sorry for the late update, things have just been busy! and the javery storyline has been so great since the season started up again. I can't wait to see where it's going!
please read and review as to what you like and don't like!
"Melody, didn't I tell you to pick up your dolls from the living room?" She grabbed her bruised toe roughly. "You know the rules. If you wanna play with your toys out here, you have to put them away when you are done."
"I wanna play with them when daddy gets here!" Her daughter's blonde curls bounced in excitement. "I wanna show him the new doll Aunt Zoey got me."
"Baby, I'm sure daddy will love to see the doll." She tightened her robe around her body, kneeling down to her daughter's height. "But mama just tripped and got hurt. See?" She motioned to the bruise on her foot.
"Sorry mama. I didn't mean to." Her daughter sank her head a little in embarrassment.
"It's alright baby. Just be careful next time." She placed a soft kiss on her daughter's forehead. "Mama's running late for her party."
The doorbell rang loudly, and Melody dropped the dolls in her grasp. "Is that daddy?"
She looked over at the clock and sighed. It was exactly 5:00 pm. Before she could process, Melody had already run to the door.
"Melody!" She yelled, running across the hardwood floor after her, only to be met with the sight of Melody jumping into Avery's arms as he lifted and spun her around.
"Daddy!" she shrieked loudly as Avery grasped her tightly in his arms. The sight of them together still took her breath away, no matter how many times she saw it. Avery pressed his forehead to Melody's, kissing the tip of her nose softly as she giggled.
She found her voice. "Melody. We talked about this. You don't open the door for anyone without me."
"But mama, I knew it was daddy." She pouted, arms still tight around Avery's neck. "I just knew it!"
"Honey, listen to your mama." He looked straight at their daughter firmly. "Next time, you wait for her to come open the door for me."
"Fine." Melody pouted a little, nuzzling her head in his neck.
"Sweetheart, why don't you give your dad a break?" She laughed at the grip Melody had on him. "He needs to breathe a little."
"No." Avery's voice broke the atmosphere. His gaze towards her shook a little. "It's alright. You go get ready."
Now that he had acknowledged her, she felt the awkwardness of the entire situation settle in. Based on the way his eyes averted, she knew he felt it as well.
"Right." She nodded firmly, turning her body away from him slightly. "I'll be in the bedroom getting ready. The car is supposed to get me in an hour."
"Go ahead." He said nonchalantly, still focused on the young girl in his arms, playing with the tips of her curls.
"Mama, can I show daddy my dolls now?"
"Of course sweetheart. I'm sure your daddy would love to see them."
"They're in the living room!" She forced Avery to put her down, grabbing his hand to lead the way. "Let's go!"
Juliette gripped the end of her robe tightly, watching them walk towards the living room hand in hand, pushing down something reminiscent to guilt as she walked in the opposite direction towards the bedroom.
There was nothing she could do at this point to solve this; too much had been set in motion up until this point. But even she could not deny how full her heart had felt seeing him in this house with her and Melody.
She shook her thoughts, grabbing her dress quickly. This is exactly why she avoided coming back to Nashville. Everything was full of what could have been.
As she tousled her hair lightly and applied powder over her face, she heard a knock on the door.
"Come in." She said quickly, trying to pull at her dress zipper.
"Hey." Avery peaked his head in the door a bit, clearly cautious. "Melody didn't eat dinner yet right? She says she wants mango ice cream?"
"She always wants mango ice cream ever since Gunnar gave it to her the other day." She rolled her eyes, still trying to tug her zipper up. "She didn't eat dinner yet though."
"That's what I figured." He smirked a bit to himself. "She's getting pretty good at batting those lashes now. I almost caved in to giving her ice cream."
"She won't be too happy when all that ice cream gives her a stomachache." Still no budging on the zipper. "Damn it."
He treaded into the room carefully. "You need help?"
"No." She spit out fast. "Damn it. If I don't fit into this dress…"
She moved towards the long mirror, analyzing the folds in the tight black dress to see if any material was caught. She grabbed at her hips roughly. Had she gained weight?
"Juliette it's just a zipper." She could see him restraining his irritation. "Let me help, aren't you running late?"
She sighed in defeat, looking at his reflection in the mirror. "Fine."
She saw him step behind her slowly, grabbing at the zipper at the base of her spine. He pushed the material caught in the zipper to the side slightly, and it took everything in her to control her shiver as she felt at his calloused hands against her skin. He slowly zipped up the dress with ease, before backing away from her like he had been burned.
She was the plague after all, infecting all who came in her path.
"Thanks." She said softly, fearfully looking up at his gaze. But he was focused on her hand. It took her a moment to realize what he was staring at.
"I forgot to tell you," she moved away from his grasp towards her closet, pulling out her long coat. "Publicity from the movie wants me to keep the ring on for now, at least until the movie press is over."
He crossed his arms defensively. "Why would they care?" She heard the words he wanted to say more. Why would you care?
She looked at him carefully, keeping her face stoic. "The movie keeps getting press over an affair between Ben and I, so they told me to start wearing my ring again."
