So here we are folks, my first ever In Plain Sight Fan Fiction. This is a bit of a throwback to Mary's childhood inspired by the quote below from the amazing story Albuquerque; We Have a Problem by sfchemist.
Please Read and Review with any and all thoughts about the story.
"He vowed there and then that Mary would never have to pick him off the floor again. She'd done that enough with her mom, he suspected, and he wouldn't make her go through that with him, no matter how bad things with his dad got this weekend."
-Albuquerque, We Have a Problem
Chapter Sixety-Nine
(Bed and Breakfast)
The sounds of drunken laughter kept sixteen year old Mary Shannon lying awake with every fiber of her being wishing for her mother to shut the hell up so she could sleep. Mary rolled over and looked blearily at the shining red numbers trying to figure out what time it was. 1:30 am.
Fan-freakin'-tastic. She thought to herself and sighed rolling over and closing her eyes as if that would help drown out the singing that was now coming from the kitchen.
Mary lay there, on her back, with a pillow over her face waiting for the inevitable. She knew that at around 3:30 or so her mother would finally pass out somewhere in the house and Mary had taken it upon her to make sure where ever that was her mother would get back to her bed.
She didn't know why she did it, in fact Mary hated every second she had to be in the house that was longer then necessary. Some part of her could never abandon her mother and younger sister like their father had, years ago.
She was shaken out of her thoughts my the sounds of footsteps stomping angrily from the direction of Brandi's room. Shit. Mary thought and rolled out of bed running out her door to try and stop her younger sister from interrupting their mother's drunken party.
Unfortunately she was too late. Just as she reached the doorway to the kitchen Brandi started "Jesus Mom! It's 1:30 in the morning can't you just go to bed already!"
Her mother stopped the song she had been singing to the imaginary audience and tried to focus in on her youngest daughter.
Mary grabbed her sisters arm "Come one Squish." She said and started to lead her sister into her own bedroom when her mother spoke.
Her words took a while to come out and when they did they were slurred and hard to distinguish from one another "Why-should-I" she pointed a shaking finger at herself "go-to-bed? All-that-happens-is nightmares."
Brandi stopped walking and turned to look at her mother and opened her mouth to speak but Mary stopped her "Brandi stop. She's not sensible right now, arguing with her is pointless."
"She's never sensible Mary! We leave for school and she is on the couch or lying on the floor passed out. Then we come home and there she is with another bottle of wine and a full glass."
Mary sighed and tired to quell the anger that was creeping up her throat and ready to explode out of her mouth but was failing. She was about to speak when their mother continued with her drunken tirade "You're-father-was-right-to-leave-us." She hiccupped "You-two-only-cause-problems." She stabbed a finger at Brandi "Fights-Failing-"
"Mom stop." Mary said seeing the tears welling up in Brandi's eyes
"You!" she said shifting the accusatory finger to Mary "You-don't-care-about-us! You-can't-wait-to-get-out-of-here."
Mary ignored this comment and turned away from her mother and led Brandi into her room and closed the door. Brandi stood, frozen where Mary had let go of her arm with tears rolling silently down her face.
Mary wrapped her arms around her sister and hugged her close. Brandi was initially shocked by this display of affection coming from her sister but she quickly recovered and wrapped her arms around her sister and cried softly into her shirt.
They stood like that for a few minutes, Mary letting her sister cry out her frustrations and Brandi amidst the crying relieved to know that he sister did actually car. She could never tell with Mary mostly because she was so little at home. It seemed like every chance she had to not be at home, she took it and thus left Brandi alone a lot of the time.
This led Brandi to do things that often got her into lots of trouble most of which involved fighting and failing multiple classes. Mary, somehow, was always there to pick her up from the office, attend to her wounds and help her with homework. She ahd often wondered how her sister managed with no one there to pick up her pieces and as Brandi got older she realized that her sister had a less effective method of dealing with this.
Brandi called it the "Rug" method. This meant that Mary didn't deal with it, ever, she just shoved all her emotions under the rug and put on the front that none of this affected her. However Brandi had heard her sisters tears after dragging their mother from the floor to the couch at 3:00 am and she knew that all this did affect her.
"Alright Squish." Mary said untangling her arms from around her younger sister "Let's get to sleep."
Brandi climbed into bed next to her sister and wrapped herself up in the covers "Thanks." She whispered, so low Mary almost missed it
"No problem." Mary replied and closed her eyes trying to drown out the moaning and tears that came from the kitchen.
****
Brandi was barely conscious when she felt the weight on the other side of the bed leave and the door open, letting in a crack of light. She sat up slightly and looked at the clock, 3:35 am, before laying back down.
The house was silent, no more singing, no mare sobs, just silence. She heard the quiet groan of Mary lifting their mother off of where ever she was passed out and shift her to the couch. A few minuets later Mary walked back in and got back into bed.
Brandi lay there and just before she fell back asleep she could hear the sounds of Mary's calm breathing indicate that she had, finally, fallen asleep.
There you go everyone. Hope you enjoyed it, I know it's probably not the best but it was what I was inspired to write. I tried to show a little of Mary's soft side without going completely AU on you all.
I welcome any and all criticism and praise concerning any aspect of the story. I know there are probably grammar mistakes and spelling issues but I try my best, most of the time.
Review!
AllOverTheWorld
