Good Bye
~~ Okay, here's the next chapter with the whole good bye scene. First of all, I just wanted to dedicate this chapter to one of my best friends who just a few days ago lost her father to suicide. :(
Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter but it might not be very good on account of my grandpa just died today...great month eh?~~


“ Stay close…”

Xander grabbed his sister’s hand tightly as they were escorted down a long corridor leading to a large metal door at the end of the hall. He didn’t know quite what to make of this large cement building but had a feeling that there weren’t many kids who traveled these halls…at the least, none at all. It seemed more like a grown up place, filled with scary looking bars on the windows, blocking out most of the natural light from outside. Xander couldn’t help but watch the baton on the guard’s belt sway lightly by his side as he walked.

As they stopped at the large metal door, his mind slowly began to drift into the explanation of what that baton might be used for. Laura nudged him out of his daydream and walked with him into a large room filled with tables and small windows overlooking the prison parking lot.

They were instructed to remain behind the bullet proof glass and to not go beyond the skinny metal door at the other end of the room, for that was where the prisoners were located. Laura shuddered slightly at the coolness of the room and watched as the guard took his place at the door behind her, motioning with his eyes for her to take a seat at the table.

With her usual grace, she took a seat at the white table and stared into the other half of the closed off room, noticing that it was identical to her side of the room. The only difference was the padlocked metal door on the other side of the room. Xander stared up at his big sister and frowned, feeling her pulling him up into her lap and turning him around to face the glass. He leaned back against her chest and gave a heavy sigh, not knowing exactly what was going to happen next.

Laura swallowed nervously and blinked with jittering eyelids, feeling her anxiety thumping in her chest. Two months without seeing Mike felt like an eternity and she wasn’t sure of what to expect from him. Would he just stare at her without saying a word?

Would he swear and bad mouth her for no reason? Would he become violent and try to break through the glass? Unlikely, but Mike was capable of almost anything when he was angry.

Suddenly, a loud bang interrupted her frightful thoughts and caused her heart to jump in her throat. She heard the jingling of keys and cuffs, creating an orchestra from down the hall, getting closer and closer. It felt like an eternity as the sounds neared, but really it had only been a few seconds until the cuffed man was pulled towards the table, stopping slowly so that he could comfortably seat himself on the hard plastic chair.

Laura swallowed back a growing lump in her throat and wrapped her arms around Xander protectively, closing her hands around his belly. Mike looked up from the floor slowly, attempting to calm himself for the visit. When he had found out that his children were coming to visit him, he felt nothing but anxiety because there really was no way to tell how they would feel…or even how he’d feel under their intense gaze.

Gathering his strength, he lifted his soft dark eyes and blinked slowly at the two children sitting before him, behind the glass. Each silent moment that passed between them caused overwhelming emotions from both sides. Emotions of hate, love, worry, fear and sorrow circled around the room, seemingly causing the air to become thick.

Mike felt his throat closing around the lump that he was attempting to force down. Controlling his emotions would be a lot harder than he thought. Even holding back his tears was a difficult task. They both looked so…weary and stressed. Somehow, he figured it was not because of the visitation. Mike lifted his cuffed wrists and grabbed the receiver of the phone and dropped it onto the table, watching Laura’s dark brown eyes searching his. She had to talk to him? It was hard enough finding enough courage coming here in the first place and now she had to actually speak to this monster.

Mike gave a heavy sigh when she remained still and lowered his head, peering around the room with darkening eyes. Why did she have to be so stubborn? Xander didn’t move a muscle during all of this. At the moment, he was just trying to understand why his father had on metal bracelets and was sitting behind an invisible barrier, unable to escape. Laura reluctantly reached out with a shaky hand and grabbed the receiver, bringing it up slowly to her ear. Mike watched her carefully, making sure she wouldn’t just drop it and run out of the room. When he was certain, he brought his receiver up to his ear and clutched it tightly with both hands.

“ Hey Mike…”

He blinked slowly at her words and sighed inwardly. So this was how it was going to be.

