-Author's POV-

Tension. The tension was growing on the dinner table that night, Madison eating her meal with a scowl remaining to her expression, eyes shifting from Jamie, Cheryl, Kimberley and finally Rita. They were nearly caught, she'd thought.

How could we have been so careless?

Although somewhere deep down within her, she liked the thrill. It was a nice change; feeling her stomach flip and drop a million miles down, land straight into the pit of her stomach.

"Are you guys ready for dessert?" Kimberley brings the teens attention back to reality.

Jamie smiles, "I don't know if I can fit anything else in my stomach." He chuckles, earning him a giggle from Rita, she too agreeing.

"Cake?" Madison gets the attention back on her.

"No." Kimberley pouts, "But there's a piece of red velvet still in the fridge if you want it, babes." The mother collects the empty plates, nodding for her daughter to follow her into the kitchen.

Madison follows her Mum close behind, leaving Cheryl to clean up the table.

"Why didn't you make cake?" The teen pouts, unsure why, but she suddenly wanted to be babied. Maybe it was the vulnerability still lingering within her, she knew she'd always need her mother's... and suddenly, she desperately needed it now. Remembering both Cheryl and Kimberley telling her they wanted to grow their family.

"I didn't realize you wanted?" Kimberley shrugs, preparing the unsual dessert she'd created.

"What even is that?" Madison stands close to her mother, "That doesn't look edible—"

"Wash your mouth." The blonde tuts, "It's art." She tactfully places the dessert on each individual plate.

Cheryl enters the kitchen, carefully placing the dirty dishes into the sink.

"You okay?" The Geordie asks her daughter.

"Yeah why wouldn't I be?"

"You look like you've been smelling sh*t all night." The women share a giggle.

Madison rolls her eyes, "I'm fine." She rolls her eyes again, "Mum fighting with me earlier didn't really put me in the best mood – did it now?" She raises an eyebrow.

Now it was Kimberley's turn to roll her eyes, "We can argue about this later. I just want to get this night over with." She sighs.

"I don't like when you shout at me in front of people." Madison comes out with it.

Cheryl smiles, "C'mere babe." She beckons her daughter over.

"No I'm really upset." The teen suppresses her tears.

Cheryl walks over to her daughter, taking a gentle hold of her hands and pulling her into a tight cuddle. "Don't be upset, sweets. Your Mum is just a dick sometimes—"

"Um... Excuse me?" Kimberley frowns, "She needs to learn to drop the attitude when people are around."

The family speaks in low whispers, not wanting Jamie or Rita to hear them.

"Well maybe you should learn to communicate with your eyes." Cheryl defends her daughter, holding her tighter.

Madison clings, burying her face against her mother's chest.

"We can talk about this later." Kimberley rolls her eyes, collecting the dessert plates and walking right out, leaving her wife and daughter behind.

Cheryl sighs, "We're going to have a talk later, you can talk to us as long as you like. Okay, baby?" She speaks softly to her daughter, reaching down and gently grasping a hold of the teens chin, getting their eyes to meet. "Okay?"

Madison nods, green eyes conveying sadness.

"I love you."

"I love you too, Mam."

------

The night begins to shift positively; conversation is casually exchanged as they all sit around the living room. Jamie couldn't help but shift his eyes every so often to Cheryl, silently speaking to her.

He needed to speak to her, as did Cheryl.

"I'm sorry," Jamie finally speaks up, silencing everyone. "Cheryl? Do you mind if we go somewhere and talk?" He asks, boldly.

Kimberley is understanding, "Go on babe." She encourages her wife.

Cheryl silently gulps, nodding and standing to her feet.

"Erm." She clears her throat, "We can go into the other sitting area." She leads them out, leaving Kimberley, Madison and Rita in complete wonder.

"Is this house never-ending?" Jamie jokingly comments, following the Geordie through the corridors until they finally reach the sitting room.

"Sorta." She giggles, gesturing for him to take a seat. Both sitting on the sofa, ready to let it all out, putting the past where it belonged, in the past.

Jamie speaks up first, "I'm sorry." He begins.

Cheryl remains silent, desperately needing to hear this.

"I was stupid back then," He takes a deep breath, finally meeting the sparkling brown eyes he once fell in love with, still so radiant and breath taking as ever. "I don't know how I was ever so stupid, leaving you when you were pregnant. I was stupid. So, so, stupid, Cheryl."

Cheryl nods, agreeing.

