The warm, breezy, summer air flowed into the bedroom through the two open windows. The soft rustle of the white sheers as they flew out from the wind gusts, was a relaxing sound. Jessica was slowly waking up, feeling the sun's rays coming through the window, hitting her skin and warming her all over. She was on her stomach, turning her head on her pillow so she could feel the warmth shine directly onto her face. She hadn't yet opened her eyes, instead, suddenly feeling chilled from the inside out.
It was a thought, a feeling, a shocked wonderment...why, at 23-years-old, was she still alone? Well, she really DID know the answer to that, she always had, from the time she was a kid. But, as always, she'd kept those thoughts and emotions to herself, buried deep inside, where they belonged.
When the aroma of freshly brewed coffee whiffed through the air, Jessica opened her eyes and smiled broadly, "Daddy," she whispered to herself. She got up and put on her light-blue and white cotton bathrobe, and walked downstairs to the kitchen.
"Morning, daddy," she said, smiling at him as she walked over and kissed his forehead.
"Morning, Jess," he smiled back.
Her father drank his coffee and smoked a cigarette while he waited for her to get her coffee and sit down with him; this was their daily morning routine and they both quite enjoyed it. It was relaxing, fun, and it was a bonding they'd done now, every single morning, for many years.
Justin, Jessica's father, was a very handsome man by all accounts. He was 6'2" with blonde hair and blue eyes. Since his days in the military, he had kept up his fine physique. He was toned and fit from his daily lap swims and gym workouts.
Justin had been married twice, both ending in divorce. His first marriage had occurred not long after he entered the military. He was young, 18-years-old, and being quite macho back in the day, he believed getting married would make him appear more mature to his fellow military pilot buddies. So he decided to find a girl and get married; unfortunately, however, he met a girl in a local bar, while on a weekend pass and only one week later, married the girl; only 5 weeks after that, he was served with divorce papers. She'd found another man, non-military, and said she wanted to be with him instead. It was a very quick and neat divorce.
After Justin's first divorce, he started a relationship with another girl almost immediately and she became pregnant almost as quickly. The relationship was not a strong one as it was constantly 'on again/off again'. However, she gave birth to Justin's oldest child, a son, Jayson, when Justin was 19. About six months later, after they tried to reconcile then broke up again for the final time, she discovered she was pregnant. As soon as Jennifer was born, she signed over her full parental rights to Justin, for both children, telling him she wasn't ready to be a mother and settle down. Justin then became a single dad raising two children.
Justin's next two children, another son, Jamie, and another daughter, Jessica, were from his second wife, whom he married not long after Jennifer was born. Justin's second marriage lasted for about 7 years. When he divorced this time, he devoted all his energy into raising his children, as he had full custody of all four.
Every other weekend his ex had all four of them for visitation. The older two, even though not her biological children, were nonetheless close to her, and she with them, so Justin never had issues with all four children spending weekends together with her. She was good to all four kids, and treated them equally and lovingly, despite the bitterness that she and Justin had for each other.
Justin had been a career military man as a pilot. After his 'retirement' from the military, given his stellar education, he has a Master's in Aerospace Engineering, he was a well sought-after Engineer, known for his brilliant, specialty-aircraft engine designs. He started his own company, providing his services on a free-lance or contract basis. His business was very lucrative and afforded his family to live very well.
Two of Justin's children, Jayson and Jennifer, were always a bit more independent than Jamie and Jessica. As soon as they graduated high school, they were off to college and to make their way in the world. However, still maintaining their close relationship with their father, they would faithfully call their dad every week and talk to him, always cheerful and very happy to hear his voice, and always exchanging several, 'I love you's', before hanging up.
Jamie had gone to college as well, however, he elected to stay closer to home; going to school in Virginia, where they lived. It was a two hour drive from home, so he lived in the dorm during the week, but tried to make it home at least every-other weekend.
Jessica had always been more of a home-body type of girl. She was sweetness and cheerfulness, personified. She'd always been a 'daddy's girl'. When Jessica graduated high school, she had refused to go away to college, like her siblings had. She wanted to live at home while attending the University.
