5. Reunion
Shane was practicing his routine for the performance tonight when he saw Jess and Kimee walk in. It was just like any other day except Jess had a guy with her, and they were holding hands.
So what? Shane told himself. She was never yours to begin with.
Shane was walking down the stage to change into his regular clothes when he heard Kimee call him.
"Hey, Shane, how are you?" She called out.
"I'm great, how about you?" He called back, without turning around.
"Same, I'm about to practice, are you going to stay?" She asked him.
"No, I got to get home and do the laundry," he lied.
"Ok, maybe next practice then," she told him.
"Yeah, maybe next time," he said, knowing there wouldn't be a next time.
Jess watched Shane as he walked back stage and felt some of the old paint hat she felt after their argument so many months ago. So what if he ignored me? She thought to herself. He wasn't mine to begin with.
"You feeling ok Jess?" Kimee asked her.
"Yeah, I'm ok," Jess said. The last time Jess had been to the doctors had been in September, and that had been the worst month of her life, even worse than the time in the hospital with her mother.
"Jessica," the doctor had started. "We are very sorry to tell you this, but we evaluated you symptoms and tested your blood, and we have found something that you might not like."
"Will you stop working up the dramatic effects? Just tell me what you found," Jess said.
The doctor cleared his throat, "We found Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, but it is still in its early stages..."
Jess had heard that much before she stopped breathing.
"Jess," Sean, her new boyfriend, said, shaking her shoulder. "Jess, breathe."
Jess quickly inhaled, not knowing that she had actually stopped breathing. "Sorry," Jess said. "I was just thinking."
Sean sighed, "Jess, can we talk really quick," he looked at Kimee. "Alone."
"Ok," Jess said.
When Jess opened the door to the side of the theater she heard Sean take in a deep breath. "Jess, I need to tell you something."
As Shane was getting ready to leave he heard two people arguing. It sounded like a man and a woman. He was trying to hurry out the door to the parking lot when he recognized one of the voices.
"What are you talking about Sean?" Jess asked confused about what he was trying to say.
"Its over, Jess, that's what I'm talking about. It's not working out. You're always sick, so you can't do anything, and what kind of a relationship has no physical contact what so ever? Not the kind that I want."
"So you're breaking up with me because I'm being careful that I don't get hurt? Sean, you talked to the doctor himself, he said I can't exert myself for fear of it hurting me," Jess said on the verge of tears.
"Look, Jess, I'm sorry. I have needs though, manly needs; it's the reason why I'm breaking it off. I cheated on you and I just can't stand to lie to you about it daily. I'm not saying that it's your fault that you can't, I know that you want to be safe until the 'all clear' bill of health, but I think that it is better that we break it off now and I don't hurt you later because I would have to lie about an affair."
"Fine, I'm sorry that I am not healthy enough to be with, I am. I am also not going to be the girl to force a guy to stay with her just because she is sick. I can take care of myself. So I enjoyed the time we spent together, even though it was not long lived," Jess said, tears starting to spill over, which she wiped away quickly.
"I'm really sorry Jess," Sean told her as he turned around and started to walk away.
"What is her name?" Jess asked Sean.
"Tatiana," Sean said looking down. "Her name is Tatiana."
Jess gasped at the shock of hearing that name again. She said she was going to get me back, and now she did, Jess thought to herself.
Jess watched as Sean walked away from her and then fell on her knees on the ground. She lay down on the ground, putting her cheek against the cold concrete. She was starting to feel dizzy, sick, mad, and sad all at the same time, and then she started crying. She sobbed uncontrollably and tried to keep her breathing even, failing miserably. She reached into her bag quickly to look for her phone to call Kimee to look for her. Jess sat up and dialed the number as fast as she could, but there was no answer.
"Kimee pick up," Jess started the message. "Sean...and I... broke up... I just... need you here, please... pick up Kimee," she sobbed trying to take deep breathes in between words.
When she looked down she saw a shadow that was hovering over her.
