A/N: I don't own Instant Star. Reviews are always welcome.
Episode 28 – Give 'Em Hell, Kid
Part 1
Jude automatically picked up Aiden and swung him effortlessly on to her hip. She grew nervous as Tommy looked from Aiden to herself and self consciously chewed on her lower lip. Aiden meanwhile continued to glare at Tommy and stuck out his tongue. "Aiden that's not nice!" I said. Aiden ignoring me decided to greet Tommy with a loud raspberry. Tommy looked confused as to how to handle the situation in every breath of his body language. "Is he…" Tommy said tentatively as he reached out his hand towards Aiden who tried to swat it away and nearly slipped from my grasp. "He's mine…" I said as I kissed the top of his head. "Mine!" mimicked Aiden who planted a noisy kiss on my cheek. "…but not in the way that you think" I said.
Part 2
We were sitting in my living room, me and Tommy, while Aiden was playing on the floor. I knew Tommy had a million questions, but seemed content to stare at his surroundings. Aiden who had been quiet since we came home tip toed behind Tommy and with perfect aim hit Tommy squarely at the back of the head. "Why you little…" Tommy said getting up. "You better finish that sentence 'angel' little Tommy Q!" I said as the words slipped out. Aiden thought my scolding of Tommy was hilarious and started yelling at the top of his lungs 'little Tommy Q' and pointing at Tommy and doubling over in a fit of giggles. We were in for a long night.
Part
3
With Aiden causing a constant distraction the two of us
decided to leave everything until the morning. Tommy went into the
bathroom to take a shower. "Aiden try being nicer to Tommy" I
said as I sat him on my lap. "Little Tommy Q" he said
triumphantly. "Why" he asked with his head slightly tilted. "Oh
man I was hoping you'd skip this phase altogether" I groaned.
"Why" he said again. "Try for mommy?" I said. He shook his
head and ran off. I figured he'd run into the bedroom to hide from
me, so I closed my eyes and started rubbing my temples. I was just
enjoying the silence when a few minutes later I saw Aiden dart into
the bathroom and flush the toilet before running out. I couldn't
help, but smile. I'd been victim to that little trick a time or
two.
Part 4
I half expected Tommy to rush out of the bathroom with a towel and shampoo still in his hair, but all I heard was the click of the lock. Aiden meanwhile became disappointed and began to pout. "Aiden what did I say about being nice to Tommy?" I said. "Mommy laugh!" he said as his little hands went to my mouth and lifted them up in a smile. "That's not the point honey" I said as I tried to stifle my laughter.
Part 5
What was more surprising was when Tommy offered to cook the three of us dinner. I can't remember the last time I hadn't had take out. The smell of garlic bread wafted seductively from the kitchen as I played on the floor with Aiden. "Dinner's ready" Tommy called from the kitchen. I picked up Aiden and walked towards the kitchen sink so the two of us could wash our hands. Soon the three of us were seated. Tommy put a small portion of spaghetti and meatballs on Aiden's plate then started putting some on mine. The second he turned around to put some on his plate he was hit in the face with a meatball, which fell directly into his wine glass spilling wine on the table. Aiden then picked up his plate and poured the rest of his dinner onto the floor.
Part 6
Aiden refused to try it, so I ended up giving him a bowl of cereal for dinner. "Try not to take it personally, Tommy" I said as I washed the dishes and Tommy dried. Tommy wasn't listening as he was carefully watching all of Aiden's movements preparing for a sudden attack. Aiden thought it was a fun game at first, but then he grew bored and walked to the living room to play with his toys. "Remember he's just a little boy…" I said as I turned Tommy's head towards me, but he was still engrossed in watching Aiden. "who just lost his family" I said whose attention I finally regained. "What?" Tommy said taken aback. So I told him about it.
