| Maria�s POV **The Next Day** No matter how hard I tried to convince Liz that I am not crazy she wont believe me, I wouldn�t believe me either. I really wish that I could tell Liz that we are not really together but Michael made me promise. He said that if his friends couldn�t know then neither could mine. I have to hand it to her though; even in the dire situation of my mental insanity she found the time to ask me if I would now be sitting with him at lunch. Yeah right, she really cares if I sit with Michael. She really cares if she gets to sit with us too, thus sitting with Max and the princesses that she had always wanted to be friends with. I�m not mad though I have often wondered if we could be friends too. I heard pappy calling to me from what I imagine is the family room and can only assume that he needs me to do something so I rush out of my room to see what it is that he needs. When I walked into the family room I knew that he didn�t need anything he looked sad and afraid. �Sweetie, I think that you should sit down.� I don�t know what is going on but when he said that I knew it had to be serious. His tone of voice is really scary and all that I can think of is that someone died. �Pappy what�s wrong? Why do you look so serious?� �Baby, I received a phone call earlier this afternoon and thought that it was only fair to share it with you, after all it does directly affect you.� �What happened? Is it Uncle Mark? Did he die?� Earlier this year my Uncle was diagnosed with HIV after a drug dealer stabbed him with a needle in New York. �No Mark is fine, don�t you worry about that.� He took a drink oh his beer and I was starting to get more and more nervous by the moment. �The phone call was from Bradley, he was in the area and decided that he wants to see you.� My face fell. At this point I wish that it were Uncle Mark. My father. The @#%$ that asked pappy to baby-sit me one day, a week after mom had died, and decided that he would never come back to get me. That was 6 years ago. Since that time his guilt has acted up and he has sent me absolutely fabulous presents. For my sixteenth birthday he sent me a Mustang. His note said that he was sorry that he couldn�t be there to give it to me in person but that he was really busy with the new baby and all and he couldn�t get away. Even though Brad was the one that gave me the car I still loved it and the first thing I did was take pappy on a joy ride through the desert. �Did he tell you when he was coming?� �No. He said that he wanted to surprise you.� �I�ll bet.� I lean over and give pappy a kiss to let him know that I am not mad at him, but could tear my fathers throat out. �I love you pappy.� �I know sweetie.� ** Crashdown ** I find myself entering the embarrassing caf� that Liz�s dad owns and moaning in pleasure, the caf� is dead. I look around and notice that Michael and his friends are here and Max and Liz are each one step away from drooling. I pull my dangerously short skirt down; the one that could give Courtney a run for her money is the slut department, and shrug of my jacket to reveal a small green halter. Yeah I know this really doesn�t sound like me and it isn�t, it�s just that with the whole Brad thing I am feeling a little pissy and when that happens I slut myself up for a few hours. I have a pair of jeans and a hoodie in my car for when I feel better. As I walk over to the table that holds my best friend and my �boyfriend� Liz looks up at me with an immediate look of understanding, while the guys pick their tongues up off the floor. �Oh my god Maria what happened? Is it Uncle Mark?� I can�t help smiling at Liz because of how well she knows me. I can�t hold it in anymore; I break down in tears and have to force my answer out through the sorrow. �No���. It�s Bradley. He called and said that he was going to come see me. I don�t want to see him Lizzie.� �Shhh.. You wont have to see him. Its okay he doesn�t exist you don�t have to worry yourself with that.� Again I smiled. Liz is the only person who knows the whole story of my father, although something tells me that a whole table is about to know. She leads me to the break room to calm down. Another thing I love about Liz knows that I don�t like to cry in front of anyone so as soon as she sat me down on the couch she turned around and went to the front. Michael�s POV When Maria first walked through the door the first thing that came to my mind was �where has she been hiding that body?� When that Liz chick asked her what was wrong I noticed her eyes were even sadder then they had been yesterday. The next thing I knew Maria was sobbing over some guy named Bradley and I had to fight the jealous feeling in my gut. Suddenly Liz reappears from the back with a pained look on her face and I know that whomever Bradley is he hurt Maria bad. If that was true then I might just have to hurt him back. �Is she okay?� I find it really funny that with Tess around I never have to ask all the questions that are on my mind. She thinks the same things I do. Aww the beauty of having a twin, you don�t have to show that you actually care because she does if for you. �Yeah she is just really shaken up. This hit her really bad. I have only ever seen her like this before once.� What the @#%$ Happened? �What got her so shook up?� Thank you Tess. �Bradley DeLuca. He was at one point considered to be Maria�s father. Now we just think of him as the @#%$. He left Maria with her grandpa when she was 11, two weeks after her mom died. He never came back. All she knows of him are the overly expensive presents she gets.� �He just left her?� Isabelle looked like she was one more word away from tears. �That�s horrible.� I could not agree more. This guy is an @#%$. How can you just leave you daughter and never look back? Then something dawns on me. �You said you have seen her like this before. When?� �When I first realized that he was never coming back.� Maria had reappeared from the break room looking 100% better and in jeans and a hoodie. �Why did she have to change?� Maria didn�t go into any more detail and we didn�t prod her for any. When it didn�t look like she was planning on sitting down anytime soon I pulled her into my lap. She looked at me with a mix of shock and gratitude and I tightened my hold. We heard the opening theme of Star trek go off again and looked to see who had entered the diner this time. It was some old guy, like 40 or something. He looked like he was on a mission. Liz walked up to him and asked him one of the most important questions she knows. �Table or Booth?� He looked around again. Not finding what he was looking for he turned back to Liz. � Neither. I am looking for a Marianna-Leigh. Her grandfather told me that she ran away but I know she works here and wanted to see if I could find her.� Maria started to shake in my arms and I spoke for the first time to this man. �Yeah man sorry to say but its true. She just came to pick up her last check and said something about Canada.� He didn�t look like he believed me but he left anyway. He didn�t even recognize Maria. I really cannot wait until this whole thing with her issues and crying resolves itself. I don�t like the feelings they are causing in me. Tess breaks the silence in a way only she can. �Marianna-Leigh?� TBC |
| Part 5 |
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