Between Our Sheets | Falice

51/ Scar Tissue

"She just came back to town and it turns out her and the Blossom boy have gotten themselves pregnant." Alice lays her head on his chest as his fingertips stroke her arm from elbow to shoulder. "Have I completely failed as a mom?"

"What?" His eyes grow wide. "No, Al, you're the best mom I know." He pulls her closer and presses a kiss to her head. "This isn't such a bad thing, I know she's young but her and Jason love each other, they're going to be good parents."

"I know they will be it's just... my mom had me when she was young and I know she regretted it, I just don't want the same for Polly."

"If this is something they planned than I'm sure they're not going to regret it. Yes it's going to be hard but from what you tell me, they're smart kids, they'll be just fine."

She wraps her arms around him and presses a kiss over his heart. "Thank you."

"Of course." He trails his fingers up her spine. "About your mom... did she really regret you?"

She sighs. "Yeah. She got pregnant with me at sixteen and her mom kicked her out, she always blamed me for all inconveniences."

"Shit, I'm sorry, Al." He frowns. "My dad wasn't the best either. My mom passed when I was young and he didn't handle it well. He started drinking and doing drugs, he was in and out of jail constantly. He was a mean drunk too."

She feels her heart sinks. "Did he ever hurt you?"

He nods. "Yeah, more times that I'd like to recall."

"I'm sorry, FP, you shouldn't have had to go through that. No one should." She trails her hand over his exposed skin. "Is this from him?" She questions, feeling a scratchy scar on his rib.

"No, that was my fault. Fell off my motorcycle, bruised a couple of ribs and scraped the skin to shit." He explains with a shrug and she continues her exploration.

"Here?" She brushes her thumb across the scar by his hairline.

"Was skipping rocks with some friends down at Sweetwater River and one of them had real bad aim, got me in the head." She giggles and rubs it softly, kissing the scar.

Her hand trails down his arm, feeling a slight bump in his shoulder and her eyebrows crinkle. "Are you just really tense or did you hurt your shoulder?"

"Yeah, dad dislocated it when he was drunk, it never healed right." Her mouth gapes open slightly and he continues. "Was 15 at the time so I had no clue how to drive, had to wait until I got to school and saw the nurse to actually do anything about it."

She lets out a deep breath, the thought breaking her heart. Her fingers come to a smaller, more circular scar on his forearm and she looks up at him. "What's this from?"

"Dad put his cigarette out when he was drunk, apparently I look like an ashtray."

"What the fuck!"

"It's okay, Alice, it was only one time."

"That's one too many." She sits up and he takes her hand in his, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles. "How often did he hurt you?"

"A lot. Usually nothing too major, but he's how I broke my wrist." Her eyes drift down to his wrist and she runs her fingertips over it. She takes a deep breath and looks away. He sits up swiftly and turns her face back to him, seeing the tears swimming in her eyes. "Hey, Al, it's okay. They don't hurt anymore."

"But they did." She croaks out. "I don't like that he hurt you, parents should never hurt their children."

"He was never father of the year." He shrugs. "I haven't seen him in years and I would never, ever let him near Jug. He hurt me but he'll never lay a finger on him." She can see the tears glossing in his eyes and she places her hand on his cheek, stroking his beard. "I was always terrified I was going to turn out like him, you know? It fucking terrified me."

"You're a good man, FP. You're nothing like him, you never will be."

"Isn't that kinda shit hereditary?"

She shakes her head. "Don't you think if it was I would've been fucked up like my mom?"

"Did she ever hurt you?"

"Not physically but, emotionally, mentally." She sighs. "I got used to it."

He tightens his arms around her. "Guess we both have scars. Mine are just more visible." She kisses him softly and pulls him down with her as she lays on her back. "You're so beautiful, Alice." He whispers, kissing away a tear that slipped down her cheek.

"Thank you for making me feel better, I don't know how you always manage to make things alright."

"We balance each other well."

"That we do."

_____

She comes home late at night, wanting nothing more than to crawl into her bed.

"Mom?" Polly's voice speaks.

She lights up at the sight of her. "Hi baby, why aren't you asleep?"

"I was worried about you, I didn't know where you went."

"I just needed to clear my head, I'm okay now." She walks into the living room and stands by the couch. "I feel awful."

"Don't, I get what was going through your head at the time."

"It was just a lot of information to process that's all. And you're so young, I don't want you to be rushing into such a big thing."

"We've thought a lot about it, we're ready for this step."

"I know," she sits down on the couch next to her and takes her hand. "It's just... my mom had me when she was young and she always resented me because of it. I just didn't want that for you, but I had some time to think, and I know that you're going to be an amazing mom."

"Thank you." Polly pulls her into a tight hug.

"You're welcome, sweetie." She presses a kiss to her cheek. "I'm so excited to meet my grand twins."

"I'm excited for you to meet them too. I love you, mom."

"I love you too, honey. More than you will ever know."