ACT ONE ━━ CHAPTER FIVE
Hail Mary, Full of Grace

ADALINE APPROACHED THE DOOR TO THE SOLE BATHROOM IN THEIR ONE STORY RANCHER, hesitantly rapping her knuckles against it for the third consecutive time that morning.

    "Momma? Are you almost done? I need to get ready for school." Betty had been in the bathroom ever since the sunrise, and Adaline had waited as long as she could before she needed to shower and brush her teeth.

     "Yeah, hun, hold on just a minute." Adaline heard her mother retch from behind the door, slightly grimacing to herself. Soon the toilet flushed and Betty took her sweet time washing her hands, staring at herself in the mirror in contemplation. She dried her hands before opening the bathroom door with a tired smile, "Sorry, it's all yours now."

     Adaline noticed her mother's face was tinted green, "Momma...are you alright?"

     She smiled at her daughter, "Why'd you say that? I'm fit as a fiddle." She waved Adaline off nonchalantly, "May have some stomach bug or somethin', but it'll pass like they always do." Betty nodded backwards towards the bathroom, "Go on, go get ready for school."

     Once Betty walked past Adaline, her smile dropped as she placed a hand on her lower back, cringing at the pain with every step she took. Adaline noticed but didn't say anything, closing the bathroom door shut behind her.

     That Sunday, the situation repeated itself. But this time, Betty didn't have enough time to reassure Addy she was okay before her body lurched and regurgitated what Betty didn't even know since she's lost her appetite this entire past week.

     Adaline softly opened the door, "Momma, do you need anythin'?" Betty just waved her off and vomited again, Adaline coming over to reclip her hair so it was out of her face.

     Betty heavily exhaled, "No, hun...I..." she shook her head, "I'm ain't gonna be able to go to Church today, I don't think. Send Reverend my....my best—" vomit "—regards—"

     "Maybe we should get you to a doctor—"

     Betty leaned back and waved her off again, "No, no, I'm fine..." She nodded in the direction of her bedroom, "I do need you to go take them clothes over for me. Might as well go to the chapel right after, since you're already headin' that way."

     Adaline nodded, "Alright. Hope you're feelin' better soon." Her mother hummed back before leaning against the toilet again, leaving Adaline to exit the room. She was already ready since she made sure to go into the bathroom earlier than usual, allowing herself some time before her mother had to occupy it like she had been doing the past couple of days.

     Adaline went into her parents' room to see all the shades drawn and her father laying on top of the covers, still in his full road-crew work attire with a pillow over his head.

     She went over and gently removed the pillow, taping his arm, "Daddy? Daddy, we're goin' to church soon."

     Still with his eyes closed, he grumbled before rolling away from Adaline, onto his side, "I don't think I'll be goin'. Someone needs to stay here to take care of your mother."

     "Well, I could stay home too—"

     Desmond shook his head, "No, no you go, sweetheart. If anyone asks where we are, just say your momma's ill and I'm takin' care of her."

     Adaline lightly sighed, knowing damn well he wouldn't move positions from where he was now. She nodded nonetheless and walked over to the armchair in the corner of the room, grabbing the basket of clothes for the Russells before walking out of the room. She bid her mother goodbye one last time before leaving the house entirely.

     She used to loathe the walk up the hill to the Russells', but now Adaline found it meditative. Although recently, Momma's been too sick to speak and Daddy's been too tired to talk, Adaline still felt suffocated in her own home. Maybe it was because she had now assumed all of the duties within the household, cooking, cleaning, food-buying, etc., but she looked forward to when her mother would ask her to deliver clothes to one of the neighbors. With the way things were going, Adaline thinks that she'll have to take up washing the neighbors' clothes soon too.

     When she arrived on the Russells' property, Arvin and his uncle were on the porch. She didn't want to intrude but she needed to deliver the clothes before making the trek over to the church which was much longer than the walk to the Russells' house, so she was trying to be as quick as possible.

     Adaline slowly walked closer so that possibly either of them could see her and let her in, but this also granted her the ability to hear their conversation.

     "...saw Fred Dinwoodie over there," Earskell told Arvin. "He said his boy is just about healed up."

     Adaline froze, 'healed up?'  Like Eli?

     "I still think you could've held back a little bit."

     "Well, he ain't bothered Lenora since. Him or his candy-ass buddies," Arvin said. He nodded towards the house, "I gotta go check in on her, she ain't been feelin' too good. You keep an eye on her for me while we're at church." Earskell nodded as Arvin went back inside, then noticed the appearance of Adaline Berkeley walking up the pathway.

     She politely smiled, "Hi. Just here to drop these off. My momma would've, but I think she's come down with somethin'." Adaline quickly recovered herself, "But these were done long before then, so, you ain't got nothin' to worry about."

     Earskell softly smiled back, "That's alright. You can head on inside, Emma should be around there somewhere." Adaline nodded in thanks and walked up the steps, about to enter the house but Earskell asked her a question before she had the chance, "Ain't you friends with that Taylor boy? And them others?"

     She tensed and glanced at the ground, "I was, yeah." Adaline looked back up, "But I had no idea they were givin' Lenora a hard time. I would've said somethin'." She shook her head as she looked down at her dirtied Mary Janes, "Doubt it would've made a difference, though..."

     Earskell nodded, inferring that she had heard their conversation, "Dinwoodie said the Taylor boy had been beat up later. When he was with a girl." Adaline went rigid again. Earskell nodded towards her, "That you?"

     She hesitated before answering, "Yes...but I ain't gonna tell anyone, if that's what you're worryin' about."

     He shook his head, "No, not at all. I was just paintin' a picture." Adaline nodded once more before going inside the house, immediately seeing Emma in the kitchen through the archway.

