Fan Fiction |
by Jenny Tran
Inside the station, everyone greeted Liz like she was part of the family. And for a while she was part of them when she was closer to Chris. After he and Nancy got together, he almost lost contact with Liz, but every once in a while he would call her to catch up with her life. So he was surprised when she brought a complete stranger into the station.
“Hi Chris.” Liz smiled as she walked over to him. They hugged briefly and Jason noticed that they lingered for a while before pulling apart. He guessed that the two probably had a history of their own. “This is Jason, he actually amnesia. Trina gave him a name so we wouldn’t have to keep calling him Mister.”
“Hi Jason.” Chris was friendly as can be as they chatted about anything that he remembered. In the end it was useless because Jason didn’t remember a thing. “Come in my office, I’ll look up in the system for the name on your necklace. Do you mind if I look at it again?”
Jason shook his head “Not at all.” He leaned in for Chris to look at it.
Chris spun the charm around and found another name besides Wong Siu Yu, it read Cheung Yiu Wai. “What…” his eyes caught Liz’s who gave him a shake of the head. “Wong Siu Yu. I guess we can start with that name. Come in my office so I can look in the system.” He led the group into the tiny box office.
“Thanks Chris.” Liz said when they were seated.
“Actually, I should be thanking you.” Jason spoke up as he leaned into the desk as he watched Chris find the name on his computer.
“You’re welcome, I don’t mind helping an old friend.” He had a twinkle in his eye when he looked at Liz. At that very moment, Jason knew they had some kind of a past. After a few minutes, Chris shook his head “No, there is no one by that name here. Unfortunately you don’t remember where you came from, it’s too hard to find someone like that. I am only guessing that this Wong Siu Yu person does not live in Shanghai since this is the only system I can look in. One thing certain, you are not from Shanghai.”
Jason nodded sadly as he slumped back in the chair “I guess it’s just fate.”
Trina wiggled her way off of Liz’s lap as she climbed onto Jason’s lap “That’s good. You can stay with us.” She said innocently.
Jason smiled at the little girl “I don’t think it is very appropriate since I am not related to you.”
“I can’t just let you out on your own. It’s too dangerous, what would you do?” Liz asked with genuine concern.
“I don’t know. Find a job, start my life over? Maybe I will see someone that knows me?” he shrugged it off lightly.
Liz’s heart went out to him suddenly as she couldn’t bear to let him out into the world he does not recognize. “No, I insist that you stay with me until you find your family. I would feel very guilty if anything happened to you.”
“But…” he started to argue.
“No buts! I won’t accept it. Anyways, I have an extra room and plus maybe I can pay you for watching Trina? She’s quite fond of you and plus-”
“Lizzie, can I talk to you?” Chris cut her off immediately. “Excuse us.” He took her hand as he led her outside, the door closed behind them. “How could you let him stay with you like that? It’s not a good idea.”
Liz shook her head “He’s a stranger.”
“Exactly. You don’t know his motives.” Chris was quick to jump to her safety as well as Trina’s “I can see that Trina likes him but can you guarantee that nothing will happen to her with him around? What if…”
She snapped her head up to him “I trust my instincts Chris, can we leave at that?” her harsh tone hurt him as she quickly regret it “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to snap at you…”
He sighed “I know it’s useless to convince you of anything. But just promise me you’ll be careful?”
Liz nodded “I will.” She walked past him and opened the office door “Come one guys, we’re going home. Let’s give Chris his office back. Sweetie, say bye to Chris.”
“Bye Uncle Chris!” Trina waved sweetly at the officer in uniform.
He couldn’t help but pick her up “Bye Trina.” He kissed her on the cheek before handing her over to Jason who Trina was reaching for.
On the drive back, it was extra awkward. Trina was asleep again, maybe because she didn’t have enough sleep. The tension in the car was so thick, you could slice it with a knife. “Is he the father?” Jason was straightforward.
Liz snickered loudly “Of course not!”
“Don’t lie Liz, I can tell by the way you two look at each other. There is something in the past between you two.”
Liz sighed “There was something in the past, but it never progressed into anything. We are just good friends.” She insisted.
“Trina has the right to see her father. I assume you know where he is.” He was touching a sensitive subject way too soon.
Liz snapped “Yes and she has a right to have a father 24 hours a day but what happened? He didn’t want the job! Even if I know where he is, I wouldn’t want him near my daughter!”
She didn’t realize that she was yelling until Trina stirred in Jason’s lap. He patted her head lightly for her to go back to sleep “I’m sorry. I guess I shouldn’t be so nosy.”
She tried to calm herself down as she drove back home. When they got to the front door, she reached over and took her sleeping daughter “I’ll put her to bed.” She mumbled as she walked inside, leaving him by the door.
