Between me and you

Chapter twenty five

Sheri Murphy
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Chapter twenty five

John sat outside sorting through his baseball cards. He flipped the pages slowly. Scoping out the pages for doubles. He'd take them to the shop and sell them. Or trade them for others he didn't have. These days all him and the guys had were high graded or expensive cards. John just won a hundred dollar card off Gage a few nights ago.

Gary the store manager was a cool guy. He'd set the ones aside he thought John would need.

John would take his triples and set them aside. For the nights the guys played poker for cards, instead of bills or coins. John would stack up on doubles that way as well. Which was good for his trip to the shop. They played for cards every once in awhile when one or two of the guys was running low on funds.

While he sorted and listened to his music. He saw someone on the other side of the fence. The house had been empty for around a year now. John could tell it was a women. He could smell her perfume in the wind. He could hear hushed voices. He turned his music down for a second to see if he could hear what they said.

"Oh! I'm sorry! Did we disturb you?" The woman asked. Looking over the fence.

"Umm! No not really." John said, standing up and walking over to the fence. "I just knew the guy that lived here. Told him I'd watch the place for him."

The women was blonde with bright stunning beautiful blue eyes. A smile that could make the clouds part. Her perfume was nice and subtle but pleasing to the nose.

"Okay! Well, I'm the potential buyer. My names Hannah. Nice to meet you." She said,  extending her hand over the fence to shake his hand.

"John! My names John. Nice to meet you too." He said, "Well, it's a nice neighborhood if you do choose to buy it. It's quiet but close to most of all the stores you'd need."

"Well that's nice to know." She stepped away from the fence. So John could see her in her entirety. "Would you like to come over here? You know help fill in what the Realtor may have forgotten. She's not here right now. She just left. I'm all by myself."

"Sure!" John said, making his way around the fence. John showed her around the place. Told her all about its history and the previous owners. After they spoke about how nice it was. They sat down to a cup of coffee on his front porch.

As John once again sat outside and sorted his cards. It's hard to believe that that memory was two years ago. His eyes still welled at up at the thought of her.

Hannah and John had became friends pretty fast. They talked for a few months over the fence. Back and forth they'd comment on each others music or whatever else they'd be doing. Before long without the knowledge of his parents or anyone else for that matter. They had entered into a union of sorts. He liked to hope she felt more for him then just what she expressed in the bedroom.

He remembers the night it started, fondly. John went to play cards at Dakotas house with Duke and Brian. The rest of the gang was there as well. They started out playing hearts. But by the end of the night they ended playing poker.

John did pretty well, he was feeling good about himself. It was getting late, so he walked home. It only took him about thirty minutes.

When he reached his front porch, he could see the light was on. A dark figure sat in the corner. He got his keys out and ready to open the door. Figuring it was just his grandfather on the porch. He'd say goodnight and go to bed.

Once he got closer to the steps he could smell her perfume.

"Howdy stranger." She said, as he walked up onto his porch.

"Oh! Hi!" He said, taking a step backwards to look at her. He sat down on a chair across from her. "What's up? Whats going on? Something wrong?"

"No! Just wanted to see you I guess." She said.

They spoke the rest of the night on the porch. John didn't know what it was. But something within those conversations on the porch seemed to change both of their perspectives. He didn't know if it was the way she smiled in the moonlight glow. Or how her eyes lit up at the sunset. Or the conversations themselves. But for the next two years he spent a lot of time with her.

His age didn't seem to bother her, nor him. He was seventeen when they met and now he's nineteen. She is 23 now so it's not too far off. He's only four years younger than her.

Right now she's recovering in a mental institution. John had noticed as time went on that she seemed to be getting more depressed lately. She started off slowly. Not wanting to go on their usual routine walks. Just wanted to stay in the house. Than it escalated to not wanting to go to the store. He'd have to go for her. Which he didn't mind doing. But when he came over one day and saw her sobbing on the floor, because she ran out of milk. And wouldn't go to the store to get her some. Is when he started to get worried. She got more jumpy. Even clingy when he was away too long.

He tried talking to her. Tried to get her to tell him what was wrong. She refused to say anything. Just that she wasn't feeling well. He came home from work one day and she was hanging by the ceiling fan. Still standing on the chair.

Everything within his soul wanted to panic. However, he didn't. He slowly walked into the kitchen. Grabbed a garbage bag and chair. Walked up to were she stood with tears streaming down her face. And said, just give me one second before you step off that chair please. She didn't say anything. She just cried harder. He placed the chair next to hers. Took the garbage bad and tied the end into a loop. Reached up and tied it to the fan next to hers. Untied her rope and left it wrapped around the top. This way of she didn't feel the slack but would fall to the ground if she tried. Than stuck his head through the loop in the garbage bag. He looked her right in the eyes and grabbed her chin. He than kissed her lips lightly.

"Why you wanna do this to me honey?" He asked.

When she didn't answer. He said, "You know how special you are to me? You know how I would feel if you did this? You know how you brighten my day? You know how appreciated you are? You know how bad my heart hurts to see you this way?"

When she gasped at the garbage bag around his own neck. He knew she wasn't ready to do this. His own scene of demise in front of her face sparked an emotion.

She sobbed again and fell into his arms. He stepped her off of the chair and for the rest of the night they spoke about what her issue was. At the end of the night for his sake she said, she'd seek help.

She's doing great in there right now. And he had too admit that was the scariest moment of his life by far.

Seems she had ran into a family member. A distant family member, but a family member all the same. Of one of her old boyfriends. Seems he had tormented and stalked her. She lost everything and everyone she'd ever had. The thought of them finding her again. Or having to go through that again. Was just too much for her. However, she's doing great right now. Shes only seen that relative twice so far. So hopefully they haven't told him they know anything about her whereabouts. John goes three days a week to see her. She can leave anytime she wants too. After her first thirty days. She's a self check in. She's just not ready yet. John has agreed that after she gets out. That he's going to move in with her. Hopefully that will be soon.

He looks forward to that day. She asked him if he was worried about living with someone who's been in a mental hospital. He keeps telling her that he doesn't think she's crazy. Her ex is. She seems to feel okay with his answer. Who wouldn't be scared to go through that again?