A New Yet Old Face

"How do I say this..." Her dad scratched his head. "Did you hear the news the other day?" he asked her.

"You mean the one about the rumors of there being people after the president of I.C.E.?"

"Yes, that one."

"Wait, you're not going to tell me that they're true are you?" Jean's dad pursed his lips which she took as a sign that it was true.

"You best stay away from that boy," her dad warned her. "If he really is the president's son, then you might get targeted as well if you are seen around him." Before Jean can respond, they hear a loud crash from somewhere outside their apartment.

"What was that?" Jean's father asked. He opened the apartment door and peeked outside. "I don't see anything."

"Ah, sh*t, we're gonna need a replacement," said a voice from somewhere to the left of them. Jean's father stuck his head further out the door and Jean walked over beside him and stuck her head out as well. They saw two men standing at the apartment door adjacent to them with a bunch of luggage. If Jean remembered right, that one was supposedly empty. Were they new tenants?

One of the men was tall and had a blue hoodie. The other one had long messy and looked oddly familiar. 'Wait a minute...' Jean quickly pulled her head back into the apartment just in time to hear the two men call out to them.

"Oh hey there! We're your new neighbors and we've just moved in. Sorry about the ruckus," one of the men told Jean's father.

"Oh no, it's fine. We were just curious what that loud crash was," Jean's father told them.

"We?"

"Yeah, me and my daughter- oh wait where did she go?" Jean's father turned around and said in low voice to Jean, "Come on, say hello to our new neighbors. It's disrespectful not to greet them."

"Um sorry, I have a really bad stomachache. I need to go use the bathroom," Jean lied to him. She quickly hurried off into the bathroom. 'Why is he here!?' As Jean was leaving, she heard her dad apologizing to the new neighbors, telling them that she was a little shy. She then heard a chuckle followed another exchange but she was too far away to hear what they were saying.

***

Jean woke up the next morning with a headache. She didn't get enough sleep last night because of all the noise. She didn't know what they were up to so late in the night. 'Ugh.' What was going on this week? Where did the normal days go? On the bright side, today is Friday.

Jean gets up from her bed and walks towards the bathroom zombie-style and takes a shower. After she finishes drying her hair, she walks over to the kitchen and finds breakfast already made and her dad sitting there.

"You look terrible," he points out.

"So do you," says Jean. Her dad had dark spots under his eyes and overall, he looked like a wreck. "What do you think those two were doing all night?" She was pretty sure that they weren't the only ones that were kept up all night by the noises their new neighbors were making. The entire floor probably suffered alongside them.

"I don't know dear, but what I do know is that I'm going to go back to sleep right after you finish your breakfast. Thank god I have the day off today, otherwise, I don't know how'd I make it through work today."

"Lucky you," Jean said grumpily. 'If only today was Saturday,' she thought to herself. To make things worse, she had a couple of quizzes and tests today and needed to find some way to keep herself from falling asleep. "Did you make some coffee," she asked her father. "I desperately need some right now."

"Do you know how expensive that stuff is? It's already bad enough as it is, but since we lost the fruit shipment for this month, the price for it skyrocketed as well."

"So, did you make some or not?"

"Of course... not," her dad told her. Jean looked at her father like she wanted to murder him. "Oh dear, you're really not in the mood for jokes today are you?" Her dad took the lid off a cup that was in front of him and a strong aroma filled the air. "I made some since I knew that you were going to need it."

"Thank you!' Jean gave her father a hug and picked up the cup. She stuck the tip of her tongue in to test the temperature. After seeing that it was safe, she chugged it down. "A bit bitter," she noted.

"Don't be greedy," said her father. "Sugar is more expensive than diamond right now. I already diluted it a lot with milk."

"Yeah yeah, I know. We lost that in the shipment as well." Jean already felt the caffeine kicking in. She didn't know how long it would last, but hopefully, it would be after she finished most of her classes.

Jean grabbed her bag and walked outside her apartment. She might've started the day badly, but she was going to make the most of it. Tomorrow was the start of the weekend. She could finally relax after today.

"Hey, are you the daughter from yesterday?" said a voice from behind her.

Jean felt a shiver go down her spine. 'Oh no.' She needed to leave quickly. But unfortunately, it was too late for her.

"Wait... aren't you Jean!?" the voice shouted in surprise.

Jean sighed and turned around. It was the boy from yesterday. The one with long and messy hair. "Hi Jackson," she greeted him. Jackson was a boy that had pestered Jean for years. He had liked her since elementary school and she did all she could to avoid him. She didn't know what she did for a tragedy as great as this one to strike her.

"Ha! I thought I recognized that back!" he said with a huge grin.

"Excuse me?"

"Hey, don't look at me like I'm a creep or something," he suddenly said all defensively. "I don't memorize people's backs. It's just that yours is... unique."

"..."

"Wait, don't leave! I never knew that you lived here. It wasn't like I was stalking you or anything," said Jackson, which really didn't help better his appearance. "Anyway, aren't you curious why I moved here?"

"No, I'm not the slightest bit curious as to why you moved next door," Jean told him. She turned continued to the elevator but was stopped by his next words.

"Oh, and by the way, I'm transferring to your school and I'll be starting classes tomorrow."

"What!?"

***

"Ughhh, my grades are going to take a heavy blow," Jean moaned. Her brain exploded this morning after learning that Jackson was going to be living in the same building as her. Then, the pieces of her exploded brain melted after finding out that not only was he living on the same floor as her, but he was going to be in some of her classes as well. Because of this, she couldn't concentrate on schoolwork and practically bombed her quizzes and tests.

'What did she do to deserve this!?' Was it because she helped Josh? Was he actually a terrorist and she saved him not once but twice? "I should have just left him to rot..." Jean mumbled.

"Left who to rot?" asked Samantha. She overheard her talking to herself.

"No, it's nothing," Jean grumpily said.

"What's actually going on with you these past few days. Oh wait, are you on your period?"

"No!" Jean banged her head on the desk a couple of times and then told Samantha her problem.

"Ohhhh! Miss popular here got two guys after her at once!? That's two more than me!"

"I. Will. Murder. You," said Jean in a threatening tone.

"Geez, take it easy girl," Samantha laughed. "Ah well, I guess I can help you out with this."

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