Georgie; Revisited

Chapter One: Jessica Sherwin Wakes Up

Jessica Sherwin woke up with a start. The blinds to the left of her were not all the way closed, and therefore letting in a small light. The sheets were somehow all around her, she slowly rolled to the other side to see her husband gone. That poor guy, he has to put up with so much. She slowly put her feet on the hardwood ground, hearing the dreaded creak. The house had always been old, after getting married they bought the house, not too far from her own parents. It was a white, one level house with a backyard that contained a small playground Zach had set up for the children a couple years back. Most houses in Amesille were one level, they both had been used to that their whole lives. Jessica walked out of the bedroom and down the hall to the kitchen, seeing her oldest child, Andrew on the telephone. Zach spotted her right away, and walked over to plant a kiss on her cheek. "Good morning hun. How are you doing?" he asked gently. She stepped back and put her arms on the counter for support. A feeling in her stomach rose, and she rubbed her eyes. When dread, and worrying stays in you for too long, like if you're worried about something out of your control, it can have a disappointing effect on the day that what you have to do comes. "Fine, is Sue sleeping?" She asked. He went back to cooking eggs. "Yea, she woke up this morning but I put her back to sleep". Jessica grabbed a strand of her long blonde hair and twirled it. She started to think so deeply about the day ahead that her eyes went blank. Andrew put the phone down, and turned back to his parents. He knew this trip was going to be pretty fun, his best friend Danny had just called him and explained the details. "Yeah Steven is gonna be there again, so is Trey, and Omid, oh and Naomi and Lisa are gonna come again, obviously. We're gonna talk to them again this trip. Oh and just so you know Isabella is coming this year. My mom told me". His face lit up with joy. Roberta and Lisa were pretty, and sweet but Isabella Atha was something else. The daughter of his mother's best friend who was a year older, had captured his heart at the age of ten. Even her name reminded him of a fresh spring rose. He had been absolutely in love with her his whole life, and she didn't constantly come to the triathlons, because her mother moved away. Andrew was in a good place on the morning of July 9th. Jessica brushed the tangles in her 8 year old daughters brown curly hair. Carla rolled her eyes, and crossed her arms. She was a funny, extroverted girl who played soccer like her brother and didn't really look like anyone in the family. Zach had black hair, and Jessica had bright, blonde hair. As far as Carla knew she didn't like her hair. It was long and curly. Andrew looked like a mixture of both parents, and Sue looked like her mother. "Carlotta Anne stop trying to walk away" Jessica snapped. "Stop, mom how many times do I have to tell you?". "I'm almost done" she yanked her head back. Carla did not like going to the triathlons to say the least. There weren't many girls her age who went, and the ones who did she wasn't well aquatinted with. Many families in Amesille did not go on this trip, mostly because they didn't know about it. "Carlotta is a stupid name" she thought to herself. Packing the car was never too bad, Andrew and Carla slept in one smaller tent while Jessica, Zach, and Sue slept in a larger tent. Getting the kids together was another story. But Jessica had no motivation. Zach knew this, and did most of the work. They were piling in the car. Andrew and Carla in the front, four year old Sue in the back, they were ready. Jessica was not, she had gone a good eleven days without a mental breakdown or a visit to the therapist. Putting on just an athletic tee and shots as did everyone else in the town, she was physically ready. "Relax, I know this is very hard for you, but  you'll get through it. I know you will. We're all here to help you" said Zach, saying one last thing before pulling out of the driveway. She turned her head and smiled. "Thank you". The car was soon cruising down the streets, passing homes with people packing their cars in the heat of July 9th.