Title: Thats Where Love Will Be
Author: Di de dur! (Me!)
Summary: Angel and Tom's daughter must go through the pain and hassle of her freshman year at highschool. She's facing homophobes that bag on her parents, coming out of the closest, friends, and fights, and maybe a helping of true love? Meanwhile, she struggles to find her place in the world as Mark struggles with coming to grips with the fact that he may not be the same person he was when he was dating Muaren. Mimi and Roger prepare to bring a new life into the world, how will the rest of the BoHo's respond? Maureen and Joanne take on the task of raising their son. Angel/Collins, Mimi/Roger, Mark/OC, MoJo, and of course Ashlynn and who ever I decide towrite for her.
Rating: May change in a later chapter, may not.
Fandom: RENT
Disclaimer: I own Ashlynn, Leah, Alicia, Miguel, but no one else. I mean I guess I own the three big guys, but I don't really want to you know? I own Billy too, but I hate him so it dosent count.
Authors notes: Noper... Story changes POV alot?
Angel's POV
Ashlynn Elizabeth Schunard-Collins slammed her books down on the kitchen table and screamed at the top of her lungs.
"Mommy!" She called out to me after she finished the screaming fit that had woken me up in the first place. I came running into the kitchen, Ashlynn only called me that if she was really upset, other times it was simply 'mom' or 'momma.' I rubbed my eyes.
"What is it baby?" Ashlynn was sitting, glaring at the wall.
"If Billy takes one more crack at me again because you are a drag queen I'm going to fuckin' kill him, he shouldn't be insulting my mother..." I sighed and steped around the table, holding my sixteen year old daughter in my arms. Ashlynn was proud to have me as her "mother" but, she was very protective whenit came to comments about my choice of clothing, or her father's preferance for men. "He said something about Dad today and I hit him." Tom and Ihad been to every school function in Ashlynn's childhood, and all through middle school.
Ashlynn had gotten held back in the second grade because she hadn'tbeen as smart as the other children. She was traumtized as a child , so she had had some difficulties through her earlier years. She had just started high school the day before.
"Let me guess, three days right?" She nodded and I heard her sniffle into my chest.I lifted her up under her shoulders and wrapped my arms around her. Together, we walked to the couch.
"Why do people talk shit about you and Dad?" She nuzzled my shirt. "Why should you're choice of clothes matter anyways?" She wrapped another arm around me. "Why should it mtter if Daddy's gay?" She pouted again. "Why shoul it matter? You and daddy have been together for thirteen years, and you can't keep yur hands off each other! After all this time you're still in love, isn't that what should matter?" Ashlynn sighed again. People were cruel. I knew that. "Being a good person, is being a good person. It shouldn't matter who you sleep with." I shifted her weight slightly and kissed her forehead. "I love you Momma, why can't they?"
Ashlynn always confided in me that she loved us more than her absusive foster parents who beat her because she was too much of a "butch" and much more than the parents that never wanted her and left her for dead in a cardbord box in a seven eleven parking lot. I wish Tom and I had been together then ,or even old enough to adopt newwborn baby. When Tom and I decided to adopt, I was twenty one and he was turning twenty three. We adopted an abusued, scared little five year old girl only days away from her sixth birthday. Most of out friends teased us about having a sixteen year old daughter, after all, I'm thirty, going on thirty one in two months and Tom is only thirty three. We get alot of shit from Maureen and Joanne, who are thirty five and thirty seven, and just adopted a two year old. When we adopted Ashlynn they teased me bad, I was too you to have a six year old. best decision I made in my whole life, besides Tom of course.
Ashlynn curled beside me so that her head was resting on my stomach. I smoothed out her long curly hair, and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "I'm sorry you had such a bad da sweetheart. And some people are just rude, is all."
"Why are people so cruel Mommy?" Her hand moves to my thigh, covering the thick angry scar we both know is there. She was remebering the day that I got shot. Toma and I decided to take her to the park out side of Mimi and Roger's apartment, she'd been begging for weeks. She had just turned eight.
