What About Us?

Chapter 4

Angela

I was worried about Jackson. Sure, we all have our triggers, but this one was different. Before that thing at the store he was a perfectly happy and bubbly then his dad chucks a 6 pack at him and he becomes jumpy and I can barely approach him. I remember when he first came to camp, he was skinny and beaten up. It took a while but slowly he went up to a normal weight. The first few months, when anyone would walk up to him, he would cower like he was about to be hit. It took maybe a year, but I gained his trust. We started dating 3 years after that.

I decided not to look too far into it. We would get back, he would see that everything is fine, and we would go back to our normal life.

I climbed into the back seat with him. Teddy and Charlie were taking the first day, Jacob and Melisa would take tomorrow, and Jackson and I would take that last day. As we pulled away I could see how restless Jackson really was. His leg was bouncing like a frog and he kept fidgeting with his phone case, he does that when he's nervous. Sometimes it's easy to forget he had Anxiety.

"Jackson, did you take your medication today?" I asked quietly

"Yeah, it's not helping." He whispered back.

"Why don't you put in some music and try to get some sleep." I suggested, music always calms him down.

"Ok." He pulled his headphones out of his pocket and rested his head on my head. I put my head in the crook of his neck and fell asleep too.

<*>

It was my first day at the new foster house. Everyone seemed really, nice at first, until my social worker left. My foster mom brought the rules down on me hard and forced me to basically be her slave. I would run errands, clean anything she wanted, give her what she wanted, anything. If I didn't do the job to her satisfaction she would hit me while I corrected my errors.

Today she asked me to clean the down stairs bathroom, I was 7. I cleaned it like a normal 7-year-old would and when she saw it she had a fit. She raced toward me and I ran as fast as I could for the door.

"GET BACK HERE YOU WORTHLESS BRAT!" She yelled

I tripped over the carpet and fell, she brought her hand down on my cheek hard. . .

<*>

I opened my eyes with a start. We were stopped at a gas station right outside Alligator Alley (A long road with nothing nearby that cuts through a stretch of wildlife). I unbuckled my seat belt and moved to get out of the car. Jackson mumbled in his sleep and stretched out in on the seat. Melisa was sprawled out in the middle. Outside Jacob, Teddy, and Charlie were stretching their legs.

"Hey guys." I greeted

"Good morning Sleeping Beauty." Jacob joked bowing

"Call me that again and I will break your nose." I threatened, raising my fist, "How's traffic?"

"Fine, none on the way here, GPS says it's a little back up further on 54, but that should clear up by the time we get up there." Charlie reported.

We stayed out for a few more minutes watching the sun rise over the trees, then we started on our journey again.

<*>

The rest of the trip was uneventful. Jackson went back to his normal bubbly self, he spent a good portion of the first two days sleeping. I was glad he was returning to normal, I love the guy but it's hard to talk to him when he is defensive and panicky all the time.

Getting back to camp was wonderful. I was back in my own cabin with Jackson. When we turned 18 we moved into a cabin together, it was fantastic to get out of the dorms. Our camp is more like a college campus. We have classes for nearly every grade, dorms, houses, restaurants, shops, etc. You can come and go as you please, it really is a nice place. It was strange growing up without parental guidance, but you get to meet a lot of people just like you, for instance, Melisa arrived shortly after me. We instantly became best friends.

When we returned it was a week into summer vacation, so all the summer activities were just beginning. Jackson would be taking self-defense with me along with Lacrosse. I would be joining the swim team again instead.

<*>

Summer is Jackson's favorite time of year (and mine). I spend hours at the pool practicing and he spends hours tossing a ball around with Jacob or even Teddy. Melisa and I decided to go to the mall off camp grounds. We were wondering around when I came across a book store. I'm a junky for a good story. Melisa went off to check out a new bathing suit, so I went in alone.

I was wondering the romance section when I noticed a strange guy following me. I walked over to the history section and he followed. This was shaking me up, and of course my 6'3 boyfriend was at Lacrosse practice and didn't have his phone. I put down the book and started for the exit. He followed me at the way to the food court. I texted Melisa I was being followed and would meet her back at camp.

I walked around the whole mall and eventually lost him. I made my way to the bus station, since Melisa would be taking the car, and waited. I felt a hand on my wrist and turned around to punch him, but he blocked it. I swept my leg at his feet and he fell cursing, I started sprinting away when I was caught in a flying tackle. Two guys held me with grips like steel. I lost my voice and they dragged me into an alley way.