For Old Times Sake.

[Jacqueline Oliver]

Jacqueline walked down the Main Street, worn black asphalt comfortably warm against her soles of her sandals. She squinted, waves of heat and sunshine blinding her vision, and instantly regretted leaving her sunglasses in her hotel room. She left everything back in Room 57, save for her cellphone which now lay snugly in the right pocket of her jeans. On this perfect country morning, she decided that today would be devoted to exploring Oakwood, for old times sake. It had been about two years, give or take, since she saw or heard anything about the town she grew up in. She could almost reach out and touch the distance growing between her and her aging father. She had barely spoken to her him during her years at New York University and felt a twinge of guilt every time she saw a missed call from her father. Jacqueline had finally mustered up the courage to call to him before the end of her Sophomore year and ended the phone call telling her father about her need to escape from New York in the summer, but only in order to get inspiration for her novel. He had insisted that she stay in Oakwood instead of leaving for backpacking through Europe or Asia, saying it was safer and cheaper.

Money was never a problem for the Olivers and Jacqueline knew that. Visiting gave them the chance for some father-daughter bonding, even though they both refuse to any overly sentimental feelings towards each other. Not to be mistaken, they were very close when she was a child, but there was a growing gap in their relationship as her graduation from high school approached. Her plan to live with her mother and Cecelia, who lived a life that any city-obsessed hipster would die for, made things... awkward at the dinner table.

She stopped, breaking her train of thought, and realized where she was. She stood outside a darkening red brick building with hints of tangerine orange accumulating at the side, a renovated sign directly next to her with wired black letters nailed loosely to its face, spelling out, ”Oakwood High.” Her mouth opened slightly and after a few seconds, let out a breathless huff. Jacqueline was amused, a catlike grin playing at the edges of her mouth. She had unintentionally led herself to her old high school. So much for a new adventure, she scoffed.

Memories drifted lazily from buried shelves in her mind opened like old books, forgotten in a library. She slowly began to approach the brick building, her cautious steps imprinted in the swirling dust. Practically her entire life was spent caged in this building, she reminisced bitterly, brows knitted together as she sifted through the fuzzy memories of a life abandoned. She chewed at her bottom lip and stared through the windows that lined the side of Oakwood High, left ajar since, of course, since everyone knew everyone in this town. It gave her a perfect view of an empty classroom, its desks caked with dust and dirt from long, beautiful summer months, but no fond thoughts lifted her lips into a full, toothy smile. A grimace lay there instead; Jacqueline could only recall the memory of little, naïve Jackie O, friendless and fiercely determined to leave the town she would, inevitably, someday return, just like her father and every other Oliver born in Oakwood.

[Leo Madison]

Leo liked to go for a jog in the morning. Not because he needed it to stay fit--he did all that farm work during the day and was under the sheets with his fiance at night--and between those he was well worked enough. But he liked letting his mind wander, and he didn't want to sit on some couch surrounded by his family to think. He wanted to be out, under the sun. It was still too early for anyone but people who worked the fields to be up. No one liked to rush around here.

Leo liked this sleepy town. He wasn't a man for great excitement, he liked knowing what was coming everyday. Sure he liked visiting the big towns nearby, he'd been to Indianapolis a few times for the Indie 500, he used to want to become a race car driver. But that hadn't happened. He was a farm hand, bartender, marrying a farmer's daughter. It was just how life went here. And Leo told himself it was enough. Dreams could be forgotten, and if his love with Sophia wasn't true--that was okay because he doubted he'd find anything better.

Leo was wearing only a thin white T shirt, which was streaked with dust and sweat, but that's how living in this town was. His kaki shorts maybe a little worse for wear. never bothered him. But as he was passing the high school he noticed a woman peering in the windows. She looked too put together to live here and he smiled a little. "You know school's out for the summer, not much to see in there." he said as a light hearted joke. The person could figure that much out, but why was she hanging around?