Flashback
Tom and I sat side by side on a concrete bench in the park across the street from Mimi and Roger's new apartment. Ashlynn ran off to play on the swings when three men approached us. Tom stood up, and I put my hand on the small of his back, I could feel that something was not right. Two of the men jumped on him, I tried to scream, but before I could the bigger one grbbed me and placed a gun against my temple. Tom was getting ready to swing back when he heard the gun cock.
"You do anything stuid, and I'll fucking kill it." I closed my eyes and prayed silently in my head. They continued to beat Tom, he was on the ground now, moaning. I screamed now, Ashlynn was coming toward us when she heard her Dad cry out in pain. "You two deserve to be put in your fucking place. We don't need anymore damn queer around here, and ya'll come just parading your fag selves around like you're fucking special. Unnatural."
"RUN BABY GIRL! RUN TO UNCLE ROGER AND AUNT MIMI'S HOUSE! TELL THEM TO CALL 911!! HURRY SWEETIE!!" For a little girl, she hauled ass before Icould even speaking she was gone. I saw her go into Rogers apratment building and breathed a sigh of relief. I grunted when the man shoved me backward and I hit my head on the concrete bench. My eyes sprang open as a new pain blazed to life hrough my head. Blackness threatened to take over my vision, and I turned to see Tom, who's eyes were closed, an almost peaceful expression on her face. I screamed and stuggled to get up and over to him. "TOM!" FUcker had a heay boot on my stomach and was pressing down as hard as he could. I couldn't move.
"Faggot, you're going tp regret that!" THe man that had held the gun on me before cocked it and aimed it at my head. Tom's eyes opened, he looked over at me.
"Angel," I looked over at him and our eyes met briefly, everything we have ever said to each other flooded back to me and I cried. Tom was pistol whipped in the side of the head, and his eyes closed again. I screamed in spanish, and started praying for my lover and my daughter in my native tounge.
"It's not worth it Mitch, the kid saw our faces, I don't want to go to jail for murder! And neither do you! You got a kid on the way." The biggest man grabbed Mitch. I could hear some one call my name.
"Chica!" I screamed again as the gun exploded and a red hot, striking pain ripped through my whole body. "OH! DIOS MIO!" The black creeped along the edges of my vision again, threatening to take over. The men never turned back as they ran away. I crawled over to Tom and placed one of my blood covered hands on his neck. I was happy to find a pulse. I kissed him once, he didn't stir.
"ANG!"
"MOMMY! MOMMY!" Ashlynn threw her little fram on me, and I held her close, I knew she would be covered in my blood, but it didn't matter I was just glad she was safe. Mimi and Roger were standing behind and Mimi looked like she was ready to cry. Roger looked like he was ready to kill someone.
"They did that to Collin's?" He waited for me to nod, and I could hear the pure, unaldulturated hate in his tone. "They were some big fuckers. How'd they get him to hold still?" I pointed to myself.
"Threatened to kill me." Roger nodded, the hate cold in his eyes for the men that had hurt us.
"But they were too big of pussy's to be outnumbered, and ran when they heard us coming!" Roger was fuming mad. Ashlynn kissed my cheek twice, on each side. Two ambulances and a few police cars pulled into the park. Tom was lifted carefully onto a strectched first. Mimi had helped me sit up, although it just didn't matter, everywhere hurt like twenty hells, and having Ashlynn on my lap when I had just gotten shot in my leg hurt like a bitch. I wasn't about to let her know that.
"Sir? Are you injured, or is that your friends blood?" I glared at him.
"Ma'am would be fine, and no, this isn't my lovers blood. It's mine, I was shot." He glared at me, and I glared right back, already pissed off and completely done with homophobes.
"Can your friends get their kid off you so I can check you out?" I shake my head appalled, does he not her her whimpering Mommy over and over? Obviously not. I roll my eyes.
"My daughter will kindly get off my lap when you get the other paramedic over here to check me out, because you're just an ass." The female medic with him walked over and smiled at me.
"Is there a problem?" I nodded as he was shaking his head.
