Chapter Thirteen

~In which Jack talks with Eve and finds an old trunk~

Jack, Benjamin and Eve stood there in an awkward silence for several, long minutes. Finally and quite shocking to both men, Eve was first to break the silence.

"So you go to North Country right?" she asked, not seeming really interested in her own question. Jack frowned in confusion. What's North Country? he thought to himself. Benjamin could see the confusion in Jack's expression.

"No one really calls it that huh? She means NC College, you go there right?" Benjamin asked, the tone in his voice suggesting it would be quite strange if Jack didn't attend the college. He stroked back his dark, unruly hair and nodded tentatively. He noticed that Eve shifted uncomfortably a bit when he did this.

"What classes are you taking this semester?" Benjamin asked. Jack wished that he wasn't so interested in him and wondered why Eve wasn't. Eve felt it was then her turn to brush her unruly bangs back and as she did so Jack caught a glimpse of the small diamond ring upon her finger. Without knowing why, he now suddenly felt the urge to lie, lie his way into both their lives. He couldn't just let Eve marry this man, not knowing that it is really him, this other-worldly being, whom she truly loves.

"I'm actually not attending too many, erm, classes this semester. I am actually finding myself with quite a bit of free time on my hands." He said, hoping to spark some interest in them as to the fact that he would be available to any outings that they would ask him to. In this he also hoped that the previous outing and his behavior during it would be forgotten.

"Are you going to be trying out for the play?" Eve asked, trying this time to not seem too interested in her subject. Jack couldn't help but feel a little excitement come from him when the words left her lips.

"A play hm? I've not heard about this yet, as a matter of fact." He said as his eyes revealed just how truly interested he was in this subject. Suddenly Eve's gaze changed from a scrutinizing glare to a now ever so slightly entranced regard for this man to whom she was just meeting for the first time.

"You know….your mannerisms are very…interesting. I mean, do you always…speak like that?" she asked trying not to offend. Jack raised an eyebrow at this, realizing that she had asked him something like this once before.

"Are you always so gentleman-like? Your manners are very impressive."

"Ah, well, it's just the way I was brought up I suppose." Jack replied as he shook off the voice of the past that lingered in his head. Eve turned to Benjamin and stroked his arm lovingly. Jack felt as if his heart couldn't sink any lower.

"You know, I think he would be perfect to audition for the Phantom, don't you think?" Eve said excitedly. "He might even just be handed the role, I mean he seems almost perfect for it." Benjamin studied Jack a bit as Eve said this, as if he was thinking the exact same thing, but Eve didn't wait for a response.

"Have you ever heard of The Phantom of the Opera?" she asked. Jack shook his head feeling no need to ponder his mind for this for he was almost certain he had never heard that name before. Eve's eyes lit up as she reared up to explain herself.

"Well it was first a novel by the name of Le Fantôme de l'Opéra written by Gaston Leroux circa 1909 but the story takes place in the late 1800's." Eve said excitedly.

"Eve loves the Victorian era, like literally everything about it." Benjamin explained to Jack. Jack could feel his heart rising from the pit of his stomach to which it had fallen. Eve loves the Victorian era? He couldn't help but find a glimmer of hope in the fact that Eve felt a certain admiration for the time period in which they were both originally from. He pondered, If Eve loves and feels closeness to the Victorian period, that might mean that somewhere deep down she remembers….at least something…

"There is also a musical production and a movie reared from this novel and both are really great. You should at least check out the movie, I think it might be on Netflix." Eve continued. Not having the foggiest idea what Netflix was and at this point, not really caring, Jack nodded kindly however lost in thought about how everything Eve just said could work to his advantage.

"It's something I am certainly interested in looking into." Jack replied. Eve grinned.

"Let me give you the information then….or I can just text it to you. What's your cell phone number?" she asked pulling her phone from her pocket. Jack stood there dumbfounded. He couldn't use the phone he had earlier because it was Wallace's and he didn't even know it came with a number.

"Jack!" a voice called from behind the group. Wallace was waving a hand over to Jack motioning for him to come over.

"If you could excuse me for one moment." Jack said and ran toward Wallace. As he reached him, he noticed a smug look on his face.

"I don't mean to be a rude old fart, but I can see even from here you are really… well, not good at this." he grinned. Jack frowned.

"Eve is asking for a cell phone number. I-" Jack trailed off not knowing how to explain himself. Wallace grinned again however the smugness was gone.

"That's great! She's actually asking how to get in contact with you! Why aren't you happy abou-oh….I see your issue." He said and Jack nodded condescendingly. Wallace reached into his pocket. "Here take mine. I rarely use it and plus I have the house phone I can use. Oh and…" Wallace scrolled through the phone's information for a few seconds. "This right here is the number. Just read it off to them and if they ask, tell them you forgot the number because it's a new phone." Jack grinned, thanked him, and ran back to where Benjamin and Eve were standing.

"Alright, sorry about that…Wallace came to remind me that I had left my phone inside the house." Jack muttered. Eve scoffed.

"Convenient." She remarked and Jack couldn't tell if she was put off by this or simply amused. Perhaps it was suspicious.

