Chapter 655: 0400

Sunday, March 12th, Early Morning

(Seaview)

He rode hard from Beaulieu in the near dawn darkness. As the sun soon rose over the Atlantic, the sky took a bluish purple hew. Finally, he arrived at Seaview and put his bike up. Gareth looked over his mom's estate before finding the side door he snuck out of earlier.

Once inside, Gareth removed his shoes not to make a sound. He crept through the halls to the stairs. What seemed like a lifetime ago, Gareth moved here from Baltimore with his mom when she took a job at the hospital. Soon after moving here, Gareth met the Terrible Three, then known as Sassy, Keni, and LK. Now eleven years later, that friendship ended, and Gareth ended it.

Gareth found his room and changed out of his clothes. He crawled into bed and looked at the ceiling. Gareth remembered seeing sassy, Sawyer's childhood nickname, for the first time. Even at a young age, Sawyer captivated him. To his young eyes, she looked like an angel.

They grew up together, and Sassy became Sawyer. Their lives changed, but he never stopped seeing her as that angel. But show how Sawyer saw him as no more than a friend. Her friend, Gar, but she couldn't stop seeing him as more. Finally, he couldn't take it any longer, ending their friendship. That happened after he got into a fight with Jackin to protect Sawyer. LK freaked out, and the world crashed around him.

They say that the heart wants what it wants, and his heart wants Sawyer. She didn't want him; unrequited love was the worst. It hurt, and he couldn't take any more pain. What sucked, even more was when his dad left, it was Sawyer that sat with him. Now he was alone again. Gareth laid his head down, exhaustion took over, and he fell into a fitful sleep.

(Rerun's Bar and Grill)

After everything was secure, Rerun ensured the floors were mopped, and the chairs and stools were up. All the unnecessary lights were off, and all the bottles were secured. Rerun looked at the mirror behind the bar and sighed.

With a nod of his head, he went to the stairs that led to his apartment. He left the bar behind him and climbed the single flight of stairs. He got to the landing where his apartment was and unlocked the door. Locking the door behind him, he went to his son's bedroom.

Eric was asleep as Rerun watched from the door. The young boy took deep breaths of someone sleeping. Rerun wondered if he was losing time with Eric. He walked into his son's room and kissed his forehead.

"Te amo hijo mio," Rerun said.

He left Eric's room and went to their tiny bathroom. Rerun stripped out of his work clothes. He ran the shower and washed up from the day. Once he finished, he dressed in his pajamas and went to his and Mina's modest bedroom.

Rerun looked at Mina sleeping and smiled. He crossed the small room and climbed into bed. He got comfortable cuddling up to his wife. Rerun took in her scent as he felt her warmth against him.

"Te amo mi amada," Rerun whispered.

With a content smile, Rerun drifted off to sleep.

(Sheridan Residence)

The alarms broke through the room's darkness; her arm reached out from under the covers and silenced the alarm. She threw the covers off herself and stared at the dark ceiling. Eilish Sheridan sighed heavily, knowing it was Sunday, which meant she was opening her mom's cafe, "The Fire and Ice Cafe." It was Liles's day off today, as well.

Eilish rolled over and sat up; she rubbed her face and looked over to her desk. Her books were spread out for her college classes; she was in her junior year at UNC Wilmington. Eilish moved her head a bit to see her clothes from last night; all she could think was that she had only about three hours of sleep.

Finally, she got up and went to the bathroom she shared with her mom. After taking a hot shower to clean the cobwebs, she returned to her room with a towel wrapped around her body and one around her blonde hair. Pulling her hair towel off, she brushed her hair out, then pulled it into a ponytail. Going to her dresser, she pulled out clothes for her day at work; they were meant to be comfortable. Eilish changed her clothes and looked in the mirror before pulling on her Fire and Ice Cafe polo shirt.

Slipping on her sneakers, Eilish left her room for the kitchen. She made herself a cup of coffee and drank it down quickly. Eilish grabbed her coat and left the modest house. Eilish got into her car, leaned back in the seat, and closed her eyes. Eilish took several deep breaths before straightening and starting the car's engine. As the engine warmed up, Eilish looked over the lawns and trees still suffering from the unusually cold weather. Eilish yawned and felt the warm air come out of the car vents, which started to warm the car cab. Finally, Eilish put the car in gear, pulled out, and headed towards the Fire and Ice Cafe.

(The Friendly Knight Diner)

Ellie pushed open the door, half walked, half staggered to the counter. Taking a seat, she looked up at the waitress and sighed. Ellie stretched and yawned.

"That bad, Ellie?" the waitress asked.

"Long day, Marsha," Ellie said.

"Do you want your usual?" Marsha asked.

"Yeah, sure, my usual," Ellie said.

Marsha nodded, walked away, and placed the order; she returned to Ellie with a cup of coffee; Ellie stirred it, not adding anything, but removed the spoon and took a long pull. She looked at Marsha, sighed, and put down her empty mug.

"Rough night?" Marsha asked.

"As I said before, long," Ellie said.

"What are you working on?" Marsha asked.

"An online piece, hoping to have it finished in the next two weeks," Ellie said.

"Why that?" Marsha asked.

"I want to return to New York," Ellie said.

"Why?" Marsha asked.

"Unfinished business," Ellie said.

"That's never good," Marsha said.

"No, it's not," Ellie said.

"Any unfinished business here?" Marsha asked.

"After this piece, no," Ellie said.

"More coffee?" Marsha asked.

"Sure," Ellie said.

Marsha topped off her coffee, then wandered off. She returned with Ellie's food, which Ellie took and ate.