Eden Cove Vol. 9

"Sometimes we need fantasy to survive the reality".

Kaden sat in his office and tried to fit all the pieces of the puzzle that was his wife together in his mind. He had spent the majority of his marriage trying to figure out what game his wife was playing and when it was his turn to make a move. This time, Amelia had been clear in what she expected, she wanted to move back to their hometown. She just hadn't provided a reason for the move. Escapism was a concept that Kaden was familiar with, he went from being an only child who took on a lot of responsibility at home, to being a husband at only 18, to being a father at 23. For the most part, Kaden escaped in his mind only, daydreams, and fantasies, although a few times, he had crossed the line into reality. He felt sure based on Amelia's behavior that she knew about the other women, his mother had warned him before he got married that a wife could always tell when a husband strayed. For the most part, they meant nothing at all to him and took no time away from his family. Except for Diana. Things had gotten out of hand there, maybe he had even fallen a little in love with her but she was so young. She needed things Kaden could never really offer her, he couldn't bear to walk away from his family.

Amelia put the kids to bed and sat on the deck, waiting for Kaden to come out of the office. She assumed he would want to discuss the move. He hadn't actually made any comment on it at all yet, which wasn't like him. He didn't say "interesting idea" or "now isn't the best time" or anything at all to let her know what he was thinking. She often thought of marriage as a game of chess, although she had never played that game before, she remembered watching a movie about it once with her father. In her mind, she and Kaden were sitting in an empty park, playing a game of chess, as old men did in movies. Amelia had just taken her turn, so now she waited.

Tristan tiptoed into Gracie's bedroom, knowing she would be awake, he climbed into her bed.

"I'm scared, Grace. Why is she trying to move us to the other side of the world?" he whispered

"Shhhhh, Dad won't let that happen. And if he does, we'll treat it like a great big adventure". she whispered back.

Grace knew they were going to move. She knew it because her mother always got whatever she wanted. That's why they lived here in this apartment complex in California, in the first place. Her parents had bought a house when they first moved to California but her mother had fallen in love with these apartments when she came to visit a friend and filled out an application that day. Grace loved living there, they had a huge pool and game room, horseshoes, and lots of other kids to hang out with but she knew her father didn't love it there. Grace watched people, an avid reader, though she didn't care much about her grades in school, she was always trying to figure out the motives behind other people's behavior. Her mind worked quickly, often faster than the adults around her, and Grace's mind was filled with pictures on a board, she was making a collage and making it beautiful. Always moving the people and the things around until they fit together the way they were supposed to. Right now her collage was a mess and it was her mother's fault.

*****

Jessamyn and Molly made a pact to do nothing with their day off on Monday. They would stay in their pajamas and eat ice cream, right out of the carton, and watch Lifetime all day. They had actually gotten Tuesday off as well because Guy said they were closed in the morning to rearrange the store for new Halloween displays. Jessa was very good at wasting time and laying around but Molly wasn't and after about four hours she was bored. Molly suggested they just take a drive and see where they ended up, Jessa agreed to this for two reasons. Firstly, she loved that Molly always made something happen, even when they had no plan. And secondly, she had been fighting with an unsettling feeling all day that she couldn't describe. They got into Molly's little Volkswagon, Mariah Carey's Heartbreaker, blasting out of the speakers, rolled down the windows, and hit the road.

"You're the BEST, best friend. You always know what I need, even when I don't say I need something". Jessamyn said thoughtfully, looking out the window while Molly took the right-hand turn, taking them off the back road that led toward the beach and boardwalk, turning them towards the highway.

"Anyone would be thinking it over babes". Molly gave her a smile and slipped her sunglasses on.

"Thinking what over?"

"Come on, Jessa. Let's go over the last three months of your life, shall we? You meet and become obsessed with a younger man, dump your boyfriend of over a year, get annoyed with the younger man, and then realize he's a major player? Meanwhile, you're hurt because the ex has a new girl, who by the way, is impossible not to like? You've got a guy friend who can't leave you alone, until he meets a hot blonde chick with a killer voice and then drops you and me, like a bad habit. You work with the hottest man alive, who you've been crushing on for weeks but he has a girl so you get yourself into a ready-made relationship with a guy that you barely know and you have been on one date with only to find out that hottest man ever is now single? Did I leave anything out?" Molly recites the last few months of Jessa's life with lightning speed and accuracy.

