Take Me Back to Start

Peter wasn’t sure how to tell Jolie the news he brought. He wasn’t even sure if he should be here at all. It was a little intimidating that not only did he have to break the news to her, but also all of her close friends. Jolie knew Peter long enough to know whatever he had to say wasn’t going to be good. She hesitated before softly asking, “Is he okay?” she asked getting a bad feeling straight away.

It shocked Peter that Jolie would ask about Alex. He knew that was exactly who she was asking about. Why would she even care? But, then again, he knew the answer to that. She was always so kind. Too kind for his cousin. “He’s…uh…he’s not doing too great, Jo. That’s why I’m here…I debated coming at all. It’s not your problem to have to deal with…” he started to ramble trailing off at the end.

Jolie’s heart practically dropped into her stomach as she started shaking her head. “What’s wrong with him, Pete? Is he sick?” she asked pressing for information, “Please, just tell me.” She didn’t want it sugar coated.

Val and the rest of the guys put two and two together from the hints given. “Wait, are we talking about Alex here?” Johnny asked in shock. Jolie glared at him to shut up before looking back at Peter expectedly.

Peter dropped his head a bit, but still managed to shake it. “He’s got colon cancer. It’s late stage and already started spreading. They didn’t catch it early enough. It was misdiagnosed,” he finally cut to the chase. He took a deep breath unsure of how she’d react. If he was being honest, he thought she should cheer. Her nightmare would be completely over. Alex would never have the chance to have control over her again.

Instead, Jolie felt tears well up in her eyes and quickly tried to wipe them away. She let out a small laugh as she shook her head, but there was no humor behind it at all. “I shouldn’t be crying, should I?” she said seemingly confused with her own feelings, “So, he’s dying. That’s what you’re telling me.” Without any hesitation, Brian stood behind her chair and gently wrapped his arms around her. She leaned back needing the small bit of comfort to anchor her.

“Yeah, he is. It doesn’t look good at all. He…he left you something. He wrote out his will the other day and left you almost everything of his,” Peter admitted. Jolie finally realize what drove him to come. It wasn’t just to deliver the news. She couldn’t help the anger that filled her.

“So, he thinks that’s how he should make up for everything he did? He just leaves me his money and that’s it?” Jolie snapped right away without thinking.

Peter instantly cringed and shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t think he expects you to forgive him. He actually realizes what he did. A little while back he wanted to call you to apologize, but he figured you wouldn’t listen. He was seeing a therapist until he got too sick to go anymore. It helped him finally realize what he did to you. It doesn’t make anything okay, but he was trying,” he tried to explain.

The amount of new information floored Jolie and she barely knew how to comprehend it. Before Peter came in, she was just concerned about putting the past to rest so she could move on. Now, the past was rearing its nasty head.

The guys and Val were dead silent. It was clear they were still pissed at Alex and didn’t accept anything that Peter said. There was an awkward amount of silence before Peter slowly stood up. “Maybe I shouldn’t have come. You were trying to move on and I shouldn’t have brought this on you. I…you know I always wanted you to leave. I never wanted to draw you back again,” he tried to explain quickly.

“It’s okay, Peter. I’m…glad you came. I needed to hear this. And, now, I think I need to go back with you. I want to see him,” Jolie suddenly said shocking everyone in the room.
Matt instantly spoke up with concerned clearly laced in his voice, “Jo, I don’t think that’s a good idea. You’re making a lot of progress…”

“Yeah, I’m making a lot of progress, but he’s dying, Matt. There was a time I loved him. I was deeply and completely in love with him. Now he’s dying. Even after everything he did, I never wanted this to happen. I think I need…I need closure before it’s too late,” Jolie tried to make everyone understand. She could see in Zacky and Johnny’s faces that they weren’t fond of the idea. Val was just concerned. The surprising part was that Jimmy seemed understanding. Jolie couldn’t muster up the courage to look back at Brian. She could only image how upset he was.

Peter awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck while glancing around. “I’ll do whatever you think is right. I just don’t know if this is the best idea,” he said gently. Jolie gave him a small, forced smile and nodded her head. She was sure of her decision.
Brian stepped back nodding his head. “If you’re going, I want to go too,” he said simply. His fear was that she would get there and fall apart all by herself, or worse, she wouldn’t ever come back again.

