I wake up, all alone in my bed. I turned to the clock and it is nine in the morning. The smell of bacon and coffee fills the house. I put on my slippers and headed
downstairs to see everyone drinking coffee and talking about reenacting. "Well good morning sleeping beauty. Did you get a good night sleep?" Nathan was
standing, making breakfast for everyone. He's wearing a tight white long sleeve shirt that shows his abs with a pair of sweatpants and slippers. I walk over
and give him a kiss. Cody got me a cup and I saw down next to the girls. Tammy and Brittany were talking about what dresses I should wear at the
reenactment next weekend. Can I go through the week first? It is so funny how they get all worked up just because I am reenacting again. I walked over to
where the guys were and we talked about football while we ate. "The food is delicious!" Emma and Brittany say. "This rocks!" Bruce and Evens said. I showed
my appreciation by giving him a kiss on the cheek. He knew what that meant. We got dressed and said goodbye to the gang while they set off. "I will call you
later on this week okay?" Cody said while he gave me a hug. They left and we prepared to go to work. The girls decided to go shopping, so they did not tag
along. "We will all go in my truck." I said. Everyone gave me a confused look, but it changed when I opened the garage. I have a black Ford F-250 truck and I
also have my cousin's viper which is blue with black flames on the side. We all hopped in the truck and headed to the farm. When we got there, my uncle was
waiting for us with a bunch of wood, nails, hammers and other stuff. "I guess we will be fixing fences today." I said. My uncle shook his head agreeing with me.
We put the stuff in my truck and my uncle's red Ford F-350 truck also. "Nathan will come with me and Evens, while Mandy goes with Jake." Bruce said. Before
we were able to reject, the guys already left with Nathan. "I guess it will be us two today." Jake said with a smile. I smiled back. Today will be a good day!
I rode down the side of the fields with Jake doing the driving. Jake and I are actually cousins if you don't believe it. He is like my big brother to me. We have
been by each other's side since we were born. He is one year older than me though. We would always play in the mud and ride horses together. I guess that is
how my tomboy side came out. He looks over at me and says "So how are you doing? I haven't talked to much lately. We should go out for a bite to eat." He is
always smiling. No matter what has happened to him, he continues to smile. He was also close to my dad. He taught Jake how to ride and everything about
reenacting. I actually see my dad in Jake. He acts the same like my dad. We stopped and got out to fix the fences. I ran over to Jake and gave him a hug. All I
want to do is cry…
JPOV:
It's been a while since she has gave me a hug and cried. With all that's been going on, I haven't had time to spend with her. That is gonna change. I lifted her
head up and wiped her tears. She smiled at me and grabbed the hammer and nails and started to fix the broken fences. She is such a hard head…
APOV:
We finished fixing the fences and met up with the guys. My uncle surprised us with some pizza, but I decided to go riding instead while the boys were into their
pizza. I tacked up Danny and headed out to my usual spot, the cliff. I got there and the sun was just ready to set. It is really pretty out here. But it is quiet, too
quiet. I pull out my pistol and turned around. My uncle has his hands up like he was ready to surrender. "I guess your father taught you well." he said. I
chuckled and he pulled his horse next to mine. "So how come you are not with the boys? Did they all ready give you a headache?" I laughed again at that
comment. We sat in silence for a while until my uncle broke it. "So how are you going lately. You have been so busy, I haven't had time to discuss with you
about the will and stuff like that." I completely forgot about the will. All of the stuff has been in storage with a lock on it, which the lawyer has the key for. "I am
going back home in two weeks, so I will deal with it then. As long as my damn family doesn't get to it first, everything will be okay." He smiled and we raced
back to the barn. I got back and cleaned up everything. The boys had gone home, so I hopped into my truck and headed home. The girls were all asleep in
their beds by the time I got home. I ran a bath and put on the Spirit soundtrack that my father and I always listened to. It was our ritual that we would listen
to Spirit and the Gettysburg soundtrack on the way to every reenactment. I got into the bath and relaxed all of my sore muscles. It feels good to have peace
and quiet for once. It has been so busy here lately, I kind of forget that it is Sunday. Oh well! I got out and went to my closet to pick out some clothes for
tomorrow. A pair of boot cut jeans and a plaid shirt will do it! I laid in my bed and started to go through all the things in my mind. Why is my uncle bringing up
the will? Why is Cody not telling me the truth? Is this all a dream or reality? I can't seem to tell anymore. This is all just one strange world to me. As I am
thinking, my phone buzzed and showed a text message from Nathan saying "Sorry I left so early. The guys dragged me away. I will bring lunch to our usual
spot tomorrow. Love you baby." I closed my phone and turned over to my side to turn out the lights. I closed my eyes and went into my dream land where
everything was back to normal. Hopefully tomorrow will be better….
