Chapter Three

But baby this is serious

Are you thinking 'bout you or us?

After slipping her Team Rocket uniform on, Jessie slowly moved to the small mirror hanging on the inside of her wardrobe door and began to brush her long, scarlet locks. It was morning, and Jessie had endured a long night of fitful sleep. Her dreams had been filled with images of James, with memories of her times with him, and an imagined future where the two of them were no longer together. In some dreams she had been angry at James, while in others she could only stand and cry at the thought of him leaving. In some she hated him and in some she loved him so much that Jessie knew she would have travelled to all ends of the earth just to have him.

Jessie stared at her reflection in the mirror. Her restless sleep was evident in the darkness around her eyes. She guessed that her evident tiredness was also a result of the emotional trauma she felt she'd been through since the previous day, and wondered if she'd ever recover. It was said that time healed all wounds, but Jessie could not see how the passing of time would ever be able to fill the hole she now felt in her heart.

Jessie looked at the alarm clock that rested on the small table beside her bed. It was five minutes past seven. She wondered whether James had left yet. It was usual for departing teams to leave reasonably early in the morning, and she realised with a sigh that James was probably already on the road with his new team, heading towards a new life. A life without her in it.

He had not even come to say goodbye.

Tears threatened to escape from Jessie's eyes, and she did nothing to restrain them. How could he forget about her so easily? How could he just leave, without even acknowledging a friendship that had existed for three whole years?

An obviously tired and emotionally distraught image stared back at Jessie from the mirror. Jessie realised with disgust what a pitiful person she looked to be. Here she was, crying about her woes all alone in her tiny Team Rocket bedroom, asking herself questions that clearly weren't going to be answered on their own. This was not a person that Jessie wanted to be.

She looked to her alarm clock again. Fourteen minutes past seven. If even there was the slimmest chance that James hadn't left yet…

Tossing her hairbrush on the bed, Jessie jerked open the door leading outside into the hallway. She could not let James leave without letting him know about her feelings towards him. If their friendship was over, she could not live with the ever-present question of 'what if he really did love me in return?' She had to tell him. This was going to be her only chance.

Don't say what you're about to say

Look back before you leave my life

Be sure before you close that door

Before you roll those dice

Baby think twice

Jessie ran through the corridors of Team Rocket Headquarters, heading for the nearest exit. If James was going to be anywhere, he would be at the vehicle and cargo bay. Tears began to blind her vision with both the stupidity she felt for not telling James her feelings sooner, and the more-than-probable chance that she would get to the vehicle and cargo bay only to find him already gone.

Bursting outside, Jessie ran along the side of the HQ building and continued on to where the vehicle and cargo bay came into view. She distinguished some Team Rocket members standing by a small truck outside loading things onto the back tray. With a leap of her heart, she recognised one of the men as her lavender-headed friend.

"James!"

James finished loading a black metal box onto the truck and turned around in puzzlement. His eyes searched for the person who belonged to the voice that had called out his name. He only just identified Jessie as she emerged in front of him. Unexpectedly she leapt straight into James, wrapping her arms around his neck in a tight hug which knocked him back a few feet.

James took a moment to adjust to this sudden situation. Jessie had not had time to style her hair in its usual curve that morning, and it flowed freely down her back. His ex-partner also sobbed unreservedly into his shoulder – these were both things that James rarely ever saw of Jessie. After overcoming the initial shock of this event, James confusedly placed his arms around Jessie's waist to hug her back.

"J-James, please don't go," Jessie sobbed into his new black uniform.

James frowned, overwhelmed with confusion. As his friend continued to cry, he attempted to calm her. "Jessie, please calm down for a second. It's okay. Come on," he soothed, waving away one of his new team members who was approaching to see what was the matter. The man seemed to understand and retreated back to the truck to wait.

"Jessie, what's going on?" James asked, removing his hands from her waist. He moved them up to her arms so he could pull Jessie away from his shoulder.

Jessie's eyes flickered intermittently from James' chest, where her arms now rested, and James' eyes. "I don't want you to go," she croaked, somehow managing to hold back her tears.

"Jessie…" James started, Jessie noticed in a not very reassuring tone. She knew that he was going to begin telling her that this was best. For both of them.

"James, I…" she began, interjecting before he could say any more. "I'm sorry that I fight with you all the time, but you see, it's only because… well…" her voice lowered to barely a whisper, "I'm in love with you."

James' eyes widened, stunned by Jessie's words.

Baby this is serious

Are you thinking 'bout you or us?

Jessie looked up into James' astonished eyes. She watched as he blinked, as if trying to compose himself. Her heart sank as his expression transformed to once again show a reproachful manner.

"Jessie… I have to go," he murmured softly.

Jessie nodded, and remained silent as she felt the familiar sensation of an oncoming series of tears. Slowly she backed away from James, fixated her eyes on the ground at her feet.

James hesitated for a moment. He looked over to the truck where his new partners were waiting for him, and then back to the girl standing before him.

"… Goodbye… Jessie," he said. He waited for Jessie to respond, but she continued to stare at the ground, her long scarlet hair falling over her face to hide her features.

Receiving no reply, James turned and retreated to the awaiting truck.

Jessie did not lift her head until she could no longer hear his footsteps on the gravel. She peered up to see him jumping into the tray of the truck with another Team Rocket agent. Before James could look back to see her watching after him, Jessie had already turned away and begun walking to return to HQ. She herself did not look back, even when she heard the truck lurch into ignition and trundle away down the gravel road.

Jessie walked slowly. The tears were not falling as freely as they should have been, considering that she had just been shot down by the only man that she had ever loved, and probably would ever truly love. She did not know whether it was shock or merely confusion, but Jessie felt to be in a state of emptiness. Without warning, she suddenly kicked hard down at the ground, sending a large rock speeding in front of her before it veered off to the left into some bushes. She screamed at the top of her lungs, and buried her face in her hands to finally begin an inevitable bout of weeping.