"I hope we're not late," Katherine said as she took a seat in one of the chairs in front of Mrs. Fine's desk.
"No, not at all," Mrs. Fine kindly assured.
"Oh really? That makes me glad."
They both exchanged smiles.
"I am Rose Fine. It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Jackson."
"It's nice to meet you as well, Mrs. Fine. I am Katherine Jackson and this is my son, Michael. I'm sure that you have met him before." Katherine frowned once she saw that Michael was playing a game on his phone.
Mrs. Fine noticed what Katherine was frowning at but dismissed it almost instantly, "Why don't we get down to business?" Mrs. Fine said trying to draw Katherine's attention away from Michael's lack of interest.
"Yes," came the slow, uncertain reply and it seemed that for a moment, she had completely forgotten about his misbehavior, "I would like to discuss Michael's absences in class. I just want to say that it's my fault-?!"
"Nothing is your fault, Mrs. Jackson," Mrs. Fine gently assured her, "His grades haven't reduced the slightest. I'm sure that he will be able to make certain that he would start attending his classes again next week when he decides to stop playing hooky."
Michael flashed a tiny smile and was relieved to see that his mother eased at the assurance.
"So, Mr. Jackson-?!"
"Please don't call me that," Michael practically begged, "Mr. Jackson is my father. I would rather not be acknowledged by his name. Just call me Michael."
"Alright then, Michael," she patiently began, "A source tells me that you currently have a job."
"Yes, at a daycare," he replied proudly nodding his head. "I love it there."
Mrs. Fine nodded, "Is your attendance accurate there?" she smirked.
"I've never missed a day to see those kids," he smiled wistfully at the thought of visiting the youthful children again today, "They're just great, better than most of the students here."
Mrs. Fine laughed, "I suppose. Are you planning to go onto college?"
Michael was reluctant to reply. He had never really thought about college until that question reached his ears. He actually never thought that he would get that far in life. It was like a big step towards reaching the tip of a mountain. Could he continue onward in life or stay in place because he thought that he had accomplished enough?
College? Geez. I barely even thought about high school when I was in the eighth grade. How could I think about something as big as college?
"Do I have to decide my future goals right now?" Michael timidly asked sinking in his chair.
"No. But do you have any outlooks?"
"Outlooks?" Michael questioned. He hung his head down to muse over his thoughts.
Outlooks?
"It's hard to imagine my baby as a college student," Katherine quietly remarked.
Michael's head perked up in surprise, "What? Really?"
"I suppose the phrase what you see is what you get seems to fit this occasion quite accurately," Katherine quietly said flashing her son a bright smile.
"Hey!" Michael exclaimed.
Mrs. Fine giggled, "Well, Michael, for now, we'll work on the idea of you keeping this job. But there's still time to change your mind so think carefully."
Michael nodded at her, "I will."
Both Jacksons rose off their seats, shook hands with the principal and left without another word. Once they stepped out into the hallway, Katherine bestowed a kiss upon Michael's cheek and began to walk off towards the exit, a noticeable limp in her walk.
"You're not gonna say anything?" Michael called out after her.
Katherine came to an abrupt halt in the middle of the hall and slowly turned to face her incredulous son.
"Adults have no right to deprive children of their freewill, do they?" Michael remained silent, "But I do think that they have the right to worry over them. Take your time, honey. I don't mind if you take twice as long as the other students. All I want to know is the answer that you want to give."
"But it's already been decided that I need the classes," Michael murmuringly remarked.
"I know, honey but no one is forcing you to go. All we need is your own answer."
Michael nodded at her to show her that he understood. Katherine smiled warmly at him and continued to walk off.
Michael sighed once she faded from his line of vision.
"Outlooks?" he wondered aloud.
I want to be near her. That's the only outlook I'm thinking about. Other than that, nothing else comes to mind...
"I only have a little longer..." Michael murmured quietly to himself, "... only a little longer to be near her..."
