That night, I was laying in my bed catching up on my English reading. "Really, why did people find Jane Eyre to be so amazing?" I thought to myself. I was grateful that tomorrow was the weekend, so I had time to make up all that I'd missed at school. Especially, since I had slept the rest of the day, until mom had woken me for dinner. I felt like I'd accomplished nothing, but for once, I felt restored and better.
I was about to put the book down for the night, bored by it's content, when three small knocks came near my head, from the room next to mine. I was tired, but that was mine and Henry's signal. He hadn't used it in a long time, but I turned and did three small knocks back. Getting up, I crept to my door, and opened it slowly. I peered down the hall and could see that my mother's door was open, and darkness filled her room, so I crept to the banister. I could make out a dim light coming from under the closed door of the study. Keeping my footsteps light, I went down to Henry's room, and quietly opened the door.
As I entered, Henry turned on a lamp, but I quickly shook my head, and he turned it off. I walked over to his bed and sat down on the end. "Mom's in the study." I explained.
"Why is she still up?" He asked, more in general, than looking for an answer. "It's mom," was my reply. "And I think the real question is why are you up?" Last I'd looked at the clock it was about 11:24pm, so it had to be almost midnight by now.
"I needed to fill you in on Operation Cobra," Henry explained. "Especially, before our meeting tomorrow morning."
I gave him a puzzled look, but realized he couldn't see me in the dark. I got up and walked over to his window and pulled the curtains aside. It was a clear night, and it provided just a tad bit of light in the room. Walking back, I whispered, "What meeting?"
At that, Henry proceeded to fill me in on the events of the day. Finding Prince Charming, telling Emma about him, Emma getting Mrs. Blanchard in on the plan, giving Emma the book to give to Mrs. Blanchard.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Wait, you got the book back?" I asked, confused. "I thought mom had it? And I still haven't read it." I emphasized.
Henry made a thinking noise, "right, sorry. Yeah, mom gave it back… Besides, I told you all about it."
"That doesn't count." I somewhat whined at him. I didn't know why, but I really wanted to read the book. I felt drawn to it now.
"Anyways," Henry cut in. "We're meeting Emma and Ms. Blanchard, at Granny's, to find out how tonight went."
"I see." I let out a sigh, "Henry, I don't know if I can go. I'm still grounded, remember? Mom wont let me go to Granny's to hang out."
"Oh... Well, mom thinks I'm going to the arcade, anyways." Henry stated, as if that was a better solution.
I gave him an unimpressed look. "Oh, cause that's so much better." I mumbled at him. "I think I'll have to sit this one out, bud."
Henry let out a disappointed sigh, "fine. But next time you're coming!" He exclaimed, perking up at the end.
Groaning, I pulled the blankets over my head. It had taken me a couple more hours to fall asleep after talking to Henry, and I felt like sleeping for hours still, yet. Light was streaming in my window, and I really had no desire to be awake just yet, but I had a dire need to use the bathroom. Heaving a sigh, I threw my blankets back and started to get up. I looked at the clock and froze briefly. 11:30am it read. My eyes widened in surprise at the time, but I continued out of bed to take care of business.
The house was quiet, as I descended the stairs, but upon reaching the bottom, I could hear my mother's faint voice coming from the study. "What do you mean he walked off? The man has been in a coma for years!"
I paused upon hearing this. A man, in a coma… The man Henry told me about. Prince Charming. This couldn't just be a coincidence.
"I'm on my way." I heard my mom snap, assuming to whomever was on the other end of the phone. Suddenly, the study door was thrown open and she came marching out. I was shocked, but quickly regained my composure, stifling a fake yawn, as I continued down the stairs. "Good morning" I said cheerfully. My mom paused, surprised by my appearance. She had a hard look on her face and was visibly irritated. I had to force myself not to recoil away from her.
