Mystery Boy

Las Vegas to New York

"I'll see you in a few days," I said to Jacky as we stood in living room of my house.

Jacky nodded his head and looked over my shoulders, his eyes finding the ones that matched mine. I knew my dad was watching us from the kitchen and Jacky knew too. It made him entirely nervous. He was used to being with friends or alone, never watched by anyone else but me.

"Your flight leaves at eleven tomorrow, right?"

Jacky nodded again, a smile coming to his lips as he thought about the plane that would take him across the world to visit his mother. "Will you call me when you get to your mom's? I don't care what time it is."

"Late," he said, then he shook his head, "Early."

I chuckled at the fact he was trying to figure out the time zones in his head. We had talked about this the day before and figured out that we had no idea how to figure it out. "I don't care," I said, "I'll keep my cell phone on, just call me when you get to your mom's."

My dad came walking out of the kitchen with my keys in his hand. I didn't allow him to drive me to the airport since we hadn't really spoken since our argument. "Here you go," he said, "drive carefully."

I nodded my head and reached out to grab my keys. I handed them to Jacky. I felt nervous about leaving my car at the airport so Jacky offered to drive me to the airport and then bring my car back for me.

"Ready?" Jacky questioned, keeping his eyes off of my father.

I nodded. "Just let me get my bags."

Jacky followed me into my room and grabbed one of the bags that was sitting on my bed. Decklan was stretched out in his own, reading a magazine and pretending that I'd left a week ago. I didn't bother to say goodbye to him as I left the room, stopping automatically as Taite came racing down the hall at me.

"Airea," he screamed, "East and I are going to miss you!" He wrapped his arms around my waist and head-butted me in the stomach as he tried to give me a hug.

I stifled my groan and patted his back with my free hand. "I'm going to miss you, too, Taite. But I'm going to be back in three days, bud."

"Three whole days?" he asked loudly, looking up to me with wide blue eyes.

I nodded my head. "When you go to bed and wake up the next day three times, I'll be back," I told him, watching as he grinned.

"Okay," he said, "I'm going to go to bed when you leave!"

I laughed and nodded my head as he slipped his fingers into mine and followed Jacky and I into the living room. Dad grabbed ahold of him before he could follow us out to my car and climb in with us.

"See you around, Easton," I called as we passed him on our way out.

"See you, Airea," he replied as we walked out of the door.

I drove to the airport with Jacky in the passengers seat fiddling with the radio and trying to find a station that he could 'put up' with. We waited in the airport for an hour before my plane was being boarded.

"I'll see you in a couple days," I said as I stood up with Jacky.

He nodded before he leaned forward and pressed his pierced lips against mine. I reached up and tangled my fingers in the hair that stuck out from under his bandana and hat. The kiss escalated before they were calling for everyone to board the plane again.

Jacky tried to pull away as they spoke over the intercom, but I pulled him back to me. "I wish I was going with you tomorrow," I said against his lips, "I really wish I could meet your mom."

"Me too," he said, then he nodded over his shoulder toward the plane, "You have to go."

I nodded my head. "Call me," I demanded, watching as he smiled shyly and then nodded, too.

I let go of him completely and headed towards the terminal with my pass in my hands. The woman by the gate checked my things and then wished me good trip. I looked over my shoulder as I headed down towards the plane. Jacky stood there with his hands shoved in his pockets. His eyes were on me.

I lifted one hand and waved back to him. I didn't know how attached I had gotten to him until it was time to leave him, even though it was only for a few days. I didn't know what we would do when the time came for each of us to go our separate ways, whether it be for college or hopefully something to do with the boys' band that they were working so hard on.

When the boys weren't having band practice, they were talking about having band practice. I knew that they had to be going some where because with that type of effort, there was no other option.

I took my seat on the plane and fastened my seatbelt, getting ready for the flight and what would be on the outside of the plane when we landed.

I walked out of the terminal with searching eyes. This was an airport I had been in many times before. This was the place my family and I had always flown out of when we travelled for our vacations. I moved towards the baggage claim to grab my suitcase and as I did, I heard my name.

