Escape | Updated Weekly

17

As weeks went by, Mac and I continued our secret relationship. No one batted an eyelid, and we probably liked sneaking around a little too much.

Every day, we would hang out, either in my room at night or going somewhere no one would recognize us. Many nights, we would fall asleep in my bed; Mac always made sure he returned to his room before anyone else would be up in the morning. Whenever the band played gigs, he'd look at me and sing me the songs, even though he would have already sung them to them during our late-night dates. Being in a crowd full of people but feeling like it was only the two of us there was so exhilarating. It was like living in my fairy tale of a love story.

Every touch and every kiss sent me spiraling. Whenever he texted, I would feel the same butterflies in my stomach. It was hard not to touch him in a group, as touching him now felt like second nature. Every day, it felt better to be around him. So much had changed since we first met, and I never knew if we'd get along, let alone be this way.

I decided I wouldn't lie to Chloe and tell her we had broken up. She never would have believed me anyway, and talking to someone about it was nice. She still had concerns but slowly came to the idea whenever I talked about Mac.

We went to the beach he had taken me to all those months ago, sat near the sea, and cuddled up. It felt more free here. Not only did we have peace from listening to waves, but we also didn't have to be so cautious of the other people around us.

"I should be doing my coursework," I told him as he kissed me on the neck. "So do it," he replied. "I'm not stopping you." I put my head on his shoulder and took a deep breath.

My class assignment was to perfect our portfolios for the end-of-year event we were planning. Normally, I would stress about it, but Mac has been my rock throughout it all.

"When do I get to read some of it?" I looked at him, puzzled. "Never." I didn't mean to answer so quickly. I just wasn't expecting him ever to ask. He looked slightly offended. "You hear my songs," he argued playfully. I rolled my eyes.

"That's different."

"Pfft. How?"

I bit my lip, trying to think of the answer. Maybe he had a point. Truth is, the reason I didn't want him reading it was because it was about him. I had writer's block, so I just wrote what I knew, and lately, it's been hard to take my mind off all things Mac. It was the best work I had produced since starting uni. I was too embarrassed to let him see it.

"Hmmm, exactly," Mac said, taking my silence as my defeat.

Mac's phone started to ring, saving me.

"Hello?" he answered. I could only just about hear the person on the other line.

"Mac, something happened. I think you should come home."

"Why? What's going on?"

"Mum and Dad had another argument."

The person on the other end of the phone was Mac's brother, Luke. I didn't know much about him; Mac never discussed his personal life. I did know, though, that Luke still lived at home. He didn't really do much and seemed to be on his Dad's side more than his Mum's when it came to the divorce.

"How bad?" asked Mac, sounding more worried now.

I couldn't hear what Luke had said to Mac after that, but whatever it was must have been bad. Mac hung up the phone quickly, told me we had to leave, and then sprinted back to the car.

On the way back, he didn't say much. I tried to ask, but he just gave me brief answers. When we pulled up to his house, only the living room lights seemed to be on. Other than that, the house was quiet. There were no signs of shouting or unwanted visitors.

"Do you want me to stay here?" I asked as Mac turned off the ignition. He took one final look at the house when he said, "I'd prefer it if you came." His eyes looked sad and scared all at the same time. This kind of thing must have happened before. He already knew what he expected to see when he got into the house and was praying that he was overreacting. I nodded and got out of the car.

We walked to the front door together. Mac opened the door, and then it wasn't so quiet anymore. We could hear Alice's sobbing coming from the living room. Luke came downstairs just as Mac closed the door.

"You've just left her like that?"

Luke had barely reached the last step when Mac started interrogating him, quiet enough that Alice couldn't overhear them. Luke shrugged, "They're as bad as each other; even you must see that." Luke's eyes landed on me. He gave me a confused look but decided against saying anything.

Mac looked disgusted at his brother and looked toward the living room before glancing back at me. "Go," I said. I could tell he wanted to go and check on her but wanted to go alone. I figured I would save him from awkwardly telling me not to follow him.

He entered the living room, leaving Luke and me standing in the hallway. Without a word, Luke turned on his heel and headed back up the stairs.