"I was scared... I.. I wasn't ready to start a family and you were ready to be a Mam the second you found out we were expecting. But, I just wanted you to live your life; I wanted you to see the world. I wanted you to be happy—"

"You think us having a baby was going to stop us from being happy?" She frowns, not accepting his bullsh*t of an apology. "You left us Jamie. You didn't give two sh*ts if I made it out alive with me daughter—"

"She's not just yours Cheryl—"

"No. She's mine. That's the part you're not understanding," She breathes, holding back her tears as she speaks passionately. "You don't get to call her yours when you didn't want a single thing to do with her. You picked up your sh*t and left us. You left. I didn't know where you fcuked off to, I couldn't get a hold of you. I didn't have a proper job to care for a child, Jamie!" The anger returns to her, the memories taking over her emotions. "I had to give her away because of you! Me parents didn't have enough to feed us let alone a baby. You don't realize that us giving away Madison was all down to you! If you had just stayed," The tears rim her waterline. "If you had stayed and stood by our side I would have watched me baby grow, I would have taken good care of her. But I couldn't. I didn't have enough to take care of meself let alone her." She sniffs, uncaring of the tears skidding down her cheeks. Uncaring of Jamie witnessing her sadness being exposed.

"That's not true. You wanted to be a pop-star—"

"I had to make something out of me bloody self!" She snaps, "I had to fcuking do something with me life, maybe then I could have me fcuking daughter back! I was miserable without her! And I hate you for that!" She snaps, growling. "I will never forgive you for up and leaving us the way you did. Me daughter is fifteen Jamie! She's fifteen! I missed fifteen years of her life because of you!"

Jamie's throat tightens, "I'm, I'm sorry." He chokes, not wanting to cry, he didn't have the right.

"No!" She sniffs, wiping her tears away angrily. "Your apology means sh*t to us. Now you comeback into her life, thinking it's okay to take her anytime you fcuking please? You shouldn't have that right, but even after all the bullsh*t you put us through, I don't want me daughter to grow up not knowing her Dad.. You don't deserve that title." She looks away from him, taking a few deep breaths.

"Nothing I say, nothing I do will ever show you how sorry I am. I really am sorry Cheryl, I was stupid. I was out of my fcuking mind for leaving you, I wish I could go back and—"

"No. I don't want to go back and change a single thing. I don't want to be the stupid fifteen-year-old girl that fell in love with someone who was far too old for her, I don't want to go back and change anything. I don't want to end up with you. I want to end up where I am today, with me wife, with me daughter, with this exact life." She points to her chest, "I want to be who I am today. I don't want to be the girl you tried to change. I want to be the woman and wife I am today, the mother and everything you told us was ever wrong about me." She speaks in passion; her eyes remain in a hot crying mess.

Jamie looks down at his hands, ashamed.

"You always told us I was never good enough," She cries. "M-Me wife has allowed helped us accept everything about meself that you said was wrong." Her tears had no end, "You-You bastard!" The emotional anger takes over; she pounds her fists against his chest, crying as she punches repeatedly. Jamie allows her, he allows her to throw the punches, soon catching her fists and getting the hysteric Geordie under control.

He forces her into his arms, both a complete mess.

"I-I'm sorry." He repeats, allowing his manhood to crumble right before his ex-girlfriend. "I'm so sorry." He repeats, holding Cheryl tightly.

"I hate you!" Cheryl repeats, howling out in cries. "I h-hate you."

Jamie holds her until her cries slowly die out; soon turning into sniffs and hiccups.

She pushes him back, shuffling slightly away from him.

"We.. We need to work this out." Jamie whispers. "We can't live life with you hating me. We have to work this out for Madison."

"We can be civil," Cheryl sniffs, standing to her feet. "But I will never forgive you, Jamie. You ruined us. You broke us. You cant comeback and repair something you broke. You didn't care then and I'm a thousand percent sure you don't give a single fcuk now." She walks out; leaving Jamie in overdrive with his memories.

He didn't have the right to repair it so easily, not the way he so effortlessly took his daughter back. After everything he did, he still so smoothly took a hold of his daughter's heart without fighting for her love.

Cheryl doesn't return to the front room, instead going straight up to her bedroom. Needing to release her emotions privately, suddenly exhausted.

Madison shifts in her spot, still sat beside her Mum.

"Do you have any siblings?" Kimberley asks Rita, settling back in the sofa and sipping her wine, pulling her daughter into her arm.

"Yeah," Rita nods, she too drinking wine. "I have one sister—"

"That must be nice." The blonde smiles, "Sisters are great – brothers on the other hand." She rolls her eyes.

Madison giggles in her Mother's arms.

"I wish I had a brother, I think it would be cool." Rita shrugs, "I love my sister to pieces, don't get me wrong.. But I've got a tomboy edge, so I'd love nothing more than to have a brother."