“ First name basis huh?” He asked softly.

Laura was surprised at his gentle words because she had expected him to be speaking harshly with anger directed at her.

“ That shock you?” she asked quietly.

He shook his head a little and lowered his eyes. “ No…the way I see it, we’re back to square one.” He explained gently.

“ Square one?” she replied with slight confusion.

“ When we first met. You called me Mike…even after you found out I was your father.”

“ I didn’t respect you back then…and I certainly don’t respect you now.” She answered with a harsher tone. He nodded with acknowledgment and gave a small grin, lowering his head. Somehow he had expected that answer.

“ Thanks for coming…even though you were probably forced by your mom-.”

“ –I came willingly.”

He lifted his head slowly and gave a small frown, watching her eyes glistening beneath the harsh fluorescent lighting of the prison.

“ You…came willingly…I find that very hard to believe.” He stated.

“ Why do you find that so hard to believe?”

“ Because you hate me.” He replied with a furrowed brow.

Laura glanced down at Xander who was watching his father’s mouth moving with awe as each word was spoken.

“ So…I came to tell you I hate you. Just thought you should know before you’re completely abandoned by everyone who used to love you.” She explained quickly.

Mike lowered his eyes at her bitter tone and leaned forward against the table with interest. “ Is that the real reason?”

“ Not entirely. Xander wanted to see you.” She replied.

The little boy looked up at the mention of his name and frowned at his older sister, grabbing for the receiver selfishly.

“ Me! Gimme!” he whined.

“ Xander, keep still…” she hissed with a glare.

“ I wanna talk to Daddy!” He whined even louder, swatting at her face and causing her to sigh out with irritation.

Mike hid a smile despite the annoyed look upon his daughter’s face. He really missed moments like this, where his children would fight and argue with each other about the littlest things.

“ Laura gimme!”

“ You can wait.”

“ Nuhuh! Gimme! Please? Please? Please!” he shouted.

With a growl and a roll of the eyes, she finally gave in and handed her little brother the phone, watching his hands clutching it clumsily and awkwardly. He pressed it against his ear and leaned forward against the table, staring into his father’s eyes. Mike gave a small smile as he listened to Xander’s breathing. He really missed his little boy.

He missed the nights where Xander would fall asleep on his chest while they were watching TV late at night. He missed cleaning off his face when he missed his mouth while eating ice cream. He even missed bringing him to the studio where Chester would stick super huge earphones on his head, making Mike chuckle at the adorable toddler nearly falling out of the chair because of the weight of the earphones. Even now, the memories caused a substantial amount of tears to begin burning his eyes.

“ Hey Xander…”

“ Hi Daddy…” he replied quietly with a little bit of caution. After all, he had never forgotten the day his father dropped him on the floor after nearly cracking all of his ribs. Mike’s breath hitched in his throat at the sound of his little boy’s voice.

He had been waiting to hear that little voice since the first day he was confined. It was as if the heavens opened up above him, allowing communication with this small, innocent angel. He made a silent prayer of thanks and swallowed hard, finding his voice among the tears.

“ Have…have you been good?” he asked softly, trying not to scare the nervous child. Xander sighed heavily into the receiver and frowned defiantly.

“ Yeah…always good…” he explained. Really, how could his own father even bother asking that question when everyone knew that Xander was a good kid. Mike nodded a little and rested his elbows against the frigid table.

“ Have you been watching out for Mommy?”

“ Mhm…but she won’t let me have ice cream for breakfast…” he muttered with annoyance in that adorable little voice, followed by a pout that made Mike’s heart melt. He gave a small chuckle and shook his head, watching his son’s big eyes brighten at the sound of his laughter.

“ Well you tell Mommy that I said you could, okay?” he asked, feeling the tears blurring his vision despite the laughter.

“ Kay!” Xander smiled, causing the dimples in his cheeks to deepen. Mike blinked lightly, allowing a single tear to crawl down his cheek. Oh how he missed ice cream mornings.

