So sorry for the delay in this. It's a combination of working too much and having writers block. Luckily both of them are now under control, so here is an update to this story. Expect an update for night swimming in the next week! Please review.
Half-Life
The creek stirred quietly in the late summer sun. She could see a group of school kids playing in the warm water, splashing each other and laughing at their last day of summer.
God she wished she was young again. Maybe everything would have turned out differently if she could go back.
'You're quiet…you okay?'
Joey shook her head and looked around to her driving companion. Jack smiled back warmly, but cautiously, at her. She had just screamed at him for what felt like an eternity.
'Yeah I'm…nervous. I haven't been back to this house since I was 15. And I'm meeting his baby for the first time. It's a little overwhelming.'
'I'm sure he feels the same way Joey. Just remember why we are doing this. To get him out of the house. He needs us.'
He needs you.
Joey looked back out onto the creek, tracing the familiar turns to the secluded spot she had spent most of her childhood. The large trees which surrounded the house filtered the sunlight into speckled dots across the driveway and finally the front lawn as they pulled up to Leery House.
Joey looked over into what was Grams House. The new owners had certainly let it go to rack and ruin. The wonderful screen porch was littered with huge holes and it had long since lost its immaculate white and blue paint scheme.
'Does anyone even live their anymore?' Joey asked, pulling herself out of the car reluctantly.
'Nah. The owners used to come home ever summer but they got divorced and so, according to rumour, they have just let it go to waste. It's a shame. Grams is fuming about the whole thing,'
'Why doesn't she come home?'
'She couldn't manage a house like that all by herself. And Jen…'
'…doesn't want to come back. It's okay Jack.' Joey ran her hand up and down Jack's arms, still clutching onto the steering wheel tightly.
'Yeah.' Jack said quietly, loosening his grip on the wheel with her touch.
'There you are!' Gail's voice filled the air. Joey looked over and saw her standing on the porch steps. Her hair was as big and fluffy as ever, baby sick on her shoulder and a smile on her face.
As Joey and Jack climbed out of the car, she made her way towards her, her arms open wide to greet them.
'My darling girl.' She said, pulling Joey into her arms and holding her tightly.
'Hello Mrs Leery,' Joey said, closing her eyes slightly and taking in her familiar aroma. Her mind was instantly transported back to a world of long, hazy summers and cold lemonade on the dock.
'Let me take a look at you,' Gail said, pulling away and spinning Joey around. 'Wow, I can't believe how much you've grown,'
'What did you expect Gail? Joey to still be 15?' Jack said, placing a kiss on Gail's cheek as he walked pass her into the house.
'Yes I did actually.' She wrapped her arm around Joey's shoulder and led her into the house 'It's my way of not admitting my babies have all grown up,' she whispered conspiratorially in Joey's ear.
The house was alive with noise, so much more so than when Joey was a child. But then, there were two more children in the house than there where then. She could hear a television, some excited shouting and some music.
'You've kinda come around at the worst time noise wise,' Gail explained, leading her into the family room.
'How so?'
'Well, my family are…'
'YES!' a shout came up from the assembled crowd in front of the television. Mitch was there, with a small blond girl jumping on the sofa and Jack. The television was showing English soccer highlights.
'…I was about to say, my family are obsessed with soccer at the moment. I have no idea who is playing or…'
'Is it Arsenal vs. Manchester United?' Joey asked, touching Jack on the shoulder as her lowered himself back onto the sofa.
'Yeah, Manchester are kicking ass!' Jack said high fiving the girl who continued to jumping.
'How did you know that? I didn't have you down for a soccer fan?' Gail said, giving Jack a stern look for the use of his language.
' A combination of living five minutes from Arsenal's home ground and a very football obsessed flatmate,' Audrey had taken on one of her boyfriends obsessions when she was forced to spend an entire season watching it and gradually started to enjoy it.
'It's soccer Joey, not football,' Mitch said, taking a handful of popcorn.
