Wouldn't It Be Nice To Wake Up With You

We arrived at the building complex just in time to see her loading the Civic up with luggage. Patrick practically threw himself out of the car and towards her. I took a little more time to make sure I unbuckled, closed his and my door, and locked the car. I already could hear Patrick and Jen arguing as she ran up the stairs to get more bags of who knows what. I leaned against their car and waited for her to walk back down. Andy was already inside the Civ.

"Andrew, care to explain?"I asked.

"The cold winter's day bugs me," he defended.

"You should eat more protein and get some meat and fat on you!" I retorted.

"I wouldn't be a vegan then, would I?" he snapped back.

"Touche, you're good Hurley," I smirked, turning to face the building.

"No, you're just not good at it at all..." he mumbled and rolled the window up to keep the wind out of his face.

You know how regular couples with relationship problems, extreme as they get, have the two yelling and saying things they don't want to say or wished they could take back later? Well, those two were at that level, but this is Jenny and Patrick I'm talking about. There wasn't enough yelling and there were a lot of pauses inbetween for thinking time. Winnie the Pooh could have sat down at his Thinking Spot and thought out a novel the way these two "were at it."

"I'm not ready for this kind of relationship, Patrick," I barely heard her say it as she opened the main doors and walked to the car Andy and I infested, "Most of it is that I'm scared of marriage, but--"

"No, no, it's alright.. I-- I understand that you're not positive on us being the way we are," 'Trick muttered somberly to her.

"Booo, that's not how you're suppose to do it." I frowned at Patrick, "You get in there, rub the love factor into the arguement and for God's sakes, it's an arguement about your marriage, put some umph into your speech! UMPH!!!!"

They were all looking at me with those crazy, "what are you talking about" faces. I rolled my eyes in disbelief and walked up next to Jen. I grabbed her hand and looked at Patrick.

"Something like this..." I instructed him to watch. I looked up to her weary face, "Jenny, I love you with my whole heart---" He sighed and pushed me to the side and took her hand in his gently.

"Jenny, look at me," he said seriously, yet softly, "I want you to stay with me for the rest of my life. I love you, why can't you understand that? Marriage was suppose to bring us together, strengthen our bond as one. I've let you do whatever you wanted to, but this was all I asked of you. Why are you so afraid now? Why are you running away?"

Her face glanced at me; my heart skipped a beat in shock. I knew that face. It was the "because I love him " face. The "I want to be with him more than you " face that I had wished so many times she had forgotten how to make. She looked at Patrick and bit her lip in reluctance. No one ever wants to hurt Stump in any way. He was too good for heartbreak. I always wished him to find the right girl, but it seemed like everytime he found her, she would come running in my direction. He always felt used. Now that Jen and him even got this far, I tried pushing her far from my direction; moved across the country, barely mentioned her when she wasn't on tour, and stayed with Ashlee. However, the skip in my heartbeats could say otherwise. My logic told me I was suprise she felt that way, the rest of me had hoped she still felt that way.

"Patrick, I'm not good with words, like you are, but marriage is a big thing for me. We're only two years apart, but maybe you're ready for this life. I think about life on the road and... what if we want kids too? How will that make you feel if I stayed in Chicago while you were always on the road? I'd miss you and get paranoid for irrational reasons. Besides, after I think of the future, I can see you, but I can't see this going farther than now."

Jen leaned in and gave him a kiss. Patrick didn't want it to stop, but too soon did she pull away from him. Andy got out of the car as she got in it. The engine purred to life. Her head popped out the window and looked back at us.

"I just need to see what's out there in the world, but Patrick, I hope we meet again. I love you a lot and I do hope you find that girl that's gonna make your life wild."

She drove off with that, not looking back a second time.

A groan came from Patrick in frustration and sadness, "Doesn't she understand that she is the girl that makes my life wild? Doesn't she fucking know that we are gonna meet again and I will find her? Does she understand anything she does?"

"No, she doesn't really understand anything, but that running away from you makes her feel 20 percent better, " I patted him on the shoulder, "the other 80 percent is her holding onto everything that's gone on this past year."

This holiday season just got dreary...