*Marilyn's Point Of View*

My one night, one day stay turned into half a week. I just couldn't go back and face him or the kid's. That argument shook me. The argument made me think thing's over. Maybe having this child isn't so great for us right now. Michael and I obviously have a huge elephant in the room, therefore I am a little worried about bringing a child into the world right now.

After staying four days with Yuli and Ryan, I have finally decided to return home. Of course while I was away, I kept tabs in on the kid's by the grace of Bill. Bill is the one that has made my absence seem a little less guilty. He made sure the kid's understood what was going on as while as kept Michael busy.

I definitely feel that a little break from all of the animosity, was duly needed. The only thing I do regret is dragging Yui into this. I know she has claimed to be okay with it, but at four months pregnant, she shouldn't be worrying about her friends dramatic life. But, I appreciate her so much.

 "So, are you sure you don't want to stay longer? Ryan and I don't mind" Yuli asks for the third time this morning. I give her a small smile and nod.

"Yes am sure. I can't hide forever. My children need me" I assure her.

She sighs.

"Okay, well Bill is waiting outside for you. I love you and please, please take care" She stresses, pulling me into her arms. I squeeze her tighter, allowing a few Left over tears to cascade my cheeks before breaking the hug.

"I love you too Yuli. Tell Carson and Ryan I said thank you for having me over" 

"I will honey, I'm just a call away if you need anything else, okay?" She says, eying me seriously.

I nod and turn towards the door. Opening it, I wipe my eyes and continue down the steps where Bill awaited me in the driveway. I give him a smile as I approach, pausing to glance around for any sign of camera's or reporters. When there seems to be no visible sign, I climb into the backseat.

"How are you feeling?" Bill asks, glancing at me through the review mirror.

"I honestly don't know. I know I need to be home with the kid's" 

Bill glances back at the road, remaining silent for a couple of minutes. I know he;s thinking of something to say. Maybe even something to convince me that I need more time. I know I can't stay at Yuli's forever. I wouldn't do that to her family nor mine. I have to fix this with Michael and move on.

"I know. I just want you to be careful. You and Michael have been together for years, and I don't want to see that go down the drain over an argument. Whatever happens, don't let it end in separation" He stresses, turning into our gated community.

"I won't" I simply answer.

I have never thought about divorce since Michael's and I separation. I wouldn't become that drastic. I love Michael and our family way to much to do that. I can't see myself without Michael in my life. Life just wouldn't make sense.

We finally approach out iron gates, where Bill inputs our pin and awaits the gates to open. There is something about when those gates slowly opened that made my stomach flutter, my heart thump, and my mind feel lighter. I guess this the feeling of knowing where you belong. I know where my home is, and it's wherever Michael is.

"Ready?" Bill asks, turning off the ignition.

"I'm ready" I reply, with a light smile.

He nods and continues climbing out of the SUV. He runs around to my side and opens the door.

"I meant to tell you, you look lovely Misses Jackson" He smiles, Holding my hand as I climbed down.

I glance at my attire. My Burgundy fall, floral blouse complimented my skin perfectly as well as the blush of my midnight low rise skinny's. Along with my simple make-up and accessories, I guess you can say, I don't dress the part for a women who has a slight dent in her marriage.

"Thank you" I smile, glancing back up at Bill.

He nods, offering his arm for me to link my arm. I take his offer as we proceed to the front door.

I swear the house seems even more beautiful since the last time I saw it. Our Autumn Maple trees are blowing beautifully along with the wind as small leaves fall from the branches. It is absolutely breath taking. 

I smile to myself, feeling a little more stress less than before.

Before I know it, we are exactly in front of the door. And just like that, my nerves kicked in. I feel like I am meeting him for the first time. Those jittery butterflies and my continuously thumping heart. My last symptom of sweaty palms definitely didn't help.

"Are you ready to go in?" Bill asks, placing a gentle hand on the small of my back.