"Your partner is being a homophobic asswipe, and seeing's as my lover and I just got the shit beat out of us, I'm not willing to deal with his bullshit. My daughter wants to stay with me but I know that's not possible. Could you just lift her up as gently as possible? She is sitting on my injured leg." I had picked up a few things from Tom. The woman smiled kindly at me, and elbowed her partner violently out of the way. She put her arms under Ashlynn's shoulders and lifted her up swiftly, but gently off my legs.
"You are one very cute young lady!" She tells my her. Ash continue to cry but looks at the woman, a small smear of blood on her cheek. I can't look anymore, my baby is coverd in my blood, her nice white and yellow dress had blood spots all over it almost as proof I couldn't protect her. I put my hands on my leg and let out a strangled cry of pain that wasn't there moments ago, I guess Ash was keeping pressure on it. The paramedic hands her over to a waiting Mimi. "And very brave for helping your Dad's like that." I grimice in pain, frowning t her simple mistake. I'M her mommy. The medic smile's. Ashlynn completely flipped when they load me onto the ambulance. She ran from Mimi and ended up by me.
"Sweetie, you can't be here, I need to work on your dad." Mimi came behind Ashlynn and held her tight. "MOMMY! I WANT MY MOMMY! MOMMY!" They loaded me onto the ambulance. "Where's Daddy? DADDY?!" My poor baby, I could see Roger put his arms around both of them and he waved to the medics.
"We'll meet you at the hospital." Only when I was away from my daughter did I decide to let the blackness have me.
End Of Flashback
Ashlynn cried softly into my chest. "I hate people," she muttered. I shifted slightly so I could lay her down on th ecouch and I rocked her a bit, smoothing her "Mimi" curls out gently.
"They don't know any better sweetheart. But they'll learn given time." Or they won't and I am completely lying to my daughter. "But in the meantime, people will be stupid selfish and heartless. In time you'll come to ignore it. You of all people should know that words can only hurt as much as you let them."
"He called you a fucking Fairy, and he called dad a faggot. That's when I lost it." I held her close. Ashlynn had been very careful with her girlfriends, never dating from school, motly people she met at youth support. A program for young lesbian, gay, trans, and bi teens. She was smarter than me about that. I came out of the closet my freshman year of highschool. At least she hadn't.
Tom's POV
The damn phone rang AGAIN. That is the eighth time in an hour. "God. Damn. It." The two students I had in the room with me laughed. I rubbed my temples gently before adopting a professional tone, instead of my usual laid back tone I use all the time. "Professor Thomas Collins, how can I help you?" I waited for a moment, not happy that this meant probably another half hour later I would be getting home to Ashlynn and Angel.
"Hello, Professor, this is Principal Millards calling from Middle Smith High, and I am calling in concern of Ashlynn Schunard-Collins," I sighed again and my head slammed down on my desk. It was only her second day of school!
"Is she hurt or something of the sorts?" I waited for the principal's answer, tapping a red pen immpatiently on the desk close to my face.
"She's okay, physically anyways. She punched Billy Greggs in the face today." I smiled, thats my girl. That fucking punk Billy needed to be taught a few lesson's about the way he spoke to and about adults. Angel in particular.
"Well, what did he say this time?"
"Pardon?"
"Well every other time, she's hit him, he's said something derogatory about her mother or I. You do understand that Ashlynn is adopted? She does not take kindly to people criticising our choice of life partner." I smiled at my two students. Two who knew Ashlynn very well, after she burst in the classrom one day, dragging one of her friends by the ear. Making him apologize to me, for calling me a queer behind my back, if front of an entire class of collage kids. It was hystericly funny.
"Oh, about that. It really dosen't matter, she's still been suspened for three days, and further offenses and I will make it ten." She was holding back, I knew it. Alicia looked at me and I rolled my eyes. She pointed to the phone. She was a law major, minoring in physcology, so she decided to take my class. I told the principal to habd on for a moment, i put her on hold and beckoned Alicia over.
"She's really pissin' me off." I glare at the phone, as though I can make her burst into flame from my office. "She won't tell me what Billy did to provoke Ashlynn." Alicia smiled.
