Bright

@ anchored lungs.
Madison smiled and nodded, fidgeting with a lose string on her shirt. "Yeah, that'd be great," she said, trying her hardest to keep her cool. She really did want some new friends, or well friends in general. Val was always so nice to her. But Madison had a feeling that once she found out the truth about Chase, she wasn't going to be so friendly anymore. "Momma, I'm hungry," chase whined, yawning and wrapping his arms around her hip the best he could, looking up at her with his big hazel orbs that resembled his father's. "Okay baby, we're gonna go soon, and I'll get you something to eat," Madison murmured, running her fingers through Chase's hair. As much as she wanted to see Matt, she needed to go feed Chase. "Well, I guess that's my que to get going," she said with a small giggle, looking up at Val. "It was nice seeing you again. Matt has my number in his phone, so you can totally get it from him," she said with a small smile, sending Val a wave as she grabbed her purse, walking towards the elevator with Chase, who was naming off a billion different places where he wanted to go eat.

Val smiled and waved, sitting down and waiting for the doctor to tell her she could go see Matt. She thought about Chase for a minute, set on convincing Matt that they needed to start a family of their own. She could just see them having a little baby girl or boy running around the house and playing with Bella. She knew the guys would love the baby and the only issue they'd run into is how was he going to tour with a little kid? They'd have to talk about it, but she wanted this badly.

@ anchored lungs.
Madison took Chase to Burger King, getting him some Chicken Fries and sitting down in a booth inside the restaurant. She watched him eat, amazed at how much he could eat for his age. But then again, Matt could eat a lot too. Chase was so much like his father it was ridiculous at times. He was like his twin. Madison sighed, staring out the window. For all she knew, Matt could wake up, decide he wanted nothing to do with any of this, and she'll never hear from him again. But what if he did? What was he going to tell Val? Madison never meant for any of this to happen. She never meant for Matt to find out he had a son.

Matt woke up a bit later, looking over at his phone and thinking about Madison. He bit his lip as he reached over and grabbed it, starting up a text when Val walked in. He quickly put his phone down and sat up a bit, smiling at her. "Hey baby," he murmured, smiling at her as she walked over and began to tell him about how she'd run into Madison and everything. He tried to stay calm and prayed that the whole child conversation hadn't come up or anything, because that would have been really bad. But she didn't mention anything about it or seem pissed, so he felt a bit more at ease. He asked her to get him some water before texting Madison.

I'm so sorry about what happened. I want to talk again sometime.

@ anchored lungs.
Madison gathered up all of Chase's trash when he was finished, throwing it away and heading back out to the car with him. She helped him in, getting him situation before getting in herself and starting up the car. She raised a brow when her phone went off, a text from an unknown number popping up on her screen. She didn't know if she was relieved, or if she was more terrified then ever reading that text message. She quickly programed Matt's number into her phone before replying back. It's alright. Just let me know when. I hope you get to feeling better soon. Madison shook her head as she sent the text, pulling out of the Burger King parking lot and heading home. It was already getting late and she needed to give Chase a bath and get him ready for bed.

Matt read the text over a few times before putting his phone down and thinking deeply about this. He'd have to find a time when Val was busy with Michelle to go see her. So maybe he could convince her to hang out with her sister over the weekend so he could go see Madison. He was absolutely terrified right now, but he knew he had no choice in the matter. He had to take responsibility for his actions, even if it meant completely turning his whole world upside down in the process. He looked up when Val came in and forced a small smile, trying not to vomit at the thought again.

@ anchored lungs.

Madison went home and got Chase ready for bed, the young boy talking her ear off about how amazing it was that he got to meet his hero today and save his life by calling an ambulance. How was Madison supposed to tell him that the man he's grown up idolizing is his father? She sighed softly as she closed Chase's bedroom door after telling him goodnight, deciding that she would get ready for bed herself. It'd been a long day and she was exhausted. She got into her pajama's and washed her face, climbing in bed afterwards and hoping she just fell into a very refreshing deep sleep.

