The evening was quiet as Jessie made his way up the driveway and onto the homeās front steps, snow falling all around as he dragged the large suitcase behind him. It had been three long years since he had last visited his hometown, working tireless away at an out of state university. He had been away for so long, he just couldnāt believe he was finally back.
I hope nothingās changed... He worried, standing idly in front of the door.Ā
Despite eager to be home, Jessie couldnāt help but feel a bit of guilt. Because he hadnāt managed to sort his housing situation out in time, Jessieās childhood friend Thorn had offered to let him stay until he was back on his feet. But after being gone for so long, Jessie couldn't help but feel bad about staying over for such an extended period. He had been gone for almost three years, it felt wrong to suddenly impose like this.
Iāll try and make it up to him...
After a few more moments of hesitation, Jessie took a deep breath and reluctantly reached up for the doorbell, half expecting one of the maids to answer. Instead, much to his surprise, it was quickly answered by a beautiful young women.
āJess?ā
Jessie immediately blushed, a bit taken aback by the situation. Thorn hadnāt mentioned such a stranger.
āU-Um, hello Maāam.ā He smiled, trying not to embarrass himself in front of her.Ā āIs Thorn home-ā
He paused suddenly, eyes widening with recognition turned horror.
No fucking way...
āThorn?!ā
The āstrangerā broke out into a huge grin, grabbing Jessie and pulling him inside the home for a back breaking hug.
āDude! You made it!ā Thorn exclaimed, holding his friend out at armās length to get a better look at him.Ā āYou were supposed to be here an hour ago! Did you get lost? Welcome back!ā
Jessie, still in a state of shock, could only stare in bewilderment. While Thorn was always quite the bold individual, this was certainly new...
āThe... The bus got delayed.ā He managed to get out. āSorry for being late.ā
Despite his initial embarrassment, the humor of the situation was finally getting to Jessie. Despite how unprepared he felt, there was no denying how in character this was for his friend. The young man let out a laugh as he hugged Thorn in return.
āItās good to be back.ā