III
The police were nearly done at the lake house by the time Mort and Amy drove up. Amy turned as she saw a covered body being taken away. "When will this all just be over?" she grumbled.
"Not soon enough," Mort whispered, stepping out of the car. It was all a rush of emotions and a blur to the both of them as the police told the former couple that the area was secure and that John Shooter was nowhere in site. The gave Amy their condolences.
A fairly young officer approached Mort. "I'm sorry to bother you at such a time, but I'm a big fan..."
"Oh of all the times," Amy grumbled.
"I'm sorry," Mort managed as he stepped aside. "If it were any other time, I'd be happy to talk with you, but now is just not a good time." Amy had always hated autograph seekers.
"Of course, so sorry...."
Mort forced a small smile, nodding his thanks as he led Amy into the house. She sat on the couch and hugged a pillow to herself as she watched Mort carefully lock the door and all the windows. He might have looked paranoid if she didn't know any better. He carefully checked and rechecked everything, stopped, listened, and then rechecked again.
"You want something to drink?" he asked after a long while of silence. "I've been needing to go to the store, but I've got... Hmm..." He mumbled a bit to himself as he looked through the fridge. He grinned slightly when he reappeared over the top of the fridge door with a Mountain Dew in hand. "'bout all I've got," he said as he held it out.
Amy suppressed a laugh, but a smile broke through. "You still drinking those?"
"What? Something wrong with them?"
She finally laughed. "No. Better than Jack Daniels, I'll tell you that."
Mort tensed at this and frowned slightly. "Do you want it or not, Amy?"
She stood slowly and took the soda. "I'm sorry, Mort..."
He shrugged, pretending not to care. "I'm going to go write for a while, see if I can get over this writer's block."
Amy watched him go halfway up the stairs before calling after him and following him. "You're still sick. Shouldn't you be resting?"
Mort gave her a small smile. "I'm fine, Amy."
"You're pale."
"I'm fine."
"Dammit! No you're not, Mort! Just come here for a second, would you?" She finally caught up with him at the top of the stairs and put a hand to his cheek. He felt warmer than he had before. He did not make a move to pull away as her fingers wandered to his hair. "Stubborn, stubborn man," she muttered as she ran her fingers through his mussed hair. "That's always what drove me mad about you, you know that? You were so stubborn in whatever you were at at the moment. Your writings, your thoughts, me at the beginning...."
"We're not doing this," Mort said suddenly as he pulled away. "I can't handle this now, Amy."
Amy looked down. "It's late, Mort, maybe we should both get some sleep?"
The blond man looked at his watch – replaced since the incident with the dead bodies – and nodded. "Maybe. I'll take the couch, you can have the bed."
"I don't want to run you out of your bed, Mort."
"I sleep on the couch most of the time anyway."
Amy seemed to think about this for a moment. "I don't want to be alone," she mumbled at length.
Mort sighed. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. He pushed back his hair from his face. "Listen, Amy, I can't handle this, okay? I don't know what it is.... Shock or whatever over Ted, and I'm sorry, really I am, but you can't just use me for whatever it is you were going to use me for." He paused when tears welled up in her eyes. "Amy....."
"I'm sorry, Mort, I know what you must be thinking..."
"No, you really have no idea, Amy."
She looked up at him, questioning.
"I'm thinking right now: 'Didn't I just convince myself I was over her so she'd be happy?'"
"I'm sorry, Mort...." She whispered, tears spilling now.
"But I'm not over you, Amy, that's the problem. I want to help you, but I can't... I can't just be your shoulder to lean on and sleep right there next to you because your scared that he'll come through the window. I just can't DO that, do you understand?"
"What if things went back to normal, Mort?"
"That can't happen, Amy," he whispered. "Unless you didn't notice, you left me to go screw some guy and didn't tell me until I walked in on you. Now you're coming back asking to go back to normal, and if he weren't dead I'd have jumped on the offer, but come on, Amy! He died! You're in shock, it'll wear off eventually and then I'll become nothing to you again."
"You were never nothing, Mort."
"I was always nothing."
Amy couldn't say anything else. She nodded slowly and wiped her tears away. "I'll be in the bedroom if you need me. Sleep well," she managed as she disappeared.
Mort stumbled over to his computer desk and sat down. "Stupid, stupid, stupid," he murmured as he pulled up the file of his new book.
---------------
Mort Rainey didn't know he was asleep until he heard a scream come from the bedroom. He opened his eyes slowly, regaining his bearings about him. That was a woman's scream, wasn't it? That couldn't be, because no women lived in this house. Wait... Amy is here! Amy is in trouble!
He was up in a flash, running to the room and flung the door open. She was sitting up in bed, seat pouring down off of her, fear in her eyes. There was a note nailed into the bedpost over where Amy was sitting. "He came in," she managed. "Covered my mouth and I couldn't do anything... Did he hurt you?"
