Skinny Love

Chapter 32

It was about to get ugly fast, and by that I mean I was going to break down. I sat in my car in the driveway of Mark's parents house. I take a deep breath. I'd told my mom I was going to get formula from the store and yet I ended up here.

For a whole entire month I'd been trying to get a hold of Mark. He doesn't answer his phone, he never gets online, and his mom doesn't answer either. I open the door and walk up the gravel. I stop and turn around, then turn back and up the steps. I thought about knocking first but rang the doorbell instead. When I heard nothing I rang it once more, then heard footsteps. Heavy footsteps. My heart beats faster at the possibility of seeing Mark again. When the door swung open slowly I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding.

"Noelle?"

"Hi Mr. Campbell." I glance down at my feet. "Is Mark here?"

"No, I haven't seen him."

"Do you know where he could be? I really need to talk to him about-"

"No, literally haven't seen him since he ran off with that girl. " he snapped his fingers and made an 'Ah ha!' "The one with the red hair," he leaned against the door frame.

"Cherrie?" I ask.

"Yeah, her!" he had a look of disappointment as he said 'Mh hm mh.' "Do you need anything? You can always ask me."

"Ha! I doubt your wife would be happy about that." I go to turn but remember what else I needed to say. "If you see him or even just talk to him,"I sigh "Tell him I need to talk to him, it's important. Really important, life and death." I look him in the eyes.

"I will, promise." he smirks. Happy-go-lucky. All the time. Mark was the only normal one no wonder he left, the Campbell's were good at hiding their problems. Every. Single. One. Of them. Mark was the only one who didn't want to. At least when I knew him. When he was my best friend.

I headed back home forgetting the formula and having to take August with me to the store. It is such a hassle taking babies out, so I avoid it at all cost. You have to hook the car seat to the base and the base to the seat and then take the seat off the base and put it in the cart and then stack all your groceries around the gigantic car seat.

And if that wasn't a bad idea already it starting pouring down rain on the way back home, so much I couldn't even see to drive, and so I stopped in a parking lot. Turned off the car, and got in the backseat. I got a spare water bottle from the diaper bag and poured some formula in the water that I poured in a bottle. Of course August wasn't having it, the rain scared her, the milk wasn't warm and she just cried louder. I wrapped her blanket around her in her seat and sang. It calmed her down for a couple minutes. Enough to bring my stress level down a bit while I drove home, in the now little less than the pouring it was a few minutes ago.

Of course when I got back home and inside the barn August was screaming, her face red and I was too the point of pulling at my own hair. She didn't want milk, or to sleep, or do tummy time, she cried even when I held her. I changed her diaper as well, but still she cried. It was both thundering and lightning now, and I had a feeling like she just might be scared of the loud noise. Because the storm was getting bad I packed up a big bag of baby things and a big bag of my things, put the baby in her car seat and pulled the cover over it, along with a blanket so she wouldn't get wet.

I locked the barn door and walked as fast as I could to the main house. I just walked right in because the door was unlocked. My mother rounded the corner.

"Hey, you're back." I set down the two big bags and the car seat huffing. Mom walked up and took August out of her seat. She was still crying but less extreme as mom bounced her in her arms.

"It's getting bad out there, and she won't stop crying and Nat has been with his dad rebuilding their porch all day and I hop he gets back safe and I'm...I'm just really frustrated and irritated."I take a breath.

"Why what's wrong? What happened?"

"I don't wanna talk about it."I say moving passed her and into the kitchen with a new bottle of formula. I heated it up and tested and then handed to her to feed August. Of course she would take it from my mom.