overtime | clark & martin

thirty-three.

Jessica's relationship with her parents was kind of complicated. She loved them both dearly, but from the beginning, she also felt that they should have known they wouldn't have worked. Her mother grew up in the city with dreams of changing the world. Her father was a country boy who wanted to rot away on a massive piece of land drinking beer.

What drew the two of them to each other, Jessica will never know. Apparently, the story was that they had a class together and had to work on a project. Despite their very different backgrounds, the two of them found that they had a lot in common, and even more surprising they found that they liked being in each other's presence. They got the highest grade in the class and fell in love. They married immediately after college and that was that.

Everyone who knew them said they were fiercely in love. That they had never seen two more passionate people. That they carried such a fire for each other that they never thought that it would burn out.

Watching her parents fall out of love was a learning moment for Jessica. She'd watched two people who had loved one another fiercely and passionately and intensely begin to burn out. It wasn't that they didn't love each other, they did. They just didn't love each other enough and so Jessica's biggest fear was born. Falling madly in love with someone and then just falling out.

"Jessie, honey, how are you?"

"I'm fine Mom," Jessica says into the phone as she walks into her office, "How are you?"

"I'm great," her mother says, "Now I have some amazing news for you. Do you remember the athletic director from your high school?"

Jessica remembered him well. He was an evil pretentious prick who hated women. Although they had won back-to-back state championships he had cut funding for the women's basketball team, and he'd also refused to retire Jessica's jersey, not that she was actively asking for it, but her parents had wanted it.

"Yes," Jessica answers plainly as she sets her bag down at her desk. She looks into Julie's office and notices that there are two very important-looking people standing there.

"Well, he died. Apparently, he had a heart attack while cheating on his wife," her mother says, "He was still inside that poor girl, she was barely 20-"

"Oh, Mom that's so nasty," Jessica says as she sits down at her desk.

"Anyway!" her mom exclaims, "They've already hired a new athletic director and his first order of business is to get your jersey retired!"

"Wait really?" Jessica asks excitedly.

"Yes!" her mom exclaims, "They want to do it this week so get a flight to North Carolina. Paul spoke to Avery and she's coming down too with Cole and little Mina so the whole family will be together again!"

Paul was Jessica's stepfather and Avery was Jessica's stepsister. Cole was Avery's husband and Mina was their two-year-old daughter. Both Jessica and Avery grew up as only children but when their parents married, they were both off at college and didn't really see much of each other so while they were friendly and did refer to each other as 'sister' it wasn't as though they had developed a deep sisterly bond.

"Yeah, it'll be great to see everyone," Jessica says, "Does Dad know?"

"Oh, he was the one who found out. You know how he still talks to the boosters. I wanted to be the one to tell you, so I told him not to say anything."

"He knows how you love to yap," Jessica teases.

"Watch it," her mother says, "You yap just as much as me."

Jessica laughs but it comes to a stop when she realizes that one of the people in Julie's office is Caitlin and that Julie, Caitlin, and the unknown woman are all looking at her.