Leaving Laurabelle Falls

Chapter 3

Two years before the accident, Madeline and I sat on the floor in her bedroom, with my fingers deep in her thick blonde hair. I moved one piece over the other as we sat cross-legged on the floor, music that teenage girls liked before we were born playing in the background.

I worked diligently at my fishbone braid. She sat staring at the door. I didn't see her face, but I sensed that something was off as soon as she raised her voice.

"Can I admit something to you?" She asked, voice wavering.

I paused in my task, holding her hair tightly. I leaned to the side to see as much of her face as possible. She had the lightest pink flush to her cheekbones, and her eyes glistened.

"You know you can tell me anything." I responded. I sat back, and started working on her hair again. I was almost done with the braid, and my hands moved a little quicker.

The breath that Madeline pulled in shook.

"I-- You remember in the third grade, when Kaylee got in trouble for bringing that toad in from recess?" She asked.

I laughed a little. Yeah, I remembered. Everyone remembered that day. The principal over-reacted on a cosmic level.

"Of course I remember." I informed her. "What about it?"

"Well," She said, then took a pause. I continued to braid, hoping to finish before the waterworks that I could sense were coming started up. "I'm the one that told Miss Finnegan."

I grabbed a rubber band, and quickly began to loop it around the finished style. It was a little short, but still beautiful. "And?"

"And--" Madeline sniffed, and her back tensed up. I immediately abandoned my task, coming around to sit on the floor in front of her. Her eyes were running now, fat tears falling from her face and onto her pink pajama shirt. "I got her suspended. For three days, Laura."

I put my hands on her shoulders as she bent forward, her eyes falling to the floor. She used her sleeve to wipe away some of the tears.

"No, you didn't." I said, firmly. "Kaylee got herself suspended. That was the third time that week that she had brought in something off the playground. Next, it was going to be a squirrel. Imagine the chaos that would have ensued."

Madeline laughed. I smiled, patting her shoulder twice.

"Yeah, but," She argued, "If I hadn't told anyone, she might not have gotten caught. You know her grades went downhill after she missed that much class, and I honestly think she never really recovered-"

"Why are you crying?" I asked, genuinely shocked. My heart ached to see her in this amount of pain. I got up, giving her a quick pat before I did. When I came back, I had the tissue box from her dresser in my hand. I dropped it in front of her before I sat back on the floor.

Madeline grabbed one of the tissues, blowing her nose into it. Hard. She tossed the used bundle towards the trash can, and it missed. It landed right beside the waste basket.

"I don't know," She confessed, breathing hard. "I just feel like it's my fault that she went from being at the top of the class to-"

"Calm down." I told her, reattaching one of my hands to her shoulder. "Look at me. Look up, right now." She did. "Breathe with me. One, inhale. Two, exhale."

We continued like that for a couple of minutes, getting reacquainted with the sound of silence. When it was broken, it was me again.

"We both know Kaylee had issues before that, of course she was going to have issues after." I argued. "Why are you so upset over this?"

"I don't know!" Maddie exclaimed, her bottom lip quivering. "I just don't want to be a tattle tale! What if I ruined someone's life?"

There was a knock on the door, soft. We both jumped, turning towards the sound.

"Hey, is everything alright in there?" A male voice broke in, comforting and baritone.

"We're fine!" I responded, turning back to Maddie. She had another tissue balled in her hand, and her shoulders were slumped. Her eyes had lost their usual sparkle.

"Well," Her father continued, "Let us know if you girls need anything. I know you're going through a lot right now. We're always available to talk."

His voice was nervous. I had never heard him like this.

"Thank you, Mr. Fellows!" I responded.

His steps echoed down the hallway, and I turned back to Maddie. Her face was a perfect mask of emptiness. "I know you're going through a lot right now" rang through my head.

"...What did he mean by that?" I asked.

"Well," Maddie said, looking back down at the tissue crumpled in her hand. "If we go talk to them, we'll have to get them from their separate rooms."

"What.... happened?" I asked, suddenly shocked.

Her parents had always seemed so loving. Dancing in the kitchen, sneaking kisses whenever nobody was looking. They went on walks together, watched shows together, baked together. I had looked to them for examples of what love could be like when I was older.

Her eyes welled up again.

I was patient. It took her a long time to start talking again, but once she did... it all came out.

"I caught her." She whispered. She looked up towards me. "I caught her, and she doesn't know. She thinks he found the text messages on his own. But I was walking through the kitchen a couple of weeks ago, and her phone went off, and I thought it might be from dad-"

She burst into tears again, unable to hold back her sobs. Sensing the seriousness of the situation, I quickly shushed her, moving in for a hug. She cried against my shoulder until the fabric of my sleep-shirt was damp.

"I don't know why I didn't keep my mouth shut," She whispered. "She's going to find out, and she's going to-- hate me."

I rubbed her back as she broke back into sobs, shaking violently.

"It's not your fault," I whispered, because it was all I could think to say.

Maddie was like this sometimes. If something went wrong in a colossal way, she found a way to blame it on herself. There was nothing I could do but try to comfort her, offer what little of myself I could to let her know that someone still supported her. I really didn't know what else to do.

"It's really not." I emphasized, as she began to shake again. She gripped me tighter, and she shook her head, before pulling back. Immediately, she went for the tissues.

"I don't know, I don't know," She sobbed. "I don't know what's going to happen, and I'm scared."

"Well, you shouldn't be." I said, trying to control the anger I felt towards her mother. I felt absolutely certain of who's fault this was, and it had nothing to do with Madeline. "You're not the one who made the decision to be unfaithful."

"Yeah, I guess," Maddie responded, flippantly. I could tell that she wasn't going to let it sink in. There was nothing I could say past this point. "I'm just upset. I don't know what's going to happen."

"You're going to be alright." I said, even though I didn't know whether or not it was the truth.

Maddie threw the next tissue towards the trash can. This one made it in.

"Ball is life." She said, her tone flat. Despite the seriousness of the conversation, it still made me laugh. Immediately, I felt bad. But if the look on her face was anything to go by, it was still the right move.

"Do you want another hug?" I asked, sensing that we were nearing the end of this conversation.

"I want to pretend like this didn't happen." She said. Still, she leaned in. She pulled me close, and turned her head towards the crook of my neck. "Let's just try to have a normal sleepover."

"Okay." I agreed, sensing that that was what she needed. I patted her back one last time. "Okay."