Jessy - The Introspective Social Justice Fighter - A Short Story

Jessy - The Introspective Social Justice Fighter - ?A Short Story

???????????Jessy drove into the parking lot of her apartment complex.?Adam grabbed the bucket of chicken, while Jessy walked toward her apartment.

???????????“It’s a beautiful night,” said Jessy, as she stopped at the door to her apartment and waited for Adam to join her.

???????????“Yes, it is.?Maybe we should eat at the park,” Adam said, smiling.

???????????Jessy smiled and opened the door to the apartment.

???????????Jessy and Adam walked into the apartment.?Jessy turned on the lights and turned toward Adam.

???????????“The kitchen is right over there.?Do me a favor and grab a couple of plates.?Also, there is a bottle of wine in the frig,” said Jessy, smiling, then walking into her bedroom.

???????????Adam placed the bucket of chicken on the small table next to the kitchen.?He walked to the refrigerator and looked around.?The expression on his face indicated he was surprised by the small amount of food in the refrigerator.?Mostly vegetables and drinks.??

???????????He pulled out the bottle of wine and looked at it.?Now his expression was one of satisfaction, satisfaction with Jessy’s taste in wine.?It was a red wine, Bordeaux. Chateau La Mission Haut-Brion 2015.?He smiled.?Jessy had good taste.?Expensive too.

???????????With wine bottle in hand, he grabbed two plates that were on the counter and walked to the table.

???????????As he placed the plates and wine on the table, he felt a memory flash through his mind.?A moment from years ago when he and Eva were in a hotel room in Del Rio.?However, it was burgers and not chicken and sodas and not wine.

???????????Jessy walked out of the bedroom, dressed in light blue pajamas.?Adam thought she looked like a schoolgirl at a slumber party.

???????????“Good, you found everything we need,” said Jessy, as she stood at the table.

???????????“Well, madam, will you join me for a special banquet,” Adam said, smiling, then pulling out the chair for Jessy to sit.

???????????Jessy smiled, then sat down.?Adam then sat down.?He paused.?Jessy’s long dark hair flow like water to her shoulders.?Her eyes were brilliant.?Her smile so disarming.

???????????“Please, you serve yourself first.?You are my quest,” said Jessy, her smile continuing to cast a spell.

???????????Adam didn’t know how long he just sat there.?It was probably just a second. But in his mind, he stared at Jessy’s face for hours.

???????????Adam reached into the bucket and pulled out a leg.

???????????“A leg man!” said Jessy, laughing.

???????????“I am surprised you didn’t pick the breast,” chucked Jessy.

???????????Adam felt tongue tied.?He couldn’t understand why he seemed to move in slow motion.?He managed a smile.

???????????“Well, I could have just as easily grabbed a wing,” Adam said, with a slight smile.

???????????“Oh Adam, you are such a comedian,” Jessy said, as she reached for the bottle of wine.

???????????Jessy poured wine into Adam’s glass, then hers.

???????????“I don’t know about you, but I am starved,” she said, as she tasted her chicken breast.

???????????Adam took a bite of the chicken leg, although he seemed to be going only through the motion and had to concentrate on finding his mouth.

???????????“Adam, give me your opinion about what happened tonight, with Hernandez,” asked Jessy, between bites of her piece of chicken.

???????????Jessy’s question brought Adam back to the moment, enough for him to organize his thoughts.

???????????“It was not what I expected,” he said.

???????????“In what way?” asked Jessy.

???????????“I expected Hernandez to be afraid, to beg not to have him exposed,” Adam said.

???????????“He wasn’t afraid at all.?That either means he was very afraid and bluffed us, or he wasn’t, and if not, why not?” Jessy wondered.

???????????“Do you think what Hernandez said is true??We have no chance of changing things because they are totally in control,” Adam asked, with concern.

???????????“I don’t know Adam.?What Hernandez said did surprise me,” said Jessy, looking at Adam’s glass.

???????????“You need more wine,” said Jessy, as she poured wine into Adam’s glass.

“We are all mortal until the first kiss and the second glass of wine,” said Adam.

“What?” asked Jessy.

“Just a quote I once heard. Maybe there is something to that.?That wine, and a kiss, can make us immortal, or at least, make us feel that way,” Adam’s tone had become philosophical.

“You know, an experience such as the one we had with Hernandez, then followed by some wine, then followed by a kiss, which seems to be a very powerful set of life changers,” smiled Jessy. ?Again, her smile, stunning Adam.

“Jessy, can we be totally honest with each other?” asked Adam, why, he didn’t understand.

“Of course, at least, I would hope so,” answered Jessy.

“Listening to what Hernandez said is making me think over things,” said Adam.

“Like what?” asked Jessy.

