Lost in July

XXXVI

Collin
~
Margo's father is one scary mother fucker.

As soon as he entered the room, everything stopped. Everyone in the room is still, our eyes not even moving. Even the air has shifted, feeling thicker almost.

"Marcus!" Marilyn smiles gratefully at her husband, her anger from before vanishing. "Thank God you're here." She walks to her husband, wrapping an arm around his waist. He looks down at her, confused but still kissing her head welcomingly.

"Who's this?" He asks, looking at me now. Margo quickly returns to my side, subtly grabbing my hand and hiding it behind her.

I take a step toward him, holding my available hand out to him. "Sir. I'm Collin Fitzpatrick. I went to the dance with your daughter," I explain. "I apologize for showing up unannounced."

Marcus looks at me skeptically, shaking my hand cautiously. "Marcus July. What's going on?"

His confusion is understandable, but I don't want to have to be the one to explain that I disagree with his parenting decisions. That's a little awkward as a first impression.

Marilyn sighs as she realizes that none of us are interested in recapping the last five minutes. She steps forward. "Collin and your daughter here are trying to convince me to keep her home rather than send her back to Orchard Hills.

Margo winces as her father narrows his eyes at her. "And how did they find this out?" Then he narrows his eyes at Marley, who's still barely making herself known in the corner of the room.

"I don't mean any disrespect, Sir. I'm just trying to help," I assure him. I swallow as his eyes focus on me.

"Right." His expression is blank as he looks at me. "Can I sit in my own house, please?"

I fight the urge to nod, as if I have to grant him permission, and instead try to crack an amused smile. That was a joke, right?
Marcus heads to the couch, sitting down with a heavy sigh. He looks at Margo and me as he gestures for us to have a seat across from him. There's another small couch that can fit at least two people, so we take a seat. Marcus gives Marley a stern look, and she lowers her eyes, walking back down the hallway she came from and into her bedroom. Marilyn sits beside her husband, her eyes fierce as she looks at us.

"So," Marcus starts, leaning forward, elbows resting on his knees. "You think you know how to take care of my daughter better than her own father?"

"No, Sir."

"Because I promise you that I know what's best for my daughter. I also promise you that no teenage boy is going to change my mind about how I decide to parent." Marcus' eyes are intense as he looks at me menacingly.

"That wasn't my intention, Sir. I was just trying to offer some help from an outside perspective. I think Margo needs to be with the people she loves, and that's here, with you guys." And me, but I'm sure her father wouldn't appreciate that much. "It's really hard for mentally ill people to recover when their environments keep changing. It's hard to find any sense of normalcy that way."

Marcus and Marilyn share a look, and I can see Marilyn's demeanor change as she turns to face us. I can feel Margo's body tense up, her posture immediately straightening, and she begins to hold her breath.