Part 7
Tommy undertook the rest of Aiden's little torturous schemes with grace and patience. Aiden had one of Tommy's shoes in his little hands and was just imagining the incoming mayhem he would have caused when I announced that it was his bed time. I slipped on his pajamas and carried him into the bathroom to brush his teeth. He loved showing me his pearly white when he was done. When I tucked him into bed he asked me to sing him 'Pick up the pieces,' so I pulled out the guitar from under the bed and began to sing:
(Instant Star Soundtrack – Pick Up The Pieces)
I
was adrift
On an ocean all alone
You came and rescued me
When
I was far from home
A rush of love around my heart
Just as I
fell apart
Nobody ever cared as much for me
Nobody's touched
my heart and healed my pain
You've picked up the pieces
And
put me back together again
Careful, we're fragile
And easily
we break
In your arms I'm certain
Is all the love we'll
make
A rush of love around my heart
Just as you take my
hand
Nobody ever cared as much for me
Nobody's touched my
heart and healed my pain
You've picked up the pieces
And put
me back together
I'll write your name in stars across the
sky
We'll drift away into each other's eyes
Yeah
Nobody
ever cared as much for me
Nobody's touched my heart and healed
my pain
You've picked up the pieces
And put me back together
again
Aiden got up from under the covers and did a little dance as I sang. When I finished I heard clapping and looked up to see Tommy standing slightly in the doorframe with an amused expression on his face. Aiden saw him standing there, jumped off the bed and slammed the door in Tommy's face who luckily took a backwards step before the little devil could inflict any more damage.
Part 8
As soon as Aiden was asleep I tiptoed out of the bedroom with a pillow and blanket in hand. "Sorry about earlier" I said to Tommy who was channel surfing. He shut off the TV as I dumped the pillow and blanket onto his lap. As I turned to leave Tommy grabbed my wrist and pulled me onto his lap. "Jude we haven't been alone for like 2 seconds…" Tommy said as we were interrupted by a cry from the other room. I immediately jumped off his lap and walked over to the bed to make sure Aiden was okay. He saw me and leapt into my arms with his head buried in my chest and his little arms tight around my neck. "Nightmare?" I asked. He slowly shook his head up and down. "Don't leave me" he said as his green eyes looked up into mine. "I won't" I said. "Pinky swear?" he said. "Pinky swear" I said as I took his little pinky in mine. As we got into bed Aiden settled himself on me with his ear resting on my heart. I stroked his hair and back until his eyes fluttered closed. It felt strange having someone depend on you for everything where their needs came first, but you were okay with it; where every laugh, every tear, every smile caused you to smile, cry, and feel an overwhelming sense of contentedness. "So this is what it feels like to be a grown up." Jude thought to herself before she herself fell asleep.
Part 9
I was in the middle of a really good dream when I felt fingers prying open both my eyelids. After I didn't budge I felt little pinches on my cheeks. When that failed to work I felt a weight land on my stomach before the bouncing started. "Okay, okay, I surrender" I said as I opened both eyes to see a pair of green eyes and a triumphant little smile. We both got out of bed and made our way into bathroom to wash our faces and toothbrush our teeth. When we were finished I stared aghast when I saw the time on the alarm clock; it read 6 am. I opened up the blinds and sure enough it was still dark out. When we walked into the living room Tommy was still fast asleep. Aiden saw it as a perfect opportunity to pounce on another unsuspecting victim. First he ran up to the couch and then he pulled off the blanket. To make matters worse he clambered on top of Tommy and I swear to God I'm not making this part up when he bit him on the shoulder. I really should stop letting him watch those animal shows on Discovery Channel or Animal Planet or whatever. I'm about ready to yank Aiden off Tommy and hope he wouldn't have noticed, hell who wouldn't have noticed getting bitten, when Tommy opens his eyes, sees Aiden who has his jaws still attached to his shoulder, looks over at me, directs a smile towards me, and then carefully peels Aiden off of him. As I continue to stand frozen there I still see Tommy smiling at me and I'm kind of nervous because I expect him to be I don't know freaking out when he surprises me. He carefully rolls up one of the legs of Aiden's sweat pants and bites his upper thigh like it were a drumstick on Thanksgiving. I see tears well up in Aiden's eyes as he looks up at me, his protector, and points at Tommy, but suddenly I see where Tommy's going with this. I mean I've spent hours watching Discovery Channel and Animal Planet enough to know that when it comes to males there can only be one alpha male and if Tommy was going to gain Aiden's tolerance let alone his respect Tommy was going to have to establish dominance over this arrogant young cub. I look over at Aiden and say "Sorry, honey, but you bit him first." I see the waves of shock go through his little body as he quickly determines his next course of action. With the body language of a defeated warrior, Aiden sullenly retrieves the blanket he pulled off of Tommy earlier and tries to put it back on the couch the way he found it, but there's so much of it that he trips and lands on his bum in the process. With a determined expression on his face he gets right back up on his feet and pulls the rest of it until it's completely back on the couch. Then he hops up and sits on the couch with his feet dangling, elbows on his knees with his hands resting on his chin, staring at the floor. He tentatively looks up at Tommy who still has an angry expression on his face. Aiden takes a deep breath and lets out a loud sigh before he says 'Sorry.'