“Well, here I am, far away from my family.?I don’t know what is happening to them and if anything is, I can’t do anything about it.?What if we are wrong about having these corrupt people arrested, indicted, and convicted.?And changing things so that people do not have to live under corrupt politicians, government officials, or cops.?What if we are wrong and Hernandez is right, that there isn’t anything we can do about it,” Adam spoke with his voice reflecting his doubt and confusion.

“But Adam, what if we are right?” asked Jessy, looking at Adam intensely.

“There is no way of knowing for sure, either way,” Adam said, looking deeply into Jessy’s eyes.

Jessy looked at Adam with increasing empathy.

???????????“Adam, isn’t that the way life is??I mean, since the day we are born, we don’t know anything for sure. It is all a learning experience, an adventure.?Isn’t that the way life is?” Jessy said, speaking softly and looking at Adam as if he needed reassurance.

???????????“I am sorry, Jessy. I don’t know why I am feeling this way,” Adam said, looking down and avoiding Jessy’s eyes.

???????????“Adam don’t apologize. I am glad you are being honest with me and expressing your feelings.?Maybe this is what you needed to do, just dig deep inside you, and pull out what is haunting you,” Jessy said, in a soft tone.

???????????“Jessy, you are so kind, so easy to talk to.?You are right.?I have kept so much bottled up inside me.?Maybe it was the wine, maybe it was your smile, your caring, or maybe it was the chicken,” Adam said, with a smile.

???????????“Oh Adam! You can be such a clown.?But I do believe you meant every word you said,” Jessy said, smiling back at Adam.

???????????“You are right, I was sincere.?But I do tend to mask my seriousness with humor.?I don’t want to take myself too seriously at such times,” Adam said, looking at Jessy, with a different look. One of admiration.

???????????“I know what you mean.?I do the same thing.?It’s my defense mechanism, my way of changing the topic,” said Jessy, smiling.

???????????“Jessy, do you mind if I ask you why you joined the Network?” Adam asked, with a look of curiosity.

???????????“Um, good question.?I have a stock answer.?But I don’t think it is as much the right answer anymore,” answered Jessy, looking pensive.

???????????“What is your stock answer?” asked Adam.

???????????“Well, that I believe in basic human rights.?That I was raised in a family whose traditions I cherish and will protect.?I was raised in Chicago, but lived many years in Monterrey, Mexico.?I feel very much as someone alienated from what is taken for granted by so many Americans.?I guess, I love my heritage, my language, my culture, and it is considered a threat to too many Americans,” said Jessy.?Her look still pensive.

???????????“I can relate to those reasons, but what are your thoughts now?” asked Adam.

???????????Jessy looked pensive.?Adam could tell that her mind was reeling through thoughts, memories, uncertainties.

???????????“To tell you the truth, I am believing more in the here and now,” said Jessy.

???????????“The here and now?” asked Adam, even more curious.

???????????“Yes, the here and now.?I know there are so many things that happened in the past.?Many of which affect me now, in many ways.?But I also don’t know what will happen in the future.?Yes, I understand that I can help shape the future, but while I am trying so hard to do so, what am I missing?” Jessy’s tone was serious, sincere.

???????????“Interesting.?I know what you mean.?The experience with Hernandez, did it make you think more of the here and now?” asked Adam.

???????????“Yes, it did,” answered Jessy.

???????????“Me too,” said Adam, as if his expression was a confession.

???????????“I miss my family, the joy of being with them.?But I am my own person now.?I went from beginning my career to where I am now, on my own, to now a weatherperson with an offer to go from the Valley to Chicago and Telemundo,” Jessy said.

???????????“What! You received an offer to work with Telemundo in Chicago? Wow, that is quite an accomplishment, but more so, it recognizes how good you are, the great talent you have,” Adam said, excitedly.

???????????“I guess it does,” Jessy said, reluctantly.

???????????“I see what it is happening.?You are humble.?It goes along with the culture you grew up with.?With why you care about human rights.?You believe in lifting others, not yourself.?And now that you are being lifted, you feel guilty,” Adam said, as if discovering a universal truth.

???????????“I think you may be right on that.?Adam, do you think I am attractive?” Jessy looked at Adam, as if looking into a magical crystal ball.

???????????Adam was surprised with Jessy’s question.?Of course, she was attractive, very attractive.?But how could he say that without sounding like he was falling for her, which he was.

???????????“Jessy, you are attractive.?In several ways.?You are physically attractive.?But you are also attractive from within.?Your heart is the most attractive part of you,” Adam said, sincerely, and believing that what he said was not offensive, but also a revelation of how his feelings for Jessy were getting stronger by the minute.

???????????“Adam, I am scared,” Jessy said, looking deeply into Adam’s eyes.

???????????“Scared?” asked Adam.