Shane had heard the whole conversation between Jess and the man she called Sean, and he himself couldn't believe what he heard. So he put together the pieces to analyze what they meant. Jess was dating Sean that was for sure. Sean had said that Jess is always sick, and that over exerting herself will hurt her. How was she sick? Sean was also cheating on Jess, with Tatiana, because Jess wouldn't give him the physical needs he needed. When Shane had heard that, he was almost unable to stop himself from bursting out the door and beating Sean to a pulp. How could someone treat her so badly, especially if she was sick? Shane was still unable to imagine Jess, his beautiful Jess, sick. He kneeled down behind her and wrapped his arms around her to help her up. She felt lighter than a feather, which he knew meant that she had lost a lot of weight.
"Jess," he turned her around to have her facing him. "Are you ok?"
Jess looked at him and he was waiting for the bomb in her head that he was sure was about to go off.
"No," she said and she started crying again into her hands.
Shane had never seen her cry and the anger that filled him was enough to fuel a nuclear bomb. He held her close to him and stroked her head with his other arm holding her up. When she wrapped her arms around his waist she was sobbing uncontrollably. He felt like he would start crying with the pain that she was feeling. It hurt him so much to see her like this, crying over another man. He picked her up in his arms and then sat down on the ground with her in his lap. After five minutes of him comforting her she started to calm down.
"I'm... sorry Shane," she said breathlessly. "You have been... so nice to me... and I don't even... deserve it."
"Shh," Shane quieted her. "You have nothing to be sorry about; I should be the one who is sorry. I wasn't there when you needed to have someone there," he laid his chin on top of her head, mad with himself.
"Well, you heard everything that happened... with Sean. I wouldn't... have been much to be around... and I wouldn't have been much of a girlfriend," she looked down.
Shane pulled her chin up so that they were eye to eye. "Jess, you are a million things that would make you the perfect person to be with, and it's not all physical," he told her.
Jess blushed and looked away from his eyes. "Name one that you know that's not physical," she challenged him.
"If you gave me the chance to get to know you better, and then I bet I would have a million and one things that were not physical," he smiled.
"I don't know Shane," she told him. "I don't think that we would work out together."
"You don't know because you never tried. One date," he asked. "If it doesn't work, then it wasn't meant to be."
Jess looked at him with her dazzling ocean eyes that almost stopped his heart from beating. "Please," he begged.
"Sure," she smiled, though he could see that she was still hurting.
"So, Shane asked you on a date?" Kimee asked Jess.
"Yes," she answered Kimee's question holding up two outfits. "What looks better?"
Kimee examined both outfits and looked at Jess. "Don't you think you're overreacting, just a little bit, Jess?"
"Kimee," Jess whined. "Why is it that when it's a date I choose you can never help me?"
"Fine," Kimee sighed. "I like the dress."
"They're both dresses, Kimee."
"Ugh," Kimee groaned sitting up in the bed. "Where is he taking you?"
"He said he was taking me to the Latin Quarter, then that we were going to walk City Walk and he was going to take me to The Groove."
"The Groove is twenty one and over. You're eighteen, which means you're under twenty one."
"He knows the manager and has it under control. I get in but no drinking for me," she explained.
"Ok, but if you get arrested, don't come crying to me," Kimee smiled.
"Thanks," Jess told her sarcastically. "You want to come? Maybe Shane can invite Matt and it can be a group."
"Nope, you're on your own with Shane, but I think that I will take Matt to The Groove. I can get my dancing muscles back in shape."
Jess just laughed at Kimee while she was still figuring out which dress to wear.
"I think the tan one with the pendant is the best one to wear tonight," Kimee finally told her.
Once Jess was ready she looked herself over. The tan dress came to just above her knees was spaghetti strapped and had a pendant that tied around her neck. Her tan sandals tied around her ankles and she wore her hair down in her usual curls.
"You look great," she heard Shane tell her from the door.
She saw him through the reflection of the mirror and thought that he looked so beautiful compared to her. His wavy dirty blond hair came down to his shoulders and curled at the ends. He wore a white button down shirt, the top four buttons unbuttoned, with a black jacket and jeans. His honey-colored eyes seemed to burn through the mirror and into her blue eyes.
