Max and Hailey: A second chance

Escalation

Hailey's P.O.V

I laid back on my bed with the biggest smile on my face. I was excited for once. Finally, there is something that I can look forward to, something exciting. Who would have thought that a random encounter in the woods would lead to meeting someone that I would get so attached to so quickly? Just thinking about the possibilities of what we could do and what this could turn into was starting to give me butterflies. My thoughts drift back to our kiss, that kiss. It was the best kiss I have ever had. His soft lips fit perfectly on mine. I just want to kiss him again and again. As I get deep into the thought of kissing Max, a knock on my door brought me back to reality.

"Who is it?" I asked sitting up.

"It's Alex. Dad wants to speak with you downstairs. He said to meet him in his study." Alex responded.

"What did I do now?" I asked out loud with a sigh as I went over to the door and opened it.

"I don't think you are in trouble. He just needs to talk to you. You never know, he could want to apologize for last night." Alex suggested.

"Yeah, we both know that never happens," I replied with a frown. "I'll go now," I said. Alex nodded his head and walked away. I closed my door behind me and headed downstairs. I knocked on the door before heading inside my dad's study. "Alex said you wanted to speak with me," I said to him.

"Yes, I do. Have a seat." Dad replied without even looking up from his papers on his desk. I sat down on the chair in front of his desk and took a deep breath. I tried to reassure myself that this wasn't going to be a big lecture about last night, but it wasn't working.

"Is something wrong?" I asked my dad. He sighed and put his papers down to look at me.

"No." He answered quickly with no emotion. He stood up, walked out from his desk, and closed the door to his study so we could have privacy. "I asked for you to come here because your uncle David and Brittany are getting married tomorrow." He told me.

"They are?" I asked in shock, "that is fast." I commented. "Where are they going to have the wedding?" I asked.

"They are going to get married at city hall and have a little lunch in as a reception. Now I encouraged them to do this tomorrow. I helped them plan it all. After what you did last night, I wanted to make sure that you wouldn't ruin everything for them. And so, for that reason, you are not going to be a part of the wedding. You actually won't be going at all." He told me.

"Wait, what? You are banning me from the wedding?" I asked in shock.

"Shut your mouth!" He replied sternly as he turned to face me. "Do not be loud and make a scene. There will not be a lot of people at this wedding. Your mother and I are going to take Ariana with us to the wedding. You and Alex will stay here and watch the twins." He explained.

"But Ariana hates weddings and would never agree to dress proper. I promise I won't ruin anything, just let me go." I begged my father. His face turned red and slapped me across my cheek. I held my cheek in response as I looked up at him in fear and shock.

"You do not talk back to me!" Father yelled at me. "I do not know what has gotten into you but you will not talk to me that way. Now get out." He ordered pointing at the door. I hung my head still holding my cheek, tears starting to fall down my face as I quickly raced out of his study and back to my room. Alex came running behind me, following me to my room, and closed the door behind him.

"What happened?!" Alex asked me in shock. He moved my hand off my cheek and saw the bright red hand mark our father left on me. "He slapped you?!" he asked in anger. He let go of my hand and turned to the door, yanking it open, "That is it. He can't keep treating you like this.".

"Don't!" I cried out rushing to the door and closing it standing in between him and the closed door. "No one is supposed to know what happened in there. He will just get madder and if he hit me who is to say he won't start hitting you too?" I pointed out and Alex sighed.

"Alright, fine. At least tell mom about this. She has no clue how on edge he has become." He pleaded.

"I can't" I replied, wiping tears away from my eyes trying to gain control again. "If mom knew how bad he has become they would get into their arguments again and this time mom will definitely leave him. I will not be the reason that this family falls apart. He told me that we aren't allowed to go to the wedding and will watch the twins. They are just going to bring Ariana. I over-reacted is all, ok?"

"Yeah, okay. Sure" Alex answered with clear sarcasm. "I'm going to work getting my shit together so I can move out of this house. If you need an out, you can come with me. We can stay in town so you can finish high school and then we could go anywhere. You're really smart, you will be able to get into any college wherever we go." He told me. "When you are ready, just let me know"

"I will," I said and moved out of the way so he could leave. I went into my bathroom and looked at myself in the mirror. The hand mark on my cheek was as bright as can be. I tried to touch it and winced in pain. I sighed, hoping it would go away before dinner tonight so my mother wouldn't see. I heard my phone ding and went over to check it. Max had texted me about the wedding, asking me if I would be going. I bit my lip as I contemplated what to respond with. How could I tell him I am not going? He would want to know why, and I can't tell him the truth. Something in me just knew that he would freak out. With how protective he is over his mom I just knew he would not like to hear about my father's escalating abuse. I realized that as much as I wanted to explore things with Max, with the way my father is acting, I cannot risk the possible aftermath of him finding out. So, I decided there was only one thing I could do. I lied and texted Max that I was going to the wedding. I turned my phone off before he could send a reply and placed my phone on my nightstand before curling up in my bed.