Jack & Jennifer Alternate Days Story

Part 1:

(Written by Mystic)

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'Why doesn't he want to get closer to me?' Jennifer wonders as she sits in front of her dresser mirror brushing her hair. She glances at the clock and it reads 11:33 p.m. As usual, her mind is focused on Jack. A little while ago, they had re-entered the house after sanding and painting a chair Jack had found in the garage for Abby. It was like old times. They were chatting and laughing, but were both avoiding talking about what really was on their minds. Would Jack be sentenced back to prison? Jennifer found it almost impossible for that to happen. Jack, well, he wasn't so sure. But something else was bothering Jenn. Jack was holding back his feelings for her. He was avoiding expressing them to her the way he wanted to. The way she wanted him to. Jennifer wanted to be close to Jack, as close as lovers could be. For months they had dreamed of being together after Jack was released from jail. I mean, truly together. Unfortunately, Jack wasn't released from jail. Not permanently. There was still that question as to whether or not he would be going back there, and Jack knew it. So earlier that evening, Jack told Jennifer that he did not want to make a full committment to her just in case he would be forced to leave her again. Jennifer thought more about his words. "I couldn't bare losing you again," he had said. 'Oh Jack,' Jennifer thought, 'I can't bare the thought of losing you either.' Jennifer puts down her brush and stares at herself in the mirror. In a way, she could understand what Jack was saying. He didn't want to get too close to her, only to have to be taken away from her again. Yes, she understands that. But she doesn't quite agree with it. In her heart and in her mind, she wants to be with Jack -- body and soul.

Jennifer stands up and walks over to another dresser. She opens it and pulls out her pajamas, getting ready to turn in for the night. She loves these pajamas. They are a little old and worn, but she feels so comfortable in them. She begins to change out of her clothes. Just then she hears the shower start running in the bathroom, which is a room next to hers. 'Hmmm,' Jenn thinks. 'Jack's taking a shower...' She thinks about that a bit more until a smile slowly creeps onto her face. She immediately re-opens the drawer and throws the pajamas back in there. 'Sorry, not tonight,' she says to them. She opens up the drawer beneath that one and takes out a white, silk nightgown. A couple of months earlier, she had passed by a lingerie store at Salem Place and this nightgown had caught her eye. She walked into the store and purchased it, hoping to be able to wear it for Jack after he got out of prison. She fell in love with this piece of lingerie. It was so beautiful and it looked so angelic. She knew Jack would love it. She had wanted to save it for a special night, and she figured that tonight was as special a night as any. 'After all,' she thinks to herself, 'any night with Jack is special.' She quickly slips on the nightgown and loves the way the silk feels. She runs in front of the mirror to get a better look at herself. Just as much as she loved looking at it through the store window, she loves looking at it on herself. 'This is beautiful,' she thinks. 'But as much as I love it on, I'm hoping that before this night is over...... it will come off.' She smiles at herself, then grabs her hairbrush and starts brushing her hair again, this time a little faster. She takes one more look at herself and then turns off the light and leaves her bedroom.

She can still hear the shower running and quickly tip-toes over to Jack's bedroom. Jenn opens the door to his dark room and quietly shuts it behind her. It isn't competely dark. There is a full moon out tonight. The moonlight is streaming through the window which leaves the room with this unusual glow. It is beautiful, actually. Jennifer smiles to herself and thinks, 'Perfect.' She hops onto Jack's bed and goes under the covers. She lays down. Then she sits up. Then she lays down again. Then she sits up again. She cannot figure out how she wants to be when Jack first lays his eyes on her on that bed. She hears the shower water turn off and panics. 'What do I do? What do I do?!' she anxiously thinks to herself. Nervousness takes over. 'Why am I so nervous?! I was married to this man for crying out loud!' she thinks. But she knows it is different now. He had changed since their marriage. For the better. And Jennifer had never been with the changed Jack. And that was what was making her nervous. She hears the bathroom door open. She can't take it anymore and flies out of the bed and into the closet.

