ALWAYS
by Renee Forisha
Disclaimer: Hanna-Barbera owns the Quest Team and all things and people
associated with them.
Summary: You never know what might happen when you're tired.
Categories: HR, a little A
Archivers: Go for it!!!!!!
My friend Renee wrote this and asked me to type it up for her and send
to the ML. Hope ya'll enjoy it. I sure did. (Editor's note: The girl in
the story Lion/Laura was based on me!!! Thanks, Renee!!!!)
ALWAYS (1/1)
"Jonathan Quest." The crowd clapped and Jonny walked across the stage.
His high school principal handed him his diploma and Jonny shook his
hand.
"Thank you."
"Good luck, Jonny." Jonny turned to the audience and smiled down at his
dad, Benton Quest, who sat in the front row. Hadji Singh was next to
him, taking pictures, and Race Bannon sat next to him, giving the thumbs
up. Jonny walked off the stage and met Jessica Bannon and the other kids
in his class.
"This is the class of 1999." Everyone cheered to the principal's
announcement. Every student threw their hats in the air. Cameras flashed
from all directions and the students hugged each other.
"I can't believe we made it." Jessie screamed over the cheering.
"I know what you mean." Jonny hugged her and went off to find his hat.
After everyone finally filed out of the auditorium, Jonny and Jessie
managed to weave their way out.
"Jonny, Jessie, over here." They looked up and saw Race waving from the
parking lot with Hadji and Benton.
"How many pictures did you get, Hadji?" asked Jonny as he approached
everyone.
"Quite a few. How about one more? I want to get a good one of you and
Jessie."
"Sure." They held their hats in their hands and put their arms around
each other. They stood in front of the van.
"Smile." Hadji took the picture and everyone got into the van.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jessie sat up in bed and rubbed her eyes. She had spent most the night
tossing and turning. She looked at her alarm clock. 3:26 am. She decided
to use the public chat line on her PC. She blinked as the screen came
alive and she clicked on the internet icon. She entered into a chat
room. It read 2 people in the room. Well, maybe one of them will want to
talk, she thought.
~ENTER CHAT NAME:~
Jessie B.
Jessie read the names of the two people chatting. Lion and Bear.
Lion: How can you say that?
Bear: Well, you are nosy!
Jessie B.: Good morning.
Lion: Hello, Jessie B.
Jessie B.: Hi, sorry to disturb your fight.
Bear: Don't be. Lion is just being a pain.
Lion: Me?
Bear: Yeah, you.
Jessie B.: How do you two know each other?
Lion: Bear's my ex-boyfriend.
Bear: Thank God it's ex!
Lion: Shut up!
Bear: Kiss my butt.
Lion: Moron. Anyway, we broke up when Bear moved from Rockport, where I
live.
Jessie B.: I live in Rockport, also. At the Quest Compound.
Lion: Wow, I know that place.
Bear: You think you know everything.
Lion: Don't you have to get up early for work?
Bear: Dang it. I forgot. It was nice chatting with you Jessie. Bye!
~BEAR HAS LEFT THE CHAT ROOM~
Lion: He's finally gone.
Jessie B.: How long had the two of you been going out before he moved?
Lion: About five months.
Jessie B.: Really?
~JONNY Q. HAS ENTERED THE CHAT ROOM~
Jonny Q.: Hey, Jess. What are you doing awake?
Jessie B.: I just couldn't sleep.
Jonny Q.: Yeah, I know the feeling.
Lion: Are you two friends or something?
Jonny Q.: Well, we've been dating for about three months now.
Lion: That's great. I hope you two get along better than Bear and I do.
Jessie B.: We usually get along, but we have our moments.
Jonny Q.: I'll say.
Lion: Where do you live, Jonny?
Jonny Q.: Quest Compound in Rockport, Maine.
Lion: You mean to tell me that the two of you live together and are
dating?
Jessie B.: Yeah.
Lion: Cool. How old are you?
Jessie B.: We're both 18. Yesterday was our graduation.
Lion: That's wonderful. I wonder what the two of you look like.
Jonny Q.: Well wonder no more.
Jonny scanned the picture of Jess and him that Hadji took by the van.
The picture came up on the screen and Jessie smiled as it unfolded in
front of her.
Lion: You look so cute together.
Jonny Q.: Thanks, we try.
Jessie B.: Oh, be quiet.
For the next hour, Jessie and Jonny talked to Lion. Eventually, they
found out her real name was Laura.
Lion: Yeah, I would love to meet you tomorrow.
Jessie B.: I'll see you at Rockport Mall. We can hang out there.
Lion: Are you coming, Jonny?
Jonny Q.: I can't. I promised Hadji that I would go to Bangalore with
him.
Jessie B.: He'll be gone for three weeks.
Lion: Man, that's got to be murder.
Jonny Q., Jessie B.: Tell me about it.
Lion: I don't know about you, but my hands and eyes are killing me.
Jessie B: I'll go now. 'Night guys.
~JESSIE B. HAS LEFT THE CHAT ROOM~
Lion: Hey Jonny, treat her right. She deserves it.
