Chapter 71 Please Stay

Melissa paced, her heels clicking on the neutral linoleum on the floor. She viciously rubbed her arms wrinkling the expensive fabric of her shirt but she didn’t seem to notice. “I’m not sure what you want me to say.”
“How about the truth?” I know it is a foreign concept to you but I really need you to tell her.”
“John is there any need? Why don’t you let her go, you have Isabel now.”
“Mother! “ John screamed “stop it, I don’t “Have” Isabel, tell her the truth!” His hand slammed his hand down on the small table and it jumped and almost toppled.
Melissa turned and looked at John in shock. “How dare you talk to me like that?”
“Easy!” John shouted, “I refuse to let your lies end the most important thing in my life.”
Melissa gasped as the anger in John’s voice vibrated around the room. “Fine,” She said in a huff as she turned to face Anna. “John doesn’t “Have” Isabel.”
“What does that mean exactly?” Anna said as she stood and stepped toward Melissa.
“Well, It means that John and Isabel weren’t sleeping together.”
“That’s not how it looked when I opened the door and she was in my bed.”
“Oh My God, we planned it that way! How can you be so naïve.” Melissa said in exasperation as she faced Anna. Where before there was hesitance now indignation took its place. Melissa lifted her head and stared Anna down. “Isabel drugged John and got him into bed, he was too drugged to do anything.”
“Who planned it?”
“Isabel, May, and I. We have been trying to get rid of you forever.”
“Why?! Anna asked “Other than being born poor, what could I ever have done to you?”
“You are ruining my son’s life. Simply put you are not good enough for him. You are trash as I believe I’ve told you before.”
“Don’t talk to my wife like that!” John yelled.
“Please,” Melissa said in a snide voice “she isn’t worthy to be your wife.”
“What makes you so much better than anyone else?” John roared “You were barely middle class before you married my father.”
“How dare you, you know I told you never to talk about that.”
“What else can I do when you are trying to put yourself up as some sort of paragon, you are no better than anyone else. My wife is better than ten of you.”
“How dare you?”
“No, how dare you,” Anna said glaring at Melissa finally finding her voice. “You need to stay out of my life. I have tried for years to fit in and be the woman you wanted for your son, but you know I see now that I don’t need to be that woman, I need to be the woman who is right for him.”
“You will never be right for him, look how easy it was for me to get you to believe that he would climb into bed with Isabel. You don’t trust him so how could you think you are right for him?”
“You don’t get to decide what’s right for him. He’s a grown man.”
“It certainly isn’t a slut like you.”
“Mother shut up,” John yelled at her but Anna beat him to the punch. Her hand swung of its own accord and connected with Melissa’s nose. Blood flowed from her nose and stained her shirt. Anna couldn’t help but smile.
Melissa held her nose and glared at Anna. “you stupid lowlife bitch, this is exactly what I was talking about.”
Anna lunged at her and John pulled them apart. “It’s not worth it.” He said in her ear.
“Are you just going to stand there and let her assault me like that?”
“Yes, you’ve been assaulting her in every way but the physical for years. I was just too blind to see it.”
“You are siding with her?”
“Every day of the week 24/7.”
“I don’t have to stand for this,” Melissa said around her clutched nose.
“Then go,” John said as he wrapped his arms around Anna.
“You drug me here, how am I supposed to get home? Looking like this?”
“I don’t really care, just get out and don’t come back,” John said as he turned and pretended she didn’t exist.
“You don’t mean that.”
“I do mean that I’m done with you, May and Isabel. I don’t want to see you near me or Anna again.”
“You’ll change your mind when you realize I’m right.”
John did not answer and simply stared into Anna’s eyes focusing on no one but her. Anna shifted away from him and sat down on the couch looking down at her hands. Melissa scoffed and walked away not looking back already calling for a ride home.
“Anna, please talk to me.”
“She’s right you know”
“What are you talking about?” John asked coming to sit beside her. He tried to take her hand but Anna pulled it away. “How can you even think that?”
“When she said how easy it was for me to believe you would cheat on me it struck something in me.”
“Are you crazy right now, you had every reason to believe what you saw, if I had seen it I would have probably ended up in jail.”
“I know but we will never be equal, no matter what happens, if it wasn’t Isabel now it will be someone else later, someone always picking and pushing me to the limit. For God’s sake, I punched your mother!”
“She had it coming.” You have always thought that about yourself despite years of me trying to tell you how perfect you are. You know I love you more than anything else.”
“But there will always be someone who doesn’t think we should be together.”
“Anna, why do you care? Isn’t it only what we think that matters?
“I can’t do this. There is so much more than just this grand plan of your mothers.”
“Anna please don’t do this.”
“I need to think.” She said as she pushed John back and stood. She walked to the door unsure of what to do next. She grabbed her bag from the floor and pushed the door open. The security officer gave her a black look as she found herself walking toward the gate. The plane was long gone and they were lucky they hadn’t all been arrested. She wondered what to do now, her thoughts and emotions swirled in her head and she felt as if she were walking through mud. “What am I going to do, what do I want to do?” she thought to herself as she stood staring at the gate announcement.
“Anna please stay.” John said from behind her.
She turned and looked him in the eye wanting to forget the past few months, wanting to continue to try. She remembered that night in Los Angeles so clearly. Remembered how desperate she was, how lonely. The sad thing was that she felt the same way now.
“I don’t know if I can.”