I'm back! I know, you excited. More to come. Comments, ideas, suggestions I loveee them all.


He felt as though he was being punched repeatedly in the chest. She was standing in front of him, here yes greedily taking him in as her hands fidgeted with her purse. It went on like that for a while, silence overtaking both of them as he stared in shock.

"Hello Jack."

He felt his heart break, how many time was this going to happen today? He gulped back the sob that he didn't want to escape. She didn't deserve his tears, no on did, not his father, not his mother, and especially not Alessa. They could all burn in hell for all he cared.

"Well...aren't you going to invite me in?"

Her voice sounded hopeful and he hated it. He was angry with her, rightly so, she walked out on his in one of the most crucial times of their life. She left him a freak, an orphan, alone.

"Why, so you can just walk out again."

His voice was laced with poison and she stepped back. It stung, and she hadn't realized just how much it would.

"Jack -"

"What do you want." She gave him a strange look. "You left me almost six years ago and now you show up out of nowhere and expect me to yell "Mommy" and run into your arms?"

She looked down sadly. "I never expected that."

"Then what did you expect?"

Joyce sighed. "I expected you to be angry and upset. You have every right to be Jack, I screwed up, I'm the bad mother. But you don't know what it was like for me, to put up with that constant abuse, watching that monster hurt you...I, I couldn't do it anymore."

He felt his blood boil and surge threw his veins. "And you think that I liked watching as you hid under the kitchen table battered and bruised? Or having to walk around with broken ribs because you were to embarrassed and poor to take me to the E.R.?"

"You know I lways tried to do the best I could in that situation and your father -"

"Look, I don't care that you left. I get it, but why..." his voice cracked and he took a deep breath, attempting not to cry. "Why didn't you take me with you?"

Joyce felt any resolve she might've had break in that moment. Hearing his deep voice crack like a little boy, her little boy, made her want to drop to her knees. He stared intently at her, waiting for her to say something, anything, and then...she cried. It started out slow, her eyes glassy, brimmed with liquid until a few escaped and she couldn't blink them back any longer. He sighed as he grabbed at her and and pulled her inside the house.

Once the door closed she wrapped her arms around his neck and held him against her. She cried into his hair, and although he had to bend down a little to do so, he found he didn't mind. She stroked his curls and whispered nothings into his ears, he couldn't help the tears that came.

"My boy, my baby boy. I'm so sorry, I'm just so sorry. If only I was stronger, if only I wasn't so stupid. I wish I could take so much back, I had always wished so much for you. I was selfish Jack, my Jack, I was just so selfish that at the first sign of freedom I took it. I left the only think that truly mattered to me and for what?"

She cried as she stroked him and he cried into her neck, he wasn't sure when they had crumpled to the ground, but at the moment all he cared for was this. The feeling of a mother consoling a son. "I know mom, I know", was the only thing he could mutter back.

"I don't expect you to forgive me for what I did, I just hope that in time you will be able to." she kissed his forhead. "God, I love you Jack."

"I love you too, mom."

--

She put the tea kettle on the stove and took out two glasses from the cupboard. She watched him, silently, as he sat at the table staring at his hands, a troubled look in his aqua eyes that had nothing to do with her. He had grown so much, it made her want to weep at how much she had missed. He was tall with broad shoulders, long golden curls, a deep voice, and piercing eyes. Her gaze found its way to his mouth, the jagged scars teasing her with the memory of what happened in this house those years ago. Her poor Jack.

"Stop it."

She blinked and looked up into his eyes, they held an anger that she didn't understand.

"Stop staring at them, I know they're there and I don't want to see the pity in your eyes when you look at them."

"Jack, stop being like that. I'm your Mother, not one of your little friends or kids at school, I'm allowed to be concerned about you."

He wanted to argue with her, but found he couldn't. As much as he hated that look in other peoples eyes, it was coming from his Mother's this time, the woman that gave birth to him. He wanted her to feel pity for him, he wanted her to kiss them and make it all better, he wanted that, and until this moment he hadn't seen how much.

"Jack," she sat down at the table next to him. "whats really wrong? I know that before I came something was bothering you."

He looked down at the table, away from her. "I just got into a fight with a friend is all." She looked at him knowingly. "So, what ever happened to the Way girl? Alessa-beth?"

She watched the flash in his eyes and the slight tension in his jaw. "Shes fine. She still lives down the road with her Mother Jayne, you remember her don't you."

"Of course I remember her, is she still with that horrid man?"

