ᴍʏ ʙᴜꜱ ʙᴜᴅᴅʏ. [ᴍɪᴄʜᴀᴇʟ ᴊᴀᴄᴋꜱᴏɴ ꜰꜰ]

Ch. 20- Who's Bad? (End)

November, 1991.

A woman sat at her desk, typing on a computer. It had just come out, and it was quite expensive, but it was worth it. It made all her work a lot easier.

Small yip-like barks interrupted her. She looked down at her small, black cairn terrier as he jumped up and wagged his tail. "Alright, I get it, you're hungry. Come on." She stood and walked to the kitchen, her dog following after her.

The woman, Ophelia, had gotten her own house and no longer lived in an apartment complex. She still lived in Chicago and had her own car.

Her parents still came to visit her when they could. Ariel moved away as she wanted to expand her education for a good job. They still talked on the phone. Not as often as Ophelia would've liked to, but it was better than nothing. Everyone was busy sometimes.

She fed her dog and got back to her desk, typing on the computer again. She was consumed by the new piece of technology. It was simply amazing, and she could use it for hours. And she would, if she didn't have to sleep or go to work, which she worked as a paralegal.

Ophelia stopped momentarily to put her dinner in the oven before returning to her seat. She wanted to get these documents arranged and finished before tomorrow.

She cracked her fingers and knuckles, stretching. "Ugh, my hands are so sore. I need a break." Ophelia grabbed her dinner and set it out to cool off. "I'll be right back, my baby," the female cooed to her pet.

Walking around, Chicago was a little different than before. A bit more technology, but otherwise, still the same. There were a lot more kids in the neighborhood, which she didn't mind. Most of them were pretty sweet.

Unknowingly, she stopped in front of her old bus stop. The woman glanced at the old complex she used to live at. Katherine still lived there.

The older woman eventually came around to celebrating Christmas. That was the only holiday she was willing to commemorate. Ophelia would visit her on the holidays or stop by for dinner, as well as bring Katherine dinner.

She introduced Ophelia to Darryl's little sister, Janet. She moved down to stay with Kate since Darryl left. They got along fast and hung out whenever they could.

The woman peered up, seeing Kate and Janet sitting by the window. She waved at them, and they cheerfully waved back.

She turned around, not wanting to even remember the bus stop. It made her feel sad. Because it reminded her of him. Four years, and he never came back. Maybe he moved on? He said they'd keep in contact, but that never happened.

Darryl never bothered to call her. She never got his number, either. No one had it. Kate had his old one, but it seemed like he had changed his digits.

Making her way back home, Ophelia noticed a stranger standing outside of her house. Her brows furrowed down. She needed a license to own a gun. "Um, excuse me? What are you doing on my property?" The person looked up at her, but they said nothing. This pissed her off. "You're not gonna answer me?!" She stomped up to them. If this was Max or one of those other idiots, she swore.

Ophelia snatched their hood down. Her eyes widened as her mouth slightly dropped open. A gasp flew out. "Darryl?"

"Hi. Sorry I showed up so suddenly. I wanted to surprise you." He smiled cheekingly at her.

She broke down in tears. Darryl's smile turned upside down as he tried to comfort her. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare or upset you."

"No," she said, though it was muffled by her hands. "It's been four years. You never called me. I thought I'd never see or hear from you again."

"I know. I'm sorry. I wanted to, and I didn't forget about you. Can we go outside so we can talk better?" Ophelia sniffed and wiped her eyes, nodding. "Come in."

= = = =

They entered the house together. Barking sounded throughout the room as the dog jumped up on her. Darryl tensed. She looked at him and smiled. She forgot he was afraid of dogs.

"He doesn't bite, but if you're really scared, I can put him in another room." He shook his head.

"It's alright. I know he's just excited to see you. I trust you if you say he's nice." The woman picked up the cairn terrier and held him affectionately. "He really is. His name is Toto."

"Like the dog from The Wizard of Oz?" She nodded.

"Yep. It was one of my favorites as a kid." He agreed with her. They sat down on the couch, Toto sitting in the middle of them. "So, what happened?" She asked.

"Well, I finished at Nearwire and left for another college. I've been gone for four years because I needed to complete my bachelor's degree. It takes four years to finish."

"Ok. Why didn't you call me?" Ophelia sounded hurt. Toto sat on her lap, comforting his owner. He could tell she wasn't happy. If she wasn't, he wasn't, either. She pet him, appreciating his gesture.

"That piece of paper you wrote your number for me on. I ended up losing it. It was an accident. I had no way to contact you. Otherwise, I would've told you I was coming back." He finished. "Though, at the same time, I still talked to Mother."

"What? She told me she couldn't speak to you because you had changed your number." He giggled at her, fiddling with his newer pair of gloves. "I told her to say that. I wanted to surprise you."

"Ugh! Really?!" She scoffed, shoving him in the shoulder. He laughed, and so did she. Ophelia wasn't mad. Well, not a lot. "You suck."

"Can we go back outside? I wanna show you something." He nodded and got up. Ophelia clipped a leash onto Toto's collar, and they proceeded outside.

= = = =

"Here we are." Darryl smiled. "The bus stop?" She nodded and sat down on the bench. "Yeah. Remember when we started to sit here together? You were late just because you wanted to sit with me. I appreciate that."

He sat down next to her. "Of course. I saw you got a new car."

"Yep. I'm driving by myself now. You?" Darryl blushed, embarrassed. "I still don't have a car. Or know how to drive." She squealed loudly in excitement, causing Darryl to jump. "I can teach you how to drive!"

"Um, sure?" She hugged him, squeezing him extra tight. Darryl looked sad. "What's wrong?"

He shrugged. "I don't know, I just-feel bad for leaving you stranded for so long. I don't think I'm even good enough to be in your presence. I probably never was." Ophelia set Toto down in his arms. He tensed again, but the dog did nothing but lay down, so he calmed down a bit.

"Why do you think like that? You are good enough. You always were. What if it was the opposite? What if I thought I wasn't good enough for you? You would say the same thing I'm saying now. We aren't perfect, remember? But we're good enough for each other." She laid her hand on his shoulder.

He was shocked at first, but he slowly grabbed her hand, lifting it up so he could give it a small but loving kiss. "Thank you. I love you. Does this mean we're back together?"

"I love you, too. And that depends, are you staying? For good?"

"Yes!"

"Then you know my answer." They embraced, kissing. Darryl separated himself from her. "Oh, one more thing." He reached into his bag and pulled out the painting she made him four years ago.

"I kept this as a reminder. A reason why I was coming back to Chicago." The woman teared up again, but instead, he wiped them away, kissing her cheek.

"I made dinner. There's enough for two, but it's probably cold."

He held her hand as she held his. "That's alright. It's better than hot TV dinners."

They began to walk back home, Toto following behind.

"Then let's go, my bus buddy."