     "Hi, Ms. Russell."

     The older woman turned around and smiled at her, "Oh, hi there, Adaline." Emma grabbed the unused food scraps that she would feed to the stray dogs in the backyard since she wouldn't be able to use them in any other recipe, and beckoned Adaline to follow her. "Mind takin' those back here for me? I'll tell you where to put 'em." Adaline nodded in agreement and followed Emma down the hallway that split the house laterally in two.

     She nodded towards what Adaline assumed was Emma's bedroom, "You can put them in there, I'm gonna go give these to them mutts outside." Adaline set the basket on top of the full-sized bed, glancing around the small room. It was undoubtedly the largest bedroom in the house, but it was smaller than the size of Adaline's old bedroom in Alexandria.

     She saw photographs of family members lined up in frames on the bedside table. Adaline noticed one of a man she'd never seen before with a young boy and a dog by his side, presuming that the boy was Arvin from the same navy cap he was wearing that she would've recognized anywhere.

     Adaline didn't want to give Emma the wrong idea by lingering in her room any longer, so she went back out into the hallway but stopped once she heard the same sound of vomiting that she heard from her mother nearly nonstop in the mornings.

     She slowly walked towards the open doorway of the room, assuming it was Lenora's since she remembered Arvin saying she hadn't been feeling well recently. Maybe it was the stomach bug going around?

     Adaline peeked her head around the doorframe and saw Arvin holding Lenora's hair back before helping her sit back up in bed.

     Lenora shook her head, "I never missed church before." She panted as she tried to catch her breath, "I'm so ashamed."

     Arvin sat on the edge of her bed, "You ain't got nothin' to be ashamed of. I'm sure the Lord will forgive you for missing one Sunday." He shrugged, "Ol' Jesus probably had His fair share of bad mornin's."

     Adaline softly smiled to herself at Arvin's attempt of cheering Lenora up, knowing he was indifferent about faith and Jesus but was still making an effort for his step-sister.

     Lenora laid back down, "I love you, Arvin."

     He shuffled along the bed, "How's about we, uh, go see your mama's grave when you're better?" Arvin grabbed Lenora's hand, "Sound alright?" Lenora weakly nodded. Adaline watched Arvin's facial expressions and only saw genuine concern for his step-sister. There was no ounce of the violent person she saw first-hand that weekend before.

     Even then, Adaline understood that Arvin had only his best interests at heart, but it was still frightening for her to see him go into a blind rage until Eli was nearly dead on the ground. And all for her?

     "You and your folks headin' over to church soon, Adaline?" She whipped her head around to see Emma behind her again. Arvin and Lenora heard Emma say Adaline's name and looked at the doorway, intrigued.

     Adaline gently sighed, "Oh, well, Momma's sick too and Daddy's takin' care of her. I said I could, but he didn't want me to miss the service."

     Emma nodded in understanding, "Well, you could drive up with us, if you'd like. It'll just be me and Arvin since Lenora's a little under the weather too."

     "Oh, I don't wanna impose—"

     Emma waved her off, "Nonsense. It ain't no problem at all." She took a step so she could see Arvin and Lenora, telling the former, "We'll be leavin' in a few, Arvin. Lenora, I'll get you a washcloth before we go, hang on."

     Now Adaline had nowhere to hide, baring herself out in the open for Arvin and Lenora to see her. She clasped her hands together in front of her, smiling politely to try and diffuse the awkwardness.

     She took a step inside, telling Lenora, "My momma's never missed church before either, but God understands." Arvin watched Adaline look around the room in search of something, and then pick up the Rosary on Lenora's bedside table. Adaline cradled the necklace of beads in her hands like a child as she told Lenora, "She usually prays ten decades of the Rosary, if you'd wanna do that." Adaline gently handed the Rosary to Lenora and shrugged, "Somethin's better than nothin'."

     Lenora looked down at the Rosary then back up at Adaline, "Thank you."

     Adaline smiled back, "Of course." Her eyes flitted over to Arvin's and he wondered if she'd talk to him today, since she had't since the Eli incident. He understood why, but he wanted to tell her that he didn't want to do that. But he knew Eli was no good for her, and he wanted to protect her. Just like how he wanted to protect Lenora from Tommy Matson and Gene Dinwoodie and Orville Buckman.

     Before either of them had the chance to talk to one another, Emma reentered the room to place the damp washcloth over Lenora's forehead and looked at Arvin and Adaline, "Just 'bout ready to go?" They both nodded and followed her out to the rusted car, Arvin opening and closing his grandmother's door for her before walking around the front. He went to do the same for Adaline at the same time she reached for her own handle, the underside of her hand brushing against his bruised and scabbed-over knuckles.

     Both of them froze, Arvin glancing up at Adaline while her focus was centered on his hand. She subconsciously ran her finger along the wounds whose origins she remembered well, almost in disbelief. Her trace was as soft as a butterfly kiss yet still brought about a wave of goosebumps to run up Arvin's arm. His tight grip around the door handle gradually softened under her touch until she blinked back into reality, quickly pulling her hand away in realization of her actions.

     Adaline ignored eye contact as she felt her face heat up while Arvin gripped onto the door handle again and pulled it this time, letting Adaline shuffle inside with a mumbled "thanks." Arvin sat in the driver's seat and started the car, both he and Adaline behind him staring at the ground, wondering what just happened.

     Nothing.

     They both glanced up at the rear-view mirror at the same time.

     Shit.

😈😈 also i'm trying to finish this book before cherry comes out for no particular reason but just bc i should've finished this ages ago 😀 but there's not a lot of chapters left so i mean,,,, also i've been prewriting and dAMN GUYS SHITS BOUT TO GO DOWWWNNNN

lots of (hopefully??) plot twists coming. so excited.