Jonny Q. Always. Talk to you later.
Lion: Bye.
~LION HAS LEFT THE CHAT ROOM~
Jonny sighed and turned off his computer as he rubbed his eyes. He
stood up and stretched. I wonder what's on TV, he thought. As he walked
out of his door, he saw Jessie walking out of her door across from him.
"Hey." He whispered.
"Hey yourself. Still can't sleep?"
"Naw, you?"
"Not a wink."
"Wanna come in? We can talk until we get tired."
"Sure." Jessie followed Jonny into his room and they sat on the bed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Hey, Jonny, you awake yet?" Benton's voice called through the door.
"No." Jonny weakly answered.
"Get up. I've got to hurry and get my things ready. Have you seen
Jessie?"
"No."
"Well, if you see her tell her that Race is looking for her."
"Sure, Dad." Jonny listened to Benton's footsteps go down the hall.
Jonny slowly opened his eyes. He looked down and saw Jessie laying in
his arms.
"Jessie?" Jonny whispered.
"Hmm?" She cuddled closer and fell back asleep.
"Jessie, wake up." This time he spoke normally.
"What? I'm trying to...wait." Her eyes popped open and she shot up.
"Oh, no."
"What happened last night?"
She thought for a minute. "I remember talking to you. It was so late
and I was so sleepy. Then I remember a kiss and..."
"Blank." He finished.
"You don't think..."
"I don't know. It was late and I was sleepy also." Jonny rubbed his
head as he tried to think straight.
"I've got to get out of here."
"Yeah." She jumped out of his bed and ran to the door. After she
checked for the coast to be clear, she ran to her room.
"We couldn't have." He said to himself. "Could we?"
Jonny got dressed and ready to go in no time. After loading his things
in the Dragonfly, he went to knock on her door, but hesitated.
"Come one, Jonny. We're running late." Benton called from downstairs.
"Coming, Dad!" He turned back to the door. "Goodbye, Jess." He
whispered to the door and ran downstairs.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Hello, you must be Laura."
Jessie walked up to the brown-headed girl who sat by the mall's theater
entrance. She was about medium in height and her hazel eyes smiled with
kindness and maybe a little mischief.
"And you must be Jessie. You look better in person then you did in the
picture."
"Thanks." Jessie sat down next to Laura and sighed.
"So, what do you want to do?"
Laura shrugged. "Have you seen that movie Air Force One?"
"No." Jessie shook her head.
"Me either, but I heard it was an awesome movie."
"Would you like to go see it?"
"Only if you do."
Jessie smiled. "Let's go."
They bought their tickets and sat down.
Laura turned to Jessie. "How much longer 'til the movie starts?"
Jessie looked at her watch. "About five minutes."
"I'll be back in a minute. Do you want something from snack bar?"
"I'll just split a popcorn with you."
"Okay." Jessie gave her a few extra dollars and Laura left.
Jessie didn't pay attention to the stranger who sat behind her. All she
could think about was that night. What had happened?
The lights went out and the previews started. Man, I'm tired, she
thought. Something was making her so sleepy.
"Jessie?" Jessie opened her eyes and looked at Laura, who was holding
same popcorn and two cokes. "Are you okay, Jess?"
"Y-yeah. I just must have fallen asleep. I guess late night chatting
makes you sleepy."
"Say no more."
"Shh!" The lady in front of them demanded and turned back to the movie.
"Sorry, geez!" Laura mocked and Jessie laughed. The stranger behind
them stood up and left. Laura turned to Jess. "Want some popcorn?"
"No, my stomach's hurting." Jessie rubbed her stomach that was
throbbing for some reason.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
They walked out of the movie in the middle of a crowd of people.
"Now that was a good movie." Laura cheered.
"I really like it." Jessie agreed.
"I did too. Harrison Ford may be old enough to be my father, but ummm."
Jessie laughed and teasingly pushed Laura. "I..." Jessie stopped and
grabbed her stomach. "I don't feel too good."
Laura, concerned, helped her to sit down. "Are you going to be okay?"
"Yeah."
"Do you need a ride home?"
"I can drive. I'm sorry I haven't been much fun. I guess I caught a
bug."
"No sweat. I'll just call you soon and we'll set another time."
"I'd like that."
Jessie almost didn't make it home. She just didn't understand what was
wrong with her. She decided that she should take a relaxing bath. Race
had to go to town so she knew she wouldn't be bothered. As she undressed
she noticed a large round bruise that wasn't far below her belly button.
Ow, how did that happen? she thought.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A week later, Race went upstairs to check on Jessie, but she was in the
bathroom.
"Are you okay in there, Ponchita?" Race knocked on the door.
"Yeah, Dad. I got the flu or something." She had spent most the night
and morning in the bathroom getting sick. The bruise on her stomach was
still there and it was so sore. She figured it was the bruise and the
cold that made her feel so bad.
"Sweetheart." Race was still at the door. "Benton and Jonny called and
said they'll be a week late. Hadji is going to stay, but Jonny and
Benton are anxious to come home. I'm going to meet them there next week.
