Bright

Matt arched an eyebrow and looked up at her. She hadn't told the little boy yet that he was his father? She had a knack for keeping secrets. He'd have to keep that in mind and be wary from now on. "Why don't you tell him?" he asked, frowning slightly as he glanced down at Chase and then back up at her. "He deserves to know." It was bad enough that he hadn't known about having a son, but for the boy to think he didn't have a father must be really hard on him. Matt couldn't even begin to imagine what it would be like not having a father. And it was then that his heart really began to open up for this little boy. Even with all the anxiety and fear he was feeling, he knew he had to be there for this little boy. He deserved a father.

@ anchored lungs.
Madison just gave Matt look, her defenses going up. There were many reasons why she didn't want to tell Chase that Matt was his father just yet. What if something happened and Matt walked out of his life? It was still early, anything could happen. Val could easily change Matt's mind in an instant and that could be it. Madison sighed heavily, knowing that she really had no choice in the matter now. She looked down at Chase, giving him a small smile. "Sweetie... You know how I told you That your father was this really great super hero that's always busy doing superhero things and will someday come home to meet you?" Madison said, biting down on her bottom lip hard. She just really hoped that Matt lived up to the little boy's super hero standards. Chase nodded slowly, urging her to continue. "Okay, well... Chase, baby, this is your dad," she said, placing her hand on Matt's shoulder. Chase just kind of looked between his mom and now apparent dad, who was his hero just a few minutes ago. This huge shit eating grin formed on his face and he jumped in Matt's lap, wrapping his little arms around his neck and hugging him tight. "This is so awesome! You were right, momma. He reslly is a super hero!" He beamed," smooshing his ice cream covered face against Matt's. Madison giggled, so relieved by his reaction. Though she didn't know what else she had expected.

Matt's eyes widened slightly when the little boy jumped in his lap and hugged him, surprised, but at the same time, touched. He slowly and cautiously wrapped his arms around the boy, hugging him back. Something about the boy's embrace felt right, and good, and he easily fell into the hug, letting go of the fear he was feeling, and holding onto that boy for dear life. He let his eyes slip shut and he rubbed the little boy's back, letting out the breath he'd been holding. After a minute, he let Chase go, smiling at him. "I'm not really a superhero," he said. "But I am your dad, and I want you to know that I'm gonna be here for you always, no matter what. And whenever you need me, I'll be here." He felt responsible, and like he was being a good father, something he'd always imagined being.

@ anchored lungs.
Madison couldn't help it as the tears started streaming down her face. She just never thought she'd see Matt with their son like this. She was sure she probably looked like an idiot sitting there crying, but she just couldn't help herself. Her son finally had his father. The adorable smile on Chase's face never left, it just kept growing and growing. "So does this mean I'm going to have someone to play catch with and go fishing with and do guy stuff with that momma tries to do but she really can't do?" He asked with wide eyes, this sparkle in them that Madison just couldn't explain. "Hey, I try," she said with a pout, slightly offended. She rather enjoyed doing a lot of the guy things with him, but she figured it just wasn't the same. Especially since she hated putting the work on the hook when they went fishing. That was just a major no for her. The only thing Madison was afraid of is that Matt wasn't going to be able to have time to do a majority of those things with Chase since he was so busy being the lead singer of a successful band. It was going to be hard to juggle a kid and a career like that.

Matt smiled and bit his lip nervously, nodding his head. "Yeah," he said. He was making all these promises and he wasn't sure how he was going to go through with them when right now, the only person that knew about this was Jimmy. How was he going to make time to be in this kid's life without other people finding out? The last thing he needed right now was word about this spreading around. He didn't need crazy ass fans coming after Madison because she was the mother of his kid. And it was then that it hit him; what if his fans found out about this before Val did? He sat up a bit and looked around before he stood up. "Um, Madison, can we go somewhere more private?" he asked. "We need to talk."

