I'm coming home, I'm coming home....open/Jeremy?

[brooklyn]

Brooklyn stood on the porch as the movers unloaded the last of her boxes. She had done plenty of work herself but was exhausted. Besides, she was paying these men to do all this, she should get her moneys worth. It was late afternoon. When she was little this was her favorite time of day. Hide and seek was more fun when you knew the sun was about to set. This house was only a few miles from the shore. If one closed their eyes and concentrated they could hear the faint sounds of waves crashing. Another thing Brooklyn loved about this house That and every memory within the walls and over every roll of grass.

A chuckle left her lips before she turned to the delivery men. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a couple twenties and a handful fives. Two of the three men exchanged looks before the man with a buzz cut handed her his number. Her lips pursed in amusement before she agreed to think about it. Really, Brooklyn had already made up her mind not to. She had no interest in dating right now. The store opening was just weeks away and she had an entire house to unpack. Dating was far from her mind. Besides, her heart had been broken too many times to count. Currently a dating cleanse was perfect. Plus, still wearing the necklace from a childhood crush probably didn't help. Most of the time the twenty inch chain remained tucked into her shirt. Today it was pulled out. Her slender fingers fiddled with it as she decided to finally go into her new home.

The first thing she did was open the windows not already open. The final thing she opened were the French doors to the backyard. More ghosts of memories past were filtering about the dimming skies. Still, she pulled herself away to plug her iPhone into the docking station, turning on iHeart radio. As she moved to unpack her kitchen, she swayed about, humming to the tunes.

outfit: here

[jeremy]

Another day had ended at the garage and none too soon for Jeremy. He loved working at the garage and the guys there but after work meant family time with his son. This usually meant dinner with his folks, followed by a bath, a game of Candyland, storytime then sleep. It was a nice routine and both Jeremy and CJ had gotten used to it.

He mounted his recently acquired Silver and black Harley Davidson and drove to his folks' place. As he did he saw someone was moving into the home of a childhood crush of his, Brooklyn McLoughlin. He slowed down slightly, just to take in the house again. He grinned slightly thinking back to the times they had spent together, it was all innocent fun. He drove on, not wanting to be accused of being a peeping Tom!

He pulled into the drive way of the folks' home and was greeted with a small guy running up to him. "DADDY!!!" It was easy to tell that the small guy was Jeremy's son, they looked so much alike! Jeremy scooped the kid in his arms. "Hey sport!! How was your day?" CJ proceeded to prattle on about school and some kid eating the glue, then how they had to square dance in gym class and the girl next to him wouldn't hold his hand like they were supposed to. Finally he came to after school, "Me 'n gramma made cookies for the new person a few houses down from here. Gramma says you gotta take the cookies to them." Jeremy rolled his eyes and grunted a little, before taking CJ inside.

"Mom, what are you doing? No one makes cookies or pies for neighbors anymore."

"Well, I thought it would be nice, make a person feel welcomed to the area." His mother explained while checking on the meatloaf for dinner. "Besides, I could have just gone and invited them over for dinner and with how you look right now that could be disaster!"

Jeremy shook his head. "Fine, you win Ma. Let me shower first and I'll go make the delivery for you." He knew better than to argue with his mother, over *anything*. He took a quick shower and put on a nicer shirt and jeans. "There, do I look presentable?"

His mother nodded with approval and handed him a Tupperware container with the homemade Chocolate Chip cookies. "You look just fine, you make a mother proud." She said as she pinched his cheek jokingly. "Don't worry about CJ he can help set the table."

Jeremy headed up the street, taking a quick peek at the cookies and catching a whiff, ohhh they smelled good! He knew he had to resist. Finally he reached the house, listening to the music coming from inside. Who ever it was had good taste in music. He noticed there seemed to be life in the kitchen. He headed to the back of the house, since the house was very similar to the one he grew up in. He gently wrapped on the door to get the attention of the female figure. "Knock knock, special delivery." He smiled, not knowing who to expect.

[brooklyn]

Brooke’s head bobbed from side to side as she slipped the dishes into the cupboard. Right now, she didn’t have much to unpack. Back home she had lived with her parents. Not for lack of money but just because the three of them were so close. Brooklyn never had much need for a lot of furniture. She sort of had her own “apartment” she maintained but the three still took a few meals a week in the main kitchen. All she had were a boxes of dishwear, a handful of pots and pans and only a couple appliances. Tomorrow she would flood the stores buying all new kitchenwear, furniture and décor. The stores in town would probably appreciate it at least. For the girl who had to unpack everything and figure out how to assemble certain appliances herself, not so much.

A gentle rap at the back of the slightly open doors caught her attention. ”Just a minute,” she called out. A huff of air left her lips. At this moment she had a stack of plates and a couple bowls in her arms. Not wanting to have to lift them again, she just finished putting them on the lowest shelf above the cupboards. Really, if whoever was at the door was dangerous, chances are they wouldn’t knock when the doors were wide open. And the windows. And her music was blaring so she couldn’t hear them. Right now, Brooklyn was opening herself up for an attack. Oh well. Put her out of her misery of all the pointless drama and stress of opening her shop.

