The Long Weekend

AN: This was part of a much larger ending I concepted, but ended up not doing. As is, Chapter 4 is the real ending, but I always liked this part about it and wanted it preserved beyond my memory. So for fans, I hope you still like it - even if it isn't canon. (To an already non-canon story)


Another day, his first dollar

He had been working a part time warehouse job to pay off that video camera the family... "lost". Moving boxes was hell for the first couple weeks, but he sort of toned for the rest of it. Last month was the final stretch of his debt, and he finally made some scratch that was entirely his own.

He kissed that paycheck when he got it.

He had picked up a few things at the store. Some new clothes, an RPG called Times Cross... a sequel to Times Trigger. It was two discs, so you knew it had to be good. It sucked though that he didn't have the time to play it today. After school, after work. It was tiring. Oh well. Maybe the weekend...

Placing the game down onto his desk, he noticed something that hadn't been there before:

A yellow package.

Really thick in the middle.

That's when he saw the address.

He tore it open like a Christmas kid. Inside was a blank VHS tape with nary a mark nor name on it. He went for his TV, popping it in and flipping to channel 3. He sat in wait.

For a moment the screen was a dark. He wondered at first at what it could be, then the fabric of the jersey pulled back as she ran back to what he imagined was her starting position. "Hey Gord... Gordo... Gordelia... Gordito Crunch..." Pulling a bit of hair back from her eyes. She sucked in her lips for a moment, then popped them. "Oh, status update. Right. I had this all planned in my head. Let's see." She counted off finger to finger "I made the cut for my basketball team" Then she pointed to her jersey. "Obviously." She continued. "Tino's kind of taken a liking to the camera. Wants us in his weirdo home movies or something. Carver wants your address to send the dry cleaning bill... but I told him I lost it... Oh, and Tish is still a super genius, duh." She looked up, her mouth hanging on a long drawn out 'uh'. Something shifted in her demeanor, her voice lowered, no longer gregarious. "I didn't think after my dad went to jail... not to mention some of my brothers... that my life would ever be normal again. Turns out, my mom still loved me. My friends still liked me. Nobody treated me like the freak I thought I was... I was so mad at you... but I realised I was just mad at myself or something for not doing it earlier. I don't know, I talked with Tish about it. Still not sure what I should be feeling on that. I just know that... if not for you... this would have never gotten out. I don't think I would have ever had the courage." Her fingers crinkled in front of her chest in a heart shape. "So uh, this is how I feel about you now... I... le... lu... lo... elle yew vee u... so yeah." She blinked before waving. "Bye Gordon." Then he watched that awkward shift as she walked to the camera to turn it back off.

"Ow, fuck." He looked down.

Blood.

He had dug his nails into his palm just so he wouldn't wave back.