CHAPTER 7

Looking intently at the beautiful, slender, and tall girl, Gomez caught a glimpse of a beautiful brunette girl coming to his direction. The girl looked confident, he noted. Then he went back to his post, and continued staring at the beautiful, tall, and slender girl which was Morticia Frump, which will be Morticia Addams in the future.

Gomez was lost to Morticia. According to him, all he can see was Morticia. Suddenly, someone spoke to him.

"Hello there, handsome," the voice of a girl said.

"Huh?" he replied distracted. "Hello."

"I am Charlotte Parr," said the girl with a tone of flirt in her voice. Then she started to lean closer to Gomez. But then, he moved away from the girl because someone in front of him blocked his view from Morticia. Charlotte almost stumbled forward but luckily (or was it unfortunately?), she regained her balance. Gomez did not notice that because he was too busy looking and admiring Morticia.

Charlotte was still desperate to get Gomez's attention so she followed him.

"What is your name?" she asked leaning closer once again to Gomez.

"Huh?" he repeated. "I am Gomez Addams." Then he saw the first spot now clear from people and he went back to that spot because the view there was more perfect.

Charlotte again almost stumbled forward but she stopped herself. As usual, Gomez did not notice it. She followed Gomez again.

Leaning closer again to Gomez, she hissed to his ear, "So, are you busy?"

"Yes I am," he replied still distracted. He was too distracted to notice that Charlotte was leaning closer to him.

"What are you looking at, Gomez?" asked Charlotte irritated. "I am here beside you!"

"I am looking at that girl," he replied absently. "Look! There!"

"Which girl?" she asked peering into the crowd. "That girl in tight black dress? She's ugly!" she lied, even though she knew that the girl was beautiful.

Her comment made Gomez come back to the reality. "WHAT?" he cried. Then he realized that he does not know the girl beside him. "Who are you anyway?" he asked angrily. Then he began to walk away but he stopped just to say, "For your information, that girl is really lovely. And stay away from me." Then Gomez went to the lady beside the girl he was admiring.

After Gomez walked away, Charlotte collapsed in shock. When she got up, she looked very flushed.

"Damn!" she said to herself. "This is the first time that a man ignored my flirt." She was really angry that she went onto a bench to cool off.

Minutes later, Charlotte noticed that a crowd of people were gathering in front of her. Unfortunately for her, their backs were facing her. Curious herself, she stood up to see what was happening. But the crowd was too thick that she cannot see what was happening. She pushed her way through the crowd. In front, she saw Gomez and the tall girl kissing each other and everybody was watching them and they do not care at all!

Charlotte was really angry. To add up in her anger, she heard a woman say "Morticia and Gomez are really meant for each other." She walked out the funeral feeling angrier than ever, not knowing the lady was Morticia's mother.

Five days later, Charlotte received an invitation to Gomez- Morticia wedding. The invitation made her blaze up in anger. She started to tear the invitation apart but then she had an idea – sabotage.

Charlotte went to the wedding and tried to sabotage it. Unluckily, she failed. Gomez and Morticia were really relieved when they saw Charlotte being driven off by an ambulance. They never thought of Charlotte being released from the hospital.

Picking up the picture of Morticia, Gomez said, "Wait Cara Mia, I am going to save you." Then he went down the library into his office. He rummaged inside his desk drawer for the divorce papers. After few minutes, he found it.

"I am not a fool," he said. Then he tore the papers apart. As he tore the last pieces, Joel saw him. At that sight, Joel ran into Wednesday's room.

"I knew it!" cried Joel as he entered Wednesday's room.

"You knew what?" Wednesday asked, looking up from her book she was reading, entitled "How to Take Revenge from a Criminal".

"I knew that Mr. Addams will not divorce Mrs. Addams. I just saw him ripping the divorce paper," Joel replied.

Wednesday does not know what to say so she parted her lips into an almost smile, but not quite.

