Hey all! Turns out it's been a good long 5 months since our last visit. For that, I'm truly sorry! This chapter has been half-written for the last 5 months, writer's block sucks. On top of having the holidays, and getting those stories up for you all, I just couldn't make the words flow for this story. I will be the first to say, it's not my best work. I have also been working on a few original stories, putting this one on the back burner until I could get back into it. I do promise and swear to you that I will see this one through to the end.
I can't be certain when this story will be updated next, just know that I am working on it. What I do know is the approximate number of chapters left.
I'm sorry for the long wait.
Enjoy!
"Can I ask you something?" Lynn questioned, looking over her brother's left shoulder to where Tommy stood operating the duck game, helping the little kids grab a duck out of the little kiddie pool turned pond. Their morning had been spent at their grandfather's house, digging holes, looking for the treasure they'd been told about on Planksgiving. The older he got he didn't think it was true, the story surrounding the holiday wasn't true, he knows that much, and he can't help but be hung up on how his late grandfather had so much cash to hide.
"You can always ask him, Lynn," Jack told her, lost in thought about the jars of money they had found buried at their grandpa's old house. "Where do you think Grandpa Earl got all his money from?" Jack asked, dipping his biscuit in his mashed potatoes and gravy.
"How should I know?" Lynn asked, playing with the straw in her fruit punch. "Surely he didn't run out and rob a bank," she retorted, rolling her eyes. "But what if he thinks I'm too much for him to handle and says no?" She asked, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth. Things between them have been fun. She wants more from him but doesn't know if it's what he wants. She doesn't want to be the one to ruin what they have. She doesn't want to be humiliated by him saying no. She was trying to remain patient, waiting on him to ask her out officially, or so she thought. Being patient wasn't her strong suit.
"He could have," Jack commented, dropping his uneaten biscuit onto his plate, and looking at his sister. It's a whole mystery of where the money came from when they were told that he was an alcoholic for a good chunk of his life. From the time their grandma, Jackie passed away, until a few years after their mom had shown up in Bluebell. "He had a whole life before we were born, and where are our parents to clear the mess up for us?" He asked, looking around, seeing the town square filled with all their fellow Bluebellians, yet he couldn't pinpoint where his mom or his dad was among them. Neither one had work, that much he knew. The emergency couldn't have taken over half the day to take care of.
"If he robbed a bank, he would have been in prison, Jack," sighed Lynn, shaking her head. "If you want your answer on why we dug up multiple jars of money, go find them," she told her brother. The money they found at their grandpa's place wasn't her primary concern. Her relationship or lack thereof is the only concern she can focus on. Her grandfather will have a reasonable explanation as to why they dug up jars of money.
"I would if they were to be found," he retorted, giving his sister a pointed look, seeing the concern for the first time over her boy troubles. "Lynn," he sighed, licking his lips, casting a look over at Tommy. If he didn't know any better, he'd think he was casting glances at his sister. "Go talk to him," he urged. "You're not going to get your answers sitting over here sulking about what you want. You need to have communication for your relationship to work. Go," he stated. "You're not doing yourself any favors by sitting here, go to him, talk it out," he urged her once more to go have this conversation with Tommy and not him. There's only so much he can do for his sister when it comes to boys.
"What if," she sighed, chewing her lip. She didn't want to voice the uncertainties flowing through her head. She really likes Tommy and wants him to be her boyfriend, not just the boy she hangs out with and shares kisses with. She wants the whole town to know they're together.
"Then you find someone that can appreciate you for you, Lynn," he told her. "Why waste your time trying to figure things out with him, if he doesn't want to be with you, to begin with?" He asked her.
"I get that, I do," she told her brother. "Can't you remember what it's like?" She asked her brother, casting a look to where Tommy had been, only for him to be gone. She frowned, looking around and not seeing him. "To like someone that it physically hurts if things don't work out the way you picture?"
"Of course, I remember," he chuckled. "It hasn't been that long," he retorted shaking his head. "I also didn't drag out a girl's feelings because I didn't know if I wanted to be with them or not," he shared. "I've got some parents to find," he announced, seeing who came up to stand behind his sister. "Remember what I told you," he stated. "Try not to hurt my sister," he warned, looking at Tommy, heading off in search of his parents.
