A/N: Only got 1 review for the last chapter :( I hope you all are still reading and enjoying the story - 'cause I can't stop writing this one! The muses were really talking today. . . .
"By now you know I'd come for you
No one but you, yes I'd come for you
But only if you asked me to."
-Nickelback
Sleep was elusive that night.
Marshall stared at the ceiling, not daring to move from his bed to turn on any lights for fear that Will would see them and come knocking, demanding answers that he just didn't have.
"What do you mean you don't know if Mom ever loved you? Why did you guys get married in the first place – was it because she was pregnant with me?"
"No, Will, she wasn't pregnant."
"Then why?"
"I've told you the story – we went to Atlantic City and eloped after graduation."
Liam frowned. "Why do I think there's more to that story than you're telling me?"
Marshall jerked the keys out of the ignition. "I'm not going to talk about this with you, Will. I'm sorry – this is something that's between your mother and me."
Liam rolled his eyes. "If you're not going to talk to me, will you at least talk to her? Fuck, Dad, you're going to get an ulcer keeping all this inside."
Marshall smiled in the darkness of his bedroom, touched by his son's concern. Will was such a combination of him and Mary. He had Mary's fire and impatience, not to mention her colorful vocabulary – but he also possessed Marshall's ability to read people and treat them with tact and respect. Mary had missed so much by not seeing her son grow up. Why had she stayed away so long? Even if she hadn't loved him, she would have come back for Brandi – she never would have abandoned the little sister she had raised from birth.
December 1994
Jersey Joe's Diner
"Marshall!"
He looked up from wiping the counter to see Stella standing in the kitchen doorway, holding the telephone receiver. "It's for you. Make it fast – I need to lock up."
Marshall threw the rag in the dishpan and jogged over to take the phone from her hand. "I thought you'd left already."
"No, I have to finish these receipts first- talk to Mary, Marshall. She sounds upset."
"It's Mary?" His heartbeat quickened as he placed his ear to the phone. "Mary? Are you there?"
"Marshall? I'm sorry to bother you-"
"No – it's OK. What's up?"
"I – I need –"
"What?"
"Look, I know it's late and you're closing up but-"
"Mary, what do you need? Just tell me."
"Can you come over and stay with Squish for half an hour?"
"Sure, but why?"
"Look, I wouldn't ask if it wasn't important or there was anyone else-"
He rolled his eyes. "Gee – thanks. You sure know how to make a guy feel needed-"
"I wouldn't be asking if I didn't-"
"I'm kidding, Mer. I'm on my way, OK?"
"Thanks."
"But first you need to tell me where you live."
"Oh, right."
Marshall scribbled down her address and directions on the back of a used ticket. "I'll be there as quick as I can, OK? Just let me finish cleaning up and clock out." He hung up and turned to see that Stella had been listening to his end of the conversation.
"Mary needs you?"
"Yeah, she needs me to watch Brandi for a little bit – I told her I'd be there as soon as I –"
"Go."
"Really?"
Stella nodded. "Mary never asks anyone for help – the fact that she reached out to you-" she shook her head. "Go – I'll finish cleaning up."
"Thanks, boss."
It only took eight minutes to drive to Mary's apartment building in his dad's beat up pickup truck. He had barely turned off the engine when one of the ground floor unit doors opened and he saw Mary beckoning to him. Fighting back a smile, he jogged over to her. "Stella let me go as soon as we hung up."
She nodded. "I was hoping she would. Look, I have another huge favor to ask – can I borrow your truck?"
Marshall frowned. "Mary, what's going on?"
She ran a nervous hand through her hair. "We only have one car and it's currently at the bar with my mother who is passed out on the floor so I need to borrow yours to go pick her up, OK?"
He stared at her in disbelief. "You're a minor – they won't let you into a bar."
She blew out a breath of frustration. "I've been doing it ever since I got my permit – actually, before that – but that's not the point. I know the owners and as long as I just go in and get her and leave again, it's fine. Now, can I take your truck or not?"
He dropped the keys into her hand. "Be careful – it's not mine, it's my dad's."
She paled. "I'd better take something in case she wakes up and gets sick." She turned and went back inside the apartment and he followed, closing the door behind her.
He scanned the bare room with the well worn furniture and tried hard not to compare it to the house he lived in – the one full of pictures and knick knacks and comfy furniture. He swallowed hard at the lack of Christmas décor and no tree. Mary came back into the room with a black garbage bag, stopping when she saw the expression on his face.
"What?" she snapped.
"Nothing – just, where's your tree?"