Morticia feeling lonelier than ever, just stared at the black and blank surrounding her. Then she heard Charlotte's voice above.

"I do not want your money, Gomez" she heard Charlotte say. "I want you!"

"Gomez," Morticia said. "Why is he calling Charlotte?"

"No, I will not give this phone to Morticia. Or maybe I will, if you tell Morticia that you love me, Charlotte Parr," she said.

"Gomez, no!" whispered Morticia, though she knew that he cannot hear her.

Then Charlotte appeared in front of Morticia, telephone on her hand.

"Go on Gomez," Charlotte said and she put the receiver on Morticia's ears.

"I… love…" he began but Morticia's eyes now were already twinkling with tears.

"Morticia," he continued. "I love Morticia Frump Addams," he repeated.

"I love you, too, Gomez," she replied softly.

"Tish?" he asked.

"Yes it is –" she started but Charlotte pulled the phone back.

"What the hell did you say?" she asked angrily. Smoke was practically coming out her ears. She was even reddening in fury.

"I said 'I love Morticia Frump Addams'. Now give the telephone back to my wife!" he cried very loud that Morticia even heard it.

"No!" shouted Charlotte as she slammed down the telephone. "You might win now, Morticia. But next time you won't." Then she went back upstairs.

After hearing but not seeing Gomez, Morticia felt both a little happy and a little lonely.

Happy, because she heard her beloved husband. Also because he said that he loves her. But also lonely because she only heard him. Hearing him made her miss her beloved family more than ever.

Leaning her head back to the wall, Morticia imagined everything that happened before she was held as a hostage. From the time she woke up until the time when she and her husband went out.

Then she remembered the thought that came to her while putting on her robe.

"What if I don't have Gomez?" Morticia recalled softly. "Is it happening now?" Then she let out a huge sigh. "I don't want to lose you Gomez. Now or forever."

"Hello? Hello?" Gomez said. "Charlotte, hello?" then he slammed the telephone down.

Wednesday, who heard what Gomez had done, came to him. "Father, what is wrong?"

"I just spoke to Morticia," he said.

"Well? How is she?" asked Wednesday beginning to worry.

"I do not have the chance to ask her," he replied.

"What do you mean, Father?" she asked clasping her hands tight.

"First I called Charlotte. I called her to tell that maybe I can give her money and she will release Morticia. But she said she does not care about the money, she wants me. Then I said that I wanted to speak with Morticia. She said that I can speak to Morticia if I will say to Morticia that I love Charlotte," he narrated.

"And you did tell Mother that?" she asked incredulously.

"No! Of course not! I said that I love your mother. Tish probably heard that so she said that she love me, too. Then Charlotte cut the line," he finished.

"Oh no! What might Charlotte do to Mother?" she worried.

"Does not worry, Wednesday, Charlotte will not do anything to Morticia," he assured Wednesday.

"Are you sure?" she asked. She raised an eyebrow.

"No," he admitted.

"Then what makes you sure that or think that Charlotte will not hurt Mother?" she asked puzzled.

"Charlotte wants me, Wednesday. She gave me a deadline. If until the day after tomorrow I still had not divorced your mother, she will hurt Morticia for sure. Or even worse, she might… might…" his voice began to fade.

"Might k – kill Mother?" she asked teary- eyed. Then he put an arm around his daughter, but she shrugged it off.

"She might," he replied. "So we better hurry up and make a plan."

Wednesday nodded and stood up and started to walk out the living room but Gomez stopped her.

"Wednesday?" he called.

"Father, why?" she asked.

"Let Joel sleep again here tonight,"

"I will tell him," then she left the library.

Gomez let the moment pass. Then finally, he stood up and went to his office. He picked up a piece of paper and a pen. Instead of writing a plan to save Morticia, he wrote "Morticia", "Morticia Addams", and "Tish" all over the paper. Then at the center, he wrote "I, Gomez Addams love Morticia Addams forever". After he filled the piece of paper with his writings, Gomez picked up another sheet of paper and started writing Morticia's name all over it. After he filled a paper up, Gomez will get another paper and start all over.