"How the hell did I sleep through that?" he mumbled.
"He went out the window..."
Mort moved toward her carefully and wrapped his arms around her as she buried her face in his shirt. He let her cry as he pulled her closer, resting his own face in her blond hair. "I'm sorry about what I said earlier," he mumbled. "I didn't mean to make you cry..."
"I know," she sniffed. "I'm sorry, Mort... I don't know what I'm thinking or feeling right now. I loved you when we were married, I really did. And then I loved Ted... And now I think I still love you – always did in some way or another – but I don't know."
Mort pulled away, looking her in the eyes. "We could take it slow," he said, or perhaps he was asking, he really wasn't sure.
She nodded. "Yeah, that sounds good."
He gave her a quick, small smile before reaching for the note. Tomorrow at 3 meet me where we first met. Things will get settled. Leave the police out of it. Bring your missus.
"Are we going to go?" Amy whispered.
"I don't think we've got much of a choice."
------------------
Dawnie-7: I'm sorry, but it will have Amy/Mort stuff, obviously after this chapter. I'm a big fan of happy endings and endless fluff. ::grins:: hope that's not going to run you off! Amy was a real witch to poor Mort, but I'm hoping to fix all that. Hopefully! Thanks for reviewing :)
LaVieSansAmour: As long as your not going to come to my house with a manuscript and say "you stole my story" we'll be fine. Lol! I'm on the epilogue of the book and I think I like some parts of the book better and some parts of the movie better. I tell you what I mean after you get done with the book. Don't want to spoil it for you, as I have a habit of doing. I'm glad you understood what I was trying to say! Yay! I'm glad the story is scary, because I've never thought of myself as much of a thriller/suspense writer, so I'm entering new territory here. Sorry to have killed Ted, but I really hated him. (well, I don't REALLY hate anyone, but him I'm on the verge of it...) If he'd just kept himself to himself then maybe Amy and Mort's marriage would have worked and Mort wouldn't have gone crazy (but then we wouldn't have this story to write, eh? So I guess he did me a favor, in some twisted, warped way) I'll try to hurry up on "Family Ties" but for now I'm going to go take a nice nap b/c rain makes me sleepy and I've got to go babysitting tonight. I'll get ideas for little Bill, how's that sound?
TrappedandAnnoyed: Glad to see you here! Thanks for reviewing!
Well I'm off to sleep! See ya'll later.
The police were nearly done at the lake house by the time Mort and Amy drove up. Amy turned as she saw a covered body being taken away. "When will this all just be over?" she grumbled.
"Not soon enough," Mort whispered, stepping out of the car. It was all a rush of emotions and a blur to the both of them as the police told the former couple that the area was secure and that John Shooter was nowhere in site. The gave Amy their condolences.
A fairly young officer approached Mort. "I'm sorry to bother you at such a time, but I'm a big fan..."
"Oh of all the times," Amy grumbled.
"I'm sorry," Mort managed as he stepped aside. "If it were any other time, I'd be happy to talk with you, but now is just not a good time." Amy had always hated autograph seekers.
"Of course, so sorry...."
Mort forced a small smile, nodding his thanks as he led Amy into the house. She sat on the couch and hugged a pillow to herself as she watched Mort carefully lock the door and all the windows. He might have looked paranoid if she didn't know any better. He carefully checked and rechecked everything, stopped, listened, and then rechecked again.
"You want something to drink?" he asked after a long while of silence. "I've been needing to go to the store, but I've got... Hmm..." He mumbled a bit to himself as he looked through the fridge. He grinned slightly when he reappeared over the top of the fridge door with a Mountain Dew in hand. "'bout all I've got," he said as he held it out.
Amy suppressed a laugh, but a smile broke through. "You still drinking those?"
"What? Something wrong with them?"
She finally laughed. "No. Better than Jack Daniels, I'll tell you that."
Mort tensed at this and frowned slightly. "Do you want it or not, Amy?"
She stood slowly and took the soda. "I'm sorry, Mort..."
He shrugged, pretending not to care. "I'm going to go write for a while, see if I can get over this writer's block."
Amy watched him go halfway up the stairs before calling after him and following him. "You're still sick. Shouldn't you be resting?"
Mort gave her a small smile. "I'm fine, Amy."
"You're pale."
"I'm fine."
"Dammit! No you're not, Mort! Just come here for a second, would you?" She finally caught up with him at the top of the stairs and put a hand to his cheek. He felt warmer than he had before. He did not make a move to pull away as her fingers wandered to his hair. "Stubborn, stubborn man," she muttered as she ran her fingers through his mussed hair. "That's always what drove me mad about you, you know that? You were so stubborn in whatever you were at at the moment. Your writings, your thoughts, me at the beginning...."
"We're not doing this," Mort said suddenly as he pulled away. "I can't handle this now, Amy."