Wanna come?"
"I don't know. Can I get back to you on that one?"
"Sure. You know where to find me when you decide."
"Okay."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Here, you earned it. My plan is working perfectly." Zin handed a woman
in a black robe a handful of cash.
"Father, what is the point of this? It is stupid." Anaya crossed her
arms and glared at her father. Sometimes, his plans made no sense at all
to Anaya and her sister, Melana.
"Patience. If you break up an army, it makes it weak. I'm merely
handicapping our opponents."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was the morning of the day Dr. Quest and Jonny were suppose to come
back. Race had left a week earlier to meet them in Bangalore, but Jessie
had stayed home. Race and the Quests were to be in at 1:30. Jessie
picked up the house and sighed. How was she going to tell them? It had
been a month since she last saw Jonny, and she couldn't wait to see him
again. But her health was dropping daily, and she found it hard to
stand.
After cleaning up a little, Jessie sat on the living room couch. She
passed out from pain and shame.
"Jessie! Hey, Jess, where are you?" Race called.
"Jessie!" Jonny walked in carrying most of the bags and suitcases.
Benton was behind him looking through the mail.
"Jessie?" Jonny walked into the living room and gasped. "Dad, Race,
come here quick!"
Race and Benton ran in and they gasped at the sight of Jessie's limp,
sweat covered body. Her skin was pale and her hair was dark. Benton
looked her over an sighed.
"She's really sick. I'm not sure, though, what's wrong with her."
"Is there anything you can do to find out?" Race's voice trembled as he
spoke.
"Well, there's one thing. Race, can you carry her to the lighthouse?"
"Sure."
"Okay. In my office there is a white table. Lay her on it."
"What are you going to do?"
"I'm going to use a new Quest computer to scan her body."
"Sorry for asking." Race picked up his daughter who was surprisingly
light. Jonny, white as a sheet, followed Race and helped to open doors
for him. Not long after they laid her down, Benton came in with a
laptop and a cord. He plugged them into a hole in the side of the table
and began typing.
A large green light circled her body. Benton's eyes widened and all the
color in his cheeks were flushed out.
"What is it, Doc?" Race asked.
Benton hesitated. "She's pregnant."
"WHAT?!" Race ran up to the laptop and read the charts. Jonny's legs
went dead beneath him and he sat down. Oh no, we did! His mind was in
shock.
"Who's is it?" Race's voice went from concern to hate and anger. The
screen lit up with a new image and both of their jaws dropped.
At the same time they turned from the screen to Jonny. Jonny nervously
looked up and caught Race's glare. Oh no. Race was slowly walking up to
him.
Race glared at Jonny. "That's my baby!" Race's eyes never left Jonny's
face. Jonny stood up and ran to the other side of his father's desk.
"Wait, Race. I-it was totally an accident. We never meant..." Jonny
couldn't finish the sentence. The angry and hurt look on Race's face was
too much.
"Run." Race warned.
Just as he jumped for Jonny, Benton cut in. "Wait, Race. Look at this."
Race stopped and ran back over to the laptop and stared at the screen.
Jonny held his heart with one hand and leaned on the other.
"The baby is dead, and look at Jonny's DNA pattern. The baby has all
these extra genes in it's DNA."
"What's that mean?" Race looked at it confused.
"It's artificial. It's not really Jonny's. Look at that there." Benton
pointed to the screen. "It's 100% fake. Plus, Jessie's a virgin. There's
no way she could be pregnant."
"She is?" Race turned to Jonny, who had made the comment. Jonny added
hastily, "Well, of course she is. Why wouldn't she be?"
Race turned back to the monitor. "How could someone have done this?"
"There are many ways to do it. Surgery, naturally, or by a shot."
Benton answered.
"Well, who would be dumb enough to make a fake DNA that couldn't
possibly support life for some reason?"
Benton sighed. "Only Zin."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jessie was in the hospital for two days and was released to go home.
Jonny treated her like royalty and did everything she asked, and them
some. She felt bad about losing the baby, but Benton told her that if
it did survive, it would have been deformed and/or a very sick baby. He
doubted that it would have lived very long. Still, there were times when
Jessie felt bad, but she knew Jonny would always would be there for her.
Laura and Mark (Bear) got back together. They were sharing an apartment
together and were going to college. Jessie and Jonny kept in touch with
them.
It had been a week since Jessie lost the baby. Race and Benton walked
into the living room and smiled. Jonny was asleep on the couch and
Jessie was lying in front of him on the couch's edge. He had his arm
draped over her waist.
"Should we wake them? Benton asked Race.
"Naw. Let 'em sleep. They deserve it." They left the room and dimmed
the lights.
"Jonny?" Jessie whispered.
"Yeah?"
"Do you love me?"
Jonny smiled and kissed the back of her head. "Always."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The End
Send comments and stuff to me at either laf99@hotmail.com or
laugh1999@hotmail.com and I will get them to Renee. Thanks
(c) Renee Forisha 1997