I'm back way later than I planned. It's almost ten o'clock at night, and my grandparents are already in bed. John must be in bed too; I haven't seen or heard him since I came in the house. I would've made it back earlier, but I had to open my mouth to my friends about the jungle man living in my grandparents' estate. The questions were endless.
Is he normal?
Does he walk on all fours?
Can he talk?
What do you mean you're teaching him music?!
I found it funny that the part about music lessons seemed to be the most unbelievable out of all other aspects of the situation. John may be wild and slightly uncivilized and perhaps even unstable, but he's still human. He's shown more than enough enthusiasm and appreciation for music for anyone to believe that he's smart enough to understand what's going on.
And just as I finish putting on my shorts and T-shirt, I hear something off in the distance. It's coming from outside. It sounds like screaming, and it sounds like a man.
I pull the curtain aside from my window and look out over the landscape. I don't see anyone or anything, so I skeptically reassure myself that what I heard was just my imagination. Then I hear the front door slam. I can't ignore it anymore; I skirt out of my room and into the hallway to listen more closely.
"LIZ!"
Someone is screaming. I rush down the hall.
"LIZ!"
It happens again, and I quicken my pace. I run down the first flight of stairs and onto the landing where I'm met with a shocking sight: John stands at the bottom of the stairs, clothes covered in grass and dirt stains, hair hanging haphazardly from his head. But his hair doesn't hide his eyes, which are brimming with tears.
"Liz…" he almost whispers.
"Hey," I say with heartbreak in my voice. I run down the steps to meet him and we pull each other into a tight embrace. I've never felt this close to him, nor have I ever literally been this close to him before. "What's going on?" I ask, letting my fingers comb through his dark hair.
"I'm afraid," he sobs, burrowing his face into my shoulder.
"Yeah, I can imagine," I say. "But if you think about it, we're right back where we started. Like on the day we first met." He pulls away and looks at me with confusion. "You were scared when you first got here, on your first night when I found you in the rec room. Remember this?" I move my hands to hold both sides of his face like I did that night in the dark. He nods, his lips trembling.
"You were scared then, and you got through it, right?" I say. "And you won't be alone. You have me and my grandparents, too. And I still have so much fun stuff to show you." He stumbles back into my embrace, his breathing becoming more steady. We hold each other for a long time.
"I believe in you, Johnny," I finally say. He hugs me tighter. "We should get you to bed, huh?"
We part from our embrace, but I keep a gentle hold on his arm. Or he keeps a gentle hold on mine. I can't really tell.
We go upstairs, and we stop outside his bedroom door.
"Please," I say. "Come get me if you need anything."
He nods and gives a tired smile.
"Now, get some rest. We'll have some fun tomorrow," I say as I back away and turn to go towards my own room.