It's the Little Things
Mar. 17th, 2007 01:07 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
morgynleriPrologue, Chapter 1, Interlude 1
Chapter 2
Commentary: Any.
Chapter 3: Family Resemblance
Seattle, Washington
Jennifer shifted Jeremy to her other shoulder as she waited in the terminal, watching the arrivals for Eric and Speed's flight, rocking slightly on her feet to keep the baby quiet. The crowds coming from the baggage claim swirled as people looked for those waiting to pick them up, or made their way out to grab a taxi or to a parked car, and she wished she were a bit taller, so she could see better over their heads.
"Jenn." Eric's voice reached her before she spotted him, and she turned, smiling when she caught sight of him, and the other man trailing him, looking warily at Jeremy. "How are you holding up?"
"Sane, if barely." Jennifer let out a soft bark of laughter. "I never realized quite how much Susan kept Jeremy from driving me crazy before this." She shifted Jeremy onto her hip to accept the hug from Eric, leaning her head against his shoulder for a long moment. "I have the car parked way out in the lot, so it's a bit of a walk. Hope you brought a coat, it's colder here than in Miami."
"So we noticed. It doesn't snow that often in Miami." Eric stepped back, letting Speed come closer as Jeremy picked his head up from Jennifer's shoulder to look at the new people.
"You must be Tim Speedle." Jennifer held out her hand to shake his, before turning so Jeremy could get a better look, the ten-month-old craning his neck to see who she was talking to. "This is Jeremy."
Speed met the sleepy, curious gaze of the toddler with a rising sense of certainty that Jennifer was right in thinking the little boy was his son. Unruly black hair and a snub nose, and a direct gaze that reminded him of his half-remembered baby pictures.
"He doesn't look like Susan at all." Jennifer's voice was quiet, barely audible over the ambient noise of the airport terminal. She shifted Jeremy on her hip again, shaking her head slightly. "Well, let's get you guys back to the house. It's what, midnight back in Miami? You must be exhausted." She tugged the hood of Jeremy's coat up, leading the way towards the parking lot.
~ ~~ ~
"The couch down here unfolds into a bed, though it can be a bit stubborn at times." Jennifer closed the door behind them, shutting out the damp, chilly breeze that followed them inside. "The guest room and Susan's room, where Jeremy sleeps, are upstairs, on either side of the hallway. I'll show you, and you guys can figure out who's sleeping where while I get Jeremy into bed."
She didn't even look back to see if they followed as she made her way up the stairs, jiggling Jeremy slightly when he started to whine, murmuring inaudibly, her tone gentle. Eric wondered for a moment why she always said she never wanted children of her own, as he followedher up the stairs, leaving his bag next to the door for now.
"This is the guest room. Susan was planning to turn it into Jeremy's room soon, since the couch folds out, and we don't have a lot of guests these days." Jennifer pushed open the door on the right, and flipped on the light to reveal a room decorated in bright blues and yellows, though the bed still had a relatively nuetral spread on it, to keep the eyes from watering.
"I'll take the couch. Even if it is a bit stubborn." Eric shook his head as Speed rolled his eyes.
Jennifer chuckled softly as she stepped across the hall. "Made up your mind a bit quick, Eric. Careful not to pinch yourself unfolding the couch. It likes to bite." She turned the knob, pausing with the door open just a crack. "I'll be down in a moment to give you hand if you need it."
~ ~~ ~
Closing the door behind her, Jennifer leaned against it, Jeremy still asleep against her shoulder, fighting the urge to bang her head against the wood. "Red just wouldn't go with the decoration of your room, Sus. Wouldn't do to have your best friend splash some on the door, would it now?" She whispered the questions, lifting one corner of her mouth in a wry grin before pushing away from the door.
Jeremy didn't wake as she pulled his coat and hat off, and the snow pants she'd put on him over his pajamas. Settling him in the crib, Jennifer looked down at him, a tear slipping down her cheek. "You won't even remember her. Your mum. She loved you so much. Clouded her judgement sometimes. You shouldn't have to grow up without her, Jeremy," she murmured, stroking Jeremy's curly black hair. "We'll bury her tomorrow, and all you'll have is pictures of her. And stories. So much less than you should have, little one."
Shaking her head, Jennifer turned away from the crib, dashing the tears from her eyes before opening the door, and heading down the stairs, glancing into the front room to see how Eric was coping with the couch. She chuckled as she paused at the bottom of the stairs, leaning against the arch leading into the room.
"I said it was stubborn." She smiled slightly as Eric looked up. "Usually works better if you have two people to pull it out. Susan thinks the joints are rusted. Thought." Jennifer ran a hand through her hair, looking up at the ceiling with a sigh. "I keep doing that. Talking like she's still here. It's so hard to... she shouldn't be dead. If she'd just... just ducked, or something, she might still be alive."
