ValleyVille

Be Strong

Jacks POV
"Since when have you been interested in firefighting?" Duke asks. "Since a few days ago" I say. "Do you even know what you're getting into?" He asks. "Nope but Im sure it wont be that hard. Besides, I need money. I dont see the problem" I say. "Of course you dont, because you're too love struck to see that you arent qualified for this" he says. "Yes I am! Ill show you! Go make your dumb movie. I have to get to training" I say. "Its not dumb!" He says as I walk away.

"Hey Jack. Im glad to see someone took an interest in the fire program" Marshall says. "Yeah" I say. "Great, come on. We gotta start your training" he says. "Im honestly not sure if Ill be any good at this" i say. "Im sure youll be fine. Spotter was terrible when he started. Do you know how to drive?" He asks. I nodded. "See. Already a step above Spotter when he started" he says. I laughed.

Dukes POV
"So I finished this scene. We can actually watch it fully now" I say. "Awesome. Just let me finish drawing this part" Tyler says. I looked over his shoulder. "Is that Ryker?" I ask. "Yeah" he says. "You forgot his belt" I say. "Fuck. Thanks" he says. "No problem" I say. I got a call.

"Hey Jasmine" i say. Tyler looked over at me.
"Hey, Im sorry. I know you're busy" she says.
"No its ok. Whats up?" I ask.
"Nothing, I just really miss you. This always happens in my relationships. I get so clingy" she says. I chuckled.
"Its ok. Do you wanna meet up after Im done?" I ask
"You dont mind?" She asks
"Of course not" I say
"Ok, Ill see you later" she says
"Yeah, bye" I say
"Bye" she says.

"You two are adorable" he says. "You think?" I ask. "Yeah. You guys are the perfect together" he says. I smiled and sat down. "I want to tell her about my mom. Its just hard to bring up, ya know?" I ask. "I get it. You dont have to tell her immediately. Its normal to want to wait for something like that" he says. "But I dont really want to wait. I want to do it but I just cant" I say. "Youll figure it out. The right moment will come" he says. "What the hell are you two talking about?" Bailey says. We turned to see her in the doorway. We looked at each other and bursted out laughing. "Dont worry about it Bails. Its not what you're thinking" Tyler says. "I told you to stop calling me that" she says. Tyler walked to my laptop and I pressed the space bar. The scene started playing. Bailey walked up to us and watched it with us. "You guys made that?" She asks. "Shh!" We said. We're watching for mistakes. Ill have to go over it again later but still. The scene ended. "Yes. I made the art and the story and Duke puts it all together" Tyler says. "That actually looks really cool" Bailey says. "Well, maybe I would have included you in my ideas if you and Andy didnt keep telling me to fuck off" Tyler says. "Im sorry dude but thats actually cool. You guys are doing a good job" she says leaving. "What was that?" I ask. "That was me being mad at my siblings. Itll blow over in a few days but I still get mad at them every now and then" he says. "I cant imagine being mad at Jack. I guess its cause I know what he's going through." I say. "You guys are really good together. So are you coming over tomorrow?" He asks. "Ill look over the video tonight. I should be coming over tomorrow. If anything comes up Ill let you know" I say. He nods. "Bye Tyler" i say. "Bye Duke" he says.

I met up with Jasmine. She hugged me. "Sorry Im so clingy. Im on my period" she says. I smiled. "Its ok. I kinda like the extra attention" I say. She took my hand. "Come on" she says.

Jacks POV
Im done with training for today. Im sitting down in the garage drinking water. "Hey Jack" Spotter says walking up to me. "Hey" I say. "What are you doing here?" He asks. "I just got done training with your dad" I say. "Wait, you're the fire recruit?" He asks. "If thats what you're calling me then yeah I guess" I say. "I didnt think you were into this stuff" he says. Im into you though. "Well, my dad hasnt found a job yet so we need some money" I say. "What did he do before?" He asks. "He was an auto mechanic" I say. "Oh, then he should talk to Lunas dad, Cole. He works for the car dealership but he basically owns every vehicle related thing in this town. Thats why Luna runs the towing business" he says. "Damn you want me out of here that bad?" I ask. "You know thats not what I meant" he says. I laughed. "I know. Ill see you tomorrow" I say. "Bye" he says.

Duke and I walked up to the RV at the same time. "Hey, you're home later than usual" I say. "Yeah, Jasmine wanted to hang out. She was kinda sad when I had to leave" he says. I smiled. "Im glad you're happy" I say. He smiled. "So how was training?" He asks. "It was actually really cool. Surprisingly, I liked it" I say. "Im glad to see you moving on" he says. My smile faded and I looked at him confused. "Moving on?" I ask. "Yeah. You look so happy compared to when we came here" he says. "You think Im moving on? Hell no! I cant move on Duke. Our mom is dead! Shes gone and every day Im reminded of that when I see dad alone on the couch" I say. "Ok, calm down" he says. "No Duke. I dont understand how you moved on so quickly. Not three days after her funeral and you became this annoying bundle of joy" I say. "You think I moved on? I didnt! When you're not around Im crying in a ball on the floor. I miss her everyday. Every damn day... but I power through it and I put on a smile because I know thats what mom would want us to do. Instead of moping around all day and being depressed. Im trying to be positive. If for any reason, just to help dad. Him seeing us happy helps him feel better. I havent moved on Jack. I just grieve differently." He says. He started to walk away. "Where are you going?" I ask. "To be with my girlfriend" he says.

I fell back on the couch and put my head in my hands. The tears started rushing down my face. I felt the vibrations in the floor. The thump of someone walking. "Jack?" Dad asks. I just kept crying. He sat down next to me and pulled me into him. "Its ok" he says. I hugged him tightly. I explained what happened to him. "Jack. Do you know why Duke wears that red hat all the time?" He asks. "No" I sniffled. "Because it was your moms. That first night, when we came home from the funeral, Duke was way more emotional than you were. At least, he showed it more. He just couldn't stop crying, so I gave him the hat. It helped him. Its why he hasnt taken it off since we got here. You really dont remember your moms signature look? Red hat turned backwards and a red jacket?" He says. I laughed an wiped my tears. "Yeah I remember" i say. "Hold on" he says. He left for a second and came back. "Here" he says. He handed me my moms bright red jacket. My eyes watered and i brought it to my face. It still smells like her. "I thought that you were holding up better than him. I guess I was wrong. You just dont show your emotions as strongly." He says. I looked at him. "Thank you dad" I say. "I love you Jack" he says. "I love you too" I say. "We have to be strong for her ok?" He says. I nod.

Dukes POV
I knocked on her door. "Duke?" Jasmine says confused. "Are your sisters home?" I ask. She shook her head. "Good. I need to talk to you" I say. She pulled me inside and we went to her room. "Duke whats wrong" she says sitting down on her bed. I sat down next to her. The tears slowly started falling down my face. She wrapped her arms around me. "Im here" she says. I leaned into her and took a deep shaky breath. I sat up straight. "Im ready to tell you about my mom" I say. She stared at me waiting for me to speak. "She died a few months ago in a car accident. Dad moved us here to get a fresh start. I just cant... i cant seem to move on" I say. She hugged me. "You dont have too. You have time" she says. I cried into her shoulder. "Thank you for telling me Duke" she says. "I love you" I say. She hesitated. "I love you too" she says.