Title: And Then there were Tears
Rating: PG to PG-13. Basic teen stuff, like suggestiveness, but this does have adult material. Not for young children. (BTW, this is an alternate universe.)
Disclaimer: I'm not getting paid to write this stuff.
Feedback: I'd LOVE some!!
Summery: Dana Scully is a teenager visiting her Uncle in Massachusetts. But then she meets a boy (humm…wonder who that could be) who raises questions about her deceased Aunt and her mute niece. And, most importantly, Dana's confusing quest of being a teen and becoming an adult.
Author's note: At the end
Chapter 1: A Different Summer
Dana Scully stepped off the bus into the chilly June air. She was surprised at how cold Massachusetts could be in the summer. She was so used to San Diego, that a cold ocean breeze was very foreign to her.
She sat on the bench next to the bus stop sign and looked at her watch: 10:55 A.M. Her uncle said he'd be there to pick her up at eleven.
School had ended for the summer, and having nothing to do, she accepted her uncle Aram's invitation to spend the summer at his house with his five-year-old twin daughters. His wife, Dana's aunt Lidia, died earlier that year from pancreatic cancer. It was obvious that Aram needed help with the kids.
Dana had never really babysat before, but her uncle assured her that they were sweet girls, and watching them wouldn't be too difficult.
She needed an excuse to get away, anyway. She hated being under the thumb of now eighteen-year-old brother Bill. He was going to follow his father's footsteps and joined the navy, but wouldn't leave until the fall. So she left instead, him being such a prick.
And Melissa, she was another one. She was always hogging the phone, talking to her fourteenth boyfriend…and counting. She always made fun of Dana for her flat chest and undeveloped hips. She also teased her on her inability to get a boyfriend.
Dana didn't think her chest to be completely flat, or her hips that undeveloped. She was only fifteen after all. She still had some growing to do. She re-crossed her legs and tucked an unruly stand of hair behind her ear.
She hated her hair. Not the body, because it was long and curly, but she found the orange-red to be rather revolting. Her friend Sylvia said her brown eyeliner softened her flaming locks a bit, having people focus on her eyes. Therefore, she wore it all the time.
She often wished she had Melissa's dark, brown-red hair. She hated envying her sister, but it was just something that was and she accepted it.
Her dad wasn't there to say goodbye. She truly missed Ahab; the last time she saw him was last Christmas. She was proud to be a daddy's girl, partly because she couldn't connect with her mother. Maggi understood Bill and Melissa, and always took their side…on everything.
Before she left, Bill gave her an awful noogy, saying he hoped the bus wouldn't bring her back. Missy said if she saw any cute guys to get their number for her, if she could.
Charlie was the last to speak with her. Dana adored Charlie, her fourteen-year-old brother. They were very close, always sticking up for each other.
He said, "If you do see any cute guys, get their number, but keep it to yourself."
She smiled at the thought. She despised her sister's lusty relationships, but knew there was something beyond that. She did not desperately want to fall in love, but often pondered the idea of what would happen if the right boy came along.
Her uncle's car pulled up.
"Hey, Rin Tin Tin!" he called, smiling.
"I'll never outgrow that, will I?" Dana mused, approaching the car. She noticed two curious faces peering through the window at her.
"Girls, this is your cousin, Dana. Say hi," Aram said as Dana put her bags in the trunk and got in the passengers' seat.
"Hi, Cousin Dana!" piped up the one with the yellow ribboned hair, while the green ribboned one stayed quiet.
They had long, chocolate-brown hair with curly wisps. Their big eyes matched their hair color. In a way, Dana was jealous.
"The loud one is Madelynn. The quiet one is Leslie," Aram said, starting to drive away.
XXX
The girls went instantly to their swing set as they arrived at the large, white house. Dana took in the scene with a gasp. It was gorgeous, especially the pine trees.
Aram gave her a quick tour of the place, then handed Dana her luggage.
"Your room is upstairs, two doors to the left."
"Why aren't you taking me there?"
"Lidia designed that guest room; I'm afraid I can't enter it," he sighed, going outside to check on his daughters.
She climbed the stairs and looked for the door. It wasn't hard to find; it was painted a soft pink. Not a white pink. Pink pink.
She turned the silver handle and pushed it open.
Her bags fell with her jaw.
The room was oval. There were no corners. The walls were painted the most beautiful of blues, and lined with shelves with dozens of porcelain dolls resting upon them. The window was large, and boxed out so it was like a cubby; a cubby with a chest you could sit cross-legged on as you looked out the window.
The closet was large, the kind you could walk in. And the bed was king sized, covered with colorful quilts and pillows.