She snorted. "Trees and presents cost money, String Bean. Mom drinks all the extra cash away. I'll be back as soon as I can. Squish is asleep in the back bedroom. If she wakes up-"
"I'll handle it – I've got younger brothers, remember?"
Mary nodded and left, closing the door softly behind her. Marshall ran a hand through his hair and turned slowly, continuing to look around the front room with a small kitchen attached. He opened cupboards and swallowed hard at the meager contents. It was the first half of the month; why didn't they have more food?
"Mary?"
The cupboard door slammed shut as Marshall spun at the sound of Brandi's voice. He moved towards the narrow hallway, moving slowly in case she was just talking in her sleep.
"Marshall?"
She rounded the corner and came into the front room, her bare feet padding on the wooden floor, her eyes huge in her pale face. "What are you doing here – where's Mary?"
"Hi, Bee," he soothed, as he dropped to a crouch. "Your sister had to go out for a little bit so she asked me to stay with you."
Brandi clutched a teddy bear tighter to her side. "She went to get mom, right?"
Marshall nodded. "She'll be back soon though. What are you doing up – bad dream?"
"No – I'm hungry."
His own stomach flipped over in sympathy as he grinned. He reached out and pulled at a pigtail. "Let's see if I can fix that, OK?"
The cupboards were nearly empty and the only thing in the fridge was some expired milk and moldy cheese. But he did manage to find some peanut butter and there were a few graham crackers left. After Brandi finished her snack, her eyes grew heavy. Marshall scooped her up in his arms and carried her down the short hall to her room. Pushing open the door, he was surprised to see two twin beds – the sisters must share this room. Seeing the unmade bed in one corner, he set Brandi down and tucked her in, brushing the hair off her forehead.
"Story?" she whispered sleepily.
He smiled as he sat on the floor by the bed. "What story would you like to hear?"
"Do you know Cinderella? It's my favorite."
Marshall had just gotten to the part where Cinderella arrived at the ball when he heard thumping against the front door. Bee's breathing had evened out awhile ago and so he made sure she was all tucked in before he closed the bedroom door and went to see if Mary needed help getting her mom inside. Just as he reached for the doorknob, the front door flew open, knocking him back a step or two in surprise. Instead of seeing Mary supporting her mother, he saw an older woman with flaming red hair leaning against the doorway, her eyes wide and unfocused as she looked him up and down.
"Who's this, Sweet Pea? Are you entertaining while your mother's away and your baby sister's asleep down the hall?"
Mary ducked under her mother's arm and stomped into the apartment, her face set in an angry mask. "This is Marshall, Mom. I've told you about him, remember?"
Jinx's face scrunched up as she murmured, "I thought you were dating Mark – not Mitch."
Mary rolled her eyes. "I am dating Mark – this is MarSHALL. He works with me at Jersey Joe's – he's my friend, Mom."
Jinx hummed low as she entered the room on unsteady legs, swinging the door shut behind her. "Men and women can't be friends, Sweet Pea. Listen to your mother – I ought to know. Sooner or later, they all want one thing from you – and that's to fuck your -"
"MOM!"
Marshall felt himself flush to the roots of his hair as he watched the interaction between mother and daughter. He'd never seen someone this drunk before and he was one part horrified, one part fascinated. He'd heard that people lost their inhibitions and didn't have a filter when they were this drunk – would Ms. Shannon remember anything she'd said tomorrow?
Mary was still speaking. "I'll thank you not to alienate the only person-"
Suddenly someone started banging on the front door. "Jinx! Jinx – baby! Are you in there?"
Jinx gave a high pitched squeal as she fell against the door, giggling, before she managed to open it. "Wayne darlin', I thought you'd left!"
"Not without one last good-bye, sugar!"
Jinx fell into Wayne's arms and the two of them locked lips and limbs. He shut the door before slamming her up against it, their hands clawing at clothes and Jinx's legs wrapping around his hips. Mary made a disgusted noise deep in her throat as Marshall's jaw dropped.
"Um, Mary?" he whispered. "How am I supposed to get home?"
She grimaced as she took his elbow and steered him down the hall without a backwards glance at the couple that was bumping and grinding against the front door. "You'll just have to wait until they finish. You can wait back here in my room – unless, you'd rather watch?"
He reared back in shock. "What – no – how could you even-"
Mary was biting her lower lip to hold in her laughter as she pushed open the door of the bedroom that she shared with Brandi. The moans were getting louder from the front room as she shut the door behind them.
She motioned to her bed. "Have a seat."
