Bridge To Terabithia 2: The Last Time - Part 1 || ✓

Chapter 2: Lost in thought

     "What?" Jess drew a breath, lost for words. It seemed as if the entire world just stopped when he heard his father say those words.

     Jess clenched fists before backing away from him. "You're lying. You're just mad cause I haven't been home for months!"

      At that moment, his mother lost control and bursted into tears. "No, Jess no," she said between her sobs. "She isn't dead, Jess. She's alive, she's back."

      With that said, he lost his breath and backed away until he leaned on the wall. "It can't be- she drowned at the creek and-and her body was cremated... I left her," he looked at his mother with tears in his eyes. "She left me."

     He slid of the wall, sitting on the floor as his fingers went through his hair. Memories of her then flashed into his mind. Her face, her voice, her laughter- everything.

     "Stop lying! You're lying, I know you all are!" Jess yelled. " She would tell me if she was alive! She wouldn't have just left me. She wouldn't... She wouldn't!" He felt his brain throbbing.

     "Jess listen to me," his mother tried to reason. She went over and embraced him, not wanting to let go. "She couldn't have told you anything, she couldn't tell anyone at all..." She soon lost her voice to talk, her emotions overpowering her.

     She then released Jess from her hug and then placed her hands on his shoulders, facing him eye to eye. "Some horrible horrible men took her, dear god knows what they did to her, but she managed to escape from them and they found her, very shooken up but alive and far from dead. She's alive Jess. They were going to take her to some place, but she crashed the car and she got out, scathed, but alive"

     Jess then realized in those 5 years that he was increasing his social status, rebelling, acting like an asshole to his own parents, for dear gods sake, Leslie was suffering... So much that he couldn't even imagine what she went through.

     "Where is she...?"

     "The Burke's called earlier, and they said that she was in the hospital, but tomorrow they're... well, she's coming back."

     "They're moving back to their old home here." His father said.

     Jess looked at the TV, and then back to his mother.
"Can I see her, talk to her again?" He asked weakly.

      His mother slowly nodded her head. "Tomorrow, tomorrow we'll see her."

     Jess didn't have anymore to say, he didn't know what to think of all of this or how to even feel at all.

     His mother continued, "It's been a long day, Jess. Go to bed early, okay? The Burkes should be here early in the morning. We'll visit them tomorrow, and you'll be able to see her."

     Jess didn't say anything else and just went up to his room. The only thing that he really was thinking about was just Leslie... To see her. He then went inside his room and collapsed onto his bed, falling into a deep sleep.

     Jess opened his eyes, finding himself in a small wooden room. He noticed trees and branches surrounding him and in that moment, he knew he was in the Teribithia tree house that he and Leslie had built back in the day.

     There was a teenaged girl wearing funky clothes sitting by the window, her long blonde hair that reached until her shoulders.

     "Le... Leslie...?" Jess called out. He came closer to the familiar looking girl. The girl turned around. Indeed it was Leslie. An older Leslie. She looked the same as the last time he saw her, just taller, her hair longer, thinner, but still slender. Her natural beauty was just breath taking...

     Jess then felt like his heart was going to burst out when he saw her. He ran to her and immediately hugged her. "Leslie! I can't believe it's you!" He exclaimed, staring into her eyes expecting for her to say something.

     She just smiled at him and didn't say anything. A moment later, she spoke. "Why weren't you there, Jess?" Her pupils in her blue eyes became smaller. Strangely, her smile didn't fade but her voice was still cold.

     "Leslie... I'm... I didn't know..."

     Leslie's smiled then changed and she seemed to instantly change. "Stop acting like a fool," she said angrily. She pushed him away and got off from the window.

     "What...?"

     Leslie said nothing more and just glared at him. What did he do to get her this mad? Was it because he left her that day...

     "Look I'm sorry about that day it, I didn't mean to..."

He looked at her face, trying to search for any emotions but there was none. It was just blank. Her lips then curved into a smile and again, she was smiling at him.

     She suddenly ran outside to the treehouse and then climbed up to the top of the tree. "Life is short ya know?" She said dreamily. "But, I already died, right?" She looked at him and smiled.

     "Don't do this please Leslie," Jess climbed up. It felt as if the Gravity was pushing him down, and only him.

     Leslie stood up from the tree and then came closer to the edge, spreading her arms out. She took one step forward, and threw herself off.

     "I've lost you once, Les," he grunted. "I'm not gonna lose you again" Jess's grip on Leslie's wrist didn't loosen at all as he stared in her blue eyes.

Leslie looked at him blankly and then looked at the ground below her.

     "But you already did."

     Suddenly it seemed as if it was getting harder to pull her up, until he finally couldn't hold her. As she fell, she was staring right at him, smiling.

     "LESLIE!"

     Jess's body jolted up, sweat dripping away. He turned to his clock and read the time. It was 1:21 AM.

     It was just a nightmare. He decided to take a fresh air to calm himself. He took his jacket, put it on and just left.