1. Maddie

I'm so sorry to tell you this, ma'am. Your brother, Cameron, was in a fatal car accident tonight.

Maddie sat numbly on the couch in the living room. She'd been back from the hospital for a little over an hour, and she had no recollection of driving home, but she remembered parking her car in the garage and dragging her feet into the house to the couch.

After driving to the hospital in the middle of the night, she'd sat silently and listened to the officer and doctor as they informed her that her brother had been in a car accident involving a semi-truck that had crossed the center line. Cameron's car had spun out on the wet road from the impact and smashed into a large tree on the driver's side. The officer told her that he was unconscious at the scene and had died within minutes of arriving at the hospital, despite the doctor's efforts to revive him. They said that because he was unconscious, it was unlikely he suffered in any pain before he passed.

When the doctor and the officer had stopped talking, she looked up at them and realized she had barely heard a word they said. The room that they were in began to spin as her stomach turned. The doctor grabbed a trash can for her to vomit into, just in the nick of time. He was gentle with her and whispered reassuring words as she heaved repeatedly.

Maddie stared off into space for a long time. Her mind was blank, her body numb, and her stomach continued to bubble with nausea.

I'm so sorry to tell you this, ma'am. Your brother, Cameron, was in a fatal car accident tonight.

The words replayed in her mind continuously. The concerned look in the doctor and officers' faces as she sat in front of them, saying nothing as they spoke to her and asked her questions. She didn't even remember what questions they had asked. She only remembered shaking her head several times, causing those concerned expressions to turn to pity and sadness.

For days, Maddie just lay in bed, only getting up to pee when she absolutely had to. She sipped on her water bottle occasionally with the water that had been sitting there since the last night she'd been in Little space. Food had no appeal, nor did getting out of bed.

Sleep didn't come, as much as she wanted it to, so she lay in bed for hours, tossing and turning. Her only family was gone. She was alone in the big world that he'd sheltered her from, and now she had to figure it out without the person who meant everything to her.

The third night after finding out about Cameron's accident, she couldn't fall asleep, so Maddie got out of her bed in the early morning hours and carried her Stitch stuffy down the hall to her brother's bedroom. When she opened the door, his scent hit her nose. He had always smelled so good, like fresh water and citrus. Walking into his room, Maddie stared at his made bed. He was always so tidy compared to her. She left trails of her stuff everywhere, but he had never complained. He'd just pick it up and put it in her room or wherever it was supposed to go.

Pulling the thick, ivory comforter back, along with the matching sheets, Maddie crawled up into his tall bed. Laying on her side, she could smell his hair product on the pillowcase, and she felt as though Cameron was surrounding her, and for the first time in days, she fell into a deep sleep.

When she opened her eyes and looked around the room, memories of the past several days clouded Maddie's mind. She'd hoped it had all been a terrible dream that she would wake up from, and everything would be back to normal. Only as she lay in Cameron's bed, she knew the nightmare was real. Maddie looked at the clock. Seven o'clock in the morning.

She hadn't eaten or showered since she'd gotten the news, and she was starting to stink. Throwing the sheets back, she climbed out of bed and made her way to her bedroom. Digging through her dresser, she found a pair of plain yellow cotton panties, a pair of leggings, and an oversized sweater. Throwing the clothes on the bed, she went to the bathroom and turned on the shower to the hottest setting possible.

She stood under the hot spray of the shower, leaning her forehead against the tiled wall. Her mind was blank even though she knew she had things she needed to arrange. The thought of doing any of it made her feel ill. She also didn't know what all that she was supposed to do. Cam had always taken care of the real-world stuff. Other than her business, which he'd given her help and direction on, she had always gone to him whenever she was unsure of what to do. He always took care of everything, and now she couldn't go to him anymore. She had to figure it out on her own.

Once dressed, Maddie went downstairs to the kitchen. Her stomach wasn't happy, so she found some crackers to snack on, taking them to the living room with her. She sat on the couch and dug through her purse to find her phone. She really needed to reach out to her clients and let them know she needed to take a few more days off. Luckily, she was already ahead of schedule on her work and she would be able to take time off without messing up her client's release schedules.

