Chapter Fifteen

Thomas kept an eye on John and his daughter, making sure John didn't push her too far. He trusted the kid, but he was still a teenage boy. A teenage boy who knew way more than Claire did. He knew John wouldn't do anything to hurt her, but his dad instincts still kicked in whenever he saw them kiss.

Clarissa rubbed a hand over his shoulders, catching his attention away from the teens. "You need to give them space." She nodded over at John, pointing out how he was noticeably on edge. "If you push John too far, Claire will be the one who gets hurt."

Thomas sighed, watching as John sprinted ahead of his friends, winning whatever crazy race they were competing in. "I'm just worried." He rubbed his hands together, trying to calm his nerves. "He knows so much more than her, and I just want to keep our baby innocent."

Clarissa nodded, taking his hand in her own. "If I know John, he wants that too." She smiled, as she watched John stop mid-step to pet a passing dog and talk to the owner. "He just loves her so much he's not sure how to do that yet."

Claire glanced around the park, noticing that there was a little thrift shop across the street. "Hey Allison?"

Allison looked up from her drawing, brushing her hair back. "Yeah?"

"Do you think John would wear a necklace? Like a heart shaped locket, or something?" She turned to the dark-haired girl beside her, not seeing Kaylie walk up to them.

"He's always wanted to wear something, but he could never put anything around his neck or his old man would've choked him with it." Kaylie plopped onto the bench beside them. "He never could stand things really close to his neck, to afraid Jacob would use it against him."

Claire nodded, remembering how when her mother had bought him a new shirt, the first thing he did was pop all the stitches on the collar. "That must be why he never lets me hug him over the shoulders."

Kaylie gave a sad smile, remembering how many times he'd panicked when anyone touched his neck. "He's gotten better about it."

Claire stood, turning to the two other girls. "I wanna get him something." She smiled, starting toward the shop.

The bell above the door rang as the three girls walked into the shop, and a little old woman looked up from her book to smile at them. "Hello girls!" She set her book on the counter hopping up from her seat. "Can I help you find something?"

Claire looked at the necklaces, scanning over them to see if there was one that looked like something John would wear. "Do you have any guys necklaces?" She picked up a little leather cord, noticing how it seemed to scream John Bender. "Or maybe an old key?"

Kaylie started looking through the music tapes, picking up a few that stood out to her. "How much is this ZZ Top tape?" She held it up, looking to the old woman who was helping Claire.

"The tapes are a dollar each." She turned back to Claire, leading her to a small wooden box on the counter. "I just got this in today." She opened the box to show hundreds of old keys, each one different from the other.

Claire picked one up, smiling at the little heart that was cast on the top of it. "How much?" She asked, knowing that it was perfect for the purpose she intended.

The woman curled Claire's fingers around it, a grandmotherly smile on her lips. "You can have it. I'm sure it's for someone special."

Claire beamed, stringing the key onto the leather cord. "Thank you."