TWO

As the day came to an end, Elaine closed the library and prepared to go to the diner where she works at night. She passed a lot of people on her way and greeted every single one of them. She finally got to the diner "good evening Mrs. Parker" she greeted as she dropped her bag on the counter. 

"Good evening Elaine, how are you today?" Asked a black haired woman, who walked out of the kitchen carrying a tray filled with foods "mind help me serving this?"

Elaine nodded "of course, where is it going to?"

"Oh, to Mrs Tucker and her family."

"Mrs. Tucker is here?"

"You didn't see her on your way in?"

"I didn't look around. I will take these to her table then" she said and walked off with the tray.

"Elaine!" A beautiful blonde woman called to her when she saw her. She waved when Elaine looked at her and she walked over.

"Good evening Mrs. Tucker, Mr. Tucker, Van and Dan" she nodded to them before serving the dishes.

"How are you my dear?" Mrs. Tucker asked "anything interesting at the library lately?"

"Nothing much. What interesting thing can happen in Folktown now?" Elaine sighed.

"Oh my dear" Mrs. Tucker rubbed Elaine's hand "it's been hard on you" she smiled.

"It's nothing really."

"I know. Oh and that reminds me. I heard Jasper is back in town. Did he come to see you?"

Elaine rolled her eyes at the mention of Jasper "can we please not talk about him?"

"Elaine, when are you going to forgive him? He might have done something wrong but that doesn't mean he can't be forgiven or don't you want to be the wife of a Mayor?"

"Please Mrs. Tucker, you are beginning to sound like my mom."

"She is my friend and I care about her daughter as much as she does. Elaine, ever since your father died, it's been really hard on her don't you know that? She tried really hard to raise you up to this, don't you think she deserves a rest and what could be better than making her the mother in law of the Mayor?"

"Mrs. Tucker, thank you for the advice, I will think on it. Right now, I need to get back to work" she immediately walked away before Mrs. Tucker could say any other thing.

"What took you so long, did she start with her preaching again?" Amanda Parker asked with a smile.

Elaine rolled her eyes "you know how she can be."

"She just care about you dear, everybody does" she smiled "by the way, I saw your mother in the market today. She asked you to come home sometimes that she misses you."

"So that she can start from where Mrs. Tucker stopped? I don't think so" she stared picking up the orders.

"But I don't see anything wrong with you being with Jasper again."

"Can't you all see that I don't want him anymore?"

"Why is that? You were really head over heel in love with him back in your teens."

"That was then, not anymore."

"Why? If you don't mind me asking."

"I don't mind anybody asking. Jasper is so full of himself, he thinks that without him I can't survive well screw him because I can survive" she sighed "I just don't want to have anything to do with him again, I hope everybody will understand that. I might have loved him before but not anymore."

"Hmm. Well, everybody has their choice. I just hope you are right in yours."

"I am right" Elaine replied determinedly and Amanda Parker could do nothing but sigh and leave her alone.

Elaine closed the diner and dropped the keys at it's hiding place for Amanda, it was already so late but thankfully the moon is up in the sky, full and shiny. She began walking down the lonely streets as she does every night. Her mind picked up the afternoon with Jasper in the library and the words her mother and everybody use to say, is Jasper really the only one for her? She can't say but if truth be told, when she was still dating him and happily in love with him, she had also believed he was the only one for her until he slept with her best friend and what was annoying? It was still the friend who told her more like gloated to her. She had always known Carol liked Jasper, well, almost if not all the girls in the class like him which is what she loves the most because in all of them, he chose her.

But her dream and heart had been broken when she went to ask Jasper and he confirmed it and even behaved like it was his right. She had been angry but rather than apologize to her, he had put the blame on her, claiming that if she had attended the party with him, then he would have turned to her instead when he was horny rather than going to Carol.

She had stayed indoors, crying for days, wondering if he was right, if she really was the cause until she came to a conclusion that she was not, Jasper just wanted to do that after all, he is not the only man who had attended a party without their girlfriends but they still remained faithful to them. She suddenly hit her foot on something "oh my" she said as tried to steady herself, she made out a shadow on the floor with the moon's light. When was there a boulder here? She thought.

Elaine bent down to see what almost caused her to fall, when she touched it, she realized it was warm, no not warm, hot, very hot. How could a boulder be so hot? She let her hand wandered on it until she made out something that feels like a human hand, what? She searched more rapidly, making out the legs and the other hand, her hand traveled to what she believed will be the face and fair enough it was. My God, what is a human doing on the ground? She listened carefully and could hear shallow breathing, her heart panicked and she asked "are you okay?" But the breathing was gone.

Elaine shook the person but up to no avail, she tried to carry the person but realised the weight was too much, having such a weight and strong body, she need no one to tell her that the person was a man. She tried to lift him up again but up to no avail. She looked around, making out her way in the darkness, she already know where she was. She ran to the house not far from the street and knocked loudly on the door. A low groan sounded inside and she knocked again, the door was thrown open but only for her to meet a rifle on her face "Mr. Tucker is Elaine" she shouted nervously.

"Elaine?" The man asked to be sure and she nodded in the darkness.

"Yes, it's me."

Mr. Tucker put down the gun then and rubbed his eyes "why are you here Elaine, my family and I are already asleep."

"I'm sorry for disturbing your sleep Mr. Tucker but there is a wounded man on the street, we really need to bring him to the clinic."

Mr. Tucker frowned "a wounded man?"

"Yes, come see for yourself" she ran to the street and Mr. Tucker followed her with his rifle in one hand. They approached and Elaine bent to touch the wounded man "see, I told you."

"God of all fathers, how did he get here?" Mr. Tucker asked no one and bent to carry the man up "here, hold this and be careful, don't shoot. That thing is loaded" he handed his rifle to Elaine and carried the man on his shoulder "father of moses, he weights a hundred pounds!" He exclaimed before moving in the direction of the clinic.