"Yeah."

Joyce shook her head. "That poor woman." She paused for a moment before she turned to him again. "Jack, when I was...when I was gone, did she take care of you?"

Jack nodded his head. "Yeah, yeah she did. She treated me like I was hers." He looked up and met her eyes and Joyce placed a hand on his cheek. "I'm not sure how I can ever repay her."

She kept rubbing his cheekbone with her thumb, his eyes fluttered closed in a relaxed state. "You never answered my question." His eyes drifted back open to look at her. "Whatever happened to you and Alessa-beth? You two were closer than anything I've ever seen, and I could've sworn you had a crush on her."

A smile drifted onto her face and Jack felt his heart swell with pain. How could he tell her that they were in fact no longer friends? How could he tell her that he didn't just have a crush on her anymore, that he in fact was in love with her? That they had sex and kissed and shared things together?

"Things change."

With that he got up and walked down the stairs into his bedroom, slamming the door on his way. Joyce sighed and got up to take the tea kettle off the burner, shaking her head at teenagers in general.

--

He couldn't help but stare at the picture from where he lay in bed. He could turn his head away, but then he'd have to face the wall, so there he lay looking at the picture. It was a nice picture, one of his favorites actually, well used to be. It was a picture of Alessa that he had taken shortly before one of their heated fights, ending in a warm kiss that left him rather dizzy. Her hair was loose, landing in soft waves and twist of curls down her back. She was wearing simple sleepwear but looked beautiful all the same, clad in silk pants and a black tank top. He had made a rude comment about her getting ready for a nightly visitor and she managed to come up with a scathing reply, he clicked the camera when she ran a hand through her hair and grinned at him in triumph. The picture came out looking like an entirely different story though, making her look more like she was giving him a saucy smirk and motioning to him sexily.

He sighed, wiping a hand over his tired eyes. It had been almost a week and a half since the fight with Alessa and the reappearence of his Mother, both of which still left him reeing. One of the hardest parts about the whole thing was not being able to talk to his best friend about the sudden entrance of his Mother back into his life. Sure, he loved her, but she had always been his best friend first and now he had no one. He hadn't even told anyone, not even Jayne that his Mother was back.

The whole week of school had been extremely hard in its self, sitting alone at lunch, avoiding her eyes every time he saw her. All he could do was think of her, think of what she had said to him and what he had done to her. He had struck her. He had actually hit her when he promised himself he would protect her from that. God knows she got enough of it from Richard, and it just made him think about how much like his father he really was.

He could only look at her when he knew she wasn't aware. She was always with Vivianne, the blond constantly consoling the older girl, who couldn't seem to help the crying that overtook her. Her skin took on a paler colour that usual, her long hair more curly and unkempt, she wore cardigans and jeans every day.

She looked a mess.

But he was sure he didn't look his best either. The stress of everything finally coming down upon him, he wasn't eating, he wasn't sleeping, his clothes looked frumpled and dirty. He had constant headaches and all he wanted to do was curl up in the arms of the person who put him here in the first place. He hated to admit it, he hated to feel the way he did but, he needed her.

It was with that revelation, that he decided to skip school today and just lie there in bed. He could hear his mother humming upstairs, making tea and toast for them. It was a Wednesday, and completely uneventful. That was, until he heard the doorbell ring.

Joyce had been in the kitchen when in rang, closest to the door she answered it. She was suprised to see the slightly younger woman standing before her, holding a glass dish full of breakfast food. She held a shy smile on her face while the other woman's mouth was agape and her eyes wide.

"Hello Jayne."

"You, your back."

Jayne could hear footsteps behind Joyce and a call of 'Whose at the door?" before Jack appeared. "Jayne? What are you doing here?" He moved his mother out of the way and took the dish from Jayne's hands, motioning for her to come in.

"I, I just, Alessa told me what happened and you hadn't been by for a few days so I thought I'd come over and leave some food in the fridge for you."

She still had a shocked tone to her voice and her eyes were still a little wide as she followed them into the kitchen. Joyce Napier looked much older than she had the last time Jayne had seen her, and although they were not to far apart in age, one would never be able to tell.

"Joyce, I, I don't know what to say."

There was a smile on her face, it reached her eyes, but on the inside she couldn't feel anything but hatred for the woman. She up and left her only child at the tender age of twelve and now she shows up unannounced. Jayne couldn't help but feel over protective of Jack, she had only clothed him, feed him, and took care of him for the past six years or so.