Dana's feet sunk into the lush, white carpet as she approached the bed and collapsed on it, stomach first.
She then flipped over onto her back, letting out a sigh of cheerful delight. She felt, oddly blissful as she stared at the stucco patterns on the ceiling. She snuggled into the softness of the blanks and put her hands behind her head and took in the view of the creamy swirls.
She never knew her aunt, but somehow, this room spoke with Lidia's voice.
Dana turned her head to see her reflection in the vanity mirror.
The room defiantly did not fit the red-headed tomboy staring back at her, used to hitting baseballs, getting scraps and keeping frogs and lightning bugs in jars. But, in some unexplainable way, the dolls and flowers belonged in that picture.
And that picture said one thing: she would play in the mud all day, tangle her hair and cut up her knees. Then, come into this room at day's end, clean her face and wounds, comb her hair, and put on something pretty; admire herself in the mirror. She would fall asleep cuddling pillows, not dreaming of the day's events, eating hamburgers and climbing trees, but of this room, and of the girl in her that would never leave it.
"Dana!"
Her thoughts were broken by her uncle's voice hitting her eardrum.
"Yah?" she called back.
"I want to drive you around town, so you know where everything is."
"Okay," she replied, scrambling to her feet. She ran out the door, but shut it with great care. She shook her head, not wanting to contemplate her action now, and thundered down the steps to meet her uncle.
XXX
Dana awoke the next morning to a pounding on her door.
"Cousin Dana!"
She rolled over and looked at the cock on the wall; 8:30.
"Hum?" she groaned.
"Daddy's leaving for work and he needs you to get up!"
"Okay, Madelynn," she yawned, rolling out of bed and quickly getting dressed.
She already knew which one was which, since Leslie never said anything at all. At dinner last night, Madelynn said to her, "Leslie wants you to give her more mashed taters, Cousin Dana." Dana thought it must have been a twin thing, because Leslie said nothing to her sister, and ate all of the potatoes spooned on her plate.
She went down stairs, watching her uncle run out the door.
"Take care of the kids. Don't let them in the pool, even if you're the one watching them. The pot of coffee is for you."
"I don't drink coffee."
He looked at her with curious eyes, kissed his girls, and waved goodbye.
"They haven't eaten anything," he said, and was gone.
Dana sighed and looked over at the girls. They stared up at her, smiling. They wore matching pink outfits and mismatched bows in their hair: one green, the other yellow. She made a mental note to ask her uncle about the colors sometime.
"What would you two like for breakfast?"
"I want a bagel, and Leslie wants popcorn eggs."
"Popcorn eggs?"
"Yah."
"Oh, scrambled eggs. Okay, if you two sit at the table, we'll go to the park later."
"They nod and do as told. She sighed with relief and started cooking.
"Do you want butter or cream cheese on your bagel, Madelynn?"
"What's cream cheese?"
She smiled. "Butter it is then."
XXX
The twins finished their meal by 9:15, and Dana smothered their tiny bodies with sunscreen, applied some to her own skin, grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge, and they went out the door.
The park was only a few blocks away, but Dana insisted holding each one's hand with both of hers, having Leslie carry the water. She was somewhat proud of her natural over-protectiveness of these girls. It made her feel more like an adult.
She sat under the shade of the tree as she watched the girls play in the sandbox. She noticed that Leslie wasn't even talking to her sister, and wonder if she ever talked at all. And if so, to whom?
She wiped the sweat off her forehead with the back of her hand. She took a scrunchy out of her pocket and put her hair up in a ponytail, scanning the playground. There were no other kids there. Weird.
Then Dana noticed a boy sitting on the swings. He looked about her age, maybe older. His body was lanky, and he had short, brown hair. She couldn't see his face, because he was staring at his feet.
"Cousin Dana," said a voice.
She turned to see a panting, sweaty Madelynn.
"Can I have a drink?"
"Sure," and she handed her the bottle.
When the girl came up for air, Dana asked, "Does your sister need any water?"
She nodded. "Leslie!"
Her twin came running over and took an equally extensive gulp.
She took the bottle back and stole a sip herself.
"Okay, girls, when the water's gone, we have to go back home. Do you want to sit in the shade for a bit, then I'll swing you?"
As they nodded and took a seat in the cool grass, Dana remembered the boy was by the swings. But when she looked over, she saw that he was gone.
She also noticed that children started to fill the park now.
XXX
Author's Note: Yep, this chapter's long. It will get juicy, promise. But only if you tell me to continue. Just cuz I started this story does NOT mean I stopped writing So Much for My Happy Ending for those who are reading it. I will continue to write that as I write this. I will only post the next chapter if I get reviews. Thanks for reading!