"...........I'm on my knees,
Begging you to help me, please,
Bring my baby back!
Right back to me......
............Lately,
Been thinking 'bout you, baby,
Just sittin' away, watchin' the days go bye..........."
Samantha Mumba- Lately
Liberty knocked lightly on Emma Nelson's front door. She set her black bag,
which contained her video camera, on the porch. Shifting her weight from
one foot to the other, she waited patiently for someone to open the door.
Though, as seconds stretched into minutes, Liberty wondered if she'd gotten
her information right. Emma's mom had said to come at 10 am on Saturday,
did she not? Was there a change of plans? Had Liberty gotten the date
wrong?
Nervousness turned into panic, and Liberty knocked again. She began to pace
back and forth, wondering where she'd gone wrong. She was sure she'd gotten
her facts straight the other night when she'd talked to Mrs. Simpson on the
phone. Just when she was about to turn home, she heard the door being
unlocked. Emma's mom stood in the doorway, a shaky smile on her face.
"Hello, Liberty," she said, her voice hoarse. "How have you been?" Liberty
turned her head so that Mrs. Simpson would not see that she was blinking
furiously to hold back tears. The sight of Emma's mother broke her heart.
Her clothes were rumpled and stained. Her hair looked as though she hadn't
combed or washed it in days. Her eyes held a kind of desperation, one in
which she was trying to find an answer, but not succeeding, yet continuing
to tell herself she would soon. But her smile........... that was the worst part.
So fake, but trusting. It showed her vulnerability overriding her strength.
Liberty had only seen Mrs. Simpson a few times, but knew enough to see that
the woman standing before her, was not the one she'd seen before.
"I'm f-fine, Mrs. Simpson," Liberty answered in a strong voice, leaning
down to grab her bag. She, too, faked a smile.
"Please, call me Spike." The desperation in this plea............ the neediness to
be who she was before, was plain as day. Liberty just nodded and Spike
stepped aside to let her in. The house was a mess. Clothes were strewn
everywhere. Empty or half full plates of food were left on the sofa, the
table, dressers, and even at the bottom of the stairs. The smells mixed
together, giving the house a rather awful stench.
Still, Liberty smiled and pretended that she was in her own house of sweet,
honey like aromas from her mother's constant baking. She ignored the broken
glass on the floor, even as she stepped over it, following Spike to Emma's
room. Spike walked downstairs to the basement and Liberty trailed behind
her. Reaching Emma's room, Liberty was relieved to see that it wasn't
messy, but very well kept. She set down her bag and carefully pulled out
her video camera.
"Spike, you remember what to do right?" she asked. Seeing the uncertainty
on the older woman's face answered her question. Sighing, Liberty
explained, "Just go around Emma's room, picking up and explaining her
things. The point is to let everyone who didn't know her see she was an
average girl. Okay?" Spike nodded, and made an attempt to straighten her
hair and clothes, but it was to no avail. Smiling wanly, she went over to
Emma's dresser and picked up a thin, black notebook. Liberty pressed the ON
button on her camera and it made its soft humming noise as it came to life.
She aimed the camera at Spike and cued her to speak.
"Hello, I'm Emma's mother," Spike said, her voice shaking slightly. "Th-
this was Emma's environment journal." She held up the black book, and
smiled a bit. "She wrote down everything that affected our plants and
animals and ways to fix it. She was very passionate about nature, and did
her best to make everyone else around her care, too." Setting down the
notebook, Spike went over to Emma's desk. She made a gesture to Emma's
computer and said, "Like any other teen girl, Emma had a computer. She e-
mailed her friends, went to chat rooms, and did school projects on it. She
was a happy person, and it showed through everything she did." From where
Liberty was standing, she could see the tears in Spike's eyes. Spike walked
over to another dresser, but paused before she got there. She clutched her
chest, and began to breathe heavily. Liberty was about to run to her, but
Spike held up her hand, telling her not to. Liberty, concerned, continued
filming.
