The Christmas wish

5

Amy's pov

"How was your weekend?" Grayson asked as I clocked in.

"It was nice, Riley had a playdate with Maddox. They played softball which was more us throwing the ball to them and them trying to hit it. But it was really fun and super cute watching them try."

"Maddox? You mean Mark's daughter?" He looked at me then smiled.

"Yes, the girl that you so nicely gave us the books for."

"Did he tell you everything?" He was jumping out of his skin.

"Okay Mr. Gossip." I laughed.

"I love gossip, and this is so juicy!"

"He told me that Maddox's mom passed away in a car crash and it made Maddox lose her hearing."

"Did he tell you anything else?"

"No."

"Girl, go get your coffee and come back here."

"Are you sure it is okay to talk about him while he is not here?"

"Do you understand what gossip is? Now go!"

I went to the lunch area and got a cup of coffee when I came back he cleared part of the counter for us to lean on.

"Okay, I am here." I said then took a sip of my coffee.

"Okay, so Maddox's mom is super crazy! Like insane crazy. Her and Mark dated for a few months then Mark broke it off. He told her that he can't help her like she needs it. She did go and get help. She went to therapy and even a center were she lived for like a year to help her. When she came back, she asked Mark for a second chance. He gave it to her. After six months, she started to go back to her old ways. Mark told her that she had to get her shit together, he even paid for her to go back to that center to get more help. But she took the money and spent it all on who knows what. When he found out, he ended it again. A few weeks later, she said that she was with child. He went to all of the doctors visits, all of the classes. But when she was 9 months we all found out that there is a chance that the baby is not even his. He wanted to do a DNA test but when he thought about it, that would just leave this child with a crazy mother. So he stayed for Maddox."

"How do you know all of this?"

"This is a small town honey, everyone knows everything around here."

"Everything?"

"Okay, almost everything."

"Who caused the accident?"

"Well, that one is a little tricky. So Mark and her had a fight because she was asking him for all of this money, she told him that it was for Maddox but it wasn't. He told her that she needs to pay him back all of the money. She hung up on him, got Maddox into the car, and drove. No one knows where they were going. Maddox remembers a little of that night but not much. Mark got a phone call at work saying that there was an accident and he is needed at the hospital. When he got there Maddox was in a coma which lasted over a week. When she woke up, that is when they saw that she lost all of her hearing. Mark knew that this was going to be a challenge but he made it his life's mission to give her as normal of a childhood as he can."

"Poor thing, she had to be so scared."

"She is a real trooper."

"For sure. Not too many people mess with her though, they just leave her alone. It is more the kids who pick on her. They don't understand why she doesn't talk. She tries to tell them that she is deaf but they don't understand that."