Angel Academy

Chapter Eighteen

Niamh's POV

Slowly I turned, but it didn't matter; I already knew who would be standing there. Jeremy stood there looking at me, a small frown on his face. Taking a few steps back, I took a deep breath to keep myself from sprinting away from him. He hadn't done anything to make me have the right to be afraid of him, but for some reason I was. My heart raced in my chest and my stomach teemed with what I could only describe as angry bees, swarming and stinging the insides of my gut. 

"Jeremy, what do you want?"

Jeremy stepped towards me. "I've been thinking about since our fight, and I want to apologize. I'm so sorry. I was just insecure and worried you'd cheat on me like every other girl."

I glared at him, anger erasing my fear. "I'm not like the other girls you dated."

Jeremy nodded. "I know; I know. I promise, I'll be better. I promise I'll be the perfect man. Please, just give me a chance." While he had been talking, he'd also been walking towards me. I hadn't noticed until he was right in front of me. He took my hand in his and kissed my fimgertips. "Please, Niamh. Let me prove my love for you."

"Jeremy, I-"

A grunt made us turn to the bar counter. Frank glared at us. "I'm closing. Take your little romantic apology out of here." Jeremy ignored him, looking down at me. "Hey, I said get out."

I grabbed Jeremy's hand, flipped Frank the bird, and lead Jeremy outside. The cool night air nipped at my skin as we walked out into the parking lot and Frank slammed the door behind us. It had gotten late before I had even noticed. Taking a deep breath, I turned to Jeremy and he bent and kissed me, pressing his lips to mine passionatly and hungrily. My breath was lost from surprise, and all I could go was close my eyes and enjoy his lips pressed on mine.

When we pulled away, I had made up my mind. I may not love Jeremy, but I defintly loved his passion. He was so different than Corbin who never got angry with me and let me do whatever I wanted. Jeremy and I had different views on life. My son and I could experience more because of that. Jeremy knew what he wanted and he went for it while Corbin just did whatever his girlfriend tells him to do at the time. 

You're just tired of being alone while Corbin's starting a family with someone else. I brushed the thought away, but it was too late, I had heard it. It was true. Corbin and Addaline were in love and expecting and I was jealous of that. I wanted to be in love again, even if it was only a little while. Plus, Jeremy seemed to really love me. I mean, he came back twice and begged for me to take him back. That's love is it not? Not being able to spend a moment from each other and if you do it kills you?

Jeremy looked down at me, his golden eyes bright and happy. "I love you, Niamh," he whispered against my hair line as he kissed the top of my head. Rain began to fall from the sky, making us wet, but still we stood there.

"I need to get back to my mother's house," I murmured, embarassed from being stared at. 

Jeremy frowned. "Can't you stay the night with me tonight? No sex, just let me hold you in my arms."

I shook my head, stepping away from him. "I can't. My son-"

"Let's go pick him up. I missed his little smile." He draped his arm over my shoulders, and once again kissed the top of my head.

I shook my head, and placed a firm hand on his chest when he tried to follow me. "No. I'm not staying the night with you for a while. Neither is my son."

"What do I have to do," he asked, pouting a little.

"Why don't you take up for dinner tomorrow night?"

He nodded and lifted me up. He did one spin and set me back down, kissing my lips. Kneeling, he looked up at me. "I will take you to and your prince to dinner, fair maiden. Any place you perfer?"

I rolled my eyes, laughing a little as the rain continued to fall around us. "Millie's, kind sir. We love Millie's place." Jeremy nodded, and kissed the back of my hand.

"Until the 'morrow then, fair one."

Still laughing, I climbed into my truck and made the drive home. When I got there, it was nearly eleven, and I braced myself for the enormous lecture my mother was sure to give me. Taking a deep breath, I walked up the steps and into the house. My mother usually stayed up late, so I was surprised to find the lights off. I listened intently, but all I couldn't hear anything, not even the regular creaks and groans of the house settling down to sleep for the night. It was too dark and quiet for my taste. 

"Mom?" I took another step in and my shoe stepped on something that sounded like glass. It crunched under my foot. I turned the nearest light on and gasped and put a hand over my heart. The living room was a complete mess. The coffe table was over turned, the couches were thrown onto their sides. The flat screen TV was busted and lay in a pile of glass along with all the pictures from the walls. My mother's favourite plants were laying on the ground, their pots broken and spilling soil all over the floor. A wall was busted, and the bookshelf was in pieces. Even my son's  play pen was ripped and ruined.

"Mom? Heath?" I called out, my voice shaking as frightened tears blurred my vision. I ran into the kitchen to find broken plates and things all over the floor and chairs tipped over. I ran up stairs. "Mom!" I got to the top and looked around. All the doors were open and our things were lying all over the floor. "Mommy?" I felt like a little girl again as my chest tightened around my heart and my breathing became erratic. No matter how fast I ran, it felt like too slow. "Heath? Somebody!" 

The first bedroom was a mess, pillows and blankets all over. The mattress looked like it had been cut into and searched for money or family jewels. I turned and ran into the next room. It was my nursery from when I was a baby. My mother had never turned it into anything else, and she had decided to paint it light brown instead of traditional girl colors so it was only natural that we use it for Heath. 

The sight of the room struck me much harder than the rest of the house. The crib was smashed, pieces of wood just lying around the room, as if the force of tearing it apart had sent pieces flying into all corners of the room. The bean bag was ripped open and the beads and fluff lay around the room, making it look like the bean bag had exploded. The baby toys had been thrown around the room and the dresser had been looked through. It used to sit upright but now it lay on its face, its contents surrounding it and the drawers lying around the floor in odd places. The rocking chair, my great grandmother's, the one that had been passed down through the generations starting with my great grandmother's great great great great grandmother, was smashed as if it was worthless and held no history and no importance.

I staggered back into the hallway and leaned against the wall, falling to my butt. My stomach was in knots and I could hardly breath. Tears filled my eyes, and I couldn't see anything, even as they emptied onto my cheeks and shirt. Sobs wracked my body, making me shake and convulse. I never cried, but the thought of losing my mother and my son had broke that barrier, and now I couldn't do anything but sit and let the waves of despair flow over me, drowning me in a sea of sadness. After what must have only been a few minutes, but felt like hours, I calmed to a quiet crying. Only then did I hear the creaking of what sounded like three pairs of feet down stairs, and headed upstairs to where I was.