Safely hidden inside, she thinks, 'I am being ridiculous. What am I gonna do now?' She then hears the bedroom door open. From the crack at the bottom of the closet door, she could see that light has now filled the room. She quietly opens the closet door a teeny bit, just enough for her to see the man she loves. And there he is, wearing nothing but a white towel. Jennifer bites her lip at the sight. He is still wet from the shower and is just standing there beside the bed, lost in his thoughts. 'I wonder what he's thinking about,' Jennifer thinks to herself. After a few more moments of silence, Jack sighs and begins to take the towel off. Jennifer quickly closes the closet door, and starts releasing the breath she had been holding in. 'What am I doing?' she thinks. 'I'm being really ridiculous, that's what I'm doing. Gosh, it's not like I'ver never seen him naked before. Come on, Jenn. Pull it together and peek through that door.' She takes a few deep breaths and quietly opens the door a teeny bit again. To her disappointment, Jack already has on his gray sweat pants. She thinks to herself, 'Darn! That's what you get for being so paranoid.' After Jennifer is finished scolding herself, she continues to silently watch Jack as he prepares for bed. When he is about ready to turn in, he shuts off the light and climbs into his bed. He pulls the covers over him and closes his eyes. Poor Jenn, she is still hiding in the closet feeling like an idiot. 'Great,' she thinks. 'Now what?' She peeks through the opened crack and continues to watch Jack laying on the bed. He looks so peaceful. After a few more minutes of hiding in the closet, Jenn finally opens the closet door all the way. She is quiet in doing it. Once she is out, she wonders what to do. Jack had not opened his eyes and still did not know that Jennifer was in the room with him. Jenn quietly begins tip-toeing out the bedroom door, but comes to a halt. 'Why am I leaving?' she thinks. 'I should stay here and do what I originally planned to do. And that is to be with Jack.'

She turns and tip-toes to the side of Jack's bed. When she reaches it, she takes her time to stare at Jack's face. The moonlight glow is beaming down on it, clearly showing his physical features. It is the face she knows. It is the face she loves. She reaches out her hand and gently strokes the side of his cheek. Jack stirs but does not open his eyes. 'He's asleep,' she thinks and smiles warmly at him. As quietly as possible, Jennifer sits down on the side of the bed. After a few more seconds of watching over him, she leans forward and gently kisses him on the lips. And this wakes up Jack. He quickly sits up, stunned. His hands are on Jenn's arms and he is a little more than surprised. A dark shadow is cast over Jennifer's face and Jack cannot see clearly who it is. But he knows how she feels, he knows how she tastes, he knows it is the woman he loves.

"Jenn...," Jack says quietly. Jenn smiles and leans a little closer. The shadow covering her face is cast away and Jack can now see her completely. He takes his hand and brushes it along her cheek. Jennifer takes his hand in hers and kisses it. "Did I wake you?" she says innocently, with a playful tone to her voice. "Jennifer... " Jack begins again, still in shock that Jenn is there. He is about to ask her what she is doing there, but is distracted by her presence. He stares at her face for a few moments and finally says quietly, "You look like an angel." Jennifer continues to smile lovingly at him. She looks into his eyes -- so blue and so full of love. She loves those eyes. She could stare into them all day and all night. "Thank you," she whispers. She leans closer to him and begins to kiss him. Jack does not resist her and returns the kiss. He puts his arms around her and they continue kissing more passionately. It feels so right and so fulfilling. It is like they are the only two people in the world... But then Jack gently pushes her away and begins catching his breath. "Wait a minute, wait a minute..." he says. "What are we doing?" Jennifer, a little disappointed, says, "We're kissing, Jack." Jack smiles and says, "Yes, I know that..... but... I thought we agreed that we wouldn't do..... this...... until we were certain that I wouldn't be sentenced back to jail." Jennifer takes Jack's hands in hers and says, "Jack, that's what you agreed on doing. I don't believe we should have to wait for that. You won't ever go back to that awful place again, so please don't even think that way." "But I have to, Jenn!" Jack says. "I have be cautious. We have to be cautious. For both our sakes." Jennifer pauses and then decides to ignore him. She leans forward again and begins to kiss Jack's neck. "Jack..." she says quietly in between kisses. "I know you're trying to do the right thing. And I love you for that. But I don't think we should hide our feelings for each other. We should live in the present and follow what our hearts are telling us to do." Jack is trying his hardest to resist her but is finding it incredibly hard to do. Finally, he puts his arms around her and begins to give in.