The tension in her face subsided. She threw her arms around Alex’s neck and hugged him tightly. “Thank you so much, Alex. For everything.”
Alex’s cheeks turned bright red. “This is what Jackson would want. Make yourself at home. Goodnight, Caroline.”
“Goodnight.”
Alex stopped in the hallway and shouted, “Oh yeah. Hey, we leave here between seven and seven thirty.”
“Thanks,” she yelled through the closed door.
Once in the silence of Jackson’s bedroom, she looked around, taking note of everything that surrounded her. There was simplicity that Caroline felt suited him perfectly. The color scheme was earthy, in natural tones of deep, dark browns and tans. His room was clean and uncluttered, aside from the two shirts that lay crumpled on the floor.
A small bookcase filled with books on history, farming, and even some classic literature sat against the wall. The dresser was tall and housed a large flat screen television on top. A simple nightstand with one drawer resided next to his queen-siz
ed bed. A lone burgundy-colored candle sat on top of it, along with his alarm clock and iPod player.
She noted the candle’s wick was still perfectly white. “Never been lit,” she mumbled to no one as her hand ran across the still even top.
She sat down on the edge of his bed as the scent of him instantly surrounded her. She grabbed at the pillows, pulled them to her face and breathed him in. There would be no escaping him tonight.
Her mind wandered to impure thoughts of Sally and Jackson when a knock on the door broke her concentration. “Come in.” She sighed, uncertain who would be there.
Alex poked his head around the door. “Sorry, Caroline, I just wanted to let you know that the sheets are clean.”
Caroline let out a huge sigh of relief. “I was actually just thinking about that,” she admitted.
“Sally hasn’t been here for a while. Jackson went to her place mostly.” Alex stopped short of revealing any more.
Caroline understood. “Thank you, Alex.”
“Good night.” He shut the door behind him.
Caroline washed her face and brushed her teeth before crawling into Jackson’s bed and allowing the smell of him to engulf her. Once in his bed her eyes fell upon his nightstand. She thought briefly about lighting the candle, but knew it wasn’t her place.
She noticed something barely peeking out from the drawer. She knew better than to snoop, but curiosity got the best of her. She pulled it open without a sound and the picture of her and Jackson from the plane fell back inside. She ran a finger across the image of his face, as her passion surged.
The flashing light on Caroline’s cell phone drew her attention away from the picture. Her heart instantly felt like it weighed a thousand pounds inside her chest. She scrolled through her text messages and missed phone calls, her burden deepening with each one. Slowly, she pressed the digits to her mom’s cell phone. Her mom answered immediately, her voice filled with concern.
“I know, Mom. I’m so sorry for leaving like that. Yes, I’m in New York. Of course I’ll be back soon. I know. I’ll apologize to Clay’s parents, as well.”
She took a deep breath. “I can’t explain it all right now, Mom, but I promise to fill you in. I know, I’m sorry. No, I’m not in any trouble. No, I haven’t talked to Clay yet. I know…,I’ll call him.”
She took another deep breath. “Yes, I’m okay. I’m really sorry, Mom. I know. I’ll call you soon. I love you too. ’Bye.”
Unable to fathom having another conversation, she set her phone to “alarm only” and fell asleep wrapped in Jackson’s essence.
****
Caroline, Sally, Alex, and Tommy sat in various chairs around the hospital room when Jackson’s parents walked through the door. Jackson’s mom instantly started crying at the sight of her only son and his father reached his arms around his wife to comfort her. His mother looked up in Caroline’s direction and gathered her composure. “Oh, hello there. I don’t think we’ve met?”
Caroline stood up with a smile and reached out her hand. She noticed the same heart charm that Jackson had sent to her, fashioned on top of a ring his mother wore. “I’m Caroline. I’m a friend of Jackson’s,” Caroline said politely.
Tommy cleared his throat and Caroline shot him a nasty glare. “Do you know Jackson from school? Or the city or something?” his mother inquired.
Caroline felt her face flush with embarrassment. “No, ma’am. We met on a flight almost a year ago.” Caroline felt like a complete idiot at the admission.
Mrs. Parks’ expression reflected shock and confusion. “Oh. Well, thank you for coming.”
She walked over to Sally with a huge grin on her face. “Oh, Sally. Thank you so much for being here. I know it will mean the world to Jackson when he wakes up.” The two hugged like old friends.