Chapter 6

I couldn't fall asleep that night.

My body felt free. I had never told anyone what had happened to me and the fact that Jason hadn't judged me and had accepted it made me feel so close to him even though he was a complete stranger.



He had wanted to know what happened to me. He had cared about what I went through.

Jason was...absolutely amazing. Who knew that I could be friends with someone who was completely different then me? He was cute and easy to talk to... but there was no way I could... Like him? I asked myself in disbelief. He was so not my type, but then I didn't know what my type was now that I felt like the dark me wasn't really...me.

I would sleep on it.

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"Good Morning!" I said to my Grandma as a smile spread across my face. It felt so good to be myself.

She looked at me with a confused look.

"Good Morning Leslie...?" She said suspiciously. She looked back and forth between my Grandpa and me.

I laughed at how confused she was and the laugh made her jump. I had forgotten that I was supposed to be rude and disrespectful. Last night had been SUCH a good night! I thought to myself.



"So what's for breakfast?"

"Uh...well we are having uh...waffles and umm eggs and bacon," she said gesturing toward the stove.

"Mmmm thanks!"

I got my breakfast and sat down at the table with my grandparents. They watched my sit down and start to eat my breakfast.

My grandparents sat there confused wondering what had happened to their granddaughter.

"Umm Leslie is there...something wrong?" My grandma broke the silence.

"No..? Why?" I looked at my grandpa for support.

"Well it's just...-"

"I think what she's trying to say is that you're...happy?" My granddad interrupted.

"Yeah...Aren't I supposed to be?" I said with a smile on my face.

I glanced at the clock. 8:45! Crap I had to go.

"Hey! I'm sorry I actually have to go."

"Where?" My grandma asked accusingly.

"Oh well... I told a friend that I would come down to the nursing home today and help him out."

They both were staring at me now, there mouths dropped open.

"Oh...well that's nice of you, but you don't have friends here you just got here yesterday," my grandma said questioningly.



"The neighbor," I said. I really had to go.

"Oh well that's fine... What time should I expect you back?" My grandpa said.

"Umm well I'm actually not sure, well can he come over for lunch?"

My grandma's face was in shock.

"Yeah that's fine," My grandpa said looking over at my grandma, "right hunny?"

"Yeah..." My grandma said still in shock.

"Okay well I have to go! Sorry for just leaving! See you later!"

I walked out of my house and down the side walk. I had seen the nursing home on the way into town yesterday. It was just a few blocks down the street.

It was a nice day out. I had missed being outside for so many years. Not that I never came outside, the dark me just hated it. But the new me loved it a lot. It was refreshing.

When I arrived I saw Jason waiting outside for me.

"Hey! You came!" He said excitedly a giant smile spreading growing on his face.

"Well yeah I said I would didn't I? Did I keep you waiting?"

"No! No not at all!"

"Oh okay good sorry, my grandparents were kind of freaked out by my attitude."

Jason started laughing, "It's probably because you've been so gloomy for so long."

He did have a good point, and his laugh made me laugh.

"Good point." I said and we went into the building.

A lady approached us as we walked in holding a cup with what seemed like medicine in it.

Jason seemed to know who she was. He walked right up grabbed the cup, took the pills and came back up to me.

What was that for I wondered.

"What was that for?" I asked.

"Nothing, just..vitamins?"

"Mhmm sure." I said with a smile growing on my face.

He smiled back but changed the topic, "Where should we start?"

Jason and I spent the whole morning meeting people at the nursing home. Some were grumpy but some of them seemed to accept that this was their last stop and didnt seem to be moved by it.

"Wanna meet my favorite?" He winked at me and started walking down a hall way we hadnt been down.

We walked into a room with a man laying by himself.

As soon as we walked in the man turned over too look at who had come in the door.

"Hey! Who are you? Get out of my room." The man said angrily.

"Hey Sam, Its me Jason. I came to see you yesterday." Jason smiled and said as if what the man was saying was a normal conversation.

"Oh.. okay...? Who's she? Your girlfriend?" My face flushed red and Jason turned around and let out a laugh.

"Ha ha no she a friend. This is Leslie," Jason answered back moving out of the way so the man could get a good look at me.

"Oh! Nice to meet you Leslie..." He said with a confused look on his face.

Jason treated this as something that was normal and kept talking.

"So Sam, How was your day?"

"Good my wife came by today, she's a beautiful lady."

"I bet she is!" Jason said with a huge smile on his face.

"Yeah she brought me those flowers right over there," he said pointing at the flowers by the window, "They are from my garden."

"I bet it's beautiful."

"Yeah maybe when I get out of here you can come over and see it."

"I promise you I will." Jason said back easily.

Jason seemed to look down at his watch.

"Oh well I have to go. Ill see you later Sam!"

"Bye!" The man said with a smile.

It was like Jason by coming and talking to him, had just made his day.

I looked at my watch as we were walking down the hall. Lunch time. I had told my grandparents I would come home at lunch time.

"Hey Jason?"

"Yeah?" He said turning around to look at me.

"Hey...I know this is weird, and I know I still dont really know you, but do you want to have lunch with me and my grandparents?"

He seemed to not even think through it.

"I'd love to," he said and we walked out of the nursing home.

As we walked I was the first to talk. "So why is that guy your favorite?"

From what I could tell her was just any normal guy.

Jason seemed to struggle with words.

"Let me show you."

"Okay."

Jason went down our street and past our houses. He turned on a dirt road, that I hadnt noticed before. When the road ended we were infront of a house was covered in ivy. A tree had fallen straight into the side of the house. The house looked like it had been abandoned for years.

"What is this place?" I asked curiously.

"This is Sam's house..."

I was confused. "Wait the Sam that I just met?"

"Yepp that's the one!"

"I dont understand..."

"There was a really bad storm one night and the tree fell through the house, puttiing him in the hospital with brain damage."

"What about his wife?"

"She didnt get hurt, she wasnt home, but for a while she would come by and see him, and then she passed away last year when I was in town."

"But I thought Sam said that his wife had stopped by-"

"He only remembers people before the crash...His memory goes every ten minutes."

"Oh..so the flowers..?"

"Arent really from his wife-but thats the last thing he remembers before his memory started to get worse so he re-lives it everyday."

"Wow..."

We walked in silence back to my house.

The whole time I was thinking about how amazing and absolutely perfect he was.