The Morning After

- Maggie -

Maggie rolled over and let out a long moan. After her mother had bolted from the game, she watched Mark as he seemed to lose all interest in the game. His eyes followed Scarlett as she made her way down the stands and then out of the gym. Her mouth fell open in surprise, as he passed the ball off to her brother, and sprinted down the hallway after her mother. The crowd was stunned as they watched him make his way off the court. Her eyes flicked back to Alex, as he held the ball in his hands and stared with an open mouth after his friend. His eyes snapped to the coach, and stripped off his jacket and ran into the court.

The victory party afterwards had been epic. Alex had lead the team to victory, filling in almost seamlessly in Mark's absence. The party had lasted well into the morning, and had finally been broken up by the cops. Overnight, her brother had gone from her ex's personal punching bag, to one of the most popular kids in school. She couldn't believe the difference one day made.

Her head was blur, as she tried to block the sun from her face. Bits of the night played over and over in her mind. She remembered the blaring music and how hot everything seemed. When she walked in with Alex next to her, the room shook with the force of noise. Alex was grinning ear to ear as various people swarmed around him. She took a step back and watched as he stood up straight and took in the party around him. Next year would be different for the both of them. She would be headed off to college, leaving Alex alone. So maybe she wasn't the best older sister she could have been. She had let her boyfriend beat on him and would barley talk to him at school. But seeing him now, the center of the circle, she knew he'd be ok.

The sudden bang from the other side of house forced her to open her eyes. The sound was way to loud after last night. Deciding to get up for no other reason other than to go to the bathroom and get some of the sweet smelling coffee, she flung her door open and left her room.

Still trying to wake up, Maggie stumbled her way towards the kitchen. She walked towards the sounds in the kitchen not paying attention to the things around her. She turned the corner, still wiping sleep from her eyes. As they took focus, she was stunned at the sight in front of her.

Her mother was seated on the counter next the stove, with a man's arms wrapped around her. Her head was tilted back as he kissed along her jaw. His hands were wound in her hair and her mother's arms were wrapped around his neck.

Maggie quickly stepped out of the kitchen and her back slammed soundlessly against the wall. Her legs gave out and she slid down to her knees. Her hands flew to her mouth in shock and she scrambled to make her legs work. Finally, getting a footing the hardwood, she bolted back down the hallway and slipped into her brother's room. She jumped onto his bed and started hitting him.

"Alex!" she hissed, trying to wake him up. "ALEX! You're not going to believe this!!"

Alex pushed her off the bed with one arm, and rolled over mumbling to her to get out. He pulled the covers over his head and she could hear him telling her to just let him sleep. She jumped back into the bed and shook him.

"Get out of bed right NOW!" she hissed as she punched him. Hopping back off his bed, she ran back to the door, opening it a crack and peering out. She could hear Alex sitting up and getting out of bed.

"What the hell Mags! I just got to bed like two hours ago!"

"Shut up! They'll hear you!" She grabbed his hand and pulled him out into the hallway. She creped her way down the hallway, dragging Alex behind her. She could hear him mumbling about the fact that it was way too early for an online shopping consult. Stopping to shush him, they moved closer to the kitchen. Quickly looking into the kitchen, she motioned to Alex to take a look. He shot her a glare before peering around the wall. Taking a step backwards, his eyes locked with hers and his mouth dropped open. The two of them bolted back to his room and shut the door.

Both were quiet as they tried to make sense of what they had just seen. Maggie spoke first. She stopped in the middle of the room and watched as he slowly lowered himself back onto the bed.

"Who the HELL was that?!" She flung he arms into the air and started pacing around the room. Her hands threaded through her hair as she moved around the room in circles. "I mean, I'm not sticking up for Dad in anyway here, but didn't SHE just postponed the divorce? Why would she postpone it just to run around with dork that she has, like ONE date with?! Did you even see that guy? HUGE loser! I mean, come on, who goes dancing the first date? And how super lame must he be if he agrees to a second date at your first game hmm? No offence to you though. I mean, hello dude, you're not our DAD!"

"Um Mags, that was DAD."

The characters are not mine. I'm just borrowing them!