Alex had always been an early-riser, and it wasn't uncommon for her to be outside to watch the sun rise. It was, however, a very rare sight to see her roommate's brother lingering about the backyard so early in the morning. She raised a hand to rub her eye just in case it was sleep that was causing her to hallucinate, but when she looked again, the wandering boy was still there, his nose deeply inhaling the sweet aromas of the various flowers in the garden.
The glimpse of the golden sun in the horizon made the other boy's curly hair and light skin glow, making him that much more of an astonishing sight to see.
After a few minutes of admiring the art-like scene before her, she decided to go see what was up.
"Good morning, Michael!" she called.
Michael looked over to her, blinking his big onyx eyes before presenting her an ear-splitting grin.
"Alex!" Michael called back, straightening himself up to wave to her. Alex smiled in return.
"What are you doing up so early?" Alex asked him.
"I couldn't stay asleep..." he sighed. The color in Michael's face disappeared all of a sudden, replaced by an expression of sorrow that did not suit him.
"I have something I wanna tell you," he murmuringly said.
Alex's mouth frowned with concern, "What is it?"
Michael casted his gaze downward as he fell into silence. Then he finally spoke, still avoiding eye contact with Alex. "I'm gonna be away for awhile, a long while actually…"
"Where are you going?"
Michael held her gaze briefly and averted his gaze back down to his feet, "Indiana."
"Why?"
"No reason..." he sighed.
"If it's for no reason, then why would you have to go-?!"
"It's nothing!" Michael snapped, jerking his head up to face her with his cold glare. He sighed once he noticed the look of hurt on her face.
"It's nothing..." he said softly.
"Then why do you have to leave me here?" Michael felt his heart jump and looked up at Alex in surprise.
Leave her? She's concerned about me leaving her?
"I mean, here," Alex corrected and Michael's heart sank with dismay, "Why do you have to leave here?"
"It's for your own good and for mine. I have to take these classes. If I stay here, I'm just gonna cause more and more trouble. I might end up hurting those that I love..."
And those that I hate.
"You can't do that here? I mean, Indiana is thousands of miles away and I'm pretty sure there are tons of classes around her somewhere. You can't just leave." Michael sighed as he hung his head down, "Can you?" Alex asked.
"I'm sorry, Alex but I have to go." Michael said, sadness evident in his voice. He knew that this wasn't going to end well. He had to leave soon.
"If you were sorry, then you would stay. Not abandon me like this." Alex began to whine. They had been getting along so well and then him having to leave so suddenly was an unpleasant shock. She was heartbroken to say the least.
"Alex, you know that the last thing I would ever want to do is abandon you, but I have no choice in the matter. It's either do or die."
"Please don't leave. I'llr13;Janet will die without you." Michael merely shrugged his shoulders.
Alex couldn't take it anymore; she ran up to him and threw her arms around Michael's neck, burying her face into his chest and fearing that he would disappear if she dared to let him go. Michael heaved a melancholy sigh as he threw his own arms around Alex's waist and let his hands provide her back the most comforting of strokes.
"Alex, just because we won't be in the same place, doesn't mean I'll think of you any less than I do now. We can still call and text each other everyday, and we can webcam each other every night."
"I know," Alex sniffled. "But it's just…it's just not the same."
"I know it's not. But we have to work something out."
Michael then leaned down again and began to kiss away the tears off of Alex's cheeks in an attempt to calm her down, and he was slightly surprised to see that it was slowly beginning to work.
"J-Just promise me s-something," Alex sputtered.
"Anything." Michael answered gently rubbing Alex's back.
"Promise that you'll never forget about me, no matter what happens."
"Now how could I forget about you?" Michael chuckled, capturing Alex's lips in a chaste kiss and catching Alex by surprise. Once they broke apart for air, Alex's face was flushed, and her dazed eyes were half-lidded as her mouth hung agape.
Man, I'm gonna miss that adorable face.
"I know this is gonna be hard for you but you gotta bear with me on this one. I need your support on this. I need to know that I'm doing the right thing, even if neither of us like it."
Alex just didn't understand. What was so special about Indiana, that it convinced Michael to move over a thousand miles away from home? What is compelling him to leave? What did Indiana have that California didn't?
