My Life: Congrats, You Lost Me

Chapter 31 - Old Friends

****September 18th****

"Are you doing alright, Jessie," Eliza asks cautiously. I nod and she looks at me a bit worried. "Are you sure? You don't have to help out if you aren't feeling up to it." We had just gotten the keys to the new house.

"I'm feeling just fine, Eliza," I assure her. Truth be told I felt so sick to my stomach. I had felt this way every since the house started to turn empty. 

Eliza looks at me sadly and calls for Allan. Once he's in the room Eliza looks at us both. "I have something that I needed to tell you both," she looked rather upset, her voice cracking slightly. She doesn't wait for a response, but instead presses through to what she wanted to say. "We aren't moving into the house in Franklin. Instead we're moving a bit further."

"What," Allan says bewildered. "What do you mean we aren't moving to Franklin. Where are we going to go to school?" His eyes were wide and he looked genuinely worried.

"We're moving to Columbus, not Franklin. The house in Franklin was paid higher by a different tenant. The nearest house in our price range was that far out. I'm sorry I didn't tell you before. We are still here for two more days, so you can get the chance to say goodbye to your friends. I'm so, so sorry." Eliza shakes her head and lets it hang down as she stares at her feet.

"It-its fine, Eliza," I mumble before turning on my heel and hurrying out the front door. I look behind me as I hear footsteps and I see Allan standing right behind me. "Take me to the school. If you don't, I'll-"

"I'll take you," he mumbles. He climbs into the Jeep and pulls the keys out of his pocket.

"Do you always carry those?"

"No, I grabbed them because I knew that I would have to drive you." He starts the ignition and speeds out of the driveway and down the road. It was around the end of the period before lunch that we got to the school. "I hope you know that we could get in serious trouble for you being here."

"I do, but I can't just leave and never see them again without saying a word." Before he gets the chance to say anything I'm already out of the car and on my way inside. I pull the door open just as the bell rings. "I forgot about the smell."

The school smelled like grease and sweat as soon as you walked in, mainly because of the gym being right next to the cafeteria. "Oh, the smell," Allan says, walking up behind me. "It's a good smell though." He laughs at his own joke and turns to look at the crowd of people coming down the hall.

I'm met with strange looks from many of the people emerging into the commons. There are also many who I had never seen, probably freshmen who have no clue who I am. Probably just heard dumb stories and shit. 

"Oh my God," I hear somebody squeal. "Jessie!" Soon enough I'm picked up in a huge hug from Tucker. "My God, girl, you never talked to me after you left. I thought you'd died or something." 

"I almost died, a couple times," I say, shaking my head. "But that's all history."

"What happened?" I can tell that she could see some sort of shift in my features because she quickly changes the subject. "What are you doing here? I thought you got banned from the school grounds or something."

"I, well, I am banned. I just..." I was at a loss of words. How do you just tell somebody you haven't seen in so long that you're moving almost two hours away and that you'll probably be gone for a long time?

Allan quickly picks up where my words failed. "We wanted to tell you something." 

"What is it, is something wrong?" Tucker looks at us both and he sees how nervous we must both appear to be. He looks at Allan and has an odd look on his face, "Did you get her pregnant or something?"

"What," I ask. I have to take a quick step back and I look at them both. "Why would that even come up?"

"Well, for starters, you're both crazy nervous. Another thing might be the fact that you've slept together before. Also maybe the fact that you live in the same house..." He pauses and sees how, I'm assuming, upset I look. "I'm sorry. It's just some of the things Allan's said like-" Allan punches him hard in the arm and glares at him.

"What have you been saying?"

"Nothing," he stutters. He runs a quick hand through his hair.

"He talks about you nonstop during lunch - when he's actually here, that is." I feel my face run red as a tomato and I turn to hide my face. 

"What the hell, Tuck," Allan whispers, giving him another punch.

"Sorry, she ought a know. Anyway, what did you guys want to tell me?" The funny moment was gone and now it was back to the nerves that had never really left.

"We're, um," I start, my voice shaking. "We're moving to Columbus. We came here to say goodbye. We found out earlier today."

"Oh my God..."

"I'm so sorry, Tuck," Allan says, reaching out toward his friend. "We thought we were just moving to Franklin and that I would still be here. Things just changed last minute."

Tucker was still shaking his head in disbelief as he looked between us. "Oh my God," he repeats. "I'm never going to see you guys again, am I?"

"No, no," I assure him. "You will. I'll make sure of it. You've got my number and Allan's too, and we've got your's. We'll keep in touch." A slight smile spreads across my face as I look at him. "And you'll be among the first to know if I've ended up pregnant." We all let out stifled laughs and my eyes wander around the cafeteria.

"Good to know," he laughs. "Just make sure you tell the baby daddy first." As he said this he nods to Allan and I feel my face run red. I look over at Allan and his face was even brighter than mine. A familiar face pops out at me from against the wall.

"Is that Ms. Song," I ask, pointing out the older woman walking against the wall.

"Yeah, go on over and say hi. I have to warn you though, she can't hear as well any more." I shrug and hurry over to Ms. Song. When she sees me through her thick glasses a broad, surprised, smile spreads across her face.

"Jessamine," she asks. "Is that really you?"

"Yeah, it's me," I say. 

"Oh my goodness, I've missed you so much," she laughs. She looks over at the fish bowl office and pulls my arm towards the hallway. "Let's go to the library, its quieter there." We walk down the long hall and soon enough I'm greeted with a room lined with old books. "What are you doing here, Jessie?"

"I wanted to say goodbye to my friends, or well, friend."

"Why do you need to do that?"

"I'm moving to Columbus. I know I'm not supposed to be here, but-"

"Columbus? Why are you moving so far away," she asks. I hold my hands out and look at her sadly.

"Eliza, Allan's mom, couldn't afford the house because of all the medical bills we're having to pay. Columbus had one of the few houses that was cheap enough to be within our price range."

"I'm going to miss you so much, Jessie," she takes one of my hands and looks down at my wrist. "What's happened to you, Jessamine?" I quickly pull my hand away and pull my sleeve down over my hands.

"Its nothing, Ms. Song," I turn away from her shyly and she places a soft hand on my good leg. 

"Tell me your stories, Jessie, it's been a long time since I've heard what's happened to you. The last thing I saw of you was that you were on a missing persons list," she pauses and looks me in the eye. "Now you look so much different. You look stronger, but underneath, so. Much. Weaker."

I feel my eyes well up as I pick up my head. "I wish I could've came to you sooner, I just knew I wouldn't be able to make it through the doors and-"

"Shh," she coos. "No need for apologies. Its time for stories now. Tell me yours and I'll tell you mine."