~~~~~~~~~~~~The Next Day~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I woke up to the sound of the girls talking and playing music. I got dressed and went downstairs to see what was going on. All of the girls were cooking food
and watching the news. "Hey what's going on? Is there something on TV.?" Simone pointed to the sub title on the screen. "Another death at reenactment.
Third one in the past year and a half." what does this mean? I look at the person who passed and it's my dad's friend Patrick. I remember him because he
would always play tricks on me when I was little. But this is too strange now. First my father, then Sam and now Patrick! This is ridiculous! I grabbed my stuff
and ran out of the house to get the first train to the campus. I need to talk to Mr. Jim as soon as possible!
I get into Mr. Jim's room and I see him just putting his stuff down. He looks at me with the same eyes as I did when I saw the news. "You saw it too." I nodded
my head yes and he gave me a hug. "Who is doing this and what is there motive?" he didn't know anything. This is going to be a challenge. We sat and talked
until classes started. I walked into tech ed and Emma ran up and said "Why did you run out of the house this morning? Is it because of the news?" I nodded
my head yes and she gave me a big hug. I guess this means I have no choice but to go to the reenactment…..
Lunch finally rolled around and I went to our usual spot. He was already there, waiting for me. I sat down next to him and he gave me a long lingering kiss. "I
saw the news. Are you okay? Do you want to go to my house after school today?" I thought about it for a little bit while I was eating. I really want to talk to
Jake and see if he's okay. "I am having coffee with Jake today. Afterwards, I will come to your house. Is that okay with you?" He answered with a kiss. I guess
that is a yes! I texted Jake asking if he wanted coffee after school and he said yes. Today will be good!
The end of the day had finally came. I got onto the train and I got off the stop that went into town. I walked to Starbucks and took a seat. Jake came in right
afterwards and gave me a hug. "How are you? Is everything okay?" I nodded my head yes and took a sip of my coffee. Jake talked about reenacting, work,
and other stuff. I just sat there and listened. "Did you watch the news this morning?" I nodded my head yes and he sunk down in his seat. I assume that he
saw it too. "Do you have any idea what is going on?" I nodded my head no. Jake sighed. "Are you going to the event next weekend. I hope you do." I smiled
because now I know that Jake is going. We walked to the train station and said our goodbyes. "I will see you at work tomorrow. We should do this again
sometime." I nodded in agreement and gave him a hug and kiss on the cheek. He blushed bright red and then ran off. He is so cute. I got on the train and got
off at Nathan's house. I knock on the door and the door opened. Nathan surprised me with a kiss. He handed me a cup of coffee and sat down. He kept on
asking questions about what me and Jake talked about, and ac-course, I did not tell him a single thing, which got him mad. I gave him another kiss and he
blushed. I turned on some tunes and started to dance. I started to give him a lap dance, which made him happy, but that was just a sample. I made him get up
and we jumped on the bed. It was hilarious! I looked at the time and it's 8:00. Holy shit! I jumped down, grabbed my stuff and put on my shoes. "What's
wrong? Do you have to leave?" he looked at the time then at me. He slipped on his shoes and we ran all the way to the station so I can catch the last train. I
gave him a quick kiss and ran on to get a seat. I caught my breath after a couple of minutes. It is so quiet. There is only one other person besides me. It is
actually a boy, looks like he is in middle school. He had bright blond hair and blue eyes. He is slender and a little bit shorter than me. He is holding an envelope
with some type of writing on it. He is looking at me, with a straight face. He got up! Now he is walking towards me. I should not panic. After all, I am older than
him. "Are you Amanda Crockett?" I nodded my head yes and he handed the envelope to me. As he handed it to me, I look at him again. He actually looks
familiar, but I don't know where I have seen him before. He got off that stop and I opened it. It is a letter with a another bag. I opened the bag and it has
three things. One is a cap which was Sam's, a bullet which I know it's Patrick's because it has his initials carved on it, and my dad's glasses! I quickly opened
the letter and started to read it. It says "Better be on your toes this weekend." What is that suppose to mean? it makes no sense, and how did they get all of
this stuff! I got off into town and I called Mr. Jim. "Hello Amanda. Is there something wrong?" I paused for a minute before answering. "S.O.S.!" I said while
panting. "Come to my house as soon as possible." I hung up and ran all the way to his house, where he was waiting for me at his door step. I fell over from
running so fast. He helped me in and placed me on the couch. Mrs. Kay ran up and handed me some water. "Are you feeling better?" I shook my head yes and
they both sat down. I handed Mr. Jim the package and he opened it. His eyes widen in shock. He said "Who gave this to you?" I had to think about it for a
second. My thoughts came to me after a couple of seconds. "It was a boy, around 8th grade. He was kinda tall, with bright blonde hair and blue eyes. He was
slender and it sounded like his voice was changing." Mr. Jim put on his thinking face on for a little bit, but came up with no leads. "I guess we will have to keep
a look out at the event. The kid will most likely be there." My head is pounding from all of the thoughts going through my head. Should I go this weekend, or
shouldn't I? Mr. Jim sits next to me and gives me a hug. "Maybe you should take they day off tomorrow. You can help me teach the other classes. I will send all
of your teachers a letter saying that you will be in my class tomorrow." I settle down a little bit. I took a deep breath and got up. "I will be going home. I will
see you tomorrow." Mr. Jim got up and said "Well at least let me call Tom so he can pick you up. I don't think you should be home alone." Tom? I don't
exactly remember him, but all I know is that we were in the same unit. My memories of him are all a blur to me.