"You make me sound pathetic!" Jessa wailed, covering her face.

"I don't! And there is nothing wrong with anything that you've done. It's just that, you might have rushed a few things. Well, I guess you didn't rush the Taylor thing, you knew better than to get involved with him. But you did jump right in with Jon, and it's not that I don't like him, because I do. It's that you don't really know him yet and yes, I do think it's weird that he took you out one time and asked you to commit to a relationship. But that's just me. As for Finn, you need to watch yourself. I say that as a friend because I know how you feel about him. You finally let that shit go, Jess. You moved on, once you found out about Sarah dumping him, well, you looked hopeful again".

"I'm not hopeful at all. I know Finn would never be interested in a girl like me".

"That is total nonsense. There is nothing at all wrong with you! Finn would be lucky to have you. If you want my opinion, I don't think you're a good match". Molly said this with her fingers crossed, a childish habit she held onto when she lied on purpose. She actually thought Finn and Jessa would make a great match but she didn't want Jessa chasing after him just yet. Let Finn lick his wounds, get his head straight and chase Jessa. It would give her the confidence boost she seemed to need.

Jessamyn sighed and looked out the window again. She guessed Molly was right, after all, what did she even know about Finn?

The girls drove into North Carolina and eventually stopped at a run-down-looking outlet mall. They wandered in and out of a few stores, buying nothing but laughing and talking about work, who was dating who this week, how quickly the summer had gone by, and how incredible the Halloween event had been so far. After about an hour of killing time, walking in and out of dingy shops, the girls realized they were starving and walked across the street to Wendy's.

"Do you think things will change next year when Capeway changes the name?" Jessa asked. Freddy had mentioned it several times and she hadn't given much thought to it until he voiced the concerns.

"I really do", Molly nodded thoughtfully, taking a sip of her soda. " I mean Karol's has been there and under that name for over one hundred years. Even though Eden Cove is known for its beaches and other historical sites, its major pull for tourists is KK's. There are very few beachside amusement parks that have made it this long and grown. Think about it, you see a few little pop-up attractions on beaches along the East Coast but they're spread out and definitely nothing like what we have. Remember when we went to Myrtle Beach? Just a ride here and there?"

"You're right. I guess because we live there and it's always been there, it doesn't seem that unique".

"Exactly, we're just so used to it. But when you look back at the pictures of Karol's from the early days, it really looked like a carnival. All sideshow stuff and just a few rides, games, snacks, and the Pavillion. It's remarkable what the Booth family managed to do with limited funds and how they kept it relevant. I think Capeway is going to put in a lot more rides, they have to grow and I think they will get rid of stuff, and replace it. You know, out with the old, in with the new".

"Maybe you're right. I hope they don't change too much. This has been the best year of my life and I want things to stay the same". Jessa said in a serious voice.

"Jessa! This has only been the best year of your life because everything changed!" Molly laughed and Jessa looked at her confused at first and then let the words sink in, she had a point.

*****

"I cannot believe we are doing this!" Jessa hissed as Molly pulled the car up to a run-down, roadside motel with a sign that actually had flickering lights. The lights were an indication to Jessa that death was imminent.

"Right! I read one of those true crime books my mom gave me. Did you know they actually print crime scene photos? They stick them right in the middle of the book. Like, what kind of sicko wants to see that?"

"So you do think we might die here?"

"Maybe. The last book started in a motel on the side of the road". Molly stared at the front window, hoping for signs of life.

"You should start looking at the pictures so we know which ones to avoid". Jessa whispered and both girls laughed hysterically until Molly got the nerve up to open the car door. She motioned for Jessa to follow, even though she loved an adventure, she wasn't walking into this motel office alone.

