AU two-shot where Mina's dad defeated the curse, but their real lives went downhill. MEAUGE ALL THE WAY, BABY! Warning: abuse and drug references. Dedicated to OUAT Fluffer and Lady Jo Editor Extraordinaire!
An all too familiar crash floods my ears a few seconds before I slip in my headphones.
Another glass has been broken.
"GOD DAMN IT I DON'T CARE IF IT WAS TO MAKE YOU FORGET! YOU SURVIVED THAT CURES, NOW DEAL WITH YOUR FAMILY!"
I turn up my volume and my father's voice, once loving and eternally soft, pierces through the beat of the song.
"YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND! YOU DON'T HAVE TO LIVE WITH THESE MEMORIES!"
"BUT I HAVE TO LIVE WITH YOU!"
Another decibel has been raised.
"IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT, JUST LEAVE! JUST FUCKING LEAVE! I DON'T NEED YOU!"
"I'M THE ONE WHO KEEPS THIS FAMILY TOGETHER!" A lie. A total lie. That's my job, not yours. You try, but I'm the one who actually gets it done. "YOU LEAVE, YOU UNGRATEFUL BASTARD! YOU'RE RUINING THIS FAMILY! LEAVE AND NEVER COME BACK! GO AHEAD AND LEAVE US AGAIN LIKE YOU DID FOR YOUR FUCKING STORY."
SLAP!
Another line was just crossed.
The sound of skin on skin echoes and seconds later a loud bang rattles the door of our two-story home. He left. Again. At least now I can turn down my music. I'll deafen myself at the rate I'm going.
CRASH!
And now mom's throwing a fit. Again. I think she's secretly grateful for the fact that we have to buy cheap things for the house so she could guiltlessly break them in her raging fits. I'm undoubtedly going to have to clean that mess up downstairs. Charlie is going to be home from his friend's house in the morning and I don't want him to see how bad it really is.
The only things I'm grateful to my parents for are Charlie and the fact that he doesn't know how truly messed up our small family is. I know I sound like a spoiled brat with problems that can pale in comparison to some others but I pull more than my fair share around here to say that.
There's a knock on my door. My mother pokes her head in, "can I come in?"
She steps in without waiting for my response. I could care less about the invasion of privacy, in all honesty. It's the swelling mark that claims most of her face that concerns me. I thought she slapped him. She was hit. He hit her. He slapped my mom, the mother of his children and his loving wife. This has never happened before.
"Do you have any money?" She runs her hands through her dulling brown hair. "He," she spits, "spent all of it on drugs to numb the pain again. The land lord is going to be by tomorrow morning and if we don't pay on time this month, we're out."
I silently walk to where I hide my money (dad, if he deserves to be called that anymore, sweeps for money where he can to get his fix) and hand it all over. It's a total of three hundred dollars. I work at a local restaurant as a waitress and the others on my shift know my situation so they hand over half of their tips to me. It takes a while to get it up to this much, but if it means keeping a roof Charlie and my heads, I'll give up all over again.
"Thank you sweetie," mom says, wrapping me in a right hug. "You don't know how much this means to me."
"It's fine." I wave her off. "Just take all the money we have now and go over to the landlord's firm. You and I both know he's going to come back home and take it all over again for a bigger dose."
She gives me a teary nod and bounds off through the door. As soon as she closes my door, there's a tap on my window. I lazily cast a gaze over my left shoulder, knowing fully who it is. My dull brown eyes meet an unworldly blue pair. I stalk over to my window and allow him in.
"Yes?"
A perfect pair of undeniably soft lips gives me a pout. "Is that any way to greet the love of your life?"
I let out a short sigh and curl up on my bed. The pout drops from his lips and he climbs through the window with the grace he and he alone possesses and quietly closes it. He crawls onto my twin bed and wraps himself around me.
He rubs his thumb in a small side to side motion on my stomach, "Another argument?"
"He hit her," I pipe. "He hit her after she mentioned the Story."
I can feel his heart beat pick up from behind me. "I'm sorry," he tightens his hold on me. "If I knew this was going to happen, if I had somehow gotten to see you once I wouldn't've—"
I turn around to look at him. I reach my small hand up to his cheek, "but you didn't. You did what you were supposed to do. You were born and bred for this job. It's not your fault. Stop apologizing."
"But the quests—"
"Were before we met," I say softly. "It was before all those special moments we shared. Your job finished and now your life starts."
"But when does yours start? When do you get some freedom?"
"The day I can take Charlie from this hell," I answer, "is the day my freedom starts. When I can give him the good life he deserves, I'll be free and start living the way I was supposed to."
"You're eighteen, you're already his legal emergency guardian, and you've got me," he says. "Let's get your happily ever after started with, my princess. Let me take care of you. We can start over where they can't get to us."
"Teague," I nervously look up at him, "what are you saying?"
"Run away with me," he runs his hand through my hair, "run away with me, Mina."
Tears are suddenly in my eyes before I know it. I sit up from his warm embrace and turn away from him. "I can't."
"Why not," he turns my chin so I can face him. There's a look of rejection in his eyes, "you don't trust me? Or you just don't want to be with me?"
Before he can say anything else I bring my lips to his. He tastes life forbidden wonder and having him this close gives me this happiness buzz. "I love you. I love you from your plane and back. And you know that."
"Then why won't you go?" He rests his forehead to mine.
"Charlie needs other people to be around. I love you, but your world isn't what he needs."
"There are kingdoms of human-like people. The only difference is the life span and a few abilities here and there. We can take him there and live together. I'll have hundreds of other children and good influences transferred to my kingdom just to give him a good life."
"But it won't be the same, will it? He's a smart boy. He's only ten, Teague; I don't think he can handle that change."
"You'd make a great mother, you know that?" He kisses my forehead and nuzzles me to his chest. "You're always looking out for him the best you can with whatever can. You're selfless, loyal, and brave. You want what's best for him and I know you'd give your life to see that happen. You've been brave for long enough." He takes my hands in his, "let me brave for you. It's time for you to be pampered."
"But Charlie won't be comfo—"
"What if I show you where we would be? If you think it's good enough for him, if you think he'd like something like this, then you two will come home with me and we'll be a family."
"B-but if I don't think it'll be good for him? Then what would happen to us?" I hate myself for stuttering and for the tears I feel welling up in my eyes, but I can't help it.
"Then you give me a year," He says, determination lacing through his voice. "Give me a year, if my kingdom isn't good enough now, then in a year it'll be perfect and you'll be living the way you want the two of you to be. And after that if it's not good enough I'll give up on the plane and put everything into building a business here and you'll be able to live on this plane and I'll make sure you have the best this side has to offer. Okay?"
I wrap my arms around his neck, "okay."
Teague stands up from the hug and pulls out a silver pipe-like device from his pocket. With a grand gesture, he draws a circle in the air and there's a flash of light. Once my eyes get over the light adjustment, I notice that half of my boyfriend's body is through a portal that shows a world of wonder on the other side. I've seen him use it before, but I've never been this close to it. It looks…magical.
He holds out a hand, "let's go see our new home."
I place my hand in his despite my slight fear. I trust him. He'd never let anything happen to me while he's alive. He loves me just as I love him.
I steal a quick kiss on the lips I don't think I'll ever grow sick of, "let's."
The next chapter is being drafted, but I decided to stop here because my laptop is about to die.
IMPORTANT: this is two-shot, but this can be a multi-chap fic if enough of you want it. Let me know via review.
In all honesty, I'm proud of this chapter, being a first draft done in an hour and a half at most.
Sorry for any and all mistakes.
-K-Chan.