A/N: This is a requested story. i've never written for this pair before. I'm not sure anyone has. In any case, I hope you'll give it a chance.
Linda Parks frowned at herself in the mirror. The marks mottling her skin so telling of the abuse she endured, she looked at the bruises on her arms in the shape of fingers, the red, purple bruising on her neck, the bruising at her temple.
She didn't understand how Adrian could get so angry to the point he would lay his hands on her but it happened so often. The first time it happened she told herself it was an accident, that he hadn't meant to hurt her but then he did it a second time, a third, a fourth and so on. It really set in when he started not only abusing her but belittling her, trying to control every aspect of her life. He had not only become abusive but controlling and possessive as well.
When she realized how bad her situation had become she tried to end things but he had gotten so angry, so violent and the beating he gave her, she shivered with the memory of it, remembering how scared she was that if he didn't stop he was going to kill her.
She had tried to tell her parents what was happening but they wouldn't hear of it. Adrian was the son of two of their oldest friends and business associates and they wouldn't have their daughter making accusations that could destroy a decades-long friendship. They had plans and they weren't going to let her ruin them. She was going to become a lawyer, she was going to marry Adrian and their families would be the two most successful lawyer families in the city. They had everything planned out and nothing was going to get in the way of their plans, not even their own ungrateful daughter.
Her two close friends, Felicity and Caitlin knew of what was going on, they wanted to help but they didn't know how and they didn't want to make things worse but more than that Linda didn't want them getting involved. She was afraid that he would turn his anger on them and if he could hurt her when he claimed to love her, what would he do to her friends. She couldn't take that chance.
Whenever she thought about her situation, she felt helpless, there was nothing she could do. She felt hopeless, she couldn't see a way out of this. But most of all she felt defeated that this had to be happening to her for a reason and that maybe she really did deserve this.
Linda stared at herself a moment longer before setting about covering up her bruises with concealer and makeup, hoping it would be enough. Once she was certain they weren't visible thanks to the makeup and the long sleeve shirt she wore, she wrapped a scarf around her neck to hide the vivid bruise there, she left the bathroom, grabbing her coat and books and headed for her first college class of the day.
LINEBREAK
Later after all her classes for the day were over she walked to the local college hangout on campus. It was a small cafe with couches and booths with an all around friendly atmosphere. She saw Caitlin was already seated at their usual spot, which was a place near the unused fireplace, couch, and chairs nearby.
"Hey, you made it. I was starting to worry!" Caitlin greeted, she was sitting in one of the chairs across from the couch.
"I was only a few minutes late." Linda took a seat across from her at the end of the couch.
"Yes, but.." Caitlin paused, and Linda looked over at her, noticing the way Caitlin seemed to be watching her closely. "I can't help but worry about you."
Linda looked away avoiding her friends searching gaze. "I'm fine. Classes were running late."
"You're fine this time but what about when you're not," Caitlin said and she wasn't talking about being late anymore. She knew of the abuse Linda endured from her boyfriend, Adrian Chase. She wanted to help but she didn't know what she could do when Adrian came from an influential family, one of the most known families in Central City. She doubted anyone would believe her. She constantly worried about her friend. "Linda, how long are you going to take his abuse? You need to leave him."
"It's not that easy." Linda sighed tiredly, this wasn't the first time they had talked about this. The truth was she was scared to try and leave him again. It hadn't worked out well the last time she tried to break up with him. What if he tried to stop her by any means necessary? And then there were her parents to consider. She was pretty sure her parents would disown her if she left Adrian.
Caitlin wanted to argue, she wanted to convince her friend to get out while she could. "Linda-" she began but was interrupted as their other friend joined them.
"I'm sorry, I know I'm late." Felicity plopped down on the opposite end of the couch. "What are we talking about?"
"About Linda needing-"
"Nothing." Linda cut Caitlin off quickly. "Why were you running late?"
Felicity looked down away from them. "I got asked out."
"By Ray?" Caitlin wondered. It was pretty obvious to her that Felicity's study buddy had a crush on her.
Linda was relieved by Caitlin's distraction, silently thanking Felicity for bringing the attention away from her.
"No." Felicity shook her head. "It wasn't Ray."
Caitlin brow furrowed. "Then who asked you out?"
"Lance." said Felicity with a strange tone to her voice, like she was afraid of what they might think.
Linda frowned, trying to remember if Felicity ever mentioned anyone by that name before but not recalling anyone. "You've never mentioned a guy name Lance before?"
"It's not a guy." Felicity mumbled so lowly neither Caitlin or Linda could make out what she said.
"I didn't quite catch that." said Caitlin leaning forward in her seat to hear Felicity better.
"A guy didn't ask me out," Felicity said more clearly. "Sara Lance did?" she said the last part as if she was asking a question, unsure herself if it had really happened.
"Sara Lance asked you out?!" exclaimed Cisco Ramone, announcing his arrival as he took a seat near Caitlin. Cisco and Caitlin had been best friends since high school.