“ Okay…give the phone back to your sister…”

“ No.” he whined, leaning forward for a better look at his father.

“ Xander…I have to let you go now okay?”

“ No…”

“ Xander plea-.”

“ –Daddy I want you to come home…” He whimpered desperately, stopping his voice from escaping his throat.

Mike lowered his eyes sorrowfully and sighed into the receiver. Saying good bye to him was not going to be easy.

“ I know…I want to come home too but I can’t.”

“ Why not?” The little boy asked, feeling the tears beginning to bubble up.

“ Daddy’s in trouble. I’m being punished…just like I’d punish you if you did something bad.”

“ B-but…you not bad…” he whined.

Mike watched his lips beginning to tremble and didn’t know how much longer he’d be able to hold it together without completely breaking down in sobs. This was all too heartbreaking. Laura watched in silence as the sorrow in her father’s eyes became more evident and Xander’s voice became more desperate and broken with tears.

“ I’m sorry Xander…but I’m going to have to say good bye okay?” Mike asked, biting his bottom lip in an attempt to keep his overwhelming emotions at bay. Xander shook his head feverishly and blinked out a few tears. Mike watched them glisten down his crimson cheeks, then come to a rest at the bottom of his chin.

“ No…no good bye…” Xander muttered, coughing out a sob. Mike let a few more tears fall and lowered his head while staring into his son’s watery eyes which were soon closing with tears.

“ Xander…p-please. Don’t cry…” he whispered into the receiver, wanting so bad to stroke his hair and hold him in his arms. Xander began shaking terribly with each sob, feeling his sister rubbing his back comfortingly.

“ Daddy…come home…”

“ I c-can’t Xander. I wish I could…” Mike replied brokenly.

“ I miss you…”

“ I miss you too…but you’re going to have to be strong now okay?” Mike asked, sniffed back his tears.

“ C-can’t…” the little boy sobbed into the receiver.

Mike blinked quickly and felt the tears running freely down his cheeks now, flooding them immensely. “ Yes you can Xander. You have to okay? I can’t be there anymore. I know you can be strong…you just need to try. Can you try for me? Please?”

Xander continued to cry quietly for a short moment before finally nodding.

“ Okay…thank you. I love you Xander…” Mike stated quietly.

“ Love you too D-Daddy…” he wept, lowering his head weakly. What happened next, caused Mike’s heart to nearly explode with sorrow and the tears to literally choke him. Xander dropped the receiver and held out his hands, touching the glass in front of him in an attempt to reach his father. Of course it was of no use.

Mike stared at the image before him…at the shaking child desperately attempting to get to his father. Laura held back her tears and watched as Mike lowered the receiver to the table and reached out with both cuffed hands together, then spread them onto the thick glass against his son’s tiny shaking hands. The image of them separated even caused the guards to become a little teary eyed as they watched everything from a distance. Mike lowered his head as Laura slowly pulled the shaking child away from the glass and held him against her chest, stroking his hair softly while watching Mike with gentle eyes.

He really had changed and that much was evident. All his movements and the way he spoke was so gentle, as if he were trying not to scare the air around him. As Laura watched him wipe away his tears and peer into his sorrowful eyes, she knew deep down in her heart that he was no longer a danger. He was simply a fragile man who was emotionally broken and had made a giant mistake which in turn ended up ruining his life and the life of everyone else around him.

Laura reached for the receiver and pressed it against her ear, staring at Mike with expectation. He swallowed hard and sniffed away his tears, feeling them drying against his hot skin. Slowly and shakily, he picked up the receiver and pressed it against his ear, blinking slowly with deep sorrow and guilt.

“ Christ…” he breathed, shaking his head in disbelief at the situation. This was the last chance he had to see his children…and it was breaking his heart.

“ You okay?” Laura asked quietly while Xander continued to weep against her shirt, soaking it with his tears.

“ Jesus…uh…God no…” Mike replied with a trembling voice, staring into her dark eyes full of concern.