"And so…my number is erm, 917 541 2397." Jack read off of the phone; however he didn't need Wallace's excuse because neither Benjamin nor Eve seemed to notice him reading it off.

"Alright, I will text you my number and the information on when auditions are….also don't forget to check out the movie okay?" she said her and Benjamin began to walk away. Jack nodded. "We have to go now but we'll see you at school?" Jack nodded again. Eve smiled and wrapped her arm around Benjamin's and both headed back to his car. Jack stood in the drive way looking after them as they drove off and he could have sworn that he saw Eve turn her head to look back at him. He continued to stare until the little black dot that was the car faded into the horizon. Jack didn't really feel like moving after that; he had seen Eve, talked to her, held her hand, and yet he felt all the more empty. Suddenly Jack felt a hand rest upon his shoulder.

"You alright my boy?" Wallace said in a deep voice. Jack nodded, still not taking his eyes off of the horizon. Wallace sighed. "Yo-you really do love her don't you?" he asked, a sad tone peeked from his voice. Jack nodded again. Jack turned around and gave Wallace a smile that was so out of place it frightened him.

"It's funny, you know…." Jack trailed. "I never felt as if anything was missing….never fathomed about what love could even be…before Eve came to Halloween Town. And then I just had to see her once….feel her scent on the breeze and then I wouldn't be able to help but feel as though I needed to be with her at all times." Wallace looked at Jack sadly, perhaps not realizing the gravity and realness of the situation until that moment. Jack brushed back his hair unknowingly and sighed.

"I'm so lost….how am I supposed to win her back? What even am I?" He breathed. He made his way to the fountain that adorned one of the many gardens on the grounds of his family home. He peered inside and glance at his reflection. Raising a hand to his face, he felt his skin gingerly.

"Is this….is this really me?" he asked, so used to the face a skeleton that he was almost missing it. Wallace walked over and once again placed his hand upon Jack's shoulder.

"I think there is something I should show you."

oOo

Wallace led Jack into the ridiculously huge attic, coughing from the dust as he did so. Fresh spider webs as well as old, dusty cob webs littered the ceiling. Discolored trunks and old coat racks dotted the floors, as well as an old pram, two dusty chairs, which looked to have been very lavish at one point, a number of old picture frames big and small, their contents turned towards the walls and boxes upon boxes. Jack looked into the dark corners of the room and saw spiders and dust and darkness and couldn't help feeling reminded of home, at which he smiled ever so slightly.

"Over here." Wallace called gently. Jack turned and saw he was standing next to one of the old trunks, this one a faded purple color with black trimming. Upon closer inspection Jack noticed tiny blue embroidered roses dotted the chest making it quite a charming piece indeed. Jack grinned; he knew right away whose this was.

"Eve." Jack said with admiration in his voice. Wallace nodded.

"My grandfather….treasured this chest so very much. He kept it safe and asked the same of me…." Wallace grinned. "I would even catch him looking through it on some cold night. He never stopped missing his sister." Wallace finished sadly. Jack fell to his knees and gently placed his hand upon the chest, feeling the silk fabric of the roses over his fingers. Suddenly Jack felt unsettled; the room seemed to tilt slightly. Then, all at once, light flashed into his mind, he saw Eve, running from him, grinning, giggling; a light gray chiffon dress caressed her body. The sun was setting….or rising? The dim, misty light washed over fields, wheat…a meadow. Golden light fell over Eve's body, accentuating each curve…

Jack…..Jack…..

"Jack!" Wallace called out. Jack gasped sharply. He felt his back to the hard wood floor.

"Ahhhhh…..wha-? What happened?" he choked. Wallace lifted him up.

"I don't know, one minute you were examining the chest, the next you swayed and fell unconscious on the floor." Wallace said as he brushed the dust from Jack's clothes. Jack groaned.

"I saw Eve…she was happy, running, or playing. She was dressed in something I didn't recognize on her before. I-I don't know…" Jack muttered. Wallace frowned.

"Sounds like a flashback from your past life….I think…I mean, what else could it be?" Wallace said, practically thinking out loud. Jack stood up and patted down his pant legs. He once again approached the chest. Suddenly Wallace stepped in his way.

"I think maybe I should?" he offered. Jack nodded. Wallace gently unhinged the chest and lifted the lid to reveal a plethora of old letters, pictures, dried flowers, lacey cloth of black, gray, and light blue, books, and what looked to be an old dinner jacket about Jack's size. Wallace reached into the chest and seemed to pull from nowhere an old, black leather journal with the name Evelyn Anne Hallows embroidered into the cover.

"I think that this may be able to help you win her back Jack. My grandfather used to say it helped him feel close to his sister, although sometimes he would stop reading it all together for great lengths of time…when I would ask he would just say, 'Shouldn't have seen that, shouldn't have seen that.'" Wallace noted his face thoughtful. He hesitantly handed Jack the book and when nothing happened both men sighed.

"This journal is Eve's past….your past too. Do you think you're ready to find out who you both were?" Wallace asked seriously. Jack eyed the book without blinking and then turned to Wallace with a look of fright on his face.

"I'm ready."