"I-I don't know. A-Are the kid's here?" I stutter.

"No, I instructed Rafael to take them out for awhile. I know you and Michael need to talk, so I figured sending the kid's out would make it easier," He explains.

"Oh" I simply reply. Now I'm loosing my words, great. I fidget with my fingers for a minute before glancing at Bill.

"I'm ready"

He smiles and nods before walking up to our Oak wood door, which displayed a sign that read:

Love Lives Here, The Jackson's

Another small smile formed my lips as I reminisced on the day we hung that up. It was the day after we first moved in. That was a beautiful day for us, everyone was happy. Brandon, Jasmine, Dylan , our growing baby (Jordyn), and Michael. I definitely miss that day, and I will do whatever it takes to have that again.

When Bill opens the door, I take in a deep breath. Exhaling slowly, I follow him into the house, silently praying thing's will go well.

*Michael's Point Of View*

Four days. Four days I sat and thought about everything. I thought about what I said to her and about what she said to me. I thought about the look in her eyes when I yelled at her. I thought about the anger we desperately held back. I thought about my clenched fist. Most of all, I thought about Marilyn.

God knows how much I love that woman. I love her with every fiber of my being. She is my atom and without her I have no Nucleus. I need her by my side, and I want to work thing's out. But, during my ponder, I realized that this all came from jealousy. I also realized, it's going to take a lot more than a kiss to fix this. 

I don't want to be forgiven so easily and I don't want to forgive so easily either. Though we badgered from anger, our anger still relied on our true feelings. I want to a lay out of her true feelings, then we can resolve things step by step. Hopefully, she feels the same.

 When I awoke this morning, I felt at ease for the first time in four days to know, that Marilyn was returning. When he told me that, I felt like my body seemingly revived itself. Before, I was barely eating, didn't catch a wink of sleep, but at the mention of her return, my body reboots with elation.

With my returning confidence, I found the energy to go out of my way of making sure everything is in place before she arrives. I made sure the interior of our house was up to part as well as my own appearance. Bill made this easy on me by suggesting that Rafael take the kid's out for a much needed break as well. 

By the time I was finished with house keeping, Bill had already sent me a text saying that he and Marilyn where on their way. Now all I have to do is wait.

It seems like when you are anticipating something, it never comes fast enough. Time taunts you as minutes are generally just mere seconds. Within five minutes, only two of them are real. God I hate waiting.

Ten minutes.

fifteen minutes.

Thirty minutes.

I glance at myself in the mirror for the hundredth time this morning, making sure  my apple, red flannel was buttoned properly and checking if my fly was down, and lastly playing with my hair. I left my down, only pulling a few pieces back, just how Marilyn likes it. Still unsatisfied, I pull it back into a ponytail. I continue fussing with my hair until I finally decided to leave a strand hanging between the bridge of my nose and top it with a black fedora.

Soon I hear the sound of tires rolling against gravel, and I knew instantly it was them. I inhale and exhale slowly as I prepare to see her again. 

Bill is the first to walk in. Giving me a look that silently told me that she was okay. I nod at him at wait for her to appear.

When the door widens, time stops. There she stood bashfully, her features even more mesmerizing in her perfect, seasonal attire. Her eyes fall to the ground, once mine met them. Of course my heart sunk instantly, but I don't blame her. I guess I deserve that.

"Well, I'll take your bags upstairs and then I'll be on my way" Bill informs her as he walks pass her. She silently nods, fidgeting with her hands. Even in her bashful state, she is still beautiful as ever. I definitely hit realization of how much I really missed her. My emotions are literally everywhere.

When Bill returns minutes later, he winks at me and continues on his way. As soon as the door closes, so does my throat. I don't know what to say or how to say it.

Should I hug her? 

Should I kiss her?

Should I say everything now?

I am just as clueless as the weather.

After ten awkward minutes, she makes the first move. 