Amy looked down. "It's late, Mort, maybe we should both get some sleep?"
The blond man looked at his watch – replaced since the incident with the dead bodies – and nodded. "Maybe. I'll take the couch, you can have the bed."
"I don't want to run you out of your bed, Mort."
"I sleep on the couch most of the time anyway."
Amy seemed to think about this for a moment. "I don't want to be alone," she mumbled at length.
Mort sighed. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. He pushed back his hair from his face. "Listen, Amy, I can't handle this, okay? I don't know what it is.... Shock or whatever over Ted, and I'm sorry, really I am, but you can't just use me for whatever it is you were going to use me for." He paused when tears welled up in her eyes. "Amy....."
"I'm sorry, Mort, I know what you must be thinking..."
"No, you really have no idea, Amy."
She looked up at him, questioning.
"I'm thinking right now: 'Didn't I just convince myself I was over her so she'd be happy?'"
"I'm sorry, Mort...." She whispered, tears spilling now.
"But I'm not over you, Amy, that's the problem. I want to help you, but I can't... I can't just be your shoulder to lean on and sleep right there next to you because your scared that he'll come through the window. I just can't DO that, do you understand?"
"What if things went back to normal, Mort?"
"That can't happen, Amy," he whispered. "Unless you didn't notice, you left me to go screw some guy and didn't tell me until I walked in on you. Now you're coming back asking to go back to normal, and if he weren't dead I'd have jumped on the offer, but come on, Amy! He died! You're in shock, it'll wear off eventually and then I'll become nothing to you again."
"You were never nothing, Mort."
"I was always nothing."
Amy couldn't say anything else. She nodded slowly and wiped her tears away. "I'll be in the bedroom if you need me. Sleep well," she managed as she disappeared.
Mort stumbled over to his computer desk and sat down. "Stupid, stupid, stupid," he murmured as he pulled up the file of his new book.
---------------
Mort Rainey didn't know he was asleep until he heard a scream come from the bedroom. He opened his eyes slowly, regaining his bearings about him. That was a woman's scream, wasn't it? That couldn't be, because no women lived in this house. Wait... Amy is here! Amy is in trouble!
He was up in a flash, running to the room and flung the door open. She was sitting up in bed, seat pouring down off of her, fear in her eyes. There was a note nailed into the bedpost over where Amy was sitting. "He came in," she managed. "Covered my mouth and I couldn't do anything... Did he hurt you?"
"How the hell did I sleep through that?" he mumbled.
"He went out the window..."
Mort moved toward her carefully and wrapped his arms around her as she buried her face in his shirt. He let her cry as he pulled her closer, resting his own face in her blond hair. "I'm sorry about what I said earlier," he mumbled. "I didn't mean to make you cry..."
"I know," she sniffed. "I'm sorry, Mort... I don't know what I'm thinking or feeling right now. I loved you when we were married, I really did. And then I loved Ted... And now I think I still love you – always did in some way or another – but I don't know."
Mort pulled away, looking her in the eyes. "We could take it slow," he said, or perhaps he was asking, he really wasn't sure.
She nodded. "Yeah, that sounds good."
He gave her a quick, small smile before reaching for the note. Tomorrow at 3 meet me where we first met. Things will get settled. Leave the police out of it. Bring your missus.
"Are we going to go?" Amy whispered.
"I don't think we've got much of a choice."
------------------
Dawnie-7: I'm sorry, but it will have Amy/Mort stuff, obviously after this chapter. I'm a big fan of happy endings and endless fluff. ::grins:: hope that's not going to run you off! Amy was a real witch to poor Mort, but I'm hoping to fix all that. Hopefully! Thanks for reviewing :)
LaVieSansAmour: As long as your not going to come to my house with a manuscript and say "you stole my story" we'll be fine. Lol! I'm on the epilogue of the book and I think I like some parts of the book better and some parts of the movie better. I tell you what I mean after you get done with the book. Don't want to spoil it for you, as I have a habit of doing. I'm glad you understood what I was trying to say! Yay! I'm glad the story is scary, because I've never thought of myself as much of a thriller/suspense writer, so I'm entering new territory here. Sorry to have killed Ted, but I really hated him. (well, I don't REALLY hate anyone, but him I'm on the verge of it...) If he'd just kept himself to himself then maybe Amy and Mort's marriage would have worked and Mort wouldn't have gone crazy (but then we wouldn't have this story to write, eh? So I guess he did me a favor, in some twisted, warped way) I'll try to hurry up on "Family Ties" but for now I'm going to go take a nice nap b/c rain makes me sleepy and I've got to go babysitting tonight. I'll get ideas for little Bill, how's that sound?
TrappedandAnnoyed: Glad to see you here! Thanks for reviewing!
Well I'm off to sleep! See ya'll later.