Chapter Twelve:

"Um..." said Willy. "What... what just happened?" Everything was happening so fast.

Jenni laughed. "Let me explain... I hope you don't get mad at me about this, but..." She hesitated.

"I won't, go on."

"Well... I got sort of... jealous... when Mandi came. You know, how she was taking care of you and stuff. I wanted to be the one that did things for you... and I started to think..." She sighed. "I started to think you loved her more because of all the times she's been there for you."

Willy was slightly shocked at this. He knew that they seemed to have a little friction between them, or at least Jenni thought so, and he had even had that strange dream. But he didn't think it was like this. "But... Jenni, I... no, that wouldn't happen. I... love you..."

Jenni blushed. "Really?"
"Yes, of course... She was like an older sister to me. Her relationship with me isn't the way it is between us... she was always there to take care of me before when I was sick or something. But other things... like... real love... I'd be happier if it was between you and me. Not her."

These words made Jenni happier than she had ever been before. He truly loved her. And she truly loved him. It was like a match made in heaven. I didn't things like this could really happen... Is this what they say about finding your soulmate? she thought to herself. "That... that makes me happy to hear you say that, Willy..." She leaned in to kiss him again.

"Wait!" he said, holding a hand up. "Don't..."

She stared at him, puzzled. "Why can't I kiss you?"

"Because... you'll get sick, too. And what are we to do if we're both sick?"

Jenni laughed; she hadn't expected it to be something that simple. Leave it to Willy... "Don't worry about it. Plus, even if I did get sick, Mandi would come back over in a heartbeat. She'd probably get mad at me, but... that doesn't matter. Oh well. I'll kiss you again later, promise."

He smiled. "You're right. And... thank you."

Jenni gave him a small hug, and checked her watch. "Wow, time sure flies... It's almost nine... I guess..." She glanced at Willy. "I guess I better be going... Well... goodbye."

Willy frowned. "You're... leaving?"

"Yes, I really should go home... I have to tend to the cat, he's been alone all day, and I have to do my laundry... stuff like that. I'm sorry..."

"No, it's okay, really. Go ahead and go."

"I'll see you tomorrow, then," she said, heading towards the door. She stopped in the doorway. "Are you going to be alright alone?"

"Oh, yes, of course!" he said, blushing. "I'll be fine, I promise..."

She grinned. "I'll take your word for it then. Well... See you tomorrow."

"Bye," he said softly as she shut the door. He continued to look sadly at the spot where she had been, wishing that she would somehow find a reason to stay with him, to not go home, to keep him company a little longer. But she didn't return.

It made him sad that even though she had just admitted something so important to him, as did he, she had just left with nothing more. Not even a goodnight kiss. And so many things were racing through his mind... Mandi's visit, Jenni fighting with Mandi, their kiss earlier... Even though he had only spent one night near her, he longed to be with Jenni again. Having her so close to him was comforting. It made him feel safe. Almost as if... He hated to admit it, but it was like having his mother. But Mandi was like a mother, too.

"Mandi... She's always been there for me..." he mused aloud. "Or she was when I was little..."

Confusion continued to keep him from thinking straight, and soon, his eyelids felt heavier than ever, and he fell asleep.

It was a chilly mid-September, and school had already started for many young students, including the now six-year-old Willy. He had walked to Mandi's house today so she could take him to school.

"Miss Mandi! Miss Mandi!"

Mandi turned around. "Yes, Willy?"

"Um, I'm ready for school," said Willy, holding up his bookbag and clutching a slightly-bent paper under his arm. His face was very red and

he looked tired.

"Are you okay?" she asked, frowning in concern. "You look sick."

"Um... I'm not sick..." he said, looking away.

"Willy, I can tell when you're sick."

"No really, I'm... I'm fine..." he said, but he suddenly had a coughing fit, and Mandi held him softly as he tried to catch his breath.

"Just take deep breaths," said Mandi. After a minute or two, Willy had caught his breath again and was smiling weakly at Mandi. "Um... I guess we should be going now... right?"

Mandi looked at him in disbelief. "You, go to school? I don't think so."

"But... but..." he said quietly.

"Not with a cough like that. You're going home, straight to bed, understand?"

Tears welled up in his eyes. "But... Show and tell is today...I wanted to show everyone my drawing" He held up the paper. It was a drawing of a chocolate river with a waterfall in a field of candy cane trees and bright green grass.

"That's a very pretty picture, Willy... why did you draw that?"

"I didn't know what to draw, and M-Mommy told me to draw what I think Heaven looks like."

He was so sweet and innocent. Mandi smiled. "Then I'm sure that's what it looks like. But...I know you want to go, and I know you want to show everybody. But I want you to feel better."

Coughs began to rack his body again, and when he his fit ceased, he began to cry.

She sighed. "Please don't cry, Willy. Look, I'll have a talk with your teacher, okay? I'll ask her to let you do it when you come back to school. But right now, I need to take you home."

He only sobbed in return, and she took his hand. "Please don't cry anymore. It's okay."

She bent down to him and wiped a tear from his eye, then hugged him gently. He smiled, but began to cough again, and Mandi pulled off her scarf and wrapped it slightly loosely arond Willy's neck, then she picked him up and held him in her arms on the walk back home...