I looked to my right and my eyes landed on my mom. She was clothed in a pair of tight fitting jeans, a flowing shirt, and a jacket that I'd never seen before. I'd never seen any of her clothing before. But a smile came to my face anyways and I moved towards her automatically.

"Mom," I said as I stood in front of her, looking her over as she did the same with me.

She smiled. "You look so much older," she murmured, tears coming to her eyes.

I blinked a couple times. "You look so much different," I replied, setting my suitcase next to me and shoving my hands into my pockets. "I almost wouldn't recognize you."

Mom looked me over once more and licked her lips. "A bad different?"

I bit my lip and thought about it for a moment as I took in her changes. I moved my eyes from her tennis shoe clad feet up and when my eyes met her face, I sighed. "No," I replied, "It's definitely a good different." Her face was happy and glowing in a way that I hadn't seen since I was very young.

My mother sighed and rushed forward to wrap her arms around my shoulders. She rested her chin on my shoulder and I did the same, holding her close to me as tears sprung to my eyes.

"I missed you so much, Air," Mom murmured as she gripped a handful of my shirt, "I'm so glad you're here."

I nodded against her. "I miss you too, Mom."

We pulled apart and she grabbed my suitcase. "You ready to go? I can't wait to show you my apartment."

I nodded and motioned for her to lead the way. "I can't wait to see my room," I told her as we headed towards the front parking lot.

"Do you not like the one you have at your father's?" she asked, looping her arm over my shoulder.

I shrugged. "I don't like sharing with Ina's son," I told her, "He's so annoying."

My mom gave me a look. "You share?"

I nodded. "Yeah. With Decklan," I replied, making a disgusted face as I thought about the dirty teenage boy.

She smiled as we made our way to the parking lot. "He's the oldest, right?"

"Yeah."

Mom and I crossed the parking lot to the familiar car. Mom unlocked it and I climbed in, a smile on my face as she did the same. "What do you say about going out to dinner with Evan and I tonight?"

I froze and looked over to her, my eyes wide.

"Too soon?" she asked, starting to shake her head, "Never mind then, Honey, we can go out with Evan the next time you come to visit."

I cleared my throat. "No," I said, "It's fine. We can go to dinner with him, if you want."

My mom's face brightened. "Really?"

I nodded once and offered her a smile. "Really."

She grinned. "I'll call him when we get to the apartment," she paused for a moment then added, "He has Nash this weekend so you'll get to meet him, too."

"Is he here every weekend?" I questioned.

She shrugged. "He's around when he wants to be. He's a very quiet child so you'll barely notice him. He's a bit... eccentric. He doesn't really talk to that many people."

I was surprised. "How did Evan become a single dad?"

She chuckled at my expression and nodded her head. "Divorce."

"He was married?" I asked, tucking a piece of my blonde hair behind my ear so that it wasn't hanging in my eyes, so that I could see her better. She tucked her own hair back and glanced over to me.

"For a little while," she replied, looking at me as I pulled my feet up onto the seat and wrapped my arms around them, holding them to my chest.

"Oh," I murmured, thinking about who he could be and why he was only married for 'a little while'. I rested my head on my knees and stared at her.

She glanced over to me as she drove. When she looked into my eyes, she asked, "What?"

I bit my lip, something I did a lot, and asked, "You're not going to marry him, are you?"

I watched as her grin left her face. She then shrugged her shoulders and looked back to the road we were driving on. She glanced back to me after a few seconds. "Why?" she questioned, "Do you not want me to get married someday?"

I felt selfish but I honestly didn't want her to get married at all. So I just lifted my shoulders and let them drop. A shrug. She sighed and nodded her head once, realizing what I meant. She drove us through the city and we pulled up in front of a large building with townhouse apartments in it.

"Welcome," she greeted as we walked outside one of the doors.

I looked over the gray building. "This is your house?" I inquired, noticing that it was nicer than where I was staying with Dad but no where close to what my childhood home was like.

Mom nodded her head and shut the car off. "What do you say we go inside?" she said, already climbing out of the car. I followed her lead and grabbed my suitcase out of the back, as well as my bag. She took the heavier one from me and smiled.