She let out a small laugh and a smile made its way to her face, making it appear younger. "Its good to see you too Jayne. I know we weren't very close and I know I'm not very vocal and out there but I've been meaning to stop by and thank you, although I'm not sure how I'm ever going to be able to thank you enough for taking care of Jack."

Jayne waved it off. "Oh please, it was nothing. I felt as though he was my son anyway, and since my Alessa loves him so much, it only felt right."

Jack, of course, hadn't missed her tense of the word 'love', but he hoped his mother had. He hoped she hadn't catched the bit about what happened between Alessa and himself, but he could only hope.

"Really, you've done so much for our family over the years, I honestly don't think I'll ever be able to repay you."

Jayne smiled, Jack could tell she was uncomfortable. "Oh, really, Jack has been help enough. Hes such a good boy." She smoothed down the back of Jack's hair in a loving manner.

"So, tell me, how has your Alessa-beth been? Jack just won't seem to tell me anything." She let out a little laugh, attempting to make the conversation more casual.

"Alessa-beth? Wow, I haven't heard someone call her that since grade school." She let out a chuckle. "She's good, she's graduating this year, along with Jack, and she's doing the school play."

They chit-chatted a while longer about Alessa and a little about Jack, as though he weren't in the room. The two women stood in the middle of the kitchen, while he had moved over to lean against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest, observing them.

"You know, I would've bet a million dollars that our kids would get married one day." She turned to Jack. "What happened Jack, you two used to be such good friends."

Jack sighed and looked down at the floor. "We were good friends, then we dated, and now we aren't." He looked up at the both of them. "Shit happens."

He could feel Jayne's eyes boring into his head and he strategically kept his eyes away from hers, he knew she'd talk to him about this later. They had changed the topic and talked a little while more before Jayne had to excuse herself and asked if Jack could help her with some stuff around the house. The walk to the Way residence, although short, was in silence. Jack wasn't entirely sure how to take it, good or bad, he just decided to wait and see.

They walked in through the back door, entering the kitchen. Jayne walked in and sat down at the kitchen table, Jack followed suite and sat across from her. She heaved a sigh and lifted her eyes to his.

"Wow."

All he could do was nod his head.

"How do you feel?"

"About my mom being back?" Jayne nodded her head. "I'm not sure. I'm angry with her, hell I'm probably always going to be mad at her. But she's my Mother, as much as I don't like it, she is."

Jayne took his hand in hers and he looked into her eyes. "I hope you know this, all of this, even the stuff with 'Less, isn't going to change anything and everything you've done for me. Your always going to be my mom Jayne."

Jayne felt the tears come to her eyes and she leaned across the table and touched his face with her hand. "Jack, I don't care whats happened, or happens, you will always be my son. And I just want to say something, and I hope you won't take it the wrong way." He nodded his head. "I just don't to see you get hurt...I don't know how to say this."

"Jayne, I think I can take it."

"Well," she paused, and put both of her hands on his one. "just don't get your hopes up about your Mother...staying."

He looked down at their hands, her hand squeezing his with a gentle reassurance. He knew that she would probably leave eventually, he still wasn't quite sure why she was back in the first place. "I know Jayne."

She sighed. "Alright then. Now, about Alessa -"

"I don't really want to talk about this." He untangled their hands and pushed his chair back until it hit the wall behind him.

"Jack, this is important." He crossed his arms over his chest and stubbornly turned his head in another direction. "Jack, please, I would really like to hear about what happened from your point of view. Then, as the adult I know you are, I would like you to listen to me because I know you aren't going to listen to Alessa." He still wouldn't look in her direction, but he sighed and nodded his head.

"Fine."

"Good. Now I know Alessa probably said somethings she didn't mean, you know how she gets -"

"Jayne, I really don't want to talk about this."

"Jack-"

"No, Jayne." He stood up and walked around the table towards the door. "I can't do this, I love you Jayne but I can't do this with you. I'll talk to Alessa when I'm ready."

She stood up, following after him. "But you will talk to her." He shrugged his shoulders. "Eventually."

She gave a sigh of relief and brought him into a hug. "Oh, good. I was so afraid that I would never see the two of you together again." She brought her eyes up to look at his. "She's a mess you know."

He looked down, his head hung low, "Yeah, I know. Listen Jayne, I'm mad at her, but it doesn't change the fact that I love her." he sighed. "Even though I've tried not to."

"It's hard not being over here all the time, and not being with her in school. She was really my only friend."

