Keep It Together

A/N: Hello all! Okay… umm… lemme see, counting this one, there's… about two chapters left… I think. And this one will be a bit longer than the others I think… Not counting the prologue-y thing where I thank you all and stuff like that. Speaking of which, thanks a bunch for any reviews!! Yer awesome! Oh, and P.S: I don't know exactly how the system works with the whole abuse and taking a child away and adopting them and so forth, so if I'm doing wrong, I'm sorry. I'm writing those parts for simplicity, I don't think how I write it is really how it's done but just go with it… please?

Disclaimer: I don't own it… kay?

Chapter 7: The Almighty Cliff-Hanger

Everyone left for the night after the police had gone. There was nothing more to do until morning came and Mac awoke and his mother came. Goo and her parents went home to bed, though Goo did little sleeping. Frankie, Bloo and the rest of the gang returned to Foster's where they turned on the TV and also did little sleeping. They were all anxious. They knew Terrence had done it, and the police would find that out soon, with or without Goo telling them what Mac and Terrence had actually been saying. The one thing that troubled everyone most, however, was that Mac seemed bent on not getting Terrence in trouble. No one could understand why he wouldn't want Terrence to get caught.

Frankie awoke with a start after she'd drifted off in the middle of an infomercial for some kind of vacuum. She'd had a dream that she had been sitting with Mac on the couch and Terrence had come and taken him away and started hitting him. Frankie hadn't been able to get up and help. She looked down and saw that she wasn't able to get up because her sweatshirt had gotten tangled and somehow entwined with the couch armrest. She untangled herself and looked next to her where Bloo had been sitting to see that he was gone. That was who she had felt get up. She waited for him to return but when it had been ten minutes and he still had not come back, she got up to look for him. "Bloo?" She called softly through the darkness when entered the hallway.

Silence answered her call. "Bloo?" She called a little louder.

And suddenly she heard the odd shuffle that could only be Bloo's steps. They sounded as if they were retreating. Frankie headed in their direction and heard a door shut quietly somewhere nearby. She knew exactly where he was: the third floor storage closet. Whenever Bloo did something bad or was upset about something or another, he would retreat to that closet. Frankie went up the door and knocked softly. "Bloo? Are you in there?" She asked.



"No." Bloo replied.

"Right." Frankie opened the door stepped in, shutting it behind her.

"Go away." Bloo said somewhere in the dark, but it was a half-hearted demand.

"I can't figure it out either, you know." Frankie sat down and pulled the little blue blob into her lap.

"Why wouldn't he want Terrence to get caught?"

"I don't know. Maybe it's because things have been hard lately. His mom lost his job, they had to move. He's already lost his dad. Maybe he's trying to hold together whatever he has left."

"He's still got us."

"Yeah. Yeah, he does."

"D'you think they're gonna take Mac away?" The words were barely audible, as if they were a mere thought, not a voice.

"No. I won't let them."

"Good."

Frankie and Bloo spent the rest of the night in the closet among the mops and buckets, simply taking comfort in one another's company.

--

The next morning Frankie laid things out for breakfast and ate as quickly as possible. She, Bloo, Wilt, Coco and Eduardo all headed into the foyer and for the front door after breakfast. Frankie reached for the handle, thankful Mr. Harriman hadn't seen them when a voice rang out. "Miss Francis, Miss Coco, Master Wilt, Master Eduardo, Master Blooreguard, where are you all going this early in the day and ignoring your duties?" Mr. Harriman had spotted them.

Frankie silently cursed herself for not telling Mr. Harriman and her grandmother about what had happened yesterday. They spent the next 15 minutes explaining what had happened over the past few days and where they were going. "So we're going to find out if they found Terrence and Mac's mother and if Mac is okay." Frankie finished.



Mr. Harriman was silent for a time before he replied. "I expect you to tell me what has happened when you return and I also expect you to return to your regular duties tomorrow. No excuses." He turned and hopped off towards his office.