Part 10
Aiden then walks over to me and puts his arms out. I pick him up and I can feel fat tear drops soak into my shirt. I begin to rub his back making little circles as hi sobs turn into hiccups. He looks at me with his green eyes with a look of betrayal. I feel a little catch in my heart. "It's not nice to go around biting people, Aiden, right?" I say in my mommy voice when you've done something wrong. He shakes his head up and down and uses his sleeve as a tissue. "Feel better?" I say. He shakes his little head left to right. I plant a handful of kisses on his cheeks and lean my forehead against his so our eyes are only inches apart. "How about now, honey?" I ask. He moves his thumb and index finger a little ways apart. "Only that much?" I say. "Mommy's gotta do a lot better than that, right?" I say. "Wanna go to the zoo today?" I say. He shakes his head vigorously.
Part 11
When we reached the Children's Zoo at Central Park around 7:30 we were disappointed to see that it wasn't going to open until 10 am. "I thought this was the city that never sleeps! It doesn't open until 10 am!" exclaimed Tommy who was still cranky from his morning wake up. "Let's just take a walk to kill the time, okay?" I suggested to Tommy as I gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Fine, whatever" he grumbled. We walked all of Central Park and when I say all I mean ALL. First we made a stop at the statue of Alice in Wonderland which showed Alice, the Hare, the Mad Hatter, the Cheshire Cat, and a mouse. Then I showed Aiden the statue of Balto since he had liked the movie. Aiden and I looked longingly at the Carousel since it also wouldn't be open until 10 am and promised him that we would go after the zoo. Aiden really really liked what I dubbed the 'boat pond', but what was actually called "Conservatory Water" where members of the Model Yacht Club raced their regattas or miniature racing sail boats. We also stopped by the statue of Hans Christian Anderson who hello created 'The Little Mermaid' which inspired the Disney version whose protagonist also happens to have red hair and blue eyes and hey now that I think about it her prince Eric also has dark hair and blue eyes, coincidence much! We also checked out the statue of Mother Goose, the Pond, and finally we returned to the Children's Zoo.
Part 12
Aiden wandered around the enchanted forest taking in the oak trees, acorns, and giant spider with wide eyes. He made pit stops at all the small bronze animal sculptures placing his hands on each one and clapping in delight as each statue emitted the appropriate animal noise, which he happily mimicked. One or twice on his walk a duck or a frog would wander onto the path and he of course would give chase causing the animal to panic, which probably wasn't particularly funny to the animal being chased, but I laughed so hard when Aiden was able to chase one down and picked up a turtle. He showed it to me triumphantly, but I'll have to admit I made him quickly put it down and tried to play it off like nothing at all had happened when I spotted a zoo worker. "Look Aiden" I said pointing to the animals behind the fences. "Wanna feed them?" I said as I scrounged in my purse for some quarters. He shook his head up and down vigorously. "Here, Tommy" I said as I placed the quarters in his hand. Aiden looked up from me to Tommy. I wandered over to the bench where I took a much needed seat. Aiden and Tommy continued to stare at each other while I sat there amused. Aiden broke the staring contest and made his way over to the food dispenser. Tommy looked over at me. "Go ahead Tommy they don't bite!" I said. "Funny, I was under the impression that he does" Tommy said rubbing the part of his shoulder, which was still sore. "I meant the animals behind the fence tough guy!" I said. "Ha ha that was so funny I forgot to laugh!" he said. Tommy walked over to the dispenser and was just about to put the quarter in when he felt a tugging on his pants. "Up?" said Aiden. "With cherry?" he said with a half smile. Tommy hoisted him up on the ground and gave him one of the quarters. Tommy had to help him turn the knob. Aiden put as much as he could carry in his cupped hands. He slowly put him on the ground as Aiden took tentative steps over by the fence careful not to drop any of the precious food. Tommy scraped the rest of the food out of the dispenser. Aiden gleefully hand fed the goats, sheep, and the pot-bellied pig. When he ran out of food Tommy let him feed another quarter into the machine. Jude sat down on the bench watching the two of them with a small smile on her lips.