He found his parents rather quickly, sitting on the outskirts of town, watching the festivities from the outside. It didn't come as a surprise to see them sitting there wrapped up in each other's arms. Ever since he was old enough to go off by himself for the ongoings for Planksgiving, his parents would sit in the same spot, having the advantage to see just about everything from where they sat. He can say with the utmost confidence in this little town, he was still young when they let him run off to have fun with his friends.
"Having fun?" Wade asked once Jack took a seat with them. He knew it was only going to be a matter of time before the day was over that Jack would seek them out.
"Such a blast," Jack stated, nonchalantly. "Nothing like showing up at your deceased grandfather's house, with a treasure map in hand. I don't know what was worse, the various landmines or all the jars of money," he vented, taking a deep breath to calm his nerves down.
"You can't say that your childhood dreams of finding buried treasure on Planksgiving, didn't come true," Wade remarked. Zoe shook her head at her husband's teasing.
"It's not what you're thinking," Zoe told her son.
"How do you know what I'm thinking?" A confused Jack asked, looking between his parents. Was it that evident on his face? Did he look guilty for thinking his late grandfather happened to be a thief?
"You are my son," Zoe laughed. For she had thought the same thing that Jack has. One can't help but wonder where Earl came up with that much cash. Not until you know the whole story, that's when it makes sense to a certain degree.
"We thought the same thing when we found out," Wade said, putting a stop to whatever his wife was doing. He figured, there was enough racing through his son's head, he doesn't need Zoe to add more to it. "I don't know what he was doing hiding the money around the yard," Wade says shaking his head, still in disbelief over that fact alone. "I gave him the money," he told his son.
"Then why hide it? Why not spend it?" Jack asked, even more, confused over his grandpa's actions.
"It's just the man he was," Wade shrugged. "Turns out he didn't need my money, and instead of declining it, which I wouldn't let him do, he saved it. I couldn't think of anything better than for my kids to have the money, to help them out with what they need," Wade simply stated.
"Considering that you left school, you can use that money for whatever you have planned next. It's to help you out while figuring out your life," Zoe informed her son. They would have given it to him for college if they had known about it then. And that might very well be on them, for waiting as long as they did to go through Earl's stuff. That whole situation was messy and complicated. They found it easier to push it off than to jump into the sticky situation.
"How can it be my money, when Dad was the one to give to Grandpa?" Jack questioned, ready to hand the money over to his dad. He doesn't want to take what should be his dad's money. They could use it to go on a vacation, Or who knows what else.
"Because he saved it for you and your sister," Wade smiled. "He had faith that one day I would have a family to care for. And instead of spending the money, he saved it for me." When your dad is a drunk and you care more than you let on about his well-being, it's easy to forget that you should be saving your money for the future. Over the years he's managed to save up enough money to care for his kids and their future, whatever they choose. "Even if I did have a choice, Jack, I would want you and your sister to have the money," he said, not wanting to argue over whose money it should or shouldn't be.
"I can't take it," Jack said, shaking his head. How could he? It wouldn't be fair.
"Yes you can," Zoe stated. "You can use it however you want. You want to go to a trade school like you talked about, you're covered, you want to take a vacation, go for it," she told her son. "When your dad handed the money over to Earl, the money was no longer your dad's, and your grandfather insisted on burying it, for who knows what reason, but what I do know, is that your grandfather would want you to have that money. It's yours, Jack. Spend it, save it, that's up to you," she explained, getting to her feet. "Enjoy the day, and worry less about the money, it's not going to do you any good, to fret over it," she said, holding her hand out for her husband.
"In the end, that money is going to help you out, in whatever you think is the best choice for you," Wade stated, taking his wife's hand. "I do believe you owe me a stuffed animal," Wade smirked, walking off with his wife.
Having the answers to where the money came from, he still doesn't know how to take it. Having the money would help with the money he has spent flying home as often as he has. The rest he thinks he'll save until he either needs the money or figures out what it is he wants to do with the rest of his life. With that figured out for the most part, he heads back into the thick of it, looking for a few friends, to have a good time with before he heads back to Cali.