Spike picked up a teddy bear in the shape of a dark green turtle. She
smiled sadly at it before saying, "This is Mr. Tut. Emma's had this turtle
since she was a young girl. She'd throw a fit if she lost it. She loved it
like it was real. She always kept it by her side and never............" But Spike
never finished her sentence. She sat on Emma's bed, clutching the stuffed
turtle to her chest and began to rock herself back and forth. Liberty could
just make out Spike's whispered pleas.
"Emma, come back," she whispered as tears streamed down her face. "Please
come back. I need you. Emma, come back to mommy, please." She began to
shake as sobs coursed through her body. Her breathing increased, and each
sentence she muttered was more spaced. "Emma......... come back. Why'd....... you........
leave. Please........ Emma........ O Emma. OemmaOEmmaOEmmaOEmmaOEmma.........."
Crying silently, Liberty turned the camera off and grabbed her bag. She
left as quietly as she could, Spike's cries of, "Emma........... mommy's
sorry........ for whatever..........she did. Please.......... Emma, come back," following
her up the stairs and out of the door.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
(2 days later)
Manny smiled, really smiled, as Sean told jokes on their walk home from
school. The jokes weren't really funny, but seeing Sean attempt to be
happy, attempt to be his old self, were enough to make Manny feel better.
They walked to Sean's house, talking and joking as if everything was OK.
Sean stepped into his yard, walking over to his front porch and sitting
down on the step. Manny looked after him, unsure if she should follow or
not. She remembered what had happened the last time she had come over and
she wasn't sure how stable Sean was. He smiled at her and patted the empty
space beside him, gesturing for Manny to come and sit with him. She walked
over and dropped her backpack on the ground, before sitting next to him.
"Hi," he said, waving at her. She grinned and replied, "Hey." They smiled
at each other for a while, buying time to figure out what to say next.
Silence consumed them and Manny turned her head, looking out at the street.
She kept expecting Emma to turn the corner and walk over to them, a big
smile on her face. However, the street remained empty, and Manny shivered
even though it was warm out. She felt Sean looking at her and turned to
him.
"You okay?" he asked, concern on his face. Manny nodded, and he dropped the
subject. "I'm glad that you and I are still friends, Manny. It really
helps, having you to talk to. I don't feel like I'm the only one anymore."
She knew the meaning of his last sentence and nodded.
"I'm glad, too," she said, resting her head on his shoulder. She sat like
that for a while, comfort in having a dear friend making her feel slightly
happy, a feeling she cherished. She felt Sean's hand come to rest on her
shoulder and she closed her eyes, growing tired. Stress had been eating
away at her lately and for the first time in a while, she felt freer, as if
stress had never come out to play cruel games with her mind. Sean's hand
moved slowly down her arm, squeezing every once in a while. Manny continued
to rest. His hand stopped on her hip and he pulled her closer to him. Her
eyes fluttered open as she felt his warm breath against her cheek. She
turned to look at him, confused. He smiled at her in a way he'd never done
before and Manny, scared, tried to scoot away. Sean tightened his grasp on
her hips and looked oblivious to the fact that Manny was trying to get
away.
"Thank you, Manny," he said, her name sounding odd coming from his lips.
"For everything." He leaned closer to her and Manny tried to back away, but
he only pulled her closer. Fear began to rise in Manny's chest and she
tried to push him away.
"Sean, no," she said as his lips closed over hers. He wrapped his arms
around her, deepening the kiss. As she tried to tell him to stop, she was
silenced by his tongue finding its way into her mouth. She placed a hand on
his shoulder and shoved as hard as she could, but he would not budge.
Giving up, she decided she would push him away when he came up for breath.
He broke away from the kiss, a dazed look upon his face. Manny was about to
tell him she didn't have any feelings for him, when she heard her name
being called. She turned to see Craig standing at Sean's gate.
"Manny!" Craig called to her, shocked at what he'd just seen her do. Manny
turned to him, a look of equal shock on her face. Sean looked back and
forth between the two, not understanding.
