Authors: Toni Aleo
Fallon glared as she took a step towards Audrey. “I am the best Mom ever to Aiden.”
Audrey’s shoulders fell. “I know you are, but Fallon you aren’t being right to Lucas. He loves you so much. He is the king to your queen, the cheese to your macaroni, the prince to your princess. Y’all are meant for each other.”
Fallon shook her head as the tears threatened to fall. “If he was then he wouldn’t have lied.”
Audrey shook her head and looked down at the ground. When she glanced back up at Fallon, not only were tears falling down her beautiful round cheeks but she had such anger in her eyes that it took Fallon’s breath away. “You are going to grow old, bitter, and lonely. You are letting the one person that matters get away, all because you think he lied to you when he didn’t. You make me sick Fallon, and I have never been so disgusted with you in my life.”
Fallon swallowed loudly, looking away. Why was everyone so disgusted with her? Tears gathered in her eyes as she said, “Join the club Audrey. I don’t care if you are disgusted with me because I am being sensible and smart. I’m not going to let some man hurt me again. I’m not you.” Audrey glared up as her as she made fists at her sides, “And while I’m old and bitter, and lonely, at least I know I did what was best for me and my child. You on the other hand will probably be beaten to a pulp by a piece of shit man since you never see the bad in anyone and you think all men are princes. Grow up cupcake, men are dogs.”
Audrey shook her head. “I’m done with you. I’m not going to sit around and watch you bring everyone else down ‘cause you’re crazy.”
The words hurt but Fallon wouldn’t let Audrey see that. She shrugged her shoulders as Audrey made her way to the door, slamming it behind her. Once Fallon heard the car start and watched as Audrey sped out the driveway, the loudest sob imaginable ripped from Fallon’s body. She crumpled to the floor, holding her middle as she cried out in not only emotional pain but physical pain too. How did she manage to not only throw away the man she loved, but also her sister, her best friend?
What was she going to do?
Fallon softly knocked on Aiden’s door as she pushed it opened. Aiden lay in his bed, his cast above his head and his remote in his other hand. His hair was a mess and he looked so tired, but like always, a sweet smile rested on his lips. He was such a happy child, and she hoped it was because she was doing right as a mother.
She went across the room, crawling into the bed with him. He smiled over at her and cuddled close before shutting the TV off.
“I thought we could watch some TV,” Fallon said quietly.
Aiden didn’t say anything for a moment. Fallon glanced up at him to see his eyebrows drawn together as he looked down at her. “Why were you and AA screaming at each other?”
Fallon bit her lip, embarrassed that Aiden had heard them. She shook her head as she said, “’Cause we are mad at each other.”
Aiden sat up and Fallon did the same, looking over at him as he played with the cotton in his cast. He had been doing it so much lately that it worried Fallon he was developing a complex or something. When he looked up at her with the same eyes as his fathers’, Fallon didn’t know how she was going to make it without Lucas. Aiden’s eyes were like knives, stabbing Fallon in the heart for all the wrong she had done that day. She had started the day ready to make Lucas happy, ready to tell him she loved him but in the end, she left him.
Fallon didn’t think her heart couldn’t break anymore. “It isn’t that easy Aiden,” she whispered. How could she explain everything for Aiden to understand? He was her baby, he couldn’t possibly understand. Hell, she didn’t even understand. How could she let it get this bad, how could she hurt two people that meant the world to her?
Fallon moved her head down, covering her face with her hair so that Aiden wouldn’t see her cry. She had always been so strong in front of him and even though she was falling apart inside, she still felt like she needed to hide it from him. She was the selfish bitch that Audrey called her. She was disgusting and she deserved to feel like this.
When she felt Aiden’s hand slide into hers, it was her undoing and tears gushed down her cheeks. “Mommy, everything is going to be fine,” Aiden whispered as he leaned his head against her shoulder. “All you have to do is say you’re sorry.”
Fallon looked over at Aiden to see him giving her a small sweet smile. She moved her hand up to his face, cupping it lightly as she smiled. “How’d you get so smart?”
Aiden gave her a toothless grin before saying, “Dad says I get it from you. That you’re the brains and he’s the bear, or something like that.”
Fallon laughed as she moved her thumb along his cheek. “The brawn.”
“Yeah! That! He says that’s what makes you guys such a great team.”
Fallon nodded as the tears moved fast down her cheeks. They were a great team. When they were together, they worked so well. They could do anything as long as they had the support of each other, but Fallon wasn’t thinking that when she broke up with him. She was too busy taking all her anger about Audrey out on him. Audrey was right. It should mean the world that Lucas was there for Audrey when she needed him. Wasn’t that the kind of man she wanted? One that not only loved her completely, but her family too? Lucas was that man. He loved Aiden, he love Audrey and God knew he loved her.
“I think you should tell AA you are sorry and that she will have her happily ever after because everyone should have that,” he said putting one finger up.
Fallon smiled as she nodded. “Okay, what’s next?”
“Then I think you should go to Daddy’s house and tell him you want to get married because I know for a fact that he’d marry you tomorrow.”
Fallon couldn’t breathe as she looked into Aiden’s hopeful eyes. She wanted nothing more than to give Aiden the world, but was this even something she could give him? Would Lucas accept the apology, would he marry her tomorrow? It all seemed so out of reach and Fallon was beyond scared to even try for it. There was no use in trying if Fallon couldn’t learn to listen and try to work things out. She would always be running, and leaving Lucas behind. That wasn’t fair to either of them, not when they loved each other as much as they did.
