Heaven Help Us

The Mortician's Daughter

I walked into their studio room and spotted Jeph on the floor, gluing different things into a large book.

"Hi, Daddy," He said, not taking his eyes off of the book and his work. Batman was propped up against an easel next to him.

"Hey, Jeph. Isn't it almost time for bed?" I asked.

"It's Christmas. I can stay up late, but I'm getting tired. I can't sleep without a story, though. And Uncle Gerard and Mommy finished telling me about the Killjoys today. Will you tell me a story, Daddy?"

"Uh, well..." I almost said no, but he turned his head and looked at me over his shoulder. I couldn't refuse anything the kid asked, even if I really wanted to. "What kind of story?"

"Any kind."

"Alright, if you go get in bed, I'll come in and tell you a story."

"Okay!" He jumped up and grabbed his stuffed toy, running past me into his room.

I followed him, trying to think of a story to tell him. As I reached his room, I thought of it.

It was perfect.

I tucked him into bed, he yelled goodnight to Rain, and then I sat on the floor next to his bed.

"A lot of years ago, there was a teenager in a small-ish state miles away from here. There was a girl who liked him a lot, and he liked her, too, but they started out as just really good friends." I began.

"What was their names?" He asked, staring at me intently.

"Andrew and Scout."

"My middle name is Andrew, Daddy!" He exclaimed excitedly.

I smiled. "Yeah, it is." In the back of my mind, I wondered briefly if Sammi or anybody had ever mentioned Scout, considering their friendship.

"What happened?"

"Well, they both had big dreams...Scout wanted to be an actress, and Andrew was a singer. Somewhere along the way, Andrew fell in love with Scout. So one day, he took a chance and asked her out on a date. His heart beat super fast when he asked her, and he was so happy when she said yes. They went on their date, and Scout told Andrew that she really enjoyed his company. Andrew was excited to hear this, considering his love for her. They saw each other often; in fact, they went to the same high school. But then Andrew got handed an opportunity he just couldn't pass up. His band was getting rather popular, you see. So he left their high school in order to pursue his dream. Unfortunately, that also meant leaving Scout behind. Andrew was torn. His dream or his love? Scout saw it as he did, and he promised her that he would come back very soon."

"He just left her there?" Jeph's eyes were wide.

I looked at the wall, "Yeah, he did. And boy, did he miss her. He wrote her a song, even..."

"What does it sound like? Do you know what his song sounds like?"

I nodded. "I do know. It sounds like...well, Jeph. It sounds like..." I debated telling him about the song. "What do you think it sounds like?"

"I think it sounds like one of your songs, Daddy."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"Which one?"

He paused and thought for a moment. "Mortician's Daughter."

A small, quiet laugh escaped my lips. The corner of my mouth turned up in a small smile. "That's exactly what it sounds like. He wrote that song especially for her. He was head over heels in love with her. A few months later, he got a call that she would be coming to where he was."

"Where was he?"

"Where are we, Jeph?" I asked in response.

"Los Angeles? Hollywood? California? Is that where Andrew was, Daddy?"

"He was, in fact, residing in Hollywood, California alongside his bandmates. They were becoming much more successful. Actually, they were in the process of being signed to a record label. This, along with the news that Scout would soon be joining him in Hollywood, seemed very much like a dream come true for Andrew. And it was, for a while. He invited Scout to live with him. Together, they were pretty happy. Scout began to get roles, and Andrew began to get signed onto tours. However, this was something that strained their relationship some. She stayed in their little Hollywood home while he traveled across the nation playing shows for hundreds of screaming fans. Andrew was living his dream. Everything he'd ever wanted, he had it. Fans, love, happiness. But things started getting a little tense at home. He and Scout fought more often, and although Andrew still loved her, they decided to take a break from each other. She moved out, and he watched her slip away, out of his grasp. She didn't love him anymore. Not romantically, anyway. They'd been together so long, that of course there was a mutual love, but it was no longer that of two lovers. It was that of a past love; a friendly love now."

"That's sad..." Jeph whispered tiredly. "Is there more to the story? I hope there's more. Did they fall in love with each other again?"

"Not exactly, buddy. Andrew and Scout remained friends, but they didn't fall in love again. She told him that it was fate that they fell in love once, but they were also destined to end eventually. Andrew finally realized that she was right and he slowly moved on."

Jeph frowned, his eyes closed and Batman close to his chest. "Is there more to the story?" He asked again.

"That's for a different night, how about?"

"Okay. Love you, Daddy." He sighed sleepily and I pressed a kiss to his forehead.

"I love you, too, Jepha." I stood up quietly and left the room.

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Oh, there is definitely more to the story, Jepharee. Definitely. And next week, Andy will be back to tell you more. (Story-time-wise next week) I'm enjoying writing the next few chapters. I am, however, sad to inform you all that Heaven Help Us will be drawing to a close soon, very likely. ALSO: I changed some things about Scout's home-state, schooling, etc. And I never really paid too close attention to Scout and Andy's relationship when it was going on, so I made things up for the most part. That's because it's fiction. I love writing fiction. I can change it, I can leave it, I can add things, whatever. It's like the variable that changes in a science experiment. I don't know. I never paid attention in any science class. Like, ever. And, there's a video on the side of the story that just fits the chapter so much, if you wanna check it out. It is Andy&Scout, no I did not make it, all credit goes to it's youtube uploader. I simply borrowed it for this chapter. :)