Melanie Jayne Anderson

MJA: Whiskey on the patio

I took my time to recover. I still had trouble carrying heavy loads even though my wounds have healed. Nicole insisted that I stayed home. Mike had gone back to work. I have been trying to just get through everyday however I know. 

I took a walk outside and headed down to the lake. It was quiet and the wind made the tree leaves rustle. It would have been a good time to take the boat out for some quiet time on the water but I knew that I wouldn't be able to get the boat out alone if I wanted to. Victor used to do it with me. He would help me get the boat ready and we'd bring some snacks and books and we'd just float around in the middle of the lake. We once fell into the lake because I wasn't paying attention to the balancing of the boat. I was distracted by the birds and accidentally shifted our weight to one side of the boat and we both fell into the water. Victor pulled me up to prevent me from drowning but later realized that the water wasn't that deep so we started laughing and splashing each other while everything else floated around us.

One night, I decided to stay up because I had too much coffee so I took out my digital tablet to design some new collections for the coming season. My thoughts were everywhere and somewhere at the same time. I had the color schemes and rough idea of what I wanted to sketch exactly but I kept getting distracted by something moving outside the house. The alarm didn't go off so it couldn't have possibly been someone trespassing. After a few minutes, I decided to take a look around the house. I opened the front door and found someone sitting on the front porch. He was facing away and he had a bottle of whiskey next to him. His hair seemed messy but I somehow recognized him still. It was Victor.

MJ: Are you ok, Victor?

Victor turned to look at me and stood up. He had been drinking and his shirt was slightly undone and tucked out. I slowly moved towards him and took his hand.

MJ: Come on. Let's sit inside........

He was quiet but he looked utterly distraught. I sat him down outside on the patio looking into the swimming pool and I sat next to him. Victor almost never drinks. He only ever did when we were at parties but he'd never take an entire bottle with him. Something was definitely bothering him.

Victor: I'm uh......I have a lot of erm......I wanted......I needed to talk to someone.......but.......I just don't know who to talk to........I'm sorry about the bottle.....I know you don't drink......

MJ: Don't apologize. I'm here if you need someone to listen........

Victor: You always had been,huh? (smiles) I've been.....thinking.....about a lot of things. All this crap that keeps piling on with no end. I have been trying to understand how exactly I got here. I honestly never thought I could mess this up so badly.....but I did........It's bad but...uh.....I thought it wasn't fair. This wasn't a fair fight. (takes a sip) I mean......I realized that I never knew who you really were.....(looks at Melanie) 

MJ: What do you mean?

Victor: Like.....like....what happened to you when you were 16......why did you tell Mike? Why didn't you ever mention it to me? Did I really not talk to you, Melanie Jayne?

MJ: I never wanted anyone to know about it.......Why would I ever tell anyone about it?

Victor: But you told Mike........

MJ: Well, we were dancing at the party and 'prom' came up......And the subject stayed on........

Victor: You were dancing......(chuckles) You said you don't dance.......

MJ: I don't but he just pulled me onto the dancefloor......look, can we not talk about this?

Victor: I want to talk about it. You've been shutting me out for months. I want to talk about this......(takes a sip) So....you said....I never mentioned I was married......That was a fair point. I should have told you. I'll admit that. (laughs) For some reason, I felt like you were constantly in pain that I couldn't have possibly made it any worse for you.......But clearly, that was a mistake. My mistake. She was the bar owner at the smalltown I grew up in. I was always there for open mic nights. I was hoping that maybe some talent scout might be around......She came around one night and told me that I was never going to get anywhere being stuck there. She gave me a drink and I don't know what happened next.......I woke up in a bed which wasn't mine. My head hurt so much......I tried to find my way out of there and discovered I was at the bar......Her family was downstairs.......They stared at me like I did something wrong......(starts crying) Oh god! 

I scooted closer to Victor and hugged him.

Victor: Whatever they said I did to her.......I never did any of it.......I would never do anything like that to anyone......They said that if I didn't fix it, I would have ruined the family name.....

Victor cried and cried and I let him lean on me as I tried to console him. He was so broken and he was alone. I couldn't leave him. 

Victor: I was.......forced to marry her.....she erm....gave birth to our son, Christopher........He was.....the most precious thing I had ever seen.....I wanted to be a good father to him. I really do....I was only allowed to see him once a week because her family made me work and pay them.....alimony......child support.......I thought that.....if I could find work elsewhere, I could get a stable paying job. Something decent enough to help me get Christopher into my custody for good.....(looks at Melanie) I would never abandon family.....but I can't really feel like I was family anywhere.......then, I met you. You had always been so welcoming and kind. I didn't want to mess anything up between us,Melanie Jayne. I couldn't tell you because......we were.....perfect...and I couldn't bring myself to be flawed.......but I am......I'm sorry I couldn't give you the perfect fairy tale you've always wanted,Melanie Jayne........

MJ: We were perfect, Victor. You were perfect just the way you were.....You still are.....I was stupid to not handle this properly. I beat myself up about it everyday. (caressing Victor's face) I messed this up. You had always been there for me, Victor. I'm so sorry for not listening to you in first place........I am so sorry,Victor....... (hugging Victor) I am so sorry.......(starts to cry)

There was never a day that went by that I never thought about how things could have been different if we both made the right call. We were too caught up in trying to make it all "perfect". We were already perfect. I held Victor just as he did when I was crying. 

Victor: Whatever she told Nicole was a lie.......I just thought you should know that. I was already trying to get a divorce before leaving. She was furious because I was looking for a way out and I was trying to take my son with me. Getting lawyers involved was never part of their plan but I had to defend myself. I couldn't just let them take my father's name and make it into whatever narrative they choose to have......I have to get Christopher,Melanie Jayne........I don't know how but I have to........He's all I have now......and I ruined everything......

I looked at Victor and smiled. I gently wiped the tears on his face.

MJ: We'll get him back, Victor. We'll find Sharon and we're gonna get Christopher back.

Victor hugged me and cried. I hugged him so tightly because I didn't want him to leave. I wanted him to stay just as he did all those years ago. He had always been with me. This had always been his home. I wanted him to always know that.