Thank you to everyone who left me love on this story and told me how much they liked this new Mac. I like him too, I feel like in the best of circumstances, maybe he could exist like this with Julie's help. But all good things must come to an end, after these two sugary chapters that will give you diabetes it's out of the Twilight Zone, and a hard left right back to Mac Town.
In this chapter, I weaved the words of Perfect World by Sublime (give it a listen) throughout it because it reminded me of this story. I know it might seem weird to write a chapter like this but it had to happen this way. Sometimes when you're living in a perfect world it isn't as perfect as you think, or the rug gets pulled out suddenly and you're left to pick up the pieces.
/
"Boo boo boo, take a look at you
Hangin' on third and daisy.
Whoa bo bo, policeman after you
Smokin' crack cocaine makes you crazy."
Julie laid back between Mac's legs like the instructor of the class said to do and he slid his hands over her now swollen belly. It all felt so natural now; the baby was due in a month and he had finally talked her into the parenting classes and now they were doing Lamaze. Together they looked like any other young couple having their first baby. It was almost ordinary. Julie was more trusting of him and he was making an effort; Mac was seriously cutting back on his time in the caves and Walter wasn't too happy about it, but he had other guys to do his work for him too.
But more important, Julie and Mac were friends now, their relationship had evolved as life grew inside of her. Sometimes they even liked each other. Many nights they sat out on Izzy's deck with her drinking lemonade and laughing for hours, life was good.
"This breathing shit ain't gonna help," Julie growled and Mac laughed at her and reached around to rub her back; she immediately relaxed back into his chest.
"Just pay attention, and if we have to we'll scream for drugs OK?" He whispered back to her, "I got you."
She actually smiled at that.
"I mean it," He said when she didn't answer, he couldn't see the grin on her face from where he was behind her, and she smiled even more at that.
"Thanks, Mac..." She turned and kissed his cheek.
/
"You think everything's perfect in your world today,
I think everything's just not really.
Take out your glass pipe, take off your sunglasses,
And tell me what you can see."
Devon and Mac were packing up product for a final delivery before Mac was off to be with Julie until the baby came. He spent more time at home with her since her due date had come and gone, first babies were often late, but he wanted to be there to drive her to the hospital or for anything else she needed.
"So, what you're a family man now?" Devon teased as his hands moved automatically, after years of doing this work. Both of them could cook and pack up product in their sleep thanks to the careful instructions of their father. The only one who wasn't involved in this shit was Regina, but Walter had her filling in for Julie since she left. All three of his kids worked for him and were embolden to him, and that was the way he liked it.
"You're just jealous," Mac replied as he stopped to light a cigarette.
"I don't think so." Devon continued, "You think it's going to be different don't you?"
"Nope," Mac answered as he leaned against the counter, "I know it will."
"Good luck with that." Devon replied, "I predict this kid will be all up in the family business even earlier than we were."
Before he knew it Mac had Devon by the shirt and up against the wall with a snarl, "You shut the fuck up, that ain't happening."
"Lay off dickhead, it was a joke." Devon surrendered.
"You shut your whore mouth you hear me and you stay the fuck away from both of them," Mac screamed, "Or I will slit your throat, you got it!"
"I got it," Devon replied and collected himself, "Jesus you got no sense of humor anymore."
"Got no time for anyone's shit now Devon, she's depending on me not to fuck up again," He answered and lit a cigarette, "I don't even know if I can do it, but I'm not letting motherfuckers like you ruin things for me."
/
"And I say lies, corruption, look this way
Girly on the corner but she's not okay.
You got lies if you got rats in the street,
You got, no shoes no shoes on your babies feet."
Julie sat on the front porch and Izzy came and sat down next to her handing her a glass of water. They both watched as Mac's truck was coming down the road. It wasn't even dark out yet and he was home already, it had been a pattern lately. He was never out after dark now and he had even told Julie he was taking the rest of the week off after one more delivery. Sometimes he looked for work in the straight job market. Izzy was impressed and secretly so as Julie.
"He's been getting home on time every day," Izzy mused. She remembered the days when Mac made himself scarce to everyone, preferring to be out in the caves, surfacing into society only long enough to eat and get laid. That had been his pattern all of his life and now, seeing him in daylight, sober was something amazing.
"And?"
"Just saying, it's like..." She looked over with a grin for her niece and Julie knew exactly what she was thinking.