"Craig, it's not what it looks like," was all Manny could say. Craig gave
her a look that said, "Yea, right." He shook his head at her and Sean and
walked away. Manny pulled away from Sean, relieved to finally be free of
his stronghold on her. Confusion was clear in his eyes as he watched her
grab her backpack and slowly back away from him as though he might strike
at her.
"Manny, what's wrong?" he asked, wanting an answer to why she looked so
afraid of him.
"You shouldn't have kissed me," she said, her voice shaking. "It was wrong.
I don't feel that way for you." Anger consumed Sean, and he found himself
stomping towards her.
"Am I not good enough for you, Manny?" he asked her, his eyes cold as they
stared into hers.
"It's not like that, Sean," Manny said, shaking her head. "You're like a
brother to me. I don't want to be anything more than a good friend to you.
You're........... you were Emma's." A look of realization made its way across his
face and he crumbled to the ground, crying.
"S-Sean," Manny whispered, coming towards him.
"Just leave, Manny," was his reply. "Just leave."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Craig, wait!" Manny called to him, finally catching up to him. He turned
to face her, coldness in his eyes. "Craig, I-"she began, but was cut off.
"How could you, Manny?" Craig asked, shaking his head in hurt and
confusion. "Does it not matter to you that he was Emma's? Does it not
matter to you the way.......... the way I feel about you?" Tears came to her eyes
as she noted the look of pain on his face.
"I swear it's not what it looked like," she said, searching for words to
make the situation better. "Sean was upset and I talked to him and we
became good friends. Then we walked home together from school today and we
sat on his front porch talking and he kissed me, but I..........."
She trailed off seeing the look of disbelief on his face. She shook her
head in confusion. Why wouldn't he believe her?
"Manny, I thought Emma's death meant more to you than this," he said, his
voice quivering. "I thought Emma meant more to you than this. I guess I was
wrong, huh?" He turned away from her, walking towards his home.
"Craig, wait, please!" Manny called to him. But he did not stop. Manny
watched sadly as he disappeared around a corner.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Manny stared silently at Emma's tombstone, wishing her friend was there to
make everything make sense. She leaned her head against the cold marble,
and stared down at the fresh dirt.
"Emma..........." she whispered, waiting for her friend to answer. There was
none. "Emma, why'd you leave? Why is everything going so crazy? If you were
still here.......... If you were here everything would be okay." Tears poured
from Manny's eyes and sobs shook her small body.
She remembered all the times she was afraid and Emma would tell her it was
okay. Her friend had always been there for her, had promised to always be
there for her and now she wasn't. Emma had done something she'd never done
before. She had broken a promise.
"Emma, please," she begged, needing her best friend. "If you come back,
everything will go back to normal." More tears fell from her eyes, down
onto the fresh grave. "Please say everything's okay." Manny curled into a
ball, sobbing and pleading. "Please, Emma. Please." She began to rock
herself, waiting for an answer that would never come. "Please....... Please........
please........." Her cries echoed through the cemetery upsetting the silence that
had resided there.
A/N: FINALLY ANOTHER CHAPTER!!!!!!!!!!!! YAY!!!!!!!! Now, it's just five
months till the next one!!! Hehe, j/k. I hope. I'm so sorry to all the
people I've kept waiting. I'm so bad at updating. I've got to stop being so
lazy!!!!!! This chapter made me cry so hard. It was difficult to write.
I've really got to end this story soon, 'cuz it feels to me like it's
dragging on. I've decided to keep the ending I planned to have, however
much you may hate me. Oh, and this story is set before Manny's........change
and before the next season, even though Emma's room is downstairs. Sorry if
it confused you. Ok, well, review and tell me what you think. And yes, I
will make you wait for the next chapter and this time I won't even tell you
what it's going to be about. MWUHAHAHAHAHAHA! I'm so evil!!! LOL! Well, buh
bye!
XOXOXOXO Kris.
P.S. Sry to LittleMermaid356 for not posting this when I said I would. I
was being lazy.
P.P. S. REVIEW!!!!!!!!
