Lies

"Morning… or afternoon I should probably say." AJ said, walking into their bedroom with Matteo in her arms, looking over at Punk who was awake in bed.

"Oh, I hate nights." Punk groaned as he stretched and yawned tiredly. He hated waking up in the middle of the day and setting out to work late at night. It was a breeze when he was younger, but having a routine with his family now made it a little more difficult.

"Dean hasn't long left." AJ told him as Punk sat up against the headboard, reaching out his arms like a toddler in need to be held, only he was reaching out to hold his son, "He's just fell asleep downstairs. I was coming to put him down in his crib." AJ said, passing Matteo over to Punk.

"Not before I get a cuddle." Punk insisted, holding Matteo against his chest as the baby boy stayed fast asleep.

"Yeah Dean was here. He had some lunch with me. It was nice to see him." AJ nodded with a smile.

"He just here to visit?" Punk asked curiously.

"No, he wanted to talk to you about something to do with your mom. Nothing concerning." She said immediately in case he got a fright, "Just something to do with a letter she got." AJ shrugged, "He forgot you were on nights for a few days."

I'll catch up with him later. Maybe call him on my break." He said as AJ nodded.

"Shauna came to visit me last night." She told him, budging his legs over and sitting down on the edge of the bed in front of him.

"What for?" Punk asked curiously.

"Just to see how I was." AJ shrugged, "It was sweet of her. I know she secretly likes me but I didn't think she would care to check in on me." She said.

"Does she still hate me for trying to get your medical records?" Punk asked.

"No." AJ scoffed, "She was talking to me about my mom and dad, though. You know she was an intern when my dad still worked at the hospital. She didn't know him or anything but she was there." She nodded, "Pretty cool."

"Maybe that's why she looks out for you." Punk said.

"No, she just likes me. I'm hard not to like." She teased as Punk chuckled.

"Well I agree. I find it very hard not to like you." He smirked as she chuckled.

"Before she left she also said they're opening up a day care at the hospital." AJ nodded, "I mean… how convenient would that be? And I'd feel much better being in the same building as him." She said, "All the nurses and doctors with babies are jumping for joy." She said.

"I bet." Punk nodded, "We can check it out and see what it's like." He said as she nodded.

"I've already packed your lunch slash dinner. It's in the fridge." She told him as he smiled.

"Such a mom." He nodded.

"I know." AJ chuckled.

"How you feeling? Did you sleep ok last night?" He asked her.

"On and off." AJ nodded, "You should make sure and check in with Dean later. Looked like whatever he wanted to talk to you about was important." She said as Punk nodded.

"I will." Punk promised.

"If I haven't told you before, I hate when you're on nights." She said, leaning down and kissing him as he kissed back.

"I hate it too." He grumbled against her lips as she chuckled.

Later that night after Punk had spent the afternoon and early evening with his family, it was time for him to head back out for work. AJ fed, bathed and put Matteo down to sleep at his usual time, making her way downstairs with the monitor to eventually make herself something to eat.

She began cooking in the kitchen when there was a knock at the door. She abandoned the food she'd began to prepare, washing and drying her hands before heading out of the kitchen and answering the door.

She immediately wanted to shut the door back over as quickly as she could as she saw her mother standing there. She immediately felt vulnerable without her husband in the house and she hated that. She hated that her own mother made her fearful.

"What?" AJ shook her head, "I… I think I made my feelings perfectly clear."

"April, please. I just want to talk to you." Jeanette shook her head, "Just a chat. I'm not… I'm not here to see Matteo or get at you for not letting me see him. I just want to speak to my daughter." She nodded sincerely as AJ looked across at her.

She just hadn't found the strength within herself to see past her mother's manipulation, and so she let her into the house, even more reluctant to do so with her husband not being around.

"You can… You can say what you have to say and then go." AJ said, standing in the hallway with her, "I need to eat." She shook her head.

"Let's go sit down. I'm not… standing here in the middle of the hall. Show me your kitchen." Jeanette encouraged as AJ looked across at her.

She turned around and headed through to the kitchen as Jeanette followed, unbuttoning her coat and sitting it over by the chair.

"I really don't want to argue with you." AJ said as Jeanette looked over at her, "I'm tired of it and I don't care." She shook her head, even though that was untrue. The whole problem with all of this was that she did care. She wished so desperately that she didn't.

"Come sit down with your mother. Let's have a conversation. The way we used to." Jeanette nodded, sitting down at the table as AJ looked over.

She walked over to the table with folded arms, sitting down across from her mother and looking at her, "I know you've been talking to Jason." She said, not being able to bite her tongue as Jeanette looked at her. She could see her mother was taken back at first, as if surprised she was aware of her secret meetings, but then, just as her mother was so wonderful at doing, she played it off.

"I heard he was back in town and I just wanted to see how he was." Jeanette nodded, "I was very fond of him, as you'll remember." She said, "Almost my son-in-law."

