Loving Jim Grand Ch. 01

"I think she is trying to come on terms with never finding anyone worthy." Jess said with a shrug. "There is nothing you can do about that, Jim. Let it be for now."

With a nod, I accepted her advice. The rest of the way to the mall passed in relative silence, both of us thinking about our big sister.

.

Parking the car, we walked toward the giant building, when suddenly Jessica took my hand in hers and with a smile dragged me forward. In a few minutes we arrived before the bowling entrance where she had said her friends would be waiting. A guy and two girls waved toward us as we approached them.

"Jim, this is Jake, Mandy and Hope." Jessica introduced. The guy was pretty tall, a few inches taller than me, he was pretty average in the looks department but not too shabby either; Mandy was a petite blonde one, with cute features, almost like a little doll. Hope was more like Jess, lean and curvier than her petite friend and had long dark hair.

"This is Jim, my brother." Jess continued with a smile.

"Nice to meet you." I said with a smile of my own. They seemed nice fellows at first glance. After they returned their own greetings, we walked inside.

A few minutes later we were already playing a game of bowling. I was pretty confident in my skills, having played my fair share while in France, so I tried to goad them a bit. A bit of friendly competition was always good in creating links.

Sitting next to Jake after executing a perfect strike, I smiled as Jessica sprung forward, pumped to not lose to me. The night lights were glowing softly, but nonetheless I could easily see how Jess's tight light-blue jeans hugged her body; showing to the world her fit legs and perfect bum as she excitedly moved around. She was gorgeous, there was no denying it.

"She loves you very much." Jake spoke up suddenly, smiling at my laughing sister in the distance. At my raised eyebrow, he continued. "She's missed you a lot; always talking about her big brother. Frankly, it's as if I know you myself now." He laughed and I smiled in return. I was happy to be back. "Don't take it the wrong way, okay?" he asked after a small pause.

"Of course, tell me." I replied, with a nod.

"If I didn't know in advance that she was coming with her brother, I swear I would have taken you for her boyfriend that she had hidden from us." He said in a serious voice, and I couldn't stop myself from laughing out loud. What a funny guy!

"Truly, a strange way to look at things." I said with a grin. "What made you think that?"

"The way she looks at you." He replied with that ever serious voice. "She has a very high esteem of you; which is probably why no one was able to date her yet. With everything she told us about you, the image that we have of you is of a "Perfect" Guy." Another snort escaped me, but he wasn't laughing.

"Surely she was exaggerating in her elegies; she is my little sister after all."

"Maybe. But, that is still the way she sees you."

"I fail to understand the meaning behind this...discussion." I said, my smile vanishing from my face.

"If half of what your sister said about you was true, then she will never find anyone."

"Excuse me?" What was he babbling about? The sudden turn of events wasn't to my liking.

"Guys like you don't exist anymore, you know that better than me, I think. Her demand is too high to come to fruition." Jake explained. "You should talk to her; show her that there're still pretty good guys around. Maybe not Perfect like you, but good guys nonetheless."

"Good guys like you, I presume?" I launched back, my protectiveness streak coming forward once more.

"Once upon a time, yes."

"Not anymore?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I would be lying if I said that I don't find you sister irresistible; let's be frank: she is gorgeous. But I overcame that obstacle; I'm her friend, and that's enough for me."

"Then what's all this about?"

"She is suffering; I can see that at least. You most likely already know about Samantha. Jessica is in the same boat." I was truly surprised by the turn this discussion had taken. This was the last thing I had expected to hear from one of Jess' guy-friends. She was also suffering from not finding her match?

With an exhausted sigh, I let my head fall backward on the sofa's spine. All this was really not what I was expecting to return to. My sisters and I seemed to be cursed with bad relationships.

"I'll do what I can." I whispered and Jake finally smiled at me.

"That's all I'm asking for."

"Hey! Look who's tied with you, Jim!" Jessica sat beside me and nudged me gently, a beaming smile illuminating her face. Smiling in return, I hugged her to me, as a burst of affection came over me. I was going to help my sister overcome this; there was no other options.

The rest of the night passed in relative peace and all out fun ambiance; with me regaling them with stories of our childhood or my more recent stay in France.

.

.

Finally we were on our way back. With a smile on my face, I drove us home. With the side of my eyes, I caught Jess staring at me, completely lost in thoughts. "Hope admitted that she found you super-hot." She spoke up suddenly.

"Well, I'm happy to know that I still have it." I launched back with a grin. leaning her head backwards, she laughed at me, making my grin widen even more.

"I can't believe you've just said that." She said after stopping. "Still have it? What are you, an old man?" she asked with a grin of her own.

"Staying on the subject, Jiji, what about you?" I asked, my discussion with Jack coming back.

"Well, she is right, you are yummy." She whispered a glint of something apparating in her eyes.

