Sarah opened the door to Miles's truck and got in. She greeted him with a smile and said, "Hey, Scott. How are you?"
Jesse's words came back to haunt him. "She doesn't even know your real name!" He sighed and began to pull out of their driveway. "Sarah, would you… would you call me Miles?"
She looked confused. "Well, sure. Why?"
"Because, I-" Miles didn't know what to say. For some reason, it seemed like she needed to call him Miles. Otherwise Jesse would somehow win. And somehow, Miles and Sarah's relationship would never work. "That's my real name," he said finally.
"What? But… I don't understand."
This was it. He either had to tell her about the water and his wife and Jesse and Winnie and everything else now, or never. But the last time they had told someone was Winnie, and she ended up dying, and Jesse was in tears. What would happen if Miles told Sarah, and the same thing happened? Or what if she didn't believe him, or she told someone else? "Sarah, can I trust you?"
"You can tell me anything."
He glanced over to her. She looked concerned. Besides that, she also looked exactly like the first Sarah. Exactly. They had the same hair, the same eyes, the same complexion… even the same expression now, when he was preparing himself to do something that could change everything.
Miles stopped the truck, pulled out the keys, and got out. "Scott?!" she asked. Sarah took off her seatbelt and got out as well, following him back to her house. "Scott, where are you going?"
"Follow me." He came to Winnie's grave and said, "Your grandmother, or great-grandmother, or whatever she was, Winnie, her and Jesse were in love."
"The Jesse that your brother was named after…?" Sarah sated.
"No, my brother Jesse. He was never named after anyone. Jesse is Jesse."
"I don't understand. How-"
Miles continued walking into the forest, with a very confused woman working to keep up with him. "How do you know these woods?" she asked him. She didn't even know her way around.
"I used to live here with my parents and brother," Miles replied. "A hundred years ago, we lived here. And nothing has changed."
"What do you mean?"
Miles didn't bother to explain, because once she saw the water and he told her about that, it would all make sense. She would understand soon enough. For now, if he tried to explain she would only be more confused.
"Sc- Miles, where are you taking me?"
"You'll see." Soon, they reached the tree, unchanged, just like Miles, Jesse, Mae, and Tuck. And the water was still there. Everything.
"This water is cursed," he told her, pointing down at it. "And so is anyone who drinks it. It makes you live forever, so it's impossible to die, and Jesse, Mae, Tuck, and I…"
Sarah's eyes widened as she looked into his own. "Are you serious?"
He nodded. "Unfortunately. Winnie – Jesse wanted her to drink it, but she didn't. The same thing happened with me, only… I had a wife and two children, and I told her about it. She thought that I had sold my soul to the devil and left me, and all three of them died. And that's why the painting that Winnie made looks so much like Jesse, and that's why he was crying at her grave, and that's why you didn't know my real name."
Sarah's eyes were cast down in respect. "I'm sorry, Miles. I really am."
"Sarah…?"
She looked up at him. "What – would you have me do what Winnie did not?"
Miles wanted to tell her yes. He wanted to beg her right then to please just take a sip, and then stay with him and his parents forever… he wasn't sure if he even loved her yet, but female company in the house other than his mother would not be a bad thing, and if nothing else, they would learn to love each other and get married and have children. And, maybe if she did, then it would be almost as if his wife did… Maybe the answer to her question was "no," but the answer to the question "Would you have me do what your wife did not?" would be "yes." Miles didn't care about Winnie, he only wanted Sarah back. His Sarah.
"I… I don't know. I only needed to tell you."
"You know, if I drank it, I would see Judgment Day?"
"Is that something you want?"
Sarah nodded. "Ever since I was a child. I always hoped that God would come back during my lifetime, so that I would be able to see him, and… and never die. This is my dream."
"Your dream, or your nightmare. Let me warn you, Sarah, that it is not what many people would think it. I think that you should wait before you make a decision."
"You're right," she agreed. "I suppose you can't go back, hmm?"
"If there was a way, we would have done it by now."
"So… I'll go back home, and you can go back to yours, and tomorrow you can come back. And… I'll come with you or I won't. All right?"
Miles nodded. "I couldn't tell you which one I prefer."
"Would you like to show me my way home? I think you know these woods better than I do."
"Sure."
A/N: That Miles, he sure knows how to give a girl a date! Lol, sorry it was so long since my last update, but I was having this big block. As you can probably guess, there's only one chapter left, so cast your vote on if you think she should drink it or not! I think I know what'll happen, but I'm easily swayed, so tell me what you think and it'll be put into consideration. Thanks!