"And that's gonna kill the rumors?" He looked at her carefully.
"Well, considering I don't have the best track record with working with married men in the eyes of the public, this was the only way to put down some of the rumors." It was either wearing the damn ring or having Avery walk the red carpet with her to quell the rumors that they were getting a divorce. The minute the publicity team had mentioned Avery, Glenn had shot it down before she could murder anyone in cold blood.
She straightened her stance, looking at him boldly. Her eyes dared him to ask her whether the rumors were actually true.
"Whatever works I guess." He clearly looked uneasy. "I better go check on Melody and order that pizza."
In the distance, she heard the doorbell ring.
"Go ahead." She pulled her shoes in her hand, motioning for him to lead the way. "That's probably the car for me."
She followed him back into the living room, slipping her heels on as she walked.
"Mama you look so pretty!" Melody jumped up from the floor, wrapping her arms around her legs, knocking her off balance a little.
"Thanks baby." She knelt down to scoop her daughter into a tight hug. "You be good for daddy ok? I'll be home as soon as I can."
"How long are you gonna be gone mama?" She pouted a little, looking over at Avery, who was sitting on the couch.
"Not that long baby, I swear. I'll see you tomorrow morning. And daddy's gonna tuck you into bed tonight."
"But I want you and daddy to sing me a song." She pouted a little, and it took everything in Juliette not to cave.
"Baby, daddy's gonna sing you the very best song tonight. And I'll sing tomorrow." She met her daughter's sad eyes carefully. "Uncle Glenn and Aunt Emily are waiting for me baby, I gotta go."
"Is Uncle Ben gonna be there too?"
She stiffened a little, and stole a glance over at Avery. "Yeah baby, he's gonna be there too. Everyone working on the movie is gonna be there."
"I don't like it when you leave." Her daughters green eyes filled with tears instantly.
"Melody, come on." Avery moved towards them, grabbing her small body from behind, lifting her out of Juliette's grasp. "How old are you now?"
She sniffled. "Four and three quarters."
"Exactly. You're a big girl! We're gonna have so much fun together, and before you know it, mama will be back." He smiled brightly at his daughter. "Don't you wanna spend time with me?"
Melody nodded carefully, forgetting about everything else.
"Good. Now kiss your mama goodbye and then you can pick a movie for us to watch."
He set her down carefully, as Melody ran into her open arms and gripped her tightly again. Her daughter smelt like clean soap and strawberries, and it took everything for her to eventually let go. Melody kissed her cheek softly. "See you mama."
"See you later baby." She stood up carefully, taking a deep breath before looking over at Avery. "Call me if there's any problems."
He bristled. "There won't be an issues, you don't have to worry about that. Go to your event."
She bit her lip. "Fine. I'll be home early."
"Yes, I'm getting into the house now. You don't have to keep checking in on me, I'm alright." All the lights were off in the house already as she slowly closed the door behind her. She laughed softly at the voice over the phone. "I'll see you tomorrow."
Slipping off her shoes, she padded her feet across the hardwood floor quietly before realizing the presence on the couch.
"Avery." She gripped her chest, catching her breath. "Why are you sitting in the dark?"
His hands gripped the sides of the couch roughly, like he was controlling his anger. His eyes darted across her face quickly.
"Avery, you're scaring me." She pushed her hair behind her ears, slipping her phone in her purse.
"Who were you on the phone with?" He looked at the pocket where her phone was, instead of looking at her.
Her eyes darted over his face, studying his reaction. "What?"
"Who was on the phone Juliette?" She stood in front of the couch, facing him as he inquired.
"It was just Ben, he was calling me to see if I got home alright."
"How kind of him." He got up from the couch, rolling his eyes. "Did you remember today was Melody's piano recital? Or are you so wrapped up in your own world that you forget everything that doesn't center around you?"
Shit.
"That was today." She felt sick to her stomach. "I had it marked for tomorrow."
"It was today Juliette." His eyes looked her up and down. "Maybe if you had spent more time actually paying attention to this family you would have had the right date."
She jerked back incredulously. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"It means," he clenched his fists, "I just spent the past hour explaining to Melody why her mother was not there! I'm tired of it Juliette. I'm tired of defending you to her."
"I had the wrong date Avery, and filming ran late today. You are blowing this out of proportion." Her eyes filled with tears at the thought of Melody crying herself to sleep. Her hand rested over her stomach, trying to press nausea away. "The movie's almost done, and then things can go back to normal around here."
"I'm blowing things out of proportion." His eyes taunted her, pushing her towards a place of pure hot anger. "You're spending time with your co-star instead of coming to your daughter's recital and I'm blowing things out of proportion?"
"I was filming today." She said carefully before continuing, "But I'm sure that's not what you mean. Just spit it out Avery. Say what you wanna say."
He scoffed. "You are unbelievable."
"I'm unbelievable?" She put her hands on her hips. "You're accusing me of not being here? Where the hell have you been these past couple months?"
