It Hurts, But It's Right
Something had to be done, and that something was Ally going to the hospital. She had to see someone, to tell someone what had happened.
She decided that telling Jesse wouldn't do a lot of good. For one thing, he would probably give a biased opinion on the situation, either one way or the other. She wouldn't be able to see all of the facts. Also, there was the problem of him having just undergone surgery.
Steve? No way. Steve was not one of the most warm and friendly of characters that Ally had ever met. She realised that he probably had a good side; only she had not yet seen it.
What about Mark? How could Ally tell Mark? Mark would be along the same lines as Jesse, wanting either one or the other. Mark was wise, but maybe a bit towards one side of an argument more than the other, Ally thought to herself.
That left one person. Amanda. It was going to have to happen, she was going to have to talk to someone, and if it was going to be anyone, it was going to be Amanda.
Ally got the plan going. She found the address book in the house, and found Amanda's address. Then, she found a street map and found the route. Lastly, she found her father's motorbike stowed away in the Sloan's garage. "Keys," she mumbled to herself. "Where would they hide the keys?"
After half an hour of searching, Ally found the keys in a drawer in the hallway. She got the helmet, and set off on the bike toward Amanda's house.
Sometime later, Ally found the house. Making sure that no one was in sight, she took off her helmet and crept up to the front door. She trembled slightly as she pressed the doorbell, and scolded herself for being afraid.
Ally was relieved when Amanda came to the door. "Ally!" she gasped. "What on earth are you doing here?"
"Well, you know, the sun is shining, birds are singing, and I've got more problems than I can handle," Ally told her straight. "Please, help me."
"Of course," Amanda ushered the girl inside. She sat her down on the couch, and brought her a drink. "I've heard from Mark," Amanda said. "He told me about Jesse. You've heard, I imagine."
"That's one of the troubles I've brought with me," Ally explained.
"What else is troubling you?" Amanda asked.
"Got a phone call today from the social," Ally told her.
"Do they want to take you away from Jesse?" Amanda exclaimed.
"No. See, I was adopted when I was a younger. My mom wasn't my real mom, but she may as well have been, because I've known no one else. Anyways," she continued. "My real mom wants to meet me. Someone called Claire something, Claire Hudson; that was it. Anyway, she wants to meet me."
Amanda stopped for a second, and put down her drink. "She wants to meet you? How do you feel about this?"
"Well, considering I haven't got a lot of family to go to right now, except Jesse, pretty good. But, Jesse's been great to me. I spent the last four years being the rebel, and then suddenly I meet Jesse and he sorts me out. That's pretty special."
"That is pretty special, I agree," Amanda said. "But, you may want to think. How would you feel, being your real mom, if you knew that you had a daughter out there?"
"I'd want to meet her," Ally admitted. "But she doesn't know what I've been through in my life. Hell, she doesn't know what I've been through in the past two months, the past day, or even the past hour!"
"Ally, I don't know what you've been going through, and I know most of the events. I know you! Just because she's a perfect stranger doesn't mean that she won't relate to you in time. And that's a blood relative…" Amanda's voice trailed off.
"Did I miss something?" Ally asked, never missing a single motion.
"I do have a rough idea what it's like to live with someone you don't know. I was a foster child, and I was looked after by a stranger. That didn't matter to me. Someone cared for me. Someone wanted to care for me, and I am sure that your mom wants to care for you just as much as my mom did, and still does."
"That's all very well and good, Amanda, but you keep forgetting one thing. Just like you can put my Mom in that position, you can put Jesse in that position, too. Only two differences. One, that woman called my mother is a bit closer in relation to me. Two, my mother isn't the one who's hurt for my sake right now. Amanda, what am I going to do?"
Amanda opened her mouth, and shut it again. The girl had a point. "Well, there's only one thing. You should be talking to Jesse about this, not me."
"But he's tied up at the moment," Ally said.
"Wait until he's feeling a bit better," Amanda advised.
"All right," Ally sighed.
"Need a lift to the hospital?" Amanda asked her.
"Well, my bike is still here," Ally pondered.
"Bike as in motorbike?" Amanda asked, afraid of the answer.
"Do I have any other bike?" Ally grinned.
At the hospital, Ally sat waiting for Mark in his office. Jesse had been moved out of recovery, and Ally was waiting for Mark to tell her the number of his room. Mark had given her the brief of the surgery, telling her that everything went fine.
"Hey," Mark said, "he's ready for visitors now. Don't look so worried, everything's fine."
That's what you think, Ally thought to herself as she followed Mark to Jesse's room.
Inside, Jesse's face turned from exhaustion to happiness when he saw Ally. He would have to be happy to see me, Ally thought to herself.
