Blueberry Blue

Tommy paced in front of the bed and sighed angrily, running a hand through her hair. "I don't like this Jude."

"Don't you trust me?"

"Of course I trust you. But the way he was just…the way he wouldn't let me come, the way he wanted you alone."

Jude stood from her place on the bed and stopped Tommy form pacing. He stood in front of her and ran his hands up and down her arms. "Jude, I just don't want to lose you and it's obvious that he's still in love with you."

Jude smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck, "Tommy, even if he does still care about me, it doesn't matter. I love you."

Tommy smiled, "Alright, I love you too."

Jude kissed him and reluctantly pulled away before leaving their shared apartment to go to John's place.

Jude went into John's house without knocking. He quickly swiped some things into a box and wiped his eyes. "Jude, I…uh…didn't hear you pull up."

Jude shrugged, "I didn't drive, I walked. What're you doing?"

"Nothing…"

Jude crossed her arms over her chest and sighed. "John, you did ask me over for a reason."

John sighs and pulls a cardboard box out from behind him. "It's just some stuff that was um…left behind."

Jude put a hand over her mouth and took a deep breath. She walked over to John's place on the floor and sat next to him.

"John…" She said in a soft voice and pulled him into a hug. John softly held her but pulled away, knowing she should see the box.

"It turns out Paul and Reid were a lot closer than either of us guessed."

Jude looked at John with a questioning gaze, "Paul? What does Paul have to do with this?"

John slid the box over to her, "It's just; I thought it was Reid's stuff but most of it is Paul's."

Jude pulled out two sweatshirts, she held them close to her chest and inhaled; it still smelled like her brother. Jude then pulled out a small box. She smiled and touched it's contents softly. It was a little blonde curl, a bracelet that looked familiar to her, and a small hospital bracelet.

Jude delicately picked it up, the box was labeled 'My Little Sister' and the little blonde curl was from her head. Jude looked at it quizzically; it was her first curl, from when she was a baby. The bracelet was a friendship bracelet that Jimmy Pope from down the street, her first boyfriend, gave to her. The hospital bracelet was after the Front Brother's raped her and Sabrina and they went to the ER.

Jude turned to John, "What's this?" John looked at it and smiled. "Paul was always talking about how he wanted a little sister. You know how protective he can be, and he always wanted someone to look after. Sadie just didn't create that special bond that you two had. So when you were born, he said he was going to make sure that you two became close. So he started this little memory box."

Jude smiled and continued to look through the box. She continued to stifle through the papers when something metallic caught her eye. She lifted up a card, it was a baseball card. She continued to go through them and was astonished; she didn't even know he collected. John smiled as he watched the joy take over Jude's features. Out of the corner of his eye he saw something else in the box, something he figured she shouldn't see.

John lifted up a long piece of paper; before Jude could notice the legal document he stashed it into his pocket. Jude sent him a questioning look but shrugged it off. "Look at these cards. This can be worth a fortune or something." She said, still in shock. "I always though he was a football guy."

John chuckled, "He was alright with football, but swimming was the real sport he played. I guess the baseball card collecting was just a hobby. We should sell them." Jude nodded, sadly, and put them back in the box.

"So this is all Paul's stuff, not Reid's?"

John shrugged, "It's a little mixed, and I think whatever's in here they both had something to do with. I'm not really sure."

Jude nodded. She lifted up the last thing in the box; it was a picture frame, face down. She flipped it over and chuckled, tears stinging her eyes.

In the picture she was only eleven years old, Reid was seventeen. They were both smack dab in the middle of the lake, Jude was floating on her back and Reid was tredding water beside her, his hands under her back to support her. They were laughing and looked happy. Jude smiled, "I remember this."

John looked over her shoulder at the picture. "Yeah me too, we were all just hanging out in the shallow end trying to stay cool and you started doing the butterfly stroke, determined the reach the other side and back."

Jude laughed, "Yeah, but I got tired on the way back and started to tred water instead. I was pretty head strong back then, huh?" She asked.

John looked at her, "Back then? Ha! You still are, you're just lucky you have people there for you."

"Like Reid was there…" Jude whispered. John nodded, "I remember he dove right under that water, swimming straight out to get you. He was afraid you'd cramped up or something. When he got there you were on your back."

Jude smiled, "The sun was right about us, it was beautiful looking at it through the treetops."

John smiled, "Yeah, Paul ran out of the water and grabbed the camera, knowing something special was forming right then."

Jude looked at him confused, "With me and Reid?"

John shook his head, "Not exactly, mainly just you."

Jude smiled at the picture and then turned to John; he was gazing into her eyes, nothing but love showing through his brown orbs. He leaned forward slightly and Jude leaned back, the picture came into her view again and she started to tear up. John took a deep breath and held her as she cried. Not wanting to pressure her, he would make her his when the time was right.