Forever and Always (3 page)

“Did that asshole hurt you last night” Katie asked. She wasn’t a big fan of Mike. “Cause I will kick his skinny arse if he did. I knew there was something I didn’t like about him. No one is that good looking and still so nice”.

Melanie smiled through her tears at her friends concern, especially Katie and her eloquent way with words. She knew they just wanted to help. But right at that moment, they couldn’t.

“Why did your Dad freak out Mel?” Lucy asked softly still sitting with her arm around her. Melanie closed her eyes as the memories of the night before flashed through her
mind
. Mike’s forceful hands and mouth on her, his face when her Dad pulled him off her, the sheer anger in her Dad’s face and finally his words, the words that cut through her like a knife into her soul.

Had she really ruined their lives? She thought of her Dad’s job. He always dreamed of being a solicitor and he had fulfilled that dream. But had been a hard road for him and he was one of the oldest juniors in his office. So he was a little behind where he should have been in his career. Did he resent her for that?

And what about her Mom?
Sarah had also gone back to collage at night. She studied journalism and now wrote columns for a weekly magazine. But she knew Sarah wanted to be a proper writer. Getting a book published would be her greatest wish. But she never seemed to have the time to do any proper writing. Also she still hadn’t found her mister right either. But then who wants a thirty-something year old with a stroppy teenager. It wasn’t that she never dated but she just never seemed to meet that right one. Was that her fault too?

“Earth calling Melanie” Katie’s voice snapped her out of her daydreaming.

“Sorry”
s
he replied but didn’t look at her friends.

“Mel you are freaking me out a little” Katie said sitting on the far side of Melanie. “I have never seen you so upset, ever. You know you can talk to us”.

Before she had a chance to even reply, her phone began to ring. She recognised the ring tone as the one she has selected for Mike. She quickly pulled her phone from her coat pocket and flipped it open.

“Hi Mike” she said nervously, unsure of how he would react given the way her dad had freaked at him the night before.

“Hi Mel” he replied nervously. “Are you ok?”

“Yeah” was all she managed to say before the tears started to fall again.

“Can I come and see you” he asked her, a sound of hope in his voice.

“Yeah
I’m
at Katie’s. I’ll meet you here” she replied and hung up the phone. She felt relieved her Dad hadn’t completely scared Mike off.

“I can’t believe you are going to meet that asshole” Katie hissed, the hatred in her voice clearly obvious. “I mean, let’s face it Mel, your Dad wouldn’t have gone bat-shit crazy for nothing. That waster obviously did something incredibly stupid”.

“I agree Mel” Lucy nodded. “Your dad is super cool and he wouldn’t freak out for nothing”.

“You haven’t a fucking clue” Mel snapped and jumped to her feet and grabbed her bag. “My Dad is an asshole”. Without another word she stormed out of the house and left her two friends sitting in a shocked silence.

She was half way down the road when she heard Mike call her name. She stopped and waited for him to catch up with her. When he reached her he wrapped his arms around her.

Suddenly
,
much to Mel’s horror, she began to sob. Mike buried her face in his chest and hugged her close to him.

An hour later they arrived back at her apartment. They stood at the door in an awkward silence. Mel peeked up at Mike through her lashes. He was watching her intently. Slowly she raised her head as he leaned down and met her lips. Suddenly she was pressed against the wall and he hands were all over her body again.

He reached down and slowly starts to hitch her skirt, then slowly slid his hand back up towards her panties.

“Mike
don’t
” she whispered as she tried to push him away but he didn’t seem to hear her. He pinned her harder with his hip against the wall.

“Mel you feel so good” he whispered breathlessly.

“Mike stop” She shouted pushing him back.

Before she knew it, Alex appeared once again out of nowhere. This time he grabbed Mike and punched him square in the face.

Alex had been waiting for her in her apartment and had seen her walk up toward the apartment with Mike from the window. He was freaked when he saw her with Mike and stormed out of the apartment down to meet them.

“I told you to stay the hell away from my daughter” he screamed as Mike slumped in a heap on the ground clutching his face.
“Next time I see you anywhere near my daughter, I will fucking
kill you”.

Alex turned and looked at Melanie and she just stared at him in pure disbelief. Without saying a word to either Mike or Alex she stormed into the building and pressed the call button for the elevator.  Moments later the main door opened and Alex came rushing in. Mel turned on her heals and headed toward the stairwell and began up the stairs taking them two at a time.

When she reached the fourth floor the elevator pinged open at the same time and Alex step out.

“Mel sweetheart” he called after her. But she didn’t stop or even slow down. When she got to the apartment door which was ajar, she stormed inside. Sarah and Grace were sitting on the sofa. Jamie, who was sitting on the floor playing with some toys, squealed with excitement when he saw Melanie. But she didn’t say a word. She marched straight into her room and slammed the door locking it behind her.

Alex quickly followed her into the apartment and banged on her bedroom door.

“Mel we need to talk” he said in a low calm tone, but his face showed he was anything but calm. “Open the door”.

She didn’t respond.

“Mel I am not going anywhere till you open this God damn door and you talk to me” he pressed his head against the door. Suddenly there was blaring music coming from her room so she couldn’t hear anything he said.

Instantly Jamie started to cry. Grace picked him up to comfort him but he wanted Melanie.

“Maybe I should take him home” Grace said looking at Alex.

“Ok” Alex replied and sighed trying his hardest to give her a smile. “But I think I need to stay here and talk to Melanie”.

“I know” Grace replied and she kissed Alex and left with Jamie.

“You want a coffee?” Sarah asked Alex. Alex followed Sarah back into the kitchen.