@ Eros.
[skip]
Madison browsed the web on her phone while sitting on a park bench, Chase playing on the playground with some other kids. She was waiting for Matt to get here so they could continue talking about Chase. Madison still hadn't told Chase about Matt, nor did she even tell him that he was going to be here today. She was sure that once Chase saw Matt, he was probably going to go bananas. Madison looked up from her phone, searching for Chase to make sure he was okay, smiling when she saw that he playing happily on the jungle gym. She loved taking him to the park, he always had so much fun hanging out with all the other kids.

Matt had to tell Val he was hanging out with Jimmy at his place to write some stuff, which resulted in him having to tell Jimmy about this whole situation. Jimmy practically bit his head off about the whole situation. He knew this was all fucked up, but what was he supposed to do about this? He sighed as he walked up to the park, spotting Madison and walking up to her. "Uh, hey," he mumbled, scratching his neck as he sat next to her. This was extremely awkward for him. He had no idea what to say to her, or to even think about right now.

@ anchored lungs.
Madison looked up when she heard someone talk, seeing Matt. She gave him a small smile, putting her phone away and letting out a small sigh. "Hello," she said, watching Chase. "So... I'm not really sure what to say or really where to begin," she murmured, running her fingers through her hair. "I'm so sorry I never told you about him. I just didn't want to mess things up for you, with your career and your relationship with Val," she said, frowning a little. She just didn't know what to say to him. She just felt awful, especially since she made him faint and landed him in the hospitals.

Matt thought about what she said for a minute, not sure what to say back to her. Yes, this was going to ruin his relationship with Val, at some point at least. Maybe not right now, but at some point. She'd eventually find out, or Jimmy would slip when he got drunk or something. He took a deep breath and looked up at her. "Um, this isn't going to mess up things for me," he said. What was he supposed to say? 'Yeah, the kid's gonna fuck up my whole life?' No. He couldn't say that to her. "I'll figure something out. But for now, I just want to focus on getting all this straight before I even think about anything else." He cleared his throat. "I honestly don't blame you for not telling me. But I wish you would have."

@ anchored lungs.
Madison looked over at him, knowing he was lying about Chase not fucking things up for him. But he tried anyways. Madison slumped down in her seat, sighing heavily and rubbing her face. "I guess if I had told you sooner things wouldn't be as bad as they are now. But then you probably would've thought I was some gold digging hoe," she said, rolling her eyes and shaking her head. The last thing she ever wanted was for him to think she was after his money. Madison was actually pretty successful in life, and she had more then enough to support her and her son. She didn't need anything from Matt. Madison's eyes widened when she heard a squeal, Chase darting over and bouncing up and down in pure excitement from seeing Matt. "Hi! Are you feeling better?" He asked Matt excitedly, squeezing himself inbetween the two on the bench.

Matt chuckled softly, instantly feeling his mood brighten a bit as the little boy came over. He couldn't help but find himself finding this little boy absolutely adorable. He kind of reminded him of a young Jimmy. Full of energy, full of life, and full of himself. But he was absolutely cute. He sat up a little bit and looked down at the boy, smiling as he looked at him. He'd always loved children. He hated them when he was a teenager, but as he got a bit older, he began to see just how cute they could be when other people around him that were his age were starting families. Hell, Brian and Michelle were thinking about starting a family already. "Yeah," he said. "I'm feeling a lot better. I just needed to drink some water." He bit his lip and glanced up at Madison before looking back down at Chase. "I'm glad you were there. If you weren't, I might have gotten really sick."

@ anchored lungs.
Madison couldn't help the smile that formed on her face from seeing the shit eating grin on Chase's. "See, I told ya, mom! I saved his life!" Chase exclaimed, turning to her with wide eyes. Madison laughed, nodding. "Yeah, you sure did," she giggled, ruffling up his hair. Chase huffed and ran off, attempting to fix his hair on the way back to the jungle gym. "He's such a hand full," she grumbled, shaking her head. "I have no idea where he gets all of that energy from. If I didn't know any better I would say he was Jimmy's," she said with a laugh. But he definitely wasn't Jimmy's. He was Matt's through and through. He was like his identical twin. "Mom! Mom! Momma! Ice cream!" Chase screamed, running back towards them wildly as the ice cream man approached the kids at the park. Madison looked over at Matt, smiling innocently at him. "Wanna take him to get him ice cream?"