"Can I join you?" Tommy asked, standing next to Lynn, he had waited for Jack to be far enough out of sight before saying anything, afraid Jack might hurt him, for what, he's not sure. It's not like he'd hurt, Lynn, not purpose. He's done everything that she has wanted to do. Followed her rules, and he thinks it's time they have a little chat about what they are to each other. If they're not on the same page, he doesn't want Jack around. He knows firsthand how protective Jack can be over his sister.
"Of course," Lynn frowned. "You didn't have to ask," she informed him.
"It was the polite thing to do," he shrugged, reaching across the picnic table, having sat across from her, to take her hands in his. "I think we need to talk," he told her. "It's nothing bad," he rushed out, seeing the upset look on her face like she was waiting for him to say she's not worth his time when that couldn't be further from the truth.
"I think we need to talk as well," she shared, getting up. "Want to go for a walk?" She asked. Whatever transpires from this talk of theirs, she doesn't want to do so in front of the whole town. They'll find out soon enough, but she doesn't need gossip to start before they finish talking about what they want, what they are to each other, and what way their relationship is going.
"Do you need to ask?" He questioned with a charming smile, getting up and slipping his hand into hers as they weave their way through the townsfolk enjoying themselves.
It isn't until they get a few blocks away from downtown, that they both relax. Now that they're out of the public's eyes, neither one is in a hurry to burst the little bubble they're in. They have a good thing going, why ruin what they have, by speaking? By saying they want more out of the arrangement they've got going on?
"I thought this talking thing was going to be easier," Lynn said, taking a seat on a bench, that overlooks the bay, Tommy pressed into her side, despite the bench being long enough for a family of four. "I don't want to ruin what we have," she quickly rushed out. "I enjoy being with you," she confirmed.
"I enjoy being with you Lynn," he told her, growing nervous. "And I know what you mean, I knew exactly what I was going to say, and now that I have the chance to say it, I don't know how to word it for it to make sense," he chuckled. He's worked over what he wants to tell her, in his head, in the mirror, and now when it matters, he can't make it sound right in his head.
"I do know that I don't like the way things are between us," she told him, chewing on her bottom lip, waiting for him to say the same and end what they have going on. She's ready to have a broken heart over a boy that can't appreciate her. Jack was right about one thing. She's not going to waste her time over a boy that doesn't want what she does, that can't appreciate her for being herself. Not when she can find someone that will like her for her.
"I don't either, Lynn," Tommy told her, turning to face her on the bench. "Being your friend with what little we've been doing, has been killing me," he stated, being just a bit overdramatic. "I want you to be my girlfriend, not just my friend that's a girl. I want to take you on more dates, I want our peers and the town to know that you're mine, and I'm yours," he confessed, giving her a nervous smile. "I can understand if that's not what you want," he told her feeling and looking dejected, over that thought alone.
"Who said anything about me not being interested in having you as my boyfriend?" She asked, outraged over such a simple little question. "I would like to know who told you that, Tommy," she told him. "I want to be your girlfriend, I was waiting for you to tell me that you didn't want to be with me," she confessed.
"Where did you get your information from?" He asked, a relaxed smile on his face. "No one told me anything. I just thought with everything, that you didn't see me that way," he told her, lacing his fingers with hers. "That's how felt, we've barely spent any real time with each other," he pointed out.
"I was pulling away," she sighed, licking her suddenly dry lips. "Because I felt like you didn't want to be with me," she told him, feeling all sorts of silly for the way she assumed. Talking things out was the way to go. She'd remember that from here on out.
"That's the furthest thing from the truth," he told her, cupping her cheek. "Will you be my girlfriend?" He whispered, his lips lightly brushing against hers.
"Yes," she squealed out, her answer getting cut short when his lips pressed against hers. Lynn slowly started to move her lips against his, feeling happy, and weightless over having the guy she likes finally be more than just a friend with a few added benefits. Pure joy coursed through her at having the guy she liked, become her boyfriend.