Legalities (is that a word??): Don't own 'em...

A/N: chapter 17. i need to go back to school...

Jett sat on the porch of his house, looking out absently on the road. Miz Corretta came out of the house, holding a tray with fresh cookies and two tall glasses of milk.

"Mind if I join you?" His great-grandmother's voice startled him out of his reverie. Jett looked up and grinned at the woman, the pillar of his childhood, the one person he know he could trust her for everything from advice to fresh cookies, which she had never disappointed him with. Her chocolate chips were still the best in Wilsted.

"Sure, Nana." Jett scooted over and grinned.

"Sounds like a lot's been happening lately, huh?" Miz Corretta eased herself down onto the step.

"You could say that," Jett took a long drink from the glass. "It's been crazy."

Miz Corretta smiled. "You don't seem to be complaining. Especially since you and Kayla got together." She uncovered the plate of cookies and the aroma of fresh-baked dough rose to their senses.

Jett took a few cookies and bit into one. He looked truly happy as he grinned. "Yeah." He chewed thoughtfully. "I'm thrilled. I mean, I've been waiting for this forever."

"You both have," Miz Corretta said. "And let me tell you, child, we were going crazy waiting for you to admit it to each other. Your father suggested taking bets."

Jett started to laugh. "Dad said that?"

"He did indeed," Miz Corretta took her glass of milk. "He may be forty-one years old, but I still see little Wood sometimes, running around in shorts and a t-shirt, yelling at the squirrels in the yard." Miz Corretta smiled at the memory. "And now he's a big-time sheriff."

Jett smiled. "Things have changed around here, haven't they?"

"Sure," Miz Corretta said. "You and Kayla and JB are all getting ready for your senior year in high school, and then it's off to college. I'm certainly not as young as I used to be, and look at Booker."

Jett laughed. "He seems happy enough."

Miz Corretta smiled. "I remember Jackie very well. She is a very talented girl."

"She's gorgeous."

"And she knows it." Miz Corretta broke off a piece of cookie and ate it. "I remember back in '93, she and Booker were in the production of Romeo and Juliet. It was a musical, and I will never forget how nervous Jackie was. She waved at me from the wings and grinned. Booker was the cutest Romeo we had ever seen. I was so proud of him."

Jett shook his head, grinning. "Booker sings?"

"Sure does. He plays the piano too. He's really pretty good." Miz Corretta smiled at her great-grandson. "Yes, time has moved on."

Jett had another cookie and leaned back to watch the road again. His great-grandmother smiled at the boy who was no longer a boy, who was in love, and who was going to be just fine.