“Shit Sarah” he sighed and slumped dejectedly onto the stool at the breakfast bar. “I have really fucked up this time. I have never seen her so mad like this before. The way she looked at me....” He shook his head recalling Melanie’s face standing in the middle of his living room the night before. It was like he had punched her in the guts. How could he have been so stupid? Especially when the truth was he felt Melanie was the best thing to happen in his life. Oh he loved Grace and Jamie so much as well. But she was his Melanie. His little girl and there was nothing in this world he loved more.

“Alex” Sarah said softly taking his hand. “Melanie knows you love her. She just needs a little time to calm down”.

“I hope so Sarah” he replied sadly. “I really do.

********************

Melanie was lying on her bed crying. Things were so fucked up in her head. What was Mike thinking of. She had tried to stop him but he didn’t seem to care. She couldn’t believe her Dad had caught them again. No wonder he regretted having a kid at 18. He must have thought she was a little tramp to let Mike grope her like that in broad day light.

She had ruined her parent’s lives and now she was nothing but a big fat disappointment. A fresh wave or grief swept over her and she sobbed harder into her pillow. Thank God she had turned the music up so load. They wouldn’t be able to hear her cry.

She woke with a start. It was starting to get darker in her room. She looked at her alarm clock and it was already after nine. She reached over and switched off the music. God her head was pounding. Slowly she crept to her bedroom door and pressed her ear against it. There was just silence. Her mom had probably brought Jethro out for his evening walk and her Dad was probably long gone my now.

Slowly she opened her door and stuck her head out. The living area was in darkness. Yeah she was definitely on her own. She sighed with relief and made her way towards the kitchen for a drink, she was so thirsty.

“Mel” her Dad voice whispered sleepily from behind her. She spun around and he was sitting on one of the cream padded arm chairs. He looked like he had been asleep. He looked terrible. Melanie heart tightened and she wanted to run to him but she just stood there, unable to move.

Quickly he stood up and moved closer to her but didn’t touch her. Melanie’s heart was beating so fast it was pounding in her ears.

“Mel I am so sorry” he croaked, his voice cracking and revealing his hurt and sadness. “I never meant to hurt you like I did yesterday. I love you more than anything in this world. You mean everything to me. But when I came home and saw that toe rag on top of you and you looked so...So scared....” His voice trailed off. He closed his eyes and took a deep steadying breath then continued.

“I was just so angry” he whispered. “I would do anything to protect you. You mean the world to me kiddo”.

Melanie didn’t say anything. She took a minute to process what he had just said. Her mind flashed back to the night before. To Mike on top of her. Her dad was right she had been terrified. He was so big and strong and she had felt powerless beneath him. But Mike loved her and she refused to believe he would have done anything to hurt her. But she knew her Dad was only trying to protect her. She knew that his heart had been in the right place.

“I am sorry too” she finally replied. Alex wrapped her in his arms and held her close while she sobbed.

He brushed her hair softly and kissed the top of her head. Relief washed over him. He couldn’t bear the thought of her being so angry with him or the fact he had hurt her so badly. That was the last thing he ever wanted.

“I am sorry I disappointed you” she whispered.

“Melanie O’Leary” he said holding her face in his hands. “You could never disappoint me. Don’t ever think that for even a minute you have. There is nothing in this world you could do to disappoint me”.

Twenty minutes later Sarah came back with Jethro and found them sitting side by side on the sofa. She smiled at them with relief. She hated to see them fighting.

She made two cups of tea and a glass of milk and brought it back to the living room. She put the tray they were on, along with a plate of Melanie favourite biscuits, Bourbon Creams, down on the glass coffee table next to the big sofa and took the armchair across from them.

“So you have made up” Sarah said with a smile before taking a sip of her tea.

“Yep” Melanie replied happily and reached over and grabbed a biscuit. They were Alex’s favourite biscuit too. Ever since Melanie was little she always broke her biscuit in two and gave Alex one half whenever he was around. And now was no different. She twisted the biscuit into two and absentmindedly handed one half to Alex. Sarah smiled. She loved watching them together.

“I am glad to hear it” Sarah said as she reached for her tea and sat back and curled her legs underneath her.

“I am glad too” Melanie beamed and looked at her Dad and smiled brightly.

“So did your Dad tell you what we thought might be fun” Sarah said putting her tea back down on the table.

Melanie looked at Alex questioningly and then back at
Sarah.
”No
”.

“Well we thought was maybe you might like to go to stay with Aunt Maggie in Boston for the summer” Sarah said with a big smile. “You know give you a chance to clear your head”.

Melanie was floored. She loved Maggie, she was one her Mom’s best friends almost as long as Alex was. She was like the sister Sarah never had.  And she had been to visit Maggie a couple of years earlier with her Mom, and loved it. But to spend the summer with her!

“Why” was the only word Melanie managed to squeeze out?

“Well we thought you might like a little space” Sarah continued a little less enthusiastically. She glanced nervously over at Alex before she continued. “You know, give you time to get over Mike”.

“Get over him?” Melanie repeated. It was like a slap in the face. “I don’t want to get over him”.

Alex immediately sat up poker straight and placed his cup down on the coffee table.

“Melanie there is no way I want you anyway near that little scumbag” He growls with such venom he even surprised Sarah. “It’s not open for discussion”.

“Why not?”
Melanie snapped. “Mike loves me and I love him”.

“Melanie what he was doing to you last night and again today” Alex said, trying hard to stay calm. He closed his eyes and took a deep steadying breath. “That was not love. And I will kill him if I see him anywhere near you again. I mean it”.

“This is so unfair” Melanie said, hot tears spring back up into her eyes. She jumped up from the sofa. “You have no right”.