"Let me see the phone, I have an idea." I nodded, and handed her the phone. Here goes nothing. "Ms. Millards, this is Alicia Grant, I'm a law major here at the universersity. You have no right to withhold information about this incident from Ashlynn's father. He has every right to know why his daughter is being suspened." Alicia paused a few moments. "Oh, he did. Well I hope he is being suspened as well. He is at as much blame as her. This has happened before, he knowingly provocked her." Alicia nodded, and hmm-ed before handing the phone back to me.
"Professor Collins, you have my assurances that Billy will be being suspended as well."
"Well, that's good. I don't expect this to happen again. I think someone should tell his parents its wrong to call someone a derogatory word for Homosexual." With that I sighed and hing up the phone.
"So what did he call Ang this time?" Alicia looked at me and smiled a bit.
"Actually, he called you a 'stupid fucking faggot' but not before he called Angel a 'fuckin' fairy' but the faggot part is what set her off according to her friends. She just pullled back and slammed her fist right into his face." I exploded into strong bouts of laughter. Miguel, my other student looked at me funny.
"You can go now I gotta go home and, I don' know, enroll my daughter in anger management or some shit." I grabbed my bag and my coat, heading out the door. I could hear them both laughing as I left.
Schunard-Collins Residense Tom's POV
There they are. My two favorite girls in the whole world. Sleeping together to the couch. I can tell y baby has been crying, because her pale cheeks have this ahrsh red bit to them that wont go away, and her eyes look swollon. Sh'e home from school early, which means she just got kicked out, great. I walked over and kissed Angel on the lips. She opened her eyes, ad put a finger to her lips. She obviously wasn't asleep, I pulled her gently off the couch and into my arms. "Let me talk to her lover. She's hurtin' now, I can tell." I pushed her toward the door. "You and Mimi come back together and we'll all go out for dinner, 'kay? Bring my white boys I guess." She smiled and nodded.
"Make sure she knows I love her Thomas. I love you, see you in an hour or two." Angel grabbed her purse and headed out of our apartment door. I sat down on the couch and touched Ashlynn's shoulder. She stirred and sat up, grinning sheepishly.
"So I guees old maid Millards called you huh?" I smiled at her and nodded.
"Lets go for a walk, and talk about some things okay? I'm not mad at you, I promise." I stood up and threw her her favorite jacket, one of my old sweatshirts, go figure. When Angel and I decided to adopt we had no idea we were going to end up with Ashlynn. Angel and I had wanted a baby, one we could raise ourselves. Of course, when we found out iit could tke six year to get a baby, we were intoduced to the group two through five. We decided an older child would be better sfter all. It didn't take long for Angel to find the most depised, abused, broken and beautiful little girl. We thought it through for a few months and then decided that Ashlynn was the right kid for us. Angel helped her and nurtured her. She never asked us why we gay, or why we weren't normal, for her this was "our" normal. She ws our baby right from the get-go. It never mattered that she was someone elses.
The Park Where Angel Got Shot (haha, I'm a bad person.) Ashlynn's POV
I stared at my Dad as we walked. I was really lucky to have loving, caring adoptive parents. Angel and Tom Collin's were the best thing to ever happen to me, and I am so glad that they found me. I sat down on one of them and Dad pushed me. "So the principal told me that Billy did absolutely nothing to warrent the punch in the face you gave him." I turned around and stared at him. Not an easy feat when you're swinging.
"Thats bullshit and you know it dad." But how do you tell one of your favorite people in the world, who is gay, that you got kicked out of school doing the very thing you promised not to do: Defend them? He smiled, he knew.
"I know it is, I want you to tell me what happened though, you words not Alicia's or Billy's or Old maid Millards, from you Ash." I nodded and he continued pushing me, until I was high enough that I could pump myself. He climbed on the swing next to me.
"I got to school today, and went to my first period. When he didn't show up I was releived 'ya know? Because I thought this was gonna be the first year since third grade that I didn't have a class with Billy."
