Promise Me Forever

It seemed positively illogical that a week had already gone by. How had things gotten so hectic to the point where John was leaving soon and it felt like he’d only told me yesterday? I looked over at him as he went over his list again. I never knew he was so organized. It was sort of creepy to be honest. But, nevertheless, he looked his precious list over time and time again before setting it down and looking at me. It was in that moment of eye contact I realized he wasn’t just making sure he had everything. He was making sure I did too.

“Alright, so I wrote down my mom’s number, Stephen’s number and, if you seriously can’t get a hold of either of us, I put Jobe’s down as well. He is forever on the phone. You have my number, so call me any time day or night.”

I looked over at him and gave him a smile. This was probably the sweetest thing he’d done since we got married. I suppose those girls were right, I had married an honorable man. If he stayed that way for the entire year there was a high possibility that I would end up staying with him.

“John, I promise you I’m going to be fine. It’s only for a week and I work all this week so I doubt I’ll have time to sit at home missing you. You go, have fun, party it up. I’ll still be here when you get back, I promise,” I told him. He looked over at me and smirked. Why did he have to have a cute smirk? Really?

He shuffled across the room coming to stand right in front of me. It wasn’t like him to act this nervous about being around me. In fact, as of late, he’d become quite comfortable around me. It was like he’d backtracked a few days and we’d just met. He put his finger under my chin and tilted my head slowly before pressing his lips against mine. It was sweet, until he turned the heat on and pulled me closer. His lips moved like poetry against mine, and I found it hard to not kiss back. But, as soon as it started, it was over, leaving the passion just a foggy mist across the air between us.

“What was that for?”

He shrugged nonchalantly, “just wanted to make sure you knew what you had at home so you wouldn’t go looking,” he said. “And I needed something to keep me not so sexually frustrated for a few days,” he added.

“You’re a pig,” I told him smacking his shoulder. “But it’s kind of cute,” I added with a shrug. “So, where are you guys going again?”

“Just a few cities in Cali, mostly doing a video shoot nothing too interesting.”

“You sound like you’re going to be bored out of your mind.” I told him. He didn’t look too thrilled to have that pointed out. I knew he was going to have a good time. He could pretend that he wasn’t married for a few days. He could have some time to himself to relax and that he would probably take advantage of it in a heartbeat. It was strange to think that for a week we’d be separated. “Go, you’re going to be late,” I said hearing the honk of the horn signaling the boys, and Jess, had arrived.

“I’ll call you when we get there,” he said kissing me once more before he turned to leave.

I watched the door close before it actually hit me, I was alone. For the first time since we’d been crazy and irrational and gotten married, I was alone. The new found freedom seemed foreign, in fact, I was certain it was. I decided in true female fashion, that I would spend it like any responsible person would and went to grab some ice cream.

_______________________

“No mom I haven’t changed my mind,” I huffed into the phone. She was forever calling me to see if I wanted dad to come down and move my stuff for me while John was gone. I flipped through channels as she droned on and on about how this was a mistake and how things weren’t going to work out and inevitably they’d have to come down to move me anyways. I wanted to tell her she was wrong, but I didn’t know if I’d be lying to her by saying that. I relented to biting my tongue as I found a channel that looked to be the only half way interesting thing on. It didn’t take long before I heard a subtle beeping over the phone and sat up straight with a smile on my face. “Mom, I have to go, John’s calling,” I said with joy to have a reason to hang up. I accepted the call happily and nearly sang into the phone “Hello?”

Well, someone’s happy to hear my voice,” he said. I could almost see the smug grin across his face. “I just thought I’d let you know we’re here safe and sound with no broken bones and no lost travelers although I came close to throwing Stephen out,” he said with a chuckle.

“You can’t throw your own brother out, that’s rude.”

“You haven’t heard him snore,” he pointed and I had to give him that. “So, what are you up to?”

“Getting fat from ice cream and unhealthy fast food because I’m lazy and don’t want to cook tonight,” I said letting a smile cross my face. I heard him scoff softly and giggled into the phone.

“Anna, don’t call yourself fat, you’re in no way fat,” he said seriously. “And, just so you know, I do know how to cook. You don’t have to do it all the time. I mean, I love when you cook because you cook way better than I do but I’m not going to poison you or something,” he said.

“I know, don’t worry, you’ll get your chance. I’ll get lazy after a few weeks at this job and make you cook for me,” I told him honestly. I had my bouts of desire to cook and then I had a lot of days that I really could care less about any scrap of thought that had to do with cooking or food. “So…” I trailed off my head whipping around to hear the creaking of the floor behind me. My eyes widened as I watched a shadowy figured move across the floor.

“So…what?”

I couldn’t even think to describe what I was watching. I sunk down so that I could barely see anything. I didn’t want to know what was going on but the clashing of I didn’t even know what only brought the fact that someone was there to life. I must have whimpered into the phone because I could hear John take a deep breath in like he was preparing for the worst.

“Anna, what was that?”

“I don’t know,” I whispered. I couldn’t even tell if he could hear me, and even if he could would he know that I didn’t know how to tell him someone was in the house. I tried to think of if I’d locked the door. I supposed this was my answer. Why did they have to break in the day he left for a week? “John…someone’s in the house,” I said softly. I was trying to stay as quiet as possible.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, there is someone here,” I restated hearing another clash in the background. I would have tried to get upstairs before the entered the living room but I was rather frozen in my spot.

