If I Fell│John Lennon/Beatles FanFiction

Chapter 80 - 30.April.1967

Chapter 80

April 30, 1967 

Maggie snoozed in my arms, but my eyes were wide and alert. I hadn't slept, not because I didn't want to, but because I couldn't. We were alone and the heavy silence surrounded and unnerved me. My father lingered in my mind, and so did the feeling of that bloke's hands on me. I wished the entire night had been just an awful nightmare, but it was all too real.

It had taken me hours to start breathing normally, to calm my erratic heart. But once I was able to breathe, I'd realized what I needed to do...it was an impossible decision, but one that had to be made. And as the sun began to rise, I felt a bit like myself again. It was as if a crushing weight had been lifted off my chest.

A tap came on the car window and my eyes flew toward the sound. I forced myself to swallow a yelp because I was too worried I might wake Maggie to make a noise. My breath hitched and I clutched Maggie, but when my eyes settled on George, I pulled in a calming breath. Of course it was George and not someone coming to do us harm...after all, we were sitting in his driveway.

"Open up," he said as his hand tried the handle of the door, but it didn't budge. They were all locked.

A striped robe was wrapped tight around his body, covering his pajamas. He leaned forward, peering in through the window, his brow pinched. I reached for the closest thing I could touch without jostling Maggie, and my fingers grazed the handle to roll the window down. I cranked it a few times.

"The door, Liv. Open the bloody door." He kept messing with the handle, and with a bit of difficulty, I turned and unlocked the door. He pulled it open and reached for me, taking my arm to help me out of the car before giving me a once-over. His hand settled on my shoulder as if he thought I might topple over, and his eyes widened as they fell on my nightgown. "Holy hell. Did you sleep here all night or summat?"

"I...no." I shook my head as I leaned against my car. My legs were a bit weak from everything that had happened, paired with not having moved a muscle for the last several hours as I sat awake while trying to keep Maggie content. "No, I just got here a few hours ago, I think."

In my haze the night before, I'd managed to make the short drive to George's house. But I hadn't worked up the courage to leave my car.

"A few hours?" He looked at me through narrowed eyes and then reached for Maggie. I let him take her since my fingers and arms were tingling from staying in the same position for hours—she'd damn well refused to fall asleep in her car seat. "Well, then why in the world didn't you knock on the door? Y'know, like normal people do...knock, wake us up, and then come inside?"

"George...I—" My chin trembled as I fought to maintain control.

When I didn't answer, he shifted Maggie into one arm, something that looked so natural for him despite not having any kids of his own yet. I knew that one day George would be a fabulous father. He wrapped his other arm around me and, with a gentle nudge, guided me toward the front door. His house wasn't where I needed to go, not if I wanted to follow through with the decision I'd made. But I reluctantly let him push me anyway...mostly because I was too damned knackered to put up any real kind of fight, and because it felt too good to be out of my car.

"Where're yer shoes?" George peered at my bare feet.

"They say it's best to drive shoeless, didn't y'hear?" I tried my best to break the tension, but even my sarcasm didn't come out correctly. When he didn't respond, I sighed. "They're at home. I s'pose I forgot 'em."

"What the hell is goin' on? Is everythin' all right?" he asked, his voice low. He led me up the walkway, past the lush grass, and opened the door to his massive bungalow-style home.