Chapter 33: Addy

Addy took a seat on the top of the courthouse steps, closing her eyes to lift her face to the sky, allowing the sun to warm her chilled skin. It was so quiet out here, quiet enough to hear the birds sing in the trees and the honking of horns somewhere a few blocks away. Her hands shook when she held them out, heart thumping a beat too quickly against her chest. She couldn’t take it in there, waiting for Jay all alone, stifled by the tense atmosphere of ringing phones, stuffy clerks, and the officiality of it all. What was happening inside would determine everything from here on out, and she could hardly stand the anxiety.
Behind her, the door to the courthouse buzzed, and the door swung open. Addy turned, her eyes landing first on Jay’s lawyer, a young man with slicked-back hair and a freshly shaven face. Behind him, Jay stepped out. His hands were shoved deep into his jacket pockets, and his chin dropped low, resting against his neck. Addy scrambled to her feet, terrified, palms prickling with sweat.
“Hey,” she said, stepping around the attorney to get to Jay. “How did it go?”
She didn’t want to know.
“I’m sorry, Addy,” Jay said, his dark eyes landing on hers. He shook his head, fighting to get the words out.
“God, Jay, what happened?”
“I’m sorry,” he said again. “I’m sorry for putting you through this. And I’m really sorry that I have to ask you to help me find a place to live because the judge excused the sentence, and I guess that means I’m your problem now.”
Something inside Addy broke; all the tension, the anxiety, the horror, and the worry spilled out of her like a breaking dam. Her breath caught in her throat, and she cried, throwing her arms around Jay, burying her face in the front of his button-up shirt.
“I hate you,” she said, tears trickling down her tired face. Jay laughed and kissed the top of her head. She never wanted him to let go.
“Do you really, though?” Jay asked, teasing her.
“Jay,” she said. “I hope you know that I would walk five hundred miles, and I would walk five hundred more …” She giggled then, wiping the tears from her face as she met his eyes with her own. His lips met her teasingly, and Jay pulled her close, his hands securely around her, holding her tight. When they broke away, he just briefly closed his eyes and rested his forehead against hers.
“…just to be the man who walked a thousand miles to fall down at your door.