Madeline's heart sunk when her eldest son told her that Nate was dead. How could it be true? How could her baby boy be gone? She was suppose to protect him from everything. She was suppose to protect him from his older brother. She didn't remember slapping Michael, maybe she wouldn't remember. She didn't remember him trying to comfort her before falling into his arms. The only thing she remembered was coming to her senses and feeling his protective arms wrapped around her body while they slide down the counter in front of the sink. She could hear Michael muttering apology after apology and she was in too much shock to even realize how angry she was with the boy who had promised to take care of Nate.
"Michael, tell me it's not true," Madeline said for the umpteenth time. She stayed in Michael's embrace, too shell shocked to move. It was oddly comforting to have Michael's arms protectively wrapped around her
"I'm sorry, Ma," he said quietly. Tears appeared in Madeline's eyes again. A sob wracked her petite 5'5 frame. They sat there for a few minutes when Michael decided that the kitchen floor wasn't the best place to be during a time like this. "Lets get you somewhere more comfortable, Mom," he said, just as quietly as before. He stood up and before Maddie could got up, he swooped down, wrapped one arm around her back and placed the other one under her legs and quickly picked her up. He walked his mother, who made no effort to detest what Michael was doing, to her room, placing her down on her bed. She curled up into a little ball on her side, pulling the covers over her entire body. Michael sat down next to her on the edge of her bed.
"Do you need anything?" he asked as he placed a comforting had on her hip. Madeline's eyes clamped closed, tears threatening to spill over. Anger was starting to take over, but she was still in shock, so it hadn't fully hit her. Michael noticed this and every emotion he had felt since watching Nate die washed over him. "I'm sorry, Ma," he said, his voice cracking. Maddie's hand wandered to the calloused hand that was still resting on her hip. She intertwined her fingers with his and softly pulled him towards her. She quickly pushed her anger to the back of her mind as Michael crawled into bed with her, immediately knowing what she wanted. She had only done this a few times before after his father had really gone at them, but he knew exactly what she was doing. Michael apologized again, but Maddie shushed him. She didn't want to hear his apologies. That's when Michael buried his face into Maddie's chest, not wanting to look into the eyes of his very devastated mother, and she wrapped her arms around her son, feeling the soft sobs racking his body. She kissed the top of Michael's head, which she hadn't been able to do since he was about fourteen or fifteen. She breathed in his shampoo before tears welled up in her eyes. They stayed in bed, wrapped in each other's arms, for quite some time, not wanting to do anything. Michael drifted in and out of sleep, his mother watching as he did so. Watching a family member die in your arms was both emotionally and physically draining and being wrapped in your mother's arms put all of that at ease. Eventually Madeline also fell asleep and both her and her son relaxed, falling into a light slumber. When Michael woke up at dinner time, still wrapped in his mother's embrace, he tried to maneuver so he wouldn't wake Maddie up, but because she was a mother, she was a light sleeper.
"Michael," she said softly, blinking her eyes a few times. It took a few seconds before she realized that her baby boy was dead. Michael watched as the realization washed over his mother's face and his heart broke into another million pieces. He turned his head quickly so she wouldn't see his tears.
"Go back to sleep, Ma," Michael said. "I'll make you something to eat." Maddie didn't have the chance to reply before Michael walked out of the room. He couldn't take seeing his mother like this any more. He needed to keep his mind off of everything and that's exactly what he did for the rest of the night