"Hi," Ally greeted shyly. "How are you feeling?" She made her way towards the bed as Mark silently left the room.
"Not so bad," Jesse replied, manoeuvring himself to sit up in the bed. "How about you?"
Ally swallowed. "Could be better."
"What's up?" Jesse asked, concern taking over.
"Well, you've been shot, haven't you," Ally reminded him.
"Is that all?"
"Nope," Ally squeaked.
"Well, what else is bugging you?"
Ally sighed, and told Jesse the whole story; from the moment she got that phone call that afternoon. As he heard the story, Jesse began to inwardly become more and more saddened. He did not want to lose Ally for anything, but he knew what was best for Ally.
Ally concluded her story. "What do you think I should do?"
Jesse gritted his teeth. "I know what you want, and I know that what you want is best for you. This will be the last time you get moved about somewhere."
Ally's eyes widened. "Just like that? You are letting me go, just like that?"
"I am standing out of the way to let you have what you know you really want," Jesse rephrased for her.
Ally was lost for words. Someone was letting her have her own way, and she didn't know how to deal with it. All she could say was "thank you," and give Jesse a hug.
Mark walked in then. "Jess, you need some rest, and I need to take Ally home. I'll be back later to check on you. Don't go anywhere."
Jesse strained a smile as they left, and as the door closed, he turned to look at toward the floor. Memories were shooting through his mind like outtakes of a film.
The day he met Ally. He didn't really want to keep her at first, but something changed inside him, and he fought to keep her. And for what? She was leaving now. She was going to a complete stranger who is very closely related to her. It all happened so fast that Jesse was beginning to feel dizzy.
"C'mon, Travis," Jesse muttered to himself. "You didn't want her in the first place. Suddenly she is going to leave, and you turn all emotional? What changed?"
Jesse knew the truth. He had grown to like Ally a lot. He did not want to see her go. But Jesse knew something else, too. He had to put Ally's feelings far before his own.
"It hurts, but its right," Jesse said, feeling more satisfied.
A.N. Hi! It's getting a bit (the word 'rubbish' covers it) bad this story right now but I apologise for this, and as suggested I will come back later on and redo it so that it's a bit better. For now I have one more chapter to put up. Then these lovely exams better known as GCSEs that someone dreamed up that I have to do, but that's another story. See ya!
Something had to be done, and that something was Ally going to the hospital. She had to see someone, to tell someone what had happened.
She decided that telling Jesse wouldn't do a lot of good. For one thing, he would probably give a biased opinion on the situation, either one way or the other. She wouldn't be able to see all of the facts. Also, there was the problem of him having just undergone surgery.
Steve? No way. Steve was not one of the most warm and friendly of characters that Ally had ever met. She realised that he probably had a good side; only she had not yet seen it.
What about Mark? How could Ally tell Mark? Mark would be along the same lines as Jesse, wanting either one or the other. Mark was wise, but maybe a bit towards one side of an argument more than the other, Ally thought to herself.
That left one person. Amanda. It was going to have to happen, she was going to have to talk to someone, and if it was going to be anyone, it was going to be Amanda.
Ally got the plan going. She found the address book in the house, and found Amanda's address. Then, she found a street map and found the route. Lastly, she found her father's motorbike stowed away in the Sloan's garage. "Keys," she mumbled to herself. "Where would they hide the keys?"
After half an hour of searching, Ally found the keys in a drawer in the hallway. She got the helmet, and set off on the bike toward Amanda's house.
Sometime later, Ally found the house. Making sure that no one was in sight, she took off her helmet and crept up to the front door. She trembled slightly as she pressed the doorbell, and scolded herself for being afraid.
Ally was relieved when Amanda came to the door. "Ally!" she gasped. "What on earth are you doing here?"
"Well, you know, the sun is shining, birds are singing, and I've got more problems than I can handle," Ally told her straight. "Please, help me."
"Of course," Amanda ushered the girl inside. She sat her down on the couch, and brought her a drink. "I've heard from Mark," Amanda said. "He told me about Jesse. You've heard, I imagine."
"That's one of the troubles I've brought with me," Ally explained.
"What else is troubling you?" Amanda asked.
"Got a phone call today from the social," Ally told her.
"Do they want to take you away from Jesse?" Amanda exclaimed.
"No. See, I was adopted when I was a younger. My mom wasn't my real mom, but she may as well have been, because I've known no one else. Anyways," she continued. "My real mom wants to meet me. Someone called Claire something, Claire Hudson; that was it. Anyway, she wants to meet me."
Amanda stopped for a second, and put down her drink. "She wants to meet you? How do you feel about this?"
