Healing
Heat
With the end of school, the summer's sweltering heat came like usual. Jenna didn't realized that there was an inground pool. She hadn't been in a pool in so long.
The heat made it tempting but Jenna felt weird about it. She decided she wouldn't go in.... all summer...no matter how hot....no matter how tempting....she WOULDN'T... but she knew that she wouldn't last.
This particular day was so horrible humid, and that made it feel like the heat was much higher than 89 degrees. The sun beat down on her through the kitchen window. She finished her muffin and was rinsing the dish when Julie came in. And Julie asked her to do the very thing that she promised her self she wouldn't do.
"No, Julie," she said. "I can't."
"Whyyy?" She whined, giving a puppy face. "Pretty please!"
"I don't have a bathing suit."
"I have an old one that'll probably fit you." She stuck out her lip before pleading Jenna again.
"I...don't know if I want to go outside today..." she wasn't lying, what with the humidity.
"But its 2:30, the peak of the days heat. It'll be cooler in a few hours when we go in."
Jenna ran out of excuses. "My scars make me paranoid." The actual reason.
"Its ok. Its not as if we're judging you, and it'll be fun." she said. Mr. J came back inside and got some water.
"Any luck, Julie?"
"Nope. She doesn't want to because of her scars." She sincerely looked compassionate.
"Jenna, you shouldn't worry. Just have fun." he said to Jenna.
"OK, fine." Jenna's willpower broke already. It was too tempting.
Jenna went up to her room and read until Julie came into her room an hour and a half later.
"It's four. We're going to go in the pool. Lets see if the bathing suit fits. She handed Jenna two. One was a halter bikini and one was a tankini.
She chose to try the tankini first. She'd prefer to wear that one.
It fit, well enough anyways. Jenna fixed her straps and went to her room to put her clothes on her bed. Julie walked in wearing a turquoise halter bikini with black flowers on it.
"Jenna, I don't know why you were so paranoid. You look great." She emphesized great. She put her hand on Jenna's shoulders and began to steer her into her room to a full-length mirror.
Jenna smiled a little bit but then caught sight of a thick pink scar the lined her forearm and then the various lines that were swooping around one shoulder, looking like abstract art.
They grabbed a bunch of towels from the hall closet and went outside to the pool. Mr. J and Lisa already sat on one side of the pool and Kyle was swimming around on a blow-up dolphin. Jenna and Julie went in right away, feeling an immediate cold rush. Jenna came up laughing at Julie's flabbergasted expression. She didn't expect such a cold temperature.
Mr. J's POV
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jenna seemed more relaxed after a while. She was clearly having fun. When they first went in, she was laughing maniacally already. Julie swam under water to Kyle while he was distracted by something else and tipped him off the dolphin.
Later on, he coaxed the two of them into Marco Polo.
"Marco!" Julie shouted.
"Polo." Jenna and Kyle replied.
I wonder why its called Marco Polo.
Jenna backed into a wall near me and lisa while evading Julie. She put her hand on the cement wall and I saw a thick scar extending from her wrist to her elbow and a few thinner ones stretched over her shoulder, each ending and beginning in a different place. She stifled a giggle when Julie blindly walked into the adjacent wall.
Then Julie was swiping at Kyle, trying to catch him. He's not graceful and loudly moved through the water, giving her the ability to follow him closely.
She caught him soon enough and Jenna slid away in the water, responding to each "Marco" faithfully. At about seven, I told them it was time to get out. It was past dinner time, even though they didn't notice. When Jenna dried off, I noticed more scars on her legs. More than I figured there would be.
The heat made it tempting but Jenna felt weird about it. She decided she wouldn't go in.... all summer...no matter how hot....no matter how tempting....she WOULDN'T... but she knew that she wouldn't last.
This particular day was so horrible humid, and that made it feel like the heat was much higher than 89 degrees. The sun beat down on her through the kitchen window. She finished her muffin and was rinsing the dish when Julie came in. And Julie asked her to do the very thing that she promised her self she wouldn't do.
"No, Julie," she said. "I can't."
"Whyyy?" She whined, giving a puppy face. "Pretty please!"
"I don't have a bathing suit."
"I have an old one that'll probably fit you." She stuck out her lip before pleading Jenna again.
"I...don't know if I want to go outside today..." she wasn't lying, what with the humidity.
"But its 2:30, the peak of the days heat. It'll be cooler in a few hours when we go in."
Jenna ran out of excuses. "My scars make me paranoid." The actual reason.
"Its ok. Its not as if we're judging you, and it'll be fun." she said. Mr. J came back inside and got some water.
"Any luck, Julie?"
"Nope. She doesn't want to because of her scars." She sincerely looked compassionate.
"Jenna, you shouldn't worry. Just have fun." he said to Jenna.
"OK, fine." Jenna's willpower broke already. It was too tempting.
Jenna went up to her room and read until Julie came into her room an hour and a half later.
"It's four. We're going to go in the pool. Lets see if the bathing suit fits. She handed Jenna two. One was a halter bikini and one was a tankini.
She chose to try the tankini first. She'd prefer to wear that one.
It fit, well enough anyways. Jenna fixed her straps and went to her room to put her clothes on her bed. Julie walked in wearing a turquoise halter bikini with black flowers on it.
"Jenna, I don't know why you were so paranoid. You look great." She emphesized great. She put her hand on Jenna's shoulders and began to steer her into her room to a full-length mirror.
Jenna smiled a little bit but then caught sight of a thick pink scar the lined her forearm and then the various lines that were swooping around one shoulder, looking like abstract art.
They grabbed a bunch of towels from the hall closet and went outside to the pool. Mr. J and Lisa already sat on one side of the pool and Kyle was swimming around on a blow-up dolphin. Jenna and Julie went in right away, feeling an immediate cold rush. Jenna came up laughing at Julie's flabbergasted expression. She didn't expect such a cold temperature.
Mr. J's POV
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jenna seemed more relaxed after a while. She was clearly having fun. When they first went in, she was laughing maniacally already. Julie swam under water to Kyle while he was distracted by something else and tipped him off the dolphin.
Later on, he coaxed the two of them into Marco Polo.
"Marco!" Julie shouted.
"Polo." Jenna and Kyle replied.
I wonder why its called Marco Polo.
Jenna backed into a wall near me and lisa while evading Julie. She put her hand on the cement wall and I saw a thick scar extending from her wrist to her elbow and a few thinner ones stretched over her shoulder, each ending and beginning in a different place. She stifled a giggle when Julie blindly walked into the adjacent wall.
Then Julie was swiping at Kyle, trying to catch him. He's not graceful and loudly moved through the water, giving her the ability to follow him closely.
She caught him soon enough and Jenna slid away in the water, responding to each "Marco" faithfully. At about seven, I told them it was time to get out. It was past dinner time, even though they didn't notice. When Jenna dried off, I noticed more scars on her legs. More than I figured there would be.