Thread: Mending Bridges (att: A.J. only, right after Catching Up)

A.J. stares at his phone a moment, for a second he considers just ignoring it, but then changes his mind and sends a text back.

<T>Okay you have my attention. What do you want to meet me for?

Mackenzie nearly falls off the branch in surprise as her phone vibrates in her hand. She looks at it and nods as she texts back.

<T> Mending bridges, if you are willing to talk.

A.J. looks at his phone as he lays at his spot in Prairie State Park on a blanket, looking at the stars. He ponders what to reply with and sends a text back.

<T> I am at my stargazing spot.

Mackenzie smiles slightly.

<T> On my way.

Mackenzie hops out of the tree and heads over to the spot A.J. was referring to. She walks up slowly as she approaches, not really sure what to expect.

"Thank you for responding."

A.J. is laying on a blanket wearing only a pair of shorts. His tank top shirt is off to the side. He has his fingers interlaced behind his head. Without taking his attention from the stars, he says, "Pull up a piece of blanket, sit, lay down, up to you."

Mackenzie nods and sits down on the blanket. She looks up at the stars for a moment, then over to A.J. "First off, I'm sorry if I've hurt your feelings or angered you. I've been doing a lot of thinking and if something happened to one of us...I want to be able to say that at least I tried to mend things before something happened."

She shrugs. "I'm here to talk and listen to how you feel. I'm willing if you are."

A.J. doesn't say a word for a long moment. He takes his time thinking about how to respond to what she has to say. The whole time he continues to look at the stars, his face void of emotion. Part of him wanting to forgive but not forget, part of him not ready to trust her on her attempt just yet. Finally he says evenly, calm, no hint of anger in his voice, "So, tell me. Why did you confront me over a smile and a shake of my head the night everyone's cars were stolen? You did not have a clue as to what I was smiling about, but you assumed I thought it was funny. Tell me, why did you jump to that conclusion, because I have never been jumped on like that over a smile and no words spoken."

Mackenzie closes her eyes and sighs. She looks at him. "A.J. I wasn't myself that night. Someone used an ability on me...it got much worse from there." She stares up at the stars. "I did a lot that night I would change...except for one thing...."

A.J. continues looking at the stars, obviously he is refusing to look at her. He asks, "What would you not change?"