Skeletons

When Falyn woke up the next morning afternoon, she had a hangover from hell. Everything made her head hurt- the ticking of the clock, the sunlight pouring in the windows, the sound the leather made as she dragged herself off the sofa. She shuffled up the stairs to her bathroom to retrieve the ibuprofen and took a nice, long bubble bath before finally pulling on some clothes.

She headed two doors down the hallway, slowly pushing the door open and peeking inside. Her daughter was lying on her stomach in the middle of her bed with her ankles crossed in the air and a thick book in her hands. She seemed enthralled in the book but when the door opened, her head popped up, her eyebrows raised in curiosity.

Falyn crossed the room, falling onto the bed next to her daughter. "How long have you been up?"

"Since about 9."

Falyn glanced back at the alarm clock on her daughter's nightstand to see the glowing green numbers 1:39. "Why didn't you wake me up?"

"Papa said you should sleep."

"Where is he anyway?"

"Went fishing with that policeman."

"Unser?"

She shook her head as she closed her book and sat up, curling her legs under her body. "No. It was a young guy."

Falyn nodded her head, but inwardly she groaned. Not only was her dad out at the lake fishing with her ex boyfriend, but there was also a good chance that if Savannah saw him, then he also saw her. "Alright. Well, I thought I'd go visit my old best friend. You want to come with me?"

Savannah scrunched up her face. "I don't know. It's weird that you know everybody in town and I don't know any of them. I feel like I'd be bored."

Falyn laughed. "Donna has kids. They're a little younger than you though."

She sighed and got up from her bed, pulling on her sandals. "I guess I'll go with you. Since I don't have anything better to do."

"So sweet of you," Falyn replied sarcastically with a grin. She got up and followed Savannah downstairs and out to the car, grabbing her keys and locking the door on the way out.

Since her car was almost on empty, she decided to stop at a gas station in town on the way to Donna and Opie's house. She got out of the car and Savannah climbed out of the passenger seat with her. "Mom, can I get a drink?"

Falyn dug into her pocket for some cash and handed it over to her daughter. "Get me a coke too." She pumped the gas while Savannah was inside the convenience store but had finished before she returned to the car.

Savannah got her change from the cashier and, since her hands were full, she shoved the door open with her shoulder, almost immediately colliding with someone. "Oh, I'm sorry," she appologized, looking up at the woman.

Gemma looked down at the girl curiously. "That's alright, baby. Just watch where you're going."

Falyn put the cap back on her gas tank and took her receipt before turning back to the convenience store. When she saw her daughter standing next to Gemma, she panicked. "Sav, let's go!" she shouted across the lot.

Savannah's head snapped over in the direction of her mother's voice and she nodded. "Coming, Mom," she replied, then turned back to Gemma. "Sorry again."

Gemma eyes widened as the realization hit her and she watched the child jog back over to the car, sliding into the passenger seat. Her eyes locked with Falyn's and they stared silently at one another for a long moment before Falyn broke eye contact and climbed into the driver's seat, speeding out of the gas station as quickly as she possibly could.

Savannah was aware of her mother's instant mood change but oblivious as to the reason why. A few minutes later, they pulled into the driveway of the Winston house and Falyn got out of the car to go knock on the front door with Savannah following behind her.

Donna swung the door open, her eyes immediately flickering to the small blonde standing on her front steps. Her eyes widened and she glanced up at Falyn with a grin, grabbing her arm and pulling her inside, then Savannah.

"Oh my God, I can't believe it's her! She's beautiful, Fal."

"It's got nothing to do with me," she sighed. "Sav, this is Donna, my best friend from high school."

Savannah smiled as the woman pulled her into a bone-crushing hug. It was easy to see why her mother had been friends with her because they acted so similar.

"Come in, come in!" she exclaimed, leading them both into the living room where her two small children were watching television. "Savannah, this is Ellie and Kenny. Kids, this is Aunt Falyn's daughter, Savannah." The two children barely looked away from the tv set to greet the new guests and Donna rolled her eyes. "Opie let 'em watch this show once and now they're hooked."

"Where is Op anyway?"

"He's working a construction job in town." She leaned in closer to Falyn, glancing back at her kids before speaking. "I'm hoping he's done with all this Club shit."

"He wants out?"

She sighed. "Not as much as I want him out. He just did five years, Falyn."

"I know. That must've been so hard for you guys."

"We barely made it through. I just feel like this is a new chance for us and I don't want the Club to ruin it again."

"Speaking of the Club ruining things....."

"Uh oh. What happened?"

"Gemma. She saw Sav earlier. I just know she's going to go running her mouth now that she has. Chief Unser's the the only other person in town who's seen the kid."

"You think she's gonna tell everybody?"

"This is Gemma we're talking about. It's only a matter of time."

"Why don't you talk to her? Ask her to keep it quiet. I mean, she's basically the queen of keeping secrets."

"Her own secrets, yeah, she'll take those to the grave. My secrets? Hell no."

"You've gotta be super careful until you're ready to tell everyone."

"I won't ever be ready to tell everyone, Donna."

Donna laughed, throwing her arm around Falyn's shoulders. "You'll get tired of hiding it eventually. And when you do, I'll be right beside you, supporting you."

"Jesus, I've missed having you in my life. Phone calls just aren't the same."

"Tell me about it! It's not even my fault you left and I suffered," she sighed dramatically. Falyn rolled her eyes and Kenny turned his head away from the tv set just long enough to shush them. Donna scolded him but Falyn just laughed.

They spent the rest of the afternoon together but when Opie got home from work, Falyn insisted that she and Savannah go so that the Winstons could have their family dinner together.

Craig was waiting for them on the porch when they returned home. He followed them thought the front door into the house and Falyn set her bag down, turning back to look at him curiously. "What's wrong with you?"

He chuckled and glanced down at his wristwatch. "Nothing's wrong with me, Fal. Now if you two will come on, we have a dinner reservation."

"You made a dinner reservation?"

"Yes, for 7:30. Now come on!"

"Dad, I really don't feel up to it."

Concern immediately flooded his features and he put his hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, fine. Just a little tired. You should go without me."

"You sure, Mom?" Savannah asked worriedly.

"Positive."

"Okay,well you get some rest. We'll be back in a little bit."

"You two have fun!"

Once her father and daughter had left the house, Falyn collapsed on the sofa and propped her feet up on one armrest, laying her head on the other end. She'd almost fallen asleep when there was a knock on the front door.