Part 13
"This is so embarrassing" said Tommy as Jude unceremoniously dumped a bucketful of warm water on his head; Aiden meanwhile was making boat noises as he navigated his tug boat around the rubber ducky. "What! Both of you seriously smelled after the zoo. You two needed a bath. Trust me!" I said as I wrinkled my nose in disgust. "Besides both of you have nothing I haven't seen before!" I said. "That's not the point!" Tommy said as he gathered some of the bubble bath lather to "hide" himself. Aiden saw Tommy's discomfort and waded over to Tommy. "Want?" said Aiden offering up his favorite play toy at bath time. Tommy reached for the little boat. His large hand enveloped both the boat and Aiden's little hand. Tommy took the offered boat and smiled down at Aiden. Then the two of them began playing together. I felt like my heart was going to burst from so much happiness.
Part 14
Tommy had gotten us tickets to see the Lion King on Broadway and I've got to admit I was just as excited as little Aiden. "Jude, are you ready yet? We're going to be late." Tommy said as he looked as his watch. Tommy and Aiden were both sitting on the couch together. "Aiden, go check on Mommy" Tommy said. Aiden ran from the couch straight into the door, which I had locked. I opened the door to see a disoriented Aiden on his rump rubbing his forehead. I glared at Tommy. "Honey are you okay" I said as I picked him up. "Ouchie!" he said. I planted some kisses on his forehead accidentally leaving a few lipstick kisses on his forehead. "Wanna sit on the bed while Mommy gets ready?" I said. He shook his head and I sat him on the bed. Ten minutes later, I swear, we emerged from the room. "Finally!" Tommy said with dramatic flare.
Part 15
We made it; on time I might add and had just been shown to our seats by the usher. We were seated in the front row smack dab in the middle. The sets were beautiful, the singing and the dancing was spectacular; everything was going great. And then came the scene of the stampede at the gorge where Mufasa had just been betrayed by his brother Scar and was thrown off the cliff. Simba had just discovered his limp body and was prodding it. I hadn't realized I had been gripping my arm rest, so hard that my knuckles and turned white. Nor had I noticed that sometime during the show that Aiden had made his way onto my lap. I could feel tightness in my chest as the scene played out. When Simba realized that Mufasa had died Aiden and I just completely lost it and we had to get out of there. "Jude is everything okay?" Tommy asked as he saw me getting up. "Shhhh!" said the man behind him. "Sorry" Tommy said apologetically. "Jude?" Tommy said, but Jude didn't hear him; all she knew was that she had to get Aiden out of there. Jude had found a couch and was trying to console Aiden as she had a flashback of the hospital and Aiden and his dad. "I want Daddy!" Aiden wailed as big teardrops poured down his cheeks. "I know honey!" I said as I rubbed his back. Aiden continued to cry as Tommy looked over at them unsure what to do. He wanted to console the both of them, but he didn't know if it was his place to. Tommy made up his mind and sat down on the couch with Jude. He put his arm around her shoulders as she leaned into him for support. Aiden looked up at Tommy. "You're not my daddy!" Aiden screamed as he beat his fists into Tommy's chest and repeated it over and over. Tommy put his arms around him offering what comfort he could. "No, you're not my daddy!" Aiden whined as his crying mixed with hic cups and more tears. Aiden fought and fought, but eventually he exhausted himself and buried his small face in Tommy's neck. "I want…I want….my daaaaad!" Aiden said. "I know Aiden" said Tommy as he held him in his arms. "I know" said Tommy as Aiden's eyes fluttered shut.
Part 16
Tommy carried Aiden into the bedroom and sat on the bed. When he tried to put him on the bed Aiden's arms stayed where they were on his neck. He took off his socks and shoes and got under the covers with Aiden still attached. I had just finished putting on my pajamas and was making my way out the door with the mindset of sleeping in the spare bedroom or the couch when Tommy called out from the bed. "Jude, don't go" he said as he made room for her on the bed. Tommy could still see the tear stains on Jude's face and the sorrow in her eyes. She still hadn't discussed anything with him, which made him worried. He didn't want to see her in pain if he could prevent it. Jude turned off the light and crawled into bed. He moved his position so he was on his side, so he could put his arm around Jude. He pulled her in close and kissed her forehead. She looked just as exhausted as Aiden. "Tommy…" Jude said. "It's okay Jude. Tell me when you're ready. Take as long as you need." he said as he gave her shoulder a comforting squeeze. Jude snuggled closer to Aiden, so his back was touching her chest. They spent the night like that with a protective cocoon around Aiden and with Tommy's arm draped over Aiden and Jude.