"Well he's not." AJ nodded, "And I find it strange for you to both still be in contact."

"Oh we haven't. He's just back in town and I wanted to see how he's doing." Jeanette shook her head, "There's no wrong in that. In fact… he spent a lot of time talking about you."

"Oh, really?" AJ shook her head, "Saying what exactly?"

"Well he misses you. And he knows you're married and have a baby… it's obviously hurting him. I think you need to be a little more sensitive to his situation."

"I wish him the best with his life." AJ nodded, "But I will not feel guilty about moving on and making decisions for myself. The only people who wanted that marriage was him and you." She shook her head, "And you know that. But you were ok to watch me marry him anyway."

"He was good for you. And he loved you." Jeanette nodded.

"I love Phil." AJ nodded with a smug smile as Jeanette swallowed and forced a smile.

"How is the baby?" Jeanette smiled, "I bet he's growing fast." She nodded.

"He is." AJ nodded, "He's doing great. Happy and healthy." She said as Jeanette smiled.

"My baby girl, all grown up." She said with awe, "Jason was saying to me how great you look. Said he ran into you at the hospital. Couldn't believe you'd just had a baby. And he's right, you look amazing. I didn't look like this when I just had you." She laughed a little, "But you were a difficult baby."

"Of course I was." AJ nodded, "I would have thought by now that Jason would have moved on. It's been a long time."

"Well you can't help who you fall in love with. Stay in love with." Jeanette said.

"Why are you here? You know I don't want you here." AJ shook her head tiredly.

"Why? Because that's what he's telling you?" Jeanette asked, "Does he tell you to treat me this way?"

"I'm assuming the he you're referring to is my husband? Phil." AJ said angrily, "He doesn't speak for me."

"We were close, April. We'd meet for lunch every week. You'd call me and we'd talk, like we always did." Jeanette said, "And then suddenly you meet this man and… I become the devil overnight."

"It's not that, mom. I've just grew up a little more and… realised some things." She mumbled. She couldn't face getting into it. She couldn't face trying to make this woman understand how it had taken her getting to her adult life to realise she had been abused as a child by her, and yet still felt like she had to bow her head to her.

"How did you both afford this place? It's… stunning." Jeanette said, looking around the kitchen, "Perfect house to raise a family."

"It's Phil's moms actually. It's the house him and his brother grew up in." AJ said briefly.

"His mom?" Jeanette nodded slowly, "Which one?" She smiled a little as AJ looked across at her.

"What?" AJ shook her head.

"Well… he is adopted, isn't he?" Jeanette nodded as AJ looked at her.

"How do you… How would you know that?" AJ questioned protectively. Her husband's upbringing and family life was very personal to him and she knew that. Hearing her mother talk about it made her feel violated. Like she was invading her husband's privacy right in front of her eyes.

"It's good to know these things." Jeanette said, "Now I'm assuming you did your research and you found out who is biological mother is." She nodded.

"Excuse me?" AJ shook her head, "His… His mother is sick. And she's in a nursing home. That's what I know." She said, "I want you to leave."

"His other mother is sick too." Jeanette nodded, "If it was me, and I'd had a baby with this man, I'd like to know what kind of genetics I'd be looking for."

"What the hell are you doing?" AJ shook his head.

"His mother is in prison. She's a diagnosed schizophrenic. She's a murderer." Jeanette said, "Look her up. She made headlines at the time. Woman kills her own husband in cold blood." She nodded as AJ looked across at her with a shaking head, "And that's what you've married into. That's what you've chosen to procreate with." She nodded, "Her name is Nickie. Look into it."

"Why are you doing this?" AJ shook her head, not knowing what to say or what to believe.

"Because I think you deserve the truth." Jeanette nodded, standing up from the table as AJ watched her angrily, furiously.

"The truth?" AJ shook her head, "What would you know about that?"

"I know that I was right about that man. Phil. Your husband. His mother is a murderer in prison for life. It's in the articles about how she just snapped one day. I'm surprised she didn't take out her sons too." She scoffed, "What happens if your husband snaps one day?"

"You're reaching." AJ laughed, overwhelmed by this new information, and very confused.

"It's the truth." Jeanette said, buttoning up her coat.

"The truth." AJ nodded, "I know what you did." She said quietly as Jeanette looked across at her, "When I was little. I know what happened."

"There you go… speaking in riddles again like you did when you were a kid." Jeanette shook her head, grabbing her purse, "Making up stories. Telling lies."

"Maybe I should go get the bleach then." AJ looked at her coldly, "Maybe you still have some dressings you stole from the hospital." She said as Jeanette looked across at her.

She didn't say anything else, leaving the kitchen and heading for the door, slamming it behind her as AJ ran her hands through her hair, sitting at the kitchen table in silence, her thoughts deafening her.