MEMORIES

"Let's leave?"

Jade turned around to see Alec walk upto where she was sitting.

He had been attending a call from Emma who was still in Chicago, while she sat at the edge of the terrace and looked at the sun set.

"Why?"

Alec came and plopped down on his knees next to her.

After the lake, they went to Jo's for ice cream, then to town high school and atlast now they were sitting on the terrace of the Hopkins Villa.

"We still have to visit the kindergarten playground. How can we not go there?" Alec said.

She groaned, "Its so pretty here. And we can't do everything in one day!"

The view was really beautiful. From the terrace of the Hopkins Villa- which was situated on a small hill to the eastern part of town- the whole town could be seen.

The orangish red sun was setting and the sky had a pinkish hue to it.

There was a time when the Hopkins Villa had been the house to the most respected and richest family of the town.

The house itself was huge with French windows and elaborate gardens.

Amanda would always tell Jade stories about the huge parties that were held there. She even tried to describe the grandeur of the place in its full glory.

But years of neglect by the descendent of Reginald Hopkins who had originally built the Hopkins Villa, had left the Villa in a ruin.

The walls were crumbling, the gardens were filled with weeds and vines and the whole house had a ruined haunted feeling to it.

Jade and Alec had discovered the terrace of the in their senior year.

The grand view of the town and the almost haunted feel of the mansion somehow always drew them to the house.

They would sit on the terrace for hours on end and just talk.

This was the place they had tried and hated their first beers, which Alec had sneaked from a classmate.

"We can see everything in one day.... Wait!" Alec shoved his hand into his pockets and brought out a piece of paper.

He handed it to her. Jade saw that it was actually the itinerary he had been talking about.

"See only this is left." He said pointing at the kindergarten playground which was written at the end of the little page, "Then we will go to your apartment so that you can change, which you desperately need to do. And then go for drinks to Splendour."

Jade let the comment about her clothes slide. She was still wearing the skirt with Alec's sweatshirt on top.

The skirt had dried and become rough, paper like. And his sweatshirt, which had turned out to be really big for her, was till her thighs almost covering her skirt.

She had a good plan. Before Alec could take the paper from her hand and put it securely back into his pocket, she threw it out from the terrace and let the air carry it.

"Now it's not there." She said with a grin, "Sit down we aren't going anywhere."

Alec looked stunned for a minute but then gave in and sat down again. He knew very well that it was very difficult to convince Jade to do something when she had made up her mind to do something else.

"What if we don't have time to go to the kindergarten playground some other day?" He said after a few minutes.

"We'll take out time. Now shhh...."

Jade turned around to see in awe the million colours that were changing in the sky.

She always had loved seeing the sun set.

While Jade'a gaze was fixated on the sky, Alec looked at her.

The look amaze on her face was stunning. Her normally green eyes looked almost hazel in the reflection of the light from the sun.

She looked beautiful. If Alec had been a painter he would have made it a point to paint her like this.

With the rays from the setting sun reflecting on her black hair and adding an extra sparkle to her eyes.

He had seriously missed this about her in all the years he had been away. The awe, almost innocence with which she looked at things was amazing.

She found something inspiring in everything.

At last, Alec moved his gaze from Jade to the sky, to see the last few rays disappear at the horizon.

.................................

Splendour was one of the oldest bars in the town of Millbrooke.

As kids Alec and Jade had always speculated how it must be like to be a grown up and walk into Splendour as casually as they saw the elders in the town did.

"It's our chance now, to walk into Splendour, glamorously and ask for two seats at the bar." Alec whispered into Jade's years as they walked to the door of the bar from where they had parked their car.

Jade laughed. This was definitely not the first time she was going to Splendour.

She had spent countless nights drinking in the bar with Nicole, Jason, and whoever she had been dating.

But this was the first time she felt excitement in her stomach.

They had stopped at her apartment so that she could change and get into a better state than she had been in.

After changing her clothes five times, while Alec waited for her, she decided on black jeans and a dark blue top.

The blue top brought out the green in her eyes according to Nicole. She managed to put her hair up in a messy bun and put on light make up, before Alec threatened to leave without her.

They went inside Splendour which was already moderately crowded.