@ anchored lungs.
Madison furrowed her brow and nodded, looking around and trying to see what he was freaking out slightly over. "Yeah, sure, of course," she said, standing up with Chase, grabbing her purse and Chase's hand. "We can go to my house if you want, it's right down the street," she suggested with a small shrug. "I don't know where else we can go that's more private then that," she said with a small, nervous laugh. She had a pretty nice house, so she wasn't nervous about him seeing it. She just hoped that he didn't mind going to it. She knew that they couldn't possibly go to his house, and she wasn't sure of any other place they could go that was really private, so she figured her house was perfect for right now. Plus it was close. "Yeah! I can show you my room!" Chase said excitedly, his eyes wide. Madison shook her head, sighing softly. That boy got so excited over the simplest things.

Matt nodded his head. "Yeah," he said. "That's good. I'll follow you." He offered them a small smile before heading back to his car. He slid in and started it, sighing heavily as he rubbed his face. He was beginning to stress out again, and he knew it wasn't good for his health, but he just couldn't help it. What if someone had seen them? What if they told Val? Or what if they posted it online? God, how in the hell did he ever think this was going to work out? He groaned softly and shook his head. Calm down, Matt. It's okay. It's going to be okay.

Madison bit down on her bottom lip softly as she got in her car with a Chase, making sure Matt was following her as she headed to her house. Matt seemed to be freaking out over something and that kind of worried her. The last time he freaked out and started stressing he ended up passing out in the parking lot. Madison pulled into her driveway, turning the car off and getting out. She got Chase out of his car seat, walking up and unlocking the door, watching him run in and head straight for the fridge to get a juice box that she kept in the bottom drawer just for him. Madison waited for Matt to walk inside before she walked in too, closing the door behind her and putting her keys and purse on the little table beside the door. "So... What's wrong?" She asked him, crossing her arms over her chest.

Matt scratched the back of his head and let out a sigh. "So, you know, I'm totally up for this," he said. "Being his father and everything. I want to do it. And don't get me wrong, this is very important to me, but right now, I have to put everything that I've built up for myself in front of that. If we were to go out in public and someone saw us together, and they posted that on the internet, it wouldn't be good. Val would find out, she wouldn't be happy. I want to tell her myself when the time is right, and that's not right now. I just . . . do you see where I'm coming from? I just want you to understand this."

@ anchored lungs.
Madison sighed heavily and nodded, crossing her arms over her chest and staring at the floor. This is exactly why she didn't want to tell Chase in the first place. There were going to be so many things that he was going to want to do with his father in public, and now that Matt couldn't do that, well, how was Madison supposed to explain any of this to him? "This is why I didn't want to tell Chase yet. Do you not see how excited he is with all the things he wants to do with his father? Out in public? How am I supposed to tell him that he can;t do any of that?" she said, frowning. "I mean, I understand what you're saying, I just... You don't understand how hard it is for me as a mother to break my kids heart like that." Madison flopped down on the couch, wishing she could just take back this entire day. Nothing was going the way she had hoped it would. But then again, she never planned on Matt coming back into their lives either.

Matt frowned as he watched her. "But it's not like that," he said. "You don't have to tell him anything. We'll work something out." He began to pace back and forth as he thought. "I guess I didn't fully think this through. But I can't take it back now . . . and I don't want to. I don't regret this, if that's what you're thinking. I know you are, but I don't. I want this. I want to be his father, but I'm going to have to figure some things out. I might need a bit of time, but you know I'm just a phone call away." He felt like absolute shit now for putting her in this position, and getting her hopes up and letting her down. But his life came first. He'd always put others first in front of himself, and now he was finally putting himself first. Maybe that was selfish in this situation, but he needed to do it.

@ anchored lungs.
Madison watched him pace. "I never expected for you to come back into our lives. I never intended to come waltzing into your life with Chase and ruin your life and your career in any way. I don't want to ruin things for you, but you have to understand that if you want to be his father, Chase comes first. He's your son, Matt. It's probably going to need some time to really sink in, but eventually you're going to have to realize that it's not going to matter what the fans are going to think or what Val is going to think. If she loves you, she's not going to care because it was years ago," Madison ranted, shaking her head. She was just beyond frustrated. She just wished that things could go a hell of a lot smoother then what they were right now. But hey, what had she really expecteD? "I'm not saying that he comes before shows or interviews or anything job-related. I just want him to be happy," she said, trying her hardest not to cry. She was just rambling on and on about nonsense now and she was doing everything she could not to cry.