After she was done, she walked outside to the living room but didn’t see him. She saw the front door open and thought maybe he had left? Liz walked outside to see him staring at the sky. It was gray and cold, just like her heart.
Despite that last argument, they remained good friends. Soon it was almost three months from the first day that Jason walked into their lives. Liz was grateful that he had come knocking on their door, but his presence only reminded her of the real Jason.
He was a lot more gentle and much more affectionate towards Trina. Liz would not admit it but with his presence there the days seem to go by faster and they both got a chance to get to know each other even more. Christmas was special for the three of them, it was the first year Liz spent it with someone else. Even when she and Chris use to see each other, he use to go to his home town to see his parents while Liz stayed home. For five years, it was just her and Trina.
Spring was coming closer as the weather began to get a little warmer. Lately she’s been haunted by her dreams of Jason. She dreamt that he came to look for her and how she forgave him for what he did in the past. Everything seemed too perfect in her dreams yet in reality, it was the total opposite.
One morning as she got ready for work, she saw Jason sitting on the couch, his hands touching the necklace that he forgot about so many months ago. “Jason?” she called out to him for the first time since she’s met him.
“Yes?” he turned to her, his eyes with a distant look “You called me Jason.” A slow smile appeared on his face.
She looked at the ground and then back at him, she didn’t realized that it came out so naturally “Is anything wrong? Did you want to search for the person again?” she was talking about the name on his necklace.
He sighed as he got up and walked over to her “I told you Lizzie, I don’t want to find out who I was. Honestly, since I’ve met you and Trina, it has been nonstop happiness for me. What if I was a miserable person before? I don’t want that kind of a past. I like my home here.” He patted her shoulder affectionately but she jerked away unconsciously. “Sorry, I didn’t…”
Liz shook her head “No, I should apologize. I’m just not use to the affection…that’s all.” She looked at him solemnly “What if your family misses you? What will they think if they saw you with me? What if you were married? I don’t want to be the cause of anything.”
Jason smiled “Don’t worry, Chris said that I probably didn’t live here in Shanghai.”
“But don’t you wonder why you showed up in this city? Maybe you came here to find someone? Or something? Don’t you want to know at all?” she had a sudden urge for him to remember everything. Maybe he would move on with his life.
His smile faded slowly “Do you want me to leave that bad? You’re the only family I have now.”
Liz’s eyes were teary as she turned away “No, I didn’t mean that. Its just…I don’t want to get hurt again.”
Jason nodded, finally understanding her problem. He dared reached out to her as he spun her around with his hands as he pushed her head onto his shoulder slowly “I’m sorry. I understand why you are feeling this way.”
She tensed up from his touch but allowed him to hug her “You do?” she asked softly.
“Of course. You don’t want to be hurt again by another man. You’re afraid if I learn my past, I will go back to it and leave you and Trina. But I’ll tell you now, I will never ever do that to you. These past few months have been the only life that I know. I wished it would stay like this forever, I really do.”
She smiled at his words as she pulled away shyly “I don’t want Trina to see us like this. She’ll ask a hundred questions.”
He laughed “She is a very curious girl. The other day, she asked where babies came from.”
Liz’s eyes widened in fear “What did you tell her?” she always wondered how she would approach the subject when Trina go older. It was hard for her parents and now it’s hard for her.
Jason grinned “Nothing.” He shook his head “Don’t worry. I told her when she was old enough I would tell her everything. She seemed to take it okay.”
Liz nodded “Well, I’m glad I don’t have to tell her.” She said with much relief. “So what are you two up to today?”
“I’m taking her to school and then we’re going to have some fun making pictures out of tissue paper.” He sounded as excited as Trina would.
“Good luck. You know Trina and glue.” She made an icky face and left for the door “I’ll see you two later.”
**************
The dreams were recurring for him again. He dreamed of a place that looked really busy and he saw a girl, a pregnant girl. She was dressed all in black as she boarded the plane. He wanted to come out and call her to stop but no sound came out. He struggled to make himself walk over to her. But it was like he was cemented.
He suddenly snapped upright, his breathing heavy as he wiped the cold sweat off his forehead. It seemed so real. But who was the girl? Maybe she was the same girl on his necklace?
In Lizzie’s room, she was awake eventhough it was the middle of the night. Her thoughts wandered to Jason as she smiled to herself. Getting up from her bed as she walked over to her jewelry box. She reached for the tiny necklace with the carved name on the charm. Her eyes filled up with tears as she let it out. She was sobbing after a moment as she slipped to the ground and leaned onto the wooden drawers. She had held onto her feelings for too long, it finally hit her. She wanted him back more than anything.