“ Here you’re telling Xander to be strong and you can barely hold it together yourself…” she explained with a furrowed brow.

Mike glared in disbelief and choked out a small cry. “ Laura, do you have any idea what I’m going through right now? I’m never going to fucking see you two ever again! Its hurting me…and you know what, I can’t always be strong.” He explained.

“ You should be hurting Mike. This was all your fault.” Laura replied.

He stared at her for a long moment and blinked out more tears, feeling his heavy heart pounding against his rib cage because he knew that at the end of this visit he wasn’t even going to see Laura again.

“ I’m sorry…” he whispered faintly, feeling instantly week.

He didn’t even know if he was going to be able to walk out of there when this was all finished. Laura nodded slowly and lowered her eyes, sensing his grief. It was hard not to be affected by his dark eyes so full of tears and his voice broken and strained with each word. It made Laura tremble terribly to see him so broken and weak.

“ I know Mike…I know…” she answered softly with a sincere tone, indicating that she understood his guilt.

“ There’s just nothing left to say except I’m sorry.” He explained with a quiet tone.

“ Then I’ll take it. I won’t forgive you but I’ll accept your apology…only because you’ve learned your lesson and the fact that you’ll never see us again and I don’t exactly want to leave this place on bad terms with you. Who knows, when you get out you might hunt us down and murder us for putting you in prison.” She explained with a small smirk.

Mike shook his head and breathed out heavily at her sarcasm. Leave it to Laura to say something to make him feel miserable and comforted at the same time.

“ When do you get out anyway?” she asked after a short while of silence. Mike looked up from the table and glanced out the window, watching the birds flying by.

“ The judge reduced my sentence to nine months based on my psychological disorders and I’ll probably get out at five months based on good behaviour.”

“ Five months huh…sounds like a long time.”

“ Better than a year I guess…” He replied, slowly regaining his strength. Laura nodded and gave a heavy sigh in thought, then slowly decided to end the visit just because she didn’t know how long until she would begin crying. She may have seemed tough on the outside but deep down inside she missed him…missed him so much even after what he did.

“ Well…I should be getting home. Mom will have dinner ready.” She explained, then cleared her throat of the tears. Mike nodded a little and swallowed the lump in his throat once again, watching her eyes rimming with tears.

“ Just to let you know, I suck at big good byes.” He explained with a low tone.

Laura gave a sideways smile and placed Xander on the floor, watching him rubbing his teary eyes.

“ Then let’s make it a short one.” She replied casually.

Mike nodded with a smirk and bit his bottom lip, observing every shade of brown in her eyes for he would never see them again.

“ See ya brat…” he stated shakily.

“ Bye Mike…”

And with that, the visit ended as Laura hung up the receiver and stood up. She picked up Xander and felt his arms tightening around her neck as he rested his head against her shoulder. Mike watched with a heavy heart as Laura turned around once again, looking back at him one last time.

She stared at him as he mouthed the words ‘I love you’.

With a nod, she turned around and began walking towards the door. Xander lifted his hand and waved slowly as he was pulled away from his father. Mike waved back and lowered his eyes with deep sorrow as they finally disappeared behind the door with a slam.

It was over.

They were gone.

Mike slowly lowered his head to the table and began sobbing quietly, feeling guard’s watchful gaze upon him, never moving. They watched this frail prisoner as his world became shattered…

Nothing compares to
Life I have in You
Nothing of this world satisfies
So, I want to let go
I want to let You know
All that I have to give is Yours

Here I am
As gold to the fire
I will surrender to Your hand
To this place
Lord, I have come ready for Your touch

It's all for You
It's all for You
I'm letting go
I'm letting go

What is it in me
That hangs on for so long
Why do I fight the tears that come?
I work so hard to
Keep in control when
All that I want is to let go

I'll take this life
And lay it down
I'm letting go
I'm letting go
My hopes and dreams
Here at Your feet
I'm letting go
I'm letting go