Begging you to help me, please,
Bring my baby back!
Right back to me......
............Lately,
Been thinking 'bout you, baby,
Just sittin' away, watchin' the days go bye..........."
Samantha Mumba- Lately
Liberty knocked lightly on Emma Nelson's front door. She set her black bag,
which contained her video camera, on the porch. Shifting her weight from
one foot to the other, she waited patiently for someone to open the door.
Though, as seconds stretched into minutes, Liberty wondered if she'd gotten
her information right. Emma's mom had said to come at 10 am on Saturday,
did she not? Was there a change of plans? Had Liberty gotten the date
wrong?
Nervousness turned into panic, and Liberty knocked again. She began to pace
back and forth, wondering where she'd gone wrong. She was sure she'd gotten
her facts straight the other night when she'd talked to Mrs. Simpson on the
phone. Just when she was about to turn home, she heard the door being
unlocked. Emma's mom stood in the doorway, a shaky smile on her face.
"Hello, Liberty," she said, her voice hoarse. "How have you been?" Liberty
turned her head so that Mrs. Simpson would not see that she was blinking
furiously to hold back tears. The sight of Emma's mother broke her heart.
Her clothes were rumpled and stained. Her hair looked as though she hadn't
combed or washed it in days. Her eyes held a kind of desperation, one in
which she was trying to find an answer, but not succeeding, yet continuing
to tell herself she would soon. But her smile........... that was the worst part.
So fake, but trusting. It showed her vulnerability overriding her strength.
Liberty had only seen Mrs. Simpson a few times, but knew enough to see that
the woman standing before her, was not the one she'd seen before.
"I'm f-fine, Mrs. Simpson," Liberty answered in a strong voice, leaning
down to grab her bag. She, too, faked a smile.
"Please, call me Spike." The desperation in this plea............ the neediness to
be who she was before, was plain as day. Liberty just nodded and Spike
stepped aside to let her in. The house was a mess. Clothes were strewn
everywhere. Empty or half full plates of food were left on the sofa, the
table, dressers, and even at the bottom of the stairs. The smells mixed
together, giving the house a rather awful stench.
Still, Liberty smiled and pretended that she was in her own house of sweet,
honey like aromas from her mother's constant baking. She ignored the broken
glass on the floor, even as she stepped over it, following Spike to Emma's
room. Spike walked downstairs to the basement and Liberty trailed behind
her. Reaching Emma's room, Liberty was relieved to see that it wasn't
messy, but very well kept. She set down her bag and carefully pulled out
her video camera.
"Spike, you remember what to do right?" she asked. Seeing the uncertainty
on the older woman's face answered her question. Sighing, Liberty
explained, "Just go around Emma's room, picking up and explaining her
things. The point is to let everyone who didn't know her see she was an
average girl. Okay?" Spike nodded, and made an attempt to straighten her
hair and clothes, but it was to no avail. Smiling wanly, she went over to
Emma's dresser and picked up a thin, black notebook. Liberty pressed the ON
button on her camera and it made its soft humming noise as it came to life.
She aimed the camera at Spike and cued her to speak.
"Hello, I'm Emma's mother," Spike said, her voice shaking slightly. "Th-
this was Emma's environment journal." She held up the black book, and
smiled a bit. "She wrote down everything that affected our plants and
animals and ways to fix it. She was very passionate about nature, and did
her best to make everyone else around her care, too." Setting down the
notebook, Spike went over to Emma's desk. She made a gesture to Emma's
computer and said, "Like any other teen girl, Emma had a computer. She e-
mailed her friends, went to chat rooms, and did school projects on it. She
was a happy person, and it showed through everything she did." From where
Liberty was standing, she could see the tears in Spike's eyes. Spike walked
over to another dresser, but paused before she got there. She clutched her
chest, and began to breathe heavily. Liberty was about to run to her, but
Spike held up her hand, telling her not to. Liberty, concerned, continued
filming.