Slowly walking towards me, her eyes travel along my body onto they meet mine. And when our eyes lock, a small smile spreads her lips. Her smile gives me hope. Her smile gives me just enough hope that thing's are fixable.

"I-I miss you" She speaks softly. 

"I miss you too" I reply truthfully.

I really just want to pull her into my arms and hold her. I want to inhale her, and exhale lightly, knowing everything is fine. I want to capture her lips, and let her know all is forgiven. But, I have to stick to my agenda. 

"Do you, do you want to talk?" I offer, biting down on my bottom lip.

She nods.

I nod in response, and turn towards the family room. She quietly follows, her booties clapping along the oak wood tile. My nervousness has definitely returned and I am hesitant to share my thoughts as we finally approach the family. We choose a spot on the white, Victorian styled cushion chairs and wait for a word.

I shift in my seat before taking the initiative to begin the conversation. 

"I...Uh. I'm sorry. First and foremost I truly apologize. I don't want you to ever feel threatened by me, ever" I begin.

She has her gaze fixed on the flooring, but I can tell she is listening.

I inhale and continue. 

"I just felt that um, that it was unfair to assume that I was cheating, yet along chastise me about it. I know that is no excuse for me clenching my fist, but I want you to know that was the reason for my anger..."

I conclude, watching her reaction carefully. She slowly glances at me, pain still actively present in her eyes. That look is definitely killing me inside.

"You hurt me. You hurt me to the core. You, blatantly accused me of intentionally trying to sabotage your relationship with the twins, by having a baby. You basically slapped me in the face when you abruptly said fuck my feelings. You wanted to hurt me, and you did" She stresses. Her face was calm, but her eyes told another story. She is truly still hurting. And it's my fault.

I know I wanted to pin this all on her, but she's right. I took it to the next level. I did in layman terms, tell her I could care less about her feelings. I also did want to hurt her. I didn't mean for it to puncture her the way it did, I just wanted her to feel the sting I felt when she accused me of cheating.

"And I'm sorry. I love you more than you know. I-I was speaking out of anger. You hurt me calling me a cheater. I would never cheat on you, again. I can't risk loosing you. If I lost you again, I-I..." I trail off, holding my face in my hands. The mere thought of her leaving me, has me on edge. I can't be without her.

She remains silent. Her silence makes this process worse. I wish I could take that night back and change it, but I can't.

"Just, just don't leave me again. Please, just don't leave me" I plead, glancing at her through blurry vision.

"I would never leave you Michael. I can't and won't. But... I can't kiss it and it's over with. It's not that easy" She explains.

I nod and wipe my eyes. "I know... I didn't want to just drop it. I just want to talk about what was said"

She gives me an unsure nod and waits for me to continue.

"Please, tell me the truth..." I begin, turning my gaze onto my hands.

"Do really want another child, because of the twins? Was that a plan of yours?" I ask seriously.

She stares at me silently for a few minutes, her eyes fully taken over by betrayal. I know she hates that I considered the thought, but I deserve the truth. 

"I can't believe this right now... Why? Twenty damn years... twenty fucking years and you can sit here and think that I'll stoop that low" She cracks, her voice crumbling with every word.

I sigh.

"Just please answer the question. Did you do this to spite Evelyn and the twins?" 

She stares at me long and hard for another round of silent minutes before standing up, one single tear descending her cheek. 

"No... I wanted the joy of carrying a child. I missed that. Those times, our family was happier then..."

She explains, turning towards the walk way. 

"And by the way, thank-you for not telling me you had a DNA test done for Dylan. There's your answer..." She concludes, disappearing behind the wall.

I remain silent, pondering on what she said.

A DNA test for Dylan? 

To Be Continued....

A/N: Woah, arguments? DNA tests? Where does the drama end? What do you think? Whose side are you on? What's your hypothesis? Let me know in th comment section! Thank you so much for reading this long into the book! I love you!

-Marilyn. E

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