Hey guys! Thanks for all of the awesome reviews on my last 3 stories! They really mean a lot to me. As soon as I saw the reviews, I was smiling like an idiot the rest of the night. My parents thought I was crazy. But anyway, I thought I would try a darker fic. So, here it is. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Degrassi or any of it's characters.
Friendship Club got out late, because Luke got caught up with reading a part of the bible aloud to the group. I hope my dad isn't home, he would be furious. I had to get home soon, I didn't have time to walk all of the way to my house. I walked out of the front doors of Degrassi, and walked down the steps, and sat at a bench a few feet away from the bottom of them. I needed a ride, and I knew who to call. I scrolled through my contacts, until I found his name. I pressed call, and it rang 4 times before he picked up.
"Hi Clare. What's up?" He answered in an expectant voice.
"Hi Eli. I need a small favor." I said softly, hoping that he wouldn't be busy.
"Anything. Is something wrong?" Eli asked, with a hint of worry in his tone.
"No, nothing's wrong. It's just, Friendship Club got out about half an hour late." I informed him. "And… I would be your best friend if you could come and pick me up in front of Degrassi." I asked him, silently hoping he would say yes.
"Wow, Jesus Club ran late? Isn't that a sin?" Eli said playfully, and gave a small chuckle. I giggled while rolling my eyes. "And sure. You're out front, right?" Eli asked me. I let out the breath I didn't know I was holding.
"Yeah. Thanks, Eli. I owe you." I said, thankful for having such a good friend.
"It's not a problem. I'll pick you up in five minutes?" He asked, as the sound of keys started jingling on the other line. I smiled.
"Okay. See you then." I told him. I heard a door open and shut, and the sound of footsteps in the background.
"Guess you will. Bye." He said, laughing, and hanging up his cell phone. I smiled wider, closed my cell phone, and put it in my pocket. I was so lucky to have a best friend like him.
Eli and I met each other when Mrs. Dawes assigned us as English partners. After a couple weeks, we became really good friends. Our writing styles are very different; his work is wordy, and mine is impersonal. But, when we edit each other's papers, it all evens out. He encourages me to step out of my comfort zone, and write what I really feel. When we combine both of our strong points, our papers are a guaranteed A. We balance each other out. We just… work. I have no idea why, though. We're polar opposites. He drives a hearse, and I ride a bike. He wears band t-shirts and skinny jeans, and I wear floral prints and denim with almost every outfit. We're very different, but we just… click.
My mom died in 2009. She was driving on the highway, and a semi-driver accidentally ran her off the road. She skidded into a ditch on the side of the road, and the car flipped three times until it stopped. I was a freshman at Degrassi at the time, and I was in media-immersion when Principal Simpson called me down to the office. I thought he called me down to praise my good grades, but when I walked into his office, I saw my father sitting in a chair with his head in his hands. That's when they told me. And I couldn't believe what I was hearing. My father took me home early. Within the next few days, that's when it really hit me hard. I stayed in my room for days. When I came out, I decided it was time for a good change instead of a bad one. I cut my hair, got rid of my catholic school uniform, and ditched my glasses. I would never forget that day. That day was the day that everything I knew rolled down a hill and crashed at the bottom. I fought back the tears that threatened to fall down my cheek.
That was the day that my dad started drinking.
I told Eli almost everything, and he did the same. We trusted each other. He told me about Julia, and how she died and how guilty he was afterwards. He told me of how afraid he was to throw anything away, and that he feared that everyone close to him would disappear into thin air. But I told him that I would stay, no matter what. That might be one of the reasons why we worked together so well. We shared a mutual understanding of what it was like to suddenly lose someone that was so vital to you.
I heard a loud honk, which snapped me out of my thoughts. I looked towards the noise, and Eli sat there with a smirk on his face in the driver's side of Morty. He motioned for me to get in, and I wiped my eyes with the back of my hand, trying to get rid of any visible moisture. I stood up from the bench, grabbed my oversized black and green tote bag and slung it over my shoulder, and walked up to the passenger side of the hearse. I opened the car door, set me bag in the space in the seat between Eli and I, and sat down next to it. I closed the door, and Morty grumbled as he started. Eli drove out of the Degrassi parking lot, and headed down the route to my house. Eli spoke suddenly.
"On the way here, I thought of a way you could repay me for my best-friendly deed." Eli said, with his signature smirk on his face. Oh God. I thought. What if he makes me do something embarrassing?
"What's your idea?" I said wearily, with a look of fear on my face. Eli looked at my expression and chuckled.
"Don't look so afraid." He said, laughing again. I changed my expression to a normal one. A small smile came onto his face. "How about… I'll pick you up at 8, and we can go to The Dot?" Eli asked, with a hopeful expression.
"I would love to go." I told him with a small smile on my face.
"Cool." Eli said quietly, pulling into my driveway with a smirk on his face. I gulped, my dad's car was on the other side of the driveway.
"Thanks for the ride, Eli, I'll see you at 8." I told him, giving him a small side-hug, grabbing my bag, and opening my car door.
"Your welcome. See you then." He said, the smirk still on his face. I stepped out and shut the car door. I walked up the short walk to my front doorstep, and before I opened my front door, I looked back and waved. He waved back, smiling, and drove off down my street. My face dropped. I gulped again, and took a deep breath and blew it out slowly. I twisted the doorknob, and I walked in, placing my bag on the hardwood floor near the stairs, and shut the door. I didn't see my father anywhere, and I took my shoes off on the mat next to the door. I was grabbed my bag quietly, and tip-toed up the stairs as quietly as I could.