Pausing only for a second, she turned, and walked down the hall, to the kitchen. I scrunched my face at her, but I followed behind, deciding I needed breakfast anyways. "I have work to attend to," came her sharp voice. She sounded furious, but why? "Who was this man to her?" I wondered.
"But.. It's Saturday." I whined, hoping to get some information out of her. However, she didn't even look at me. Instead, she picked up her coffee mug and chugged down the rest of her coffee. "Your brother is at the arcade. Don't forget to do your chores." She said to me, in between the gulps of caffeine.
"Good morning, my dear Madelyn. My sweet, kind daughter. I hope you're feeling much better, this morning. I must be off, but please know, I'll miss you dearly." I tried to mock, in a dreamy voice, but it came out having more of a bite. Her eyes snapped to mine, in surprise at my tone. I expected to be scolded for talking to her like that, but she didn't say anything. Instead, I saw her eyes move down to my locket and fix on it. I became instantly aware that I was holding it again, moving it along the chain. I immediately dropped it, and mumbled out a, "sorry."
A strange look crossed her face, but she shook her head, remembering the work she must attend to. "Don't leave the house, you're still grounded." She stated, as she placed her mug in the sink, then brushed past me without so much as looking at me, and started down the hall.
"Rude." I thought, as I looked up and saw coffee still in the coffee pot. I shrugged to myself, and retrieved a mug from the cupboard. As my hand was about to grab the handle of the pot, my mom's voice drifted down that hall, as I heard the front door open. "Don't even think about it, Madelyn!" Then the door slammed shut, behind her.
I froze, hand still in front of the handle to the coffee pot, mug in the other. A slight shutter ran down my spine, and I stuck out my tongue, in the direction of the door. I placed my empty mug on the counter, and rested my elbows on the counter top. "Now what?" I asked myself.
I gazed around the kitchen, but my eyes settled back on the coffee pot. "I can't just let it go to waste," I said out loud, to the empty kitchen. "The coffee gods would never forgive that." I justified, and picked up my mug again.
I was about to take a sip of the magical liquid, when my stomach dropped. Henry. Henry was meeting the blonde and Ms. Blanchard. They were meeting about John Doe and the story date. "Shit!" I exclaimed, to no one but myself. I set the mug on the counter and started to my room, but quickly turned around and shot gunned the coffee down. It burned slightly, but there was no way I was facing the day without it.
I sprinted to my room, put on workout clothes, shoved my feet in my tennis shoes, and was throwing my hair up into a pony tail, as I ran back down the stairs. I had to get to Granny's to tell them.
I was panting as I ran up to the front of Granny's. I had to stop briefly, and bent over to catch my breath. "Okay, maybe chugging the coffee had been a bad idea." I thought. Damn, I was out of shape and felt weak. I decided that after today, I needed to make a running schedule again.
"Focus, Maddie, focus," I snapped to myself. I walked into the diner, but didn't see the faces I was looking for. As I walked to the counter, Ruby came up to me saying, "hello."
I smiled back and waved a hand, indicating I didn't want to order. "Have you seen Henry?" I asked, still slightly breathless. Ruby filled me in, saying that Henry and the Emma lady rushed out, shortly after Mary Margaret arrived. I asked what way they went, and she indicated to the left. They must have been headed to the hospital, I decided. I said my thanks, and started out again. The hospital was on the other end of town, which really wasn't far, but it wasn't close either.
By the time I reached the parking lot, I was cursing myself, and holding my right side due to a side ache. I was covered in sweat, and felt nauseous from the coffee, and running on an otherwise empty stomach. I was about to enter the sliding doors, when I noticed my moms car out front. "Duh, of course she would be here." I thought, recalling the phone call I'd over heard. I was deciding what to do, when my mother suddenly appeared on the other side of the doors, her hand firmly on the back of my brother's neck. I didn't have time to move, when her eyes landed on me. Wearing my hot pink running gear had not been the smartest decision.