It had to stop or neither of them would be happy, but how was she supposed to change after 28 years of being the same?
Fallon was sitting on the stairs when Audrey came through the door. She was soaked from head to toe and Fallon could tell with one glance that she had been crying. She looked up at Fallon and then back down as she slid off her shoes.
Fallon didn’t waste any time and said, “I’m sorry, Audrey.”
Audrey looked up and locked eyes with Fallon. The two stood in the quiet room, staring at each other as tears welled up in their eyes. Audrey closed the distance between them and dropped to the spot beside her, wrapping Fallon up in her arms. Fallon held Audrey tight as they both cried into each other’s shoulders. Fallon pulled back first and brushed her thumbs along Audrey’s cheeks, clearing the tears away.
“I was wrong for what I said, and I’m so sorry. I can’t stand that you kept this from me, and I can’t stand that Lucas knew and didn’t tell me but I have to stop this. I have to stop thinking that everyone is out to hurt me and learn to listen before acting. It’s a personal flaw and I need to fix it before I end up lonely and bitter.”
Audrey nodded her head. “Fallon we love you the way you are, but you can’t lash out at us. You have always wanted to fix everything about me, but you can’t. I gotta make my own mistakes and learn from them.”
Fallon cocked an eyebrow at her. “Audrey you have been with douche after douche, I don’t think you are learning here, honey.”
Audrey smiled. “I want to be in love so bad that I’ll basically take anyone. I love Levi, but that doesn’t mean I think he’s the one. I’m hoping he is, but no one else, including him, thinks he is the one. I don’t know Fallon, I just want a Lucas. A man that is totally and utterly devoted to me and only me.”
Totally devoted.
“I will always love you Fallon because you’re my sister, my blood, but Lucas can only take so much. He can only be rejected so many times before he gives up. He loves you and I know you love him. So why not just jump into what y’all do best, and that’s love each other.” Audrey said. She squeezed Fallon’s hand and smiled, “You know him inside and out, and he knows the same about you. The rest will come as you go; you just have to trust him.”
Fallon nodded. “I do trust him, I do,” she said reassuring herself, “but I’ve fucked up so much. Why would he want to be with me when I constantly hurt him?”
“Because he loves you and when you love someone it doesn’t matter what they do, you still love them.”
Fallon shook her head. It couldn’t be that easy, she had put Lucas through seven years of hell before she forgave him. She didn’t believe him when he needed her to, how could he forgive that?
“I don’t even know what I’d say to him, Audrey,”
Audrey moved her hand up to Fallon’s face, looking deeply into her eyes before she smiled and said, “Tell him you love him. The rest will fall into place.”
Lucas sat on his couch, a glass of water in his hand and mindless TV on as he tried to not miss Fallon. He told himself that they were done and he needed to accept it, but his heart and body weren’t listening. They wanted her back and probably always would. He would probably always roam the earth, wishing she was by his side. It was how he was made.
He was made to love only her.
Lucas shook his head just as his phone went off from an incoming text message. He took his phone out of his pocket and opened the text message. He pushed the right button so that it would be read for him, but the voice talk didn’t make any sense. He looked down at the text message and tried to focus, but he didn’t have too.
.edistuo emoC
Come outside.
No one had ever written to him like that except for Fallon.
Lucas got up quickly, placing his glass of water on the end table as he made his way to the door. When he threw it open, Fallow stood on the sidewalk, drenched to the bone. She wore his old AHL tee and a pair of jean shorts. It was raining so hard that he could hardly see her.
“What the hell Fallon? Come inside!” he yelled. The rain was loud, slamming against the roof of the house and the windows. He didn’t even know if she heard him until she shook her head.
“No way. I came out in the rain with you earlier and that didn’t work out for us,” he said, crossing his arms over his shoulders.
“What time? What are you talking about?” he exclaimed. He didn’t know what she was doing but she was pissing him off even more. He hated that he thought she was gorgeous even when he was furious with her. Couldn’t he get a break when it came to her? Could he
not
be affected by her beauty, her sexiness, for once?
Fallon moved her hand over her face, clearing some of the rain off it as she said, “Out at the beach, outside your house in California? It rained for five days straight and finally there was a break so we ran out and enjoyed the sun for all of five minutes before it started pouring again.”
Lucas nodded. He remembered that day like it was yesterday but he didn’t understand what it had to do with Fallon standing out in the rain. “Come in Fallon, you’re drenched. We can talk about this inside.”
“No, wait, listen to me,” she yelled throwing her arms in the air. “You lost the keys!”
Lucas rolled his eyes as he shook his head. Even though he wasn’t in the mood to laugh, he did. That day had been insane and perfect all in one. He looked up at her and nodded, “We were locked out the house, and the car was locked.”
She did a little skip as she smiled widely at him, “Yes! So we laid on the beach as it rained, and we made loved as the rain pounded against us.”
Lucas looked down at the ground, nodding his head. “It was the day I told you I loved you.”
When he looked up, Fallon was nodding her head, wiping the rain from her face, or maybe it was her tears. He looked down at the ground, kicking the floor and mentally kicking himself. They were so happy, so in love back then, and he threw it all away. Then he got another chance and instead of doing what was right by her, he did what he thought was right for Audrey. He knew how Fallon was. He knew she could be difficult and she hated secrets but still, didn’t she trust him enough to know that he would never intentionally hurt her? He loved her, he loved Aiden, and he wanted them together as a family. What else did he have to do to prove that he wasn’t going to hurt her?!