The Joel Saga (Joel/Cheese)

Subject: The Joel Saga (Joel/Cheese) Mon Jul 18, 2011 4:00 am

It had been a week since Ethan appeared in his dreams, dreams he wasn’t sure were figments of his imagination, or the work of a real spirit. Either way, a lot had been accomplished in those dreams. Joel agreed he would go through Officer Training School as Ethan had been pushing him to do, and that he would do his best to set things right. He didn’t talk much to Ethan about it, but things would be changing for the better, starting with Marissa.

There was a great deal of time to think alone there in his cell. Joel would often lose himself in his own thoughts, missing the husky voice of the monster behind him; the feel of his warm fur, the sight of his too blue eyes… sometimes it became too much for the youth and he felt on the verge of cracking. He wasn’t equipped to be alone for so long, not after having the companion his entire life. A part of Joel was missing, a very large part of him, and his mental health waned slightly while he was there.

The day of his release approached slowly, the days ticking by like years. Every night he waited for the solace of sleep to take him so he could escape the loneliness and perhaps find either his dear friend Cheese or his supposed spirit friend, Ethan. When the day came, Joel shook with anticipation. After all this time he would get to see his only true friend once again.

It had been a long morning and Joel had hardly touched his breakfast. He felt as though he would burst if they didn’t take the collar off soon! Finally, it was time. He waited patiently for sweet release, shutting his eyes as he felt the collar come off, taking slow, deep breaths. Slowly he opened his eyes expecting to see Cheese, but he wasn’t there. His heart suddenly sped up, fear encircling him as his head whipped to the left and then right. Where was he? Where was Cheese. “I’m behind you.” Came the cool, familiar voice as a heavy hand slid on Joel’s shoulder. Instantly he calmed, not even turning to see as his body relaxed, standing there. There were too many people around for the reunion, but Joel slid his hand up onto his shoulder casually, pretending to rub a kink though really he was laying his hand on his best friends, connecting with him once again. It was as if the air was suddenly easier to breath.

It wasn’t long until Joel was reunited with his mother, who drove him home. He sat in the backseat, not saying much to her, but his eyes occasionally moved to Cheese beside him. The pair needn’t say anything, the looks they gave each other were enough to know that each missed the other just as much. A calm took over the young man for the first time in months, and he believed that just maybe everything would be alright. There was money that had been stolen from Marissa’s father to fund the trip to find her. He would return to the home, searching for her first. Then they would go all the way up to camp to get Miller’s address, Ethan’s address and lastly Bronson’s Address. He would go to them all, though Ethan’s visit would be a special one. It was time to pay proper respect to the boy who had given him more purpose to live than anything else.

“Cheese..” Joel said in a childlike voice when he was finally alone in his room with the monster.

“I know.” The monster replied, wrapping his arms around his boy for the first time since their separation. Cheese had always been there, but Joel hadn’t been able to see, hear or feel him anymore. It was true solitude for them both. Boy and monster stood there for a long time in their embrace as if they were trying to reconnect some sort of separation that was still keeping them apart. After several minutes Cheese pulled away a little and wiped Joel’s eyes with a thick, blue finger, clearing the silent tears which had fallen and dampened his fur slightly. “What’s next?” He asked, knowing Joel had been scheming.

Sad eyes moved to look into Cheese’s. “We find Marissa.”

Subject: Re: The Joel Saga (Joel/Cheese) Wed Jul 27, 2011 4:07 am

The trek back to Cedar Bridge had been a long one, but Joel at least had the company. It was weird driving his car again, weird having Cheese there. Well, neither was exactly weird, just not what he’d been used to doing lately. He was glad to have a little normalcy back in his life, some amount of control and order. Either way, the experience had left him changed. The girl he loved but had taken for granted was missing, and the one friend he had was dead, all because of him. The very worst part was his intentions at all times had been pure, at least regarding them both. He never wanted Ethan to die. He never wanted Marissa to be forced into hiding away from him. He didn’t speak much to Cheese, simply glad for his being there. It was a mutual understanding between them; no words needed to be spoken as their long journey began.

Their business at Cedar Bridge didn’t take terribly long. It was a matter of getting into the office and shuffling through files. It was still dark out considering how early they left, and when you had an invisible monster that could go through walls, it didn’t take much time to steal the appropriate information. Miller, Bronson and Ethan’s address. He looked each over and then they headed to Kelsey’s. No sense trekking all the way to Las Vegas for clues if she was right there in their backyard.

It was still pretty early by the time they arrived at Miller’s, though the sun was shining. He had no idea if the girl would be up or even there. Did she go to college? Maybe she was away. Either way he sent Cheese in to look around for clues while he stayed in the car.

Joel shut his eyes, taking slow, even breaths. What would he do when he found her? Would she remember him, or was Kelsey not bluffing after all? He licked his lips, his eyes popping open as the passenger seat seemed to grow heavy under the weight of someone large. “She’s not here.” Cheese said. His expression was hard to read; Joel couldn’t tell if he was hopeful or discouraged. It wouldn’t be easy to find her. There was a good chance that she wasn’t at Bronson’s house, either.

“Alright.” Joel said softly. “Ready to head to Ohio, then?” He asked, not truly caring if Cheese were ready or not, but the monster nodded his head. “Let’s go, then.”

The drive was long. In fact, they didn’t arrive in Ethan’s home town until late that night, and by then Joel was exhausted from the drive and the mental anguish weighing on his mind. The boy pulled into a Super 8, deciding in the morning when he had a clear head, he would pay his respects. Couldn’t be too hard to find out where he’d been buried; it was a matter of searching recent local newspapers in the library for his obituary. But that was business for the morning. It didn’t take long for him to drift to sleep, all the while thinking of the girl that he had to find, and the friend that he had lost.