Stay the Night

Chapter 17

July 11th, 2002

Mariah sat beside her husband, scowling out the window of the stretch limousine. The two had just left her father’s repast, headed back to their hotel, after she discovered her father's true feelings about her paternity. While Michael seemed rather calm and collected, tending to their busy children, Mariah was having a pseudo-meltdown.

“I can't believe you.” She whispered to herself.

Michael didn't look at her, instead preferring to straighten Elizabeth’s hair bow.

“What are you talking about.” He shot back.

Really?

She turned to him, narrowing her eyes. “Are you fucking with me, Mike?”

He furrowed his eyebrows, still avoiding her glare.

Quickly clasping the man’s jaw, Mariah forced her husband’s head around to face her.

“Huh!”

Almost as quickly as she spoke, he grabbed her wrist and flung it down from his face.

“Don't touch me, Mariah.”

“Oh so you got a attitude, huh? You got some nerve I tell you-” she started, trying to maintain a whisper. “You knew he wrote that note-”

“I didn't know nothing.” Michael interjected. “I saw it but I don't think your father would even write things like that.”

“So you hid it from me because you didn't think he would write it? Is that the dumb thing you did?”

He huffed. “I didn't hide it. I didn't wanna- Think of it his way, if I had’da told you, that would've unfairly ruined your last memory of your dad.”

“How is that unfair? It's unfair to me that everybody has been laughing in my face all these years! That's why Addie was acting like that when he was in the hospital, she knew! She suddenly wanna be nice because she knows I'm paying for everything, but then she laughs at me when I walk out the-”

Mariah abruptly paused, nearly gasping with it.

“Do you think this was all for the money-”

Michael took a deep breath. “Mariah...no babe. Your dad loved you. That note is bull-”

“He did! Oh my god- All these years- he only came back for the- Michael I-”

Before she knew it, tears came streaming down her cheeks. She couldn't quite understand what emotion she was feeling, but it brought an unmistakable and familiar pain.

“Babe-” Michael started, wrapping his arm over her shoulder. Though the two sat next to each other in the back of the limo while their four children sat on either side of them, Michael couldn't quite grip her other arm for one reason or another.

“Don't touch me, Mike.” She demanded, her voice low.

“I'm just trying to say, I didn't want this to happen-”

“Let go of me!” She shouted, startling all of their children. Michael slid his arm from over her shoulder and faced the window.

And to avoid blowing up in front of her kids, she did too.

July 20th, 2002

Mariah walked into the kitchen of Katherine’s New York townhouse and immediately wanted to turn around and fly back to Santa Barbara. Alison and Morgan were both sitting at the island with their significant others.

Mariah froze and turned to look at Katherine.

“Mariah, don't start.” Katherine sighed. “I need to tell you all something about your father.”