The Artist's Wife (BWWM)

Chapter 38~ Going

Listen to 'Hello' by Adele❤❤❤.

Shoutout to AllTimePercabeth for the lovely comments on previous chapters. Love you too!!!💓💓💓

APARTMENT 69B, Monrow building, Bath.

Some people argue that scars actually have purposes for never disappearing; to tell stories. To tell the story that we survived.

Whether visible or invisible, they served the same storytelling purpose, and standing here, outside my mother's apartment door, hands linked with Gerard, I was ready to finally put my past behind me. I felt Gerard's hand search and link into mine, squeezing them gently to show his support. I looked up into those beautiful eyes of his and saw the tender care in them.

"Baby, you know you don't have to do this. We can go back home right now," he spoke softly, his other hand reaching to brush the hair away from my face.

"No, I want to do this." I shook my head, took a deep breath then knocked on the apartment door, after a few more knocks, I realized it was of no use.

I pressed the battered switch by the side of the door gingerly, unsure of the fact that it was even working. Sure enough, I heard the loud ring from inside and moments later, the door swung open to reveal a large man. The huge, tall man was dressed in a black t-shirt with suspicious-looking brown stains dotted on it, along with ratty jeans to go with it. He scratched his bushy black beard which had cloaked half his face and growled before speaking.

"What do you lot want so early in the blasted morning?" His eyes kept searching my face, his almond eyes showing a mixture of surprise and annoyance. He looked at me like I was familiar, too familiar and I knew why, I looked so much like my mother.

"We want to see Debra Deville," Gerard replied coolly, clearly unshaken by the man's open hostility. I had been briefed on the fact that my mother had remarried several times and her current last name was Deville.

"You a cop?" He suddenly looked alert, his eyes shining with new light as he eyed Gerard carefully.

"No, but--" I held up a hand to stop whatever Gerard was going to say, glaring up at the gruff man.

"Debra is my mother." He started, eyes bulging then eyed me one more time before turning away, into the house and slamming the door behind him. I glanced at Gerard but he only shrugged, I was going to press the doorbell once more when I heard shouting from inside.

Almost immediately, the door banged open, revealing the tall, gruff man now in an ugly, brown sweater over his dirty black shirt. He glanced at me one more time, running his hand through his thinning hair and emitting what sounded like a growl before hurrying off.

I turned, watching him disappear down the hallway of the building before turning towards the open apartment door where the subject of my nightmares now stood. She was dressed in just a short, blue towel that left almost nothing to the imagination, her black, curly hair falling damp around her shoulders. Evidentially, she had just hurried out of a shower.

Half of me wanted to bolt but the other was already plastering on the legendary fake smile. "Hello, mother."

However, she wasn't looking at me but was currently glaring at Gerard, a frown etched onto her now wrinkling face and she gave a sigh of resignation before beckoning us into the shabby apartment. The whole place reeked of cigarette smoke, something I had known all too well and suddenly, I was ashamed of the fact that I used to smoke. I had stopped ever since the day I was found in the bathtub, it was probably because I didn't want Gerard seeing me that way. We followed her down the cramped hallway, leading into an even shabbier living room littered with sweet wrappers, pizza boxes, beer bottles and of course, cigarette butts.