"Well, considering I haven't got a lot of family to go to right now, except Jesse, pretty good. But, Jesse's been great to me. I spent the last four years being the rebel, and then suddenly I meet Jesse and he sorts me out. That's pretty special."
"That is pretty special, I agree," Amanda said. "But, you may want to think. How would you feel, being your real mom, if you knew that you had a daughter out there?"
"I'd want to meet her," Ally admitted. "But she doesn't know what I've been through in my life. Hell, she doesn't know what I've been through in the past two months, the past day, or even the past hour!"
"Ally, I don't know what you've been going through, and I know most of the events. I know you! Just because she's a perfect stranger doesn't mean that she won't relate to you in time. And that's a blood relative…" Amanda's voice trailed off.
"Did I miss something?" Ally asked, never missing a single motion.
"I do have a rough idea what it's like to live with someone you don't know. I was a foster child, and I was looked after by a stranger. That didn't matter to me. Someone cared for me. Someone wanted to care for me, and I am sure that your mom wants to care for you just as much as my mom did, and still does."
"That's all very well and good, Amanda, but you keep forgetting one thing. Just like you can put my Mom in that position, you can put Jesse in that position, too. Only two differences. One, that woman called my mother is a bit closer in relation to me. Two, my mother isn't the one who's hurt for my sake right now. Amanda, what am I going to do?"
Amanda opened her mouth, and shut it again. The girl had a point. "Well, there's only one thing. You should be talking to Jesse about this, not me."
"But he's tied up at the moment," Ally said.
"Wait until he's feeling a bit better," Amanda advised.
"All right," Ally sighed.
"Need a lift to the hospital?" Amanda asked her.
"Well, my bike is still here," Ally pondered.
"Bike as in motorbike?" Amanda asked, afraid of the answer.
"Do I have any other bike?" Ally grinned.
At the hospital, Ally sat waiting for Mark in his office. Jesse had been moved out of recovery, and Ally was waiting for Mark to tell her the number of his room. Mark had given her the brief of the surgery, telling her that everything went fine.
"Hey," Mark said, "he's ready for visitors now. Don't look so worried, everything's fine."
That's what you think, Ally thought to herself as she followed Mark to Jesse's room.
Inside, Jesse's face turned from exhaustion to happiness when he saw Ally. He would have to be happy to see me, Ally thought to herself.
"Hi," Ally greeted shyly. "How are you feeling?" She made her way towards the bed as Mark silently left the room.
"Not so bad," Jesse replied, manoeuvring himself to sit up in the bed. "How about you?"
Ally swallowed. "Could be better."
"What's up?" Jesse asked, concern taking over.
"Well, you've been shot, haven't you," Ally reminded him.
"Is that all?"
"Nope," Ally squeaked.
"Well, what else is bugging you?"
Ally sighed, and told Jesse the whole story; from the moment she got that phone call that afternoon. As he heard the story, Jesse began to inwardly become more and more saddened. He did not want to lose Ally for anything, but he knew what was best for Ally.
Ally concluded her story. "What do you think I should do?"
Jesse gritted his teeth. "I know what you want, and I know that what you want is best for you. This will be the last time you get moved about somewhere."
Ally's eyes widened. "Just like that? You are letting me go, just like that?"
"I am standing out of the way to let you have what you know you really want," Jesse rephrased for her.
Ally was lost for words. Someone was letting her have her own way, and she didn't know how to deal with it. All she could say was "thank you," and give Jesse a hug.
Mark walked in then. "Jess, you need some rest, and I need to take Ally home. I'll be back later to check on you. Don't go anywhere."
Jesse strained a smile as they left, and as the door closed, he turned to look at toward the floor. Memories were shooting through his mind like outtakes of a film.
The day he met Ally. He didn't really want to keep her at first, but something changed inside him, and he fought to keep her. And for what? She was leaving now. She was going to a complete stranger who is very closely related to her. It all happened so fast that Jesse was beginning to feel dizzy.
"C'mon, Travis," Jesse muttered to himself. "You didn't want her in the first place. Suddenly she is going to leave, and you turn all emotional? What changed?"
Jesse knew the truth. He had grown to like Ally a lot. He did not want to see her go. But Jesse knew something else, too. He had to put Ally's feelings far before his own.
"It hurts, but its right," Jesse said, feeling more satisfied.
A.N. Hi! It's getting a bit (the word 'rubbish' covers it) bad this story right now but I apologise for this, and as suggested I will come back later on and redo it so that it's a bit better. For now I have one more chapter to put up. Then these lovely exams better known as GCSEs that someone dreamed up that I have to do, but that's another story. See ya!