Chapter Nine-A Happy Ending

The New York City cab slowed down, and pulled over to the curb. A door opened, and the petite brunette, in her long black dress, approached the store, and glanced up at the clock above its doors: it was 6:45/5:45 (?). She removed a danish from her white paper bag, and removed the lid from her coffee, as the title appeared on the screen in distinguished gold letters: "Breakfast at Tiffany’s."

With Henry Mancini’s "Moon River" swelling around them, Brenda turned to Jax, who had just finished closing all of the curtains, and smiled. When he sat next to her on the sofa, she let herself relax into his embrace, before turning her attention back to Audrey Hepburn, who had since left Tiffany’s. Brenda focused all of her attention toward the movie, determined to remember, to find something that struck a chord, while Jax spent his time watching Brenda. He loved to watch her chew her lip thoughtfully, as if her every thought could change the course of the movie; she had made Jax sit through "Breakfast at Tiffany’s" millions of times, but for the first time, he saw through her eyes. In Holly Golightly, Jax saw so much of Brenda: the innocence that was hidden so well beneath moxie and spirit; the fire and energy that glowed in their eyes, and their deep need to be loved, and trying to seek it out in who they thought would make them happy, instead of who did.

With the final strains of "Moon River" echoing in the cabin, Brenda turned to Jax with unshed tears in the corners of her eyes, and a satisfied smile on her face. "I like it...a lot, Jax. That is definately my favorite movie." Jax laughed and tilted her chin so that she was looking in what Brenda knew were the most exquisite eyes in creation. "Brenda, you’ve only seen two movies." She joined in his laughter, happy to see him genuinely smiling. "I know, Jax, *but,* this is definately my favorite-much better than The Godfather. Holly is so real. I really feel like I know her, even though I don’t really agree with some of the stuff that she did."

Jax’s inquisitive blue-green eyes prompted her to continue. "Well, she had the perfect man in Paul, but even from the beginning, she couldn’t really understand who he was, you know, inside, in his soul. And when she finally realized how perfect they were together, how much he loved her, how he’d never leave her, she- it was too much for her, and she tried to fight it. But you can’t fight something like that, can you? You can’t fight the inevitable."

Jax’s eyes had changed colors again, and this time Brenda couldn’t keep her feelings to herself. "Did I ever tell you that you have the most incredible eyes I’ve ever seen." She laughed, but Jax seemed genuienly touched, and she went on. "Then again, my opinion isn’t based on much experience, and pretty meaningless." "Nothing about you is meaningless, Brenda." She touched his cheek, a gesture that had become very familiar to her. "They’re so beautiful. Your eyes, I mean. I feel like I could get lost in them, like if I looked at you long enough I’d just drown in the ocean of your eyes."

Brenda felt Jax tense-up in her arms, and when he turned away, she turned his face back towards her. "What, Jax? What did I say? Whatever it is, I’m sorry. Really." He shook his head, and gave her a reassuring smile that momentairly stopped her heart. "I told you, Brenda. Don’t ever apologize to me. It’s just...you said, you said that you could drown...in the ocean...and-" The realization suddenlly struck Brenda, and she felt her heart ache for Jax, for all the pain she put him through. "Oh, my God...Jax? Jax, is that what happened to me?"

Jax pulled away from her, and put the movie away. "Tell me, Jax. Is that why we were apart? You thought I drowned? You thought I had died?"

*****

"He thought Miranda had died, which of course she hadn’t, and which we lied to he about, all of us, Mum, Dad, and me. And then Brenda-when they had finally made it, and we lied to him again...." Jerry shook his head; he couldn’t concentrate on flying like this. "You can’t blame yourself, Jerry." "Gail is right, Jerry." Bobbie had returned to the cockpit to give Gail a rest; they had both agreed he shouldn’t be left alone to fly the plane, when he was so worried about Jax.

*****

"J-A-C-K-S. Jacks. No reservations? Are you sur-? No, thank *you.*" "No luck?" Sonny watched as Miranda lit another cigarette, and began blowing smoke in his direction. "You don’t really think Jax is going to the mountains, do you, Miranda.?" She took a thoughtful drag and glanced out the window of the plane. "I don’t know. In all proabablity, *if* Brenda is with him, she’s told him about us: Isabella and Michael, and it won’t take Jax long to put the pieces together...." "Yes, but if Candy-boy does figure it out, his next move will be to come after us, and once we get Jax-" "We get Brenda." Miranda smiled coldly, and Sonny looked at her fondly, admiring her appetite for revenge. If only he knew against whom her revenge was targeted.