The office was actually a little more welcoming once they got inside, with a shabby-looking chair in one corner, a small stand with brochures, and a small desk that held a coffee pot. It was at least well-lit and a girl who appeared to be their age was sitting behind the front desk, flipping through a magazine.

"Hiya. You lost?" she spoke slowly and with a very Southern accent. Jessa had always been told that she had an accent too but of course, she didn't think she did.

"Um, no. Just need a place to stay for the night". Molly spoke up while Jessa walked over to look at the brochures. She was always fascinated by the bright colors. All of them lined up, waiting for you, trying to sell you a good time but she bet most of these places she had been to already and they weren't all they claimed to be. She was going through them one by one, mentally checking off all the places she had already visited when Molly called out to her.

"Earth to Jessa, come pay your half of this luxurious room for two!"

The girls grabbed the key and started to head out the door when Molly noticed the signs glowing at the strip mall across the street and called back over her shoulder.

"Hey, is that tattoo place over in that shopping center decent? Is it safe?"

"Sure, it's the best one in town". the girl answered and gave what looked like a genuine smile.

The girls walked into a small, dark room with a double bed, a hard chair by the window that overlooked the parking lot, a small television set, and the smallest bathroom they had ever seen. Molly promptly started jumping on the bed and shouted,

"HONEY! WE'RE HOME!"

"Shut up! You'll let the killer know we're here! Why did you ask about the tattoo shop?" Jessa was looking out the window, it looked empty. She wasn't sure if anyone else was even staying at the motel that Monday night in October in the middle of nowhere North Carolina.

"We should do it! We have been saying we are going to get matching tattoos since freshman year of high school and yet, here we are, approaching our 20th birthdays and neither of us has done it yet. Let's go!" Molly got more and more excited as she spoke and Jessa wondered what she would suggest next a tongue piercing? But she felt a thrill go through her body, she knew this was a crazy idea. The whole day was insane. They drove out of the state without telling a living soul, and now they were in a deserted, dump of a motel on the side of the road. They would be tatted up and dead by morning,

"What are we gonna get? We haven't even talked about this in over a year!"

"Well," Molly said, "I still love the idea of the matching roses on our ankles?'

"I don't know about the rose thing. Oh! You know what I saw at KK's? Some girl came to the maze with this tattoo on the back of her neck, it was like this crescent moon with stars hanging down. It was so pretty". Jessa explained with her hands frantically, also catching onto Molly's excitement.

"So you wanna do neck tats?"

"No, I still like the ankle idea, but those sunflowers we got in at the store last week were so gorgeous and I think they would look good wrapped around the moon. I wonder if I could explain that to a tattoo guy?"

"Oh. My. God. Yes! I can see that! Let's go!"

The girls grabbed their bags and ran out of the motel room, filled with the wonder of youth and intoxicated by the freedom that came with creating a place for themselves out in this world.

*****

On Tuesday morning, Jon and Hannah stood outside apartment 126. Hannah knocked while Jon tried again to see through the windows that faced the parking lot.

"Jon, they aren't home. We've been here three times since last night, they obviously stayed somewhere else". Hannah tried to be patient but this was ridiculous. So what if they didn't come home one night? Jon had been non-stop calling and stopping by since he got off work yesterday. Hannah just started her new job for the winter and she didn't have time to help Jon hunt Jessa down. She didn't even know why he had called her when he couldn't find Jessa. It wasn't that she didn't care about Jessa but not being home one night wasn't an emergency and she didn't want to say what she was thinking, which was that they were probably staying over at Jason and Finn's place.

"She's my girlfriend and she would have told me if she wasn't coming home last night. I called her on my break Monday morning and she said that she and Molly were hanging out here, watching TV all day. You don't think this is weird?" Jon looked annoyed that Hannah couldn't grasp how serious the situation was. The siblings were hardly two years apart in age but completely different in personality. Jon was the oldest of eight siblings in a strict Catholic family and was protective of all of them.

"Yes, it is a little weird but Jon, not everyone was raised like us. You still call Mom every night and tell her you're home safe. Most kids our age, don't do that. I have to go get ready for work, I feel positive that Jessa is fine. If she's not home by the time I get back tonight, we'll call her parents and ask what is going on". Hannah hugged her brother and walked away, feeling bad for him but knowing that everything would work out.

