(1987 Emma is 4 years old and she meets a 10 year old boy named Henry Mitchell. Emma is crying in the corner of the room with her blanket covering her.)
Henry: Hey are you ok?
Emma: (sniffling) Yeah, who are you?
Henry: My name is Henry
Emma: My name is Emma
Henry: Well Emma think of me as your big brother
Emma: (hugs Henry) I've never had a brother
Henry: Well you do now. I love you Em
Emma: I love you too Henry
(Now Emma is 6 years old, she is in a new foster home, and Henry is there too.)
Emma: I remember you, Henry
Henry: Hi Emma, how are you?
Emma: Good. You still my big brother?
Henry: Of course, always. I will always protect and love you, Em.
Emma: I love you too Bubby.
Henry: Bubby?
Emma: It's a nickname for brother.
Henry: Oh I like it
Foster dad: (angry) Henry, where the hell are you, brat? (waits for Henry to respond or run to him) Damn it, Henry come here now or I'll hurt Emma
Henry: Coming (whispers) I have to go Em. I promised to protect you. (Once Henry leaves Emma smiles because she has never had someone to protect her)
(Emma is now 8 years old and she remembers Henry. She thinks about him all the time and wonders where he is and how he is doing. Henry is now 14 years old. Emma is taken to a new foster house and when she walks in her new room Henry is there.)
Emma: Bubby!
Henry: Em! I've missed you
Emma: I've miss you too
Henry: How have you been?
Emma: My fosters parents hurt me. All the ones I had after we were separated two years ago.
Henry: (sadly) Oh Em, I'm sorry I wasn't there to protect you.
Emma: It's ok, it's not your fault, bubby.
Henry: Still I want to protect you. I love you, Em
Emma: I love you too Henry
(Many years later, Henry met Paige a few months ago and Paige finds out about Emma, when she reads Henry's email.)
Paige: Bubby?
Henry: Oh, sorry let me read that (Henry reads Emma's email and then responds to it using her nickname and calling her Em)
Paige: Em? What's with the nicknames? Who is she? Why have I never heard of her?
Henry: She is someone from my past.
Paige: Who is she, Henry?
Henry: We grew up together off and on for small increments of time. I was like her big brother. I promised her that as long as I was around, I would always love and protect her.
Paige: Awe that was so sweet. What's her name?
Henry: Her name is Emma, she'd be 21 now. She was 4 when I first met her, then we encountered each other again when she was 6, and again when she was 8. It was like every two years we encountered each other again.
Paige: Thanks for telling me about her, Henry.
Henry: Why do I have a feeling that I didn't really have a choice?
Paige: Nope, you didn't
(Later that night in bed, Henry is thinking back to when, Emma was 10 and he was sixteen. (Emma came to him crying and he felt so bad he wasn't there to protect her from what happened.)
(Emma came to Henry crying and he felt so bad he wasn't there to protect her from what happened.)
Emma: (crying) Bubby?
Henry: Em, what's wrong?
Emma: (crying) Mr. Burkholms raped me
Henry: Oh Em, I'm so sorry. I wish I was there to protect you.
Emma: It's not your fault, bubby.
Henry: Still I feel guilty. I promised to protect you
Emma: And you have protected me from a lot, but you can't be with me 24/7.
Henry: Come on, Em. Let's get you cleaned up
Emma: Ok Bubby (Emma says as she follows Henry to the bathroom, while Henry is thinking, 'Thank goodness she hasn't reached puberty yet or she could get pregnant'.)
(Henry flashes out of his memories when he hears his cell phone ring. He looks at the caller ID and it's Emma.)
Henry: (answers his phone) Em, what's wrong?
(On the line, Emma is crying and says she is somewhere in San Francisco)
Henry: Do you need me to come get you, Em?
(Emma just cries as she tries to say yes)
Henry: Ok I'm on my way. Bye Em, I love you. (then he hangs up the phone. Paige starts to wake up as Henry gets out of bed)
Paige: (moans) Henry, where are you going?
Henry: My little sister needs me
Paige: Right now?
Henry: She is on the streets in San Francisco and is crying so heavily she can barely talk, so yes she needs me now.
Paige: Ok then go. Hurry up
(Henry drives around until he finds Emma in an alley. He parks the car and walks up to her when he hears a soft, vulnerable voice.)
Emma: (crying) Bubby?
Henry: Yes Em, It's me. It's ok, Bubby will never let anything happen to you. I love you, Em. (Henry says as he puts Emma in the car)
Emma: (crying) I love you too, Bubby.
Henry: Would you like to tell your big brother what happened, Em?
Emma: I don't know really. I kind of blacked out. I just woke up in the alley, confused and in pain. The first person I thought of and wanted was you.
Henry: It's ok, Em. I will always be here for you, no matter what. I love you, Em
Emma: I love you too, Bubby.
I hope you like my story of one-shots. I might continue if people like it.
I had a lot of fun writing this.
Please comment, I love getting your feedback because it makes me a better writer