Page 68 of Real Forever
Lauren raised one eyebrow and let out a soft huff. “The cops? Who’s going to show up, Mads? Trevor? Greg? Every single one of those guys drank with Dave every weekend throughout high school.”
Madison put her head in her hands. “Lauren. Fuck.”
“Madison, I know. But he’s Maisie’s dad. What the fuck am I supposed to do?”
“I don’t know, but you can’t keep doing this, Lauren. And you can’t go to Alberta with him. You’ll have no one.”
“Madison, I have to.”
28
Jake
Jake wokeup to the buzzing of his phone on the nightstand. He grasped in the dark for it, eventually landing on it and pulling the charger out before flipping it over to check the screen. It was Madison.
“Hello? Madison?” Jake’s voice was husky and confused.
“Jake?” She was crying. Jake shot up and flipped on the lamp.
“Madison? What’s wrong?”
“I’m sorry for calling so late.” Jake glanced at the clock. 12:17am.
“Don’t worry about the time. Are you okay? What’s going on?”
“Jake, Dave and Lauren had a fight. A bad one. He trashed the house, and he threw her into the kitchen island. Her ribs are all bruised up.”
Jake flew out of bed. He held the phone in between his ear and his shoulder while he pulled on his sweatpants.
“Is he there now? Are you guys safe?” He pulled a T-shirt over his head.
“No, he left. But I don’t know where he went or when he’s coming back.”
“I’m coming over. I’ll be there in twenty minutes.”
Madison cried even harder. “Really? Thank you, Jake. Thank you so much.”
Jake hung up the phone, finished getting dressed, and was out the door in less than five minutes. He fumed as he sped down the pitch black highway.Who the fuck does this guy think he is? He has the perfect fucking life, and this is what he does with it?
Madison was waiting at the door when Jake pulled into the driveway. She opened it as he walked up the steps. “Hey.” She looked terrified. Jake pulled her into his chest, wrapping his arms around her and holding her head against him. She burst into tears again. “Ugh.” She sniffled and wiped her face with her sleeves. “All I’ve fucking done today is cry.”
Jake held her face in his hands. “Are you okay?”
She frowned and slumped her shoulders. “I don’t know. I’m better now that you’re here, though.”
Jake examined the room. Every time he’d been here, it had been spotless, but tonight it looked like a frat house. No. It looked like a crime scene.
He gestured at the mess. “Should we clean up?”
The corner of Madison’s mouth turned down into a sad smile. “Good idea. Let’s try to be quiet though, so we don’t wake Lauren and Maisie.”
The two of them worked for close to an hour, sweeping up the bits of glass and porcelain from the floor, and wiping down walls and cupboards where bits of lasagna and caesar salad had landed. They worked without speaking, each deep in their own thoughts.
When they finished, Jake led Madison downstairs and into her bathroom. He started the shower, testing the water temperature with his hand before turning back to Madison.
“Jake, I—” Madison’s voice broke.
“Shhh,” Jake whispered, placing a gentle finger to her lips. He brushed the hair away from her face with his fingertips, tucking it tenderly behind her ears. Her lips turned up, but she was blinking back tears. “Shh. It’s okay. It’s going to be okay.”