"Don't you dare say it," Julie warned, but Izzy wasn't having it, she liked Mac and she liked the way he took care of Julie. There was nothing he wouldn't do for her niece and Julie wanted for nothing. That was enough for Izzy.
"Like he's in love..." Izzy answered and she looked over at Julie, "Oh look at you sweetie, you're blushing..."
/
"Whoa ho ho ho ho
It's a perfect world, perfect world.
It's a perfect world,
It's a perfect world, yow."
Mac pushed her against the door of their bedroom with his body, he was hard against her soft form and Julie sighed so sweetly as he kissed her. Her shape had changed but his hands still found a way to do their dirty work even now. His kisses traveled over her collarbone to her neck and finally to her lips, as Julie pulled her hair out of the bun it was in, Mac liked her hair down.
Both of them were all hands all over each other as if this was their first time. Mac pressed against her hard, while he licked her skin from her neck to her ear. Julie was groping his ass and wrapping one leg around him as she tried to get his buckle undone.
"Hurry up," She groaned against his mouth and pulled at his shirt.
The Ob/GYN said sex would bring on labor and if she didn't start soon she was going to be induced and Julie wanted no part of that. The horror storied about pitocin they had heard was enough and frankly, he was happy to help her out with that.
"Oh don't you worry baby, this baby is coming out of you if I have to fuck you all night long," He groaned as he dug his hands into her hair and maneuvered her to the bed, "I got this," They both fell laughing onto the bed still groping and pulling at each other's clothes; sometimes Mac was such good time.
/
"Bo bo bo take a look at you on your way to Kenny's
Whoa bo bo, why don't you stop that crap?
Smokin' that bum makes you crazy,
But everything's crazy in the world today.
So you, you might as well smoke it anyway."
The deal went bad and Devon booked leaving Mac to beat the shit out of the asshole who tried to short them. Always when shit went down Devon was in the wind leaving his younger brother to clean up his mess, Mac was done with this lifestyle. Just fucking done. Luckily they were behind the Luna Mesa, and halfway through the beating Regina was at the door with the phone.
"Go pick up Izzy, Julie's at the hospital." She yelled and Mac's head shot right around, this was it!
Mac stood up and wiped his hands on his pants, then kicked the man on the ground in the gut just for good measure. There was no time to waste now.
"I'll deal with you later Clyde," He said, "Don't think I'm gonna forget this, I just got something to do right now." Then he was gone.
/
"I say, you might as well
It hit, it lit, you well like that
Which you cannot say
What is up? What's down?
What is up? What's down?
What's up, what's down?"
The doctors moved around the room with exact persuasion, the nurses helped him hold her up in the bed, and true to his word Mac had made sure she got the medication she needed. They had given her as much as they could safely and now it was just a waiting game. But, Julie was still a mess, it had been going on all night and she was exhausted and covered in sweat, they both were.
She had already decided never to have another baby and to chop Mac's dick off first chance she got; she was done, tired of being all up close and personal with him and everyone else in the room. Mac was behind her on the bed on his knees holding her back and supporting her weight so she could sit up and Izzy was down by her feet with the doctor.
"Come on Julie, you're doing great," He murmured into her ear trying to remain calm and keep her calm, not an easy job. She was in so much pain now and even he had empathy for her, Mac was not known for empathy, it was not a word you associated with him.
After they had been there for ten hours, Julie was relaxed in his arms and finally, something was happening. Everyone in the room was a buzz and she started crying.
"I can't do this," She cried, "I can't."
The nurses were right there to wipe the sweat off of her forehead and Mac never left her side even when they told him it was OK and to get something to eat. All the while he encouraged her on and Izzy kept quiet and burned sage low key in the room by the window for good mojo while everyone pretended she wasn't doing it.
"Yes you can, honey," He continued, "I'm so proud of you..."
"Don't call me honey," Julie yelled.
"Stop fighting me for five seconds, so we can have this baby, for Christ sake," Mac snapped back.
"I can see the head," Izzy reported and started to cry, "Oh he's almost here..."
Julie didn't even hear her words.
"We? We? Fuck you, Mac! I don't see you up here with your legs spread out for the whole fucking town to see."
The doctor examined her and looked up at them making eye contact with her and Mac behind her, "This is it, Julie, it's time to push again, just one more time."
