The One in the Background | Completed

Chapter 17

I wake up to a loud vibrating noise of my phone going off. It's still dark outside. I squint from the bright light of my phone screen. Haley was calling. I quickly swipe to answer.

"Hello?" I ask.

"Mia! Hi, you need to pick me up now," she replies in an urgent whisper. I get phone calls from her at night, but I never had to go and pick her up.

"Oh my god Haley, are you okay?" I ask throwing on some slippers.

"Uh, kinda?"

"Kinda? I'm on my way downstairs." I'm still half asleep, so clumsy me trips and falls down the stairs. I roll into the table across the stairs in the hallway, ending with a loud crash. I groan in pain.

"Mia! Are you okay?" Haley asks from the phone.

"Uh yeah." I say, standing up and dusting myself off. Just then, Ryan emerges from his room.

"Mia? It's 3 in the morning. What are you doing?" Ryan asks.

"Can't talk Ryan, I'll be back soon." I say as I turn and run into the car. I put the phone back to my ear, "Wait, Haley, at your house?"

"Uhm, yeah, just park on the street, don't pull into the driveway or anything."

"Okay, I'm speeding there. I'll be there any minute now." I speed through the neighborhood. I see her house and slow by the curb, parking by the mailbox. I see Haley climb out of her window with a small suitcase. She runs to the car.

"Hi!" she greets as she slams her door shut, "drive!"

"What's happening?" I ask nervously as I hear police sirens in the background.

"Well those are going to my house. I fell asleep listening to their arguments. I was woken up by my dad. He told me, 'go pack and run. Get as far from mom as possible. She has a gun.' And then he called 911 in my room, which was when I called you. I hope he is okay. I love him so much." Haley said as she started to cry.

"He is okay. The cops are at your house now. You saw him in your room when you left. Your mom couldn't have done anything in 15 seconds." I say as we park the car in the driveway. We could see that the lights are on in the house, meaning that my parents are home.

"You are probably right. I'm just really f*****g scared Mia. Dad and I could have died." Haley said with wide eyes.

"That's true, but you didn't. That has to mean something, right?" I ask as I put my arm on her shoulder.

"Yeah, I guess," she sighs.

"Uh, so it looks like my parents are up."

"Well, they are going to learn one way or another." Haley says hopping out of the car.

"True," I say as we head to the door.

I open the door, and I'm greeted by very worried parents.

"Mia! Why would you-" they stop when they see Haley, "Hi Haley."

"Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Johnson. I have something to tell you."

"Oh, okay. Come sit." My mom says as we enter the living room. Ryan and Katie joined us, too.

Once we are all settled, Haley starts. "Let me explain everything before questions. I'm going to keep this story short. I'm perfectly fine. So, my parents. My mom can be a little abusive towards me. She has anger issues. My dad never hurt me, he just yells at me. They fight a lot. I love them, but I never told anyone, except Mia. But, tonight, my dad woke me up. He told me to run because my mom had a gun. I called Mia when he called 911, and now I'm here."

"Oh sweetie. You poor thing." My mom said, sitting on the sofa by Haley.

"Haley, you could have told us," my dad added.

"I know, but I didn't want my mom to go to jail or something," Haley mumbled.

"It's okay, Haley. As long as you're safe, we're happy. Why don't all you kids go to bed for a few more hours," my mom said softly. With that, we all went back to bed.

~*~*~

I wake up a few hours later, and go on my phone until Haley wakes up. About 10 minutes later, I hear shuffle beside me. I look over, and see Haley waking up.

"Good morning," I say, yawning.

"Good morning back at you," She says with a smile. It's good to have the happy Haley back.

"Ready for some food?" I ask, hearing her stomach growl.

"Oh yeah."

We head downstairs to the sound of people talking in hushed voices. We exchange weird looks. When we enter the living room, we notice a police officer talking to my parents.

"Good morning girls," my mom says.

"Mornin'" We reply.

"We have doughnuts in here." My dad offers, "Why don't you two come join us?"

"Okay," We answer, not really having a choice. We sit on a couch, each of us grabbing a doughnut.

"So girls, you might be wondering why a police officer is here. He wants to talk to Haley." My mom says with a sad smile.

"Okay," Haley says.

"Hi Haley. I'm officer Graystone. I know you have been going through a lot. The Johnsons told me what you told them. The department and I have been working since we got the 911 call. This is what we came to. Your mother was found with a gun. Bullets were fired by her in your home. She is going to be held in jail, until she can go to court. She will be tried for attempted murder against your father. It seems like your father has a clean record. He is innocent, and you will be able to live with him. Is that okay?"

"Yes, that's great." Haley replies with a smile.

"Awesome, do you have any questions?"

"When will the court date be?"

"It's not set in stone, but most likely in a few months."

"Okay. Thank you, officer." Haley said, shaking his hand.

"No problem. If you need anything here's my card." He pulls out a card out of his pocket of his jacket, and hands it to Haley.

"Thanks," Haley smiles. Officer Graystone replies with a tight smile and a nod. My parents walk him out, back to his car.

"So?" I ask, wondering how she feels about this.

"I don't know. I'm happy. I think. I love my mom, but not if she tried to shoot my dad." Haley says.

"How do you feel about living alone with your dad?" I ask.

"Fine, I guess. I feel like he was being poisoned by my mom. Like, he would only yell at me because she would get him upset. I just feel guilty I never said anything."

"Well, it's all better now."

"It is. I guess I'm going back home tonight," She says with a smile.

"I guess so." I say as I embrace her in a tight hug.