She had several missed calls and voicemails. She'd listen to them later. She assumed they were from the funeral home in Seattle that was handling her brother's funeral. The hospital had said they would call her to get things set up. Throwing her phone onto the cushion next to her, Maddie folded up her knees to her chest and sat in silence. The box of crackers sat next to her, untouched.

The doorbell brought her back to reality. She wasn't expecting anyone, nor did she want to see anyone. Not that she had people in Denver who would just pop by to see her. Checking the monitor on the kitchen wall, she saw a delivery person standing on the porch with a bouquet. Maddie went and opened the door.

"I have a delivery for Madison Michaels."

"That's me," she said hesitantly.

She took the flowers and the gift box they held out for her.

"Have a nice day, ma'am."

Closing the door, she set the vase of gorgeous sunflowers on the counter and went back to the couch with the gift box in hand. Opening the lid, she pulled out a card with the words Maddie-Rose on the front of the envelope. Her stomach dropped. Ian. She hadn't called and told him about Cameron. She'd been so out of it that she hadn't even thought about calling anyone.

Feeling as though she might be ill at the thought of telling Ian that his best friend had died, Maddie began to tremble. Opening the envelope, her hands shook as she slid the card out. It had sunflowers painted on the front with yellow glitter where the flower petals were painted. Sunflowers were her favorite, and he knew it. She opened the card.

Maddie-Rose,

Congratulations on your amazing accomplishment. I'm so proud of you. Always.

Be good.

Love, Ian

She looked in the box to find a silver charm bracelet with several charms already on it. She ran her fingers over each one. A book, a Stitch character, a heart, a sunflower, and a Christmas tree charm. She smiled. He knew she was just a little more than obsessed with Christmas.

Looking at her phone, the idea of calling him made her want to puke. She couldn't just call him and give him the news. But what else was she supposed to do? Get on a plane and fly to Seattle to tell him? She'd need to go to Seattle anyway for his funeral. At least if she went to Seattle, she wouldn't be all alone. But she also didn't want to be a burden on Ian. She could stay in a hotel while she handled the funeral.

Go to Ian.

Maddie wasn't sure if she heard voices because of her lack of food or because she was going insane, but she could swear she'd heard Cam's voice. Cam would want her to go to Ian if she couldn't go to him first. It made her feel bad that she hadn't even thought of Ian until she'd had something to remind her. But she hadn't exactly been thinking clearly… or even much at all the past few days.

Go to Ian.

Pressing her fingers to her eyes, Maddie leaned forward. Her energy was shot, and she felt like shit. Picking up her phone, Maddie found a flight to Seattle that would depart from Denver just before noon. She'd be in Seattle before four. Checking the time on her phone, she winced. It was already after nine, and she still needed to pack.

Go to Ian. He'll take care of you.

"I'm going. I'm going."

As she stood, Maddie realized she'd said that out loud.

"And now, I'm talking to myself. Yeah, you're losing it, Maddie."

Rolling her eyes at herself, she went upstairs and pulled out her suitcase. Without thought, she started packing, going through a mental checklist in her head of things she needed.

Panties, pants, shirts, bras, socks, shoes, footie pajamas, makeup, hairbrush, Stitch, pacifier, candy.

Maddie threw a gallon-sized Ziploc of candy into her purse instead of the suitcase figuring she would eat it on the plane and call it breakfast. Candy was her lifeline. That and coffee. She could get coffee at the airport. Zipping up her suitcase, she slid her feet into a pair of plain white slip-on Vans and dragged the heavy luggage downstairs.

She had no idea if she had everything she needed, but if she didn't, she would buy it when she got to Seattle. Maddie heaved the suitcase into the back of the Escalade that Cam and Ian had insisted she drive because "it was bigger and safer than a sedan". Well, it wouldn't be safer if she threw her back out lifting the dumb suitcase into it, but whatever.

Should have let me have a sports car, Cameron Michaels!

She grinned at that thought, knowing her brother's response would have been a hard no. Always so protective, and deep down inside of her, she loved it.

