meet me at midnight.

12.

"Daisy, a lady's here to see you." Marie said.

I was just finishing my break and was putting on my apron. I followed Marie out of the staffroom and into the main foyer. The lady in question was mom. I rushed over to her and she hugged me tightly. She smelled like roses and we pulled apart. She looked healthy and I was so relieved.

"Marie, this is my mom." I said.

"Daisy did tell me about the situation involving yourself and her step-father." Marie said.

"Y-yes, is there any place Daisy and I could talk?" Mom asked.

"Sure, let me take you to my office." Marie said.

She motioned for us to follow. I walked behind mom, glancing at the restaurant. There weren't too many people here today. My eyes landed on Dawson. He'd been allowed back by the regional manager. I had barely any shifts with him thanks to Marie, so I only saw him once in a blue moon.

His eyes narrowed and he smirked cruelly at me. I looked back to the office and went inside with mom and Marie. Marie motioned for mom to have a seat and she did so. I sat in the chair opposite. A couple of months ago, Officer Sonia and I sat in these very seats, talking about how to find mom and here she was.

"Can I get you a drink?" Marie asked.

"No, I'm fine, thank you," Mom said. "I won't take up too much of your time."

Marie nodded and left the office, shutting the door. I looked at mom and she smiled at me, pressing her hand to mine.

"Where did you go?" I asked.

"I left just after you were kicked out, grabbed a few necessities and ran." She said.

"Officer Sonia sent officers to the halfway houses to see if you were there." I said.

Mom hadn't been found at any of the halfway houses so where had she been? She nodded and kept her hand on mine. Visibly she looked fine, but she seemed anxious. Maybe she was still worried about Lionel coming after her.

"Lionel's awaiting trial," I reassured her. "He cornered me in an alleyway, but Josh saved me."

"You're still with Josh." She said, and she looked relieved.

"Yeah, have been for nearly four months." I replied.

Had she really been gone for four whole months? Why hadn't she been in touch? A part of me felt selfish. I would ring Officer Sonia each week, requesting an update and each week she told me she hadn't found mom.

"That's wonderful," Mom said. "He's such a lovely man. You can come home with me if you want, though."

A part of me did want to because I couldn't bear the thought of her being alone, but a part of me loved living with Josh and couldn't imagine going back to sleeping alone.

"I-i live with Josh," I said. "Have done since that night."

"Of course," She said. "I thought maybe you'd want to move back in with me and Austin."

My head shot up at that. Who was Austin? I felt my heart in my chest and nerves coiled through me. Was he someone that had helped her?

"Who's Austin?" I asked.

"Austin is amazing, Dais, you'd love him," She said, smiling. "When I first ran away, he helped me, saved me. He's just like your father."

I'd heard those words before. The same words as when she introduced Lionel. I shifted nervously. She was watching me, expression still hopeful. I didn't know what to say.