And I am ready for Your life
And I am ready for You now

{Song: All For You}
{Artist: Starfield}

~~ More to come soon...let me know what you thought and thanks for reading ~~
Leaving Hell
~~ Okay...wow...I didn't expect the kind of reaction I saw from the last chapter. I didn't mean to make it so sad...lol...but anyways, you all seemed to have enjoyed it. So here is another chapter, might be kind of short depending...so anywhoo, ENJOY! :)~~



5 months later…

The sun glowed gently against his bronze cheeks as he squinted through the small window, looking out into the desert field below. This was the perfect place for a men’s prison…secluded from all the towns and cities and as far away from every type of civilization as possible.

Mike pulled his black tee shirt over his head and pulled it down over his muscular abs. Of course being in prison had its advantages because anyone could really get a good work out. Mike ran his hand through his still damp hair from the shower he had recently taken and picked up his watch, rolling it around his wrist and adjusting it to the appropriate tightness. He was thankful that he didn’t have to wear those horrible metal cuffs anymore because frankly he was sick of watching his skin become cracked and dry from the irritation.

Quickly and with ease, he grabbed his shoes from the small plastic bag he was given and sat down on the hard plastic chair. He slipped on his shoes and tied them tightly, then stood up and blinked down at the rest of his personal belongings, not that he had that many mind you. Cautiously, he picked up his metal chain and placed it around his neck, locking the ends together skillfully, confident that it would not come undone.

He then stared down at his earrings and gave a small frown, not entirely sure if he’d be able to get them back in or not. With a heavy sigh, he picked up one of them and grabbed his ear, pressing the edge against the hole which was now scabbed over from lack of usage. To his surprise and amazement, the earring slipped right in which in turn allowed him to snap it in place. With more confidence, he grabbed the other one and slipped it easily into his other ear and snapped it in place just as he had done with the other.He stared down at the last belonging he owned…filled with happy and sorrowful memories. The wedding band caught the sun’s light and began glistening brightly, causing each diamond to glow and sparkle.

He lowered his eyes slightly and eyed each diamond, watching them shimmer like the love he and his wife once shared. Suddenly without warning, all the flashbacks began swarming through his head like lightening, causing him to squint terribly with each painful memory.

Screaming, whipping, and crying.

He could still see the blood spattering against the kitchen walls as he continued whipping his screaming wife. He could still hear the crack of the bone in her cheek as he threw the phone at her. He watched through his own eyes, unable to stop himself as he continued punching, kicking and slashing at her at a damaging speed. He watched his own muscular hands wrapped around her neck, squeezing the life from her eyes.

Smack…she hit the floor.

Heavy sobbing filled his ears as well as choking and coughing.

The crying of a small child increased in volume over Anna’s as well as the panicked whispering of a young girl, attempting to comfort the child. Mike blinked quickly through the sounds and horrible sights and was suddenly taken back to the sunny room where he was preparing himself for departure. His heart banged against his chest as he looked around slowly, swallowing hard at the flashes of memories. It had taken a short while for him to realize that his hands were now shaking. After having nightmares of these images every night, you’d think he’d be used to them by now.

Of course he wasn’t…and he was probably never going to get used to them. Slowly, he reached down for the wedding band and gripped it tightly, placing it into the palm of his hand so he could feel the heavy gold. For a short moment, he began considering whether or not he should wear it or just put it into his pocket until he found a good place for it.

Mike gave a light sigh and shrugged, slipping it onto his wedding finger on the right hand instead of the left where it would usually go. This signified the emptiness of marriage on the left but the love he still held for her on the right. They were no longer his family but he still cared for them deeply. From this moment on, they would remain a memory of his past, represented by that single ring on his right hand because he wouldn’t allow himself to forget them even if they had forgotten him.

Without another thought, he walked up to the door and opened it, where he was greeted by one guard to make sure he was escorted out of the prison safely. Mike rolled his eyes and frowned as he was escorted down the hall.

Could the walk have been any longer?