Jolie turned to him with a gentle look, but shook her head. “Bri, the guy is already dying. I don’t think putting you and him in the same room is a good idea,” she said sounding reasonable. She knew that her boyfriend would most likely act irrationally when he saw the man that had hurt her for so long.

If Brian was being honest, he knew she was right. He sighed knowing he couldn’t argue that and that he also couldn’t stop her. He wouldn’t control her like that. “Will you at least let one of the guys or Val go with you then?” he asked.

This was something Jolie could compromise with. She nodded her head and glanced at everyone. “Jimmy and Johnny, you guys want to come?” she asked them. Matt was too hot headed to come. Honestly, she wasn’t sure how he managed to stay level headed when he helped her move out of Alex’s apartment. Zacky…well, he didn’t get the nickname
Vengeance for no reason. She knew that Jimmy and Johnny would manage to keep their judgements and emotions to themselves. She could tell Matt was upset though. He wanted to come with her. Thus, she figured it would be best if Val stayed back with him.
Jimmy and Johnny agreed instantly to go with her.

With that, everyone was moving already. Zacky, Matt, and Val were headed out. Jolie stopped them by the front door. She grabbed both man’s hands in hers. “You guys know I love and trust you two with everything, right? Let’s just be honest here, you two and Brian wouldn’t be levelheaded. I need to do this. I need people that are going to let me do that without having to worry about them. You get it, right?” she gently said.

With a small sigh, Matt nodded his head. He leaned down to kiss the top of her head and pull her into a tight hug. “I just worry. I want to protect you, Jo. You’re my baby sister,” he murmured sweetly and she hugged him tighter.

“I’m stronger now. I can do this,” Jolie promised Matt with a smile and turned to Zacky. He instantly kissed her cheek and gave her a smile.

“I can’t say I don’t understand your reasoning. Just be careful, okay? Don’t go pushing yourself,” Zacky said trying to sound supportive. She could hear the disappointment in his voice, but she appreciated the effort he was making.

Finally, the two men stepped out and Jolie pulled Val in for a hug. “Look out for them while I’m gone?” Jolie asked.

Val laughed softly and rolled her eyes. “Don’t I always?” She said easily before heading out as well.

That left just Brian in the house. When Jolie walked back into the kitchen Brian looked anxious and worried. She didn’t blame him at all. He was her boyfriend. She was going back to check on her ex, the one who hurt her and had convinced her to stay away from the people she loved. When Brian and Jolie locked eyes, she nearly ran into his arms. She threw her arms around his neck and he wrapped his around her waist holding her tightly to him. He buried his face into her hair. “Promise you’re coming back this time?” he whispered.

Jolie nodded her head into his neck straight away. “I’m not leaving you. I’m never doing that again, I promise,” she whispered in response. When she pulled her back, they softly kissed. It said everything that needed to be said. It was a promise from both of them.

“Good, if you don’t come home quick enough, all the fans might think they have a chance again,” Brian tried to joke and slowly let go of his small girlfriend. She let out a small giggle shaking her head. That was Brian for you, some things never change.

Jimmy and Johnny stepped on either side of Jolie with comforting smiles. “Ready to get this show on the road?” Jimmy asked with ease. She gave him a nod and glanced over at Peter. He gestured towards the door grabbing his keys. The four men and Jolie headed outside to Peter’s car. Jimmy and Johnny jumped in the back seat right away as Brian hesitated by the passenger side door with Jolie. “I love you,” he said simply.

Jolie got into the passenger seat and shut the door with the window rolled down. She looked up at Brian with love in her eyes. “I love you too, you big dork. I’ll only be gone a couple hours, promise. I’ll be back to keep your bed warm,” she promised with a wink.
Brian smirked and shook his head as he stepped back from the car. “You’re the only girl I want to keep my bed warm,” he in a cheesy tone.

“Better stay that way,” Jolie giggled before Peter started to pull out of the driveway. She gave her boyfriend a small wave before they were heading down the street. Brian watched the car until he couldn’t see it anymore. He was terrified for her to go, but he knew she needed this. He was hoping it would help her move on further and heal.

Notes

Whoops! Sorry this took a couple extra days to come out. Life had me busy! Well, here's the reason Pete arrived! What do you guys think? What's going to happen?