He was halfway to his tenth sheet when Wednesday, Pugsley, and Pubert entered his office.

"What are you doing, Father?" asked Pugsley.

"Nothing," replied Gomez as he gathered the papers. But Pubert managed to snatch one piece of paper.

"Morticia, Morticia, Tish, Morticia, Tish, Tish, Morticia Frump, Morticia Addams, Tish, Tish, Morticia Frump, Morticia, Morticia Addams, Tish, Tish, Morticia," Pubert recited but he ran out of breath. "These are all Mother's name!" he cried after he regained his breath.

"What does that mean, Father?" asked Wednesday and Pugsley puzzled.

"Nothing," repeated Gomez. "I was just thinking of a plan to save your mother but I started to doodle your Mother's name. Pubert?"

"Yes, Father?' Pubert answered innocently from below him.

"Do not nibble my chair. Use the chair by the door,"

"All right," he replied as he moved reluctantly from his father's chair to the chair by the doorway.

"Well, Father, you better stop writing Mother's name in that paper. It is already dinner time," Wednesday said.

"Come on Pubert," called Pugsley. "And stop nibbling that chair."

The dinner went blur to Gomez. Everyone except him talked but not a single thing registered on his mine. He ate the food on his plate but he did not taste a single thing. He was distracted at his thoughts for Morticia.

After he finished eating, he excused himself and went back to his office.

He was rummaging inside his drawer when he saw a yellow piece of paper folded in the farthest corner of the drawer. He reached out to get it when he felt an electric friction running through his palm.

"Tish," he said, remembering his first hand contact with her.

"I love you, Gomez. Love, Morticia." The yellow paper read. Gomez stood up and went to the vault where he kept Morticia's note.

Before he came out the vault, he sat on his chair and tried to think of a way to save his wife. But then, he fell asleep.

"Joel?" asked Wednesday. "Father said that you sleep again here tonight."

"Okay," replied Joel. "Wednesday?"

"Yes?"

"Do you have any plans yet?"

"Plan to rescue Mother?"

"Uh huh,"

"No, I still don't have a plan." She paused. "Do you?"

"Not yet," Joel replied.

Wednesday nodded. "Good night, Joel. I have to shackle Pubert to sleep."

"Good night, Wednesday," Joel replied as he went to the guest room.

She watched him when he went up the stairs.

"Pubert," she called.

"Yes, Wednesday?" replied Pubert sadly.

"It is time for bed. Why are you lonely?" she asked as they went upstairs to his room.

"I just miss Mother. Nobody else call me 'Pup' but Mother," he replied starting to cry.

"I also miss Mother, Pubert. That is why we are thinking of a plan to bring her back to us," she said.

"You are?" he asked as they start to enter his bedroom.

"Of course. It is for our mother. For our father's wife," she replied as she put him to bed.

"Can I plan, too?" he asked suddenly which surprised his older sister.

"Of course you can, if you really want to. But always put this on your mind, this is dangerous," she said.

"I will do anything for Mother,"

"Go to sleep, Pup." Then she left his room. "Mama?" she called while going down the stairs.

"Wednesday," replied Granny. "I am in the kitchen."

"Have you seen Father?" she asked when she found Granny.

"No," she replied. "But I think he is either in his office or their room." Then Wednesday left Granny to look for her father.

"Father?" she called as she knocked her parents' bedroom door. When she heard nothing, she went inside. She searched inside but found no one.

Closing the door, she walked down the stairs into Gomez's office. However, she still not seen any trace of her father. She began to worry. She went outside to see if the car is still there – and still is. She returned to her father's office and saw that the secret door was turned.

So he is in the vault all this time, she thought. Then she went upstairs.