Cleo crashed into her mom and held her as tightly as she could as the tears fell heavier now.
"Sshh, it's ok. Just let it out." Rebecca said as she held Cleo tightly and brushed her fingers through Cleo's hair.
Cleo cried for a few more moments before she let her mom go and pulled away from her so that they were at arms length.
"I've missed you so much!" Cleo stuttered as fresh tears fell.
"Oh baby, I've missed you so much too." Rebecca replied as she too had tears in her eyes.
"Why did you have to go on that stupid trip?"
Rebecca let out a sigh before she answered Cleo. "It was my time Cleo. Trust me I didn't want to die but this is what fate had written for me."
"Still doesn't make it fair or ok though. I needed you." Cleo was now sounding angry at what her mom was telling her.
"I know you did but you don't need me anymore. You're strong, beautiful and independent women and if I had lived there would have been nothing else for me to show or teach you. We would still be best friends but my job as a mother was done. I didn't leave you alone either." As Rebecca spoke, her eyes lit up as she was almost crying with pride.
"You still have your dad. I know what he did when I died and I expected it but I knew he would see sense. I've seen him change so much since then and become an even better father than he was before."
Cleo had stopped crying now and her voice had stopped shaking. "I suppose so but it doesn't stop me missing you everyday."
"I'm always there, even if you can't see me. I'm always there."
Cleo smiled at her mom and then threw herself back into her mom's arms to hold her tightly again. Rebecca responded and hugged her tightly. After a few moments, realisation dawned on Cleo and she quickly pulled away from her mom.
"Wait a minute!" She said nervously. "If I can see you, does that mean I'm dead?"
Rebecca chuckled slightly at Cleo's question. "No you're not dead. You're in limbo, between life and death. I'm just here to help you find your way back."
"Well what if I don't want to go back?" Cleo crossed her arms over her chest to show she was being serious. "Maybe I'll choose death and stay here with you."
Rebecca smirked at her, knowing that she wasn't joking. "I thought you'd say that but you won't after I show you something."
Cleo looked at her confused. "Show me what?"
Without warning Rebecca grabbed her hand and suddenly they were no longer in the white room. Now when Cleo looked around her, she could see they were in the middle of some jungle but it was a war zone. A small army was advancing on what seemed to be a small cave built into a mountain. Cleo and her mom walked into the cave and they found the expendables reloading their weapons.
"We're trapped!" Yang shouted.
"I know. We need a plan." Barney replied reloaded his pistol.
As the expendables shouted ideas about a plan, Cleo noticed her dad had stayed slightly away from them and as she looked closer, she was shocked by his appearance. He looked like he had aged 10 years, with his hair longer and she could tell that he was hung-over and was high on some kind of drug. He silently slipped away towards the entrance to the cave and looked back to expendables.
"Well at least I'll die saving someone for once."
Before anyone knew what the hell he was talking about, Gunner turned and ran out the cave to the waiting army.
"Dad, No!" Cleo screamed even though she knew he couldn't hear her and it was to late anyway.
The sound of a dozen guns going off filled the cave and the sound of Gunner's dead body hitting the ground. The expendables quickly left the cave and took out the rest of the army and survived.
"Mom, what?" Cleo started to ask but before she could finish their surroundings changed again.
Even though Cleo was going to ask her mom what just happened, she already knew. Her mom was showing her a world where Cleo died and what that meant for everyone she knew. Her dad went back on the drugs and had decided to sacrifice himself to save his friends, as he had nothing else to live for now that Cleo and Rebecca were dead.
This time they were in what Cleo assumed to be a prison.
Her mom pointed to a cell over near the corner. "Over there."
Without even realising what she was doing, Cleo started walking over to the cell door and was shocked at what she saw.
Sam sat on the bed in the cell, looking like shit and fitting the picture of a hardened criminal.
"How?" Was all Cleo could ask, she was that shocked.