Flashback (Ashlynn tell's collins in vivid detail what happened in homeroom ealier that day)
As soon as I saw him come in I knew my day was going straight to hell. I slammed my head down on my desk. "Fuck!" I knew no one would be able to hear me, but I knew I said it. So did my friend Leah, she put a hand on my back. Billy jabbed his finger into the back of my head. I stood and spun, I should punch him in the face, but I don't, Leah put's a cautioning hand on my arm. We both know that I don't need to be suspended over this asshole again.
"So, fuck tard, how was you summer." I simply tell my self to remember how to breathe. Inhale, exhale. Its workig so far. He looks into my eyes, and realizing he's not getting a response out of me that way, he probes further. "How's your fucking fairy doing? Is it still having trouble figuring out what to wear this year? Is it going to be a boy or a girl the next time I see it?" I forget how th breathe. He is seriously testing my patience talking shit about my mom. Lezah drops my arm and practically growls at him. It would have been funny, if I wasn't so pissed off.
"Mother Fucker, you must enjoy me breaking your God damn face huh?" Billy just laughs. I turn away, to walk out of the room, get a teacher on him. I really don't need to be suspended over htis fool again. Leah walks with me. I actually have my hand on the door when he SHOUTS across the room.
"You going to call your 'Daddy?' Tell the stupid fucking faggot I said hello." Uh oh, thats it. I'm beating his fucking face in. I storm across the room and get right in his face.
"I take that as a yes, you dumb fuck face." I bring back my right arm and let fly with the hardest punch I've used all summer. Leah grabs my arm again and wont let me hit him. I spit on him hatefully. "You are lower than dirt." I am quite pleased to see that his nose is bleeding heavily. I hear the door open as I'm wiping off my knuckles and glaring at Billy.
"I'll just, go to the office then." I mutter and Leah follows me out, carrying my bag. Billy and his friend Alex follow us out. We all make it down to the office when he starts on my mom again.
"You hit like a fucking fairy." I glare and make to stand up, but think better of it and simply turn my head and lay it softly on Leah's ahoulder. She touches my head gently and strokes my curly brown hair. The red tips are splayed every which way. "You know, I bet it's proud of you, all grown up and still fighting it's battles."
"THATS FUCKING IT! LEAH LET GO OF ME! LET BEAT THE EVER lOVING SHIT OF THE LITTLE BASTARD!" Leah holds me close to her until the Principal comes out to get me. She dosen't say much just hands me a suspension slip. "Don't you even want to know what happened?" She looks at me and rolls her eyes.
"You were fighting on school campus, I am putting your suspension in immedeatly. You have five minutes to be off campus. I'll ask your little friend. Goodbye Ms. Collins." I slam the door on my way out extra hard and hope I broke something. Leah hugs me.
"Where?"
"I'm going home, I got three days and five minutes to get off campus. She's going to ask you, so call me tonight. Tell her everything that Billy siad, because you know that litttle shit isn't going to say anything." Leah nodded and we hugged again. I turn and walk out of the building.
End Of Flashback Ashlynn's POV
Daddy has this funny look on his face. He looks at me, "he said all that and you only hit him once? I'm proud of you." I gape at him until he turns to correct himself.
"Sweetie, we both know how frustrating it is when someone uses words like that. But the thruth is they will never know how much it really hurts. You ever been called a dyke?" I nod unhappily, I was five years old and had no idea what it meant, but it stll hurt like hell. "Well, you know how it feels baby. I'm proud of you for standing up for your Mother and I, but I don't want you o flip out every time some one calls me a faggot, or you might end up with a criminal record Ash!" I grin a little bit, if it's for the mureder of Billy Greggs, it would be worth it.
"It's Billy know how to get me pissed enough to rile me up, and then just digs the tip of the knife around until he can shove the whole thing in. Asshole." I huff angrily and stand up, waiting for dad. He gets up and follows me to a bench not too far away. I sit down,not even thinking. Until I look down.
"Do you know where we're sitting baby girl?" I nod, I can still see the indentation in the sidewalk where the bullet didn't go all the way onto Mom's leg, just slashed through angrily and hit the ground.
