6: Goodbye My Friend?
The clock read eleven forty-five. Buzz stared at the dark ceiling. Woody was curled into a ball beside him, snoring.
Buzz turned, trying to get comfortable. Then he moved back to his original position. No matter what he did, he just couldn't get used to the fact that a certain redhead wasn't down the hall tonight.
They had gone after her, Woody and Buzz both. But she had disappeared into the darkness of the back hall. Thirty minutes of searching had turned up nothing but dust bunnies (And in Buzz's case, an Indian Head Penny.).
Buzz sat up. "I've got to see her."
The humidity had all but disappeared as Buzz stepped outside. It was no longer hot, but the air was thick and sticky.
Buzz dashed across the road without even looking. His toy brain was focused on only thing, and that was seeing the girl of his dreams, if only one last time.
Emily had left a window cracked to let the heat out. Not very smart, Though Buzz as he climbed up the porch railing and jumped to the sill. But lucky for me. He pushed the window up with all his strength. It creaked as it just barely moved. Buzz kept pushing until there was a space just barely bigger enough for him to squeeze through.
Grunting and straining, he forced himself into the opening and onto the inner sill. The wooden bottom of the window frame scraped his back, making him wince in pain, but he kept on crawling.
Jessie lay by the air mattress that Emily slept on. The beds hadn't been set up, and the family of three had set up their temporary berths in a semi-circle like they were camping.
Jessie stared at the ceiling of the master bedroom. They might not understand, She thought as she lay on the wooden floor. But this is where I belong. I'm finally home again…
A shadow fell over her. She sat up startled. "Who's there? Don't come any closer!" She stood up and made a fierce face. "I know karate and tae-chi and tae-kwon-do and tae-bo…"
"Tae-bo isn't a martial art." Said a familiar voice. He came out of the darkness. "You try to defend yourself with Tae-bo and you'll get your butt handed to you."
A wave of relief swept over Jessie. "Buzz!" Then anger. "What are you doing here? I said I wasn't going back!"
"I know." He shrugged as he came closer. "I didn't come to try and take you back."
Jessie folded her arms across her chest. "Then what are you doing here?"
Again, he shrugged. "I just wanted to talk." He approached the air mattress where Emily breathed lightly. "This is your owner, huh?"
"Yeah," Jessie joined him. "This is Emily. This is the little girl who made me feel special."
"You are special!" Said Buzz, then lowered his voice so not to wake the sleeping humans. "You are special. And she's not a little girl."
"Is too! She's my little girl!"
"No, she's not!" Buzz gently pulled down the covers so they could get a good look at her face. "She's a forty-something adult with kids! You're still thinking of her as a child…"
"So? She is a child!"
"No!" Said Buzz. He was beginning to feel frustrated. "She's a grownup! And no matter how much you deny it, she's not going to be the little girl you knew back in the fifties!"
Jessie sat on Emily's pillow. "The little girl is there, somewhere inside!" She pulled her knees up to her chin.
"And what do you think is going to happen? Do you think she's going to get down on the floor and play with you? Do you think she'll carry you to work?" Buzz didn't mean to sound harsh, but he couldn't stop the words from coming out. "Face it, Jessie! Your time with her is over! You did your job, now it's time to move on." He pointed. "Across the street are a little boy and a little girl who need you now as much as she needed you then! And when they wake up tomorrow and find their Jessie doll gone, how do you think they'll feel?"
Jessie didn't answer. Buzz sighed. Somewhere a bell chimed. "I'm going back." Said Buzz. "Like I said, I'm not going to force you to come with me. But there is one thing I want to say before I go."
She looked at him as he approached her closely. "What?"
He kissed her forehead. "Happy one year anniversary, Jessie." And then he was gone.