As everything was put in place, she wiped her hands over her jeans since the only rags out were for cleaning with chemicals. With a finally wipe, she brought them up so her thumbs slipped into her pockets. She pulled one hand out momentarily to turn down the music, Shinedown now over the speakers. Ass she moved to the door she rubbed at her tired eyes, not really seeing the person on her porch. ”Can I help you?” As she used her free hand to open one of the doors wider, her face went pale. Though they hadn’t seen each other in what, eight years, she could see the ghost of that teenager she last saw. Sure, now he was covered in scruff and filled out with more muscles then she remembered, but it was the same old Jeremy. She could tell with his smile. That smile reached up to his eyes. Not as bright as they once were, yes life had taken it’s toll on his face but it had on hers as well. Not that either of them were particularly old just a lot more grown up.

”Jeremy,” she barely croaked out. What was this stupid twist of fate? She thought he didn‘t live around here anymore! That‘s what her blasted cousin told her. Of if Madilyn was lying, Brooklyn was going to kill the girl. Her aunt and uncle would not recognize the bubbly brunette anymore. ”What are you doing here?” Brooklyn gazed over him. Yes, though there had been hardships the years had also been kind to him. She noticed the container of cooks at smiled. Nope, that wasn’t Jeremy at all but his mom. That meant she still lived in town too? She’d have to find her way over and bother the woman. Brooklyn and her mother had always been close to Jeremy’s mom. Actually, closer as the two women had still talked over the last few years and these two, well, didn’t. Not for lack of trying. It was like one day everything just stopped when they were both a little over eighteen. Sad but sometimes, things like that just happened. Her mom was always vague on updates about how he was doing so Brooklyn moved on in some sense. After all, childhood friends never stayed close unless they were related. That’s just how life was.”Um, I think I need a drink. You want one?” Honestly, she couldn’t think of anything else to say to him at this moment.

[jeremy]

Jeremy straightened up hearing the voice calling out. He scoffed at himself though. He was a grown man now yet he felt like the awkward teenager going to pick up a date only to be grilled by her family first. That didn't happen though, instead the last time he has stood on this back porch he was wanting Brooklyn to come outside because it was too nice to stay inside for anything. He heard the music go low and the door start to open.

"Hi, this is a wel..." Jeremy stopped himself and stared in disbelief. Could this be the same girl he had a crush on so many years ago? he He blinked to see if he was only seeing things but she was still there. Time had been kind to her. He was speechless at first. "I...umm...my mom made these to welcome the new neighbor. So umm welcome or welcome home? God this is awkward for me!" He realized the words came out before his brain could catch up to his mouth. "Not that it's not awkward for you. It's just..." He knew he was rambling on about nothing.

"Yeah, I could use a drink as well. Whatever you're having is fine." He had no idea Brooklyn was even back in town much less moving in, course after he had met the woman with whom he had a quickie marriage with and child by, no one really talked to anyone. Was it to spare the both of them any sort of heart ache? It didn't work what ever the reason was. He took a cautious step inside. The kitchen seemed smaller than he remembered but he had to think back he was still young last time seeing the inside of the old house. "My mom drove by here earlier and saw the truck and well, you know how she is, had to make something to say hello. I actually said no one does this any more, do I feel like a fool now." He rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "If I can be honest right now, you look amazing."

[brooklyn]

Brooklyn nodded and chuckled nervously. ”I figured she would have. She always did like to feed everyone as if we were starving.” She wasn’t really sure of what else to say. She had only bought this home because she loved it growing up. Sure, the memories were there to boot but this whole town was crawling with them. Everywhere she went was a memory with her parents or Jeremy or someone else. That was the thing about small towns. Wherever you went, everyone followed in a sense. She nodded about it being awkward and breathed in deep. ”Yeah it’s just a bit awkward. I didn’t know you s till lived around here.” Yes, her cousin would be more then dead when Brooklyn saw her. More like ground up into little pieces. Perhaps it had been one of those sick cousin jokes. The two girls liked to do those things to one another. Well, Brooklyn could fight fire with fire after all.

As she led him into the kitchen, she took the moment of her back being turned to tug at the pendant around her neck. She tucked it behind the first shirt right before she opened the fridge door. She grabbed two bottles of beer and set them on the counter. ”I brought these by last night to get cold. Guess it’s a good thing I bought a couple six packs.” She grabbed her bottle opener and flipped off the caps. The time she lived in the South had paid off. She could be a small town bar keep if she wanted. Brooklyn handed one towards Jeremy before she pulled herself up on a stool positioned at the island. ”Really? It’s your mother. As soon as you saw any moving van at this house or any house within a five mile radius you should know not to turn off your car. I’m surprised she didn’t come out.” Usually the woman did. She’d have to call her mother and see if the two had talked recently. If Brooklyn knew their mother’s talking schedules at all, they had.

A soft smile spread on her lips as she chuckled. ”I am a mess from moving but thanks anyways. It’s not like you’re awful looking either.” Brooklyn didn’t know what to do here. Flirt? Act casual? Be goofy like when they were younger? For now, polite and casual was probably best. ”How have you been these last few years?” The loaded question. She was sure he was happily partnered off with a beautiful girl now planning out their lives together. It’s not like Jeremy was bad looking nor a bad guy. He was bound to have his pick of girls in this California town. Though it was weird she hadn’t really heard anyone talk about him. And this being a smallish town, certain names were thrown around. A lot.