Rebecca was now standing beside Cleo and put her arm around her shoulders. "If you choose to die, Sam couldn't contain her anger anymore. During a confrontation, her anger got the best of her and she killed them. She does feel guilty for what she did but she can't take it back."
Whenever Sam was angry and frustrated, she would call Cleo if she was free to rant about the issue that was making her angry. Cleo always calmed her down and stopped her from doing anything stupid. If Cleo was dead, Sam wouldn't have that option anymore and would land herself in jail.
Without warning, her mom grabbed her hand again and their location changed once again.
Now they were standing in what looking like a garden, which was covered in flowers of different colours.
"Where are we now?" Cleo had no idea where they were and it gave her bad feeling.
Her mom looked at her for a moment before answering. "Cleo turn around."
Cleo did as her mom told her to do and what she saw almost made her sick. They were in a graveyard and the tombstone had the following name on it:
Emily Maria Road
1997-2015
Beloved daughter, sister and friend
"What the hell?" Cleo shouted at her mom once she found her voice again.
"Watch the language Cleo!" Her mom scolded her.
"Without you there to tell Emily when to walk away and shut her mouth, she got into some pretty dangerous situations. Most of them she eventually got out of them but one time she wasn't so lucky. Instead of walking away, she kept shouted insults at people who confronted her and they shot her."
Fuck!
They always joked that if Cleo wasn't around to hold Emily back sometimes, she would either be dead or in jail. If Cleo choose to die, it would become a reality.
"Can we go mom?"
"Not yet." Rebecca walked back over to where Cleo was standing. "There's one more person we need to see."
Rebecca took Cleo's hand again and their surroundings changed.
They were standing in Mandy's house and Cleo guested she was the last person she had to see.
"Why are we in Aunt Mandy's bedroom?" Cleo asked confused as she realised where they where.
"Look closer."
Cleo did as she was told and looked closer at the bed. Her aunt was buried underneath the covers and crying her eyes out.
"Why is she so upset that I'm dead?" Cleo was confused. She knew her aunt would be upset if she died but she didn't realise she would be this upset.
Becca sighed and rested her hands on Cleo's shoulders. " I never told you this but Mandy has suffered from depression and anxiety most of her life. It started when our parents died when she was 16 and when I had just moved away to college and met your dad. She got better when I moved back to San Diego knowing that I was close to her again. Then when you were born she was the happiest I had ever seen her and I thought she had finally got better but then when we moved again she went through good periods and bad periods.
"So when you died, I guess I was the only thing that keep her from completely breaking down?" Cleo asked.
"Yes." Becca replied. "She was devastated when I died but the only thing that kept her going was you. That's why she's so clingy and protective of you because you're the only family she has left and doesn't want to loose you and why she also hates your dad."
"What do you mean?" Cleo asked confused.
"Did you think Aunt Mandy doesn't like your dad just because he's a mercenary?"
Cleo nodded in response to her mom.
"That's only part of it. The real reason is because she blames Gunner for taking us away from her and that's why she was so reluctant to give you back to him after I died."
Her aunt's future now made more sense. For as long as Cleo could remember her Aunt Mandy always wanted to be around her and her mom whenever she could. If they were away in New Orleans or on a family vacation, she would be constantly phoning her mom asking when they were home saying how much she missed them. Then when she did see Rebecca and Cleo, she was very clingy and obsessive. Cleo never understood why back then but it all made perfect sense now. If Cleo died now, Mandy would sink further into her depression and it didn't look like anything could pull her out of it.
Seeing all the futures had now given Cleo all the information that she needed to make her decision. She would go back but she needed reassurance first.
"I will go back on one condition mom. Promise me dad isn't back high on drugs just now to deal with me being shot and almost dying."
Rebecca gave her a weak smile "No he's not because if he was he would be breaking one of the promises he made to me before I was put in the ground."
"What do you mean?" Cleo was confused as to what her mom said. Her mom's death was unexpected and she didn't even have a funeral plan.