I saw her eyes widen and her nostrils flared, as she marched out the sliding doors and stopped in front of me. "I told you not to leave the house!" She growled at me, Henry still struggling beside her.
"I… I… I decided to go for a run and saw your car in front of the hospital. I got worried that something was wrong..." The lie flowed out.
She just continued past me, a clear indication that I was to follow. The ride back to the house was silent, and when we pulled up to the front, all she said was, "out." Henry and I exchanged glances. "Where are yo u going?" I asked cautiously.
My mom turned in the front seat, an impressive feat since she had her seat belt on, and glared at us. "I have work to do, now go inside, and stay there," she snapped. Her features softened slightly, but she said no more. Henry, got out of the car, unfazed at her words and ran to the house. I followed, a little more slowly, baffled at my mom's behavior.
I walked in the front door, and listened for Henry. I could tell he was in the storage closet, so I proceeded to the ruckus he was making. "What are you looking for?" I demanded from behind him.
He didn't answer me, but I watched as a pile of games fell off one shelf. Henry didn't even flinch as he turned around, a giant flashlight in his hand. "This!" he exclaimed, triumphantly.
"Uh, it's daytime, dude." I pointed out, confused.
"Prince Charming woke up and is missing. We have to help look for him." Henry explained, now headed to the kitchen. I looked at the mess in the closet, and let out an annoyed sigh, but went to follow.
When I got to the kitchen, he was shoving granola bars into his backpack. "Henry, we don't even know what is going on. We need to stay put." He faced me now, and proceeded to give me the low down on everything I had missed.
"Okay, but us romping around the forest will do nothing." I snapped, more harshly than I had intended.
"I know where he is, or, I know where he's going." Henry snapped back at me. "Why don't you want to help?" He suddenly demanded.
The question took me by surprise, and I took a step back. He eyed me, and I noticed he'd picked up the same piercing glare our mother had, even though they looked nothing alike. I couldn't find any words, so he shoved past me, causing me to stumble, and left. I heard the front door slam shut, but didn't turn around.
I knew I should go after him, but… I couldn't. Looking around, I decided I might as well finish my chores, as well as Henry's apparently.
It was nearly 9pm, and I had the house phone in my hand. If Henry wasn't back in 3 minutes, I was calling my mom. I'd cleaned the house, done some laundry, and tried to do homework, but I was too filled with guilt and worry. I should have gone with him, and I was furious with myself for being such a coward.
Unexpectedly, the front door open and I jumped up off the couch. My mom and Henry were bickering, and I paused, hiding myself in the shadow of the dark sitting room. I heard Henry whine out something like, "how long?"
Just barley over the threshold, I watched my mom spin him around to face her, and looked him straight in the eyes saying, "Until I decide otherwise." Her eyes widened slightly, daring him to argue back.
He struggled out of her grasp, threw his backpack by the front door, and march up the stairs. After a few seconds, we could hear his door slam shut, hard enough that the walls shook slightly.
Mom clenched and unclenched her hand several times, her eyes still looking up towards Henry's room. She looked much more relax, even with Henry's explosion of behavior just now. I could see her run her tongue over her teeth, lips closed, thinking. Then a slight smile tugged at the corners of her mouth, and with one more look up, she strolled down to her study, and quietly shut the door behind her.
I continued to stand in the shadows, confused for a couple of seconds, but set off to talk to Henry. I picked up his backpack on my way. Dang, this thing was heavy, but I noticed that the zipper wasn't closed all the way, and I could see inside a little. The corner of a brown, leather book, poked out slightly.
The story book I realized and stopped, halfway up the stairs. I unzipped the backpack enough to pull it out. The book was much heavier than I had expected, but it was here, and I was holding it. I looked back down to the study, and then back up to Henry's closed door. Making a split decision, I walked up the rest of the stairs and entered into my own room, closing the door behind me.
It was time for me to read the story book.
I get a 3 day weekend, so hopefully I'll be able to start writing the next episode! :o) Cheers!