"I agree," Madison smiles at Rita. "My brother was probably the best part of my life." She giggles, unknowing what she had said.

"You have a brother?" Rita frowns, "And how come I never met him? How rude of you." She pouts, cutely.

"Erm.." Madison shifts her eyes.

Jamie walks in just in time.

"Let's go." He interrupts the moment, speaking to his girlfriend sternly.

"What happened?" Rita frowns, shooting up from her seat.

"Grab our coats. Let's go." He looks at his confused daughter, "Let me have a hug off you before I get going. I don't know when I'll see you next." He beckons the confused teen over, Madison instantly standing to her feet and falling into her father's arms.

"What do you mean?" She asks, breathing uneasily.

"You can talk to your Mam about that."

"Huh?" She's suddenly frantic, unable to keep up with her father pulling away and putting his coat on, ready to walk out... of her life.

Kimberley stands behind her daughter, unsure what to do herself.

"Dad?" She gulps, her eyes watering. She follows him as he goes to walk out. "DAD!" She screams, grasping a hold of Rita and forcing her to stay. "What's going on?"

"I don't know bab- Madison." Rita clears her throat, catching Kimberley's frown.

Madison lets Rita's hand go and runs after her Dad, catching the car door just as he goes to close it.

"Where are you going!?" Her voice cracks.

"I just.. I just think you should go talk to your Mam—"

"But why can't I talk to you?" She cries, tears skidding down her cheeks now.

"Don't cry." He breathes, feeling ashamed of his past, he didn't deserve Madison. "Look.. I.. I just think you need to talk to your Mam, okay?"

"Dad please tell me what the hell is-is going on!"

Jamie sighs softly, "Spend time with your Mam.. I.. I'll be here when everything works out." He pushes his daughter back, "Just go inside." He shuts his car door.

Kimberley stands beside Rita, turning to her. Noticing Rita's expression focused on her daughter, in a daze.

"Maybe you should go follow your boyfriend."

Rita ignores the Mother, going straight over to Madison, instantly taking her into her arms. "What happened?" She whispers to the teen, "What'd he say?"

"Rita!" Jamie shouts, "Come on!"

"Hold on a bloody second!" The blonde shouts back, never letting the hysteric teen go.

"Baby what's the matter?"

Kimberley gets her feet moving, pulling Rita away from her daughter.

"What's your problem!" Rita snaps.

"I can take care of my daughter, follow your fcuking boyfriend."

"I swear to god." Rita grits.

"R-Rita, please.. Just..Just go." Madison cries, not wanting confrontation between her secret lover and mother.

Rita takes a deep breath, "Call me." She tells Madison, and climbs into Jamie's car, Jamie instantly screeching out of the gated home, leaving his daughter in a complete, confused mess.

"Come on, Maddo, let's go inside." Kimberley tries but fails to pull the teen inside, giving up and hoisting her up into her arms instead. She carefully carries a crying Madison inside, gently placing her on the sofa, needing to calm her down.

She gets on her knees, stroking her daughters damp hair from all the tears she'd consumed within the few minutes of her fathers departure.

Kimberley wipes Madison's tears, giving her sweet kisses to her cheek.

"Shhh." She hums, "We'll figure it all out, don't cry."

Madison's green eyes drown in sadness, chin quivering as she tries but fails to suppress her tears. She goes to speak, but gets nothing out but innocent whimpers and cries.

"Want me to go talk to your Mam?" Kimberley asks, desperate to fix this. She hated seeing her daughter this way; she only ever wanted the teen to feel good things.

Madison nods, still crying.

"Are you going to be okay on your own?"

Madison nods again.

"Okay baby, just, please, no more tears?"

Another nod, although still crying.

Kimberley gives her a sweet kiss to the forehead and quickly rushes up to her bedroom, where Cheryl lies on the bed in a flood of tears as well.

"Oh no." The blonde breathes, closing their bedroom door and hurrying over to her distraught wife. "I've got two emotional girls to deal with." She whispers to her wife, pulling the crying Geordie straight into her arms. "What happened my love?" She softly speaks, stroking Cheryl's hair out and away from her face. "Hm?"

"He-He." She goes to speak, but the words trap in her tight throat.

"Okay, okay, alright, shhh, come on baby." Kimberley hums, kissing her wife's tears away, softly stroking Cheryl's back in a repeated motion.

They lie there for a few short moments, until Cheryl was finally able to string a sentence together.

"We-We spoke."

Kimberley smiles, "Yes I am aware. What happened?"

"I..I just spoke honestly. He needed to know." She sniffs.

"Well, do you know that your honesty had him walking out and leaving a hysterical Madison behind?"