Finally, after walking past about a million offices, which was a slight exaggeration, he was led into the front lobby where the front desk was located with all his discharging forms. Mike walked over to the desk as the man behind the glass slid his forms from underneath the slot towards him. He grabbed them gently and grasped a pen, beginning to sign on all the dotted lines. As he flipped through each sheet and signed them, he found himself stopping at one of them for a long moment, just staring at each word.

RESTRAINING ORDER EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY.

It then began explaining all the restrictions and conditions he had to obey so he would be able to keep his ass out of jail. Mike’s dark eyes scanned each line carefully; making sure this was all for real. After reassuring himself of the authenticity of the order, he flipped through the rest of the papers and finished signing them. He carefully slid the papers back through the slot towards the primary worker behind the desk and gave a small frown. The one contract he had expected to see wasn’t there.

How the hell am I supposed to sign the divorce papers if they aren’t fucking here? It’s not like I can just walk up to the house and demand to see them…thus resulting in more jail time. Maybe she wants me to stay here forever.

He raised a brow at his own thoughts and turned around, staring right in the face of the guard who was holding a large duffel bag in his hand. Mike frowned a little in question as the guard shoved the duffel bag towards him.

“ This was sent to you by someone who says they know you. There are some clothes and other items in here that I assume you’re going to need.” He explained quietly.

Mike stared at the bag for a long moment, trying to figure out who could have possibly brought this. Finally, he grabbed it and nodded at the guard who buzzed open the large metal door leading outside. Mike stepped into the bright sunshine with squinted eyes, feeling the small breeze ruffling the spikes on his head. His clean shaven skin burned against the sun’s heated rays as he quickly made his way towards the parking lot. Suddenly he stopped and opened the duffel bag and sighed with relief, seeing the cell phone among all the clothes. He grasped it tightly and flipped it open, stopping suddenly as a large shadow danced over the phone’s screen.

Mike looked up to see a dark blue, almost black GMC Yukon. The side window was automatically rolled down, revealing a familiar person behind the tinted glass.

“ Calling someone?”

Mike stared at the cocky grin and lowered his eyes, creating a dark shadow across his face.

“ Yeah, a cab. What the hell are you doing here?”

“ I thought you might have wanted to see your ole pal Chazzy Chaz! I see you got the bag okay.” Chester explained while pointing to it.

“ Yeah I did…”

“ Did what? Got the bag okay or wanted to see me?” He asked. Mike rolled his eyes and flipped his phone closed, stuffing it back into the bag and zipping it up.

“ Chester go home.” He ordered with a deep, impatient tone. Chester lowered his eyes at his best friend’s attitude and leaned against the steering wheel to get a better view out the window.

“ Do you not appreciate the fact that I came here to maybe give you a ride?” he asked.

Mike walked up to the window and dropped the bag onto the ground, then leaned against the frame of the window, dangling his hands into the vehicle.

“ I don’t need a ride from you. I’m a big boy now, I can take care of myself.” Mike explained quietly with a serious tone, which did not reflect that of Chester’s goofy grin.

“ Come on man, you spend some time in prison and you can’t even crack a smile? He asked with a furrowed brow.

“ Why are you changing the subject?” Mike asked slowly.

“ Because you look really…depressed…” Chester replied cautiously, careful not to upset him.

“ I’m fine.” Mike stated shortly.

“ You don’t look fine.”

“ Chester, would you let me call a cab?” He demanded with a frown.

“ Who’s changing the subject now?”

Mike sighed heavily, trying so hard not to become annoyed with him but unfortunately Chester could see ANNOYANCE plastered all over his face.

“ Look man, I know how hard it is to get back onto your feet after being away for a while. At leased let me give you a place to stay while you find your own place.” Chester offered gently, watching Mike’s dark eyes scanning his.

“ Why?” He asked after a while, catching Chester off guard.

With a deep frown, he stared at Mike speechlessly for several seconds before replying.

“ What do you mean why? I’m your best friend. Best friends watch out for each other.”