"Hey." Eric abandoned his attempt to unfold the couch, stepping around his luggage to wrap her in a hug. "It's ok. It's normal." He rubbed her back with one hand as she rested her head against his shoulder.
"Doesn't make it any easier to deal with." She paused, wrapping her arms around him, clinging to him as if the proximity of another human, a friend, would make the whole situation better. "Everyone says that, you know. Along with useless platitudes and quasi-religious bullshit. It really doesn't matter if she's "in a better place," or that she died instantly. It doesn't change the fact that she's dead. That Jeremy will grow up without his mother, or a whole classroom of students has to live with seeing their teacher killed in front of them, by one of their own classmates."
"I know." Eric rubbed her back for a moment longer, before she pulled away, smiling wanly at him.
"Thank you, Eric. For flying up here. It means a lot." Jennifer squeezed his hand, turning away to walk down the hall towards her bedroom at the back, wrapping her arms around herself in an unconscious gesture to ward off the emptiness she felt knawing at her.
Interlude 2
Sultan, Washington
"Joyce, it's not going to work." Andrea fiddled with her tea as she watched her sister pace in front of her couch. "You know Susan would have made arrangements to ensure her son is taken care of. And not by you and Mark."
"Probably by that no-good woman she lived with. She poisened her mind, Andrea. And I'll not let her do the same to my grandson." Joyce shook her head, one hand clenching into a fist before she noticed, and uncurled her fingers.
Andrea sighed, settling her tea down on her table. "Joyce, you ignored what Mark was doing to her. Supported him when he said he was just 'disciplening' Susan. It was abuse, and if it weren't for the fact she wouldn't testify against either of you in criminal court, we wouldn't be having this conversation." She held Joyce's gaze as the woman whirled to glare at her. "No one else could prove it, because Susan never would tell us the truth about it. But you and I both know the excuses you made, and still make, for that scum-bag you married."
"Mark is a decent man, Andrea. No matter what fantasies you entertain about him, or the lies that little drama-queen Jennifer talked Susan into believing." Joyce shook her head, and headed for the stairs. "I'm going to bed. We have a funeral to attend tomorrow."
Clenching her jaw, Andrea waved a dismissive hand at her younger sister, waiting until she heard the door to her guest room close before letting out a sigh. "Oh, Joyce. If you weren't my sister, I'd smack you." She stood slowly, grimacing at the pain in her joints, making her way towards her own bedroom, and her sleeping husband. At least she could go to the funeral, and lend her support to Jennifer. And try to keep Joyce from making a mistake she'd regret later.
Chapter 2
Commentary: Any.
Seattle, Washington
Jennifer shifted Jeremy to her other shoulder as she waited in the terminal, watching the arrivals for Eric and Speed's flight, rocking slightly on her feet to keep the baby quiet. The crowds coming from the baggage claim swirled as people looked for those waiting to pick them up, or made their way out to grab a taxi or to a parked car, and she wished she were a bit taller, so she could see better over their heads.
"Jenn." Eric's voice reached her before she spotted him, and she turned, smiling when she caught sight of him, and the other man trailing him, looking warily at Jeremy. "How are you holding up?"
"Sane, if barely." Jennifer let out a soft bark of laughter. "I never realized quite how much Susan kept Jeremy from driving me crazy before this." She shifted Jeremy onto her hip to accept the hug from Eric, leaning her head against his shoulder for a long moment. "I have the car parked way out in the lot, so it's a bit of a walk. Hope you brought a coat, it's colder here than in Miami."
"So we noticed. It doesn't snow that often in Miami." Eric stepped back, letting Speed come closer as Jeremy picked his head up from Jennifer's shoulder to look at the new people.
"You must be Tim Speedle." Jennifer held out her hand to shake his, before turning so Jeremy could get a better look, the ten-month-old craning his neck to see who she was talking to. "This is Jeremy."
Speed met the sleepy, curious gaze of the toddler with a rising sense of certainty that Jennifer was right in thinking the little boy was his son. Unruly black hair and a snub nose, and a direct gaze that reminded him of his half-remembered baby pictures.
"He doesn't look like Susan at all." Jennifer's voice was quiet, barely audible over the ambient noise of the airport terminal. She shifted Jeremy on her hip again, shaking her head slightly. "Well, let's get you guys back to the house. It's what, midnight back in Miami? You must be exhausted." She tugged the hood of Jeremy's coat up, leading the way towards the parking lot.
"The couch down here unfolds into a bed, though it can be a bit stubborn at times." Jennifer closed the door behind them, shutting out the damp, chilly breeze that followed them inside. "The guest room and Susan's room, where Jeremy sleeps, are upstairs, on either side of the hallway. I'll show you, and you guys can figure out who's sleeping where while I get Jeremy into bed."