"Mom got shot, you got the shit beat out of you. I ruined one of my homade dresses. Mommy's favorite dress. It was yellow and white, with green flowersrunning through the flowers, and I had a yellow bow in my hair. It was all light brown then, lighter than Mimi's." Dad nodded and pulls me closer to him.
"THat was the worst thing yor mother and I will ever face." I look at him, question in my eyes. "We thought we were going to lose you! We never thought about ourselves, each other yes, you most definately." He leans back into the back of the bench and I close my eyes. "I appriciate the fact you stood up for us. Maybe Billy will learn his lesson now that you broke his nose." Hahahahahaha! Yes! "I guess what I'm trying to say is, even though Angel and I adopted you, you're the most important thing in our live's! Even when you were little you never asked why we were different from your friends family's or anything else for that matter. You'll learn to ignore the hate filled comments, just like I did." I sighed, I knew he ws right.
"Love you daddy!" I smile, as he hugs me and kisses me. I was never more loved than the day I walked into the living room at my foster parents and saw that unexpectedly, Angel and Tom had shown up. They knew when they first met me that I was exstatic about being adopted, especially by them. They left, saying they needed some time o think it through, but when three weeks went by, I gave up hope. They filed the paper work within two months of first meeting me, and requested that I not be informed about it. It was my early Christmas presant from them.
"Love you too Baby, now, don't you have a Youth Support meeting? Try and come home early, I promised your mom that we would all go to dinner tonight. The enitire family, you know how long it's been since you've seen Mo, not to mention Jo. I bet they all miss you. I bet Eric misses you too." Eep, Eric... Aunt Maureen and Aunt Joanne's adopted three month old. Well I guess he was more like six months old now. I kiss Daddy on the cheek one more time. My Youth Support group starts in fifteen minutes, I didn't think I was going to go today, oh well! Ryder community center, here I come!
Ryder Community Center, auditorium, Youth Support. Ashlynn's POV
"Well, my name is Emerald. I'm the leader here at youth support, and becuase I can see a few new member's here tonight, I'll go ahead what Youth Support does, Ashlynn, would you care to explain?"
"Yes Ma'am, Youth support meet's every other after noon during the school year, and every other morning during the summer. We're a program that helps Lesbian, Bisexual, Gay and transgender. We also provide support for the children of homosexual couples. My parents are gay actually, that's a picture of them over there the niht they finalized my adoption." I took a deep breath as I had helped set this up, I knew everything about it. "Sometimes, it cn be scary, being different. Some people come here so they can be themselves, others come here to meet other people like them, and others still come here to find shelter/refugee when their own parents, schools, and churches have turned them away." For those of you that dont know, there are cards on the little table over there, and they Emeralds and my number on them. If you eer find yourself in a posistion where it is unsafe for you to be at home, because of a situation with you parents siblings ect: don't hesitate to call one of us. My folks are quite used to that, and my line is a private line." Emeralds eighteen year old "daughter" raised her hand. I smiled, she always helped me out here, because most people were afraid to confidein someone they just met.
"When I turned sixteen I finally told my mother that I was gay, and that I liked to dress like a woman." She banned me from the house, throwing me out at three oclock in the morning with nothing more than a small back pack full of my things that she packed, and the clothes on my back." She smiled at Emerald. She remind's me of a younger version of my mom. "I called Ashlynn, because I felt more comfortable talking to her, and I had nowhere to go. I stayed with her until I was able to pay for my own small flat. Emerald helped me get a job, and now Ilive in a two bedroom apartment next door to Emerald. After about a year, I had to make a chice, fall into the foster care system for two years, or find someone who could adopt me. Emerald is the best friend, and mother I have ever had." I smiled. I started to explain about some of or extra groups when the door opened, and I paused calmly, not wanting to have to repeat myself. A blonde haired girl sat down in the empty seat two chairs down from mine. I smiled and continued to talk.
"We offer Domestic violence surviours support groups to those who hae been victimized by the same sex, and-"
"Ashlynn?!" The blonde haired girl stood up and flipped her hair out of her eyes. "What are you doing here?"
"Leah?" Okay, what the fuck?!