Madison's POV
There. I smiled as I turned the key in the door and entered my home. I had done it. I'd gone to Alex's house and talked to him, told him I wanted to be friends.
I grinned and bit my lip as I remembered the adorable scruffy bed head look when he opened the door. He must have been asleep before I arrived…
Wait, what was I thinking? I didn't have time for boys. I had more important things to think about – like mom.
I went quickly to her room, remembering that I hadn't checked up on her last night. Nervousness grew inside me as I approached her room. She was sitting on her bed with her back to me.
"Mom?"
I was hopelessly unsure of what to say. It had been so long since we'd talked that it felt alien when she turned around and smiled at me. I could tell that even this slight movement was difficult for her.
"Hey, honey."
Her hair was plastered to her face with sweat; wrinkles lined her forehead. Even in the dark room, I could see lines of grey in her hair. How did she look so old, when she was only 29?
"Mom!"
It was too much. Tears were streaming down my face; I ran to her and wrapped my arms around her waist.
"Maddie, why are you crying?" I could hear the worry in her voice.
"I – I miss you so much!" I sobbed, struggling to get the words out. I wanted to say so much but didn't know where to start. "I just – I worry about you all the time. I haven't talked to you in so long and I just... I'm so lonely, Mom!"
She pulled me close to her, stroking my hair soothingly. I could hear her heart beating softly in her chest and cherished this moment, because I didn't know how long that heart would keep beating for.
"I'm not going anywhere," she whispered when I'd calmed down. "I promise. You'll be seeing more of me now." She smiled. "I'm actually supposed to be meeting someone in a bit…"
I took the hint and broke away from her, though I didn't want to let go. "Ok. I… I love you."
"Love you too," she returned.
I got up and left. Taking a seat on the couch, I turned on the TV and lost myself in some reality show. I was pretty tired and must have fallen asleep, because at some point the people on the screen faded out of my thoughts and Alex drifted in.
A.N: So this was a really short chapter but I thought we weren't seeing enough of Madison's mother so this was just to get a glimpse of another character in the story. But I promise there will be better chapters coming up soon. All im going to say is Alex, Madison and an unknown character will be in the following chapters...