Sprawled out in my late-night booty shorts and my bare chest in very close proximity to my standing fan, because we couldn't afford an AC unit, the shrill sound of my ringtone blares through the quiet night.

Shit.

Was all I could think as I groggily dragged myself out of sleep and picked up my phone to flash the screen at my still-closed eyes.

Prying them open I see the message that I dreaded.

2 seconds ago

Allison: "Please come over."

The 3 simple words had me bolting out of bed and dragging on my hoodie as I climb out of my bedroom window and race across to Allison's house.

Her whole house, save for the living room, was dark.

Hell, the entire neighbourhood was pitch black, and I was going off pure muscle memory to guide me to where I needed to go.

Around the low-cut shrubbery, I duck under the glowing lights of Allison's living room, where I heard the expected muffled voices fighting to remain contained within.

Connor buying those soundproof paddings for the inside of this house proved to be a worthwhile investment.

Praying no neighbour was somehow awake and looking through his window to see a suspicious figure in a hoodie prowling around and deciding to shoot my ass, I quickly made my way to Allison's bedroom window.

As I'd done many times before, I squat down low, and mentally prepared myself to move swiftly.

3

.

.

.

2

.

.

.

1

.

.

.

I yank open her window.

"YOU WORTHLESS PIECE OF SHIT-"

I swiftly jumped through the window and slammed it shut behind me before any more sound escaped the house.

If we were lucky, people would only think it was an errant car horn sounding out from a lost driver.

Allison cowered in the corner.

"Oh, Ally...." I breathed out as my heart broke at the sight of her.

"Gah! R-r-ri....." She gasped and hiccuped at the sight of me, not even realizing when I'd suck in.

"Come here," I crawled over her carpeted floor in the dark room towards her outline, and she practically flung herself into my arms.

I held her close in the fiercest bear hug I could muster and shoved ourselves into a corner between her drawer and bedframe.

Trying to shield her from the unending waves of profanities being screamed right now as I covered her head completely in my arms.

"YOU TRAPPED ME IN THIS LOVELESS MARRIAGE AND REFUSE TO LET ME LIVE MY LIFE IN ANY MEANINGFUL WAY!!"

"Claire-"

"SHUT UP!!! STOP TRYING TO GASLIGHT ME INTO THINKING I'M THE PROBLEM!!!"

"BUT YOU ARE!!"

I felt my spine shiver at one of the rare moments of Connor yelling back. And Allison's entire body breaking out into uncontrollable shivers also confirmed that fact.

"THIS IS ABUSE!! FIRST YOU TRAP ME! THEN YOU SADDLED ME WITH-"

The sound of sharp movement follows.

"DON'T YOU DARE FINISH THAT SENTENCE."

I feel bile rise up my throat.

I knew how that sentence was going to end.

Claire was going to say: Then you saddled me with her.

I look down at Allison who was completely breaking down. Her entire being shaking uncontrollably as the very fabric of her family became undone.

"Hey. Listen to this song I practiced." I whisper down to her.

I then started singing a soft melody I'd heard on the radio last week that had been stuck in my head ever since.

It was an earworm and a good enough distraction....for now.

"R-riley...no d-don't...." She couldn't even finish speaking. That's how horse her voice had gotten from silently crying.

As I continued to sing to distract Allison, the yelling match continued in full force outside.

"L-LET GO OF ME!! A-ASSAULT!! I'M BEING ASSAULTED!!!" Claire tried to yell louder, but she sounded so afraid and shaken up from Connor probably covering her mouth to stop her from saying anything to damage Allison.

Further than she's already done.

"Urhag...Claire....just go...." The defeated low voice of Connor slips through the wall cracks.

"Huh?" All the previous commotion died down instantly.

A moment of silence echoes out loudly. The silence was too loud.

"Y-you could've just allowed that from the start and saved us f-from going through all this." Claire tried to throw in.

"Sure Claire, whatever you say...." Connor sounded so done with everything, his voice sounding at a different pitch than Claire's, suggesting he'd moved further away from her.

Clip! Click!! Tip!!!

The sound of items being picked and a purse getting shut rang out, footsteps followed, and the front door shut.

What surprised me the most was I was still signing on key, and the climax of the song was coming up and I planned to hit it perfectly.

Light shuffling distracted me and I look down.

Allison was dozing off!?

Her eyelid dangerously struggled to stay open as the slid up and down like a slip and slide. Her mouth hung slightly agape as it did ever since she was a kid when she was sleepy or tired. Her posture relaxed significantly.

It was like an off switch had been flicked. And it must've happened the moment Claire left the house and Allison's brain registered that it was no longer in danger, and the sheer exhaustion of the whole ordeal finally took full effect.