"Willy... Willy, please wake up. It's time for your medicine."

It was Mandi who had woken him up. He rubbed his eyes, glancing around the room. He saw his picture and his bookbag carefully laid on the desk in his room.

She had been sitting by his bed for a long time, he guessed, and was now holding a cup of water and a spoon. "This will make you feel better." She saw the expression his face, and smiled slightly. "I know you don't like it, but you have to take it."

He hated the gross taste of medicine. It always tasted strange, bitter, even sour at times, but he reluctantly allowed her to place the spoon in his mouth. He winced at the taste, but took a gulp of water and was relieved to wash it away.

"Miss Mandi..."

She turned to look at him after placing the cup back on the table. "Yes, Willy?"

"Why... why am I always sick? Is something wrong with me?"

Mandi's smile faded. "Well... I'd love to say that there isn't something wrong... but I would have to guess that it's a genetic thing."

"What's... jeh-net-ick?"

"It's how you're made. Like what color your hair and eyes are, and how much immunity you have. Immunity is how well you fight sickness," she added, seeing yet another confused look on his face.

"Oh," he replied, still a bit puzzled. A sad look now played across his face. "But... I don't like being sick. Can't you make me better?"

"I really wish I could do that... I can help you get better now, but I can't guarantee that you won't get sick again. No one can."

He began to cry again. He hated being sick; he always felt horrible, he could barely think straight, everything was a blur. The only good thing about it was how much time he got to spend with Mandi. Sweet Mandi... she was always there for him when he was sick. She would stay at his side, give him medicine, say comforting words, anything to make him feel better. And she was so encouraging, too.

"Willy... why do you keep crying?" she asked, worried.

"B-Because..." he cried. "I d-don't like being s-s-sick... I want to be better... I don't want to... to die... like Mommy did..." He buried his face in Mandi's arms. She hated to see him so sad, and at such a young age, he didn't understand everything. But he knew enough to know that his mother was never coming back; he knew that "dead" meant "gone for good". It had been almost a year since her death, but it still took a toll on her son's fragile feelings.

"Willy... You're not going to die," she said calmly. The first thing to do was to calm him down, because when he panicked, things were never good. "Your mother died because she was already weak from giving birth to you."

"So... it's m-my fault that she d-died?"

"No, of course not!" she said quickly, alarmed. The last thing that she needed for him to do was to try and accept the blame for the situation. That would only hurt him more, and it wasn't his fault. "Your mother chose to have you. She knew what might happen if she had you, but she gave birth to you anyway. That's because she loved you. And right now... she wouldn't want you to cry about her. She would want you to be happy and to keep living life as best as you can."

"Is she... is she in Heaven, Miss Mandi?"

Mandi smiled. "Of course she's in Heaven. That's where the good people's souls go, and they live up there forever."

"So... Mommy is in the field of green grass and she's living by the chocolate river? And she's eating from the candy cane trees?"

"Yes, I believe she is..." She gave him a reassuring smile. He coughed softly, and she hugged him. "Now, I think you should go back to sleep."

"You're... you're not leaving me, are you?" he said worriedly, recovering.

"No, I'm not leaving. I want to stay with you to make sure you get better," she said tucking his blanket around him and straightening his pillows. "I won't leave you, Willy."

A small smile came onto his face. "Okay... Thank you, Miss Mandi."

"You're welcome, Willy."

The present-day Willy awoke with a start. The dream... His dream was about his times with Mandi. It was so clear in his mind, despite the fact that his thoughts were still a bit hazy.

I guess I had those dreams because she was here today... he thought, peering in the semi-darkness of his room. The only light was caused by the moonlight that was cast through his window. He hadn't really realized just how much he had come to miss Mandi and her ever-present company. She had been with him so many times, caring for him, loving him. And he had been alone for so many years afterwards... A pang of guilt struck him; he hadn't thought of her in so long. Occasionally, he would maybe see her face in a dream or imagine that he saw her, but otherwise, his thoughts were elsewhere, like the shop or something. I'm sorry, Mandi...

He also realized how alone he felt now; even though he had been remembering times when he was distressed, there was also extreme comfort. He now missed the feeling of being with someone who loves you constantly. And Willy knew what he wanted to do.

He wanted to call Jenni and ask her to come over, just so he could have some company, to evade the extreme loneliness that had engulfed him so suddenly upon his awakening.

But he couldn't do it. Not now. It was a little past midnight, and he was sure that she was fast asleep. He definitely didn't want to bother her, but sadness started to make calling her look more and more appealing.

Torn between his longing for Jenni and his reluctance to wake her so late, he did one of the things he was best at: he began to cry. He felt foolish, just like his childlike self, because he had cried so much in his life. He cried when he was young, and he was crying now. But the tears wouldn't stop. It was like they were two waterfalls that never stopped flowing. There was always some sadness in his life. The adult side of him was beginning to mature a little more, after his admittance to loving Jenni, and it felt that he should just get over these things and live on. The child side of him was much more comforting at the moment.

I can't take it anymore! he thought, frustrated. He practically jumped out of bed and dashed towards his phone, and dialed her number as fast as possible.