We walked up the walk way and she unlocked the front door. I held my breath as we walked in. The inside was much nicer than the outside, than what I had expected. The stairs were right in front of us, the kitchen to the right, the living room to the left.

"Just one bathroom," Mom said as she flipped on the lights, "But there are only two of us."

I nodded my head. I had learned a lot since the last time I set foot in New York. I no longer wanted my own bathroom, I wasn't as selfish, and I didn't feel as though I was better than anyone else. I had definitely been humbled by my life.

"It's nice, Mom," I told her honestly as she set my suitcase next to her.

She looked over her shoulder and smiled at me. "Well, shut the door," she said with a laugh, "And I'll show you your room."

I pushed the red door shut and then nodded my head, signaling for her to lead me up the stairs. She yanked my suitcase up the carpeted stairs as I carried my bag. At the top there was a bathroom directly in front of me and a door on either side that I knew had to lead to two bedrooms.

"That one is mine," Mom said as she motioned to the left. Then she reached to the right door and grabbed onto the door handle, "This one is yours." She smiled back at me before she pushed the door open.

It wasn't very big or too small, but it was bigger than my half of the room at my dad's. There was a large bed pressed against the far wall where the window was. There was a closet across from the bed and a small dresser on the same wall as the door.

"It's not much," Mom said softly, reaching out to touch my hair, "But I pay for the place myself."

I smiled lightly and nodded my head. "Do you have a job?"

Mom nodded her head. "Just a small one at a coffee house."

I walked farther into the room and touched the soft purple blanket that was sitting on the bed. I set her bag down on it and then sat next to it, liking how comfortable the bed seemed. "It's nice," I murmured, "I like the walls." They were a deep burgundy color.

Mom reached out and touched the wall. "Is it still your favorite?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "I kind of like blue nowadays."

My mom smiled and perched her small frame on the edge of the bed. "And why is that?" she asked, pushing my hair off of my shoulder with an expression that told me she already knew the answer.

I shrugged my shoulders. "It's the color of Jacky's eyes."

My mom nodded her head. "I thought it was something like that." She ran her fingers over my cheek and I could tell that she wanted to say more. She licked her lips and asked, "What is he doing without you?"

I chuckled. "It was a difficult goodbye, but he's catching a plane tomorrow."

Mom smiled and giggled. "Really? Where?"

"Same airport. But he's heading to England," I replied, watching the shock on her face, "That's where he's from."

"England? He's actually an England native?"

I nodded my head. "London, yeah. Has the accent and everything."

My mom grinned and nudged me with her elbow. "I thought maybe his mother had just moved out there. Now I see while you like the boy so much. Accents get me every time."

I laughed but shook my head. "It's not just his accent that I like," I replied, chuckling at my mother. "I really like him for who he is."

My mom stopped and looked at me. "Really?"

I stared back at her. "What?" I asked, "I can't like someone because of their personality?" I folded my arms over my chest.

Mom shook her head. "No, that's not what I meant at all, honey, I've just never heard you talk about anyone like that before. Especially not a boy."

I licked my lips and then shrugged my shoulders. "I've never met anyone like him before."

Mom smiled and rested her head on my shoulder. "Well, he sounds wonderful from what you've told me of him."

Mom left me alone to put away my things and she went to call Evan to make arrangements for dinner. As I packed my things, I couldn't help but think about how things would be for me if Mom had won custody of me after their divorce. When I had my clothes folded and in my dresser, I stuffed everything under the bed and made my way towards the stairs, my arms crossed and my hands tucked in my armpits.

"Oh, Airea," Mom exclaimed from her spot on the couch, "There you are. Evan and Nash will be here in an hour, that gives you enough time to freshen up, right?"

I nodded and shoved my hands in my pockets. "Around six?"

She smiled and nodded her head. "Yes, around six."

I nodded too and tucked my waving hair behind my right ear. I took a deep breath and held it for a moment, then before I spoke I set it out in a quiet sigh. "I'll be ready," I said, hoping I would be mentally ready to face another change in my life.
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(: Last one for today.