"Claaare? Are you home?" I heard my dad shout with slurred speech. I closed my eyes and cursed under my breath.
"Yeah, dad. I'm home." I said, turning around. My dad was stumbling out of the kitchen with a small glass in his hand. The glass had a yellowish liquid in it. Oh God.
He was drunk.
"Where… Where were y-youu." My dad slurred. I swallowed audibly.
"I was in f-friendship club, it ran a little bit late…" I stuttered quietly. He clumsily slammed the glass down on the coffee table, clearly angry. I jumped at the sound.
"YOU'RE LYING, YOU LITTLE BITCH. WHAT, WERE YOU OUT FUCKING SOME BOY?" He shouted loudly and angrily. He picked up his glass of yellowish liquid, and threw it against the wall. The glass shattered into hundreds of tiny shards, and the liquid dripped down the wall. I felt my throat start to tighten.
"N-no, dad, I wasn't… I-I was at Friendsh-" I started to say, but my father cut me off with harsh words.
"SHUT UP, BITCH!" My father screamed at me, coming towards me and giving me a stinging slap across the face. I could smell the alcohol on his breath, and it was a vile smell that made me want to throw up. My cheek stung, and I soon felt my eyes stinging with tears as well. "STOP LYING, YOU WHORE!" He shouted, his voice booming through the lower-level of the house. I saw it coming in slow motion. My father raised his fist, and punched me hard in the gut with a large amount of force. I hung over in pain, hugging my stomach and closing my eyes and silently praying to God that he wouldn't do this again. He reached up and grabbed my hair, pulling me down the stairs, but I tumbled down them. I screamed out in pain, tears staining my face.
"Dad, please don't do this…" I pleaded with him, looking up at him from the floor. I remember when I used to look up to him proudly, and when he'd swoop my up into his arms and comfort me when I fell. Now, he stared down at me in disgust.
"Well, someone's gotta' teach you a lesson!" He boomed at me. He lifted his foot, and swiftly kicked me hard in the stomach. I curled up, but it was no use. Tears ran down my face as he kept taking his foot back and kicking me, again and again and again. It felt like hours, but he finally stopped. I felt the world spinning around me, and I blacked out.
I don't know for how long, but after a time period, I had my head back and I opened my eyes. I viewed my surroundings, and I saw that my dad's shoes were gone. Thank God. I thought to myself. I tried to move to get up off the floor, but my stomach became sick as pain shot up my entire body. I flopped back down on the floor at the bottom of the stairs as straggling tears ran down my cheeks.
Why would my own father do this to me? I thought miserably, my stomach throbbing. I glanced at the clock on the wall, and it read 7:37. Eli was coming to pick me up at eight! I desperately tried to ignore the shooting pain as I willed myself to get up. I took the first step, and I closed my eyes in agonizing pain. I whimpered as I went up another step. It took me a grueling few minutes to finally get up the stairs, and I limped into my bedroom. I walked unsteadily to my bathroom, and started the water in my shower. I sat down on the floor, my tears flowing like there was no tomorrow. I started to attempt to undress myself as I tried to ignore the contorting pain my stomach. The pain would fade, and then come back in a pang if I moved. I successfully got my jeans and panties off. Now, was the hard part. I stood up, whimpering in pain as I stood myself up. I put my arms up, biting my lip, as I delicately removed my shirt. I glanced at the mirror and did a double take.
There were black, blue, and purple splotches that spread all across my torso. I gingerly touched one with my index finger and winced. Maybe I should cancel on Eli. I thought.
No. I couldn't. Eli would wonder why, and he would get suspicious. I couldn't let him in on my horrible secret.
I delicately unhooked my bra and threw it on the floor. I limped into the shower as I held onto the peach-colored walls for support. I gingerly moved my limbs as I washed my body, agony ripping through my stomach at every movement. After I finished, I stepped out and dried myself off, trying to look past the mind-blowing pain in my gut.
I dressed myself carefully, wincing as I put on a bra and shirt. I put on some make-up over the red, blotchy mark on my face from when my father had slapped me. I put on a little bit of mascara, and got up and limped in pain as I walked down the stairs. I stepped over the glass shards on my way to the kitchen, and I winced with every step I took. I looked for the medicine cupboard, and I sighed in relief when I saw the Advil bottle in there. I took out three of them and popped them into my mouth and dry-swallowed them. I walked slowly and lightly out of the kitchen, and into the living room. I heard a knock on the door, and my mouth became dry.
What if Eli saw through my charade? I thought to myself. Or even worse. My body tensed up and froze, and I closed my eyes as even that action small action hurt. What if it's my dad?
I walked lightly to the door, limping with every step. I turned the doorknob, and opened the door a crack. I sighed in relief. I put on a fake smile.
It was Eli.
"Hey Clare, ready to go?"
End of Chapter One.
I left kind of a cliffhanger there. (:
Like? Love? Hate? Write a review, please! Write comments, suggestions, anything! I've never done a story like this, so i'm sorry if it's not good. If you want me to post the next chapter soon, tell me in a review! Thanks again you guys for all of the awesome reviews. Like I said before, they mean a lot to me as a new writer here on FanFiction.
-Macy.