Spike picked up a teddy bear in the shape of a dark green turtle. She
smiled sadly at it before saying, "This is Mr. Tut. Emma's had this turtle
since she was a young girl. She'd throw a fit if she lost it. She loved it
like it was real. She always kept it by her side and never............" But Spike
never finished her sentence. She sat on Emma's bed, clutching the stuffed
turtle to her chest and began to rock herself back and forth. Liberty could
just make out Spike's whispered pleas.
"Emma, come back," she whispered as tears streamed down her face. "Please
come back. I need you. Emma, come back to mommy, please." She began to
shake as sobs coursed through her body. Her breathing increased, and each
sentence she muttered was more spaced. "Emma......... come back. Why'd....... you........
leave. Please........ Emma........ O Emma. OemmaOEmmaOEmmaOEmmaOEmma.........."
Crying silently, Liberty turned the camera off and grabbed her bag. She
left as quietly as she could, Spike's cries of, "Emma........... mommy's
sorry........ for whatever..........she did. Please.......... Emma, come back," following
her up the stairs and out of the door.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
(2 days later)
Manny smiled, really smiled, as Sean told jokes on their walk home from
school. The jokes weren't really funny, but seeing Sean attempt to be
happy, attempt to be his old self, were enough to make Manny feel better.
They walked to Sean's house, talking and joking as if everything was OK.
Sean stepped into his yard, walking over to his front porch and sitting
down on the step. Manny looked after him, unsure if she should follow or
not. She remembered what had happened the last time she had come over and
she wasn't sure how stable Sean was. He smiled at her and patted the empty
space beside him, gesturing for Manny to come and sit with him. She walked
over and dropped her backpack on the ground, before sitting next to him.
"Hi," he said, waving at her. She grinned and replied, "Hey." They smiled
at each other for a while, buying time to figure out what to say next.
Silence consumed them and Manny turned her head, looking out at the street.
She kept expecting Emma to turn the corner and walk over to them, a big
smile on her face. However, the street remained empty, and Manny shivered
even though it was warm out. She felt Sean looking at her and turned to
him.
"You okay?" he asked, concern on his face. Manny nodded, and he dropped the
subject. "I'm glad that you and I are still friends, Manny. It really
helps, having you to talk to. I don't feel like I'm the only one anymore."
She knew the meaning of his last sentence and nodded.
"I'm glad, too," she said, resting her head on his shoulder. She sat like
that for a while, comfort in having a dear friend making her feel slightly
happy, a feeling she cherished. She felt Sean's hand come to rest on her
shoulder and she closed her eyes, growing tired. Stress had been eating
away at her lately and for the first time in a while, she felt freer, as if
stress had never come out to play cruel games with her mind. Sean's hand
moved slowly down her arm, squeezing every once in a while. Manny continued
to rest. His hand stopped on her hip and he pulled her closer to him. Her
eyes fluttered open as she felt his warm breath against her cheek. She
turned to look at him, confused. He smiled at her in a way he'd never done
before and Manny, scared, tried to scoot away. Sean tightened his grasp on
her hips and looked oblivious to the fact that Manny was trying to get
away.
"Thank you, Manny," he said, her name sounding odd coming from his lips.
"For everything." He leaned closer to her and Manny tried to back away, but
he only pulled her closer. Fear began to rise in Manny's chest and she
tried to push him away.
"Sean, no," she said as his lips closed over hers. He wrapped his arms
around her, deepening the kiss. As she tried to tell him to stop, she was
silenced by his tongue finding its way into her mouth. She placed a hand on
his shoulder and shoved as hard as she could, but he would not budge.
Giving up, she decided she would push him away when he came up for breath.
He broke away from the kiss, a dazed look upon his face. Manny was about to
tell him she didn't have any feelings for him, when she heard her name
being called. She turned to see Craig standing at Sean's gate.
"Manny!" Craig called to her, shocked at what he'd just seen her do. Manny
turned to him, a look of equal shock on her face. Sean looked back and
forth between the two, not understanding.