"What does Indiana have that California can't give you?" Alex finally asked.
Michael smiled sadly, "My favorite cousin."
Alex was then about to beg him to stay but she didn't want to look selfish even if she wanted to be that way. If it was what Michael wanted, she supposed that she could convince herself that that's what she wanted as well. Even when they both knew that she wanted anything but. But if Michael wanted her support, lying to herself was the sacrifice she was willing to make.
"Fine. Leave," Alex abruptly said.
Michael made a startled sound, "What?" he stammered.
"I said leave."
"You're okay with this?" Michael asked raising a brow.
"Yeah. I'm not gonna stop you. I mean, it's your choice after all. Not mine. I'm not keeping you here, am I?"
"Technically..." he began.
You're the only reason why I want to stay. So, yes.
"... no..." he finished.
"Exactly. So why shouldn't I support you?"
Because I thought you would want me to stay!
Michael shrugged, "Dunno."
A wave of silence washed over the duo and caused Michael to uncomfortably shift in his wavering stance.
The wrenching of his heart twisted along with the churning of his stomach and he gently held his stomach, as if trying to quell the sensation of wanting to throw up. His grimacing face contorted into one filled with anguish and pain and Michael could have sworn that the more he looked at Alex, the more it seemed as if his pain worsened.
"Well then," Michael began in a low voice, "I guess I'll just be leaving now."
Alex nodded, "Okay."
Michael winced at the indifferent abruptness in her voice, "Okay."
She seemed so nonchalant then, as if she hadn't just been crying over him and begging him to make some other way that would prevent him from leaving her. He didn't know what to think anymore. Did Alex want him to stay but force him to leave in order to support him or did she want him to leave and actually want that for her own sake? Michael didn't know but he did know one thing at that time.
Women are complicated beings...
"Well, I'm heading off to the airport in the afternoon," he remarked.
"Sounds like a plan," Alex said forcing a grin.
Michael smiled sadly, "Yeah. It does..."
Afternoon came way too quickly for the two of them. Michael and Joseph had packed everything into their car with all haste and set themselves ready for departure. This time, Michael and Alex reminded each other to be happy, and that they would call each other often. They also said that they would remember each other no matter what. Even though they were far apart, they would still be closely connected in spirit.
Alex kept a smile on her face as Michael clambered into the car and waved to her from the window, forcing a grin all the while in an attempt to avoid worrying Alex. The car engine was beginning to rev up and Michael made a quick telephone gesture with his thumb and pinky next to his ear, indicating that he would call as soon as he got there, before waving wildly to his friend.
Alex made certain to maintain a positive mindset, despite her wavering optimism.
It'll be okay. We'll talk frequently, and soon, he'll come back, just like he promised.
"Bye!" Michael shouted from the car, which was slowly rolling into motion.
Alex nodded, and she waved back while calling out, "We'll see each other again soon. Promise?"
"Promise!"
With that, the car drove off and out of sight, leaving Alex behind. As she watched the car fade out of view, she told herself again that everything would be alright.
"You're not gonna stop him?" Janet asked joining Alex's side.
"Why should I?" Alex asked but it seemed more as if she were asking herself rather than Janet, "I mean, it's his choice after all. I don't have the right to deprive him of his freewill."
"But... You can't just let him go away like that..." Janet paused, "Can you?"
"I think I can, Janet," Alex laughed, "I can't keep him from achieving his goals. I don't want to have to be the obstacle blocking his way to success. I can't be a burden."
Janet frowned in dismay, "You're supposed to love him..."
Alex retreated into the house, oblivious to Janet's words as happy thoughts swirled in her mind and her fingers twiddled with the silver 'A' around her neck. Yes, things would end up perfectly fine.
He'll be fine. Michael's a big boy and he knows how to take care of himself. He'll be just fine. The question is, will I be fine? Well, as long as I focus on my studies, I will be fine. I'll be fine. I'll be fine...
Author's Chapter Notes:
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Chapter End Notes:
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