Jessie's Story of Crime and Forgiveness, a Short Story.
Instead of robbing the liquor store, Jessie found love.
Always looking on the outside, never allowed within
Jessie was taunted maliciously for his daddie's sins
His daddy, Jess in prison for crimes committed when he was only eighteen. The town never forgot what Jessie's daddy did that unforgettable day
He held up a liquor store for change and cigarettes, stabbed the storekeeper fatally in the neck, arrested just one block away
The cop promising, " You'll never see the light of day. "
Jessie now eighteen and out on his own
His mother remarried a man that Jessie found impossible to condone.
He hitched a ride to Dallas, Tx. thinking if he left the little town and started a new life in the city, the past could be forgotten, but evidently Jessie had fallen from the same ' hard knocks ' tree. Soon he needed money. Work wasn't an option. He needed cash and he needed it now!
He walked to the edge of town and found a liquor store with a young woman behind the counter. He handed her a note he'd written earlier, " This is a hold up, and I have a gun in my pocket and it's pointing straight at you. " The young woman quickly raised her hand's, telling him, " Please take what you want. Please don't shoot me. " He leaned over the counter to open the cash register, when he raised up he was looking down the barrel of a colt 44. Her stance defiantly strong, feet apart and a look saying, " I dare you! " Jessie knew he'd met his match. She asked him, " Who are you, where'd you come from?
For the first time he really looked at the young woman. She was beautiful, long red hair, cute freckles across her nose and sparkling green eyes.
When he attempted to answer, he stuttered, having difficulty finding the words. For some unknown reason she was feeling sorry for him. She knew he wasn't a hardened criminal. His eyes spoke for him as they welled up with tears.
She looked closer and saw a handsome young man who was visibly troubled. He was tall with thick black hair and sweaty curls falling on his forehead. His eye's were sky blue with a hint of sadness.
She knew she had to know more about this young man who'd touched her heart.
He slowly began telling her his story, a daddy in prison for life, his mother remarried to a man he couldn't relate to. The whole town looked down on him his entire life for his father's crime.
He then asked her about herself. " Who are you? What's your name? " She told him that she'd been raised by her grandmother after both parents were killed in an automobile accident when she was two years old, and my name is Linda.
She told him that she lived down the street in a small apartment.
Just out of the blue, she asked him if he was hungry, " Starved " he said. They enjoyed a rotisserie hot dog on a bun, a coke and lots of getting acquainted.
Jessie told her that he needed a job and a place to live. Linda remembered a man who'd stopped in last week looking for help down at the docks, he'd left his card with a phone number. Jessie called and a meeting was scheduled that evening. He told the man that he really needed a job and he would work any shift. He was hired on the spot. When he told Linda the good news, she smiled and told him he could stay with her. They could share expenses and it was walking distance to the docks. Jessie's boss was impressed with his work and he was quickly moved up the ladder to using a forklift moving inventory inside.
Linda and Jessie were content and happy together.
One day She asked him if he ever wanted to see his dad, he thought long and hard before answering, he said, " Yes, sometimes I think about him. " Linda told him that they would go together to visit him. They both got the weekend off to go see him in Houston, which was not too far away. Linda was a careful driver and they had fun listening to CD'S and singing along.
When they reached the prison, Jessie was nervous and had a worried look on his face. Linda hugged him and told him that she loved him and had a good feeling that everything would be ok. When Jessie's father appeared behind the glass enclosure his eye's lit up, recognizing Jessie immediately. Jessie felt like he was looking into a mirror they looked so much alike.
After that first initial visit, they went often to see him. He told Jessie that he was sorry for all the hardship he'd put him through and told him, " I'm proud of you son. "
Jessie felt like a new person. He finally realized he'd found happiness with Linda. They ' tied the knot ' and moved to a small home close to their work and got busy working on the family they both wanted.
Jessie knew he'd been given a second chance and he held on tightly, never to repeat his daddie's mistakes.
