Truth, But No Logic-4
Disclaimer: I don't own these people!
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The California sun was bright, ad the Pacific Ocean glittered like a jewel. Rose smiled happily. They were really there; deep down she had know they would come, but it had never seemed real. Now it was. Jack returned her smile. He squeezed her hand.
"We're here," he said. "We are," Rose said. She giggled. It was all just so overwhelming. Jack, the pier, the last month had been like something from a dream. Rose was terrified that it really was a dream and she would wake up.
As if reading her thoughts, Jack said, "It's like a dream isn't it?" Rose nodded and kissed his cheek softly. "I love you," he whispered in her ear. Rose lay her head on his chest as Jack's arms encircled her. "I love you too," she said.
They stood this way for twenty minutes before Jack realized that they were attracting attention. "We should go down to the pier," he said. "Alright." Rose took his hand, and they ran down the short hill laughing like two schoolchildren.
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The voices had returned. Oh, they had come and gone in the past few weeks, but never like this. It was never this bad; they were louder and more insistent. Cal couldn't choose between them. Both sounded so full of logic.
He didn't want to cause Rose any more hurt because he loved her, but it was this very reason that made the other alternative that much more attractive to him.
Why would that be so bad? one of the voices whispered softly. Cal knew which it was; it was the Dark Voice. The voice that always told him to go after her. The voice that held so much allurement………….
You know you shouldn't, the other, the Light Voice, insisted. Cal leaned back in his chair. This was becoming too much. He was not capable of choosing, and it was tearing him apart.
Rose. Her image came unbidden to his mind. She was so beautiful, so-So not with you, the Dark Voice sneered. Cal slammed his fist into the table. This was his mind and he was not going to have it taken over.
"She is not with me because she doesn't want to be," he said aloud. The sound of his voice surprised him; it was the first human voice he had heard in days. In the time since he had taken refuge in his study, blotting out the world, with its peering eyes and inquisitive demands he had heard nothing but the voices that terrorized his head.
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Meanwhile, Jack and Rose, were having the time of their lives. They rode horses, and drank until they could barely stand. In the end, Jack had to carry Rose back to their bungalow. She had laughed the whole way.
Jack carefully laid her on the bed. She seemed to have fallen asleep, and he did not wish to wake her. She moaned softly and rolled over toward him. Jack smiled and lay beside her, pulling her into his arms. He wouldn't trade this for anything. Rose smiled in her sleep, and Jack wondered briefly what she was dreaming of. It didn't matter, as long as it made her happy. He kissed her hair lightly and drifted off into the oblivion of sleep.
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Cal stared into the mirror. That can't be me, he told himself. I don't look like that.
The person staring back at him had sunken eyes, blank and expressionless, greasy hair, that stuck up all over his head, and pale translucent skin. In short, this was the reflection of a sick person.
"But I'm not sick," he said. Cal had taken to speaking aloud to himself a lot as it seemed to help with the Voices. They were dimmer when he was speaking, almost not there. Almost, but never not there.
Cal was getting the impression that they would always be there. There in the back of his mind, leering at him, taunting him with their tantalizing advice. Advice that he dared not follow.
"I'm getting out of New York," he said. "It's the city that's causing this. Too many reminders. I need to go somewhere where no one knows me and I can try not to think of Rose." Satisfied with this plan, he walked to the door of his study, and unlocked it.
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Cal stepped out into the sunlight for the first time in a week. He breathed deep. Maybe, he was ok now. Maybe, it had been the isolation that had done it. He really didn't know.
Cal had decided where he would go by throwing a dart at a map. This had seemed like the best option, and his dart had landed with a THWACK on California.
Now all that was left was to get the train ticket, then he would be gone. Cal smiled wanly. Gone. The word made a hollow ring in his mind. Not like the Voices though, this was a different sort of ring. A sad ring, where the Voices had been an insane ring.
The Voices were almost gone now. Except for a few soft whispers, he hadn't heard them since leaving his house. Cal considered this a good sign.
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"Jack!" Rose called. He had disappeared into the water and she hadn't seen him for hours, well to her it was hours. It was really five minutes. She scanned the horizon worriedly. Where is he? she thought. Rose considered calling for him again but thought better of it; it would cause too much of a disturbance.
She wrung her hand nervously. What is something had happened to him? Rose quickly dismissed this thought from her mind. If she began thinking about that possibility then she wasn't sure if she would be able to keep from crying.
Rose stiffened. A hand was inching its way around her waist. She whirled around to face Jack. He was dripping wet, but grinning all the same. All her worry flowed from her mind. "Jack!" she cried, throwing her arms around him. Dazed, Jack held her tightly, He wondered what had happened.
Before he could ask, he was told. "Where were you?" Rose asked. Her eyes were filled with anxiety. "I went swimming. Didn't you hear me tell you?" Rose felt her face go hot. Now she remembered.
"I…." Rose couldn't find the words to explain. Jack slowly caressed her cheek. "It's ok. I should have made sure you knew where I was." Rose smiled halfheartedly. "Please don't do it again." "I won't."
Jack kissed her lips softly, but the kiss quickly progressed. "I'll make it up to you," he whispered into her mouth. In one swift movement, he had Rose up in his arms and was standing.
She giggled, breaking off the kiss. Jack grinned, and carried her back to the bungalow.