"Fight, flight, or screw up royally."
"They were tied together with string; no matter what happened or how far they traveled apart, they still found their way back to each other."
Two years before the legendary names: Connor Lassiter, Risa Ward, and...
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EMME
Memory
She ran from her adoptive mother's car and to the front door of the two story house. Her aunt opened the door and scooped Emme up and into her arms. Her aunt smiled brightly and walked out to Emme's parents car.
"Hey, Emmy!" Her aunt said with a full load of cheer. Little 8 year old Emme just giggled excitedly.
"Where should we put our stuff?" Emme's mom asked while holding a few bags.
"Just into the first room on the left up the stairs," her aunt directed with a point of the finger. She tickled Emme's belly and the girl let out a series of giggles and random words that have no meaning.
Later that night, after Emme's parents and sister had gone to sleep, the little girl crept downstairs with a blanket in hand.
"I had a nightmare," Emme frowned with tears in her eyes. Her aunt sat on the couch, a drink in hand that Emme didn't know was alcohol. The woman with auburn hair smiled warmly and patted at the spot on the sofa next to her. Emme went over without hesitation.
"What was it about?" Her aunt asked with a small smile.
"Everyone left me. I was all alone."
Her aunt grasped the girl's small hand.
"Well, I know one thing. I'll never leave you. I will always be here for you."
End of memory.
——
"Emme? Is that you?"
"Hey, Auntie."
——
Her aunt had her sit down on the sofa that she remembered from so long ago. Emme heard the sound of a car starting and driving off. There was a pinch in her heart but she had to ignore it.
"What happened? Why are you here?" The woman asked with concern. She had definitely aged since her last visit when she was eight. The house seemed to have lost its warmth. Her smile was now faded of kindness and looked too forced.
Emme didn't quite know where to start. Should she ease into it? Or should she just get straight to the point?
"Emme?"
Straight to the point it is.
"Audrey and Paul signed me to be unwound," Emme said without meeting her aunt's eyes. She didn't want to see the judgment or pity or whatever emotion was held in them.
There was silence. And it was killing Emme.
"I will help you," the woman with auburn hair whispered. "I won't leave you alone."
Emme looked up and a small smile crept on her face. "Thank you."
——
Her aunt didn't ask why Emme was sent to be unwound. The woman offered to make food but she isn't hungry.
"How did you make it this far all by yourself?" Her aunt asked before taking a sip of her Earl Gray tea.
Emme couldn't help but smile. She glanced from her cup to her aunt. "Actually, I wasn't alone. I met someone who, I know it sounds dramatic, but basically saved my life." Emme wasn't going to explain the situation just now. She was going to leave it up to her aunt's imagination.
"Well, whoever this mystery person is, I would like to thank-"
There was a frantic knock at the door.
Emme's stomach dropped. Could it be? Did Brian come back?
Her aunt hurried to the front and Emme watched with hopeful eyes. But that hope was short lived. Instead of a teen boy, an older woman with a purple vest stood in the doorway. Emme let out a disappointed sigh.
"What is it, Carla?" Her aunt asked with a tinge of concern.
"I was just wondering if you'd take a look at my fridge. It's not working right and I figured you could help because you're good with that kind of stuff," the woman spoke kindly and with a small smile.
Emme watched as her aunt sighed and nodded to the woman. "Yes, of course. I'll meet you over there. Let me get my tools."
"Oh thank you, Eleanor. You're an angel."
"Anytime."
——
That night, Emme's aunt made Emme comfortable in a spare bedroom upstairs. But she couldn't sleep. Her mind was racing with a million things. Is Brian okay? How far is he now? Is Aunt Eleanor actually going to help Emme? And for how long? Emme was just so worried about everything.
But at around midnight, Emme started to drift off and she finally fell asleep.
——
ELEANOR
She sat on the couch downstairs with her nightly drink since that day happened. But this time the drink was fuller. Her niece had showed up at her door this afternoon. And now she's having a flash of deja vu.
What does she do now? She can't ensure protection for Emme. A neighbor would question why she suddenly had a child living with her. And some of her neighbors are very skeptical.
Then the idea hit her.
No, Eleanor told herself. Not again.
But there wasn't any other choice. There wasn't anywhere else to take Emme but Ohio...
