Closing Time

Chapter 6

(Like A Pill By P!nk)

Rylee's Pov

Iris tilted her head at me as I packed clothes for us. I only had one bookbag but that was okay, I'll have to come back and get things.

"Rylee what the hell are you doing?" Jason shouted from outside of the room.

He tried to open the door but it was locked. I put the bookbag on my back, grabbed my work bag and picked up Iris.

"Close your eyes honey and keep them closed till I say to open them."

Iris laid her head on my shoulder and shut her eyes. I feel horrible. I feel like such a bad mother. I opened the door and Jason was leaning against the wall.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?" He looked at the bag on my back.

"I have work." I lied and he squinted his eyes at me.

"You just got back."

"Yeah and I have a photoshoot for a couple." I lied and Iris moved a little and I tightened my grip on her.

"Cancel it." His voice went low and Iris grabbed me tightly.

"I can't." I opened the door and he grabbed it, holding it shut.

"You will." He demanded and I shook my head.
My phone started ringing and I grabbed it from my back pocket.

"See, i need to leave."

Eryn was calling me, but he didn't need to know that Eryn was my boss for a completely different job.

"You're not leaving." He stated and I shook my head.

"I need to leave."

"No." He grabbed my arm and I pulled away. He grabbed my keys from the key holder and i mentally scolded myself.

"Give me my keys, I need to go."

I held out my hand and backed away when he started walking closer to me. I opened the door and ran out of the apartment.

Fuck the keys.

I started to run away and he started chasing me. Once I got outside I started to run down the street, making sure to make sure he wasn't following even further.

"Shit!" I screamed as Iris cried.

"No- Iris- Honey-" I sat down on a bench and she sobbed into my chest.

"He's mean, Momma."

"I know honey, we aren't going back. I promise." I looked at my surroundings and grabbed my phone.

Iris jumped around the small room with a smile on her face as I waited for the call to come through my phone.

"Ry what happened?" Ruby said through the phone out of breath.

He had just ran home from work, he doesn't have a car but when i told him that something happened he left work earlier and got home quickly.

"I left." Is all I said and the line went quiet.

"What do you need? How can I help? I'm trying as best as I can, but I can only do so much. Please tell me how I can help you."

"There's nothing you can do right now. I've got it all under control."

"Mom and Dad are trying to call me again-" Ruby said and I took a deep breath.

"They've been trying to call me too but I blocked their numbers."

"I answered the one time and they were going on about how your not fit to be a mother and that they want to take Iris from you and how they are glad they kicked you out-"

"Did you just say that they want to take Iris from me?" I cut him off, feeling my heart break.

If they found out that I left, they could actually get away with taking her from me.

I didn't have a living place, I had a good income now, but I didn't have a place to stay. Eryn is letting me stay in the bar, but I know that I can't stay here forever.

"Yeah but they obviously can't."

He's just saying that to make me feel better.

Eryn leaned against the wall waiting for me to finish my phone call. Once I was done on the phone with him she sat next to me and hugged me. Julie picked up Iris and took her out of the room, that made me nervous but I trusted her.

Once they left I told Eryn all what happened because I needed to be heard. I needed someone to listen.

"When I first met you I knew something like this was happening because you reminded me of myself. I started this bar for women like us." Eryn said with a sad smile on her face.

"What do you mean by that?" I asked her, wiping my eyes.

"I was in your same situation. Minus having a kid. I felt trapped, you know? Like I owed everything to him and I couldn't leave."

"What made you stay?" She asked lightly, making sure that I knew that I didn't have to tell her if I didn't want to.

"I guess I didn't love myself enough to put myself first. I had hoped that he would change, and I know that he will never change. I thought that I should just stay with him because nobody would ever see me." I didn't understand what I meant by that, but at the same time it meant everything to me.

Eryn seemed to understand what I was saying, or trying to say and we sat in an embrace with each other before Julie came back in, holding a giggling Iris upside down. Julie smiled at us and placed Iris on the floor who ran over to us.

"Momma, Aunt Julie crazy." She giggled before climbing up on Eryn.

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