Chapter Five
Part One
Subj: Hello
Date: 01-29-99 4:27 AM EST
From: PrncessBB@aol.com
To: FlyGuy@aol.com
Hello, again
Hello
Just called to say
Hello
I couldn’t sleep at all tonight
And I know it’s late
But I couldn’t wait
Hey
I had a really good time talking to you today, yesterday, whatever. I’m sorry it was so-No. No, I’m not. You told me not to be, and I trust you, really and truly I do.
Hello, my friend
Hello
Just called to let you know
I think about you
Every night
When I’m here alone
And you’re there at home
Hello
The worst possible thing has happened-someone else is moving in-into MY cottage. I don’t know who, and I don’t know when, but I know it’s the only way, for now, to solve the problems I’m having. I just *really* wish I could talk to you about all of this; I guess, in a way, I am. I just really need to talk to you right now. I need to know that you, not just anyone, but you, are out there, somewhere, listening to me.
Maybe it’s been crazy
And maybe I’m to blame
But I put by heart above my head
We’ve been through it all
And you love me just the same
When you’re not there
I just need to hear
And you know what? I know you are.
Hello my friend
Hello
It’s good to need you so
It’s good to love you
Like I do
And to feel this way
When I hear you say
Hello
And it makes me smile, and it makes my heart full.
Hello my friend
Hello
Just called to let you know
I think about you
Every night
And I know it’s late
But I couldn’t wait
Hello
And I want you to know that whenever I think of this
cottage, and this room, "my tower," I’ll be
thinking of you, and how happy and safe and, loved you’ve
made me feel here.
Good night, Good morning, FlyGuy.
Love 'ya,
Your Princess
Maybe it was the wine, or perhaps the day had taken its toll on her, but she didn’t mind signing the letter the way she did. Brenda sent the mail, and headed off to a very dream-filled sleep, causing her to oversleep and almost miss her meeting, the next day, with Lucy.
**
"Brenda Barrett, YOU are unbelievable, fantastic, superb, amazing! What would I do without you? This is the greatest idea for an ad campaign! It’s perfect, perfect, perfect! How can I ever thank you?" Brenda picked up her coat and purse, and hugged Lucy.
"Lucy, are you kidding me? Thank YOU. The campaign gives me a chance to work, with you, again SOON." She grabbed the stack of file folders as Lucy continued to add more to the pile. "And thank you so much for letting Lois and I organize the Heart of Port Charles Valentine’s Day Benefit. We will NOT let you down, I promise."
"I know, but I feel I should warn you, especially after the story you told me, that it is being sponsored by Jasper and Jerrold Jacks." Brenda let out a long breath, before turning to leave.
"That’s okay, Luce. Lois and I will just be sure to talk to them about the flowers first!"
**
"First month’s rent, last month’s rent; you have a key and a garage door opener. I think that’s about it. It’s been a pleasure doing business with you Mr. Jacks. This has certainly worked to our mutual satisfaction." Katherine wore her cat-that-ate-the-canary grin a bit too long, peaking Jax’s curiosity, but he let it slide.
"Thank you, Ms. Bell. I’ll see you at the Valentine’s Day Benefit?" Katherine headed out the door of Brenda, and now Jax’s, cottage, taking the signed contract with her.
"It’s getting cold out here, and don’t worry, Jax, I wouldn’t miss it for the world." Jax shut the door behind her, and although the place was decorated kind of "girly," he knew that it would be exactly what he needed. Glancing out the bay windows, he saw the large white flakes beginning to accumulate. Realizing that Port Charles was in for quite a storm, he decided to check the cupboards before heading back to the hotel to get the rest of his belongings.
"What in the hell does this woman eat? There’s not only bloody bit of food in the place, unless she eats all these damn carry-out menus."
**
"So what do you guys want? Pizza? Chinese? Sushi? The Grill? Cafe Matisse?" Brenda continued to dig through the stack of menus at Alexis and Scotty’s office.
"Brenda, we’re broke!" Lois understood Brenda’s stress over not having a job, but all she wanted to do was go home to Nedly and a long bubble bath. Noticing Lois and Alexis’ dilemma, Scott piped up.
"As much as it would be my pleasure to treat three beautiful women to dinner, Brenda, Alexis and I have a lot of work to get done, plus Serena has a project due tomorrow in school." Brenda glanced out the window, and saw the snow getting heavier. "But, since I am such a gentleman, I will take you home, Bren; Alexis told me about your car. And on the way, we’ll pick up some dinner for you to take home, and for me to bring back here, okay?"
Lois gave Brenda a hug. "You’ll be fine, Bren." She lowered her voice. "Just curl up with your computer." Alexis and Lois couldn’t help laughing while Scott looked on puzzled.
**
From her office across the street, Katherine saw Brenda heading home, and after seeing the car pulling away, she placed a call to the law offices of Baldwin & Davis. Alexis told her that Brenda was on her way home, and to try the cottage sooner rather than later, since the phones would probably go out due to the storm. "What a shame," thought Katherine.
**
When they got to Brenda’s cottage, much to Scott’s chagrin, Brenda insisted on staying, even though the phones were already down. She headed upstairs, not even bothering to turn on the lights, and dumped everything: her coat, her shoes, everything on the bed, before changing into her pajamas. Now outfitted in cloud flannel pajamas, Brenda grabbed her California rolls, the files about the benefit, and headed to the alcove to work.