"Are you guys going to stare at each other all day or are you going to go on your date?" Kimee joked from the other room.
Jess turned around and smiled at Shane, "You look great, too." Better than me, she thought.
"You look better," he smiled. "Are you ready to get out of here?"
"Yeah, let's go."
When Shane and Jess got to the restaurant parking lot he looked around and saw that other men were looking at Jess— more like staring— and he started to feel jealous. Only I should be able to look at her like that, he thought. He stared at one man in particular that Shane knew wasn't really interested in her personality.
"Are you ok?" Jess asked him, when they were walking towards the door.
When he looked away from the man and looked at Jess she looked worried. "Yeah, I'm ok, why wouldn't I be?"
"Well, maybe because you look like you want to tear that guys head off," she laughed. "Do you know him?"
"No, he's just staring at you, and I don't like it."
"What, are you jealous?" Jess joked.
"Yes, only I should be able to look at you like that."
"Let him look all he wants, I'm with you, remember that," she smiled.
Shane looked at the man and back down at Jess. "If I do something will you get mad at me?"
"What are you going to do?"
Shane held Jess closer so that she was facing him and leaned in leaving an inch of distance between their lips. He caressed her cheek with his free hand and pulled her closer to him by the small of her back with his other hand. When their lips actually touched he felt a static pulse through him that shocked him, but he didn't pull away from her lips. Jess wound her arms around his neck and leaned herself closer to him so that he could feel her warm skin against his chest. When he finally had enough strength to pull away from her she sighed.
"Are you mad?" Shane asked her.
Jess looked at him with a serious face. "Well, when a man kisses you like that on a first date, and before dinner, a girl would be," she smiled. "I'm only mad that you moved."
She wound her arms around his neck again and pulled him closer so that their lips were touching again. She wound her fingers through his hair and tasted his lips with her tongue.
"Wow Jess, you get him," Matt laughed from behind them.
"Shut up, Matt," Shane said not moving.
"Jess, are you still going to be hungry after?" Kimee laughed.
"Go away, Kimee," Jess told her, smiling.
"You guys know that you have a car here right?" Matt joked.
Shane and Jess glared at Matt and Kimee. "We'll continue this later," Jess told Shane. "When we are alone," she said staring at Kimee.
"Don't worry; I'll be at Matt's house anyways. John needs help redecorating the guest room for his parents."
"What happened to you not coming?" Jess asked Kimee.
"Well, we were on our way to the club, and then Matt and I got hungry. We knew you were coming here so we decided to tag along."
"Fine, well we got to get inside so that we can eat and go to the club," Shane told them.
When they got their table and ordered Shane just stared at Jess, who was joking with Kimee and Matt. When she laughed it sounded like bells and when she smiled at him it gave him first love butterflies. Love, he thought to himself. Was he falling in love with her? Yes, he was, he said to himself and smiled.
"What are you smiling at?" Kimee asked Shane, bringing him back into the conversation.
"Just a realization I came to," he looked at Jess, and smiled.
"What is it?" Kimee asked him impatiently.
"You'll find out sooner or later," he smiled.
When Jess walked into the club Kimee dragged her to the dance floor where there was a crowd of over a hundred people.. They moved to the center of the floor where Kimee started dancing with a random guy, who didn't seem to mind. When Shane and Matt reached them Matt had already dragged Kimee to dance with him. Matt was obviously the man of his relationship that much was for sure. Kimee and he were moving to the music as if they were dating each other, and if Jess didn't know any better, she would think that Matt was straight. She laughed when Kimee pulled her leg around Matt's waist and started to dance. Jess turned around and saw Shane shaking his head at them and laughing.
"Do you want to dance?" Jess asked him.
"Sure," Shane smiled at her.
Shane pulled Jess closer to him and wound his arms around her waist. They started to move to the music, and Jess turned around and grabbed Shane's hands, interlocking them with hers. Song after song, for two hours straight, all four of them danced to the music alternating between Jess and Shane to Jess and Matt, and Kimee and Matt to Kimee and Shane. Jess didn't care as much when Kimee would dance with Shane because he would look at her the whole time.