After a couple of minutes, the doorbell rung. Ms. Kay opened it and a guy came in. He is very tall, slender, with short brown hair and hazel eyes. I stand up and
look at him. He smiles at me. I run and give him a huge hug. "I am happy to see you too." Another person is in my life. I grab the package and go out the door.
I got into Tom's car and wait for him. He got in and gave me another hug and kissed me on the forehead. "I missed you. I was not sure if you have
remembered me after your accident, so I didn't talk to you." it kind of sucks that he did not talk to me for so long, but it is all good now.
We get to his apartment, which is quite big. I walked in a plopped down in the couch. This place looks like my living room. Tom sits next to me and wraps his
arm around me. "So what is the matter honey? You can tell me. I will protect you." It took me a couple of minutes to respond. "Is it really okay to stay here? I
can always leave, you know." He frowned at me because he does not want me to leave. "I don't want you to leave. I want to catch up. How about you go and
take a shower and I will get you some clothes." I nodded my head okay and walked to the bathroom. He handed me a towel and a wash cloth. I took off my
shirt while he was with me. I did not care. He traced his hand along the scar on my back. "I guess you found the scar on my back." I said. He frowned and
wrapped his hands around me. "You are really skinny. Are you eating okay? How about I make us a good dinner, okay?" I smiled and he closed the door behind
him. I turned on the hot water and stepped in. I didn't want to take one, but I am really sweaty. I was only in for 10 minutes, but he must have been in here
and gone. He left me a pair of sweatpants and a girls tank top. Don't know whose it is, but I will put it on anyway. I hand dried my hair and walked out. The
smell of delicious food was around the apartment. I walked to the kitchen to see what he was cooking, but he hushed me out to the living room. He came out
with a plate of food, which had a steak, mash potatoes, gravy and green beans. He sat down next to me with his plate. He turned on the t v to the movie
Balto, which is one of the kid movies I actually remember! "I don't think you remember, but we used to watch this movie when we were younger. I still watch it
time to time." I smiled.
After I finished my meal, Tom came out with some ice cream. It was my favorite! Vanilla with rainbow sprinkles. Yum! I love hanging out with him, it makes me
smile. "I don't know if these pants will fit you, but you can try them." He said to me as he gave me a pair of skinny jeans. They were a size 5, so they should fit
me. I put them on a chair and laid my head on his chest. I drifted off into dream land….
TOM POV:
It has been a while since we have spent time like this. I actually forget the last time. She has gone through so much and yet, still going through more each day.
All I can do is give her protection and support. I carried her into my bedroom and laid her down with a blanket. I got on my phone to call Mr. Jim. "How is
Amanda doing?" Mr. Jim asked. "She is doing good. She is asleep now and I will bring her to your classroom tomorrow." "Good, I will see you tomorrow." I hung
up and went to check on her. She was sound asleep. Thank god. I laid down next to her and laid my head on the pillow. She is really cute. I don't exactly know
why I did not go out with her, but she probably has a boyfriend by now. I closed my eyes and wrapped my arms around her….
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~The Next Day~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
APOV:
I woke up and looked at the time. It's 7 in the morning. I walked into the kitchen and Tom was cooking, as usual. I sat down at the bar and watched him cook.
Tom finally looked up and smiled at me. "Well good morning. I did not see you there. Are you ready to eat, so you can go?" I nodded my head yes and he
handed me a plate, which had eggs, bacon, a biscuit, and a glass of apple juice. I pretty much inhaled everything and got dressed. I sat down on the couch to
get a breather and Tom just gave me this look and said "What the hell are you doing? You know that we have time right? How about we stop for coffee?" I
smiled. I got up to put on my shoes and Tom surprised me with a kiss on the cheek. "That was a good morning kiss." I kissed him back and he blushed.
