Duskwood After Story

Reunion, Part 2

The morning of the 28th, I finished packing my things and sent them to a locker. I returned the keys to my apartment and with a small luggage in hand, I headed to the airport. I wasn't kidding when I told Jake that I had made all my preparations, including prepping myself to be on the run with him. It was a strange feeling to throw away everything I had for a man I didn't even really know. But I didn't really have much to begin with. Being an orphan who had grown up in foster homes, I had only had myself to really depend on. I didn't have many friends either and they were all living abroad. Maybe that was why I felt such a deep connection with Jake when we haven't known each other for a long time. "Birds of a feather better stick together", I told myself. Compared to Jake, I found myself extremely lucky to have come across many good people in my life, who had provided me with opportunities to grow and become who I was today. Jake didn't have that. Life forced him to take a darker path and now he was living with the consequences. But he didn't have to do it alone anymore. I wanted to be his pillar and gave him the love that he deserved.

I called a cab to take me to the airport. I didn't want to use Uber or other transport service through my phone in case it left any trace later. The ride wasn't long, about 20 minutes; but it was enough to let wandering thoughts invade my mind. "What if he's not in Duskwood anymore?", "what if I'm the only one who wants all this for us?, "what if he rejects me..?", "what if...?" Different scenarios flashed through my head, making me uneasy for a moment. But then in the end, I always told myself, there was nothing for me to lose. At least with this, I would have known that I had done everything I could for the person I loved. And I wouldn't regret it, even if things wouldn't work out. With that thought, I looked out of the cab's window and smiled to myself while taking in the city scenery for the last time. "Goodbye. Thanks for everything".

...

As soon as I boarded the plane, I sent the letter to Jake and turned off my phone for the entire flight. I wonder how he would react. Would he be mad or just pleasantly surprised? I hoped it was the latter but even if he was mad, I knew it wouldn't be for too long.

...

I arrived in Duskwood at 2pm. I went straight to the motel where I had booked a room for the whole week then rented a car to move around more easily. Thanks to the Duskwood city tour that Jessy gave me and the map from Jake, it didn't take me long to learn the streets. I decided to head to Rogers garage to give Jessy a surprise.

When I arrived at the garage, Jessy was having her eyes glued to the computer screen. She was too busy working to notice me slowly approaching the front desk where she was sitting. When I finally stood in front of her, she was still looking at the monitor while typing away but didn't forget to say "Welcome to Rogers garage. How can we help you today?"

I chuckled and faked a baritone voice in response: "Erm, miss, I had my car serviced here a few weeks ago. I really like you and couldn't help but wonder if you would like to go have a coffee with me when you get off work?"

Jessy stopped typing. She wondered what a weird voice that was but she was also impressed at the boldness this person just threw at her. She looked up and opened her mouth to start saying: "Hey sorry but I-..."

When she saw me grinning at her, she stopped her sentence short. Her eyes and mouth were both drawing a big O in surprise and she yelled out:

"Oh my god, Bailey! What are you doing here? Why didn't you tell me you were coming?"

"Sorry, I wanted to keep my visit a secret hehe. But I was serious about going on a coffee date with you. Will you embrace me with my warm presence?"

I gave her a playful wink and we both laughed out loud at my attempt to be "Prince Charming".

"Sure, sure, take me away from this boring prison, please!"

Then we heard a loud throat clearing coming from the back of the garage. It was Richy's dad. He gave us both an intense glare.

"Oops, sorry, I mean, this wonderful work place that I'm so lucky to have!"

We both giggled but tried to conceal it in case Richy's dad caught us again. I moved my face closer to Jessy and whispered to her:

"You get off work at 5, right?"

"Yep!"

"I have some time before 8. We can go for a quick chat by then?"

"Sure, I'll message you when I'm done. What are you going to do till then?"

"I'll go around and say hi to everyone. Doesn't feel right to be here without telling them."

"Alright then" - Jessy smiled at me - "I'll see you at 5!"

"Adios :D"

"Adios"

I took a glance at my watch when I left the garage. It was already 3:30pm so I hurried to my car to make the trip to say hi to everyone. I hadn't turned my phone on since I landed, mostly because I was anxious about what Jake would have to say about my "little" stunt. But since Jessy said she would text me when she got off work, I had no choice but to turn it back on. I took a deep breath in and out, closing my eyes while the phone started to load.

After a few minutes, I opened one eye to peek at the screen. "Nothing explosive" - I sighed to myself. Then I got a sent notification for my letter to Jake. It was 8 hours ago so the letter must have disappeared already. I pondered for a bit then decided to let Jake know I was here.

"Hey Jake, I'm in Duskwood now. :) Just going to say hi to everyone. I'll see you later. Don't forget. :)"

I hit "send" and anxiously stared at the screen for a response. I knew all too well that the chance he would respond at all was very slim, but at that moment, I still expected to hear what he had to say. I sat in my car and stared at the phone for what seemed like an eternity. "Nothing..." As soon as I decided to give up, a notification popped up.