Saved By Her Guitar

After the funeral, Morgan, Dillan and Amanda sat isolated from the guests who were “sorry for her loss”. Melanie was younger so she didn’t have much of a choice when their Uncle Josh told her she had to humor the guests with “thank yous” and “how did you know hers” and such.
Morgan couldn’t seem to remember anything about the funeral. She only seemed to remember holding Melanie’s hand, Amanda hold hers and Dillan standing so close behind her she could feel the heat from his body. She was grateful she had the three of them because she had cried like a lost child.
She also remembered in detail how brightly the sun had shined. She had shook her head slightly upset that the small yet large gas ball had the nerve to hive off its warm ultra violet rays on such a sad day. Where was the rain for her mother? Amanda thought it was a good thing.
“How ironic my life is,” she moaned. “Curse the sun,” she shouted shaking her fist at the sky.
“Morgan!” Amanda reprimanded, grabbing her arm.
“My mom knew she was going to die.”
“Hmm?”
“We went to see her lawyer about the will. Everything would’ve gone to dad but she divorced him in time. He didn’t know. She left me the house and car. Mel and I split the cash. She was terminal and she didn’t tell us.”
“At least she saw you perform,” Dillan reasoned.
“Yeah,” she chuckled. “She was glad I was putting all those music classes to practice. I’d just talked to her that Tuesday after she watched it. I just talked to her.”
She began to cry lightly.
“It’ll get better,” Amanda comforted, hugging her.
“It better,” was Morgan’s response.
They were all quiet for a moment then Josh came over.
“How ya’ holdin’ up?”
“Fine, considering.”
“Do you think you could-?
“No, Uncle Josh. No! Why is it so wrong for me to want to be left alone? I’m not going to comfort these people when I’m the one who lost someone. A mother! And you’ve got a twelve year-old girl trying to keep it together for them?! Nevermind us! It seems you and my dad do have something in common after all.”
Shelton looked up as he was getting dragged into her rant.
“Ruining our lives,” she finished, storming out of the room.
“I’ve got this one,” Dillan said to Amanda.
Outside, he saw her leaning, nonchalantly, on a tree. Her bare shoulder was going to be red when she finally moved away. He took her in, this depressed and completely lost version of his girlfriend. On another day he would’ve found her knee-length black dress highly attractive but the occasion took away from what would’ve usually been.
“Mel thinks I should move in with you.”
He was startled because he didn’t think she knew he was there.
“How’d you-
“I just did. I’ve always been sensitive to my surroundings whether I showed it or not. It’s one of the things that make me such a good fighter.”
He looked up at the clear blue sky and the heavy sun.
He stood next to her, “Why does she think that?”
“She thinks I’ll kill him.”
“Kill him?”
“It’s absolutely amazing how well she knows me.”
“You wouldn’t.”
She shrugged off his doubt. “So what do you think?”
“I don’t mind. I’d love to have you around. But I also I know you’re not going to leave your sister.”
“Yes, she is.”
Dillan turned, startled again, to face Melanie.
“It’s what’s best. She and I talked. I won’t allow her to go to jail. There’s nothing to protect me from with daddy.”
She walked around to face Morgan.
“Right?”
She and Morgan stared at each other in silence.
Melanie was very mature for her age. Just like Morgan wanted for her, Melanie only wanted what was best for her older sister, even if that meant sacrificing something.
Dillan noticed that neither of them blinked and he was sure this had happened before, this stare down. They’re practically the same person, he thought.
“Right,” Morgan agreed finally.
They blinked and looked away at exactly the same time.
Dillan shook his head, “I’ll bet you have these staring contests often.”
“I’m in the lead.”
“Only cause you’re older.”
“Excuses, excuses.”
Melanie walked pass Morgan, “Duty calls.” She disappeared back into the building.
Within seconds Shelton’s form filled the doorway.
“I have nothing to say to you,” Morgan said.
“But I need to talk to you.”
“There’s nothing you can say. Don’t waste your breath, Shelton.”
“Dillan, can my daughter and I-
Morgan grabbed his hand, “Stay.”
Dillan shrugged at Shelton.
“We have to deal with this together.”
She turned toward him, “Melanie and I are dealing with this together. And I have Dillan and Amanda and Bailey and Rome. I don’t need you.”
“If you’re going be living in my house-
“Funny you should say that. I’m moving in with Dillan when we get back.”
“I don’t think so.”
“I know. You know so. You can’t stop me. This time, my disdain for you isn’t short-term. It’s permanent. It’s over. My healthy mother is dead from sudden terminal cancer. That’s your fault, Shelton. Why to go. You lost your unwanted wife, and daughter.”
She turned her back to him.

