The Labyrinth Sequel

When I wake up the next morning Jareth is gone. I barely remember falling asleep during our conversations. But from what I remember last night we seemed to be having a really good time before I dozed off.

Looking around my bedroom I notice that nothing is out of place. I half expected him to try to find something of mine to steel while I was asleep. Maybe he really is trying to make an effort with me after all...

I wait for half an hour to see if he is going to be stopping by before I give up waiting to get some breakfast. Downstairs Karen and Toby are in the kitchen doing the dishes. Toby is enjoying himself by splashing the soupy water all over the counter while Karen struggles to clean it up and wash the dishes at the same time.

"Good morning Sarah," Karen says looking up for a moment, "What are your plans for today?"

I grab an orange from the fridge and slide into my seat at the kitchen table. "I don't know, I might just try to finish up all of my homework today. I don't really have anything else to do after all."

"What about your friend from yesterday? Is he not planning on coming by to visit with you again?" She asks, a hint of sarcasm in her voice.

"No, he probably isn't going to come visit today," I lie, "He was just down yesterday to say hello and then he headed back home."

"Oh, I hope I didn't scare him off..." She laughs.

I smile to myself. "Oh, I don't think you scared him off at all."

After breakfast I steal a few snacks and return to my room. To my surprise Jareth isn't waiting for me when I get inside. I had half expected him to be sitting on my bed complaining about how long I had taken to eat.

I open the window, giving it a few minutes to see if maybe he was just locked outside waiting. But when he still doesn't come after a few minutes I decide to give up waiting. After all, I really do have homework that needs to be done before I go back.

I pull out my textbook and begin working away at the first couple of questions. I make it almost all of the way through my questions before a slender hand takes hold of pencil and pulls it out of my grasp.

"Aren't you supposed to be on a break, dear?" Jareth says, leaning in beside my ear.

"It is a 'reading' week, meaning that you have time off from your classes to work on assignments without distractions. I am supposed to be doing work but it seems even at home I am getting distracted." I sigh.

He grabs my chairs, forcefully turning it so that I am facing him. "I am the King of distractions you will find."

"You sure are," I roll my eyes, "So what took you so long this morning? I figured you were the type to sleep in but I didn't expect you to wait this long to come over."

"What can I say, I am a bit of a night owl." He teases.

"That's true I suppose, but did you get any sleep at all last night? You look like you were up all night..." I reach a hand forward to move the hair out of his eyes so that I can get a better look. He catches my hand, bringing it to rest on his cheek.

"Don't you worry about me, love. After all I am more than human." He reminds me, letting my hand drop back into my lap.

He stands then and moves across the room to the door, keeping his back to me.

"What would you like to do today? I do assume that you would like to spend time with me rather than doing your useless homework..." He laughs.

"Fine," I stand from my chair to retrieve my purse from across the room, "We can go for a walk and see if there is anything going on in town. I can't be out too long though because I told Karen I was just going to be doing homework today. Oh, and don't let her see you. I told her that you weren't going to be stopping by any time soon."