???????????“Yes, scared.?Scared that I have put my life in danger.?But did I do so because of my beliefs, or my insecurities? ?I am young, building a career.?But I also want a family, a family like that one I grew up in.?At what point do I go too far, too far in building a future and no longer being able to build a family.?I don’t even have a boyfriend!?That brings up questions,” Jessy sounded concerned, scared of her own life.

???????????“Jessy, you have time.?You still can build a family and find the right man to do so with.??I don’t think you need to worry,” said Adam, as he reached over to put his arm around Jessy’s shoulder.

???????????Jessy moved closer to Adam, allowing him to wrap her up in both of his arms.?

???????????Jessy was crying, her head leaning on Adam’s shoulder.

???????????“Jessy, I am scared too.?I have made many wrong decisions, all while time was passing.?When I was younger, I thought I would live forever and bad decisions didn’t seem as such, then.?I now realize that with every bad decision, time was lost.??I now realize that my life will be ending, most of it spent living a life which was the result of bad decisions,” Adam said, himself now sounding guilty and confused.

???????????“What a pair we are, both of us sharing our fears and insecurities.?We should be strong, believing in a future we can help become better.?But we don’t seem to be able to see beyond right now.?What a pair we are,” said Jessy.

???????????Adam felt a strong attraction to Jessy. She was an embodiment of himself.?And he needed to embrace himself, to love himself.

???????????Adam lifted Jessy’s head so that she faced him directly.?He then kissed her softly.?

???????????Jessy responded by kissing him firmly.?

???????????They became firmly locked in a deep kiss and firm embrace.

???????????Adam lifted Jessy up and carried her into the bedroom.

???????????Jessy had welcomed Adam into the depth of her soul.?Now, she welcomed him into the depth of her body.

???????????It was several hours later when Adam slowly woke.

???????????Jessy’s head was on his chest and her naked body stretched on top of his.?She continued to be in a deep sleep.

???????????Adam kissed the top of Jessy’s head.?He could feel the warmth of her body, the beat of her heart.?

???????????The sunlight was breaking through the curtains and shooting rays of light into the room.

???????????Adam and Jessy had spent the entire night exploring each other’s minds, souls, and bodies.

???????????Adam thought that he had fallen in love with Jessy.?That, as he had with Eva, found a very special place in her mind, heart, and soul that mandates that love result.

???????????Jessy’s head moved; she began to lift her head.?

???????????“Good morning,” whispered Adam.

???????????“Good morning,’ answered Jessy, softly, and with the same smile he saw the night before that led to this very moment.

???????????Jessy moved her body alongside of Adam’s.?She kept her head on his shoulder, with his left arm wrapped around her.

???????????“Adam, what happened?” Jessy asked.

???????????“I believe our laying here naked and next to each other answers your question,” Adam responded.

???????????Jessy giggled.

???????????“Yea, I guess it does,” she chuckled.

???????????“I will make us some coffee, okay?” asked Jessy.

???????????“Sure, great idea,” answered Adam.

???????????Jessy slowly move away from Adam’s body, then sat at the edge of the bed.?She looked around and back at Adam and smiled.?It was the same smile that had completely disarmed Adam.

???????????Adam was surprised to feel himself invigorated.?He wanted to get up, get dress, and go conquer the world.

???????????Adam did get up and get dressed.?The aroma of coffee led him into the kitchen.

???????????“Sit down.?I’ve got your coffee and I will scramble us some eggs,” said Jessy, while busily occupied in the kitchen.

???????????Adam walked over to the small table and sat down, exactly where he sat the night before.??However, he was not the same Adam from the night before.?Something happened to him overnight, and Jessy was very much responsible for that.

???????????Jessy walked to the table and placed a plate of scrambled eggs and a cup of coffee in front of Adam.?She walked back into the kitchen and got her plate and coffee and walked over to the table to join Adam.

???????????There was silence, as both felt hungry after a night of considerable activity.

???????????Adam lifted his cup to sip some coffee, stopping to ask Jessy, “How do you feel this morning?”

???????????Jessy looked at Adam.?At first with a blank expression. Then with a smile she said, “Wonderful.”

???????????Adam smiled and sipped his coffee.

???????????“After our breakfast, I must go to the television station.?I will be there until one o’clock in the afternoon, then we can get back together.?Is that alright with you?” Jessy asked.

???????????“Absolutely.?I need to go to Brownsville, but I will be back by one o’clock to meet you here,” said Adam.

???????????There was no need for superficiality.?In one night, Jessy and Adam had bonded not only physically, but through their minds and souls.?To the point where they were now one, able to know what the other thought and felt.?

???????????They could look at one another and smile and that would be the equivalent of a thousand words.

???????????Jessy got dressed and left for the television station.?Adam dressed and headed to Brownsville.?

(The author reserves the rights to all the printed material and characters. This is a draft manuscript intended for conversion to a screen play.)