Part 17
Tommy, Jude, and Aiden had been home for about a week, but they hadn't told anyone of their return. They were still trying to figure things out. To the average stranger they looked like a typical family made up of a husband, wife, and child, white picket fence, minus the dog; of course figuring things out meant not talking about it and going back to "normal". Jude and Tommy and Aiden all slept in one bed. Jude was never alone with Tommy; Aiden saw to that; he still had the 'mommy is mine' mindset, at least he had stopped torturing Tommy, a bit. This morning while sitting around the table at breakfast, he had snuck some mustard into Tommy's coffee mug and laughed hysterically when Tommy sprayed it all over the table. Jude instinctively sniffed her coffee and then made Aiden try it. He made a face and she couldn't tell if it was because he had managed to get some mustard in it as well or because of the taste. Aiden gave her a sweet smile. "Aiden did you put something in Mommy's drink?" I said. "No" he said. "Pinky swear?" I said as I reached out my pinky. Aiden met my eyes guiltily. I walked over to the sink and poured the rest of it down the drain. "I guess we can't give you the present we got you then" Tommy said. "Present?" said Aiden curiously. "Yup" Tommy said as he wiped up the table. "Definitely no present" he said looking up from the floor to Aiden. "Unless…" Tommy said. "Unless?" I said. "Unless he promises never to mess with the coffee again; coffee is sacred" Tommy said solemnly. "Why am I the bad cop this morning" Jude thought to herself. "At least I didn't drink the vile stuff" she thought to herself. Aiden looked up at Jude for the final say, but Jude was still talking to herself in her head. "Earth to Jude" Tommy said as he waved his hand in front of her face. She grabbed the offending hand in the air and smacked it hard against Tommy's forehead, which caused him to rock backward on his heels. "Quit hitting yourself Tommy!" Jude said amused. "You better sleep with one eye open tonight, Harrison" Tommy said as he rubbed his forehead. "Present?" Aiden interjected as he looked up at Tommy and Jude.
Part 18
Aiden ripped open the present with glee to reveal a pair of hockey skates. Both Jude and Tommy were worried about his reaction because the last time he had gone skating had been with his dad. We heard a small sniffle and I immediately held him in my arms and stroked his hair. It was Tommy who broke the silence. "You should remember your dad. The way Jude described him; he loved it on the ice; both of you do. You should always cherish the good times you had together. When you skate, think of him and it'll be like he's right beside you on the ice in here and in here" Tommy said as he gestured to his head and to his heart. Aiden noisily wiped his nose on his sleeve. "Will you skate with me?" Aiden said tentatively. "Mommy's terrible" he said with a grin.
Part 19
The good think about having such a large property was having your own private ice rink. Well, it was nothing fancy, just a fairly large pond that was now frozen. Jude watched them for a little bit before she wandered over to the barn to get reacquainted with her horse and to go for a nice relaxing ride.
Part
20
Jude loved the feeling of the wind in her hair and the
freedom she felt as the horse galloped acre after acre of property.
Her horse enjoyed it just as much as she had and they had both worked
up a sweat after a good gallop involving jumping over fallen trees
and what not. Meanwhile back at the pond. Tommy was amazed at how
good a skater Aiden was; although not entirely surprised since his
father had been a professional hockey player. Tommy continued to
admire Aiden's footwork never realized that the ice beneath him
wasn't as thick as he had thought until he heard a large crack and
found himself falling through the ice.
Part 21
Aiden immediately skated over to the spot of the break and tried to reach his hand out to grab Tommy and try to put him back onto the ice. His arms were too short and he couldn't reach Tommy's bobbing form; meanwhile the ice around the hole was starting to crack as well. Aiden took off his ice skates for fear of injuring Tommy and jumped into the water. Tommy's body was still heavy, but not as heavy in the water as he doggy paddled him towards the ice. He did his best to keep Tommy's head above the water as he climbed out of the water and lay down on the ice with a firm grip on Tommy's collar.
Part 22
Jude was just riding back towards the barn and decided to stop by the pond to check on Tommy and Aiden. She started to get worried when no one answered her calls. She had just left her horse by the tree and was telling her not to wander off with promises of a good rub down and some fresh carrots. After an agreement had been reached which involved a light nip on her jacket Jude started walking quickly towards the pond. She was at a dead run when she saw two bodies, one bobbing lifelessly in the water and the smaller one on the ice clutching the other body.
