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ChapterOne
Jasper
It doesn’t look like anything has changed in Rosewood and that’s saying a lot considering that I’ve been gone for close to a decade. I had thought that I would never come back, especially when my younger brother, Gray, moved away, but then I got the call and here I am.
Leave it to my father to ruin all of my plans.
I drive down First Street, stopping at one of the three stoplights in town and drumming the fingers of my non-injured hand on the steering wheel. My arm and shoulder are killing me and I can’t wait to get to the hotel, take some pain pills and crash for the night.
I spot Mrs. Merkle slowly walking down the sidewalk, her cane tap-tapping with each step. She was my third-grade teacher and was one of the only adults to ever try to help me. She’s smiling, enjoying the cool night air and I watch her head into The Little Moo ice cream parlor.
Seeing her has me feeling confused about this place and I hate it. I hate Rosewood, but there were a few bright spots. It just sucks that it would be easier for me if I just forgot about those spots.
The light turns green and I take a left onto Main Street, cruising past the shops that I could never afford to go to when I was younger.
Most people would probably be nostalgic about being back home, but this town doesn’t have many good memories in it for me. There aren’t many places that I can drive by or see that has me flashing back to a fond memory.
My mom left when I was young, escaping from my asshole father. Unfortunately for Gray and me, she didn’t take us with her. I can barely remember her, so maybe my life would have sucked just as much with her as it did with my dad.
I take another left and notice a sign that I don’t remember. The Garden Goddess. It looks like a greenhouse or plant nursery. I slow down, taking in all of the flowers and the little log cabin building. There’s a huge greenhouse behind it and a sign that says the grand opening will be held next weekend.
I guess that explains why I don’t remember the place.
I’m about to take a right and head toward my hotel when I spot a familiar raven-haired woman.
I almost swerve off of the road trying to get a closer look. Could it really be her? I would have thought that she left town after high school and I wonder why she’s still in town.
I slow down, my eyes greedily taking in the curvy woman that I remember from my youth.
Evangeline Rauley.
She was the girl of my dreams. I take in the differences from the last time that I saw her. Her hair is longer, her waist curvier, but she’s still got this pull to her, this energy, that has always drawn me in.
Maybe it’s the way that she holds herself or maybe it’s just who she is. Either way, I was crazy about her growing up but I didn’t have much to offer anyone back then. She was way out of my league. Besides, I wasn’t in a position to start a relationship. I was barely keeping my head above water as is.
She bends down, fussing with some flowers there, a soft smile on her face. Evangeline was always so sweet. Everyone else in town used to see me as the town bad boy because I couldn’t go a week without getting a new bruise. I never knew if they really didn’t know that the bruises were from my father or if they did know and just didn’t care enough to look into it.
I want to stay, to study her for hours but I force myself to turn and drive the two blocks over to my hotel. I’m still not in a great position to offer her a relationship or much of anything.
I climb out of the rental car, dropping my hoodie over the bandages on my arm as I grab my bags from the trunk. I debate if I should grab the sling from the back seat where I threw it, but I hate wearing that thing, so I leave it there.
It doesn’t take me long to check in. No one really visits Rosewood. It’s a little bit too much of a drive from Denver or Colorado Springs and so we really only get the occasional tourist or person passing through.
My room is on the third floor and I take the elevator, dragging my big green military bags with me. I open the door, taking in the worn carpet, single queen-sized bed with the ugly comforter, and the TV that looks like it’s from the eighties.
The AC sputters to life and I sigh. I need to get the hell out of this town as fast as I can.
I groan as I sit down on the bed. My arm is killing me, and I know that now that I’m here for the night, I should take some more pain pills. I fish them out of my bag and wonder if Gray is on his way down here yet.
My brother works as a tattoo artist at some renowned shop up in Pittsburgh and his hours are all over the place. I never know when he’s going to have time to talk to me or when he’s with a client. We used to be closer when we were kids, but when I left for the military, we drifted apart.
I always used to wonder if my dad was telling him lies about me after I left or if he was just angry with me for leaving to deal with our dad alone, even if I only did it to keep a roof over our heads and food on the table.
I lay back, closing my eyes and replay the message in my head of when I told my brother that our father was dead.
“Hey, what’s up?” he asks after the call connects.
“Hey, Gray,” I say. I sound exhausted even to my own ears.
