Past

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Hot tears streaming down her cheeks. Thorns slashing at her arms and legs. Heart pounding against her chest. Legs aching. She runs through the midnight covered forest, tripping over almost invisible rocks against the darkness of the never ending forest. She has run away from home... from her problems... from her father... from life.
She hears a shout behind her.
"Maddie!" Her father. He sounds angry and drunk, like always nowadays. He hasn't always been like this. Once, foreign it seems now, they were all a happy family. Her father, mother, her 1 year younger sister Ema, and her. Everything was great, until one day mom decided to leave the three of them. Never to be seen again. Her father didn't take it lightly. After a few weeks he came home late, drunk. That was the first time he'd hit them. She thought it was only a one time thing, but no, suddenly he came home late every night, angry and drunk to his core. He'd hit them constantly and after a while he'd abuse them. Luckily she found a school for the smart, focused in science technology and mathematics. Her sister and her got in, they even forged the signature so they could attend. This wasn't really her thing but it was a way to scape home. For a couple years their father knew nothing about them. But one day he found them, well her, Ema had disappeared with her boyfriend not long before that. The only family she had left, had abandoned her. Her father brought her home and everything went back to what it was before they'd left, hell.
Maddie started to climb the rock hill as fast as she could in an attempt to get away. Her foot was grasped by her father's hand pulling her down hard. She kicked outwards and made him fall backwards freeing herself from his grip. She quickly got to the top. She noticed she was slowing down. Her energy draining. She stoped at a clearing. She pulled he father's gun and put it up to her head. Hot tears fell down as she stood there. Why am I not pulling the trigger? Come on! Just... pull it.

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Buzz buzz. Matt looks over at his phone. Who would text me? He looks at his recent messages. From Maddie C.: Good bye.
What could this mean? Good bye? Is she...? No she couldn't be meaning goodbye... forever? Could she? Matt shoots up from his bed and connects his computer to his phone tracing the location of the text message. He runs to the car, it's not too far away. He hopes he can get there in time. He gets to her house and He jumps off the car and surrounds the home. he sees Maddie's phone laying on the wet grass and a trail of foot prints leading out to the forest. Oh no.
He runs towards the dark forest, thorns and rocks brushing past him. He sees a drunk man on the foot of a rock hill passed out. He continues on up the hill and runs towards a clearing seeing the figure of the girl he'd been hoping to find with a gun at her head. He yells.

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"MADDIE!" She hears a voice, not the raspy, harsh, drunk one of her father but the sweet but worried one of her classmate, Matt. Why is he here? He's only making it more difficult. She tightens her grip on the gun.
"NO! Stop!" He runs towards her but leaving some space in between them. "Please don't do this."
"Why not?" Her voice trembling and hands shaking she sighs raising her voice. "Why shouldn't I? My mom left me when I was 4, I have an abusive father, my sister disappeared, and my boyfriend dumped me in the worst possible way. Why shouldn't I pull the trigger and end it once and for all?"
She makes a gesture as if she was going to pull the trigger. While all this Matt is thinking should I tell her? Will this change anything? Please let it help...
"Because I love you!" He finally confesses. "Ever since I met you I've loved you! Since before you were with Jeremy, since before any of this happened. Because... I couldn't live without you."
She started lowering the gun slowly. He... loves me? God she'd wanted someone to love her for so long. And this boy, the nerd of the grade, the guy that hangout with them but didn't really fit in, this shy guy that had read the text she had last sent to say goodbye to someone, he loved her. She was overwhelmed with exhaustion from crying and running that as soon as she fell into his warm arms she couldn't help but fall asleep.

She woke up to see dark blue pillows, the school had white pillows, and her home didn't have pillows so she was at neither place. She began to panic, where am I? Was I kidnapped? She slowly looked at her surroundings, there were drawings covering the wall as well as academic diplomas all made for Matt Luis. Suddenly memories of last night came to her. He'd taken her to his home. And she was sleeping in his bed. She looked down and saw him sleeping on the ground with a blanket and a pillow. She stared at him for a moment. Her gaze landing on his thin rosy lips. He'd done all this for... her? He saved her life. He was the one who came to save her. He... he'd said he loved her. Did she love him? After all, this isn't a silly high school crush, he'd proven that to her. She does love him. Who would've thought. The nerd and the popular girl. She heard foot steps outside the door and quickly pretended to be asleep.
"Sweetie wake u-" A woman entered the room. "Mathew Luke Luis! What is a girl doing in your bed?!"
"Hey mom" He answered tiredly.
"Don't you 'mom' me. Why is this girl in your bed?!" She sounded angry. This reminded Maddie of her dad when he was angry, which was most of the time.
"I can explain I swear!" Matt answered.
"You better! Is this your girlfriend or something?" She mocked. "Did she feel 'lonely' last night?" She emphasized the word 'lonely' to make her point.
"No mom, she's... suicidal," Matt explained. Maddie hated that word, but she guessed she really was. "Her mother left her when she was young, her father's abusive, her sister disappeared, and her boyfriend dumped her a while ago, she isn't enrolled in the school anymore and I couldn't exactly take her home so..."
"You brought her here." His mom finished. She didn't sound angry anymore, she sounded worried and sad for her. "I'm making breakfast, I'll make your friend some too."
"That'd be nice." He responded, "oh and don't tell her I told you, she's probably still sensitive about it." With that she heard the door shut.
"Wake up soon Maddie." He whispered. She heard the door open and shut again leaving her alone.
She sat up on the bed. He did all this for me. I... love him. The door opened and Matt entered the room.
"Hey, you're awake," he started. "Oh um this is my house..."
"Yeah, I saw," she answered.
"About what I said-" He starts.
"You meant it right?" You say quickly. Your smile turning into a frown.
"Yes of course I meant it, I was just checking-"
"Thank you, for saving my life." You say uncertain.
"Heh no problem." He hesitated, "you should probably get going since people might see you with me." Of course he was like this.
"You mean about reputation?"
"Yeah." He saddens.
"Who cares about reputation!" She exclaims.
"What?" He was confused.
"I mean what does it matter if you're not happy?" She says. Before she think too much about it she pulls his t-shirt forward making their lips connect. He was surprised but kissed her back enjoying all of it.

----

Tears filled her eyes as she finished reading the entry on the notebook. Oh how she misses him. She's loved him ever since that day and now... he's gone. Today is their 29th marriage anniversary. But she's all alone, after he and their son died in an accident and her daughter disappeared, she was left all alone. Oh how she wishes he'd come back. Come back so he could save her one more time. From all sadness and loneliness and depression she feels. If only he was here. If only he could save her.








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It's fricking 3:30 AM and I've just written 1,462 words and I'm proud, I'm sorry if I have any miss spelling or anything like that, like I said it's 3:30 am and I'm almost asleep

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It's fricking 3:30 AM and I've just written 1,462 words and I'm proud, I'm sorry if I have any miss spelling or anything like that, like I said it's 3:30 am and I'm almost asleep.

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