In the hustle of trying to get to the airport on time, Maddie didn't have time to think how much she hated flying. Especially alone. It wasn't until she was sitting in her seat that she began to feel woozy.

You cannot throw up, Maddie. Get it together. Cam can't take care of you anymore. Put your big girl panties on.

Except she didn't have any big girl panties. They were all cotton with bows, ruffles, or had a cute design printed on them.

Super mature, Maddie.

She'd never understood the appeal of a piece of material going into her butt crack. To each their own, though. Who was she to judge? She slept with a pacifier and a stuffed toy.

Reaching into her bag, she dug out the bag of candy and began absentmindedly eating some gummies. Luckily the middle seat was vacant, and the other person in her row didn't seem interested in chatting. Maddie stared blankly at the back of the seat in front of her with her mind reeling. Cam was gone. She was all alone. What was she going to do? Where would she live?

She didn't want to stay in Denver without him. She hadn't made any close friends while she lived there. Not that she had a ton of friends in Seattle, but she had Ian and a few close friends. Would Ian even want anything to do with her now that Cam was gone? In reality, Ian no longer had any ties to her, so he was under no obligation to have anything to do with her.

She was so out of it during the flight that before she realized it, the plane was landing. She was happy to be on steady ground again.

It didn't take her long to retrieve her suitcase from the baggage claim and get a rental car. Maddie debated finding a hotel room first but decided to go to Ian first. She knew he wouldn't be home yet. He practically lived at his office. She wouldn't be surprised if he had a bedroom somewhere in the building or slept on one of the couches in his office at times.

When she parked in the underground parking garage of his office building, Maddie felt like she was going to faint. Telling someone that her brother was dead meant that it was real, and she didn't want to believe that it could be real. She didn't want to accept that he was really gone. With shaking hands, she turned off the car, locking it as she made her way to the elevator. She felt lightheaded and shaky, unsure if her stomach was going to heave.

Get to Ian. He'll take care of you.

The elevator dinged as it came to a stop, and the doors opened to the lobby of Ian's office floor. She knew he owned the entire six-story building, but he only occupied the top floor. The first four floors were leased out to other businesses, and the fifth floor had offices for some of Ian's employees and held several conference rooms. The top floor had an open lobby with seating and a desk that sat his secretary, Brenda, near his office door. Maddie stepped out of the elevator and saw the older woman peer up at her from her computer. She had met Brenda a couple of times, but the woman never seemed to remember her.

"Good afternoon. How can I help you?" she asked warmly.

"I need to see Ian."

"Let me see if he's available," the woman said, picking up the phone.

Maddie stepped back from the desk and walked directly toward his office door. She couldn't wait. She needed to see him before she lost it in the middle of the lobby.

"Do you have an appointment? Miss?" Brenda called out.

Maddie reached the door and walked in with the secretary rushing in behind her. She stared at Ian, who was sitting behind his desk with the phone to his ear. Ian looked up in alarm, his gaze settling on Maddie. His eyebrows furrowed together in confusion as he looked her up and down.

"Hey, I gotta call you back," he said quickly, hanging up the phone.

"I'm sorry, Ian, she just walked in," Brenda said hurriedly.

He stood and waved her off, "It's okay, Brenda. She can come in here any time."

The woman nodded and quickly left his office, closing the door behind her. Maddie stood, swaying slightly as she stared at Ian.

"Maddie? What's wrong?"

For the first time since she'd gotten the news, tears threatened to spill over. Ian moved from his desk and started toward her.

"Madison, what's wrong?" he demanded.

As soon as he reached her, she fell into his arms. She let out a sob and finally let go of the tears. Ian picked her up and carried her to the couch, settling her on his lap.

"Maddie, talk to me, baby. What's wrong? Are you alright? What happened?"

Her entire body shook as the sobs continued.

"He d-died. There… there was an… an a-accident."

The words felt like cement as they came out with each sob. Ian's arms tightened.

"Who died, Maddie? What accident?"

Closing her eyes, her body went limp against his, "Cameron."