"I know I was shocked too," said Felicity, her eyes glazing over with just the memory of the moment Sara asked her out, she had been so thrown and admittedly very flattered.
"Whose Sara?" Linda questioned confused then pausing as the name 'Lance' ranged a bell in her mind. "Wait did you say, Lance? Is she related to Laurel Lance? I don't know Laurel all that well but she's in my pre-law class."
"That must have been really awkward when you turned her down," Caitlin said with a grimace just imagining it.
"I said yes," Felicity admitted sheepishly.
"What?" Linda, Caitlin, and Cisco all echoed one another with their surprise response.
"Felicity, you're not gay?" Linda meant it as a statement but it came out more of a question. For as long as she had known Felicity she had been straight. Of course, there was nothing wrong with Felicity liking girls. She just thought if Felicity had interest in them then she would have said something to her before now.
"I know but I like her and I get this feeling whenever she's around." It was weird for Felicity because she had never felt this way about a girl before but she wanted to explore it.
"Sounds like you have some things to figure out." Caitlin said, if Felicity wanted to see where this might go with Sara she would support her.
"Well, I think if you believe you might actually be interested in her you owe it to yourself to find out." Said Linda encouragingly, she didn't want Felicity to think what she was feeling was wrong or that her friends would reject her because of it.
Felicity gave a small relieved smile. "Thank you."
Linda offered up a smile to her blonde friend. "Anytime you need to talk about this, I'm here."
"I know." Felicity nodded.
"And anytime you want to make out with Sara, let me know," said Cisco with a teasing grin. "That is something I would not want to miss." and Felicity made a face of annoyance at him in response making him laugh.
"Linda, why are you wearing a scarf, it's like 70 degrees out?" Cisco asking, noticing the scarf she wore around her neck.
She had been unable to cover up the red marks on her neck where Adrian's hands had wrapped around her neck just the night before. He had wrapped his hand tightly around her throat in an attempt to show her that he controlled her. Even her right to breathe air.
Caitlin and Felicity shared a sad look that Linda chose to ignore, she was just glad Cisco didn't pick up on it. He was among the few of her friends who didn't know the truth of how toxic her relationship with Adrian had become.
Caitlin and Felicity knew about the abuse she endured, they had seen her bruises before but neither knew how to help her even though they both wished there was something they could do. A way to help her somehow without making things worse for her.
"Never underestimate a woman's need to accessorize, Cisco," Linda told him with a forced levity. "Regardless of the weather."
Cisco made a face. "If you say so."
"I do," Linda adjusted her scarf carefully.
Cisco just hummed noncommittally.
Caitlin watched her with sympathetic eyes until she caught sight of someone entering the room. "Barry, hey, come join us." She called out to her friend.
Barry Allen scanned the room, following the sound of Caitlin's voice, when he spotted her he started to walk over to her and the small group she was with. "Hey Caitlin," he looked around at her friends. "I wouldn't want to intrude."
"You're not, right guys?" She cast her eyes around at her friends for their agreement.
"Any friend of Caitlins is always welcomed," Linda said easily. Besides he looked like a nice enough guy.
"Thanks." Said Barry with a smile, taking the last free chair nearby. "I'm barry."
"This is Cisco Ramone." Caitlin waved a hand in Cisco's direction.
Cisco nodded at him in response. "Hey."
"Felicity Smoak." Caitlin introduced Felicity next.
Felicity offered a friendly smile. "It's nice to meet you."
"And Linda parks." Caitlin introduced Linda.
Linda gave a small wave. "So how do you know Caitlin?" She asked curiously.
"We have physics together and a few other classes," Barry answered. "And we've brainstormed a few times over lunch on some class projects and essays."
"Physics?" Cisco repeated his interest caught. From there the group started discussing their classes and whatnot, the courses they were taking and what Career path they wanted to take.
Linda felt a twinge of envy at how they were all excited for their futures while she wasn't. She was going to become a lawyer but what she really wanted to be was a journalist. But it was something she was never going to be able to pursue, everything about her life was planned out by her parents and Adrian and there was nothing she felt she could do to change it.
Linda laughed at something Cisco and Caitlin were saying but her laughed quieted when she caught sight of Adrian, she quickly put on a smile as he approached.
"There you are." he reached her, pulling her to her feet and into to him, his arms wrapping around her possessively. "What are you still doing here?"
"I was just spending some time with Felicity and Caitlin," Linda answered hoping not to anger him. "And you remember Cisco, right?" she waved a hand toward him.
Adrian glanced at him before looking away disinterested. "Vaguely." he looked at Barry, his eyes narrowing into a glare. "And who's this?"
"Oh, this is Caitlin's friend Barry.." Linda trailed off, not knowing his last name.
"Allen," Barry supplied, extending his hand. "Barry Allen."
Adrian glanced at his hand and then back up at Barry, not reaching for it, just staring Barry down.