He heard the front door open and close, and foot steps making their way into the kitchen. "Mom...Mom I hope you don't mind, but I skipped the last two periods...I wasn't feeling so good -" She walked into the kitchen and Jack stepped out of Jayne's embrace. "Jack, I, -"

"I better get home."

With that he turned away and walked out the back door. Alessa could feel the tears come to her eyes as she watched him shut the door and slowly walk across the lawn.

"Alessa..."

She threw down her book bag and stormed out the backdoor after him, "Jack!" she ran after him, catching up to him quickly. "Jack, wait. Please wait." He stopped with his back facing her.

"What do you want."

His voice was laced with such disdain that she felt her heart drop in her chest. It was the voice he used when he spoke of Tommi or his father, never in his life had he used it with her. It hurt.

"I'm sorry. About what I said to you, I'm sorry. I wasn't lying to you Jack, everything I said was the truth and I really wish you would believe me."

He turned around slowly to face her, his face void of any emotion but his eyes still held an anger in them. He looked her up and down, her jeans were low around her hips, her shirt bagged over her heavy chest, her hair lay in messy curls around her shoulders, her skin looked pallid, and her eyes, those eyes, were bloodshot, full of anger and laced with sadness. He couldn't do it, he couldn't see her in this state, all because of him. Even in this state she still looked o beautiful to him and he couldn't deal with the urges that took place within him. He shook his head and started walking away.

She ran after him, putting a hand on his back and tugging at his arm. He whipped around and gently untangled himself from her grasp. "Don't touch me."

She stepped back. "Why, you had no problem touching me, especially when you slapped me. Or did you conveniently forget about that." She could see the anger flash through his eyes and she knew she had his attention now.

"You atleast owe me a couple of minutes because of that."

"I don't owe you anything."

"Honestly Jack, are you really going to believe Tommi over me?"

They stared at each other, breathing heavily, not moving. It was the voice of Joyce Napier that brought them out of their coma. "Jack, is that you? Who are you talking to?"

Jack watched as Alessa's eyes went from him to his mother, her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open. She turned her pale gaze from his mother back to him and he thought she was going to drop to the ground in shock.

"Oh my goodness, is that little Alessa-beth? Come here child and let me take a good look at you!"

Alessa was still staring into Jack's eyes with surprise and confusion before she broke eye contact and walked across the yard to where Joyce stood. The woman was dressed in normal jeans and a blue blouse, the clothes were worn and old, and she looked the same as Alessa remembered her. Joyce took her into a hug and put her at arms length to examine her further.

"Look how beautiful you've gotten, not that you weren't a beautiful child because heaven knows you were, but your a woman now!" Her smile was wide as she looked over the girl who had stolen her son's heart at a very young age. "Isn't she lovely Jack?"

Jack stood a good distance away with his arms folded over his chest, watching the scene before him, a sight he never in his life thought he'd see. "Yes, she is." His voice was gruff and a little angry sounding. Alessa looked over her shoulder and found Jack's eyes boring into hers with his statement.

"Joyce," she let out a nervous little laugh. "when did you get back?"

"Almost two weeks ago, I'm surprised Jayne didn't tell you."

Her face paled and Jack could see the flash of anger in her green eyes. "Jayne? As in my mother?"

"Well, yes. She stopped by here earlier today." Alessa nodded her head but Jack could see the hurt in her eyes. "I hope I didn't interrupt anything when I came out here."

"Oh, no...uh Jack and I were just talking about -"

"School work."

She gave him a grateful look for giving her a excuse, she really didn't want to have to explain to his mother what they were really discussing.

"Yeah, school work."

"Oh, well I'll just leave you to it then." She smiled at Alessa and brushed some stray curls out of her face. "And Alessa, its really nice to see you again. Don't be afraid to stop by and say hello."

With that she went back inside and left the two of them alone once again. As soon as the kitchen door shut Alessa whirled around and stalked over towards where Jack stood. She pushed at his shoulders, making him stumble slightly.

"Why didn't you tell me."

He stood straight up over her and looked down into her eyes. "We weren't really on the best of speaking terms. Besides, its none of your business."

"None of my buisness? I've only been your best friend for the last eleven years, how could something this big not be my buisness."

"I'm done talking about this Alessa."

"Jack, you mothers back. She just appeared back into your life and you have nothing to say about it?"

He shrugged his shoulders, his voice cold. "I guess not."

