[ - ]
Table of Contents [Report This]
Printer Chapter or Story Microsoft Word Chapter or Story
- Text Size +
"So am I going to get to see an Saskquatch?" Shae grinned.
"I'm not sure, we'll see how much of your luggage is going to fit on the dogsled when we land." Alex smiled at her friend. When Shae had learned that Alex was returning to Toronto, she volunteered herself and all five guys to go with her. She hadn't known that Justin was going to go anyway but she wasn't about to let her friend go through any of this alone.
The seatbelt light came on and the pilot announced the descent into Toronto.
"Where are the igloos?" Chris yelled from behind them. "I can't see them. Are you sure this is Canada, Alex?"
"Oh Chris, the Canada jokes are getting really old" She groaned.
"I don't know what you are talking a-boot." He grinned innocently. "I was just asking a simple question." Alex burst out laughing. The look on Chris' face was priceless and she couldn't help herself. Chris fed her one liners for the whole descent, keeping Alex in stitches the entire time. “Can we get doughnuts? So before you were our wardrobe co-ordinator were you a lumberjack or a curler?” She didn't stop until the plane had landed.
"Oh Chris, I can always count on you to keep me smiling." She smiled as they got ready to get off the plane.
Chris didn't say a word. He just shot her a confused look and shook his head. Shae smiled and shrugged. Meanwhile, Alex had started giggling again like she was going to bust a gut.
Since Alex was in familiar territory, everyone followed her to the luggage carousel, and then to the car rental counter. She rented an SUV to fit all seven of them. It might be a little squishy but it would do.

"Alex, the light has changed." Shae gently reminded her friend. No one had said much in the truck as they drove down the freeway. Alex was obviously somewhere far, far away. She would have preferred not to drive but no one else knew the city as well as she did.
"Does anyone need to stop anywhere or can we go straight to the house?" Alex asked.
"Are you sure you want to go to the house today?" Shae asked, concerned that Alex might be taking on too much for one day.
"The sooner we get this over with, the sooner we can leave." She turned to look at the guys in the back. "I really appreciate your coming here with me. It means a lot to me to have friends close to me. Thank you."
Justin reached he hand up to the front seat and squeezed her shoulder.

Alex was silent for the rest of the drive. We must be close, they all thought. Alex pulled up in front of a white house with blue trim and shut off the engine.
"Stay here." She said to everyone and got out of the vehicle. Justin held his breath as he watched the woman he loved walk up the step and unlock the door. The door to the house swung open. Alex took a step back and stood perfectly still. The six occupants of the truck watched silently. Justin unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the door. "Justin, she said to stay here." Lance whispered. Justin got out and closed the door.

Alex heard Justin come up the steps behind her.
"I thought I could do this. I'm not as strong as I thought." She said without making eye contact.
"You don't have to. We can get back in the car and leave and never come back if that is what you want to do."
"No, this is something I need to do. To say good bye."
Justin slipped his arm around her waist and held her hand in his. "We'll go together."

Chris watched from the car and spoke out loud. "The sexual tension between those two could drive a person crazy." Lance, JC and Joey stared at him. "I think it's starting to affect his stage performance."
Shae whacked him on the shoulder. "Shut up." She said in disbelief. "You don't know that anything is going on at all between them."
"Oh yes I do, and don't tell me that you don't. I know that women talk."
"I haven't the faintest idea what you're talking about." Shae glared at him then turned around to face the front.
"Yeah right." Chris said under his breath.

Alex took the first step inside the front door and stopped again. "You can tell the others to come in. I'm only going to be here for a little bit but I'm sure they want to stretch their legs after the flight. It's okay if they come in." Justin kissed her hair and went back outside to tell the others.

Alex hadn't moved by the time they got back to the house. There were boxes everywhere. Alex had called a cleaning and moving company to start packing up before she got there. She kicked off her shoes and headed for the stairs. All six people followed. "I'll give you the tour." She beckoned.

At the top of the stairs, she stopped to finger a crack in the drywall. Unconsciously, her other hand went to the back of her head to feel the scar there. Justin and Shae exchanged worried looks.

The contents of each room had been packed up, except for the closet in the main bedroom. Joey had overheard Alex call the packing company three days before. She had given strict orders for them not to touch the contents of this closet in particular. Alex started rummaging through the clothes and shoes. After ten minutes, she came out empty handed with a confused look on her face.
"Oh right! I moved it downstairs.” She said to herself more than to any one else. Then she spun on her heel and left the room, running down the stairs. The others, looking bewildered, followed. When they got to the front room, Alex was leaning her ear up against the hearth of the fireplace and punching the bricks one by one.

Justin fell to his knees beside her and grabbed her wrists. "Alex!" He shouted. "What are you doing?"

“I have to find it, it's here, It's got to be." Alex wriggled her wrists from Justin's grip and ran her fingers along the grout lines. “Aha, I found it!” She punched another brick, paused to listen, then punched it a second time. A small piece of mortar crumbled to the floor as Alex struck it a third time. Justin’s hands rose to stop her again and she pushed him away. "I found it." She said flatly. She pulled the brick out and gave it to Justin. He was looking at her as if she had gone half mad. She rolled up her sleeve and stuck her arm in the hole. Closing her eyes she felt around a brief moment before her fingers brushed a solid flat surface. She pulled out a small box wrapped in brown paper. Setting it on the hearth, she stared at it for a very long time. After a moment she noticed the skin on her knuckles was broken and bloodied. Cursing to herself, she got up, made her way to the kitchen sink and washed off her wounds. "Let's get out of here." She said to them. She picked up the gift box and led them outside.

Without one word being spoken, they piled into the truck. "Good bye" Alex whispered. "Good bye", she ran her hand across the window as if to wave. Then she started the engine and drove off.