BackWater - Chapter 4

Authors note: Just to let you know this chapter is done solely in flashbacks in the form of dreams of both Nerice and J.J.

Seven-year-old Nerice Summers was playing with her dolls on the floor. Technically she should be in bed but Aunt Fred, who had been baby-sitting while Mommy and Daddy patrolled, had been called away half-an-hour ago by a sad looking Uncle Wes. Then there had been some loud noises coming from the living room, but Nerice was used to that, her house was the most busy at night, people were always coming over to talk to Mommy and Daddy. When Aunt Willow and Uncle Xander came in Nerice wasn't startled either, she was used to her baby-sitters changing through out the night, so she asked them to read her a story.
"Sweetie we can't read you a story right now, we have to talk to you about something really important," Aunt Willow and Uncle Xander sit on the floor with Nerice and Aunt Willow asks, "you wanna come sit with us.
Nerice thinks for a second and she moves closer to her adoptive aunt and uncle asking, "What's going on?"
Aunt Willow opens her mouth but only manages to say, "Well sweetie we have something important to tell you..." Before she begins crying.
"Uncle Xander what's going on?" Nerice looks between both of the adults in the room.
"Well," Uncle Xander's voice sounds funny, like Aunt Willow's, "You know how your Mommy and Daddy went out to patrol tonight?"
Nerice nods, "They go out every night, it's their job that's why they can't stay with me. Are they home early?" Nerice jumps up eager to see her parents before Aunt Willow and Uncle Xander make her go to bed.
Uncle Xander quickly grabs Nerice and turns her to face him, "Sweetie you have to listen very carefully to what I have to say. Mommy was in a really bad fight and she's not going to come home."
"Will she be back tomorrow?"
Uncle Xander shakes his head sadly, "She's not coming home, ever."
"We're moving? But I like my new school!" Nerice exclaims, suddenly angry at her mother for making them move again.
"Nerice, your Mom went to Heaven, she's with your Grandma Joyce and Uncle Andrew."
Nerice's face makes an expression she only uses when she is angry, Mommy always says that it looks like Daddy's face does when he's angry. "Stop being goofy Uncle Xander!" Nerice using strength she rarely had to use pulls out of Uncle Xander's grasp and hurries into the living room. She can see the back of her Daddy's head and exclaims, "Daddy! Uncle Xander's telling ly..." Daddy turns around then and Nerice suddenly knows that Uncle Xander wasn't lying.
"Rice, baby." Daddy stands up, using the nickname only Daddy called Nerice.
"No." Nerice shakes her head her eyes dark eyes filling with tears turning around immediately she dodges Uncle Gunn and Uncle Robin and straight out the front door. Nerice knows she's not supposed to be outside after dark but she doesn't care, she hasn't gone very far when she feels strong arms grab her around the waist. "Let me go." Nerice struggles against the person holding her.
"Chill N," Aunt Faith's words are soft, "it's all right, shh, it's all right." Nerice sobs as Aunt Faith holds her, gently stroking her hair as she cries.
14-year-old J.J. Summers sits at the window seat in her new apartment staring at the traffic of New York City. She hated New York, more than anything she wished she could be back in Greece, she loved Greece but since her Dad died her mother couldn't stand Greece, she couldn't stand being there without him, and here they were in New York, where it was loud and dirty. New York didn't seem any better anyway, everyone else was dead except for Robin and Andrew who lived with them.
"J.J. we need to talk." Andrew stands in front of J.J. without her realizing he had even come into the apartment.
"What's up?" J.J. asks dropping her pen on top of the notebook, her father had urged her to keep a notebook to write down the poetry that constantly came to her everyone says she took after her father for that exact reason.
"J.J. well, there's been an accident." Andrew looks older than he actually is and today he looks older than he normally does, he has a scar starting at the edge of his right eyebrow, cutting in a circle around his eye and to the top of his lip.
Nerice shakes her head, "No."
"Wood just got back, there was nothing he could do. J.J., I'm so sorry but there's nothing, J.J. your mother is dead."
J.J. doesn't respond, instead she pulls her knees to her chest and leans her face on her knees staring out the window and ignoring Andrew. He wants to talk, J.J. knows he does, but she doesn't want to talk, she's tired of talking after everyone she loves dies, she's tired of loving and then watching them die. J.J. stares out the window, watching the traffic pass under it, no New York sure isn't any better than anywhere else; people still die there just like they did in Greece, Cleveland, Austin, Brazil and everywhere else. No New York sure as hell wasn't any better.

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