Frankie headed for the door again and then stopped. "Mr. H? Thanks." She said quietly.

Mr. Harriman stopped for a moment. "You're most welcome." He had said it quietly, but everyone heard him.

--

When Frankie and the gang got to the hospital not much had changed since last night. Mac hadn't woken up yet but he was doing well. The police hadn't come by and neither had anyone else since everyone left last night. The doctors said that once Mac had been awake for a while, everyone could go in to see him, a little at a time. It was soon after that that Goo's parents dropped her off, after checking that her friends were there and if Mac had woken up yet. Goo seemed as tired as the rest of them. They all sat, subdued, watching the news on the TV that hung on the wall and making trips to the vending machine. Around noon the doctors came out. "Your friend is awake and you can go see him now, if you like."

They were all about to enter the room when they heard voices from within. "You're possitive that's what happened, son?" It was a police officer speaking, they saw.

"Yes! I was there, wasn't I?"

"We know you were beaten, Mac. The evidence is all over you. If you're afraid of someone, we can protect you. We just need a name."

"It wasn't my mom… I know that's what you're thinking. It wasn't her."

"Was it your brother?"

"…Do I have to say it?"

"Not now, but we'll need a statement from you eventually."

"Fine." The 8-year-old's words seemed to signal the end of the interrogation and the police officer got up and walked out of the room, smiling grimly at Frankie and the others as he walked by,

Quietly, they all crept quietly into Mac's room and took seats on various surfaces. Bloo and Goo sat on the edge of the bed, Frankie and Wilt in chairs, Coco took the window seat while Ed sat on the floor. "Hey, buddy, how ya doing?" Bloo asked almost timidly.



"I'm okay. I've been better. Did they tell you what was wrong?" Mac said rather sleepily.

"No. They said you or a family member had to tell us." Frankie said quietly.

"I have a mild concussion, a broken leg and some bruised ribs. They said that'll all be fine but I'll be sore for a while. I also have sprained wrist and of course, the ankle. Luckily, that was the leg I broke so I won't have two bad legs…"

"You call that lucky?" Bloo asked.

Mac laughed a little. "Kinda… in weird way. Why are you so quiet? I'm not gonna die or anything!"

"No! Of course… of course you're not… not going to…" Frankie tried to form a sentence but couldn't stop giggling.

Everyone stared at her but then they began to giggle too. And they couldn't stop. Wilt kept trying to apologize between chuckles but couldn't form more than a word. It may have been that all the tension finally broke or that they were all so relieved their friend was okay, or maybe it was just the exhaustion. Whatever the reason, they kept on laughing until they couldn't breathe and then sat in contented silence. "So, they said they couldn't find my mom. I told where she works, but she should definitely be home by now. She never works past seven." Mac said, attempting to hide the tone of worry in his voice.

"I'm sure she's fine… Mac?"

"Yeah, Frankie?"

"Where does your mom work?" Frankie asked the question quietly.

"Um… This bar in the bad part of town called Bobby Aces…" Mac said it quietly, his face going a little red.

"Really? Weird. I used to work there, y'know." Frankie said, a little red herself.

"Really? Huh." Mac seemed a little less embarrassed.

"Yeah, that was before Grandma offered me a job."

They were all fairly quiet for a while. They spoke every once in a while, voicing an opinion or question that was generally answered with tired grunts. Mostly, they drifted in and out of contentiousness. It grew dark and Mac seemed grow more worried when he was awake. They rotated spots every now and then and by 8:00 that evening, Frankie was on the bed, Wilt and 

Coco were on the floor, Goo was in the window seat and Ed took one chair while Bloo had the other. "Mac, don't worry. I'm sure she's absolutely fine." Frankie said, taking one of Mac's hands.

"Yeah… I guess."

Just then, as if cued, a police officer walked in. "I'm afraid I have some bad news. We've found your mother and brother."

A/N: dun Dun DUN! What's happened?? One more chapter left, find out!! Next chapter might be looong… or maybe just regular long. We'll see.