"No, I can't, no, no, no," She fell back against Mac and the doctor signaled him to sit her up again. He raised up on his knees behind her and began lifting her in his strong arms, she was covered in sweat and shivering, he grabbed a blanket and placed it over her shoulders, "Stop it, Mac, stop! I can't, I can't, I'm done!."
"Yes you can," He whispered sweetly, "Yes you can, I know you can, just a little bit more, you're almost there, it's almost done," Then he grinned an evil grin against her ear, he knew just how to get her through this, "Honey."
"Stop!" She pushed down hard, "Calling!" She pushed again, bearing down as her face contorted and turned red. "Me!" One final push. "Honey!"
The baby was here, he was crying and so was Izzy.
"Oh fuck Julie, oh fuck, look at him," Was all Mac could say as they placed the baby on her chest and he wrapped them both in a blanket, "Fuck, he's beautiful."
He pulled her close to him and wrapped the blanket around all three of them as he settled in and felt a change wash over his entire life.
/
"I don't know what's going round
Head is spinning and it feels alright.
But the kids, the kids
The kids are alright."
"Hey there Michael, its Daddy," He kissed the baby's cheek as he walked around the room holding him as if he held babies every day, he was a natural, "I got you now and I'm gonna make sure you never want for anything, I'm gonna take care of you and your Mom, I promise you that."
Mac paced the room holding his son and promising him the world, hoping he'd be able to follow through on all of it. If intention counted at all, he would be successful. He already arranged to start driving trucks back and forth through the Midwest for a trucking company, which might keep him away sometimes but would afford them many of the things they needed. It was a way out of 'the lifestyle' and Mac was grabbing it with both hands.
He also didn't want Julie going back to bar tending either, he wanted her home with the baby, and with Izzy, away from that element and safe. He had told her that and for once she hadn't picked a fight over it, she was in love with this baby and she never wanted to be apart from him again. Regina could keep her job forever if she wanted.
During the night the nurses had taken Michael back to the nursery and Julie woke up at three am, four hours after he had been born and left Mac who was asleep in a chair by her bed. She walked down to the nursery and asked to take the baby back to her room, she missed him too much.
Mac woke up as she came back in the room, re-positioned himself in the chair, watched her get into bed holding the baby and gazed at both of them until the sun came up.
Now Izzy stepped up behind Mac as he handed the baby back to Julie so she could breast feed, he never got tired of watching it. There was nothing in this world more beautiful to him.
"You did so good, both of you," Izzy praised as she sat down on the bed, "This baby has blue eyes, big beautiful blue eyes, just like his Daddy," She winked at Mac and even Julie smiled, "Looks like he has your charm too Mac."
"Jules gorgeous mouth and hair though," Mac added as there was a knock on the door. The three of them turned and there was Walter in the door way with flowers and balloons, "Came to see my grandson..."
/
"Bo bo bo bo
It's a perfect world.
Whoa on and on it's a perfect world
Gotta keep living in a perfect world."
11
The baby was crying again, it seemed like he would never sleep through the night. The boy had a set of lungs on him, that was for sure and Mac said he took after Julie that way since she was always running her mouth. It had been five weeks and Michael never slept more than four hours at a clip, so neither did his parents. This was the cold reality of parent hood, you never felt like you had enough sleep. Just when you settled down to close your eyes and rest, the baby would cry again.
Mac and Julie learned that right away.
That was normal, especially for breast feeding, in fact sometimes it was worse. Earlier that day Julie had pumped milk for bottles and Mac rolled over as soon as the monitor lit up. He was on high alert for any sound that kid made, fatherhood had changed him. Now he had something else to focus on besides himself, it felt strange and good to a boy who grew up with no love in his life.
"I got him, you sleep..." Mac was out of the bed in a second, pulling on his pants halfway to the door and he almost didn't hear it. But he did, and he would always be glad he had heard it, later on, when it all went to shit, Julie had sighed "I love you.." as she rolled back over and hunkered down under the covers.
Maybe she had been half asleep, and maybe she wasn't even aware she had said it. But he had never heard those words from anyone in his life, and it did something to him deep inside, he turned back from the door with his hand on the door jam and looked at her sleeping there, "I love you too," He said quietly, "You're making me love you."
/
"You and me ain't movie stars,
what we are is what we are.
We share a bed some lovin' and t.v. yeah.
That's enough for a workin' man.
What I am is what I am
and I tell you babe
well that's enough for me."
