Just Remember

Chapter 8 Open Your Eyes

For the years that J.J. was still in college and onward, Grace was constantly on the road with two of her best friends who also happened to be her neighbors. She never really watched anymore of the news broadcast then the weather forecast because of her business, and so her friends were shocked when she sat with them at their breakfast table and actually stopped them from changing the channel when a familiar face suddenly appeared on the screen. She smiled widely upon realizing that her Fiancé was now so very close to her and prayed that he had managed to get her father's approval and had gone through with his request before he had been deployed.


When she had time to do so, she made every effort to attend his Home Games and ensured that she was always sitting in the stands right behind his usual place upon the team bench, not that he stayed there very long. During every game her heart leapt each time that he'd run passed or walk to take a seat to rest, only to fall when his eyes never met her own. She had even followed him from the game once in an attempt to make him see her but he always seemed more then distracted and never noticed her as she drove behind him almost the entire way to his home which turned out to be directly across the street from her own home.


From that day, she tried extra hard to get him to notice her, . It started with hand delivering to his front door a large basket of her famous Rocky Road, Cookies, and her triple chocolate almond and walnut fudge that she knew was his favorite sweet treat. She'd stand on his doorstep and would ring the doorbell until her patients would go thin, and her watch would beep on his birthday's and Christmas just to get no reply and would be left with no choice but to simply leave the gift upon his front porch before she would be called upon to take care of pressing business for the day. This left her depressed and thinking that all that J.J. had ever wanted from her was her body, and that perhaps he truly didn't care about her. The only thing that kept her from removing her engagement ring was her hope that he'd wake up and open his blue eyes and notice her.


She had taken to practicing her flag routine in the front outdoor arena every morning at dawn rain or shine, in the hopes that Justin would notice her, but unfortunately it wasn't him who finally took notice, but his siblings and parents who lived directly across from her outdoor arena one morning before a performance that would lead to something that would open J.J.'s eyes for certain although she didn't realize it at the time.


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J.D. Watt was the first person up that morning and had simply stepped outside to fetch the morning paper, when his eyes saw a sight that he hadn't seen since he was ten years old, and he screamed as he ran back into the house startling his mother making her drop her cup of coffee all over the kitchen floor as he came to a sliding stop muttering and pointing excitedly. "J.D, Christ son, was that necessary," his mother scolded as she tossed a dish towel down on the floor to sop up the spilled coffee?
"Sorry mom, but you and dad aren't going to believe who I just saw across the street, just now," J.D. said as he grabbed his mother's hand and pulled her from the kitchen and slammed into his groggy father before grabbing him and dragging both of them out to the front porch with his little brother on their heels.


He pointed across the street where Grace was standing in the center of the outdoor arena dressed in J.J.'s old high school jersey spinning a set of flags in a familiar routine that made the Watt family's jaws drop the instant that they saw it. After all of the years that had passed they had no idea that they had moved in right across from Grace's home. They ran across the street excitedly and made it to the rail of the outdoor arena making Grace's farm hands give them puzzled looks just as the music stopped and Grace had caught the flags in each hand, before they made her turn by shouting, 'Touch Down Pirates, at the top of their lungs, making her drop the flags in shock.


Grace smiled warmly as she gathered up her flags and ran across the arena to greet the Watt family after so long. "Mr. and Mrs. Watt, T.J., Derick, It's been so long since I've seen you all. Where's J.J. today, I've been trying to speak to him ever since you all moved to the neighborhood. He's harder to catch up with than I am," Grace laughed.
"Firstly dear, you're our future Daughter-in-law. Call us either Connie, and John, or Mom and Dad, if you'd prefer. Secondly J.J gets around almost as much as you do. I'm surprised that he hasn't noticed that it was you who kept on bringing him his favorite sweets and leaving them on his doorstep," Connie smiled.


"He's going to feel like kicking himself through a field goal, when we tell him that you've been living across the street from him all of this time," T.J. smiled.
"I'm sure that he will, But I don't want any of you to spill the beans on that fact. I want him to notice me on his own, and to see how long it takes him to get his helmeted head out of his ass, and to open his big blue eyes on his own," Grace said as one of her farm hands ran up and whispered something into her ear before taking her flags and running with them over to her truck and trailer that was now ready to leave the farm again.


"I'm sorry, but I've really got to get on the road now. Please promise that none of you will tell him until he actually brings me up and asks about me," Grace said as she backed away from the Watt family and quickly leapt into her truck with a smile before driving out of the driveway and down the road leaving them stunned.
"I didn't know that she got her sight back and could drive," Dereck said as they walked to the end of Grace's driveway and watched the large red and black horse rig fade into the distance.
"You heard her boys, don't tell J.J. about her living across the street, until he asked," John smirked.
"Oh, Dad, I hope that we're home when he finally realizes that she's there. The look on his face will be priceless," Derick smirked as he high fived his brother.


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At that very moment The entire Texans team was in a meeting with their coaches, and the owner Rob McNare discussing ways to fill the seats since the team's performance had been less than stellar this season. "Boys, I'm thinking that the cheer Leaders is not enough to motivate all of you to want to win, and to draw fans into the stadium lately. Even our usual half time shows have been booed. What we need is a new Mascot, one that the fans can see , and something spectacular that will get the fans to flock back into the seats, and that will make you guys get your abnormally large heads out of your asses," Rob, raged as he stalked around the room.


"We've come up with a few Ideas, after attending last year's Rodeo, and witnessing something that nobody's ever seen before. The seats were absolutely packed on every night that our target draw was preforming. I have a meeting with the owner and rider of an animal that I believe would make the perfect mascot for our team later today, but before I go and meet with that person, I want you all to watch this video of her last performance and to tell me what you think,"" Rob said as he pressed the play button turning on the video of something that would prove to be a slap in J.J.'s face and would stick with him making him renew his efforts to find his wife who more than likely was unaware of the fact that she belonged to him.


His eyes widened in shock as there on the screen was Grace riding around the Arena preforming daring and dangerous stunts , not on a horse like he was used to seeing her, but on the back of a rather large bull with huge pointy horns. His eyes were glued to the screen and he blinked upon realizing that the meeting was now over and the screen was blank when his team mate tapped his shoulder to get his attention. "Hay man, are you alright," Brian Cushing asked in concern?
"Um, yeah, I just kinda zoned out there for a second," J.J. said with an embarrassed blush upon his cheeks.
"Dude you more than Kinda, zoned out. It was like you were in another world completely through the entire meeting. I think that you need a stiff drink to clear your head. You'd better come with us to the club," Brian said as he pulled J.J. out of the chair and out of the meeting room.


"Thanks man, but no thanks, there's someone that I've got to speak to," Justin said as he ran from the building and attempted to follow MacNare only to lose him in the Afternoon Houston Rush hour traffic and pummel his steering wheel in rage. He drove home and ransacked his own home searching for the Address that his father-in-law had given him a few years ago and her phone number to groan when he realized that the paper that had her address was blurred and unrecognizable from getting wet because one of his team mates had gotten drunk and had used it for a coaster to place his beer on. He then snapped and ripped his cellphone out of his jacket and scrolled down to her number that her father had given him and groaned again when it went straight to a message that said that the Verizon customer that he was trying to reach was unavailable.


He wanted to scream until his voice gave out, but he knew that would solve nothing, so instead he flopped dejectedly into his favorite chair on the back patio and prayed to god that MacNare could talk her into helping the team draw in record crowds. It wasn't her thing, but maybe he would get lucky and once he had her he was determined to never let her go again. He fell asleep thinking about it, and didn't notice when her black and red horse rig and truck pulled into the drive across the street later that night.