Back to Me

Suspects

Two weeks later.

I sighed with contentment as I placed the book I had just finished back on my bookshelf. I plopped down on my bed and started to laugh when I felt Sandy's cold wet nose rub against my leg.

"Sandy, you silly girl!" I told my seeing-eye dog sternly even though I was still laughing.

Jason had surprised me last week by giving me Sandy, a black and white collie. He told me he was planning on getting me a dog as a welcome home present but between starting his job at Rosewood High and finding Alison it sort of took the back burner. But I'm glad it got put off because even though I loved Sandy, I needed time to grieve for Shadow.

Shadow had been my guide dog for about seven months when Jason and I took him to the lake house for a Hastings family summer get together. One afternoon Jason took Shadow out for a walk while I sat inside talking to one of my cousins. A few minutes later Melissa came over and said that Shadow had been bit by a raccoon and Jason was taking him to the vet in case the raccoon had rabies. Four days later Shadow had to be put down.

"Hey, Spence, it's me Jason so open up." I heard Jason call out as he obnoxiously knocked on my bedroom door.

"Quit it, Jason, you're going break the door!" I yelled at him. "And it's not locked so just come in."

"Wow, someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. What's up with you?" Jason commented as I heard him open up the door and walk over to my desk.

"Nothing, I was perfectly fine and happy until I heard you. I'm blind not deaf, Jason, so you don't have to knock on my bedroom door like a mad person. You're lucky my parents aren't home."

"Of course your parents aren't home. I'm not a genius like the rest of the family but I'm smart enough not to come by when they're around. And I know you're not deaf but I wouldn't be your annoying older brother if I didn't bang on your door now would I?"

"Jason, believe it or not, I'm glad that I found out you're my brother. But don't you think you're overdoing this big brother thing just a bit?"

"I'm glad you're my sister too, and yes, I might be overdoing it. But I have to since I missed out on fifteen years of being your big brother. And you'll probably hate me for admitting this, but it's really, really fun to annoy you sometimes. You make this face that's the perfect combination of cute, funny, and angry. And I can literally see the smoke coming out your ears like those old cartoons and..."

"Shut up, Jason!" I shouted at him and threw a large pillow in his direction.

"What was that for? And how did you do it?" He asked as he threw the pillow back at me but it fell short and hit my leg which was hanging off the bed.

A small smile came across my face knowing that I had hit him but he had missed me.

"I know that you're sitting at my desk chair because of the way it squeaked when you sat down. And I can almost perfectly throw anything into the wastebasket, a foot to the right of the chair you're sitting in, from my bed. So I grabbed a large pillow and threw it a little to the left." I explained with a smug look.

"Why do you have to be such know-it-all whenever you explain something?"

"Why do you have to be such an annoying person whenever you're around me?" I shot back at him. "Now, did you come over just to get under my skin or do you have a real reason?"

"As much fun as it is to annoy you, I actually do have a real reason for being here." Jason sighed suddenly sounding serious. "One that I know you're not going to like."