Matt looked at her and frowned slightly. He knew she was right, and he was being selfish, only thinking about himself right now. But maybe he just wasn't ready for this like he thought he was. He took a deep breath and slowly let it out, rubbing his face. "Where's his bedroom?" he asked quietly. He needed to go talk to the little boy, let him know that everything would be okay no matter what happened, and that he would always be his dad, and he'd always be there for him. He just didn't want this to be out in the open yet. He didn't want fans spewing shit around online, and he didn't want Val to leave him over this.

@ anchored lungs.
Madison sighed softly. "First door on the right down the hall," she murmured softly, tilting her head towards the way. She knew that she really needed to cut him some slack, after all he hasn't been here since Chase was born. And who's fault was that? Madison's. If she had really wanted him to act the way she was expecting him to, then she should have told him she was pregnant from the get-go, but she hadn't wanted to ruin his life. She mostly didn't want to ruin his relationship with Val. Madison knew how much they loved each other and she would have to be the one to ruin that. But then again, she wasn't going to ruin her son's chance of happiness with his own father.

Matt walked down the hall and into the first door on the right. He saw Chase playing with his toys and smiled, seeing a bit of himself in the boy. He walked in and sat down on the floor in front of the boy. "Hey Chase," he said. When the little boy looked up at him with those big hazel eyes, Matt felt his heart skip a beat, and nearly melt away completely. He bit his lip hard and took a deep breath, and told himself that he knew what he had to do. "I was wondering if you wanted to go to the water park with me and your mommy this weekend?" he questioned, knowing that if he told the boy he couldn't be seen with him in public that it would just completely devastate him.

@ anchored lungs.
Chase's eyes widened when Matt asked about the water park, his whole face lighting up as a huge smile spread across it. "That would be so awesome!" He exclaimed, jumping up and down from excitement. Chase had been wanting to go to the water park for a long time but Madison just hadn't wanted to take him, since big places like that usually made her nervous taking him by herself. Just big crowed plus Chase was never a good thing with only one pair of eyes. He always got so excited and then he would run off doing only God knows what, so it was always good to have two people keeping an eye on him. Madison got up, wondering what Chase was getting so hyped about so she went to his room, standing in the doorway. "What's going on?" She asked. "We're going to the water park!" Chase said really loudly, making Madison giggle.

Matt looked up at Madison and smiled slightly. She was right. If he was making this obligation to Chase, then he had to do it the right way. He reached out and pulled the little boy into his lap. "We'll have so much fun, I promise," he assured him. He liked seeing the little boy do happy and excited, it made him feel like he was doing something right. And he was. He was being the father this little guy needed.

@ anchored lungs.
Madison grinned as she watched Matt and Chase, Chase showing Matt every Avenged merchandise he's ever gotten. Which was a lot. Madison always got the latest albums, all of their merch, and just tried whatever way she could to support them. Plus Chase was completely obsessed with the band. "Do you think I'll ever get to meet The Rev?" Chase asked Matt with wide eyes, holding his stallion duck plush toy so tightly Madison thought the thing was gonna bust. She really hope it didn't, she paid a pretty penny for that thing off of Etsy.

Matt chuckled, not able to get a word in with this little boy, but he didn't really need to. He looked down at him and then at the toy, chuckling softly. "Of course," he said. "He is your uncle after all, you know. And I'm sure he'd love to meet you too. In fact, I could take you to see him right now, if you want, and if that's okay with your mommy." He looked up at Madison and offered her a kind smile. He had to go to Jimmy's anyway to pick up some sheet music to use as an excuse for Val if she questioned him about where he'd been since Jimmy was covering for him at the moment. And he knew Val would ask what they were up to, and Matt would have to present her with something they'd worked on.

@ anchored lungs.
Madison bit down on her bottom lip softly, looking over at Chase and smiling when she saw the look on his face, nodding. "Sure, if you want," she said with a small giggle before turning to Matt and giving him a stern look. "No funny business. And you tell James not to corrupt my child," she said with a nod. She knew how Jimmy could be, an God only knew how he would react around Chase, especially since he's Matt's kid. "ill go get my shoes!" Chase said excitedly, running off to put his shoes on. Madison shook her head, following him and helping him to put them on. This boy was just so full of energy today, she just didn't understand it. But it was probably because so many great things have happened for him today too.