Jon knew she was right and went back to his apartment to change. He had rehearsal later that morning with his band. They had a gig this coming Saturday night at a new club up in Richmond. His band, Restricted Sound, was just opening for another local band but still, it was going to be a good show. He wouldn't have a lot of friends coming out to support him because a lot of his friends had to work and it was last minute but he was hopeful that next month would be a different story. He imagined seeing Jessa in the crowd singing along, smiling up at him.

*****

Jessamyn and Molly came home that afternoon to find Justin knocking on their door.

"Oh, hey. I was gonna call but I was close by", Justin lied, he had called and he didn't want to leave a message so he drove over instead.

"We went to North Carolina for the night! Wait until you see what we did! Come in!" Molly pulled on his arm excitedly and Jessa followed the two of them inside.

"Okay! Are you ready?" Jessa asked and smiled at Justin, gently pushing him towards the couch to indicate he should sit down. "You go first, Molly. Or, no, same time!"

Justin started laughing, "what is going on?" he asked playfully.

Both girls put their right feet up on Justin's lap and twisted them to the side so he could get a good look at their ankles. Molly had gone with the crescent moon, with stars hanging from it and small rose buds gathered at the bottom. Jessa had gone for the crescent moon with one beautiful, vintage-style sunflower placed perfectly at the base of the moon to give the design depth. Both girls took the advice of the artist and did them in black instead of adding colors. The work looked crisp, classic, and beautiful.

"Whoa! You guys got tattoos?" Justin shouted at them. "When?"

"Just last night! But we are already planning on getting another one for our birthdays in December!" Molly started filling Justin in on the whole story, including how they ended up in Carolina and the creepy motel when Jessa yelled out,

"We have nine messages on the machine!"

Monday-6:04 p.m. "Hey Jessa, it's Jon. I was just calling to talk. See how your day off was, I'm about to head over to Dave's to practice but I'll call when I get home".

Monday-8:27 p.m. "Molly, it's Jason. Listen, babe, I'm going to this bar over in Dunmore with Finn and Steven. Sorry I missed you, hope you and Jessa had a good day."

Monday-9:02 p.m. "Hey Jessa, it's Jon again. I'm home now so just give me a call when you get home. Or come on up. Bye".

Monday-10:58 p.m. "Jessa? Are you there? I've been calling all night. I'm coming down. I'm getting worried".

Monday-11:31 p.m. "Hey babe, it's Jason. I'm home, give me a call when you get home or I'll see you tomorrow after work. Miss you".

Tuesday-6:11 a.m. "Jessa. It's Jon. You there?"

Tuesday-8:34 a.m. " Hey Jessa, it's Hannah Zimms. I know this is kind of weird but uh, Jon is really worried and has been trying to reach you since yesterday. He wanted me to try and see if everything is okay so I guess just give him a call if you don't mind. Thanks, bye!"

Tuesday-9:00 a.m. "It's Jon. Again. Is something wrong Jessa? Are you okay?"

Tuesday-12:47 p.m. "Hey Jessa, it's Mom, some guy named Jonathan Zimms called the house looking for you. He sounded frantic and said he was your boyfriend and had been calling you for days. He says you're missing. Listen, I don't know what is going on but call me when you get this hun."

"Oh my God!" Jessa screeched and turned to face the wide eyes of Justin and Molly. "Don't say a word. I'm calling my mom."

Justin and Molly sat quietly and listened as Jessa explained to Lisa that Jon was a guy she had just started dating, not even two weeks ago, and no she hadn't spoken to him yet but she would. Jessa apologized and said that she and Molly decided not to come home last night after staying out later than planned. No trouble and no cause for alarm. She left out the creepy motel and tattoos for now. After all, a stranger had just called and said she was missing, her mom might be distant but even she had to be alarmed. Jessa got off the phone and dialed Jon's number, and he answered right away.