It was his turn to jerk back. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"It means you act like you are holding this family together." She clenched her teeth, letting all her frustration out. "How many times have you chosen to stay late at work instead of coming home? Why are you allowed to do that and I'm not?"
He rolled his eyes. "Don't turn this into some misogynistic thing on my part. I have been around."
"Really." She stepped closer. "When was the last time you didn't stay at work late? When was the last time you were here to actually put Melody to bed?"
"Tonight." He pointed upstairs towards her room. "Unlike you."
"The one night I'm not here. I bring her to my set and I moved my hours so I would be here. So don't tell me this family isn't a priority to me." She rolled her eyes.
"Doesn't seem like it to me."
"And by the way, the next time you accuse me of having an affair, be a man and say the words to my face." She threw her purse on the couch angrily, ignoring his last words. "Pulling a page right from your father's handbook aren't you? I'm not your mother; passive-aggressive doesn't work for me Avery."
His eyes hardened. "Figured I'd give you some plausible deniability. But I guess your history speaks for itself huh?"
Her eyes burned at the mention of that. "Fuck you Avery."
"You certainly haven't been for months now."
"And that's your logic for assuming I'm sleeping around? You bring up the one mistake I made before Melody was born and document our lack of a sex life? Last time I checked, you were the one not sleeping in our bedroom."
"And you were the one who's been emotionally distant for months now. It's not for a lack of trying Juliette."
"Let me tell you something Avery Barkley." She snarled. "I'm not your property. I'm allowed to have a life outside of you. I'm allowed to have feelings that have nothing to do with you."
He paused before continuing. "If this family is such a burden to you, let me know. Like you said, I don't own you. You can feel free to come and go as you please, with no responsibility to anyone."
She rolled her eyes. "Don't turn this around on me. I am here!"
His voice rose. "You may be here physically, but you don't want to be here. Not really. I know you." There was no way Melody wasn't going to wake up; their voices has escalated quickly.
"You don't know me Avery." She snarled. "You clearly don't know me if you think this family isn't my priority."
"You have no idea what it means to be part of a family Juliette."
Her heart clenched, as she looked at the stranger across from her.
She locked the door behind her, expecting to be greeted with loud conversation. Instead, it was eerily quiet throughout the house. Putting down her clutch and keys, she walked towards the living room.
The lights of the television flashed brightly, but the sound had clearly been muted.
Looking over at the couch, she saw Avery spread lengthwise, with their daughter lying next to him. They had both seemingly fallen asleep watching the movie. Avery's arms were wrapped around Melody fully, and her hand lay over his heart. The only movement came from Avery's chest rising and falling to the pace of his breathing, moving their daughter's small head up and down as well.
She sat on the floor next to the couch, ingraining the image into her memory before shaking Avery's shoulder to wake him.
His arms shifted a little as she saw him turn towards her, realizing where he was. "Hey."
"Hey." She smiled back softly, keeping her voice at a whisper.
He looked down at Melody, still sound asleep. "I didn't mean to fall asleep. I must have dozed off halfway through the movie."
"It's alright." She looked over at the television. "She's seen this Tinkerbell movie about a hundred times."
"I didn't know that." He replied sheepishly. "I figured I would surprise her with the new one. She already knew every word to it."
Her heart filled with guilt.
"Avery." Her voice remained a whisper as she looked at him.
"You know," he looked down at Melody and tightened his grip on her. "She's growing up so fast. How is she almost five years old already?"
"I know. I feel like we just found out I was pregnant not that long ago." She folded her legs under her, resting her hands on her knees. "I'm sorry."
"I hated you Juliette." But there was no malice in his tone. "I hated that I came home and saw that note. I hated you took my daughter with you and left for an entire month."
"I know." She hung her head in shame.
"I still hate you for it." He placed a hand over Melody's head softly, shifting her a little. "But I hate that I didn't fight for my family. I let you take her across the country and I did nothing."
"I was the selfish one." She averted her eyes, trying to not let him see the tears there. "All I could hear was you telling me I wasn't good enough. So I ran."
"Would things have been different if I had come after you?" He looked at her, and she could see the man she had fallen for in front of her.
You have no idea what it means to be part of a family Juliette.
She bit her lip hard. "Some people just aren't good for each other. They bring out the worst in each other you know? Maybe that's us."
He turned his head towards the ceiling. "Maybe."
"Melody deserves the best life, and that means having you in it." She reached over to touch his arm softly. It was the cold metal of her wedding ring that reminded them of their proximity.
She quickly put her hand down, pulling the ring off swiftly.
"I wanna be here Juliette. I really do." He sat up, scooping Melody in his arms. "I'm gonna put her in her bed if that's alright."
"Put her in our bed. I promised her she could sleep with me tonight."
Our bed.
She realized what she had said too late, but if Avery was uncomfortable he certainly did not let on. He just nodded, moving towards the stairs quickly.
She picked up her ring, gripping it in her hand tightly until all she could see was the imprint it had left.
It stung.