"Wha-...?! I..." Truly, I didn't know what to think. I was going to ask her about her love life, but with her launching something like this to my face, I felt really flustered. Oh, that little minx! That was surely her intention: make her brother uncomfortable. "Very clever, Jess, that completely shut me up." I said finally, a smile coming back to my face.

"What?" she seemed genuinely confused by my words. Was she playing an act again to throw me off?

"If you don't want to talk about your love life, it's okay really. I don't want to pry." I explained gently.

Slowly, her mind seemed to piece the things together as her eyes narrowed. She looked a little annoyed for some reason. "Did you really think that I said it to throw you off?" she asked with a frown. Was I missing something?

"Didn't you?" I asked back.

"No, Jim, I didn't. I really, truly, find you very desirable." She said in what seemed, at least to me, an earnest voice, making my eyes widen in shock. Had my little sister really said that she found me...?

"Jess." I began, fumbling for words. "I...er...as a guy, I'm very flattered, really, but as your brother...I...I'm not supposed to receive such a compliment. This is wrong." Finally I've said it. That was harder to come out for some reason.

"Sorry for making you uncomfortable, Jim. You must think that I'm gross-..."

"No!" I interrupted more firmly than I intended. "Jess, don't ever say that. I love you like no other, and always will. Just, it...caught me of guard, okay?"

"Okay." She said simply, and I could feel that she wanted to say something but I didn't let her. A change of subject was indispensable.

"Jiji, do you, like, have someone right now? I mean, are you attracted to someone?" I asked awkwardly. I was never an awkward guy, but I had to admit that my little sister had made me more than a bit nervous.

"Yes." She said, turning away from me and looking toward the dark road. "I love him." She whispered gently.

"Really?" Really?! That wasn't what Jack had told me. Was he wrong? "Do I know him?"

"I...I'm not sure." She replied, still looking forward. "I mean, you do know pretty much everyone around here." She continued. And she was right. I was quite popular whenever I went, not because I was some star quarterback or something, but because I easily made friends with everyone; never limiting myself to one circle. Jocks, Nerds, Goths, you name it, I was probably friends with at least one of them. So yeah, maybe I did know the guy.

"Are you dating?" I asked, as a wave of apprehension washed over me while I waited with a bated breath.

"No. I still haven't told him." She replied. "I'm very scared to commit myself."

"That's completely normal, Jiji. Commitment is-..."

"No, I'm not afraid of commitment, actually I want nothing more than that, but I'm afraid he won't return my feelings." She whispered sadly, still looking away, in, what I finally realized, embarrassment. "I don't know what I'll do if he pushes me away. Just thinking about it makes my heart ache. "

"What sort of idiot would turn you down, Jiji? You're a gorgeous and intelligent girl." I said with a smile. She returned my smile shyly. "Are you sure about him?" I asked with wonder, surprised at the extent of her feelings.

"Yes. I had a whole year to think about it and I never was as sure about something as I am now."

"A year?!" I exclaimed despite myself. That was a long time to wait. "Why did you wait so long?"

"It was no choice of mine. He was busy, always away because of personal reasons."

"It must have been painful to wait for so long. I can't even imagine." I said sadly. Damn it. This seemed pretty serious. The way she spoke, I knew she was completely head over heels for this mysterious guy, which was probably a very good thing. Jack had been wrong about Jessica; yes she was suffering, but not because she couldn't find her other half, but because she had to wait for him to return. Somehow, it put my mind at ease. Even if I felt protective out of a sudden, I was happy. My sister had finally found what her two elder siblings couldn't.

"It had been a really hard year; and with you away... It had been difficult." She admitted, finally turning toward me.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I asked, feeling a bit betrayed. I rapidly crushed that feeling, because that would be hypocritical, for I hadn't told her about all the girls I've dated while in France as well.

"Because I wasn't sure if I was going crazy or losing my mind." She replied in all seriousness.

"Jess, love is a strange feeling; it has no logic behind it and it's very powerful. You shouldn't be afraid to experience it." I counseled with a gentle smile.

"My feelings are so strong...I...I can hardly restrain myself, Jim." She sounded really desperate. God damn it, I hated seeing my little sister like this.

"Jess, if I can help you in any way, don't be afraid to ask. I'll do anything for you, anything." I said with conviction. The look she sent me was so intense that shivers traveled along my spine. There was something wrong with that look, but for the life of me, I couldn't put my finger on it.

"Thank you, Jim. I love you."

Feeling a bit awkward, I returned my gaze to the road, as we continued in silence. No other words were needed. She had revealed her secrets and now knew that I was here for her.

Without making any noise, we sneaked inside our house and just before walking inside our respective rooms, Jessica hugged me fiercely, and after placing a gentle kiss on my cheek, too close to my lips for comfort, entered her room. I stayed outside her door for a long moment, my heart battering at my chest. Finally, I shook the cobwebs in my mind and entered my own room. "What a Homecoming." I muttered under my breath. Strangely enough, sleep overcame me almost as soon as I touched my pillow.