Though it was not an Irish bar and the owner, Ned Jones, had never laid a step out of Millbrooke, the bar had a slight Irish feel to it.

People were sitting in the booths sipping their drinks, there was a small band of 4 people playing live music on the other side of the bar.

Jade smiled at the people she knew and walked to the bar.

Alec followed behind her.

So this was what it was like to grow up and continue living in the same small town for your whole life.

In the whole day that he had spent with her, Jade had stopped to speak to about 15 people she knew. She nodded and smiled at people on the road, asked about people's health and how was work.

It was unnerving for Alec who did not even know the name of his neighbour in London. Maybe because he rarely lived in his apartment for longer than 3 days at a stretch.

"What can I get you Miss Jade?" A gangly guy with freckles came up to them as they sat at the bar and asked.

"Hello Bob! I'll take my usual. Alec?" Jade said with another dazzling smile, which had Bob blushing under his wild mane of brown hair.

"A beer." Alec said.

Of course she knew the bar tender, she must know the name of his younger brother, what his parents did, where they lived, everything.

"Why the frown?" Jade looked up to see Alec with his eyebrows furrowed.

"Isn't it wierd to know everything about everyone?"

"What do you mean?"

Jade folded her hands on her lap and turned towards Alec, getting ready for a conversation which was surely going to be interesting.

"I mean living in a small town must be so exhausting. You know everyone, everyone knows you. And you, Jade, you seem to know everything about everyone."

Jade laughed, "It's not really a small town thing. Others just know each other. The reason that I know everything about everyone is because I like talking to people. I like knowing their stories."

Alec remembered, even as a kid, Jade had liked talking to people about their lives. She knew everything about the family members of the other people in their little circle of friends.

"Like see that lady over there?" Jade indicated towards a middle aged lady sitting alone in one of the booths, "That's Maurice Dawson. She had been married for 20 years when her husband died last year. Maurice and John, her husband, came to Splendour every Wednesday evening to have drinks after dinner for all the years that they were married. And now after John died she still keeps the tradition up. She comes every Wednesday, has a drink and then goes back to her kids. Her daughter is 17, in high school and her son is 14."

"That's difficult. Being alone with two teenage kids." Alec commented, still looking at the lady who, he realised now had a small, sad smile on her pretty face.

"Yes. She misses having John next to her, helping her with kids, seeing him every morning and spending time with him every minute of her life. And she works in the high school. She's a history teacher."

"How do you know such stuff?"

It was surprising how much Jade knew about the lady.

"I spoke to her."

"And she told you all this, about how difficult it is to have teenage kids and raising them alone?"

"Yes. Alec to know someone's story you just have to ask in the right way." Jade said, "It's not so difficult you know."

"But why? I mean... What do you get?"

"I like knowing the life stories of new people."

That was the reason she was a good author. She understood people and had a way of making people comfortable so that they told her about themselves without much encouragement or coaxing.

"It must be good to have the talent to do that." Said Alec just as the gangly Bob put down their drinks in front of them while sneaking a peek at Jade from the cover of his hair.

"To people. And the various stories they have to tell us." Jade cheered, holding up her glass.

Alec held up his glass of frothy beer, "To people. And those who listen to those various stories."

They clinked glasses and Alec took a sip of his beer. He placed the glass on the bar and looked up.

Jade had the glass of vodka still at her lips and she was drinking like she had been thirsty for years.

"Hey hey! Chill out." He took the glass from her hands and placed it next to his.

"That felt good!" She said smacking her lips.

Alec looked at the glass which was already half empty.

"Why the hurry?" He laughed.

"I don't remember the last time I had a proper drink. I have been so busy writing and Nicole has been busy with the twins. We have not got drunk for ages." Sighed Jade.

She could feel the warm liquid burn down her throat and spread the warmth throughout her body.

"So that's the plan, huh? Getting drunk?" Alec asked.

"Will that be a problem?"

"Nope... I like girls who can really drink!"

"So then Mr Alexander Carter, you're going to love me!" Said Jade enthusiastically before picking up the glass and taking another hearty sip of vodka.

This was one new side of Jade Tucker that Alec was seeing. And to tell the truth he actually loved it.

........................

Happy Reading!!