1

She waits in the living room, waiting for that call that she knows is coming. Knuckles white, the phone in her shaking hands starts to ring. One ring goes, two, three, "I can't do it. Don't want to," she just can't think of how to answer. Someway she brings herself to press the button, END. Quietly she sits on the couch. She knew what was on the other side, bad news, its always bad news when its this late. Glancing up to the clock on her tan living room wall, no good happens after midnight, 3:33 am. "Is it really that late, or early?" She chuckles, "I guess this is one way to start a day." Legs swung onto the couch, she lies down. Staring at the ceiling fan, she hopes she's just dreaming. Laughing, smiling, and thinking about all that has her life has become, and what its going to be.

Knocks on the door.

Sobs. "This really is it. They don't come to your house unless its bad. He finally did it." Marley sees the red and blue lights in her driveway. Where her husband parks his truck each night, there was a white SUV with two men getting out and walking to her door.

"Are you Mrs. Scott; wife of Brian Scott?

"Yeah, what ha.."

"Ma'am you need to come with me," Officer Dobbs sincerely states, "its Brian, there's been an accident."

"Let me get my kids."

Walking up the stairs she feels like her legs are jello, "I haven't been to the gym in several years, not since the kids. I know I'm not that out of shape." She knew exactly what was going on. Why tonight of all nights? The one night the kids went down with out a hassle. The night they fell asleep from laughing. The night just seemed too perfect. 

Quietly, she opens the door to the kid's room, Jordan sleeping on the bottom of his bed, as normal, and Addison in her crib. How could Marley possibly wake up her kids. Quietly she tells Jordan that they're going for a ride and needs help mommy by getting his clothes on. Marley cradles Addison in her arms and lets a tear roll down her face. "Pull yourself together, they can't see you like this." This was one of those things that you just simply have to push it all down.

"Mamma, can we listen to the radio pleeeeeeaaaseeee?" Jordan begs from the back seat. 

"What do you wanna listen to bub?" Marley stared at the police escort in front of her.

"I dunno, maybe our favorite song?" Jordan asks with those big sappy puppy eyes no one could ever turn down.

"Of course! Start it out, but keep quiet Addie is still sleepy."

"I never had no one I can count on..." out of tune but note for note Jordan sang it. The song Marley and Brain first danced to, danced at their wedding, and just last night.

Marley chimes in, "for the first time I didn't feel alone, you're more than a lover, there could never be another that make me feel the way you do. Oh we just get closer I fall in love all over every time I look at you.." Choking back tears Marley looks into her rear view mirror to see her two perfect kids, one sleeping, and the other smiling ear to ear singing. Its simply perfect.

Walking into the room at the hospital, wires everywhere, machines, monitors, tubes, Marley almost loses her dinner. Quickly Shane, Marley's brother, takes the kids to the waiting room. Shane already knows. Shutting the door behind him Shane hears, "Uncle Shane, whats wrong with daddy?" Marley heard it too. Instead of answering Shane pulls out some M&Ms from his pocket and said lets go eat some candy and not tell mommy. "I never tell mommy when you give me candy after bedtime." 

Staring at what used to look like her husband, Marley tries to piece together what could have possibly ever happened. "Ma'am, you need to ready yourself." A doctor, who easily appears to only be 21, reaches out to console her. Marley steps back. "You'll let me know when you're ready ok?" Barely nodding her head yes, because she couldn't get her lips to stop trembling. 

Grabbing Brian's hand, well where it would be, she grasps the mangled hand bandaged and broken she squeezes. Not even a flinch from him. At this point Marley has no emotions. She doesn't need some fancy doctor to tell her what she already knows. You don't need a medical degree to know that you're husband isn't coming back. "Guess I may need to know the medical terminology for what has happened."

It did't matter what that doctor said Marley wasn't going to remember anyways. She just needed to hear it. She needed to hear that her husband of 5 years, best friend for 10, father of 2 beautiful children who look exactly like him, wasn't going to make it through the night. Inside she was broken, but on the outside she held herself together. "Give me a few minutes with him, then we can do it." Those words echoed inside her, "'do it,' what is wrong with me, he's not an animal to be put down. How insensitive can one person be? He's my husband...." She stood there quiet. "I need to be alone." Marley walks out of the room, past the waiting room-not even looking at her family, down the elevator, out the doors, and to her SUV. 

Keys in hand, "I can just drive away, far from it all." The vehicle unlocks, she climbs in the driver seat, sits in the seat and looks in the mirror. Tears fall down her face, she can't stop them, now the runny nose, "everything hurts. I can't do it." That booster chair and car seat, the only two things in the car that weren't goldfish, cheerios, or juice boxes. Marley blows that runny nose, looks in the mirror, "as if my nose couldn't have gotten any bigger." She tried to laugh but simply just couldn't do it externally. Walking back to the room in which her husband lay in a bed, she got it all together. Her heart stopped hurting, her eyes stopped crying, nose stopped running, and all the aches and shakes stopped. "I can do this, I have to." And just like that, all of those years spent going to the gym made her feel stronger than any person in the world, because she had the weight of her world on her shoulders.