"Fuck!" Rebecca regretted what she just said and now had to tell Cleo the truth. "I'm gonna show you something, I'd never thought you'd know and prove your dad isn't the same as last time."
Once again their surroundings changed and this time they were in the funeral home where Rebecca's body had been taken. The two of them were in a small room and Rebecca's casket was in the corner.
"Mom do I have to relive this part?" Cleo asked frustrated and annoyed at what she was seeing.
"Keep watching."
The door to the room opened and Gunner walked in with a sleeping bag tucked under his arm and was followed in by a man in a suit. Gunner turned to the man and shook his hand, silently thanking him for something and then the man turned and closed the door behind him as he left. Once the man was gone, Gunner dropped the sleep bag on the floor next to the casket and opened the hatch on the casket so Rebecca's face was exposed. After a moment of staring at her face, Gunner reached out and gently rubbed her cheek with his thumb. He looked at her with anticipation as if he was expecting her to wake up when he did it but she didn't.
Gunner grunted heavily when she didn't wake up. "You promised me baby?" His voice shook with every word he said.
"You promised me that you would never leave me, even after all the times I relapsed and screwed up. You deserved so much better than me but I was selfish and couldn't stay away from you, no matter how hard I tried. Before I met you I was just floating through life. I didn't care about myself or anyone around me as long as I could get high or drunk. When I met you it was like someone showed me colour for the first time in years. You made me realise that I could quit the drugs and that the world wasn't against me. You saved me from myself but I didn't save you. If I stopped you 13 years ago from taking that stupid job in Houston then we wouldn't be here. There was so much we still had to do. Get married, have another kid and finally live together like a proper couple should do."
Cleo had tears welling up in her eyes. She had seen her dad emotional when he was drunk but he'd never seen him this bad and barely able to speak.
"What am I suppose to do now without you? You always knew what to do in every situation and never freaked out once. I'm strong on the outside but I'm not as strong as you on the inside but I'll try and be strong. Not just for me but for our daughter as well."
He paused for moment and finally let the tears escape from him eyes. "You gave me the greatest gift ever of being a father. I never thought I could love anyone as much as I loved you but when Cleo came along, she changed me again. The unconditional love that I felt for her was scary but it made me realise that I wasn't the monster I thought I was and for once I had finally done something right in my life. Every time she smiled at me, hugged me and called me daddy, it made me the happiest man in the world. Even when I got my scar on my face, she didn't even flinch when she seen it and as long as she wasn't afraid of me, I wasn't afraid."
Gunner paused to let more tears fall from his eyes and to regain himself.
"I know I'm a little fucked up just now but I promise it's just temporary. I just feel so guilty over this and know it's my fault. I can still picture the day I told you to take the job and this is how we ended up here. If I had fought more and told you I didn't want you to take the job, everything would have been so different but most importantly you'd be alive right now. I just knew how hard you had worked for the job and how much you loved it, so that's why I said I was ok with you accepting it even though I didn't want you to. I hated not waking up beside you every day. Kissing you everyday. Laughing with you everyday and helping you to raise our daughter everyday but I'll make it up to you. I promise I'll get clean and not touch drugs again. I'll be there for Cleo and won't do anything to make her resent or hate me. I promise I'll support her in whatever she wants to do in her life. I promise I'll walk her down the aisle when she meets a man that I think is right for her. I promise I'll babysit our grandchildren and tell them all about you. The amazing women their grandma was but never got to meet. I promise I'll try and get along with Mandy even though she won't do the same. I promise you everything will be ok and I can't wait to see you again one day. I may not end up in the same place as you but if I do please wait for me. I don't know how long I'll be but please wait for me. Please. I love you so much baby and I'm so sorry. I'll never forgive myself for this."
Not able to hold back any longer, Gunner began sobbing and bent down to kiss Becca's forehead, letting the tears fall onto her face.