"I know you Jack. I know you better than probably anyone and I know your not buying your mother just showing up out of the blue. I know that your confused and hurt and angry, and I know your angry with me. But Jack, lets be realistic, who else are you going to talk to about this that's going to understand?"

"Not you."

"Jack! I'm sick of this!"

"Well you should thought ahead before you had sex with Tommi."

She shook her head and laughed. "You are honestly the stupidest person I've ever met." She took an envelope out of her back pocket and handed it to him. "Here, here's the other set of pictures I didn't lie to you about. When you're ready to forgive me for something I didn't do, you know where to find me."

She walked away from him and across the lawn and through the neighboring yards to her own. He watched her walk away from him and all of a sudden his shoulders felt as though they weighed a thousand pounds and he had to fight the urge to sit down. He opened the lip of the envelope and took out the pictures that were inside. The Polaroids were of Alessa and Vivianne, as promised. He went inside and straight into his bedroom and took out one of the pictures that had fallen out of the envelope that night. It was of Alessa laying on a bed, her hair spred out around her, her long legs up in the air, and a smile on her lips. He compared the date on the Polaroid to the ones she had just given them, they were the same.

He flipped through the polirods of Alessa and Vivianne, they started out in what he assumed was Vivianne's room from the color of the walls and the clothes on the bed. Then they were in a different room, a more masculine room with blue bedsheets, which was wear he guessed the picture he had of just Alessa took place. All of the angles looked as though they set the timer or took the pictures themselves.

He sighed and raked a hand through his hair, he knew he had been wrong, these pictures proved it. But he had just been so sure, he had felt the feeling in his gut. Maybe Alessa had been right, maybe that had been his only chance, maybe he had only saw what he had wanted to see. Everyone else in his life had screwed him over, he just figured in time Alessa would too.

Why did he always do this?

Why did he always find a way to push everyone away from him?

He put the pictures in his nightstand drawer, he turned off his lamp and laid down on his bed. Closing his eyes, he decided not to think about anything until tomorrow and just go to sleep.

--

He awoke to the sound of sirens, they must've been fairly close for them to wake him up. He sat up and looked over at his alarm clock, it was dark in his room and his clock read a little after three in the morning. He rubbed his eyes, stood up and stretched before walking up the stairs into the kitchen. He walked over to the front window in the living room, pushing the curtians aside and looked outside to see where the ambulance was parked. It was parked outside...the Way household.

He jumped up from where he was kneeling on the couch and threw open the front door. Tearing down the side walk he ran to where the police cars were parked and saw them carrying someone out on a stretcher. He saw Richard standing over to the side, talking to a few officers, his shirt ripped, his knuckles bloody and the startings of a black eye.

He felt his breathing become rapid and his eyes serching franticly. He found Jayne sitting in one of the ambulences crying and they both looked as though they were getting ready to leave for the hospital. 'So if Jayne was there, and Richard was over there, that could only leave...'

He ran over to where Jayne was sitting in the ambulance. "Jayne! Jayne!" She looked up and started to sob even more. Some of the officers were attempting to hold him back, but at Jayne's request they let him through.

He ran up to her and took her into a hug. "Jayne, what happened. Where's Alessa."

She couldn't control the sobs that racked her thin body. "R-richard-d..." That was all he needed to know.

He stalked over to where the officers were talking to Richard. "What are you doing?! Why aren't you arresting him? Don't you see what he's done, what he's been doing to this family for years?"

They just looked at him and Richard stared at hjim with eyes ablaze. "Go home freak, this is none of your business." He turn back to the officers. "Ignore him, he's James Napier's son. He seemed to have gotten a blow to the head when his father gave 'em those scars, doesn't know when to shut his god damn mouth."

Jack clenched his jaw and walked away and went over to where the ambulance was putting Alessa in the back and where Jayne was still sitting. He jumped in before the techs could say anything and helped close the doors. He sat beside Jayne, taking Alessa's bloody hand in his. Her face was pretty bruised up and bloody, her tank top was torn and she wasn't wearing pants. She had bruises and cuts all along her thighs and chest, he couldn't see her stomache or ribs but by the way she cried every time she took a breath in, he was pretty sure she had some broken ones.

She cried out and grasped his hand tighter, "Alessa," he called softly. "Alessa." She didn't seem to be responding.

He went close to her face and over the roar of the sirens and the beeping of the heart monitor he sang softly. "Come Josephine in my flying machine, and up she goes, up she goes..."

She seemed to relax, although her grip on his hand didn't. He was sure she knew it was him and he just kept singing softly to her until they arrived at the hospital.