“Stephen, call Kennedy, I need him to check on Anna,” he said.“Anna, where are you?”

“The … the living room,” I stuttered slowly.

“Hey, listen to me, my friend Kennedy is going to come over alright? He’ll take care of you,” he said. It was like he was pissed that he’d left. His voice had changed. He stuttered as he spoke and he didn’t have that happy bouncy sound in his twang. It was like he was a completely different person. I sniffled a response before the thud of a door grabbed my attention. Were they gone, if it was a they? I wondered if it was safe to go looking around to see what they’d taken. “Hey, stay put until Kenny gets there alright,” he said basically reading my mind.

“I want a fucking security guard!” I hissed into the phone leaning my head against the pillow. I didn’t even know where Kennedy lived. I could be stuck here for hours. But, apparently he lived pretty close, and before I knew it there was a knock at the front door that made me jump slamming my knee into the coffee table. Much to my surprise the boy walked in on his own accord catching me as I slammed my knee into the table.

“Are you alright?”

“Fine,” I said groaning softly. “Are you Kennedy? If you’re not please get out I really don’t want to have another heart attack,” I said softly. I heard John chuckle in the background reminding me I was still on the phone with him.

“I’m Kennedy,” he said. “Stephen told me that John wanted me to check up on you,” he explained. He didn’t know I knew all of this so I forgave him for the seemingly obvious statement. “You do know you have like twenty broken plates in there right?”

“Shit,” I groaned. I really didn’t feel like picking stuff up tonight. “John, Kennedy’s here. Whoever it was left, so I’m gonna go clean up,” I said softly. “I’ll call you later before I go to bed,” I told him.

“Anytime you want to talk Anna,” he said. “Be safe alright,” he added before he hung up leaving me with Kennedy as my entertainment.

I ran my fingers through my hair as I started towards the kitchen to see the damage. I hated this. He wasn’t lying. There were a ton of plates shattered on the floor but what caught my eye was that nothing had been taken. In fact, besides the shattered glass, everything looked to e the same as before John had departed. In the center of the clutter was a piece of paper.

“This is why plastic is my best friend. You can’t shatter plastic,” Kennedy said softly coming up behind me.

“Yea, well, I might invest in plastic now,” I said in all honesty. “Thanks for coming over, I didn’t mean for him to bother you with all this,” I told him.

“Hey, I don’t like leaving my girl anymore than John does. We just have to find a way around it all. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve gotten a call from Baylee telling me about how she was followed or something. Although, I don’t think she’s ever had her house broken into,” he said. “Where’s your broom, I’ll help you clean up,” he said.

I took it from his statement that he was in a band but I couldn’t place why I thought he looked familiar. Regardless, I started towards the closet and grabbed the broom and dustpan. I’d vacuum over it after I got the huge chunks cleaned up.

“I have a favor to ask,” I said as I started sweeping the mess up. I slowly worked towards the piece of paper until I could reach it. Then I worked the rest of it as Kennedy waited for the favor to be stated. “So, right now John is sleeping down the hall, but I kind of want him to be closer,” I said with a shrug.

“Wait, you’re married living in separate rooms? That’s fucked up,” he said.

“Well, it felt weird to sleep in the same bed jeez. Anyway mister point out the obvious a lot, will you help me move some of his stuff into the technical master bedroom? Please?”

He shrugged. “You don’t exactly have to pull my finger. I would hate for John to have to come into your room just to get some,” he said as if he talked about this stuff all the time.

“You’re as bad as he is. What the hell? Are all band guys all about sex and thinking about it and doing it? You should just have one giant orgy on the bus and call it good,” I said exasperated as he swept the remainder of the glass into the pan and then dumped it in a bag to be tossed in the trash. He grinned as he listened to my rant.

“You’re overreacting. We at least remember to use a condom ninety nine percent of the time,” he said as if that made it any better.

“You are digging John into a hole,” I pointed out to him.

“I will let whoever did this break in again,” he said.

“Don’t even joke about it,” I said giggling as I stared unfolding the paper to see what it said. “So, apparently I need to divorce John or I’ll be cursed,” I said trying to contain my laughter. Kennedy reached out for the letter as I turned away letting my laughter overtake me. I could feel the heat rise to my cheeks and in the background I heard him chuckling to himself as he set the paper down on the counter.

“Let’s move his stuff,” he said. “Led the way dear tour guide,” he said, “oh, by the way, I totally expect to be invited to your fucking anniversary party. Jeez wasn’t even invited to the wedding, what kind of friend doesn’t invite their friend to the wedding?”

“Hey, I didn’t know you until five minutes ago alright? Can I use the ‘your invite got lost in the mail excuse?”

He sighed and pouted for a second but nodded. I hoped all would be forgiven in the end as I didn’t really have much else to say except sorry. My head was still spinning from the events of the day. John leaving, my mother’s call, John’s call, the break in and now Kennedy keeping me company. How strange this new married life was and we’d only been married a week and a half. It was going to be a long year.