Or maybe my singing was just that good. Who knows??

And here come my high note in 3...2...1...

Another voice joined me in hitting it.

But much lower.

I swiftly look up to see Allison's bedroom door swung wide open with Connor's silhouette standing in the middle.

Menacingly looking down on me.

The back glow of the kitchen light hid his face, so I couldn't see the reaction he currently shot at me.

Was he angry? Sad? Depressed? Enraged?

He knew I'd heard everything that just went down. And in all honestly I wasn't supposed to be here.

Allison completely slumps onto me, exhausted tear-filled sleep finally overtaking her.

I cuddle her close, hook my elbow onto the edge of her bed, and pull us up onto it where I fully lay her down to peacefully sleep.

She dug herself deeper into my embrace and wiggled to get more comfortable. It would've been so cute if her face wasn't puffy and tear-stained.

I wiped her tears away and settled down further next to her.

What surprised me the most though was that me and Connor were still singing!?

The situation would be downright absolutely hilarious under any other circumstances.

Connor walked away from the door frame and came further into the room.

He seemed to survey things closely and just made his way towards the edge of the bed and sat down.

I nudged my and Ally's legs outta the way to make room for him.

He sinks down onto the mattress and pulls it down with his weight.

Being able to see his face clearly, but not by much at the angle I was in. He had a very sorrowful expression on his face as he looked down at his daughter.

He barely looked to even register my presence/existence in the room.

Connor slowly lifted up a hand, brought it back down as if second-guessing himself, then lifted it back up more confidently, but still a little shaky, and grabs onto one of Allison's hands.

Even through the fog of sleep she reached up and grabs back hold of his hand. Gripping it tight.

Connor's voice falters for the briefest of moments, but to his credit he kept it together and stuck the landing on the song.

We finished the song that seemed to have both infected our brains through the radio, and just remained there in utter silence afterwards.

Him, sitting there at the edge of the bed a complete emotional wreck. Me, laying still trying to keep my whirlwind emotions in check to not worsen the situation. And Allison, completely unconscious from the decimation of her emotional stability.

The anger I felt on both of their behalf was unreal.

If I was a bad person, I'd walk out of this house right now and do everything in my power to run over Claire with my car.

IF I was a bad person.

A big yawn escaped my mouth and I settled down to try and sleep the madness of the night away.

I feel a tap on my toes and look over.

Connor was giving me a raised brow look, like I was doing something utterly crazy.

I shrug back at him in pure confusion, not knowing what had him looking so taken aback.

Connor gave me another look, but shakes his head like I'm a hopeless cat or something and gets up off the bed and moves closer to me.

He goes down on one knee and leans close to my head, cupping his mouth around my ears and sending ALL the blood in my body rushing away from it and downwards.

"You DO realize I can't let you spend the night in my daughter's room unsupervised, right?"

Realization slammed into me.

Oh, shit, yeah!

We're supposed to be a straight couple madly in love with each other.

Of course the father of one of them would think that they would go at it like horny teenagers the moment they're left alone in a room at night.

If only Connor knew that:

a) I've already done this multiple times before with nothing ever happening between me and his daughter. And

b) I wasn't straight.

Like, not even a little bit.

I could go to bed with his daughter and she'd wake up with her chastity even more intact then when she are gone to sleep.

I'd more than likely be the one protecting her innocence than trying to take it.

But telling Connor that was wholeheartedly out of the question right now.

"Uhm.....gimme a minute?" I blushed as I replied.

He'd probably think it was because I was thinking naughty thoughts.

Well, he'd be right. But WHO was at the center of those thoughts was where he'd get it completely wrong.

How close he stood and whispered into my ear was sending me into overdrive, and I needed a moment to recompose myself.

"We should give Ally a minute to fully doze off before I start moving so I don't wake her up," I also chime in.

It was probably complete bullshit, cause Allison slept like a legit rock. But my point still stands!!

The look on Connor's face also seemed to be calling out my bullshit, but he still stands up, maintaining a condescending look down at me as he doesn't break eye contact and walks back towards the door.

"I'm giving you 30 seconds minimum, 3 minutes maximum." Was all he said before he walks out of the moon.

I let out a huge breath that I didn't even know I was holding, as cliche as that sounds, and began huffing in sweet air.

My body shivered at the memory of how close Connor had stood to me, and was whispering in my ear.

No time to get hard now! I chastise myself.

I made sure to stretch the absolute limit of Connor's goodwill to 2 and a half minutes as I made sure that Allison was securely tucked away and sleeping peacefully before I got up out of her bed and walked towards her bedroom door.

With the drop dead depressed and handsome man waiting for me on the other side.