So I had started writing this chapter and someone at my house decided to be evil and just deleted it all.
I should have had this chapter up a few days ago, but luckily all that was deleted was the first little beginning part. It's not totally different, I remembered most of it.
Still, I apologize if this sucks.
Also, I want to thank you all for sticking by this story and reading it for the past two years! I've almost got 500 reviews and that is all thanks to you great readers! I appreciate all of the criticism and comments you have given me on this story. It means a whole lot to me because it's my first story on here and hopefully I'll be able to write better because of it!
Disclaimer: I do not own Jimmy Neutron. If I did, there would be a fourth season!
Chapter 25 – Thoughts and Memories
The sky was fading. Fading from the bright blues and whites that had so recently covered everything above him to those reds, pinks, and dark purples of sunsets.
How long had it been? A few seconds? Minutes? Hours?
…Days?
Silence. He could feel nothing but the hot pavement beneath his feet, so hot his shoes were practically worthless. But he didn't move.
What had it been? He searched his memory. Why had she left? Was it something he did? Something he said?
He did remember something… something after he had asked her to stop criticizing him…
"Me? Act less hostile?" Cindy coolly replied. "Is it because I have no reason to act hostile? Or maybe because you think you're just oh so amazing, how could anyone act hostile toward you? How could anyone hate you? Hmm? IS THAT IT?"
But what did he do? He offered to drive her back! He's risking his job… AGAIN… for her! Why is she being so rude and ungrateful? Whenever that thought crossed his mind… he remembered one of the last things she had said to him…
"If I hadn't…. If I hadn't fallen completely… in love with you… my… my life wouldn't have fallen apart when you left…"
James finally moved from the position he had been standing in for almost an eternity. He slowly made his way back to his car, glancing in the back seat. Goddard and Marie were still asleep in the backseat, sleeping next to Cindy's travel bag…
"Great! What am I supposed to do now? She left her dog and her bag in my car! Well… Goddard can fly… I'll just give the bag to her and he can fly back home to her…"
James started the car, bringing Marie and Goddard out of their deep sleep. Glancing around, Goddard knew something was wrong. James sensed what Goddard was feeling and turned around to talk to the mechanical dog. "Goddard… you'll see her soon. She… she just wants to go home by herself..." Goddard gave James a sad, lost look. But slowly, he laid his head back down next to Marie's and fell asleep. "I better let him sleep… I'll send him home after he can recharge and get a good night's sleep at my apartment…"
Coming to the highway entrance ramps, James stopped the car.
The right sign read "South." The left sign read "North."
James looked down the ramp to the right and with a great sigh, turned left.
"Euh… Goddard… stop licking me already…" Cindy's eyes didn't even open. She merely rolled over onto her other side and tried to fall back asleep. "Goddard… come on! It's not time to get up yet…" He wouldn't leave her alone. "Goddard!" She finally opened her eyes. "AH!"
It wasn't Goddard.
"Wha-What are you...! Ew! Get off me!" Unfortunately for Cindy, the passenger that had been sitting next to her was a stubborn sleeper. The licking? His drool, of course. "Oh, this is so disgusting!" She fumbled around for her purse, trying to keep the man from leaning back on to her and possibly giving her yet another bath in his drool.
"Aha! Got it!" She triumphantly retrieved a tissue from her purse and cleaned her arms off. She glanced around the dark bus. A few of the reading lights were on, illuminating some of the passengers that were awake. "I don't blame them… it's hard to sleep well in these seats!" Well, of course Mr. Drool next to her didn't have a problem sleeping on the bus...
Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that the passenger across the aisle from her was awake, as well. Light was off, so she couldn't make out his face, but she could definitely tell one thing.
He was staring at her.
Cindy quickly looked away and stared out the window. "Oh my god… that guy is staring at me…! How long has he been doing that…!"
Pretending to just glance around the bus, curiously, she took another quick look at the man across the aisle.
He was still staring.
"Um… excuse me…. Can I help you, sir…?" Cindy bravely asked the man.
He just stared.
"Uh… okay… this is really creepy…" Cindy turned back to the window and tried to think of other things.
However, the only "other things" she could think of all had one thing in common: James.
"Goddard! Marie! Wake up!" James gently shook the two robot dogs. "We're back!"
James tiredly kicked the shoes off his feet and fell onto the couch. He turned on the TV, not caring what it was.
"Did I do the right thing? Is she going to be okay? Something bad could happen… should I have followed her?"
He couldn't clear his mind of her. Sure, something about her intrigued him, stirred up emotions he never even knew he had. But… did he love her?
The TV caught his attention. "And now we will move on to our Mars special for tonight." Oh, goodie! Scientific discoveries were of course James's favorite part of the evening news.
"The scientists at NASA have released information that perhaps Martians do exist on the red planet. We go now to Cathy, live in Houston at the Johnson Space Center."
"Thank you, Steve. I'm here in Houston to talk to one of the lead researchers of this amazing discovery, Dr. Frank Towers. Dr. Towers, what exactly has your team discovered here?"
"Well, Cathy, if we move to the footage we have recently released I will show you."
The screen was now full of various pictures of the surface of the planet, alternating between three different color photographs.
James was highly intrigued.
"Now, if you look in the corner of this picture, you can see a strange rock formation, almost appearing to have arms and legs." A large circle illuminated said object.
Another picture then filled the screen.
"However, in this picture of the exact same location, the rock formation has moved! The next picture also shows this rock formation's movements."
"Mr. Towers, are you suggesting that this rock formation is, in fact, alive?"
"Well, Cathy, that is the suspicion…" Frank Towers continued talking about the photographs with Reporter Cathy but James wasn't listening anymore.
"Rock-like Martians...?" James said aloud, perhaps to Marie and Goddard next to him. "It would make sense because of the lack of water… but…"
"JIMMY NEUTRON!" a voice roared and seemed to come from the ground itself. "YOU SWORE NOT TO BRING WATER BACK TO OUR PLANET! NOW YOU AND YOUR FRIENDS MUST BE DESTROYED!"
The breath in James's lungs caught, almost choking him. "Wha-what was that…!" Goddard and Marie looked up at him, concerned and curious…
"Why did I… who is… what…" James's eyes grew so wide that his head appeared to be shrinking around them. "Jimmy Neutron...!"
Another flash.
"N-Neutron! W-What are you d-doing!" Cindy managed, her voice trembling.
"Get out of here Cindy!" He yelled back to her. "You and the others get back to the rocket and go! Goddard, once everyone is in the rocket, set it on autopilot and DO NOT come back until Cindy is home! You should be able to get back to the rocket safely because the other Martians don't have any energy balls! So just avoid them as best you can!"
"But what about you! Jimmy, we can't just leave you here!" Cindy said to him, as tears began to well up, realizing the situation. "The energy is way too–"
"Just go, Cindy! Don't worry about me! I promise that I will see you again!"
"But—"
"GO!"
James sat down, pressing his hands against his forehead and temples, trying to relieve the huge headache that had risen in his head…
"Why… why am I remembering these things…? I'm… I'm not… I can't…" James glanced at Goddard.
"Oh my god…" was all James could say before collapsing on the floor.
Well, I guess you are going to have to keep reading to find out what happens next!
This is a big thank you for all of you readers and reviewers that have been with me for so long! I appreciate everything!
-brigette (aka: Kaze-no-Tenshi89)