It was the vibration of his phone that woke Jeff up. With half opened eyes he reached over to grab the stupid piece of technology that interrupted his dreams. By sheer muscle memory he unlocked the screen and got to his texts. An old acquaintance had sent him an address that was down in Denver. The message signed off with a simple "favor repaid."

It would be about four hours until Jeff's mother came over. With one hour each way to Denver he would have plenty of time... if nothing went wrong of course. He never had met Annie's mother, what if she called the cops on him? Wait, what was he thinking? This is Jeff Winger, he can talk his way out of anything. But then again why was he even going? It's not like he needed to defend Annie's honor, she has proved over the years she could very well do that herself. If Britta were here she would probably say something about using Annie's mom as a surrogate blah blah blah.

With all these thoughts going through his head Jeff didn't even realize he had already got himself out of the door, into his car, and on the highway. This was so stupid, what if it made everything worse? If Annie found out would she be grateful, or pissed? Still, Jeff only gripped the wheel tighter and forced himself to keep going forward.

Jeff kept staring at the address on his phone as he walked through the suburbia that was the outskirts of Denver. The entire thing felt like it could be the backdrop for some teen dramedy. Finally he found it. The house was so Annie it hurt. It looked like it had been designed with perfect symmetry in mind. It was modest but with expensive tiling and roofing to make it all come together. He could've sworn he heard Annie say, "Money talks people!" Except instead of lecturing the study group about glitter, this time it was her childhood home.

After he rang the doorbell he had the strong urge to leave. Leaving things along was practically his life's motto. Plus, it was one of those doors that was see-through around the head section so he had to awkwardly watch as someone came to the door.

The guy who opened it definitely wasn't Annie's mother. He was far too young and a man for that matter. Somehow his face looked vaguely familiar.

"Yes?" Jeff hadn't even realized he had just been standing their silent.

"Hm? Oh yeah, I'm looking for Ms. Edison?"

"I'll get her, but I just want to let you know we aren't looking to be converted today."

"Oh, I'm not-"

"Mom! There is a missionary at the door!"

Jeff rolled his eyes at the comment. No missionary would have this perfect combination of rugged handsomeness with hair that says "I just got out of bed but I still look good." But that is not the point.

The woman that rounded the corner was tall, curly-haired, and slender. Her lips looked like they were in a constant state of being pressed into a hard line. Though she wore a lot of jewelry, the earring were clearly clip-ons; the reason for this probably was something about piercings being "whorey." She felt like the kind of woman who has a banquet for breakfast.

However, when she opened her mouth her words sounded nothing but warm, "May I help you?"

"Hi, my name is... Mr. Williams. I work at Greendale Community College." Though he lied about his name, Jeff felt compelled to start this conversation formally. Everything about this environment made him feel uptight. Yet, he couldn't risk her calling the school after this to get him fired.

Her eyes widened slightly, "Oh?"

"Yes... If I could have a moment, I would like to talk with you."

"Sorry, we are not interested in enrolling."

"It's not about enrollment." If he spoke any faster he would have cut her off.

"Well then?"

Jeff decided to approach this the exact way he would five years ago: Forcefully and relentlessly, "Ms. Annie Edison."

This time it was not so easy to conceal the shock in her eyes, "Oh God, what has she done now?"

A smile started to creep on Jeff's face, "It's quite a list."

"Listen, I am not paying for whatever damage she caused. It is not my responsibility anymore."

"Oh no, you don't have to take responsibility for anything she has done for the past few years. That's why I am here, to congratulate you."

"Excuse me?"

"You really dodged a bullet." Jeff was on a roll now, "She's out of control. Self-sufficient, smart, strong, confident, not to mention she deceived six innocent strangers into being a strong emotional support for her AND she's a good friend to them too. I mean, never in my life have I seen someone who remains selfless and loving all the while being one of the hardest working people out there. Frankly, it's disgusting."

"You need to leave." She was shooting daggers at Jeff.

"Why? I'm just reassuring you that you don't have to take responsibility for any of that. You got what you want!"

"I don't appreciate some stranger coming into my home and insulting me with no information."

A voice echoed from the other room, "Who are you talking to?" Oh no. This time it wasn't the son, it was the daughter, it was Annie. When she came to the door, it only confirmed the fear, "Jeff? What are you doing here?"

"Annie?" He was lost. His whole build up was gone, "I- um."

"This man was just berating me about you. Can you believe that?"

Annie looked from her mother to Jeff, "Jeff, you need to go."

"What are you doing with her here? What about everything you told me?"

"I just needed to talk to her. Get some things sorted."

"Here is something you need to understand, Mr. Williams," she started to move closer to Annie, "Family affairs are just that, for the family. We work out compromises. I think perhaps I know a thing or two about my daughter."

Jeff gave Annie a look. She only stared back at him. It didn't make any sense, were they a family again?

"It's not like things are changing Jeff, don't worry. I just needed some closure."

"But-"

"It's okay. I'll still come around this afternoon, alright? We can talk then."

He started to turn but her mother had to say one last thing, "I think I may know her better than you think."

There was a scoff, but this time it wasn't from Jeff.

There was no sarcasm in Annie's voice, "You missed the past five years of my life. You said yourself you didn't want to know anything about my mess. I'm here to make you understand some things. I am not here because I miss you. You don't get a part of my life now, but you do get the Annie who worked tirelessly just to make her mother happy even though it was the very same mother who made her a shell of herself. You take responsibility for the breakdown, but you do not get my recovery. I don't care that you don't want to be a part of my life anymore, I actually think its better. I do have a question though. Why did you except my call this morning? You ignored every attempt I made to reach out to you when I was in rehab! Did you get bored? Did you need someone to kick around? Maybe everyone in your life is tired of your crap and you realized that you let go of me and I'm not looking to be taken back. You just had to prove you were right."

"Did you two plan this little tag team?" she tried to make a smirk, but it only got Jeff to laugh.

"No, but whatever, tell yourself whatever you want. Jeff's right. I made a mistake in coming here." Annie turned her attention to Jeff, "Can I get a ride back home?"

"Definitely."