“ I tried to kill you.” Mike stated quietly.

Chester sighed heavily and rolled his eyes. “ Michael, when will you learn? That happened nine months ago…it’s in the past. Besides, it wasn’t really you…it was the stress and depression and alcohol-.”

“ –Did you just call me Michael?” he demanded in disbelief.

Chester stared at him with an arched brow and nodded slowly.

“ Yeah, so what?”

“ Don’t…”

“ It’s your name…” He replied with a light chuckle.

Mike bit his bottom lip and nodded a little before replying. “ I’ve been called Michael every fucking day since I arrived here. I don’t need to hear it again from you. Just for the sake of normality, call me Mike…”

“ Alright, fair enough…Mikey-.”

“ –Don’t push it.” He interrupted with a warning glare.

Chester chuckled loudly and shook his head at his friend who was now sporting a small smile, despite the current homelessness and loneliness.

“ Come on Mike, get in. I’m not going to make you pay for a cab when there’s a free ride waiting for you here.” Chester explained, coughing down his laughter.

Reluctantly, Mike gave a sigh of thanks and picked up his bag, throwing it into the backseat from the open window. He then opened the passenger side door and jumped into the truck, slamming the door.

“ How does it feel to be free?” Chester asked, turning up the air conditioning.

“ I don’t know…the same as always…”

“ Well, are you happy?” He asked, watching Mike turn on the radio…then the volume all the way, causing the windows to vibrate.

Mike gave a wide smile and gave a small laugh. “ YES! ROCK! I LOVE YOU!”

“ I’ll take that as a yes…” Chester laughed, then pulled out of the prison lot, shaking his head.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~


“ Alright…so, the couch is all yours. Have whatever you want from the fridge and pantries. Other than that, make yourself at home…BUT not under ANY circumstances are you to have any midnight snacks. Those belong to ME!”

Mike nodded slowly with an arched brow and threw his bag onto the couch.

“ I’ll try to contain myself Chester…”

“ Good…so any plans for today?” he asked casually and opened the fridge.

“ Dude, I JUST got out of prison today…give me some time to settle in…” Mike explained as he walked into the kitchen.

“ Oh…right…sorry.” He replied, then reached into the fridge for something cold to drink.

“ Hey Mike, want a beer?” he asked, giving a huge smile. Mike lowered his eyes and shook his head.

“ Not funny.”

“ Sorry, I just couldn’t resist.” He laughed back and threw him a soda.

“ Yeah, typical…” He muttered under his breath as Chester closed the fridge. Seconds later, the doorbell rang throughout the house, causing Chester to grumble out heavily with irritation.

“ Probably Joe, or Rob or someone wanting to use my computer…” He muttered as he opened the door, then swallowed his words and widened his eyes at the person before him.

“ Anna!”

Mike snapped his head up towards Chester and gave him a worried look, hearing Anna’s voice behind the door.

“ Chester…why did you just yell my name?”

“ Happy to see you?” he replied nervously with a cheesy grin. Anna raised a brow and moved towards the inside of the house, when she was suddenly stopped by the door.

“ What brings you here?” Chester asked shakily.

“ I was wondering if you had any stamps. I was going to mail Mike the divorce papers-.”

“ –You can’t mail them.” Chester interrupted suddenly, causing her to stop cold with confusion.

“ I can’t?”

“ No.”

“ Why the hell not?”

“ Fresh outta stamps…” He breathed, then mentally kicked himself because right on top of the coffee table, in plain sight of Anna were the new stamps he had received in the mail yesterday.

“ Shit…” he whispered to himself.

“ Chester, why won’t you let me mail him the divorce papers?” She asked with a small frown.

“ Uh…because he’s not at his usual mailing address…” he replied.

“ But he’s still in pr…wait…what day is it?” she asked quickly.

“ The day Mike gets out of jail and is now standing in my kitchen.” Chester answered with a small frown.

