Strong

Chapter Thirteen

"Where are we going?" Maria asks, trying to shift to a comfortable space in the passenger seat in Alex's car.

He's silent as he takes a right turn.

"Wait..." Maria says to herself.

"I'm sorry," he says.

"No, you are NOT taking me to the hospital!" She snaps.

"I wasn't asking," he replies calmly.

They get to a stop light.

"Alex, please," Maria begs.

"Why not?" He questions turning to look at her.

"Because...they will ask where I got these bruises and marks and I just-" Maria breaks off mid sentence, choking back tears.

The light turns green.

Alex grips the steering wheel tightly and veers off to the side of the road, where no one can hit them.

He turns to look at Maria. She is looking out the window, but he could see in the reflection that she is crying.

Alex unbuckles so he can lean closer to Maria.

"Please don't tell anybody," she sniffs, turning to look at him.

Her eyes are red and puffy along with her nose.

Alex's eyes soften.

"I promise."

"Pinky-promise?"

"Pinky-promise."

And they wrap their pinkies around each other.

Alex buckles back up and says with enthusiasm, "I'm going to take you on a REAL adventure now."

Maria plants a small smile on her face and wipes away her tears.

***************************************

"Chic-fil-A?" Maria asks as they pull into the parking lot.

"Well, the adventure can't actually start until night, plus we haven't eaten anything yet," Alex says parking the car.

They walk inside and make their order, then take their seats.

"Why do you always wear that leather jacket?" She suddenly asks.

"Because I like it," he replies simply, shrugging his shoulders.

"Our order his ready," Maria says looking over his shoulder.

She starts to stand up, but he puts his hands on her shoulders as a signal to sit down.

"I'll get it," he smiles.

As he gets up and walks away, Maria puts her hair up in a high pony tail.

Alex comes back with their tray of food and sets it down on the table.

He takes his seat and they both start eating.

Alex looks up and sees that the bruise on Maria's back, goes up and around her neck too.

"Maria," he whispers.

"Hm?" She looks up from drinking her lemonade.

"You should put your hair back down," he says motioning to her neck.

At first, she looks confused, but then she caught on.

"Oh...right," she mutters, taking her hair down.

Alex doesn't make eye contact with her as he takes a drink of his water.

***************************************

"Great! It's 8:00 PM, that means we can start our adventure," Alex says getting out of the black Impala.

"Where even is this?" Maria asks looking around.

"You've never been here before?" He asks, surprised.

"I mean, it seems familiar," Maria says as they walk through the theme park entrance.

"But, why is nobody here?" She questions, noticing the silence.

"Oh, it closes at 8:00, but I know a guy so he taught me how to use the on and off stuff to work the rides," Alex says proudly.

"It's so dark," Maria whispers, drawing closer to Alex.

"Are you scared?" He laughs.

"Absolutely not!" She snaps.

"Don't worry I'll light this place up for you," he says winking.

Alex walks over to a switch box and presses a button and moments later, the whole place is lit up.

"It's beautiful!" She gasps.

When Alex comes over to stand next to Maria, he has his signature small smile planted on his face.

"So, where to first?" He smiles.

***************************************

Alex and Maria sit at the top of the ferris wheel, talking.

"Can I ask you a question?" Alex asks.

"Sure."

"How...how long has your father been...harming you?" He questions carefully.

Maria tenses up then answers, "Ever since...my mom."

"What happened to your mom?"

"She-" Maria breaks off to control her emotions.

"She hung herself," she finally replies, "the day I wasn't at school...that was the day after it happened."

Alex turns to look at her, "Maria..."

"I'm fine," she sniffs, wiping away a tear.

Alex is silent for a moment and then whispers, "I'll keep you safe."

"You can't protect me from everything."

Alex wraps his arms around Maria and whispers in her ear, "I can try."