"Craig, it's not what it looks like," was all Manny could say. Craig gave
her a look that said, "Yea, right." He shook his head at her and Sean and
walked away. Manny pulled away from Sean, relieved to finally be free of
his stronghold on her. Confusion was clear in his eyes as he watched her
grab her backpack and slowly back away from him as though he might strike
at her.
"Manny, what's wrong?" he asked, wanting an answer to why she looked so
afraid of him.
"You shouldn't have kissed me," she said, her voice shaking. "It was wrong.
I don't feel that way for you." Anger consumed Sean, and he found himself
stomping towards her.
"Am I not good enough for you, Manny?" he asked her, his eyes cold as they
stared into hers.
"It's not like that, Sean," Manny said, shaking her head. "You're like a
brother to me. I don't want to be anything more than a good friend to you.
You're........... you were Emma's." A look of realization made its way across his
face and he crumbled to the ground, crying.
"S-Sean," Manny whispered, coming towards him.
"Just leave, Manny," was his reply. "Just leave."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Craig, wait!" Manny called to him, finally catching up to him. He turned
to face her, coldness in his eyes. "Craig, I-"she began, but was cut off.
"How could you, Manny?" Craig asked, shaking his head in hurt and
confusion. "Does it not matter to you that he was Emma's? Does it not
matter to you the way.......... the way I feel about you?" Tears came to her eyes
as she noted the look of pain on his face.
"I swear it's not what it looked like," she said, searching for words to
make the situation better. "Sean was upset and I talked to him and we
became good friends. Then we walked home together from school today and we
sat on his front porch talking and he kissed me, but I..........."
She trailed off seeing the look of disbelief on his face. She shook her
head in confusion. Why wouldn't he believe her?
"Manny, I thought Emma's death meant more to you than this," he said, his
voice quivering. "I thought Emma meant more to you than this. I guess I was
wrong, huh?" He turned away from her, walking towards his home.
"Craig, wait, please!" Manny called to him. But he did not stop. Manny
watched sadly as he disappeared around a corner.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Manny stared silently at Emma's tombstone, wishing her friend was there to
make everything make sense. She leaned her head against the cold marble,
and stared down at the fresh dirt.
"Emma..........." she whispered, waiting for her friend to answer. There was
none. "Emma, why'd you leave? Why is everything going so crazy? If you were
still here.......... If you were here everything would be okay." Tears poured
from Manny's eyes and sobs shook her small body.
She remembered all the times she was afraid and Emma would tell her it was
okay. Her friend had always been there for her, had promised to always be
there for her and now she wasn't. Emma had done something she'd never done
before. She had broken a promise.
"Emma, please," she begged, needing her best friend. "If you come back,
everything will go back to normal." More tears fell from her eyes, down
onto the fresh grave. "Please say everything's okay." Manny curled into a
ball, sobbing and pleading. "Please, Emma. Please." She began to rock
herself, waiting for an answer that would never come. "Please....... Please........
please........." Her cries echoed through the cemetery upsetting the silence that
had resided there.
A/N: FINALLY ANOTHER CHAPTER!!!!!!!!!!!! YAY!!!!!!!! Now, it's just five
months till the next one!!! Hehe, j/k. I hope. I'm so sorry to all the
people I've kept waiting. I'm so bad at updating. I've got to stop being so
lazy!!!!!! This chapter made me cry so hard. It was difficult to write.
I've really got to end this story soon, 'cuz it feels to me like it's
dragging on. I've decided to keep the ending I planned to have, however
much you may hate me. Oh, and this story is set before Manny's........change
and before the next season, even though Emma's room is downstairs. Sorry if
it confused you. Ok, well, review and tell me what you think. And yes, I
will make you wait for the next chapter and this time I won't even tell you
what it's going to be about. MWUHAHAHAHAHAHA! I'm so evil!!! LOL! Well, buh
bye!
XOXOXOXO Kris.
P.S. Sry to LittleMermaid356 for not posting this when I said I would. I
was being lazy.
P.P. S. REVIEW!!!!!!!!