Matt looked at Madison and then at Chase and nodded his head. "Sure," he said. It was really weird to think that this would be the very first activity he would be doing with his son, taking him to get ice cream. It was such a weird feeling and a weird thing to think about, but he figured that he would get used to it over time. He stood up and scratched his neck awkwardly, thinking of what to do. "Um . . ." he mumbled, not sure if he should pick the boy up or hold his hand or just follow him there. God, this was so strange. He just thought that everything would come naturally to him, but he also had to remember that he hadn't been there since the boy was a baby, so this wasn't really natural at all. Not to mention they'd only just met a few days ago. He eventually just reached his hand out and prayed that the kid knew what to do, because he sure as hell didn't.

@ anchored lungs.
Madison smirked as she watched Matt with Chase, stifling a laugh. It was pretty funny watching him try to figure out how to interact with him. Chase grabbed ahold of Matt's hand, tugging on it and making a bee line for the ice cream truck. They got in line, Chase bouncing up and down excitedly as he waited for his turn to get some ice cream. Not that he really needed it, he was already hyper enough. But hey, the kid was about to get a serious bomb dropped on him soon. He deserved it. "I want a batman head please!" He said, trying to see up over the counter at the guy. Madison watched them carefully, biting down on her lower lip. She already knew what Chase was going to get. He always got one of those batman head things with the gum ball eyes that always freaked her out. A few more trips to the ice cream truck and Matt should figure that out.

Matt pulled his wallet out and paid for the ice cream, leading Chase back over to Madison and handing him the ice cream. He sat down and looked at Madison, smiling softly at her. He was actually starting to loosen up a bit, and he was feeling a bit more comfortable in this situation. "So, um, when is his birthday?" he asked curiously, trying to make some small conversation or something so there was no awkward silence. Plus, he was curious when the boy was born. He'd have to buy him presents to make up for all the birthdays and Christmases he'd missed. He'd just have to use a different credit card so Val didn't find out about it. It wasn't something he felt entitled to do, it was something he wanted to do. Because he felt bad for not being there for the first few years of this boy's life.

@ anchored lungs.
Madison picked Chase up and set him on her lap, wrapping her arms around him and holding him close while he ate his ice cream. She looked over at Matt, giving him a small smile. "His birthday is August sixth," she said, making a face when chase turned to look at her with a ice cream covered smile. "Gross," she murmured, causing Chase to giggle. She didn't have any napkins with her right now, all of her wet wipes were in the car. So he was just going to have to suffer. Well, she was. He seemed to be enjoying it. "He's a good kid besides all the messes he tends to make," she said with a small giggle, shaking her head. So far things weren't as awkward as she thought they were going to be. Matt seemed like he was beginning to really open up with a Chase and Madison couldn't wait to see where things would go. She really hoped that Matt and Chase would become super close.

Matt nodded his head. "My mom has pictures of me covered in food," he said. "I was probably the biggest mess maker when I was a kid." He smiled at her and then looked at Chase. He began to wonder if he should tell his mom about this. He knew keeping this from Val was one thing, but his mother? She had a grandchild she didn't even know about. But he didn't think he was ready for that yet. He needed to deal with this himself first before he brought his parents into it, and eventually his friends, and Val. He just knew that Val was going to hate him forever, and she'd want a divorce, and she'd never want to see or hear from him again. She would move on and find someone better, someone who didn't lie and keep things from her. But honestly, what choice did he have at this point?

@ anchored lungs.
Madison giggled. "Well then we know who he takes after then," she said, her eyes widening once she realized what she just said. Chase was pretty smart for his age, he always listened so intently to her conversations and when he didn't think something sounded right, he made sure he let her know it. Just like she thought, Chase turned in her lap, his little eyebrows raised a mile high. "What are you guys talking about, momma?" He asked curiously, his bright hazel eyes flickering between her and Matt. Madison bit down on her bottom lip hard, not knowing what to say. She wasn't ready. She didn't even know how to tell him. Madison took his hand and made him continue to eat his ice cream, smiling inmocently. "We're just talking grown up stuff."