Another unbeta'd one.
Part
28
"Tonight
I'm so alone this sorrow takes ahold, don't leave me here so cold.
Never want to be so
cold…"
It had begun to rain steadily when Jude lit the fire but over the next half hour or so the wind picked up, howling like a wounded wolf as it lashed the raindrops against the house angrily.
She shuddered, wrapping the comforter she'd retrieved from the sack around her shoulders a little tighter as she huddled in front of the fire.
Tommy was asleep on the armchair, his head leaning back uncomfortably against the back of the chair, one arm hanging loosely over the side and the other resting on the armrest. The keys were in the left pocket of his jacket, she'd seen him place them there. Unfortunately it was his left arm that was resting on the armrest and blocking her access to the keys.
She chewed on bottom lip as she mulled over the current situation. There was no way she was leaving on foot, in this weather that was just an invitation to contract pneumonia then there was the fact that she had no idea where she was; most likely Tommy would wake up, get in the car and find her unconscious on the side of the road less then a mile away.
She drew her knees up to her chest and rested her chin on them as she tossed another book into the fire. She had to get the keys; it was as simple as that. Tommy did seem pretty out of it. He hadn't stirred since he passed out more then half an hour ago. His skin was red and covered in a sheen of sweat. She almost felt sorry for him…
"There are three people in this life, right?" she whispered to herself so quietly it was inaudible, "Victims, suckers and adults. I'm no sucker and I'm not going to be someone's victim."
She tossed aside the blanket, barely allowing herself to shiver as the cold air hit her. In one swift motion she stood to her feet and tiptoed over to Tommy. She paused in front of him, leaning forward slightly to brace her hands on the very ends of the armrests on either side of the chair. Should he wake up she needed an excuse for her proximity but the only one that was coming to mind she refused to let register.
Slowly she reached forward and ran her hand under his left arm. Ever so slowly she inched it further to the left until it was no longer on the arm rest, then even slower she lowered it until it was hanging limply at his side. She paused, waiting for some kind of reaction but he didn't move. She would have sighed in relief but stopped herself for fear of even the slightest sound awakening the sleeping threat before her.
She reached into the pocket of his leather jacket, finding it deeper then she expected and rolling her eyes in frustration. Eventually her searching fingers felt the cool metal of the keys and she quickly wrapped her hand around them. Inch by painful inch she slid the keys out of the pocket, making sure they were all pinched together tightly in her fist and unable to clang together noisily.
She stood up straight, happily moving back from Tommy's chair as she eyed the keys proudly. There was a flash of lightning that lit up the entire room and she gazed at Tommy silently for one last second, noticing the way the flames reflected on his handsome features. There was a dull ache in her stomach that she presumed to be nervousness before turning and walking out of the room.
----
"Cause you, you're on the other side and I'm here now, here alone tonight."
The wind was a lot stronger then she'd expected and Jude was nearly blown off her feet as she raced across the driveway to the waiting car. She shielded her eyes with her hand as the rain pelted against her mercilessly, feeling like small pinpricks against her exposed skin.
She wasn't able to make sense of the images of Tommy that were flashing through her mind. First his face as he shoved her into the lake, the pained expression he wore as he tried to nurse her back to health afterwards, his expression when he stormed into the bathroom earlier that morning and saved her from Chris. And then her memories went back further. She remembered the first time she met him, the first time they truly meshed when recording a song, his grinning face in the audience as she played on stage for the first time, the shared elation when her first album was completed… that kiss on her sixteenth birthday.
And now for all she knew he was inside dying. She didn't even know if he had his cell phone on him and what if there was no reception out here. She didn't exactly know where 'out here' was, they could be on the outskirts of a town in which case he would be fine or they could be in the middle of nowhere. If she took the car, leaving him alone and his condition continued to worsen…
She paused, the rain seeping through her clothes unnoticed. "Damn it," she swore. She stared dejectedly at the car in front of her and the driveway disappearing off into the distance and freedom. Slowly began to turn back to the house.
"What do you think you're doing Jude?" Tommy was standing in the doorway, as he spoke he flicked on his flashlight and shone it directly at her; temporarily blinding her.
"What does it look like I'm doing?" she retorted, holding her hands up questioningly, the keys dangling from her fingers tauntingly.
His eyes widened as he quickly patted his pocket and realized they were no longer present. He lifted his head to look at her. Slowly he tilted his head to the side, eyeing her. "I wouldn't do that if I were you."
"Yeah," she forced a bitter smile, "Why?"
"You'll regret it," with much difficulty he took a few steps closer to her, not enough to threaten her escape but enough for her to hear his words easily over the storm and to make out his face. "What would you say if I told you I have 'friends' in location back in Toronto; at G-Major, on your street… at Sadie's school. They know to act if I'm out of touch with them for more then 24 hours. Things could go badly for your sister, Jude. What would you say to that?"
She froze in place, the rain seeping through her clothes and running down her face unnoticed. She met his steely gaze, desperately trying to read something in it that told her it was all a sick joke. Finally she nodded slightly, "I'd say I'd stay."
"No running?"
She shook her head, "None."
"Good call," he held his hands out for the keys and grudgingly she handed them to him.
She took a few steps closer to him, pausing directly in front of him but looking beyond him rather then at his face. Leaning forward conspiratively she said softly, "for whatever it's worth… I was coming back. I guess 'Stupid Girl' really was a good song choice for me huh?"
She brushed past him, not caring that it nearly knocked him off balance and that he could barely walk back into the building behind her. She also didn't notice the look of regret that flashed across his face briefly before being replaced with an emotionless gaze.
Preview
for Part 29
"I'm
tired of looking 'round rooms wondering what I've got to do or
who I'm supposed to be…"
"Are
you hot?" She asked. He smiled softly and she knew what he
was thinking, the teasing and confident remark he obviously wanted to
give but didn't have the energy to say. She felt his forehead and
this time he didn't shy away. His skin temperature was even higher
then before and she felt the first real chill of worry creeping into
her veins. "Tommy," she said softly, "You're really
sick."