Turning on the stereo, and plugging in her headphones, Brenda missed hearing the garage door open, and since Jax was already in the garage, he didn’t see her turn on the lights in the room. After unloading all of the groceries, Jax set up shop in the kitchen, breaking out his laptop, and hooking it up to his cell phone. He logged on to AOL, and his heart soared, seeing the letter from PrncessBB. The breath surged out of him as he read the letter, and the lyrics to the song:
Hello my friend
Hello
It’s good to need you so
It’s good to love you
Like I do
And to feel this way
When I hear you say
Hello
When he saw the "Love 'Ya" she signed it with, he hoped he was reading too much into it, but he felt things about her. Jax felt loved by her; he knew he was loved by her. Did he love her?
He didn’t get a chance to answer his own question, being interrupted by the pleasant "ding" of an instant message. Just upstairs, Brenda had hooked up her cell phone, and was on America Online.
PrncessBB: Hello, again.
FlyGuy: How appropriate. I was just reading your letter.
How are you?
PrncessBB: Fine, I guess. No news yet, except that
it’s snowing.
FlyGuy: Yeah. It’s really coming down here. I’m
so sorry about your house. It’s funny, though, cause I just
moved into a new house today.
PrncessBB: Small world. Why did you move? Didn’t you
like your old place?
FlyGuy: The place itself wasn’t bad, but I hated
living with my brother. Besides, your letter, the one about your
home, really inspired me. In all honesty, this is all your fault.
PrncessBB: I guess there are worse things to be blamed
for.
FlyGuy: You said you’re having problems at work?
PrncessBB: Yeah. I lost my business to someone who
won’t appreciate it.
FlyGuy: I understand where you are coming from. Someone, I
guess you could sort-of call them a former employee, really
chewed me out yesterday. Some people just don’t appreciate
good business sense.
PrncessBB: No they certainly don’t. They only think
about themselves. What they think is best, even though they have
no clue what they are talking about.
FlyGuy: What you have to do, is prove to them that you
know more, and can run your business better, than they can.
PrncessBB: lol. Trust me, I already have a plan in the
works. This is only temporary.
FlyGuy: That’s the spirit. I love your spirit.
PrncessBB: I love your words. They move me, and make me
believe in things I never though possible.
FlyGuy: You know what I really love?
PrncessBB: No. What?
PrncessBB: Crap! Hang on, okay? I just spilled soy sauce
everywhere. Let me clean this up, and get some more. I’ll be
right back, okay?
Jax, feeling the moment pass, deleted what he wrote:
FlyGuy: You
As he began to compose a new letter, Brenda headed downstairs, and seeing that the flowers Lois and Alexis had brought to the party were in need of water, she picked up the vase, and headed into the kitchen.
Jax had only begun typing the receiver’s address, when the kitchen door swung open. Before he could react, the woman screamed, and his world went wet as the vase of flowers was dumped over his head. In the dim light of the kitchen, as Jax began picking leaves out of his hair, he heard the woman’s breath coming out in mingled gasps. Peaking through the foliage, he took in her appearance: dark hair, long lashes, brown eyes he could drown in.
He muttered a silent curse, before addressing, the woman who was apparently his new roommate. "You’re getting quite good at that, aren’t you Ms. Barrett?"
(Song credit: Hello Again by Neil Diamond)
**
Chapter Five
Part Two
Brenda recoiled at the
extended hand, which was obviously connected to the god-like
body, that produced that celestial sounding, accented voice,
belonging to the king of the A#1 a**holes, Jasper Jacks.
"What the HELL are you doing in my kitchen?" Jax took a sip of cola, allowing himself a moment to take in the site of the enchantress. The heat and electricity in the air was practically burning them, and Jax knew that she had to feel it; the flush on her cheeks wasn’t entirely due to anger. He decided to turn things up a notch.
Brenda gulped, and stepped backward, as he strode toward her, until she found herself pinned against the island. Placing an arm on either side of her shaking body, Jax ran his thumb along the trembling lips he had been wanting to taste since he had first laid eyes on her. He lowered his head towards her, as Brenda’s gaze moved from the depths of his darkened blue eyes, to the lips that were now, only millimeters from hers. Their lips were barely touching, and as Brenda reached to pull his mouth down on hers, those warm Australian tones rained down on her ears. "Hey roomie."
Brenda’s breathing only deepened, and she managed a small smile, before she spoke in a shaky voice. "You are not my new roommate." Jax returned her smile, and backed away from her, not as satisfied as he thought he would be. He had wanted to get her riled up; he had wanted to get her just to the breaking point of passion, and refuse to give her what he knew she wanted. But he realized now, how much he wanted to kiss her, even more than he wanted her to want to be kissed.
"Yes, I am. And since I am now dripping on our kitchen floor, would you please show me where the shower is?" She had crossed her arms in front of her, protecting herself from the truth and from his advances. "I am. Look, you can call Katherine Bell in the morning if you don’t believe me, so for at least the next month, we’re roommates. Besides, even if we weren’t, were both stuck here, at least for tonight." Brenda let out a sigh, signaling her defeat. As she turned to retrieve her soy sauce, Jax turned off his computer, hoping she hadn’t seen anything.
"C’mon." He followed her through the living room and up the stairs.
"This is a really great place."
"Thanks." She returned his smile. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad after all. "The shower’s in there. I’ll be in here, if you need me." Brenda ducked inside the alcove, and turned off her laptop. He leaned against the door frame, and Brenda let out a long, slow breath at the sight of him in a wet, white shirt.
"This is a great room. I didn’t even notice it before. What is this place?"
"This is my room. It’s my tower." Jax held the door frame for support, as adrenaline surged through his veins.
"What did you call it?"
"It’s my tower."