"He stayed with me that night." When her mom spoke it brought Cleo back to reality and realised where she was.
"So at the funeral he wasn't high or drunk?" Cleo spoke almost in a whisper encase her tears fell as well.
Mom shook her head at her. "No he wasn't. He had some booze but not enough to make him drunk. He was just tired from being up all night sobbing and feeling guilty but defiantly not high."
"Mom." Cleo didn't have time to ask her mom her question as Rebecca took her hand their surroundings changed again. This time they were in Gunner's bedroom. Once Cleo realised where she was, her mom gave her a gentle tap on her shoulder to turn around and to see why they were here.
Cleo turned around and seen her dad, lying facedown on his bed spread eagle fully clothed and snoring his head off, clutching something in his hand. As she moved to see what it was, she could see tear stains down his face, which she assumed was from crying himself to sleep. She stood beside the nightstand and her dad's hand was resting on what used to be her moms pillow, clutching a framed photo and another photo beside his hand. As she peered at the framed photo, she knew it was the photo of her mom that he kept on his nightstand. Sometimes Cleo would walk past his bedroom door and hear him talking to someone as if they were in the room. To start with Cleo had thought he had a secret girlfriend he was sneaking into the house even though she knew he would never get another girlfriend. A few months after her mom's death, she had asked him if he had ever thought about dating again. Her dad just laughed at her and said "No Cle. I've had my happily ever after even though it wasn't forever. Plus if I ever met another women, she would never live up to your mom's standards and why settle for average when you've had the best." She would never admit it but she was happy he didn't want to date anyone again. She was happy it was just the two of them and it would be weird if another women came in and started acting like her mom and changing things around the house. It wasn't until one day she walked past his bedroom and realised her dad had left the door slightly open, that she decided to investigate. She had slowly opened the door wider and slid through the door enough to see what was happening. Her dad was lying propped up on his elbow, talking to the photo of her mom that was on his nightstand and when he paused it was like he knew what she would say if she was actually lying beside him in bed. She had watched him for a few moments and as she watched, she could see him relax more and the weight being lifted off his shoulder's. Cleo had always said she was there for her dad if he wanted to talk but he probably didn't want to worry her or scare her with details of whatever he was thinking about. She was just happy he was able to express his feelings in someway that didn't involve him talking drugs for a change.
After staring at the picture of her mom for a bit longer, Cleo's eyes drifted over to the other photo beside the framed one of her mom. It was a picture of her mom and her when they were on a family vacation in Mexico. It was on a beach at sunset with her mom in a sundress, holding a three year old Cleo in her arms, as Cleo smiled and held her arms out to the cameraman who was her dad. Cleo smiled at the photo and hardly recognised herself, as her hair was still almost platinum blonde when that picture was taken.
"This isn't in the future honey." Her mom came up behind her and wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "Its what your dad's doing right now."
Even after all they had been through last year, Cleo had still expected her dad to have a hit of something when she was shot but this shocked her. He truly didn't go back on his word about drugs and was sober as well. The only medicine he needed was to see his girls again and he had fallen asleep looking at them tonight.
Wiping the fresh tears away from her eyes, Cleo had made her decision. As much as she would love to stay with her mom, she knew that other people needed her and if she didn't things would go down hill fast.
"Mom I wanna go back"
"I thought you'd say that." Rebecca came up behind Cleo and placed a hand on her shoulder and they were suddenly back in the white room where they had started.
"Now before you go, you've got to do something for me." Rebecca looked at Cleo with a no nonsense look and Cleo had a feeling she knew what she was going to say.
"Anything mom?" Cleo was trying to act innocent but she knew her mom would see right through that.
"This thing with Jason has to stop. You don't let a man use you when he just wants you for sex. Your worth so much more than that."
Cleo knew she was right, but she didn't know how to stop. "I know that mom, but he's like a drug to me and he's amazing in bed. I can't help myself every time he gives me that look of his. You always said that dad was like your drug and you didn't want to stay away from him."