You and Me by Alice Cooper
Mac's new job was working out, but somehow he kept getting pulled back into the 'other' work because Devon was such a fuck up sometimes. Julie and he sat out on the front porch talking, something they did very often now. He was away sometimes over night hauling pineapples and tomatoes all over the state, but when he was home he was hands on with Michael. He was there for her in every way except one, and it was too important to ignore or let slide for any longer. She had hung in there for weeks since Michael arrived, it was time for 'the talk'
"If you want to be here with us you need to stop with the cooking and drugs for good." She said for the millionth time that month, "Otherwise, we can't be together, you'll have to leave."
"OK, OK. After this order is done and delivered. I'm out, for real this time." He took her by the hand as Alice Cooper was coming from the window of Izzy's bedroom on the radio and filtering down to the porch, the baby was asleep in the pack in play over by the door and he just wanted to hold her in his arms, "Lets dance."
"What's wrong with you?" Julie laughed, Mac had never asked her to dance before, she didn't even think he knew how. It was almost romantic, the sun was going down and Izzy had hung fairy lights all over the porch, it was just perfect.
"Nothing, just like this song, makes me want to be close to you." He pressed against her and hummed the words to the song in her ear. This was such a different side to him that she was shocked beyond belief and words. With one hand on her waist and the other holding her hand close to both their chests, he moved her around the porch in time to the music as if they danced like this all the time.
Even Julie could appreciate this moment in time between them and she felt like they were going to be OK, they were going to make it. The progress they had made during the previous months was paying off in a huge way. Maybe they could have a normal life.
"Who are you anymore?" She laughed, "You're so full of surprises lately."
The sun was going down on a perfect day and Julie's heart was full of hope. Just over a year ago she had scratched on an easy shot in pool to have an excuse to do something reckless, and it looked like it had been the best decision she had ever made.
"I promise, I'm gonna do right by you and him, I swear to god." Mac replied, "One more delivery tonight and I'm out forever."
Julie pulled him closer to her, "I believe you, don't let me down."
"Not this time, I swear." Mac said, "Never again."
They danced together listening to the music talking quietly and Julie was thinking they really had a shot. She inhaled his scent deeply, remembering when he used to smell like dirt and meth. He smelled good, so good, clean and her lips touched his neck in three sweet kisses.
"You think maybe tonight?" He pressed against her to make sure she got his meaning. She got it alright, there was no mistaking his throbbing hard cock against her or what it implied.
"You dick," She laughed, "You're trying to get laid."
"So sue me, it's been seven weeks..." He answered, and Julie just laughed as they danced until the song was over.
/
"Quitting for good this time," Mac said as he brought his hand to his mouth to take a drag of his cigarette. He had taken Julie to bed that night, fucked her nice and slow and it had been sweet. Maybe for the first time in his life he actually made love to someone, there was none of the rage and torment, just passion, desire and something he was only now learning about. Love.
Mac almost decided to just go to sleep next to her, but he had this one last thing to do and then it was over forever. He was now completely off Meth and only smoking pot occasionally, Walter understood, which was unbelievable, the birth of this child had changed a lot of people for the better.
"I figured," Walter replied.
"Did you now."
"She's good for you," Walter took a drag of his cigarette.
"Who would have thought it, me doing this?"
"You know what they say cholo, the hand that rocks the cradle is the hand that rules the world. "
/
Julie sat straight up in bed and looked over at the clock, it was four am and Mac hadn't come back yet and for some reason, she broke out in a cold sweat. Normally she wouldn't worry, he could take care of himself for sure, but lately, he had started calling if he was running late. He said it was a two-hour run to drop off some product and he'd be back by two. She picked up her phone, there was no call from him and panic started to set in.
Especially when she saw there was a text message from Devon and when she read it she started to cry. She had let him get close, she had believed in him and she had been a fool.
Mac had been pulled over by the cops on his way to do the drop, for some dumb violation with fifteen bags of meth in the truck. Ten more minutes and he would have been home free, he would have dropped it off and been on his way home to her. But that was not how it went down.
He was charged with possession with intent and manufacturing. Mac was going to jail, for a long time. Eventually, he plead down to just possession with intent and they dropped the manufacturing, but this wasn't his first time at Cinderella's ball. There was no drug court and no deals, he refused to name any accomplices or say where he got the product; he was on his way to prison either way, no matter what happened.