The Untitled Piper Watson Project

How I Dare

Piper's POV~one month later

Mack's been gone for a month. And this month has been the worst month of my entire life. I was lying down on my couch doing nothing as per usual. I was on the phone with my sister. "Piper, you need to get out of the house." said Jen. "I know you're sad about Mack, but you need to move on. Mom and Dad don't know what's wrong with you and I don't want to be the one to tell them that you were seeing a mental patient." I buried my head in my pillow. "I'll be fine, Jennifer. I just remembered I need to go to Mack's house and get his stuff." "Get his stuff?" asked Jen. "How come?" "I have rights, apparently." I muttered. "I'll let you know when I get off the freeway. He lives on the other side of town." "Okay." Jen said hesitantly. "Just be careful." "Yeah." I hung up and got up from the couch and stretched. I didn't think I'd be meeting Mack's parents this way. Well, there's a first time for everything.

I made my way to Mack's house and it took about 20 minutes before I got there. I made sure I brought all the legal papers unless Mack's mom gave me a hard time. I took a deep breath and knocked on the door. A few seconds later, the door opened to reveal a stern looking woman in a pantsuit. She narrowed her eyes at me. "May I help you?" I smiled respectively. "Hi, Mrs. Gibbons. I'm...Piper. Mack told you about me?" She looked at me in disgust before walking away with the door still wide open. "You can come in if you'd like." She said. "But Mackenzie--" "I know he isn't here." I cut her off. "I'm here to--" "Honestly," she interrupted. "I don't care why you're here. My son made the choice to lock himself away from civilization because he wanted to protect you. Someone he just met, too. I'm still trying to wrap my head around it." I stepped into the house and glared at her. "Is your husband home?" I asked. Mrs. Gibbons went to the front of the stairs and yelled: "Vince! Come downstairs. Piper's here." Several seconds later, Mr. Gibbons appeared. He smiled at me. "Hi, Piper. It's an honor to meet you." he extended his hand to me and I gladly took it, finally being relieved from the rage of his wife.

"Can you believe the nerve?" Mrs. Gibbons said to her husband. "After everything she's done to our son and she has the nerve to show up here and challenge me in my own home?" I scoffed. "I'm only here because your son made a will which gives me rights to his belongings. I'm only here for those belongings." Mr. Gibbons uneasily glanced at his wife before clearing his throat. "He didn't have much, but Daphne put it in a box. I'll get it for you." And he scrambled out of the room to escape the daggers Mrs. Gibbons was shooting at him. "So," Mrs. Gibbons said, breaking the silent tension. "how exactly did you seduce my son?" "I didn't seduce anyone." I replied coldly. "Your son was the only person in my life that I'd probably ever loved. Maybe if you were a good parent you would've helped him. Kept him from becoming this way." Daphne stared at me in shock. "How dare you speak to me like that?" "No, how dare you?" I demanded. "He loved me. I know he did but because of you he was afraid to be involved with me so he ran away. That's your fault. It's not mine, not your husbands'. Yours." She raised her hand and slapped me across the face. It stung because of force and also shock. I rubbed my cheek. "So much disrespect." Daphne went on. "I knew having an illiterate author's influence around my son would only lead to trouble."

Vince walked back into the room with a box in his hand, clearly having no idea about what had just occurred. Daphne took the box from him and shoved it in my face. "Here. Take it and leave. I never want to see you here again." I took the box and walked towards the door in shame, my cheek numb. As I opened the door and made my way out I turned back around. "You know, Daphne," I began. "You really are a cunt." I slammed the door behind me, not before seeing the disbelief spread across Mrs. Gibbons' face and the look of astonishment and admiration on Mr. Gibbons' face. I went back to my car with the box in the passenger seat. I was on the freeway going back home and I was crying. The way Mack's mom had treated me, the way she slapped me across the face with such force to send me spiraling backwards. I don't know why her attitude towards me was pure hatred, but I know that calling her a cunt wasn't going to make things better. I just wanted to get back at the world for doing this to me. I didn't even notice the car swerve off the other side of road and collide head-first with mine. And then everything went black.