'Sorry Mitch, the English invented it so it's football. Incidentally, only people who don't live in Manchester support Man U.' Joey joked around, looking over and seeing the little girl looking at her strangely.
'Who are you?' she asked, bouncing off the sofa and hiding behind her mother's leg.
'I'm Joey. Are you Lily?' Joey said, getting down on her knee's so she could offer her her outstretched hand.
'Yeah. You Dawson's friend?' Lily said, nervously moving forward and taking Joey's hand.
'Yes, I am. And you must be the little sister I hear so much about,' Joey said, slowly shaking Lily's hand and letting it go.
'Dawson's upstairs with the baby if you want to see him. It's the same room, do you remember the way?' Mitch said, scooping Lily up in his arms in a fit of giggles.
Do I remember the way? I've only been dreaming about it for the last 10 years.
'Yeah, I think I can figure it out,' Joey said, making her way to the stairs and trying to ignore the smirk on Jack's face.
She slowly made her way up the stairs. The seventh step creaked reassuringly under her feet, just like it always had. The fresh coat of paint on the walls had made little difference to the feeling of the house. It still felt like the house she had left behind all those years ago.
New and old framed pictures littered the walls. One's of Dawson's graduation, some of the Leery's remarriage, some of Lily as a baby. And then one she wasn't expecting to see.
There she was, all 8 years of scowling tomboy, Dawson's arm wrapped around her and the two of them grinning like their lives depending on it. In the background stood her mom and Gail, laughing at their insane children. She could see from the picture that her mother was already starting to get sick.
'As I remember it, I had to tickle you to smile for that picture,' Dawson's voice came from behind her.
'Doubtful. I was always such a happy child,' Joey said, turning and smiling.
'YES!' another cry went up from downstairs.
'You don't appear to share your family's obsession with sport?' she said, walking along the landing to meet him outside his closed bedroom door.
'Yeah, well I've kinda been too busy to watch soccer tonight. Come in,' He said, opening the door.
His room was almost identical to how it was that night she ran away all those years ago. The posters were gone, replaced by less tatty framed versions but you could see the heart of a Spielberg fan still beat there. His childhood props replaced by film text books and framed photos of his family and friends.
And there she was. Sitting in her cot, attempting to bite the ear off Dawson's raggedy ET doll, was his daughter. Her brown eyes seemed to burn through Joey the same way Dawson's used to. She continued to chew until she saw Dawson behind Joey and stuck her arms up in the air.
'Dada…' she waved wildly.
'Okay honey,' Dawson said, walking over and picking her up out of her cot. 'It's time you met the most important person in my life at the moment. Joey, this is Mackenzie.'
Joey froze. She was so nervous but couldn't understand it. Dawson walked closer until Mackenzie's little bare leg pressed against her arm.
'Hey there button,' Joey said nervously, taking the little girl's hand in hers. The baby gripped onto it tightly, still waving her arms frantically like she was trying to fly. She started to chatter excitedly in baby babble.
'Well, you seem to have a fan.' Dawson said, desperately trying to keep a hold of her as she jumped in his arms.
'No, I'm terrible with children.' She said, trying to pull her hand away slightly but the little girl had a firm grip.
'You're joking right? From what I remember you were excellent with Alex,' Dawson said, trying to switch arms but failing.
'That was a long time ago…' Joey said quietly, trying not to laugh as Dawson struggled with his energetic daughter.
'Well…It's…Would…I'm sorry, can you take her, she doesn't seem to want me.'
'Me? No I…' but before she could protest any further the girl had jumped into her arms and was playing with the stone necklace around Joey's neck, still babbling but without the jumping.
'See, you're a natural. Could you watch her for a second, I just need to finish getting ready? I swear she is conspiring to stop me leaving the house.' Dawson said, kissing the baby on the head before grabbing a clean shirt and heading out to the bathroom.
'But I…' Joey started but he was gone.
