Missing You (Sequel to Somewhere In Neverland)

Lost In Stereo

Marina's POV:

I woke up, my back aching horribly, but my heart warm. I looked to Alex's nightstand. There was a photo of my babies, as well as a framed drawing Peter did when he was five, of him and Alex playing guitar. He truly did love him, he just couldn't see it.

Alex's eyes shot open. "Are you doing okay?" His voice grumbled. "I'll never say sorry enough."

"I'm alright, baby." I said, cuddling in closer. "How are we gonna get through today?"

"Saying sorry a billion times. Being honest." He held me. "I don't ever wanna let go."

"We won't." I squeezed his hand.

After breakfast, Jack came over with the kiddos. He went home, and all the kids sat in the living room. They all wanted to know what was going on. Alex and I walked out together to show that we were united. Our arms were around each other.

"Is everyone okay?" I began. There were collective nods. "I didn't mean to overwhelm you. Whatever happens, nothing is your fault and I need you all to trust that."

They were still silent.

"I'm sorry." Alex said. "I'm sorry for being so univolved and unreasonable." He looked away so they wouldn't see the tears welling in his eyes. "I'm just going through some stuff and I'm sorry for taking it out on you and your mother." He put his face in his hand to cry.

I rubbed his back. "And that fight last night seemed way worse than it was. He said something stupid, I backhanded him, and he pushed me away. That was it. It was just so loud it caused a rucus."

"It was my fault and I'm sorry. And I don't blame you guys for giving me the silent treatment." Alex collapsed into a seat, far away from the rest. "I don't ever want to see you so scared again, and I humiliated that it was me who put you through it."

Stella stood up and sat by him. "What are you going through that's making you so crazy?" Her tone was sweet and unjudging.

"I don't want to burden all of you." He couldn't look anyone in the eyes but me.

"It's more of a burden when you keep secrets and lash out." Peter finally spoke, arms crossed.

Alex turned up to me. "Should I tell them?"

"It's time." I nodded.

He stood up, grabbing a photo album from the bookshelf. He opened to a page he knew precisely. It was well worn. He now sat on the coffee table, closer to the kids. He pointed to an image. "This is your uncle Tom, my big brother. When I was 12, he killed himself. It scarred me so deeply I developed an anxiety disorder, young. I've carried it ever since. And I've always tried a billion different ways to deal with it. Some good, some very very bad. And as of recent I haven't had anything and it's been wigging me out. And I'm sorry. I just didn't want you guys to know I was imperfect. Finding out that your parents can't fix everything, it's scary. And I didn't want you guys to see this, but I blew up, and now you found out the hard way."

No one spoke. Stella looked torn and heartbroken. Jimmy had an expressionless expression on his face. Brian looked calm. Peter, on the other hand, was smug. He and Stella were very similar besides their respect for Alex (which Peter had none). He seemed happy about this in a fucked up way. He always knew Alex wasn't perfect, but he never admitted it. I was angry at his attitude, although he didn't utter a word.

I wrapped myself around Alex. "I'm sorry too. We used to be so wild, and fight all the time, and it got physical plenty of times, but none since we've been married. But we're gonna take steps to make this better, and we're still just as in love and happy as ever, I promise. So no, Jimmy, we are not splitting up. Ever."