Hopefully today will be better.
We got to the school before everyone. We walked into Mr. Jim's classroom and he's not even here yet! Great! Now what am I suppose to do? While I was
thinking , Tom came up behind me and started to chase me around the room. It was a lot of fun, until I fell flat on my face. Tom came running and helped me up.
"Well that was some fall you made." I looked up and Mr. Jim was standing there. He was just laughing his ass off at us. "You two act like you guys did when you
were younger. This bring back memories." We both stood up and walked over to him. "So do you want me to pick you up later?" said Tom. Mr. Jim walked over
and put his hands on my shoulders. "I think she will be okay to go home for now and get ready for the weekend. It is only like two days away, you know." Tom
shook his head okay and gave me a hug. "If you need a place to go, call me okay?" I nodded my had okay and he smiled and left. I sat down at Mr. Jim's desk
and started to look over his lesson plan. He is teaching the students about civilians. Well I guess that is why I am here, but I was not much of a civilian. Before
class started, Tyler came into the classroom. Hr ran up to me and said "Hey! Are you okay? The girls were flipping out because you did not come home. They
were on the phone with me and Darby all last night. Where did you go?" I did not want to tell him what happened, so I will just tell him a little lie. "I ran into a
friend of mine and I stayed at her place. I didn't mean to make the girls worry, but my phone died. I am okay." Okay, now part of it is the truth, so I didn't lie
exactly. Tyler looked at me with a strange face, but then gave me a hug. "Let me know if you need anything, okay?" I nodded my head okay and he gave me a
kiss on my forehead and left. Tyler can be sweet sometimes, but he is a pain in the ass too.
Classes started for the day and it was actually a lot of fun being a student teacher. When my lunch time rolled around, I went to our usual spot and waited for
Nathan. I have no idea what he is going to say, but I know that he will be flipping out. I heard footsteps and it was Nathan, out of breath. I jumped up and
gave him a kiss. "Where in the hell were you last night? Emma called me flipping out because you did not go home last night." Grr! He makes my life so hard. "I
ran into a old friend of mine and I stayed at her place, and then my phone died, so I was not able to answer any calls. I didn't mean to make you guys worry so
much." Nathan sat down next to me and wrapped his arms around me. "Don't scare me like that anymore, okay?" he said. I nodded okay and leaned my head
on his shoulder. Now my only worry is what is going to happen this weekend.
The end of the day finally came and I went home. I called my uncle and told him the real story and he told me to take the rest of the week off, which made me
pretty happy. When I walked in the doors, no one was home for a change. I just remembered that they went to see the boys today, which means I have the
house to myself for a while. I changed into my swimming suit and went to the pool. I swam about 50 laps before I got tired. I jumped out and went to soak in
the hot tub. The music was just right with the mood. I sunk down into the tub and stretched my legs out. The water is just right too. I looked at the clock and it
is 8:00, which means time to take a shower! I got out and dried off and ran upstairs so I can take my time. I jumped into the shower and got the sweat and
chlorine off of me. It felt good to be home, but the girls are pretty late getting home, I wonder why. I got out and called Simone, just to make sure. The phone
rings and I hear her say "Hey Amanda! What's up?" I stuttered for a minute and say "Nothing much. Is everything okay? It is pretty late and I was just
wondering when you would be home." I hear her pause for a minute and she says "Emma and Brittany are staying at their boyfriends house and Brianna is
staying with Jake I think. I will be home in like five minutes, so I will see you then!" I hang up the phone and lay on my bed. I guess this is love. I hear Simone
open the front door and I run downstairs and I gave her a huge hug. We go up to my room to help me start packing for the reenactment this weekend. She
picked out all of my dresses and shoes and basically everything! I laid down on my bed and she sat next to me. "So I figured that you stayed at a guys house
last night? You smell like axe." I sat up at the thought that she figured it out. "Well some kid gave me a package while I was on the train last night and it had
stuff in it that was from my reenacting friends that are now dead. It also had a letter telling me to keep on my toes this weekend. Once I read it, I ran straight
to my dad's friends house and told him. He didn't want me home, so he called my friend Tom to pick me up. I didn't remember him until I saw him. I stayed at his
apartment last night. It was nice to see another friend again." she smiled and gave me a hug. She left the room, so I could sleep. I got under the covers and
listened to music. It has been so crazy, like literally. Things are not adding up what so ever, people I don't know are watching me. It is scaring me, a lot. I just
have to keep my mind clear and focus on one thing, figuring out who killed my father.