John
John sat in his car, his head on the steering wheel, thinking about the past. He felt guilt over something that happened long ago, he always kept thinking about it, it kept him awake at night. Brandy didn't want to be reminded of it, but she was the only one that John could talk about it with.
"I should've been there, i should have been in that fucking house, she should've left me, but she didn't... And then i left both of them." Out of anger, John hits the steering wheel several times, before composing himself. He lets out a sigh.
"I wonder what she felt for all those years, i hope that she's doing okay, time will tell i guess. I wonder where could Mia be? I doubt she stayed around here, i certainly didn't." He started up the car and began driving home.
Brandy's POV
"Was not expecting to see John again, i wonder as to what exactly happend with his wife, well there will be time to catch up and talk about it and more... I wish i didn't abandon him and Mia, i guess we all just kinda went our separate ways, but still... We needed eachother, i guess we didn't see it like that back then, i never wanted to be reminded of what happened, but is it good to see John again, i missed him way more than i could possibly imagine. I hope i don't mess it up.
John's apartment
John gets out of his car, still thinking about Brandy and what happened. He heads to his apartment and unlocks the door. He is immediately hugged by a child. They were also a husky and had an eyepatch on his right eye.
"Hey Max, thanks for holding down the fort while i was gone." John hugged Max back.
"It's not difficult dad, just waiting around and playing. I'm a big boy now." Max said cheerfully.
"Yes you are. I'm proud of you, don't you ever forget that."
"I won't." Max said with a smile.
"Anyways enough talking, the reason why i even went to the store-"
"ICE CREAM!" Max yelled out.
"Inside voice, but yes, ice cream!"
They went to the kitchen and put away all groceries and were ready to eat their oh so beloved, vanilla ice cream, but then John's phone starts ringing. He looks at it.
"Unknown number huh... Probably Brandy." He thought to himself. "I need to take this, be right back." John said to Max.
John goes to another room and answers the phone.
"Hello."
"Well you sure are not boring in answering the phone, aren't you?"
"I was making sure i got the right number, it certainly hasn't been years since i thought what your number might be."
"Yeah, anyways you caught me just when i arrived home."
"Lucky me. Anyways about us meeting up, when are you free?"
"Lemme check real quick."
"Take your time."
John checks his work schedule. "Can you do Saturday?"
"Yeah no problem."
"And?"
"What?"
"Aren't you forgetting something?"
"Forgetting what?"
There was a silence from John.
"Where we are supposed to meet."
"Oh, you really couldn't just say that?"
"Well i didn't know your age is affecting your memory that much."
"Haha, funny."
"Well you always told me i was a comedian."
"Sarcasm John. Sarcasm."
"Yeah, yeah, so where are we meeting up?"
"At my-" Brandy thought for a second.
"Hello?"
Silence
"Heeelllooooooo?"
Brandy snaps out of her thoughts.
"Oh yeah sorry about that, we can meet up at my house."
"Moving on up in the world, got a house. What's the address?"
Brandy sends John the address.
"Okay, i got it. Oh uh considering it will be saturday, there will be an extra guest. If that's okay?"
"You have a kid?"
"How in the hell did you figure that out?"
"I wonder who is also not busy on a saturday and as you said yourself 'You know how life is... Never a straight road anywhere.' "
"Wow... You should have become a detective."
"Should've, would've, could've."
"Yeah, anyways i gotta go and eat ice cream, bye."
"Ice cream? Ah whatever, bye. See you on saturday."
"Cya." John hangs up the phone and save Brandy's number as 'Whiskey - Brandy'.
He gets back to the kitchen.
"You haven't started eating yet?"
"I was waiting for you."
"Thank you son, very nice of you to do that."
"I get it from you."
John chuckles a bit and starts eating the ice cream.
"Who called you, dad?" Max asked.
"An old friend, on saturday we will go to her house."
"Do i have to?"
"You know i can't leave you here for a long time, i don't want anything bad to happen to you."
"But i already can stay here alone for an hour."
"I know, but it's... Well i'm just worried i guess... Look, don't worry, she is really nice, you will like her." John tried to reassure his son.
"Okay..." His eyes were looking at the ground, his head leaned down on his hand and his face expression looked saddened.
John couldn't think of what else to say, so he kept quiet and they ate their ice cream in awkward silence.
The rest of the day was normal, he played games with his son and watched some cricket together. It was getting late.
"Hey mate, you gotta go sleep, it's getting late."
"Why does time pass so fast when you are having fun?" Max was annoyed.
"I don't know bud, i guess it will always be lifes greatest mysteries."
John tucked his son in.
"sleep tight, don't let the bedbugs bite and if you have a nightmare, you know where to find me, goodnight."
"Goodnight dad."
John goes to his bedroom and turns on the TV before he passes out.
"JOHN! MIA! AMELIA! ANYONE?!" Brandy yells out.
"Don't you say a goddamn word or his other eye gets it." Said a woman holding a knife next to Max.
"Babe just calm down, calm down." John said trying to get the woman away from Max
They were in a burning house, flames all around them. Brandy was yelling out their names in repeat. John was worried about his son. The moment she looked away from John, he leaped at her and they started struggling for the knife.
"I won't... let you... hurt him anymore."
"We'll see about that."
The woman stabs John twice in the shoulder before he knocks the knife out of her hands, she then starts strangling John. He tries to get her off of him, he starts losing consciousness before he passes out, the woman gets stab in the throat. John pushes her off him and looks to his right and sees his son.
"W- what- i- what did i do to mum?!" Max yells.
The ceiling starts falling apart and John is hit in the head. A hand reaches out and grabs him. He awakens outside to the faces of Brandy and Mia.
"What happened?! Where's Mike and Amelia?!"
"I'm going back in to get them." Brandy says.
"They're in the house?! You can't go in!" John holds Brandy as she struggles to get out of his grasp.
"NO LET ME! THEY ARE STILL IN THERE! I NEED TO GET THEM!"
"BRANDY, IF YOU GO IN THERE YOU WILL DIE, THE WHOLE DAMN HOUSE IS COLLAPSING!"
"I DON'T CARE, I NEED TO... i need to save them." Brandy says as she falls to her knees.
The three of them looking at the fire, knowing they will never see their friends again.
John wakes up sweating and breathing heavily as he gets out of bed and almost falls on the floor, he goes to the bathroom and washes his face with cold water. The commotion wakes up Max and he goes to check if his father is alright.
"DAD?!" Max yells out concerned.
"I'm alright... I'm alright..." John breaths heavily.
"It was a nightmare again?"
"Yeah, yeah it was."
"Was it the fire or the..." Max doesn't finish his sentence.
"It was both... I don't know how but it was both of the nightmares combined into one." John leaned down on the sink, his eyes wide open.
Max goes and hugs his father. John calms down and breaths normally again.
"Cmon let's go back to bed champ." John picks Max up.
"I wanna sleep with you... So that you don't get anymore nightmares." Max said as he held onto his father.
John smiles and simply says "Okay champ."