Jack Part 5

When Jack awoke, he was unsure how much time had passed. There was a stinging scent in the air, one that burned the inside of his nose. His eyes faded in and out of focus, eventually merely blurring the world around him. He observed a shadow passing over him, the sensation of the sun momentarily cut off, his body cold. After a moment the shadow passed, as Jack slipped back into unconsciousness and began to dream.

The next time he awoke, it was from the sound of voice.

“Ja...ar...okay?...Jack...”

He could feel part of himself falling backwards into nothing.

“JACK.”

Jack awoke with a start, erupting into a sitting position, his breathing coming out in thick gasps. Hovering next to him was a younger woman, her amber colored hair and freckled features seemingly at odds with the intensity of her green, invasive eyes. After a moment he recognized her, and after a small amount of effort he was able to get to his feet, heading back into the parlor and grabbing the familiar bottle and glass.

“I want you to leave,” he half murmured into the empty cup. Looking outside he noticed that the shadows had shifted along the ground. By now they were tightly tucked against their sources, as he realized he had been out for a least a couple hours.

She walked over to him, gently taking the objects from his hands and setting them down on a nearby table. “I'm pretty sure that's what put you on your ass in the first place.”

Jack scowled. “I left so I could be alone, not so you could come out here and pester me.”

Her face tensed around her mouth, but he made no effort to take it back. He frowned, and then he ran his fingers through his dark hair and headed back into the kitchen. “Why are you here anyway?”

She followed him into the kitchen, making sure that there wasn't more then five feet between them. “I was worried about you. When I called you sounded distant. Then when I heard you fall I just...”

“Just what?” he scowled.

“I wanted to make sure you were okay. Who knows what would have happened if I hadn't come.”

“Does it really matter?”

She didn't offer a response, instead heading over to the table and pulling up a seat, allowing her gaze to settle somewhere outside the window. Sighing, he made his way to the cabinets, drawing each of them a cup of water from the buckets by the door before seating himself across from her. She did her best to keep her focus on the scenery outside the window, but it didn't help when she noticed him looking at her.

“What?” she responded coldly.

Jack didn't answer instantly, as he took the opportunity to shift his attention to his hands. “I told you to stay away Maddie.”

She did not respond, though her muscles tensed again as he mentioned her name.

“I’m sorry,” he almost half whispered.

Her muscles relaxed a little.

“I am sorry I have been away for so long. I’ve just been trying to sort things out. And things can be dangerous out here. You know that.”

“Is that supposed to convince me?”

“You don't understand.”

“Listen, personally I think you are just looking for a excuse, but whatever is going on, you can at least let me help. I know how hard the whole...situation...” She stopped suddenly, her face growing very hot very quickly. “has been on you. On us. But if something is wrong you have to know you don't need to handle it alone.”

“That's the thing though. I have no idea what is going on. There has been a lot of...violence...around here. Not people, but something more like a animal. It isn't normal. And so long as you are here, I have to worry about you. Can't you understand that I would be better off alone?”

“Jack,” she said tenderly, reaching for his hands. He pulled his hands under the table, her eyes moving closer to the center of the table as she left her hands where they were. “I don't know what is going on here, but when I got here you were unconscious on the floor. Now maybe that was nothing really. Maybe just the heat. But whatever the case you can't expect me to just leave.”

Jack was silent for several moments, the distance between them growing uncomfortable. The statement meant a lot to him, and it was that very thing that made him uncomfortable. He shifted uneasily in his chair, eventually pulling out his chair and heading towards the sink. Loyd sat on the counter, watching him pace.

“How am I supposed to be okay with you being around? With what happened, you can't just expect me to be able to let it go.”

“Its been six months Jack, and no, I don't expect you to let it go. I would 't want you to. You aren't the only one...who has been...hurt.” She struggled to get out the last of the sentence, a lump in her throat somehow putting pressure on her eyes. “I haven't been able to let it go either. The nightmares, I still have them almost every night.”

Jack managed to keep his eyes off of her, his focus on a spot on the floor. One of the tiles of the kitchen were cracked, and it helped to remind himself that there were things to do around the house.

“Okay...you can stay. But you need to be scarce. I can take care of myself. I don't need you worrying about me”

“Only if you stop drinking.”

Jack felt his teeth grinding against each other.

“If you want me to stop worrying then you are going to need to put that bottle away. If you do that, I will leave you alone until you decide you need me.”

Jack found himself smiling a little, but cut the motion short. Walking into the next room, he grabbed the bottle and walked over to the sink, his nostrils flaring as the scent of the whiskey wafted up to his nose, diminishing only when the last of it had escaped down the drain. There was a long silence that followed, both of them unsure how to proceed. It was Jack who acted first, moving towards the darkened front room and turning on the light. A harsh white light emanated from the ceiling, Jack ignoring the pain in his eyes as he headed to a nearby closet and grabbed some sheets and pillows.

“The couch pulls out into a bed,” he called to the other room, plopping the sheets and pillows on the couch. “You can set it up when you want.”

Her face remained unmoved as she watched him walking about. Finding the interior to be much smaller than before, Jack headed outside, flinching as the familiar crack of the screen door followed him from behind.

The moment he stepped outside, the heat of the midday sun became oppressive. His mind was elsewhere, focused on memories six months old.

Inside, Maggie remained seated for several minutes, a deep sadness hitting her much harder than she had anticipated at his sudden departure. She hadn't expected him to stay around, at least not at first. She had even thought that the time apart would have dulled his absence. Yet even after seeing him for only a couple of minutes, her emotions were once again agitated as she felt all over again the months of separation, and a renewed pain, as strong as ever, for the loss that had driven them apart in the first place.