𝕋𝕙𝕖𝕪 ℂ𝕒𝕟'𝕥 𝕋𝕒𝕜𝕖 𝕋𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝔸𝕨𝕒𝕪 •𝕁𝔽𝕂•

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ 3 - ᴛʜᴇ ᴘʜᴏᴛᴏɢʀᴀᴘʜꜱ

December flew by and so did Christmas and New Year and we were upon January, 1964. During this while, I never had a conversation with the President of the United States again. I thought that maybe time will heal the open wounds that November 22, 1963 had left in my heart, but it still felt as raw as before. Whenever I would look at my reflection in the mirror, all I saw, staring back at me, was a reflection of a broken woman, her hollow eyes staring back at me. Crying was considered to be a healthy release, but it had become more of a habit for me now, that and the solace I found in my alcohol. At first, it started as an escape medium, but soon, I found myself depending more and more on it, like an addiction, that drains you completely dry, and mounds you around its little finger and doesn't let you go.

But, it is rightly said, that every cloud has a silver lining. Or, the darkest of the night will come to an end and there will be a morning. My morning came in the form of Sean Douglas. I could now say that November 22, 1963 wasn't a date that only stole everything from me, it also gave me something - Sean.

Flashback - November 22, 1963

I stayed sitting in a corner for a few seconds until a younger looking cop rushed to my side and kneeled down next to me.

"Ma'am? Are you all right ?" He looked at me.

I snapped my head towards him and whispered to him with trembling lips, "W-was the President hit?"

"I don't know ma'am, I don't know. It isn't confirmed yet but they're saying that the President wasn't hit however.. Mrs. Kennedy was."

I saw the same look of fear in his eyes that I had felt seconds back. He was just as scared as I was.

"What's your name, Miss?" The blond haired police officer asked me.

"Joanna.. Joanna T-Thompson.." I quivered, fear and adrenaline was pumping through me, making my body shudder immensely.

"Sean.. Sean Douglas, ma'am. You are fine, you are just in shock."  he said, trying to soothe me.

Present Date

Turtle Creek park was one of the most underrated yet beautiful places in all of Dallas. I sat on a mat by the edge of the water, my legs spread out in front of me. A picnic basket was kept next to me filled with all sorts of sandwiches, biscuits and cans of soda. I couldn't believe just how much we had already talked about, considering this was our first official date. I had told him about my parents , my distant relatives, my hobbies, my dreams and he in turn had told me how he didn't want to be a police man when he was a child but ended up doing just that. Adult life is funny that way. We talked for hours when finally hunger began to set in.

I grabbed two sandwiches from the basket, handing one to him and our cans of sodas. We sat back more comfortably, watching the birds chirping and the ducks floating over the water as we took a bite of our sandwiches. It was beautiful. Once we were done with the snacks, Sean grabbed my hand and nudged me to get into the water with him, but I shook my head. Pouting like a child, he got up from the mat and went off into the creek.

An almost permanent smile etched on my face as I watched Sean jump into the water suddenly, almost splashing me while doing so. He threw out his hand towards me but I politely declined. I had no intention of getting into that water. He jokingly frowned and then turned back, wading through the knee length water until he had reached a rock in the center of the creek. I just shook my head, watching him as I laughed.

"You're boring!" He called to me in a joking manner and turned away, slowly lowering himself against the glistening rock, watching the ripples forming on the surface of the water.