Disclaimer: The characters of WAT are not mine.

Chapter Eleven

Sam watched them from upstairs, a small smile on her face. Well, if anyone deserves to fall in love after two days, she thought, it's him. He's been unlucky in love his entire life. And apparently the teacher was in love with him, too. She saw the last kiss, saw the shock on Kate's face as he walked away, and wondered what he'd said to her. She hoped it wasn't a marriage proposal; Texas was a pretty long commute. But then, if it was what they both wanted, who cared? She didn't feel jealous, not anymore. That was long over for them, and now, she just wanted Jack to be happy. She had realized today that she was ready to let him go. She should probably tell him that.

She was sitting in the waiting area for their flight when Jack slid into the seat next to her, boarding pass in hand. "Hey," he said, and she had to smile at the look of him. He looked softer, happier than she could remember seeing him in a long time. His smile was back. "Hey yourself, sleeping beauty. I was wondering if you'd make the flight or if I'd have to put out an APB."

He looked down at the floor, probably realizing that she knew he'd spent the night and the morning in bed with Mrs. J. "Yeah, this has been one hell of a trip." He looked around. "It's different, isn't it?"

"The airport?"

"Texas. It's so different from New York. It's like another planet."

"Yeah, I can breathe here. I think my lungs are going into withdrawal from lack of smog."

He smiled. "I wonder what it would be like to live here. The pace is so much slower here. It's kind of nice."

She looked at him strangely. "Are you all right, Jack?"

"Yeah, I'm good."

Their flight was called, and they stood to get in line. He made an "after you" gesture, and she felt his hand lightly on her back as he followed her. It felt friendly now, though, protective and not possessive, and it made her smile. She hoped she would always have him as a friend. She didn't want to lose that.

In the plane, he offered her the window seat, and when she declined, he shrugged and took it himself. She knew he preferred the window; it was the least she could do. She sat there while the stewardesses went through their spiels, her heart pounding, trying to work herself up to the conversation she knew they needed to have. She didn't know where to begin. They had only been in the air a few minutes when he turned to look at her. She looked up to meet his eyes. "We need to talk," he said, and there was a smile in his eyes.

Sam smiled back. "I guess we do."

He ran his fingers through his hair, a nervous gesture she was used to. "Um, I guess, I need to ask you a personal question, and I don't want to offend you, but I kind of…I kind of need to know. I need to know if you're happy—with Brian. Because if you are, then I think it's time…it's time for me to accept it and be happy for you. Move on with my life. Not that—I don't know what the future holds for me, Samantha, but you deserve to be happy, and I'm thinking…I'm thinking that maybe I'd like to be happy some day, too."

"You and your Mrs. J. must have done a lot of talking."

"We did some," he admitted. "And maybe I'm ready to listen. She told me that if I truly think that you and I can be happy together, then I should fight for you and never let you go. She thinks maybe I'm holding on to us because I think that if we don't stay together forever, all those years of loving you will have been wasted, but it wasn't really a waste. I think maybe she has a point. So, I just need to know, honey, if you're happy, and if you are, then I'm ready to let go." He took a deep breath, let it out slowly. "Give you my blessing to have a great life with fucking Brian." But he smiled as he said it, and it made her laugh. As enlightened as he may be becoming, he was still Jack.

A tear slid down her face, and he brushed it away without thinking. "Shit—sorry."

She covered his hand with hers. "You don't have to be sorry. You've been my best friend for so many years now—it would kill me to lose that. I think I am happy with Brian. But you're right. You do deserve to be happy, whether it's with your Kate or someone else. I will always love you, but it's time, Jack." She blinked away another tear. "Friends?" She held out her other hand, and he sniffed at it and wrapped her in a hug.

"Always, honey, always." He pulled back and smiled at her. "Just so you know—he ever hurts you or the kid, he's dead. It's not just a figure of speech, either. Dead. We're talking they'll-never-ever-find-his-body-dead."

"I'm pretty sure he already knows that, Jack. You've managed to instill a pretty healthy fear into the guy."

"Good."

"Tell me about her, your Mrs. J. She must be a hell of a woman."

The smile slid slowly across his face. "She's a soccer mom. She curses like a sailor. She has three boys and they're the world to her. She gives her students—and former students—her cell number and they call her at all hours, whenever they're in trouble, or just need to talk. She would do anything for her students. She has several tattoos. She's a cancer survivor. Her husband left her because he thought she put her job before him. She makes me feel again. She makes me smile again."

"Wow."

"Yeah, wow. She's the most direct person I've ever met. She cut through my bullshit in about three seconds. She says 'bullshit' a lot. She's…" He stopped talking and just shook his head. "She hit me like a freight train. I never knew what happened."

"She sounds very…wise."

"I guess. She says having cancer was one of the best things that could have happened to her. Made her realize what was important in life, what was true."

"I can see how that could happen."

"We all need to realize what's true. Some of us need more help than others."

"That was pretty deep. I'm getting worried about you." But she was smiling.

"I think that maybe now you can stop worrying about me. I think I can take it from here."