I Won't See You Tonight

Brian and I ended up laying in a hammock situated in the middle of the garden, his arms wrapped around my frame, securing me to his chest. Feeling safer than I had since he left, I drifted to sleep, him not falling far behind. We were both jolted awake by Gloria trying to climb in with us. I shifted my body to lay beside Brian, as he pulled Gloria up, and laid her on top of our bodies. We sat in silence for nearly half an hour, coming down from our stressful afternoon, before I heard Gloria's stomach growl, making both Brian and I laugh.

"Somebody's hungry!" Brian chuckled, tickling her and sending her into a fit of giggles. I smiled at the sight.

"Come on you two, I'll make lunch," I spoke, stretching, and sliding off the hammock.

"You don't have to hun, I can get someone else-" I quickly cut him off.

"I want to," I said with a smile. Brian sighed, but nodded his head, leading Gloria and I into the kitchen. Gloria dragged Brian upstairs as I turned towards the fridge. After rummaging around, I found all the ingredients to make chicken ceasar salad, and quickly decided on that, because I knew they both loved it. After a few minutes, I heard them both bounding down the stairs. Gloria came running into the kitchen at full speed, with Brian right behind her, making growling noises and chasing her around the kitchen. I laughed at their adorableness, until Gloria ran behind me, clutching my legs and screaming "Mommy save me!". I looked at Brian, who was approaching us with stealthy grace, a smirk adorning his face.

"Just give me the girl Samantha. Give me the girl, and no one has to get hurt," he spoke somewhat maniacally. I couldn't help but laugh at him as he came closer. I scooped Gloria up in my arms and yelled "Never!" before taking off to the living room. I heard his heavy footsteps chasing us, until I felt arms snake around my waist and pull us to the ground. Brian slid out from underneath me, and before I had time to react, he was hovering over me, using his heavy body to pin me down, and started tickling me. As I tried to wiggle my way out of his grip, she collected both of my hands in one of his larger ones, and held them above my head, continuing to tickle me with his free hand. After a few minutes, Gloria surprised us both by jumping on Brian's back, successfully knocking him off of me. I stood, dusting myself off, as Brian pulled Gloria close to his chest, staring at his daughter with more admiration than I had ever hoped to see from him. Quietly, I made my way back to the kitchen, and finished preparing lunch After I had dished out three plates, I walked back into the living room, to find them cuddled on the couch, watching TV. After gaining their attention, we all walked back to the kitchen. I situated Gloria in her chair as Brian walked to the stereo and put on my favorite Metallica album. He smirked at me as I set his plate in front of him.

"Good choice," I said, kissing him on his cheek, and walking back to my seat. We ate in near silence as James' voice rang through the kitchen. After we finished, I took all the dishes to the sink, washing them with Brian, as Gloria pulled out a coloring book.

With the dishes put away, we sat in front of Gloria, as she asked what we were going to do for the rest of the day. I looked at Brian, who had a calculating expression on his face, before his eyes brightened and a smile broke across his face.

"We could make a fort in the basement...I have a room full of old furniture, we could easily move around. And just spend the rest of the day watching movies?" he looked to both of us for confirmation. Gloria immediately stood, jumping up and down in excitement. Laughing, Brian looked at me for an okay, and I nodded my head. We sent Gloria to clean up the mess she had made while coloring, while Brian and I ran upstairs to his linen closet, and pulled out all of the sheets and blankets he had stashed. We grabbed Gloria, and made our way into the basement, and into a room filled with old dressers and cabinets, that were collecting dust.

Brian and I moved them around to create a square base, large enough to fit the three of us. Then we began draping the sheets over the top of the furniture, as Gloria took the blankets inside the perimeter, and began making a bed we could lay on. After about half an hour, our fort was complete. I took Gloria to the kitchen and made some popcorn, as Brian ventured into a different room in the basement, to grab all the electronics we would need to watch movies. As Gloria and I returned to the fort, we found Brian sprawled out in the middle of the make-shift bed, with a stack of movies to his right, and a large TV at the base of the fort.