Given how smart she was and her academics, she graduated from high school at age 16; and graduated from college with her Bachelor's Degree when she was 20. After graduation, she wanted to start her own company, working from home. So, with her father's help, they remodeled one of the bedrooms, making it into an office on one end of the room, and her product storage on the opposite end. She had a good business head about her and now, three years later, she was single-handedly managing a very lucrative business.
As is their regular morning routine, father and daughter, after they have a couple cups of coffee and chat for a bit, they each go to their own rooms and shower and dress for the day. Since both their bedrooms and home offices were upstairs, after they'd each get ready, they'd meet in the hallway and chat for a few more minutes, then each go to their respective offices to start to work. For lunch, they always ate together, going out about half the time, giving them a chance to get out of the house and clear their heads before returning to work. The same routine exists for supper, as well. To most, it might sound like a boring or lackluster way of life, but for Justin and his daughter, Jessica, they love it. It's homey, it's being together, it's comfortable, and they're content, just the way things are.
Things would have probably continued as they always have been, if Jessica hadn't had a small accident. That one unforeseen fluke, changed everything.
Jessica had recently changed bedrooms and moved into what had formerly been the 'in-law suite'. It had a large bedroom with a private bathroom, and a separate, also private, small living room. Growing up, it was kept as a guest bedroom. But when Jessica needed a larger home office, her and her dad did some rearranging and remodeling. He continued to stay in the master suite he'd always had. His home office was next to his bedroom, so it made sense to keep it the same, as well. What used to be Jessica and Jennifer's old bedroom, was now remodeled and was Jessica's new home office. Jayson and Jamie's old bedroom became the new guest room, and in the remodel, they took the old hall-bathroom and made it into a private bathroom for the new guest bedroom. So now, the three bedrooms that were upstairs, Justin's, Jessica's, and the guest bedroom, all had their own, private bathrooms. The other two former bedrooms were now the home offices of Justin and Jessica. Since they were the only two who ever really used the upstairs, it was a floor plan that worked beautifully for them.
While Jessica was in her shower that morning, she happened to notice that a couple of the newly-installed glass tiles in her shower had come loose and the corners were sticking out. She made a mental note to tell her dad so it could be fixed. Continuing to shower, she slipped, although slightly, it was enough to throw her off balance a little and she inadvertently backed up rather hurriedly, into the tiles, scraping her head against it, causing a deep cut. When she turned off the water, she looked down and saw blood dripping down her shoulders and chest. Always one to get queasy and even faint at the sight of blood, she sat down on the custom-made shower bench and leaned against the shower wall. She felt light headed at having seen her blood.
Justin had by now showered and dressed and was waiting in the hallway for Jessica. He thought he heard a sound but when he stopped and listened, it was quiet. "Must be the radio," he chuckled to himself. But a minute later, he heard what sounded like objects hitting a wall, like someone was throwing things. "Fuck! It wasn't a radio...Jess!" Justin bounded into Jess's room and now could hear her moaning from the bathroom. When he saw her sitting in the shower, semi propped up against the wall, her head dripping blood...he panicked. "Oh, my God! Baby, are you okay? Oh, Jess!" He picked up her naked body, carrying her to her bed and laid her down. He quickly went to her dresser and grabbed a pair of shorts and a t-shirt, hurriedly dressing her. He picked her up again, and carried her downstairs. He scooped up his keys and wallet off the kitchen table and carried Jess out to the car. He got her settled in then drove to the ER of their local hospital.
Seeing the blood coming from Jessica's head as soon as Justin walked into the ER carrying her, a nurse working at the front desk immediately escorted them back to a room in the ER. When they asked Justin to step out after she was in the hospital bed, he came unhinged. "The hell I will. This is my daughter and I brought her into this world, and I'll be damned if you're going to push me out. My place is with her...she's my fucking world...got it?"
"No problem sir, you can stay."
Jessica turned to her dad and lifted up her hand for him to hold it. As he held her hand, rubbing his thumb on the back of her hand, she looked up at him, "My head hurts so bad. Can they give me an aspirin?"
