"Do you want to take a ride, Jonas?" Fiona asks and for a fleeting moment I want nothing more then to ride down to the river with my gentle female friend."
Jonas in The Giver (Note: not exact quote.)
It's been ten years. Ten years since my life shattered. Ten years since I found that everything I knew was a lie. Ten years since I learned I was a cold blooded murderer to some of the people I had admired most. And now I have to face the man, who left us all to pick up the pieces. My high heels, I've decided, are no good for walking through snow in the middle of December paired with a business knee length skirt and jacket. Cars unfortunately can't go down steep icy hills. The cold air nipped at my face, as if it were my punishment for this foolish quest. The warm glows of the lights from the town finally come into view. The snow I'm walking on top of threatens to give way and I pray that it doesn't as I severely dislike snow. The town is bustling when I arrive at the border. The brick buildings are high, the people and merchants loud. I take a deep breath of ice filled air. 'Come on Fiona girl, you can do this.'
"Excuse me?" I say to the nearest vendor, his unshaven face turns to look at me and I can feel his eyes raking up and down, judging me, "Do you know where I could find Jonas?"
"Well ma'am, there'd be plenty of Jonas's 'round here. Which one ya be lookin for?" His accent is thick and even more muffled by the layers of worn, plaid clothing and a thick goose down jacket.
"I-uh" I paused. "I don't really know his last name, but he would be hard to miss. He arrived here about 10 years ago around this time of year."
The man's position shifted, becoming protective and sheltered. "What you be wanting with him?" His eyes became shifty and aware as if looking for the nearest exit. "You better tell me miss, or I be callin' the cops I swear it."
"What?" I reply startled. "I don't want to hurt him or anything, I'm just- an old friend."
"Well, if that's all." His voice is drawn and still suspicious. "Ya can find his house at the center of town. Got his name on it n' everything. But I be keeping an eye on you, Miss." I nod, grateful to be out of his presents and hurry to the town square. The town center itself was a bit less chaotic, and I let myself slow my pace to look at the festivities. The trees are done up elegantly with lights and children run around them laughing and singing, all the while throwing snow into the faces of unsuspecting onlookers. I smile at their antics and remember the scolding Jonas, Asher and I got for playing when it wasn't 'play time'. My inattention gets me into trouble once more as my daydreaming sends me straight into a hard body, knocking us both down and sending gifts flying.
"Oh my, I am so terribly sorry." I stammer out, while crawling in the dirt to pick up the scattered things. I can feel my face flame red with embarrassment.
"Here. Let me help you." The mysterious voice says, and they kneel down with me. We both stand once done collecting the items, my face flushing red again.
"I really am truly sorry." I say, pushing impatiently at the strands of red hair that continue to plague me after passing over the objects to their arms. The man smiles, tossing his head to clear his ice blue eyes of his dark bronzed hair and vaguely familiar features.
"I accept your apology, Miss." He says. The phrase shocks me and freezes the becoming of a smile playing on my mouth. That phrase with so many others will haunt my dreams for a lifetime. The man also seems alarmed at the words that left his lips, and his brow arches as if remembering something long left forgotten. When he looks back up at me a flicker or recognition enters his eyes. I frown trying to place him as he does to me.
"Fiona?" he questions, the word sounds foreign and unused, like a book left long in the attic collecting layers of dust.
"I'm sorry?" I reply.
"Your name wouldn't happen to be Fiona by any chance would it?"
"Yes it is, but how would you-," the familiarity of his face finally comes into clear view for me and my knees threaten to buckle from underneath me. A croak of a name involuntarily dislodges itself from my throat.
"Jonas?" the word is rushed, as if to reaffirm he's really there. When he nods I squeal like a giggling school girl and throw myself into his arms. He returns the hug jovially and spins me around. We're quite a sight to see, I imagine, two grown people laughing like children, embracing in the middle of the street with snow descending from the sky. He puts me down and steps back to inspect me, comparing me to the mental image of a 12 year old Fiona.
"Well assuming from the way you look, I'd say the Community is...different?"he ventured. I bounce my head, still speechless minus the strange noises emitting from my throat. "Come on, your cold and you can tell me everything inside." He tugs on my hand, so reminiscent to the 12 year old boy I knew.
Once inside, I sit down on the elegant blue couch placed in his townhouse observing the elegant but scarce pieces of furniture placed in the small room, while he disappears to make tea.
"Thank you." I say when he hands me the finished product. He smiles and waves his hand dismissively while taking the hard backed chair across from me.
"So again, why are you here?" He asks sipping slowly. My cheeks heat up again, despite the chilly temperatures.
"I-I came to find you." I finally spit out, after a moment pause.
"Me?" he looks slightly bewildered. I smile warmly, while setting down the cup on the mahogany table to cool.
"You're a very hard person to find, you know that?" he flashes an impish grin, mischievous and carefree, so very different from the burdened boy who left all those years ago.
"So tell me about everything, and everyone!" I giggle something I've been doing a lot around him even though I generally detest the sound, and pick up my tea again.
"Well," I start drawing the suspense out, "Who do you want to know about?"
"Let's start with," he stops for a second thinking. "Lily." he finally decides.
"Well, she's married for one thing." I say calmly drinking the still fire hot tea. "Oh, you might want to close your mouth. It attracts flies." The gaping Jonas snaps his jaw shut, and demands another question.
"Whose she married too?"
"Asher."
"ASHER?!" his brotherly instincts snap into place, despite his absents of years.
"Oh calm down. After you left everything was a mess. Everyone was sinking into depression, and they found their selves amidst all that. She's wonderfully happy.They're actually probably what kept each other alive. Too bad I cant say that for the rest of the population. But we're rebuilding now and have been and things are looking up." He appears appeased, before asking yet another in a series of questions.
"Well what about you?"
"What about me?" I squirm uncomfortably under his level gaze.
"Did you ever get married?" I choke on my drink and cough a few times before replying.
"No, I never had enough time to settle down. I'm a nurse at the new hospital and that doesn't leave a bunch or personal time." I lie. Nursing? No, I'm only a simple secretary but he doesn't have to know all the details. "You?"
"Nope. 'I never had time'." I scowl in his direction and he laughs. After a moment of still air, we begin chatting again. "You've...changed." He starts, sifting carefully though the words.
"We both have." I shoot back.
"Looks like that red-head temper has finally set in," his hand reaches to a stray lock or red, his palm warm against my scalp. He pulls back suddenly as if shocked.
"So..." I start, my brain franticly searching for a topic, anything to break the deafening silence engulfing the room. "Why are all those people in the town so protective about you? They seemed really on edge when I was asking around for you." I say, finally remembering the strange merchant. He stands and moves to the long window watching the town, covered with powder snow.
"When I arrived here I was bloody, half frozen to death and carrying a baby." I must have looked at him funny, because a moment later he clarified. "Gabriel. Anyways, these people took us in and raised us even thought they had no reason to do so. Even though a part of me still thinks the Giver had something to do with it. I owe my life to them." he sighed.
"Where's Gabriel?" I ask.
"He lives with a foster family, as I was too young to take care of him myself. I moved out of there a few years ago." I stand and move across the room, pulling him into a comforting hug. His arms wrap around me as if I were a lifesaver in a storm.
"It's so good to see you again Fiona." I smile again.
"Now. We're going to go take a walk by the...erm...lake whether you like it or not." I laugh, while walking to our coats, tossing his into his outstretched limbs. We hook our arms jaunting merrily down, reminiscing and laughing about old times as old friends.