Melanie Jayne Anderson

MJA: Echoes

Being at home again was very strange for Mike. Especially after being away for so long. Not to mention the pain from his broken leg and everything that happened between him and Melanie Jayne. He never meant to get so angry at her but she does have this oblivious side to her that annoys him sometimes. She is naive and she can be self-centered at times but how can anyone be so oblivious to their surroundings? Does she even care about the relationship they are currently in? Was there even a relationship? Mike tries to see things the way Melanie Jayne would. It's hopeless. She is beyond his understanding. 

He crashes himself onto the couch and tries to take a nap. The house was too quiet. Melanie Jayne would usually help him get food and sometimes they'd sit and chat on the couch after a long day of trying to solve her so called mystery. He likes her smile and her jokes are usually not that funny but the way she laughs at them was so hilarious that it makes him laugh too. Sometimes, when she is so engrossed in something, he likes watching her blue eyes so focused as her pupils dilate. Whenever she is in that state, whatever you say to her cannot be acknowledged. She is in the "zone". Mike sometimes would make fun of her like he is trying to hail a rogue spaceship flying too far from the safe zone.

Mike was never the type to need anyone to look after him. He grew up on his own. He'd come home from school and would have to make lunch and dinner for himself. He would always try to make extra food for his mom when she comes home late from work. Sometimes, she's just too tired to eat so he would have her leftovers for breakfast the next morning. He never had time for social gatherings. He sometimes hangout with a group of boys from his class who formed a band. They'd invite him over to sing sometimes whenever he was available. That was why he had a really good singing voice. He wanted to commit to a band and just get out of there and traveled the world. It was just a dream. He never had the time to do anything when his mom got sick. He had to work and work and work.

Having someone like Melanie Jayne doting over him was a very strange experience for him. She didn't seem like she was interested in him romantically but the way she pushes herself into his life was as though she really did like him more than just someone who was working for her. When he finally realized that he liked her, he wanted it to be epic. He wanted to make an awesome first impression. She is the Melanie Jayne after all. Also, for the same reason, he needed to actually make her understand what his intentions were. She wasn't picking up on his small hints very well. She was just too oblivious. Maybe that was why she had a fallout with Victor.

Mike didn't hate Victor. He never knew the guy enough to hate him but he never knew him enough to like him either. He was always so proper with his tea and his newspaper. He is so old fashioned and seemed like a boring character from some old literature school textbook. He couldn't understand how Melanie Jayne was engaged to such a guy. She was so not.....Victor. Melanie Jayne was young at heart and she was always up for anything. Well, anything except dancing. She's not a bad dancer. Mike knew that he had fallen a little too hard for someone like Melanie Jayne in too short of a period of time. Maybe he made his move too quick. Maybe not or she wouldn't have reciprocated. He was somewhat aware that there was no way for him to be able to compete against someone like Victor because he and Melanie Jayne had an entire history together. Either ways, he somehow knew that at some point, Melanie Jayne did love him back when they kissed that night at Nicole's party by the lake.

He was fully aware that she truly cared for him that night when she was kidnapped and how she fought for him just to save his life. How could anyone live through such an experience and not be traumatized by everything they witnessed? Melanie Jayne put her life in danger just to be able to save his. The strength and courage she has truly amazed him. He would never find anyone else like her and he knew it was a fact. Losing her so quickly broke him so much that he didn't know what to do. He spent some nights crying alone in bed. He should have just kissed her more when she was with him at home. He should have just done so much more with her than just let her have his bed. He couldn't bring himself to wash the sheets because it smelled of her. He should have let her stay at the hospital with him. At least they were together. He never meant to yell at her or get angry at her because he somehow knew that she really didn't understand what was happening.

Whatever Andre said about Melanie Jayne was true and he hated to admit it. She really does care a lot about the people around her and even though she sometimes has trouble expressing how she cares, she tries to be as direct and blunt as possible. That was the beauty of Melanie Jayne. She was kind and she was generous and she makes every little moment count. Her awkwardness makes her, her. He kept the phone she gave him because he knew it was a matter of time before he needed a new one. She was right about his phone being outdated and basic and the fact that the screen cracked drove her mad. He just found it funny at how annoyed she was with his phone. Thinking about that conversation at the diner made him laugh every time. He wanted so much to go back there, to that diner when it was just him and Melanie Jayne and no one else. How they would sit and laugh and talk and had coffee together. It was as though the rest of the world didn't exist. 

Mike didn't want to reply to any of Melanie Jayne's text messages because he knew it was useless. It wasn't like she would have come running back to him. Why would she do such a thing? He had nothing for her at this point. He should have told her to stay but it was too late now. Jean sent him a text message asking how he was doing because he wasn't responding to Melanie Jayne. He replied and he turned on his tracker as instructed by Jean. He managed to tell Jean what he was going through because he felt like apart from Melanie Jayne, Jean was the only other person out here who was concerned about him.  As much as he hated to admit it, he knew that if anything happened to him, only Melanie Jayne and Jean would care about him. 

-------------------------------------------------------------

I kept thinking about all those times when Mike and I would hangout at the diner. It was so fun. We were working and laughing and nothing else mattered. Mike had this laugh unlike anything I have ever heard and I keep hearing his voice. It was as though I can hear him telling me everything is going to be ok. I can hear him calling my name. I can hear him telling me that I need to get my shit together and pull through. I can almost hear his heart beating and that usually makes me feel calm when I was going through a lot of stress. I know now that his heart isn't beating anymore and there was nothing I could do to revive it. I needed to plan and I needed to make sure I retrieved him for a proper burial. He deserves to be remembered the right way. I didn't realize that I was actually crying. Victor came by and held my hand and hugged me. He knew that no matter what I said, I was still unable to forgive myself for whatever happened to Mike. I don't think I can ever forgive myself.