Linda glanced up at Adrian, uneasy with his reaction to Barry, worried Barry's presence was sparking his anger. "Barry, this is Adrian Chase, my-"
"Her boyfriend." He tugged her sharply into his side, his grip on her hip bruising, Linda bit the inside of her cheek to keep from wincing from the twinge of pain she felt from his fingers gripping her so hard.
Barry glanced between the two fighting back a frown, sensing that there was something off there. But he just met these people so he thought best not to cause trouble, he tried to brush his unease off, ignoring how possessive Adrian seemed and the way he kept glaring at him. But it nagged at him the way Linda kept a smile on her face, it seemed forced more than anything and he could have sworn he saw her wince. He frowned, trying to keep his concern at bay but it was hard when he could clearly see there was something wrong here.
The group got along all pretty well with Barry if you ignored the fact that Adrian glared at him any time Barry addressed Linda directly. Adrian kept to himself through most of their casual conversations, besides a snide comment here or there from Adrian. Linda did her best to smooth things over and keep things civil at the very least.
She was in the middle of talking to Felicity and Caitlin about getting together for a girls night when Adrian abruptly cut her off. "We have to get going. We're meeting my parents in twenty minutes."
Linda frowned if there was anyone worse than her own parents it was his and she dreaded seeing them but she knew she couldn't say no. Not to him. It would only make things worse for her. "Right."
"I gotta go, too." Felicity stood up, waving bye to the others. "I'm meeting Ray we're collaborating on a project."
"My friend's throwing a party on Friday," Barry said as everyone began parting ways. "you all should come, it'll be fun." He thought it might be a good idea to spend some time with his new friends, plus everyone could use a break from the stress of classes every now and then.
"Sounds great," said Caitlin. "Ronnie and I will be there." Ronnie was Caitlin's longtime boyfriend who she had been seeing since she was a junior in High school. She waved them goodbye before leaving.
"Maybe I'll ask Sara if she wants to go," said Felicity as she left as well. "It could be fun."
"I'll definitely be there," said Cisco with a nod, he was the last to leave. "Thanks, man."
The sound of a party with her friends, escaping the harsh realities of her life sounded really good to Linda, just to get away from it all for one night was very tempting. "Sure, I'll-"
"We will think about it." Adrain cut her off, shooting her a sharp look of reprimand. "Something could come up. So we'll see."
Linda looked away, her lips pressing thinly together, looking contrite. She hated how he would never let her make any decisions even as something small as going to a party.
Barry nodded, casting worried eyes toward Linda before looking away. He felt something was off with Linda and Adrian's relationship but he barely knew them, his suspicions could be wrong. He decided to keep quiet for now till he was certain there really was something wrong there. He offered up the address to his friend's place where the party would be held.
"C'mon, we're going." Adrian stood up to leave, his hand wrapped around her forearm pulling her up with him. He led them away, his hand now wrapped tightly around her wrist.
Once they were outside, he pulled her into a secluded area nearby behind a tree and away from prying eyes. He whirled around on her, his eyes lit with anger. "How long have you known that guy?"
"What guy?" she asked taken aback by his anger being directed at her so abruptly, he usually didn't show displays of anger with her unless they were safely inside away from any chances of anyone seeing them.
"Barry! Don't play stupid!" he snapped at her, face reddening in anger.
Linda had the urge to take a step back but knew it would only anger him further. "I just met him."
"Don't lie to me!" Adrian's hand wrapped around her arms tightly, his grip bruising.
Linda gave a small cry from the pain. "I'm not." her voice cracked in fear. "He's a friend of Caitlin's. They have class together."
Adrian scowled darkly. "I don't want you spending any time with him."
Linda felt her frustration rise, frustration from constantly being afraid and frustration from him always trying to control everything she did. "You don't want me spending any time with anyone unless you say it's okay."
Adrian's hand flashed out and roughly gripped her jaw, his fingers digging uncomfortably into her skin. "That's because you belong to me. You are mine to control." his voice took on a dark possessive edge. "I say who gets to be apart of your life, who you spend your time with, what you do, I get the final say on everything you do." He leaned over her threateningly. "Don't ever forget that, do you, understand?"
Linda nodded quickly, fear shooting through her, hating when he got like this but feeling helpless to do anything. He made her feel like a possession something to be own and she hated it just as much as his possessiveness terrified her.
Adrian released his harsh grip on her jaw and pushed her hair back, away from her face, in a falsely tender gesture. "Why do you have to make me angry? You know how you bring out the worst in me at times. It's like you want to provoke me."
"I don't," she said quietly, tears stinging her eyes. She never wanted to provoke him, she felt like she was constantly walking on eggshells to not do that exact thing. "I'm sorry."
Adrian nodded, pressing his mouth against hers harshly.
Linda let out a shaky breath, when he pulled away, wrapping his arm around her and pulling her into his side. She let him lead her away wordlessly not wanting to anger him again. Tears stung her eyes and she blinked them back, she felt a dark cloud hanging over her at her situation, the hopelessness of it all making her feel utterly helpless to do anything about it.
A/N: Reviews are always appreciated.