The Young Dragon

One day at school, as Jason puts his things into his locker, he gets multiple texts and calls from Frank and immediately ignores them all. He then sees Hailey, Britney, and Zach walking towards him, debating something.

"No way. I refuse to believe that you two actually think that mint chocolate chip ice cream is actually good." Zach argues.

"It's absolutely delicious." Hailey says.

"Agreed." Britney adds.

"Ice cream shouldn't taste like toothpaste. Back me up here Jason." Zach says.

Jason chuckles.

"Sorry, man, I can't. I never tried it before." Jason says.

"You never had mint chocolate chip before?" Hailey asks.

"I've never had any ice cream before." Jason says with a smile.

Hailey, Zach, and Britney gasp dramatically at the same time as Jason is confused.

"You've never had ice cream?" Zach asks.

"Like never in life?" Britney asks.

Jason shrugs while shaking his head no. Hailey sighs, walking over to Jason and putting her hand on the side of his face.

"You poor child." Hailey jokingly says.

She then turns to Zach and Britney.

"We'll have to do something about this." Hailey says.

"Yep." Zach says.

"Agreed." Britney adds.

Hailey then takes Jason by the arm and they all walk together towards the door.

"Wait, where are we going?" Jason asks.

"To change your life." Hailey replies.

"But what about school?" Jason asks.

"This is extremely more important." Britney says.

They all then leave school and drive off in Britneys car. A few minutes later, Jason sits infront many different flavors of ice cream while Hailey, Zach, and Britney watch in anticipation. He tries each ice cream one by one, then pauses for a moment before picking up the cup of plain vanilla.

"I think I like this one the most." Jason says.

Hailey, Britney, and Zach then clap for this choice.

"Nice choice." Hailey says.

"Very classic." Britney adds.

"As long as it's not mint chocolate." Zach says.

Jason laughs and all three of them eat ice cream together. As a month goes by, Jason lives a normal teenage life. He plays video games with Zach, let's Britney pick new outfits for him, and has watches movies with Hailey as the two cuddle on the couch. As this is all happening, Frank continues to call Jason and Jason continues to ignore him. One night, Jason stands at Hailey's front door, wearing a fancy shirt that Britney picked for him. He then takes a deep breath and rings the door bell. A few seconds later, Hailey's little sister, Emily, answers the door.

"Hi. You must be Jason." Emily says with a smile

Jason chuckles.

"And you must be Emily." Jason replies.

"Yep. Come on in." Emily says, grabbing Jason by the hand.

The two enter the house and talk while walking.

"Hailey's upstairs getting ready, so you're gonna have to talk to daddy alone. Becareful, he's a little overprotective." Emily says.

Jason laughs.

"I'll keep that in mind." Jason replies.

They make it to the kitchen where officer Donovan is sitting, reading a newspaper.

"Daddy, Jason's here." Emily says.

"Thank you sweetie. I'll take it from here." He says without looking up from his paper.

Emily nods then hugs Jason.

"Goodluck." She whispers before running out of the room.

After a few more minutes pass, Terry puts down his paper and stares at Jason.

"So. You're the boyfriend, huh?" He says.

Jason gulps nervously.

"Yes sir."

An awkward silence passes through the room. A few minutes later, Hailey walks into the kitchen to see Jason and her father laughing together. Hailey smiles then approaches the two.

"Looks like you two are getting along." Hailey says.

"Oh pumpkin, why didn't you tell me this boy was so funny." Her father says.

Hailey then smirks at Jason.

"He's just full of surprises." Hailey says.

"Well, I don't know about you two but I'm hungry. Let's eat." Donavan says.

That night, Jason has dinner with Hailey and her family. They all laugh as Terry shares stories about Hailey, causing her face to turn red. Jason soon realizes that this is the closest thing to a family dinner that he has ever had. After dinner, Jason does push ups while Emily is on his back.

"99... 100." Both Emily and Hailey say.

Emily then laughs.

"You're strong." Emily says.

Jason smirks.

"Thanks. I workout." Jason replies.

Terry then walks over to the little girl and picks her up.

"Alright, I think it's time for someone to go to bed." Terry says.

Emily groans.

"Do I have to?" She asks.

"Yes, you have to." Terry says.

He then turns to his oldest daughter and gives her a kiss on her forehead.

"Goodnight pumpkin."

"Goodnight dad."

Hailey then rubs Emily's head.

"Good night, munchkin." Hailey says.

"Goodnight." Emily says while she yawns.

Terry then turns to Jason and shakes his hand.

"It was good to meet you, son." He says.

"You too, sir." Jason replies.

Emily then gives Jason a hug, surprising the young man.

"Goodnight Jason." She says.

Jason smiles, giving Emily a hug back.

"Goodnight, Emily." Jason says softly.

Terry then walks upstairs with Emily in his arms.

"You two stay out here, alright? No going into any rooms where the door can lock. I'm a cool dad, but I ain't that cool." Terry says.

Both Jason and Hailey laugh as Terry continues to walk upstairs. Jason then sits next to Hailey.

"Your dad and sister are great." Jason says.

Hailey smiles.

"Thanks. They seem to like you." Hailey says.

Jason smirks.

"What's not to like?" Jason jokingly says.

As the two laugh, Jason looks over at a picture of Hailey's mom and thinks to himself.

"Can I ask you a personal question?" Jason asks.

Hailey notices Jason staring at her mother's photo.

"You're wondering where's my mom, right?" Hailey says.

Jason nods as the young girl let's out a sigh.

"She past away two years ago. Cancer." Hailey says.

"Hailey, I'm so sorry." Jason says.

Hailey smiles.

"It's ok. That's why I want to go to Juilliard. My mom went there. She was such an amazing piano player. We loved listening to her play. Playing makes me feel close to her." She says.

Jason puts his hands on the side of her face, then kisses her. As the two smile, Hailey gets an idea.

"Wait right here, I'll be back." Hailey says.

Hailey then walks over to the book shelf and pulls out a Juilliard yearbook.

"This is my mom's old yearbook." Hailey says.

She then turns to a page where her mother is playing the piano.

"She's beautiful. You look a lot like her."

Hailey smiles.

"Thank you." She says.

As they flip through page to page, Jason sees something that catches his attention.

"Wait. Go back." Jason says.

Hailey turns the page and Jason stares at one of the pictures for a moment, shocked at what he sees.

"Jason, what is it?" Hailey asks.

Jason stays silent for a moment, tears forming in his eyes.

"It's... my mother." Jason says.