He shook his head as he dropped to the floor. "Here is fine."
"You're such a girl – what do you think is going to happen if we both sit on my bed?"
Marshall shook his head. "Doesn't matter – you have a boyfriend and your little sister is asleep right over there-" he nodded his head in Brandi's direction.
Mary's face softened as she looked at Squish. "Thanks for staying with her – did she wake up?"
He nodded. "She was hungry so I made her a snack."
"Of what?"
"Peanut butter and graham crackers – then I told her 'Cinderella' until she fell back asleep."
Mary sighed. "It's her favorite – I remember when I still believed in fairy tales."
More thumping and groaning from outside the bedroom made Marshall blush again. "So how long has this been going on?"
Mary shrugged. "Mom started bringing guys home a couple of years after – I was ten, I think."
He did some calculating in his head. "Bee would have been three-"
She nodded.
"And have they always-"
"Yup."
"But who looked after the two of you?"
"I looked after Squish – she was a good baby, even if she cried more than I thought was necessary."
"Mary, all babies cry. They can't talk, so they cry."
"I guess."
"So where's your Dad?"
"Gone."
"Gone as in dead – or as in-"
"As in gone, OK? He left when I was seven and Brandi was a newborn. What's with the twenty questions, Marshall?"
"I'm just trying to get to know you better, Mary-"
She crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. "Why? What's the point when you and I both know that the second you walk out that door you won't speak to me again."
For the second time that night, Marshall's jaw fell open. "Why would you say that?"
"Because it's the truth. You're the first person I've ever let into my house – who's ever seen my mom in one of her states, who's ever seen the real me, and I know you're disgusted. I've been watching your face all night and you know what I've seen? Pity. Everyone used to look at us with pity after my dad left – and I hated it. I didn't want their pity then and I don't want your pity now. So you can just take your pity and-"
Marshall got to his knees and without thinking pressed his lips to hers. He didn't know what else to do. The fire in her green eyes was drawing him like a moth to a flame and the fact that she was mistaking pity for genuine affection nearly broke his heart. He was getting lost in the sensation of her soft lips beneath his that when her hand connected with his cheek, he fell back in surprise, staring up at her.
"What the hell was that?" she hissed.
"I – I just thought that if I kissed you, you'd see that it's not pity, it's-" he swallowed, his hand cupping his reddening cheek.
"It's what?" she whispered, a hand ghosting over her lips. "Don't tell me you like me because-"
"What if I do?"
She shook her head. "No one likes me – not even Mark."
Marshall cocked his head. "Then why are you dating him?"
"That's none of your business."
He reached up and cupped her cheek. "I could make it my business."
The bedroom door flew open and bounced against the wall. Wayne stood in the doorway, clad only in a pair of silk boxers, frowning. "This isn't the loo."
Mary gritted her teeth. "It's next door."
"Oh, right, sorry. Didn't mean to interrupt, kids. Carry on." He laughed and stumbled down the hall.
Marshall dropped his hand. "I need to get home – my Dad is going to ground me until Christmas as it is. Do you have the keys?"
Mary nodded and dug them out of her jeans pocket, and placed them in his palm. "Good night, Marshall. And thanks again for staying with Squish."
He stared hard at her for a moment before nodding. "If you need me, all you have to do is call – I'll come."
She smiled. "I know."
The sound of retching came from the bathroom and Marshall grimaced. "Are you sure you and Bee will be OK? I could stay-"
"And let your father kill us tomorrow? No thank you. Go home, Marshall. I've been in worse situations than this."
He raised his eyebrows but she shook her head and he nodded, knowing that she wasn't going to share anymore tonight. "Good night, Mer."
He was nearly to the hallway before her whisper stopped him.
"Marshall?"
"Yeah?"
"Don't care about me – I'll only end up hurting you."
"Too late, Sunshine."
Marshall finally felt his eyes grow heavy with sleep as the memory of that night long ago faded. He had never shared that particular one with Will – it contained too many raw graphic images of Jinx, a woman that was long gone, and private moments between him and Mary. He had just summarized the progression of their relationship for his son, saying that their friendship had flowed into romance. But he knew the day would come when Will would want those missing pieces filled in. Marshall just didn't think he could do it without Mary's permission or input.
As sleep claimed his exhausted body, deep in Marshall's mind the question remained: Mother Mary never would have abandoned the sister she had raised from infancy – so why had she never reached out after all these years?
A/N: Why hasn't Mary reached out to her little sister? Up next: the long awaited reunion between Liam and Mary. Reviews are LOVE!