugh came over the line. Nicole smiled and leaned back against her bed board. Oh how she had missed that laugh! "For starters," Jim began, "I'm fine. I made it to Uncle James, but he was hospitalized right before I got here, and died a few days ago." "Oh Jim! I'm so sorry!" Nicole cried.
"It's okay." Jim paused momentarily, "But don't worry. I met these girls named Trixie Belden and Honey Wheeler. And even though I was pointing a gun at them when I met them," Jim ignored Nicole's shout of "You were WHAT?!" "The two of them started arguing as to which one is going to adopt me. They both seem like nice girls, and who knows? Perhaps one of their families will adopt me. But I know that's just wishful thinking, right?"
"Of course it's not wishful thinking, Jim! I'm sure both of those families would feel lucky to adopt you!" "Yeah. It would be nice to have a family again." Jim said lightly, but Nicole could hear the underlying pain in his voice. "I know Jim. You just remember that I'm always here for you, got it?" Jim smiled, "Got it."
"But where are you going to go now?" Nicole wondered out loud, "Jones is still legally your guardian, and he's out looking for you." After a minute of silence, Jim sighed loudly, "I don't know yet. I'm going to stay at Ten Acres for now, but I don't know what's going to happen after that. I've always got that cattle boat job in the bag…" "We'll leave that as a last resort, Jim. What about those summer camps you wanted to be a counselor at? Couldn't you go there, at least until you know where you're going?"
Jim nodded, even though he knew Nicole couldn't see him. "Yeah I could do that." Jim agreed, "I'll have to see what happens, I guess. It seems like nothing is going right in my life."
"Don't say that, Jim. Just remember your mother's old saying; 'There is always a reason for everything. You don't have to like the reason, but you have to live with it anyway.'" Jim remembered this old saying well. His mom had said it to him after his father died, when he thought there was no good to come. But then Jim had met Nicole Sullivan, the girl who had brought light to his darkened soul. "You always know just what to say, Nicky." Jim said with a smile.
Jim sighed as he leaned back against the overstuffed couch, trying to imagine himself standing in the Beldens' family picture that hung on the wall in front of him. Oh how he wanted to be part of a family again! "Hey Nicky?" he said as he heard the Beldens' dog Reddy barking outside. "I'll call you back soon, I promise. I want you to not worry about me, all right? Because I know that you are, and you don't need to be. I'm perfectly safe here."
Nicole blushed. Jim knew her so well, and knew that she was worrying about him. "Okay Jim. I promise I won't worry, as long as you stay safe. I miss you, Jim." "I miss you, too, Nicky. Goodbye for now." Nicole smiled, "Goodbye for now."
**************
The next morning Nicole woke up to pale yellow sunlight shimmering through her window. She had had her first restful sleep since Jim had run away, not being kept awake by the nagging worry in the back of her mind. Of course, Jim still doesn't have anywhere to go, the depressing thought reminded her.
But it didn't do much to depress the teen, who was still relieved that Jim was away from Jones and sounded like he was happy. When was the last time that Jim laughed? She wondered, smiling as the redhead's laugh from yesterday tickled her ear. She picked up an old picture of she and Jim that she kept framed on the table beside her bed. Back in the good old days…
Combing her brown wavy hair from her face, Nicole thought over her conversation with Jim. Some of the worry that she had willed to disappear started to creep back into her. "Don't worry. I'm perfectly safe here." Jim had told her. But how could she stand sitting around, waiting for Jim to call?
He was out there, with nowhere to stay and nowhere to go. Nicole hadn't wanted to admit it to her friend, but he couldn't just appear out in the open. Jones would come find him, and they both knew it. I should've made him tell someone about Jones, Nicole thought with regret. Perhaps this whole thing could've been solved so much easier, and we wouldn't be in this situation.
Nicole quickly dressed and headed downstairs, filling her plate with some pancakes. Sitting down at the table, she exchanged "Good morning." with her father, who was buried in the morning paper. "It seems they found Jim Frayne." Mr. Sullivan said. Nicole nearly choked on her pancakes. "What?! Someone found Jim?!" she cried, her stomach twisting painfully. It was Jones, she thought. It has to be.
Mr. Sullivan's face was solemn as he passed Nicole the article. "I'm sorry, sweetie. I know the two of you were good friends." But Nicole heard none of it. Instead she stared in horror at the article.
Last night on lonely Glen road, Ten Acres, the mansion where a fortune was believed to be held, went up in smoke. Neighbors called the fire department late last night when they saw smoke billowing from the mansion. Despite the drought and the threat of the fire spreading to other homes, firefighters managed to restrain the fire to that home only. The owner, Mr. James Frayne, 81, passed away just a few days ago at Sleepyside Memorial. It is now thought though, that the heir to the Frayne fortune, James Winthrop Frayne the second, was hiding out at Ten Acres, and was killed in the fire last night.
Her breakfast rebelling with her stomach, Nicole let the paper fall from nerveless fingers. This can't be happening, she repeated over and over in her mind. This can't be happening. Her lungs burned as she couldn't seem to get enough air. Her heart twisting in her throat, Nicole suddenly found herself racing up the stairs.
Her bedroom door slammed open in her haste, a painful lump rising in her throat. Flopping down on her bed, the teen had just enough time to clutch Jim's picture to her chest before heart-wrenching sobs began to wrack her body. Oh Jim, Nicole thought as hot tears streamed down her face. You weren't supposed to say goodbye forever…
Updates will come much faster after this. Promise!:)
Reviews please!:)