We spent the rest of the afternoon watching movies, until it came upon Gloria's bedtime. Brian packed her upstairs, saying he would put her to bed, and I stayed in the basement, exploring the level. After a few minutes of looking through rooms, I came across what must have been Brian's music room. Guitars lined the walls, and a drum kit sat in the far corner. But what most caught my eye was the grand piano sitting in the center of the room.

I sat at the bench and played a few chords, relishing in the sound. I hadn't played piano in nearly a year, and wasn't very good to begin with, but I loved playing. After a few moments, I began to play the only song I had memorized, impressed that after so long I still remembered it. Playing the opening chords, I couldn't help but sing along, remembering all the nights this song had helped me cope.

2am; where do I begin?
Crying off my face again.
The silent sound of loneliness
Wants to follow me to bed.

I'm a ghost of a girl that I want to be most.
I'm the shell of a girl that I used to know well.

Too afraid to go inside
For the pain of one more loveless night.
But the loneliness will stay with me
And hold me til I fall asleep.

I'm a ghost of a girl that I want to be most.
I'm the shell of a girl that I used to know well.

Dancing slowly in an empty room,
Can the lonely take the place of you?
I sing myself a quiet lullaby.
Let you go and let the lonely in
To take my heart again.

Broken pieces of
A barely breathing story
Where there once was love
Now there's only me and the lonely.

Dancing slowly in an empty room
Can the lonely take the place of you?
I sing myself a quiet lullaby
Let you go and let the lonely in
To take my heart again.

I finished the chords to the song, and jumped when I felt a hand placed on my shoulder. I turned around and was met by piercing brown. Sadness shown through his eyes as he took a seat next to me.

"Where did you find that song?" he broke the silence, staring at the floor in front of us. I took a moment to answer, not wanting to hurt him further, but knowing that telling him the truth was the best option.

"I began writing it about a year after you left...after things started dying down with Gloria, and she was sleeping through the night, that's when I truly realized I was alone. I wrote this to help me cope. I didn't mean for you to hear it..." I broke off, seeing the negative effect my words were having on him.

"I didn't mean to put you through all that Sam, I promise. My dad forced me to stay here, and I...fuck." He buried his face in his hands and took a shaky breath. We were silent for a few moments, before he turned to look at me again.

"I should regret ever going to earth and meeting you. I should have listened to my dad, and stayed. But I can't bring myself to even come close to regretting it. You and Gloria are by far, the greatest gifts I've ever been given. And to know I've put you both through so much pain...that's the only thing I regret. I regret what I am, what my being has turned Gloria into, the danger it has put you in. But I don't regret ever meeting you, and I certainly don't regret Gloria being born. You both are the only light in my useless existence, the only things I'm actually proud of. And I'll be damned if anything ever comes between us again." I was about to speak, before I heard Brian's name being called from the first floor. We looked at each other, before Brian took my hand, and led me up the stairs.

"What is it Matt?" Brian spoke as we reached the top step, seeing him and Val, each holding one of their children. Matt cleared his throat before he spoke.

"We need to get downtown. It's time for a little...damage control," he spoke. Brian stared at him in confusion, before understanding washed over his face. Understanding soon turned to fear as Matt's words sunk in. He turned to me, and spoke quickly.

"Go up and get changed into something you feel comfortable running in. Make sure it's warm, but not too warm. If you need to, you can always ditch layers. Val, will you stay here and watch Gloria? You can put your children in the guest bedroom," he spoke, ushering me up the stairs and into our room, getting changed, and then helping me dress according to his specifics. As soon as we were dressed, we flew down the stairs and collected Matt, before we took off towards the marketplace. My eyes widened at the sight in front of us.

Gods were running in every direction, fires were consuming buildings, thick smoke swirling around us. We spotted Brian's friends amongst the havoc, and ran to them. As we reached them, I heard a voice from far behind us, speaking the exact words I had been dreading to hear.

"Where is that dear brother of mine?"