This gets Cheryl to shoot up out of her wife's arms, standing straight to her feet and rushing out of the bedroom, nearly toppling her way down the stairs as she runs to her crying daughters side.

"Sw-Sweets?" She cries to her daughters sight, taking a hold of her daughter and holding her close, breathing her, kissing her, needing to heal the wounds that have left scares in Madison's heart. 

The teen hangs on tightly, hands grasping to her Mother's shirt, never before crying in such a way. She knew her father was walking out of her life, she could see it in his eyes, his words.. She knew that tonight was going to change everything between her and Jamie.

"I'm sorry." Cheryl sniffs, never letting her daughter go.

"W-What happened?" Madison whispers, resting her head against the Geordie's chest, eyes casting away to nothing in particular.

Kimberley sits close to her wife and daughter, needing to be any sort of comfort.

"He, He couldn't take the truth I guess." Cheryl breathes, stroking her daughters back.

"What truth?"

"Of our past."

Madison falls silent, she wasn't sure if she wanted to hear the truth.

"That makes him run off?" The teen breathes, "He couldn't get out of here quick enough." She speaks, eyes still focused off into the distance.

"That's Jamie."

"But why?" Madison finally unravels from her Mother's arms, needing to get all of this straight. "What did you tell him?" She speaks, defensively.

"Why are you making it seem like I told him to leave?" Cheryl frowns.

"Because you probably did!"

"Madison!" Kimberley jumps in, "Why don't you let your Mam explain instead of jumping to conclusion like you always bloody do—"

"Because it's true!" The teen snaps back, "She probably did it on purpose." She stands to her feet; "You never want to see me happy!" Madison shouts at the Geordie, breaking her heart completely.

"That's not true." Cheryl whispers, suppressing the fresh tears from falling.

"You do, you hate seeing me happy! You did the same thing with Mum and Dad!" Madison cries, "You pushed them away from me!" She continues, shattering Cheryl. "You-You push everyone away!" Madison goes to run out, but Kimberley is quick to grab a hold of her.

"Like hell you're running off!" Kimberley grits.

"LET ME GO!" Madison kicks her legs, fighting the blondes grip.

"Sit down!" The Mum snaps, forcing Madison down into the armchair. "How fcuking dare you!" She hisses, ready to give the teen a piece of her mind.

"Kimba, don't." Cheryl sniffs, "Leave her. Let her think whatever she wants." She whispers, knowing she'll always look like the monster to her daughter.

"No—"

"Please, babe.. Just.. Leave her."

"Because it's true!" Madison stands back to her feet, "You don't want anyone good in my life!"

Cheryl looks away from her daughter, vulnerable, broken, an empty shell.

"You notice something good happening in my life and the first thing you want to do is ruin it!" Madison continues her abuse, "Mum and Dad loved me!" She cries, "The s-second you came into my life they didn't want anything to do with m-me!" Madison speaks, this year crashing down on her all at once.

"N-Now Jamie doesn't w-want m-me anymore!" She howls, "It's all y-your fault!"

Cheryl's eyes remain on the ground, tears falling rapidly.

Kimberley couldn't take it anymore, "You don't know fcuk all!" She hisses, "Jamie didn't want sh*t to do with you!" She snaps, "You think he actually loves you!?" Kimberley wasn't counting to ten anymore, the teen needed to hear it. "You think he gives a fcuk about you?! Someone who care wouldn't walkout the second an opportunity came—"

"HE LOVES ME!" Madison screams, "Y-You don't fcuking know a thing!" She gives her Mum a rough shove back.

"What? Are you getting angry?" The blonde needed the teen to let it out, if everything was going to get resolved, it had to start with anger before it ever was fixed into calm understanding.

"I fcuking h-hate you!" Madison gives her Mum another punch, Cheryl cries in her seat, her family falling apart at the seam, or so she believed.

"That's far from the truth!" Kimberley shouts back, their screams resounding into the large mansion. "Nobody will ever fcuking love you the way your Mam and I love you!"

"You don't want to see me happy!" Madison cries, "You don't c-care if I was dying!"

"Please stop." Cheryl pleads, "Please."

"W-Why can't youse just l-let me b-be happy?" Madison falls to her knees, hysterically crying. "Why?"

Cheryl shuffles off the sofa, getting on her knees too and taking the teen into her arms, allowing Madison to throw a few punches against the Geordie's chest in the process.

"I h-hate you."

Cheryl remains silent, Madison crying every drop of tear left within her.

Kimberley stands towering over them, hand clasped over her mouth as she silently cries to the sight of her daughter, falling apart right before her eyes.

"Everyone l-leaves m-me!" Madison howls, "E-Everyone I-I l-love leaves m-me."