Chapter 1 written by Jessica

Jessica taped up the last box and took a look around the room. Angie was taking a box out to the track and another sat on the floor, besides that the house was empty. She picked up the box and followed Angie out to the truck. They were both happy to get out of that place, it was only filled with bad memories for the both of them. They past three months were the worst they had ever had and they wanted to get out of there as soon as possible. They decided that Florida would be the best place for them to go. It was as far away form California as they could get without going to another county, and it was also the sunniest. Angie sat the last box in the truck and they put the elastic cords around the top to make sure everything stayed in place.

“Well that’s it.” She said looking at Jessica. “Let’s go make one more check around the house.”

They went back in the house and started going around the house. Angie walked into the kitchen and started to go through the drawer. A picture in the bottom drawer caught her attention ad she picked it up. As she looked at it a frown went across her face. The smiles that were on the faces of her and her ex-boyfriend sickened her.

“Asshole!” she sad out loud as she tour the picture apart. The two of them used to be the perfect couple, or so she thought. Little did she know that behind her back he was doing every girl in sight. She was so blinded by her love for him that she was totally oblivious to what was really going on. They went on like this for two years. Then about two months ago Angie wanted to surprise him, so she went to his place only to find him fucking some other girl. Needless to say she was totally devastated. The only man she ever loved was nothing but a cheater. He was the only thing she had. You see, her parents left her when she was only two. All her life she has been moved around from one family to another. Then, five years ago, she moved in with a family out in LA. There she met Jessica and two immediately became best friends. They did everything together; going to the mall, parties, and they especially loved karaoke. It was at a party they were at together when Angie met him. He seemed like the perfect guy and she soon fell in love. Jessica didn’t like him much and could tell that he wasn’t anything but a scum. She tried to tell Angie, but she was to blind by her love for him to notice. So after she found out Angie didn’t know what to do. She wouldn’t talk to anyone about it at all, which wasn’t unlike her. Everyone loved Angie and could depend on her whenever they needed to talk to someone. But when it came to her showing her feelings she would hold it all in. This is exactly what she did after she broke up with him. They one day, Angie and Jessica were watching TV when a commercial came on that reminded her of him. It was the straw that broke the camel’s back, and she broke down crying. All her emotions pored out in one emotional outburst. Jessica listened to her every word and comforted her. Angie cried for three hours before finally stopping.

She looked at the picture one last time as she threw it in the toilet. As she watched the picture go round and round she felt sad and depressed. Jessica walked up behind her.

“What ya doing?” Jessica asked.

“Oh, just flushing my love down the toilet.” She said and Jessica gave her a confused look. “I found a old picture of me and him.”

“Oh Ang, you ok?”

“Yeah, I’m ok.” She said forcing a fake smile.

“No you’re not. I told you forget about him.”

“It’s hard. I’m just glad we’re getting out of here so I can get as far away from him as I can.” There was a short silence as they both thought to themselves.

“Well you ready?” Jessica asked.

“Yeah, let’s get out of here.” They both walk out and took one last look at the house.

“Good riddance.” Jessica said as she got in the car. Angie took a couple of seconds to get in the car behind her. Jessica started the car and drove away.

“Do you mind if I stop and say goodbye to mom before we leave?” Jessica asked.

“Sure.” Angie said smiling at her.

They talked a bit until they got to their destination. Jessica drove through the big gates and parked the car. Angie stayed in the car while Jessica went to say goodbye. She walked a little ways and stopped. Below her was a tombstone what read: ‘Helen Collins 1952-1999.” Jessica knelt down next to the tombstone and stared at it.

Growing up, Jessica and her mom were really close. Her dad left them when Jessica was only three years old, so all they had was each other. But as Jessica got older her mom started to busier and busier with her job. She was a hotshot record producer, traveling around the world working with the biggest names in music. All her friends thought she was the luckiest person in the world, but she didn’t think much of it. By the time Jessica entered high school, her mom was never home. She spent most of her time home alone. That’s when her rebellious streak kicked in. She started parting every weekend, getting drunk and having fun. She quickly became the most popular girl in school and had all the boys chasing after her. Every week she’d have a new boyfriend and was the first one in their group to loose her virginity. Her house became known as the party spot because her mom was never home. Jessica was known for doing crazy things, getting her nipples pierced, dying her blonde streaks different colors, whatever she wanted. Her mom would send her money every few weeks for whatever she needed. The girl had everything anyone could ever want, a bunch of friends, a lot of guys, all the clothes she could ever need, but still she wasn’t happy. She was extremely lonely and really wanted someone around. That’s why as soon as Angie tuned 18, Jessica asked her to move in with her. She felt a little less lonely once she moved in. By then her mom only came down for holidays and birthdays, spending most of her time in her Hawaii home. Jessica started to hate watching TV and hearing about what’s new in music because it reminded her of her mom that was never there. Her mom sent her a letter almost every week about the new ‘hot group’ or ‘hot act’ she was working with. After a while, Jessica didn’t even bother to read them, she just threw them in the trash. She was mad that her mom wasn’t there for her.

It was Easter weekend, and Jessica was anxiously waiting for her mom. As she waited she got a phone call from a nearby hospital. They said that her mom was in a car accident and that she needed to come right away. She quickly left the house and rushed to the hospital. Before she got to see her mother, the doctor wanted to talk to her. He said that the accident that her mother had been in was bad. She probably wasn’t going to live through the night. Jessica couldn’t believe what she was hearing; her mom was going to die. She walked into her mother’s room where she laid unconscious. Jessica sat down next to her bed and as she stared at her mother a single tear ran down her cheek. She started to say everything she wanted to say as more and more tears ran down her face. The last thing she said to her mom was ‘I love you’ and then she died.

That was three months ago. Jessica sat next to her mother’s grave and a tear ran down her cheek. She thought back to all the good times they shared when she was young. After a while of thinking, she got up, still staring at the tombstone. “Goodbye mom, I love you.” She said blowing a kiss at the tombstone. She took one last look at her mother’s grave and turned back to the car. Angie saw her getting in and greeted her best friend with a smile.

“You ok?” she asked.

“Yup” Jessica said giving her a smile.

“Alright then, let’s get out of here.”