November, 2040
The brisk autumn air flowed through downtown Indianapolis like it had some place it had to be. The wind brushes up against Jess' face as she makes her way across the street, waving at Taxi drivers for letting her cross. The click of her heels on the concrete, accompanied by the sound of car horns and street corner performers, she truly felt at home for once. The tip of her nose was red, causing sniffles every thirty seconds or so. Jess opens the door to an old Pub on the corner of the street and is hit with a gust of warm air, hitting her like a brick wall. She unzips her jacket as she looks around. There weren't very many people here. Walking over to the bar, she gets the bartender's attention.
"Uh, hello?" A tall, bald man turns around. He's wearing a plain black shirt, and Jess noticed his very well done sleeves of tattoos. So intricate, it was beautiful. Her hand digs around in her purse before she pulls out a Polaroid.
"Have you seen this person anywhere lately?" Jess asks him.
"Yeah, Alex, he's a regular." He looks to his left and gestures with his hand, "The booth, over there."
"Thanks." Jess mutters, shoving the picture back into her purse, probably crinkling it even more.
She makes her way over and recognizes him almost immediately. He sits back in the seat, cigarette between his teeth and a bottle in his hand. Strands of hair fall out of his gel and hang over his forehead loosely.
"D- Dad?" Jess stutters. Her hands are shaking, she hasn't seen her father in almost 4 years. He snaps out of his apparent trance and looks up at Jess. After a moment of silence, his eyes widen in realization.
"Oh my- Jess?" He asks in pure shock. He takes the cigarette out of his mouth, sitting it in the ash tray in the center of the table and stands up, smoothing out his jacket.
"I haven't seen you in so long. Felt like damn centuries." He says, mumbling the last sentence. With that, he pulls her into a hug. Now this one, was long over due.
"I've missed you so much, Dad." Jess says into his shoulder. He smells like smoke and cologne, and that reminded her of home. Pulling away from the hug, a single tear rolls down her cheek as they both sit back down at the booth.
"What brings you back to town? College on break?" He asks with the biggest smile on his face that she's seen in awhile.
"Yes, we're on fall break. I just wanted to talk to you about something." Alex takes a sip of his beer.
"Okay, what is it love?" He asks in that oh-so familiar Sheffield accent.
"So, I drove back home because I wanted to surprise you, but you weren't there." He nods his head, taking another sip of his beer.
"So I went into my room, kind of just taking a walk down memory lane. I noticed a box at the top of my closet that I hadn't noticed there before." He knows exactly where this is going, and his heart drops to his stomach.
"I went through the box dad." Jess says before pulling 4 pictures out of her purse and spreading them out on the table. Putting down everything, Alex leans forward in his seat and rests his elbows on the table. His eyes scan over every picture presented. Jess notices his eyes start to get glossy. Tears brimmed Alex's eyes, and he couldn't help but blink them away at the thought of everything.
The pictures, they were of Arabella, Jess' mom. Alex's wife.
One was a family picture.
The next was a picture of Alex and Arabella kissing at a party. They were still dating at the time.
The one below that was of Arabella holding Jess in the hospital for the very first time. When Alex saw that specific one, all was lost. Tears start streaming down his face instantely, and flashbacks from 20 years ago start playing in his head like a movie. Oh god, how we remembered them so perfectly. Like it was yesterday almost.
The final picture was of Jess. It was her first day of Kindergarten, and daddy wanted a picture of his little girl to keep forever.
"I just- I didn't really know her. I was wondering if you could tell me about her. What she was like, memories you guys have, everything." Alex uses the back of his hand to wipe his cheeks.
"That'd take an awful long time, darling."
"I know, but please. For me." Now those words... those words hit him in the chest like a dagger. Of course, of course he was going to do it for his little girl. Who sadly, wasn't so little anymore. But god, Jess looked so much like Bell at that age, and that's all Alex sees in his daughter.
"Alright, love. Where do I even begin?" He asks her.
"From the very beginning." Jess says.
"Okay. Well, I had just moved in next door..."
YOU ARE READING
Sweaters & Cigarettes
Fanfiction"You told me that when we first met I seemed like I wasn't interested in getting to know you, but you were determined to break down my walls. I told you that I'd been hurt too many times and I was running away from heartache. You said that you were...