Anna’s eyes widened slightly as she looked past him into his house, but couldn’t see into the kitchen from that angle. Mike looked down as he listened to the whole conversation, feeling sort of out of place. Besides, if he came anywhere near her, he’d be back in jail…even standing in the kitchen with her outside was enough to get him arrested.

Anna’s eyes slowly darkened and she glanced back at Chester who was giving her a worried look. None of them wanted Mike to go back to prison…especially since he had already served his time. Suddenly, Anna did the unthinkable, pushing the door open wider before Chester could stop her.

“ Michael.” She called, as Chester blocked her from entering the house. Mike stared at Chester silently with a dark gaze, not knowing exactly what to do…so he just stood there frozen.

“ Michael, come here.” She ordered softly.

Chester looked back at Mike who was pleading at him with his eyes to get her to go away…or maybe he was silently asking him what to do.

“ Anna, he can’t do that.” Chester stated with a trembling voice.

“ Then let me in.”

“ Anna, if he comes anywhere near you, he’ll go back to jail.”

“ He’s not coming near me, I’m coming near him.” She explained impatiently.

“ Anna, don-.”

Before he could stop her, she pushed past him with amazing strength and walked into the house. Suddenly, their worlds collided…and they were back in the same room without a barrier to separate them. Mike backed away slowly out of the kitchen, watching every step she took towards him.

“ Mike, stop.” She ordered quietly, staring into his fearful eyes.

He shook his head without saying a word and backed up down the hall, banging his back into the closed laundry room door. It took quick thinking but Mike finally reached down towards the door knob and pulled himself into the laundry room, slamming the door shut before Anna could stop him.

“ Michael open the door.” She ordered, leaning against it lightly.

“ Anna what the hell are you doing?” Chester demanded as he ran up behind her.

“ I need to give him something.”

“ Then let me give it to him-.”

“ –It’s personal.” She stated, quickly ending that argument.

Chester closed his mouth and remained silent as she tried to get Mike to open the door once again.

“ Michael, I need to give this to you.”

Silence echoed throughout the house as she stood there staring at the door.

“ Mike…please open the door.”

“ I don’t want to go back to jail…” he replied softly, with the quietest voice she had ever heard out of him. Anna lowered her eyes sadly and swallowed hard, realizing how afraid he really was.

“ This is between us. No one is going to know I was here talking to you.” She explained softly.

“ Anna…y-you can’t…you can’t just come here and see me when you were the one who issued the retraining order.” He explained hastily, wanting her to go away so badly he wanted to cry.

“ I know Mike…but I had to give this to you personally. Besides, it will give us all some closure.” She explained.

“ I’m not coming out.” He stated clearly.

“ Michael, please…”

“ No!”

“ I’ll use a fucking screwdriver and take off that door if I have to.” She warned.

“ Hey…HEY! No way, that’s my fucking laundry room door. Mike get out of there before Anna destroys my house!” Chester yelled with a glare.

Mike remained silent for several moments before finally replying.

“ I won’t get into trouble?” he asked.

“ No.” Anna replied quietly with reassurance.

“ Promise?” he asked with a small voice that much reminded her of Xander when he was uncertain of something.

“ I promise Mike.” She replied gently.

Anna stood there frozen, as the laundry room door slowly opened, revealing a very timid looking Mike with a shaded face of darkness.

“ Come on out…” she whispered encouragingly.

Mike stared at her with those dark Asian eyes, peering into her soul. Was this all just a trick to get him back into prison or did she really have something to give him? And if she did have something to give him…what was it?

He had two decisions to make right now.

Come out and trust her not to report him for disobeying the restraining order or close the door and lock himself in so that he’d be safe.

It was a very tough decision and by the look on his face, he didn’t look too reassured about his freedom at the moment…



~~ AAAAAAAH NUTS!..Cliffhanger...lol..SORRY but my writing was starting to go down the shitter and I had to stop for a while. Might as well post now though, right???? LOL anyways, if you wanna know what she gives him then come back for another chapter and let me know what you thought about this one! Thanks for reading so far!! :)~~