She didn't even look back to see if they followed as she made her way up the stairs, jiggling Jeremy slightly when he started to whine, murmuring inaudibly, her tone gentle. Eric wondered for a moment why she always said she never wanted children of her own, as he followedher up the stairs, leaving his bag next to the door for now.
"This is the guest room. Susan was planning to turn it into Jeremy's room soon, since the couch folds out, and we don't have a lot of guests these days." Jennifer pushed open the door on the right, and flipped on the light to reveal a room decorated in bright blues and yellows, though the bed still had a relatively nuetral spread on it, to keep the eyes from watering.
"I'll take the couch. Even if it is a bit stubborn." Eric shook his head as Speed rolled his eyes.
Jennifer chuckled softly as she stepped across the hall. "Made up your mind a bit quick, Eric. Careful not to pinch yourself unfolding the couch. It likes to bite." She turned the knob, pausing with the door open just a crack. "I'll be down in a moment to give you hand if you need it."
Closing the door behind her, Jennifer leaned against it, Jeremy still asleep against her shoulder, fighting the urge to bang her head against the wood. "Red just wouldn't go with the decoration of your room, Sus. Wouldn't do to have your best friend splash some on the door, would it now?" She whispered the questions, lifting one corner of her mouth in a wry grin before pushing away from the door.
Jeremy didn't wake as she pulled his coat and hat off, and the snow pants she'd put on him over his pajamas. Settling him in the crib, Jennifer looked down at him, a tear slipping down her cheek. "You won't even remember her. Your mum. She loved you so much. Clouded her judgement sometimes. You shouldn't have to grow up without her, Jeremy," she murmured, stroking Jeremy's curly black hair. "We'll bury her tomorrow, and all you'll have is pictures of her. And stories. So much less than you should have, little one."
Shaking her head, Jennifer turned away from the crib, dashing the tears from her eyes before opening the door, and heading down the stairs, glancing into the front room to see how Eric was coping with the couch. She chuckled as she paused at the bottom of the stairs, leaning against the arch leading into the room.
"I said it was stubborn." She smiled slightly as Eric looked up. "Usually works better if you have two people to pull it out. Susan thinks the joints are rusted. Thought." Jennifer ran a hand through her hair, looking up at the ceiling with a sigh. "I keep doing that. Talking like she's still here. It's so hard to... she shouldn't be dead. If she'd just... just ducked, or something, she might still be alive."
"Hey." Eric abandoned his attempt to unfold the couch, stepping around his luggage to wrap her in a hug. "It's ok. It's normal." He rubbed her back with one hand as she rested her head against his shoulder.
"Doesn't make it any easier to deal with." She paused, wrapping her arms around him, clinging to him as if the proximity of another human, a friend, would make the whole situation better. "Everyone says that, you know. Along with useless platitudes and quasi-religious bullshit. It really doesn't matter if she's "in a better place," or that she died instantly. It doesn't change the fact that she's dead. That Jeremy will grow up without his mother, or a whole classroom of students has to live with seeing their teacher killed in front of them, by one of their own classmates."
"I know." Eric rubbed her back for a moment longer, before she pulled away, smiling wanly at him.
"Thank you, Eric. For flying up here. It means a lot." Jennifer squeezed his hand, turning away to walk down the hall towards her bedroom at the back, wrapping her arms around herself in an unconscious gesture to ward off the emptiness she felt knawing at her.
Sultan, Washington
"Joyce, it's not going to work." Andrea fiddled with her tea as she watched her sister pace in front of her couch. "You know Susan would have made arrangements to ensure her son is taken care of. And not by you and Mark."
"Probably by that no-good woman she lived with. She poisened her mind, Andrea. And I'll not let her do the same to my grandson." Joyce shook her head, one hand clenching into a fist before she noticed, and uncurled her fingers.
Andrea sighed, settling her tea down on her table. "Joyce, you ignored what Mark was doing to her. Supported him when he said he was just 'disciplening' Susan. It was abuse, and if it weren't for the fact she wouldn't testify against either of you in criminal court, we wouldn't be having this conversation." She held Joyce's gaze as the woman whirled to glare at her. "No one else could prove it, because Susan never would tell us the truth about it. But you and I both know the excuses you made, and still make, for that scum-bag you married."
"Mark is a decent man, Andrea. No matter what fantasies you entertain about him, or the lies that little drama-queen Jennifer talked Susan into believing." Joyce shook her head, and headed for the stairs. "I'm going to bed. We have a funeral to attend tomorrow."
Clenching her jaw, Andrea waved a dismissive hand at her younger sister, waiting until she heard the door to her guest room close before letting out a sigh. "Oh, Joyce. If you weren't my sister, I'd smack you." She stood slowly, grimacing at the pain in her joints, making her way towards her own bedroom, and her sleeping husband. At least she could go to the funeral, and lend her support to Jennifer. And try to keep Joyce from making a mistake she'd regret later.
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Date: 2007-03-18 05:20 am (UTC)