Miranda knew damn well that Jax would never bring Brenda to Colorado to find them, but it didn’t matter, as long as Sonny believed it. He actually believed it was *his* fault that Brenda was still missing, just like Jax believed that Veronica Wilding Barrett was responsible for Brenda’s death.

*****

"I was dead. Oh my God, Jax. I had no idea. Why didn’t you tell me?" Brenda’s voice trailed off as her head swam with thoughts of her death, and Jax mourning her. Why did Isabella and Michael let him think I was dead? Why hadn’t they told her anything, not even her name? What were they hiding. "Jax?" He crossed the cabin in two easy strides, and knelt beside her. "I didn’t know what to tell you, Brenda, and I wanted to focus on the fact that you’re alive, not that I thought you were dead." Her eyes desperately searched his face for some kind of explanation. "I didn’t want to hurt you, or let you think that you were responsible for hurting me."

Brenda took a deep breath. "Tell me, Jax." "I will, Brenda, but not now. I’ll tell you, I promise." As the words left his mouth, Jax saw the faraway look that overcame Brenda’s face, until a solitary tear ran down her cheek. "You never make promises...as a rule...You’ve learned not to....But, every word between us...is a promise...." She was startled out of her reverie by the most powerful emotion she had ever known; Jax was in pain, and he needed her.

He looked at her with that same look of wonder that she had first seen the night before. Even with tears streaming down his face, he urged her to continue. "With what?" He smiled at her, and Brenda felt safe to go back into her mind, to that faraway, wonderful place she had just been. "What do you see, Brenda?" "I see you, and me, and candles. You look *so* handsome. We’re standing in this room full of candlelight, and you are saying the most beautiful things....And my heart is...it’s full of love, for you....But now I’m alone, and the light is gone, Jax. Why is it gone? I’m all alone in this room, and it’s just so empty, without you...."

Brenda could feel Jax’s steady heartbeat against her cheek, and he hugged her, kissing her hair. "What are you wearing?" Brenda smiled, "Jax...." before returning to the recesses of her mind. "I’m...oh my God....It’s a wedding dress! I’ve never seen anything more beautiful...." She felt the vibrations of his vocal chords, as he spoke. "Neither had I."

She looked up at him, her eyes a glow with wonder and excitement. "I remembered, didn’t I, Jax? Tell me more, tell me everything!" He kissed her on the forehead, and neither Jax nor Brenda could hide their smiles. "Yes, you did remember. But I want you to remember it all on your own, just like this time. You’ve allready remembered so much on your own, that I know it’s only a matter of time."

Brenda wriggled around in her seat; he could see her coming back to him more every second. "Like what? Tell me what I’ve remembered. ‘Cause I don’ think I remembered anything before I met you, and definately not before I came to Malibu."

"Well, what do you think you remembered in Malibu?" Jax’s heart went from filled to overflowing as Brenda recalled thinking of sunset as "magical," remembering falling on the stairs, and as far as "nobody leaves," he simply explained that it was a promise that they had made to each other a long time ago.

They still had nearly 4 more hours until they reached their destination, and Jax could see that traveling was taking its toll on Brenda. As he watched yawn repeatedly, and as he saw her eyes flutter sleepily, she turned in his embrace, to face him yet again. "Jax," she murmured. "Tell me a story. Tell me a memory." Jax looked at the sleepy angel in his arms, and he could hardly refuse. "Brenda," "Please, Jax. It doesn’t have to be a big deal memory, like our wedding, just a small one, one of your favorites." He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and let himself be taken back to that magical day. "Once upon a time," he began, "there was a princess, more beautiful than anything in creation, and her name was Brenda. And Brenda had a very beautiful, very rare, magic lamp, from which she was granted one wish. And do you know what she wished for? She wished for something ‘as bright as the sun, as pale as the moon, that vanishes quickly, but is never gone.’ And do you know what she wished for?" Brenda, nearly asleep, shook her head. "It was a day with her prince. A day of happiness with the prince who gave her the magic lamp, was the only thing she wanted. And in her wish, she made his wish come true, too, because all he wanted was to be happy with her, and to make her happy."

Brenda’s breathing had slowed, but she was not yet asleep. "Good story, prince Jax," and he couldn’t help but smile. "You really got me a magic lamp? Wow. I like that one, Jax," she mumbled, drifting of to sleep, "and they lived happily ever after." He held her tightly in his arms, realizing, that in fact, they had.