[center][color=teal][h2]Jessamyn "Jess" Bailey[/h2][/color][/center]

At the music Roxy settled on, Jess resisted the urge to dig her nails into her palms. This was what her dad had liked to listen to. Not wanting to make the anchor feel guilty, she kept this to herself despite the memories it brought back. Throughout the journey, she only spoke to give directions.

As much as she wanted to talk more, what could she say? She'd never exactly been a party animal before all this, but she hadn't been terrible at interacting with people either. A simple conversation shouldn't be difficult. One wrong word, though, could add to that already overwhelming stress Roxy did her best to contain.

The journey seemed to take so long that at one point, Jess wondered if she'd gotten the directions wrong until familiar surroundings came into view. [i]Not much longer now,[/i] she thought, even if to them - especially to Roxy - it would still take a good while.

Finally, her mom's house came into view. The sight should have brought relief, but all Jess could think about was how to get through the weekend incident free. [color=teal]"Well, we're here,"[/color] she said, attempting a hint of a smile as she pointed out the building. [i]Act normal.[/i] She inwardly repeated Roxy's words over and over while the car pulled up. [i]Act completely normal.[/i]

She climbed out and dragged her suitcase along the path, trying to keep her back straight and look reasonably confident, although she couldn't help jittering as she rang the doorbell. Footsteps sounded, and her mom pulled open the door, greeting her with a smile.

[color=aqua]"Hey, how have you been? Come on in!"[/color] Even though her mother's eyes were lit up with joy, Jess noticed the dark circles were still there. This weekend was meant to be a time of happiness, but as Jess stepped into the hallway and tried to convince her mom everything had been great, she wondered how much stress everyone would go through over the next few days.

[color=aqua]"I knew you'd start readapting just fine,"[/color] her mother continued, a trace of skepticism clear in her voice and seeping through that good cheer like drizzle on an otherwise pleasant day. A reminder she knew there was more going on than anyone would admit to. [color=aqua]"And you,"[/color] she said, her voice taking on a slight strained quality as she turned to Roxy, [color=aqua]"how are you?"[/color]