Elle.

When Jude’s face emerged from behind the door I nearly fell into him. His stunned arms wrapped around my waist and he kissed the top of my head. We stood embraced for a short time before he pulled away to kiss me.

“Elle! How did find out where I live?” His face held slight confusion before I laughed.

“Apparently Caroline isn’t smart enough to not put your address in the phone book.” Jude smiled before leaning down to kiss me again. “And Ryan was kind enough to drop me off after we took Reni to the airport.”

The look didn’t completely leave his face as a million questions swarmed his brain. All thoughts of the subject quickly fled the scene as a voice called from another room in the house. “Jude! Who’s that at the door?”

“Shit.” Jude mumbled as he turned from the door way. “It’s a friend from Topanga…E…than Lovett.” He shook his head before kissing my head and signaling to ‘wait a second’ as he walked off.

I could hear a faint conversation of “Who’s ‘Ethan Lovett?” and Jude replying with “I told you. A friend from my old school. We’re gonna go…out. I’ll be back before curfew.” Caroline didn’t have the chance to reply before Jude was back at my side.

“Ethan? Are you cheating on my Jude?” I gave him a sly smile and he laughed. “So, what are we going to do? Since Ryan has ‘my’ car and you don’t have one of your own…”

“We could go to the park? It’s only a few blocks over.” Jude offered and took my hand.

I smiled and nodded. “Yeah, that sounds nice.”

-

The grass I plucked between my fingers was vibrant green and the sky was a pale and almost gloomy blue. I laid beside Jude who had his eyes closed, absorbing the calm air. Our fingers were intertwined and I thought “Maybe this is what I want my future to be. Maybe I don’t want to go to college and maybe I don’t want to get a ‘real’ job and grow up. Why can’t I just have a peaceful life with Jude?”

Then reality hits.

“Jude? Jude Carrigan I swear to God if that’s you, you’re a dead boy!” From a side walk Caroline’s shrill voice called.

We both sat up in unison, hands still locked together. Jude tugged me up and began to stop towards his foster mother. I couldn’t help but picture the ways this could go down, all of them ending badly might I add.

“What are you doing here with her?” Caroline glared her eyes and pouted her lips. Her hand was gripping a dog leash with a Labradoodle attached at the end, something they must have gotten since moving to L.A. And it’s constant yipping wasn’t adding any good to the situation.

Jude pulled me close to his side and began to frantically yell at Caroline. “I am here with my girlfriend because I haven’t seen her in months, thanks to you, and she came down here and found me. I don’t know why you don’t like her. Can’t get it through your thick skull that I love her and you aren’t going to stop me?” Her stunned face reflected mine as Jude continued. “Maybe it’s because there isn’t enough room in your petty heart to love someone.”

By this time Jude was already walking the opposite way we had come toward a small pond, which ended up being a good thing since Caroline went into a screaming tyrant but in the direction of their house instead.

As Jude mumbled hateful things under his breath I tried to make some kind of logical reason for all of this. But came up short.

“I swear why can‘t she just let me be happy? Why kind of sick enjoyment does she get from ruining my life?” He shook his head and dropped my hand. “I have to get out of here Elle. Once and for all.”

“Jude, you can’t just keep running from your problems! They‘ll follow you wherever you go.”

It seemed to all click then. I’d been hiding from my own problems and wrapping my self up in a world that revolved around Jude. It wasn’t me against high school, it wasn’t even me versus the world. This was what life is all about, problems, and trying to just find a way to deal with them. You can’t fight outside forces. There isn’t a perfect cure and there is no good way out of it.

When I looked back up at the boy I smiled and kissed his cheek. It seemed like he hadn’t had the same epiphany as me but was closer to understanding the problem.

“I don’t know what I would do without you, Elle.” Jude whispered into my hair as he slipped his arms around me.

I laughed light-heartedly and wished I could live in that moment forever.