Part 23
They were both freezing, unconscious, and looked to a tinge of blue. Jude tried to keep herself calm, but was in near hysterics when she tried pulling Tommy's body out of the water unsuccessfully and she didn't know how safe the rest of the ice was. She took off her sweater and jacket and wrapped it around Aiden after peeling off his wet clothes. Jude's teeth were still chattering when she had an idea. First the horse was totally against the notion of setting foot on that ice; obviously she was smart, but the look of sorrow and panic in her owner's eyes gave her the courage to do so. Jude put a shaking hand on the horse to calm the horse, but it was really to calm herself. She quietly gave her directions and on three the horse carefully grabbed a hold of the collar of Tommy's jacket and pulled him out of the water and dragged him over to some solid ground. Jude picked up Aiden and walked over to where her horse and dragged Tommy. Jude had the horse kneel down as she heaved Tommy's body over the saddle. She picked up the reins in one hand and held the still unconscious Aiden on the other and quickly found her way to the main road. She flagged down the first car she saw. The owner quickly got out of the driver's seat and helped Jude put Tommy in the backseat. Jude whispered in her horse's ear and watched it make its way back towards the direction of the barn. They made their way to the hospital as fast as they could and everything was all a blur after that. Jude didn't even get the name of the Samaritan who had picked them up. She didn't even remember making the phone call to Kwest until she felt a blanket being huddled around her shoulders and saw concern in his brown eyes.
Part 24
"Jude?" Kwest said. "What happened? I could barely understand you when you called me. Jude?" said Kwest getting more scared by Jude's lack of response. Jude kept replaying the nightmare over and over in her mind of finding the two of them on the ice and shuddered. How long had she and Kwest been sitting in the waiting room she had no idea, but then the doctor finally came out. His face was drawn and his eyes were bloodshot red. "I'm sorry Miss Harrison we did everything we could, but he didn't make it" said the doctor with sympathy. The world seemed to crash around Jude. "Who didn't make it" said Kwest as he helped Jude to the couch.
Part 25
Jude found herself in an all too familiar scene. The body was lying on the table. All the machines that saved countless lives couldn't save this one. She took tentative steps towards the bed and with a trembling hand ran her fingers through his hair. It was too much for her. Everything seemed too much. She fell to her knees. She couldn't even make a sound as hot tears fell furiously down her face and onto the floor. "Why is this happening" she thought to herself. "I was supposed to protect you, to watch over you" she berated herself inwardly. She took his small hand in hers and kissed it. "I'm sorry, Aiden. I'm so sorry I failed you" she said as she kissed her forehead.
Part 26
The doctor and Kwest stared into the room. "He was so young. His immune system wasn't that strong to begin with. We did everything we could, but we couldn't raise his temperature. He was in the water too long" said the doctor. All Kwest could do was nod. "The other one she brought in. He's in stable condition. If you come with me I'll bring you over to his room" said the doctor to Kwest.
Part 27
Kwest looked in on Tommy. His lips were no longer blue, which was a good sign. He watched his friend's chest rise and fall. He pulled a chair over by the bed and took a seat. He didn't know how long he had been asleep when Jude gently shook his shoulder. When he looked up at her he couldn't help but see the haunted look in her eyes. Even the smile she gave him seemed forced. "Thanks for coming Kwest, but I can take it from here" I said. "Why don't you go home and get some real sleep in your own bed" I said. Kwest was about to ask if she wanted to talk about it, but he knew better. "Call me if you need anything" Kwest said as he gave her hand a squeeze. "I will" I said. She sat on the vacated chair and watched Tommy sleep and trying to battle the turmoil churning inside her.
Part 29
It was late or early morning when Kwest dragged himself out of bed and opened his door. "Can I stay with you?" I said. Kwest hesitated as he took in Jude with a suitcase standing outside his door. "Please, Kwest" I said. "Of course" he said trying to rub the sleep from his eyes. He picked up my suitcase and brought it to the spare bedroom. He was about to say something else when Jude closed the door in his face. He trudged back to his bed and fell asleep once more.
Part 30
Jude's skin felt clammy. She continued to gaze at the ceiling afraid that if she closed her eyes she would relive the nightmare once more. She got out of bed and went to the bathroom. She splashed some cold water on her face. She felt numb inside as if winter had taken residence inside her. She padded back to her room and picked up the sheets that had fallen off the bed. She sighed audibly. She walked over to the closet where she knew Kwest kept a guitar, even that didn't help. She put the guitar back into the case and returned it. She sat on the couch and picked up the remote control and started channel surfing.