She looked down at the bundle of blond in her arms and couldn't help but melt. This little girl was more Dawson than she could have imagined. As she tried to pull herself up onto Joey's chest further, Joey sat down on the bed, hoping that it might steady her beating heart. The girl pulled herself onto her two unsteady feet and ran her chubby hands over Joey's face, like she was examining her.
'So, young lady. What now?' Joey said, just before Mackenzie grabbed her lips.
'He ha!' the baby said triumphantly.
'Ma ma, mery munny,' Joey muffled.
Mackenzie squealed with excitement at the joke she had pulled, letting go of Joey's lips and clapping, causing herself to fall backwards.
'Whoa!' Joey said, catching the baby before she fell back any further.
This only caused Mackenzie to laugh harder and louder. Joey pulled her back towards her and then let her fall slightly more, watching the excitement grow on her face.
'Whoa!' she said again, before catching her. Mackenzie's giggling must have been infectious because before long Joey was laughing too.
Dawson watched from the door, un-noticed by the pair of them. He laughed to himself as he watched Joey contort her face to please his child.
She looks so different, but the same. I can't understand it he thought to himself. She is still so beautiful.
Then a wave of guilt started to wash over him. Guilt for looking at another woman, guilt for laughing.
Guilt for still being alive.
Joey started to get to her feet and threw Mackenzie slightly in the air, making her squeal even further. When she caught her, she saw Dawson in the doorway.
'See, I told you would be fine,' he said, walking towards them and taking Mackenzie in his arms. She struggled but yawned, signalling the end of playtime.
'It wasn't me, it was all her.' Joey took the little girls' hand and kissed it, causing the pair of them to smile. 'Consider myself a babysitter if you need it,'
'Don't throw that around lightly, there is every chance I will take you up on that one.' Dawson said, lowering the almost sleeping baby into her cot.
'Well she seems to be a very easy baby,'
'Say that again at 3 in the morning when she wakes up,' Dawson turned the musical mobile on and motioned Joey to lower the lights. He turned the baby monitor on and grabbed the handset.
'Okay, Daddy and Aunt Joey are going out so we don't go crazy. You okay with that?' the baby slowly closed her eyes and grabbed at her ET.
'Night baby girl,' he said, kissing her gently on the forehead.
He turned and Joey was already out of the door, waiting on the landing for him. He walked quietly and pulled the door ajar.
'How did you do that?'
'Well living with a baby in the house for most of my teenage years, I learnt a thing or two about leaving a room quietly,' Joey said, walking along the landing towards the stairs.
'No, get her onside. She's not usually so welcoming to strangers. She must really like you,' Dawson said, pulling his jacket on as he followed her down the stairs.
'No idea must be a woman thing.'
Entering the family room, Dawson threw the baby monitor at his mother and patted Jack on the head.
'Okay, she is changed, feed and asleep. So no more screaming okay?' Dawson said, picking up his keys and phone from the kitchen table.
'I have done this parenting thing before Dawson,' Mitch said, getting to his feet.
'Yeah and look how I turned out. I should be home by midnight mom. Call if you have any problems.'
'Just go have fun Dawson, you deserve it,' Gail said, hugging him and then pushing him towards the backdoor.
'Bye Mrs Leery, bye Mr Leery,' Joey called out as she opened the door.
'See you soon dear,' Gail said, waving as both her and jack jumped into the car.
'You know her special blanket is in the wash if she wants it. Oh, and I have made up some…' Dawson started before Gail kissed him on the cheek and pushed him out of the house.
'Go! Before I get angry Dawson.' She said, closing the door behind him.
'So, where too?' Joey said, leaning over from the back seat.
'I know a place you might be interested in,' Jack said, starting the car.
'Well, it's on you so you're the boss,' she said, falling back into her seat.
'Ready Dawson?' Jack asked, seeing that Dawson was still looking at the house.
'As I'm ever going to be,' he said, looking up at his window.
God I'm not ready for this.
But before he could protest the car was already moving away from the house and out into the evening.