Madison's Journey

Chapter 2

Madison woke up the next day to the same loneliness she had experienced the previous night and knew that her mother hadn’t come home. She was worried; her mom had never left like this before. Where could she be? Did something happen to her? Madison wasn’t sure what to do, should she call the police?

“No, no police. Mom would be furious. She wouldn’t want the police here. No. Mads, don’t panic. She’ll be home tonight, you’ll see,” Madison closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. She grabbed her cell phone and dialed her mom’s number and held her breath as it rang once, and then went to voicemail. She hung up without leaving a message. Tears began forming behind her eyes. She looked at herself in the mirror, giving herself a little pep talk.

“Don’t cry. It’s going to be fine. Just go to school and everything will be back to normal tonight.” She took a deep breath, forced herself to smile and headed out the door.

She tried her best to concentrate at school but couldn’t get the image of her mom and Mark driving away out of her mind. Where had they gone? And why had her mom just left like that? Had Madison really made her that angry? Madison had so many questions building in her mind. She also kept reliving those few terrifying moments with Mark and what could have happened if her mom had not woken up. She had noticed several bruises on her neck and arms that morning, so she had grabbed a turtleneck from her mom’s closet to hide them. The last thing she wanted was for people to start asking questions.

Madison was completely overwhelmed with all the thoughts in her head that when the bell rang to signify the end of class, she jumped in her seat. As her classmates moved around her and began heading out for lunch, she realized she had missed the entire history lesson. She was a bit frazzled as she made her way to her locker where she was met by her best friend, Amy.

“Mads, you okay? You look a little lost.” Madison turned around startled.

“Hey, Aim. Sorry, yeah, I’m fine. I just didn’t sleep all that great last night.” She put her books in her locker and grabbed her lunch. “You look great today, by the way. Love the boots.”

Amy smiled and looked down at her new white knee-high boots. “Thanks. They go great with this skirt, don’t you think?” 

Madison gave her friend an admiring smile. Amy was the fashionista of their friend group and had the image of a model to prove it. Her blond curly hair and blue eyes, combined with her long legs and slim figure, made her look like she had just stepped out of a fashion magazine.

“Come on. Let’s go eat, I’m starving.” Amy grabbed Maddie’s arm and steered her towards the cafeteria. They strolled down the locker lined hallway, the laughter and chatter of their fellow classmates filling the hallway. The cafeteria was bustling with activity when they got their, students were sitting on tables and chairs, talking and hollering as Madison and Amy navigated through the bodies to the far end of the room.

“Hey guys.” Kelly greeted them as they sat down, her big brown eyes glimmering at them from behind her wire rimmed glasses. She was at their usual table, her latest novel opened up in front of her. Kelly was never seen without a book; she was an avid reader and was often caught neck deep in one during class instead of doing her schoolwork.

Madison and Amy sat down on the hard plastic chairs and began to unpack their lunches. Madison surveyed the scene around her. It was business as usual, the debate team were at their usual table, beside Madison’s table, and they were involved in a deep discussion about something. Madison stared at them and tried to hear what they were talking about; the debate team always had the best conversations, but Christy showed up then and distracted her from her eavesdropping. It was the four of them as usual, best friends since middle school.

“So, did everyone see Mr. Gardner today? Those jeans, whoa!” Christy waved her hand in front of her face, fanning herself. 

“Can you guys believe a teacher could be that hot?” Kelly looked up from her book to comment.

“Does anyone know if he’s married?” Christy winked and flipped her long, black, curly hair off her shoulders. She grinned widely, the silver of her braces shining brightly under the bright lights of the cafeteria. Her eyes twinkled with a hint of mischief.

Amy rolled her eyes and shook her head at Christy. “Christy, I don’t think he’s going to date a student. Plus, you don’t have time for boys, don’t you have a track meet to train for?” Christy was the athlete of their group. She was the star of the high school track team, having won numerous medals and awards over the past few years.

Christy grinned at Amy. “Yup, I do. But I always have time for boys.” She winked and her, Amy and Kelly started to giggle.

Madison, however, was too distracted to find the humor in her friend’s conversation. She was too busy thinking about her mom and trying not to panic. She was, again, distracted all through lunch, but her friends were too busy chatting about boys to notice how quiet she was. Madison packed up her lunch, having not eaten much of it, when the bell rang to signal the end of lunch. She stood up gingerly, her arms were sore and her head was starting to ache and said a quiet good bye to her friends. She slowly walked to her chemistry class, dodging students running and shouting around her. During her chemistry lab, her teacher pulled her aside to ask if she was okay as he noticed how off she had been. She was tempted to tell him, but she knew she couldn’t tell anyone for fear of what may happen. She had a friend a few years ago who was in foster care, and his life had been rough. That was the last thing she wanted for herself. She would just wait for her mom to come home. She’d be back soon; Madison was sure of that.

At the end of the day, she was relieved to see Gracie. Madison had been babysitting Gracie every day after school for the past year and loved every moment of it. Gracie was six and the cutest kid Madison had ever seen; with her red curly hair framing her little freckled face. She was excited to see Madison today and when she smiled showing a toothless grin, Madison laughed.

“Looks like you lost a couple things.”

Gracie nodded her head with great enthusiasm. “Uh huh! And the tooth fairy came and gave me four dollars!”

Madison’s lips curved up and a laugh escaped her as Gracie smiled again. She was missing her top two front teeth, which increased her cute factor by ten. “Wow! That’s awesome, Gracie.”

Madison grabbed Gracie’s hand and the two of them walked out of the elementary school yard. The Shipyard’s home was one of Madison’s favorite places. It was on a large plot of land, and Gracie’s dad, Bill, had built a large play area with swings, monkey bars and a trampoline. He had also built a bike track in one corner, and Madison and Gracie spent hours racing each other around it. It was the kind of back yard that every kid dreamed of. Another great feature of the Shipyard’s home was their state-of-the-art kitchen. Lisa, Gracie’s mom, was an interior designer and had helped design the recent remodel. It was one of the fanciest rooms Madison had ever seen. All of the appliances were brand new, and the kitchen itself was so inviting that when you were in it, you never wanted to leave. After hours of playing outside, Madison and Gracie would often come inside to bake or just hang out and talk.

Today, they spent an hour racing around the track and then decided to bake brownies. It was the perfect distraction for Madison, and by the time Bill and Lisa got home from work, she was in my much better spirits. 

Unfortunately, her good mood was short lived. She held her breath as she walked down the path of her house towards the basement suite entrance. She opened the door and was greeted by a deafening heartbreaking silence. Tiptoeing into the living room, she hoped to find her mom passed out on the couch. As she snuck further into the room, her eyes landed on an empty couch, and her heart sank. She flopped down, a puddle of tears forming in her lap. She stayed on the couch for most of the night as she couldn’t muster the energy to get up and study. So, she just sat there, crying and praying that her mom would be home soon. She tried calling her mom’s cell again, twice, but it went straight to voicemail both times.

“Hey Mom. It’s just me. Wondering what time you’ll be home, and if I should make some dinner?” She left the message with a confidence she didn’t feel and fell asleep on the couch, clutching onto her phone in hopes that it would ring.