The Strength Within

Time seemed to flow quickly from that day on. Not only did the mother and daughter seemed to brighten in their daily lives with the addition of Joe and Sarah in their home but the two also quickly caught up with their peers. The summer break came and went and the new semester began. Allison couldn help but feel a slight tinge of loneliness seeing the three leaving the house together.

Arriving at the school together, Laine parted ways with Joe and Sarah when she went to her respective classroom. After turning in the transfer paperwork Allison had helped the two file, Sarah was shown to her second year classroom while Joe found himself standing outside the fourth year classroom. Taking a deep breath, he prepared himself for what was to come. ”Enter. Everyone, this is the transfer student that will be starting today. Introduce yourself. ”

Looking straight ahead, Joe lightly bowed his head before beginning to introduce himself to his new classmates. ”Im Joe and I will be here from today on. Im looking forward to the new memories that will follow. ” Just before he was about to return to his standing posture, a slight yell was heard from within the sea of desks.

”No way! ” Briefly looking across the unknown faces, it didn take long for him to see where the voice had come from. Standing behind one of the desk near the window was a short, brown haired girl with an enormous smile covering her face. ”We get to spend time together at school too! Thats awesome. ” Laine couldn contain her excitement. She had grown used to being beside him at home and that quickly became her favorite time of the day.

A light smile slowly crept across Joes face realizing what Allison had done for the two while setting up her admission to the school. Any reservations he held before stepping through the classroom door quickly left his mind. Only one thought remained, I will keep her safe no matter what. With a light nod, Joe began the brief walk to the open seat situated at the very back of the room. As he passed Laine, Joe couldn help but lightly pat her head. ”You should sit back down, class will be starting now. ” Seeing the slight blush appear on her face from what he did, he simply smiled before taking his seat two desks behind Laine.

Class flowed smoothly and before he knew it, lunch had arrived. Taking a paper bag from his things, Joe was prepared to eat. Looking up, he noticed more than a few expectant faces crowding his desk. He expected this already so he simply came to his feet and made his way forward. Moving another desk next to hers, Joe sat beside Laine and got ready to start eating while preparing himself for the onslaught of questions that would follow.

Curiosity is predictable to him. All of the basic questions came as expected. Where he went to school before. Why hed chosen to transfer halfway through the year. The basic things. What he hadn expected was the question that came from a boy slightly taller than Joe whom stood towards the back of the crowd. ”Why are you two so close? ” The disapproval in his voice was very clear to Joe while the rest of their peers simple saw it as innocent curiosity.

Not fully prepared for a question like this, Joe was caught off guard. All the usual questions he had long expected and answered with easy. Noticing the two standing behind the one who raised the question, he couldn help but notice the smirks smeared across their faces. Wanting to stir the pot a bit and see if his hunch was right, Joe raised two questions in response that astounded the rest of his classmates. ” Am I not allowed to sit near someone I know and care about? If so, then who are you to tell me I can ? ” With the last question leaving his lips, a slight pressure could be felt falling onto the boys body.

Cold sweat slowly began to form on his back and his slightly shook under the stare of this boy hed never even seen before. With slight panic, instinct took over and his ego smothered itself in his mind. ”I was just curious why a transfer student was so close to Laine. I didn mean anything by it. ” The anxiety could clearly be heard by Joe. Being pleased with the outcome, he returned his attention to the innocent girl beside him and the lunch laid out before him.

The rest of the day went off without any incident and the three found themselves returning home together. Entering the house, they were greeted by the now familiar smell of Allisons cooking. Feeling their mouths slightly watering, they each ran to their rooms to put away their school bags before washing up and returning to the joined kitchen and dining room. Joe left the girls sitting at the table while he went to the kitchen and grabbing everything needed to prepare the table. Once he had finished, he too sat down and began to discuss their days.

Sarah was surprised to hear that Joe and Laine were in the same class and felt jealous of her. Ever since she could remember, the two had always been together. What really caught her off guard was seeing the smile that never seemed to leave her brothers face these days. She couldn remember the last time she had seen him so happy. The jealousy was quickly forced out of her thoughts when she heard his light laughter. She realized that their lives had truly changed for the better at this point.