"You called my mother and told her I was missing? Are you crazy?" left Jessa's mouth before she could even think of trying to be logical or play nice with him.

"Jessa? You're okay?" Jon answered back and this pissed her off even more.

"Of course, I'm okay! I just didn't come home last night! I was in North Carolina with Molly. I don't need to report my every move to you! How dare you call my mom? What were you going to do next? Call the damn police?" Jessa was screaming now and Molly yanked the phone out of her hand.

"Hey, Jon, it's Molly. I think it might be best to give Jessamyn a little bit of time to calm down and then you two can discuss what happened here. No, no, do not come down here right now. She will call you later. Ok, I will. Bye". Molly dropped the phone back onto the receiver and shook her head.

Justin had his arms wrapped tight around Jessa on the couch, he peered over her head at Molly, looking perplexed by the situation. Someone knocked hard at the door.

"Oh, hell no!" Molly said, "I told him not to come down here".

"I got this". Justin said calmly and walked towards the door. at 6'2" with a muscular frame, the girls were never worried about their safety with him around. He opened the door prepared to tell Jon to take a hike but it was Jason. "Oh, hey man". he said and backed up so Jason could walk in, he stepped out and looked both ways just to make sure Jon wasn't outside. Jason read the room and realized quickly something was off.

"What's going on?" he asked approaching Molly and taking her hand, she filled him in quickly and played back the messages for him to hear.

"Shit. Stalker," he said shaking his head and glancing at Jessa.

"He's not. He's just so intense all the time". Jessa said, she was calming down and was starting to feel bad for Jon. He was just worried about her. It was over the top, yes, but it was out of concern. As Molly opened her mouth to argue with Jessa, a second knock came from the door. Justin and Jason both headed that way.

"We got it," Jason said, motioning for the girls to stand back. But when Justin opened the door, it was Candy. After the group filled her in on the events and played her the messages, she suggested maybe talking to Hannah and seeing if Jon was always like this, and if so, was this something Jessamyn wanted to deal with in a relationship? She didn't have Hannah's number but Justin told them that she had just started working at Atlantic Games, his sister Blake hired her. So they decided to head over there for a game of mini golf and a chat with Hannah. The girls were heading back to change when Candy cried out,

"Holy crap! Is that a tattoo?"

*****

Blake looked up from the computer screen at Atlantic Games to see her little brother walk through the main doors with three white kids who could have been models right out of Seventeen magazine. It wasn't hard to figure out who the two girls were, he talked about Molly and Jessa non-stop and had described them multiple times. She didn't know who the guy was, not Travis, she had met him a few weeks ago, not Adam. Justin didn't have a lot of friends that he saw outside of work. Blake waved and called his name.

"Hey, I didn't know you were coming in today?" Blake looked directly at Justin and didn't look at his friends.

"I wasn't planning to, it's a long story, is Hannah Zimms working?" Justin asked. "Oh, dang, I'm sorry, these are my friends, Molly Peterson and Jessamyn Ally. And Jason..."

"Jason Merritt, pleasure to meet you. Officially. I'm co-owner of Fix It Up, downtown, pretty sure you brought your car in earlier this year?"

"Oh my gosh! Yes, I did, I thought you looked familiar". Blake smiled at Jason and then smiled at the girls, "nice to meet you both, Justin talks about you so much--"

"Shut up, I don't--"

"He does though". She laughed as Justin playfully put a hand over her mouth. Blake pushed him away and asked, "what do you want with Hannah?"

"It's too weird to even try to explain. Basically, her brother is stalking Jessa, so we are here to ask her if he always stalks women or if he's a first time offender?" Justin rolled his eyes and Blake looked between the four of them, decided she didn't really need to know anymore details, after all, Justin would tell her at home and escorted them towards the ticket exchange area.

Hannah looked up and couldn't hide the look of surprise on her face to see her new boss, Blake, walking up with Jessa, who she thought was missing, the juggler from KK's, Jason from the auto shop and his girlfriend. What the heck was this?

"Uh, hi everyone". Hannah gave a little wave and looked so nervous that Jessa felt bad for her.

"Look, we need to talk about Jon".