That night Morgan and Melanie slept wrapped within each other. Amanda and Dillan slept on the floor in their mother’s house.
In the morning, it was time to get ready to go. Morgan let Melanie sleep while she, Dillan and Amanda got everything together.
Morgan took the picture on her mother’s night stand. Amanda had taken the black and white when she was in one of her photography personas. It turned out pretty good. Then she sat on her mother’s bed.
She felt the tears but they didn’t manifest themselves.
“I’m too angry,” she whispered to herself.
The grief wasn’t quite over but the anger had definitely set in. Her mother was dead and she didn’t blame God or ask him why because she knew who was to blame and why.
“Shelton.”
“Morry?”
Morgan didn’t look up.
Amanda sat next to her friend of seventeen years and could feel the heat, hate and anger and evil resonating, pulsating off Morgan.
“No, Morgan. No!” Amanda shouted. “Don’t be stupid. Your emotions don’t control you. You control your emotions. Remember.”
She looked at Amanda then.
“Your sister needs you, Morry. Get it out of your head now.”
And just like that, at the sound of Melanie’s name, the urge was gone.
“You’ll find another way to deal with your anger. You always do.”
“So what am I s’posed to do? Break some innocent person’s bones? Punish people who don’t deserve it?”
Amanda thought for a moment, “Yes.”
Morgan laughed.
“Yay,” Amanda cheered lightly.
“Is it time yet?”
They both turned to see Melanie coming into the room.
Yeah. You might wanna grab mom’s jewelry box.”
“I can have it?”
“You can have whatever you want.”
“Thanks, Mo.”
Melanie hugged her and grabbed the dark brown wooden box off the dresser.
Outside, they put their things in Josh’s trunk. Melanie and Dillan got into the car.
“I’m her mother now.”
“There’s no one better.”
“I don’t know what to do.”
“That’s fine. But you do know how to be yourself and that’s who she needs. That’s who she’s used to.”
“Thanks.”
They hugged.
“I love you, Morry.”
“I love you, too, Mandy.”

Dillan drove the girls home. Morgan and Melanie said their temporary goodbyes in the garage as they prepared for the opposition Shelton would pose.
Once upstairs, Melanie went to her room while Morgan and Dillan headed to her room.
“There’s another duffle and my green army bag are in the closet. Stuff them with whatever will fit from the closet. I’ll do my drawers.”
Dillan did as he was told.
“What’s going on?” Shelton asked bursting in.
“What do you think?” she blurted. “Keep packing,” she told Dillan.
“You’re not going anywhere.”
“We’ll see,” she mumbled stuffing a second duffle.
“Stop this. We need to be together. We need to be a family.”
“It’s too late! We were! But then you left,” she shouted. “You left us,” she groaned quietly.
“I’m sorry this happened.”
“You should be.”
She turned back to her room. Dillan was waiting, having finished her bags.
Morgan stuffed the remaining bag and picked it up. When she went to pass Shelton, he grabbed her arm.
“Enough of this. You aren’t going anywhere. You are my daughter now and mine alone.”
She tried to pull away but he held on tighter.
“You’re—That hurts.”
“Let her go,” Dillan interjected.
“Stay out of this, boy.”
He moved toward them and punched Shelton in the stomach. She massaged her arm while Dillan moved in front of her.
“Dad.”
He turned to Melanie.
“Let her go.”
“What?”
“It’s for the best.”
Dillan grabbed the bags and Morgan’s hand and led her to the door.
“Wait, Melly.”
Dillan waited in the hallway.
“Morgan, go.”
“But-
“I’ll be fine. I’ll see you after school.”
Shelton appeared behind Melanie. She pushed Morgan out into the hallway and closed the door.
Had the door been made of glass, they each would’ve seen the other mimicking the other; head leaned against the door and a hand resting on the door in the same spot.
“Let’s go,” Morgan said turning away first.

Once at Dillan’s place, she had the chance to sit down and thing which probably wasn’t the best thing for her to do.
“I need to let off some steam.”
“One of my buddies owns a gym-
“I need a reaction! I need to hit someone!”
“That’s not good, Morgan. I think the gym-
“No, Dillan. I need you to understand. I need you more than anything right now. Can’t you understand how I’m hurting and how I need to hurt someone and to be hurt physically?
“I do, baby.”
They sat in silence then she began to kiss him fiercely.
“What’re you-
“Remember that night at Quarter Past?”
“Yeah.”
“That’s what I want now.”
“No, no. No way.” He moved away from her. “What’re you thinking? I won’t ever do that again. I’m still too freaked out and pissed at myself from last time to even kiss you let alone have sex with you.”
“God, Dillan! Why can’t you just do this for me?”
“How can you ask me to? Why can’t you appreciate that I don’t wanna hurt you? I love you, Morgan.”
“Why can’t you appreciate that I want you to hurt me? You say you love me. Prove it.”
She kissed him gently along his jaw then his mouth.
“I’m not doing this,” he whispered stepping away from her.
“Fine. If you won’t, someone will.”
“C’mon, Mo. Where are you going?”
His response was the door slamming behind her. He went to the window but she was gone. He couldn’t go after her because he didn’t know where she was going.
He sat on the couch and waited.