"That's different!" Rebecca snapped at Cleo. "Me and your dad were best friends for years before we became a couple and didn't have sex until we were together. You may not understand just now but eventually one of you is going to get hurt. All I'm saying is either break it off completely or tell him how you really feel."
Her mom's last words had taken Cleo back "How did you know?"
"Honey I know everything."
In the last few months, Cleo had been thinking about Jason in a different way. When they first started having casual sex, they both agreed that they didn't want a relationship and as long as they were safe with sex, it was harmless. Recently though, Cleo had started to feel differently about the situation. Jason could be so arrogant and selfish at times and would show off at any given opportunity to anybody that was listening. Other girls would throw themselves at him because of his charm and his amazingly ripped body and he did nothing to resist or stop them. All the expendables including Barney just shook their heads at his behaviour, while Emily and Sam mocked him for it. Cleo was always somewhere between mocking him and liking him. She knew how he could be when he started showing off and she did mock him sometimes as well. Then there was the other side to Jason that he hardly showed. When it was just the two of them together, he was so kind and selfless towards Cleo and acted like she was the only person in his life that mattered. It was almost like he had a twin brother but only Cleo knew the nice twin. Seeing him being so caring made Cleo want more than just sex and to start a proper relationship with Jason but there was one question still at the back of her mind. Was he only being nice to her so she would still have sex with him?
No matter what the answer was, something did have to change with Jason. It was all of her or nothing. To hear someone else say Jason was using for her sex for the first time, made Cleo feel like a piece of shit. She was better than that and it was time to change.
Her mom was right.
"Fine. I'll talk to him once I've talked to dad." Cleo said in defeat.
"That's my little meatball. See that spot over there?" Becca stood beside Cleo and pointed to a small purple spot in the distance. Cleo nodded in response. "Run to it and it'll take you back."
Cleo took a deep breath and was about to run towards the spot but she stopped herself. She spun around and again crashed into her, hugging her tightly. She knew that this would be the last time that she would see her mom and wanted to have complete closure.
"Mom, I'll miss you."
Becca hugged her back tightly in response. "I miss you to but I'm never far away. Even though you can't see me, I'm always there, watching over you and your dad. All you have to do is think about me."
Cleo pulled back from her mom so she could look her in the eye. "I love you."
"I love you to." Becca leant down and kissed Cleo's forehead. "Now go. People need you."
Cleo knew it was now or never. She took one last look at her mom, savouring her image and then turned away from her mom and ran towards the purple spot. As she got nearer everything went black and Cleo felt her body go very heavy, knowing that she was back in the hospital room. Slowly she forced her eyes open and had to blink rapidly to adjust to light in the room. Once her eyes had adjusted, she scanned the room looking for someone that could help and when she seen who was in the room, her heart almost sank.
Jason
Out of all the people to stay with her, it had to be Jason. She didn't want to talk to him straight away after waking up. There was more important people to talk to first.
Jason hadn't noticed she was awake and was staring out the window looking at the sunrise. Cleo knew she had to get his attention somehow but her mouth was so dry that she didn't think she could speak but she would have to try.
Taking a deep breath, Cleo tried to talk to see what happened.
"Jason." Her words came out louder than what she had expected but it was still a whisper.
Luckily for Cleo Jason had heard her. When he heard her, he thought he was imagining it because he had been thinking about her at the time. He turned back around in his chair to face Cleo and nearly fell off the chair when he seen she was awake.
"Cleo! You're awake. How do you feel? Should I get a nurse or water?"
Jason was so relived and happy that she was awake, he was stumbling over his words.
Cleo only wanted one thing. Taking another deep breath, she was able to speak again.
"I want my dad."
TO BE CONTINUED
Hope you guys are still enjoying this. Remember if you want more stories about Gunner and Rebecca leave a me a comment