Nobody's Hero

Without really meaning to, Andy ended up taking them to Phoenix's parents' house, about eight hours away from where they'd originally started. As soon as Phoenix realized where they were going, she started arguing.

"Scar, we cannot go to my parents' house," she told him, and he shrugged. Phoenix and her parents hadn't gotten along for years and he knew it, which is exactly why he thought it was the perfect place for them to go. Patrick probably didn't even know where they lived because of how little Phoenix talked about them.

"You're telling me that it's not the safest place we could possibly go right now?" Andy asked her and she thought about it for a good minute before finally shrugging and heaving a big sigh.

"Damn it," she whispered, and he smiled over at her. "I haven't seen them in four years."

"I know," he said, nodding slightly and reaching for her hand. She gave it to him and he held it.

They drove the rest of the way to the house in silence, and she was surprised that after all the time that had passed, he still remembered the way to the house she'd grown up in. He pulled to a stop in the driveway and she was surprised to see both of her parents' cars there. They were almost never home at the same time; she wasn't even honestly sure why they were still married. They'd fought constantly all of her life, and part of the reason the three of them didn't get along was because she always asked both of them why they were still together. That and the fact that she'd always been slightly convinced that they loved Andy more than they'd ever loved her. She'd always been the fuck-up, the one who couldn't seem to do anything right, and Andy had always seemed to do everything right. She hated him for it sometimes, but other times it came in handy.

"Ready?" he asked her once he'd gotten out of the car and come around to her side to open her door.

"You go in, I'll stay here," she told him, a nervous smile plastered on her face.

"Come on, you big baby," he said, reaching for her. Finally giving in and standing out of the car, she stood in front of him and stared at him for a moment. She wasn't sure exactly what she was feeling as she looked at him, but it wasn't what she normally felt towards him. It wasn't best-friend Andy. It was something else she couldn't quite put her finger on. He seemed to be having the same thoughts because she couldn't read his eyes like she usually could. The moment seemed to stretch on forever and both of them seemed unsure on what to do. Before they could do anything, though, a voice cut through the silence, snapping them both out of the moment.

"Phoenix? Andy?" a voice that Phoenix instantly recognized as her mother's called to them, making them both look toward the front door of the house. Sure enough, her mom was standing at the front door, watching them. She looked exactly like Phoenix remembered, and she wondered if her mom was thinking the same about her.

"Hey, Mrs. W," Andy said, and Phoenix was thankful for the millionth time in their friendship that he always seemed okay with carrying the conversation when she felt like she was on the verge of a panic attack.

"It's actually not 'mrs.' anymore, not that either of you have bothered to care about it over the past few years," her mom said, sounding bitter. Phoenix and Andy exchanged a look before he placed his hand on her back and gently guided her up the sidewalk.

"Hi, mom," Phoenix said when they got closer, and she was surprised when her mother opened her arms for a hug. They hugged for the first time in maybe ten years, and Phoenix was surprised when her eyes filled with tears.

"Don't cry now, I'll cry," her mom told her, wiping at her face with a thumb.

"Are you guys really divorced?" Phoenix asked, and her mom nodded.

"It actually just finalized last week. I got the house and both cars, so not that bad of a deal, I guess," her mom said, and Phoenix could tell that even though she was trying to sound nonchalant, she was hurting.

"Why didn't you call me?" she asked, and her mom shrugged.

"I did. Your boyfriend... Patrick, is it? He answered, and told me you didn't want to talk to me. Seemed like kind of a dick, if you ask me," her mom said, and Phoenix and Andy both scoffed.

"You have no idea. We should probably get inside though," Andy said, motioning to the front door of the house.

A while later, they were all sitting around her mom's living room with cups of tea that she'd forced on them and were making casual small talk, all of them avoiding what they were really thinking. Finally, her mom couldn't take it anymore.

"So, we all know the two of you aren't here just for a chat and a visit. Are you going to tell me what's going on?" she asked, and Phoenix and Andy exchanged a look. Taking a deep breath, Phoenix told her everything. Every detail she could think of to include came pouring out of her mouth, and by the time she was done, she was completely surprised that she wasn't crying. She wondered if maybe she'd cried herself out over the past few days, if that was possible. Her mom listened to the entire story silently, and when it was over, she looked at Andy and Phoenix thought she might be about to slap him.

"How the hell were you oblivious to all of this?" her mom asked, and Andy looked like he might cry.

"I did everything I could to make sure he was, mom. It's not his fault," Phoenix jumped in, making sure both of them knew that she knew exactly where the blame fell.

"Well. I don't care who his father is, I think you need to call the police. You need to get it figured out. He belongs in jail. Until you figure it out, though, both of you are welcome here. I know you probably don't have any personal stuff with you... I think there's some boxes of both of yours from high school up in the attic still if you want to look through them. I'm not sure what's in there but there might at least be clothes to get you through a few days," her mom said, catching Phoenix completely off-guard. The version of her mom that she thought she'd known would have kicked them both to the curb and told them to deal with their shit themselves. Andy gave her a look that indicated that he'd been thinking the same thing. "You both seem so surprised that I'm not an awful bitch," her mom said, somehow seeming to read their minds. Looking between them, she smiled before getting up off the couch and going to do something elsewhere in the house.

"Who had a good idea?" Andy asked when her mom was for sure out of earshot.

"You don't know. She might just be keeping us here to cook us into a stew," Phoenix said, making them both chuckle.