Grayson

Mary Ellen walked away, then Jacob went to his room and slammed the door. I'm the most hated man in Hawaii tonight.

I went out to the balcony to clear my thoughts, then decided that I can't just leave tonight. How can she be so sure that the child isn't Preston's? Danielle has convinced me that the baby isn't mine. She said there's no way she could know already. Only a DNA test could validate paternity, and I'd be a fool to believe, even though Mary Ellen may have convinced herself otherwise. I believed it was true, and wanted it to be true. The idea of having another baby with Mary Ellen would make me so happy.

I was surprised Mary Ellen's door was unlocked. I gently knocked, but there was no answer, so I turned the knob and didn't see her in the bedroom.

I could see a light at the bottom of the bathroom door, so I tapped on it gently, but again, there was no answer.

I twisted the handle and looked inside. She was laying on the floor, and I could see her breaths as her chest moved. Noises escaped her, and my chest was tighter than I've ever felt it, as I realized she's crying in her sleep.

It felt like I was just punched in the stomach, I sat down next to her on the floor, and watched my broken Mary Ellen suffer in her own dreams.

"Out on the prairie when the sky got so dark, and they couldn't see the stars, it was hard to find their way back home. So, if someone had to travel away from home at night, their loved ones would place an oil lamp in the window so they could find their way back home. I used to leave a flashlight in my bedroom window for my father."

A tear fell from my eye.

"I think my dads old boss forgot about us, and mom turned to alcoholism. She has her own life now. Grayson, I'll never understand why you want to hang out with me. My life isn't what you would call normal. It's not just the kids that hate me, it's the adults too. They like to compare me to my alcoholic mother."

I reluctantly reached down and softly ran my fingers through her hair.

"You mean the hell hole where more than half the town showed up to fix your house? The same people who donated money and time to you?" I asked.

"The same town that all saw me laying under you while I lost my virginity and we created our son? Yeah, that town. Also, the town where my alcoholic mother still lives and that fucking prison you call my home!"

I looked down when she whimpered, and my chest grew tighter. She faced the cruelest people in the town she feared, just to tell me she loved me, only to be hurt in that town once again.

I stood and went to pick her up, but she woke.

"Grayson, why are you touching me?"

"You can't sleep here, Mary Ellen."

"Why would you care? You need to leave, Grayson."

She pulled herself up off the floor, and started brushing her teeth.

"I'm not leaving you this way."

I just watched her until she finished and rinsed. "You should be with your girlfriend." She walked into her closet and shut the door.

"You and my children come first," I yelled, and she opened the door and walked out in a pair of pajamas. Her breasts look a bit swollen, and my heart sank.

I approached her. "That baby may not even be mine," I said, but she cut me off when she slapped me.

"You don't deserve another moment of my time, go to hell Grayson!"

Her tears started falling again, and she went for her bed.

"I'm sorry, but I think I deserve to know the truth. You told me a lie, because you and I both know it's Preston's."

"GET OUT!" She screamed.

"No, not until you look me in the eye and tell me the truth."

"You really think I would lie? When have I ever lied to you?"

"I guess I know your answer since you're not answering me, but what I don't get is why?" I went to walk away.

"Preston can't have children, and I never would have told you a lie, to you or Jacob, he had a vasectomy. I have no idea what I've done to deserve this kind of treatment from you, or the rest of the people in your town. Please leave me, Grayson. I can't handle the pain you bring me." She started sobbing.

"Danielle said it would be impossible. I'm sorry..."

"How dare you? How dare you tell some stranger my personal business? How dare you once again let another woman near anything that relates to me? I hate you, Grayson. If you want to see Jacob contact my attorney, but you will not step foot near this child you just denied. You've allowed yet another woman influence you against me. I'm done with you, Grayson."

She hopped up and raced to the bathroom, then locked herself inside.

What have I done?