A/N: if you didn't read the warning, I would if I were you. But if you don't read it, it isn't my problem. Just don't come complaining to me if you didn't read it.
"Aria!" Thomas raged through the house hitting and pushing everything out of his way. The sound of his stomping feet echoed through the empty house. "I know you're home. Your car is in the garage. Come out, come out wherever you are. No need to be afraid."
Thomas was now outside the teenage girl's bedroom door. It was silent in there, but Thomas knew better to believe she wasn't home. The man opened the door and saw the girl sitting there with headphones in. "Aria!" The petite girl jumped out of bed and cowered in the corner.
"Please don't. No, I can't. Please." Tears were streaming down the girl's face.
"Shut up. I'm so happy your mother married me. I was always infatuated by you. I think you're gorgeous." Thomas walked across the room to the corner. He put his hand on her shoulder and pulled her closer to him. "I love you so much. Do you love me?" Aria nodded her head. "I want you to tell me. Out loud."
"I love you." Aria said quietly.
"What? I didn't hear you."
"I love you!" Aria yelled back in spite.
Thomas pushed Aria back towards her bed. By now, Aria was covered in tears and snot, but didn't stop him from attacking Aria. Thomas kissed Aria aggressively whilst feeling her up.
Downstairs, the front door slammed shut. "Thomas, honey, are you home?" It was Ella, Aria's mom.
"Yeah, I am upstairs. Hold on! I'll be down in a minute." Thomas yelled back.
"Okay honey, I'll get dinner ready." Her footsteps disappeared into the kitchen.
"Now that your mother is home we'll have to do this later. Pick up your stupid child and come downstairs."
Three months ago, Aria gave birth to Amelia Anne Montgomery when she was seventeen. Even though Thomas was Amelia's father, Aria gave her her dad's last name to protect Thomas. Well, more that Thomas forced Aria to make Montgomery her last name. Aria said that her boyfriend at the time, Noel, was Amelia's dad. Thomas paid Noel to keep him quiet. Noel gets three hundred dollars a month to stay quiet, not like he needed it though, his father was one of the richest men in Rosewood.
Aria's dad, Byron, used to be one of the richest men in Rosewood until he was killed two years ago in a horrible car accident. Aria's mom, Ella, didn't waste any time getting remarried. Ella and Thomas dated for two months before they were engaged, and another two months until they were married. Mike, Aria's brother, moved in with their grandparents. Aria and Mike only see each other once in a while at school, the odd chance Aria actually gets to go to school.
"Aria! Dinner is ready, get down here with Amelia." Thomas' voice changes whenever he is with Ella. When he's with Aria, he sounds demanding and sex crazed. When he's with Ella his voice is sweet and sympathetic. That's probably why Ella fell in love with him so fast.
Aria wiped her face with her sleeves and picked up Amelia from her crib on the other side of her room next to her closet.
When she got downstairs, Thomas winked at her. She put Amelia in her high chair and stood there quietly.
"So Aria, did you go to school today?" Thomas asked. Aria rolled her eyes.
"No, I didn't. I couldn't find a babysitter for Amelia."
"You're never going to graduate high school if you keep skipping school." Ella said. She tries to be a good mom, but really she is more interested in Thomas than her children.
"I know mom. I just couldn't find someone to babysit her. I can't very well take her to school and I can't let her stay home alone."
"Well, Thomas doesn't have to work tomorrow, he could watch Amelia."
Aria looked at Thomas, he was sitting there smirking.
"Do you have to work tomorrow?"
"Me? Well, no, not technically. I work at an art studio, I can pick my hours. I just like to spend all my time there. It is relaxing. Oh by the way, I am going to be going out with Ashley."
"Why do you have to go out with Hanna Marin's mom?"
"Because Tom, I want to see my friends. We're going to go to the movies and have dinner."
"Just asking. Aria, are you still friends with Hanna?"
"Not really. Not since I got pregnant." Aria tried to hide her anger, but it came out as sarcasm.
"What is tonight? Gang up on Tom night?" Aria sat there and rolled her eyes every time he said something.
"You know what mom, I'm not really hungry and Amelia's done eating, so I'm going to put Amelia in her crib and go for a walk. Text me before you leave."
Aria went up to her room and put Amelia in her crib and grabbed her phone. As she was walking out of the house, Tom stopped her and said she had to be home right away because they had 'stuff' to do. Aria just walked out the door in response. She didn't know where she was going, but she knew she had to have a break from that house.
As she was walking down the street, a dozen cars passed her. This was weird because it was a Wednesday night at 6 pm. No one is ever out at this time. Maybe Noel was having a party at his cabin. But then one car pulled up to Aria and inside was her old English teacher, Ezra Fitz.
"Hey Aria! Do you want a ride somewhere?" Ezra had this boyish charm to him. He wasn't really older than Aria. Aria is seventeen and Ezra is twenty-four.
"Uh… Sure, I guess." Aria had a problem trusting guys because of Tom, but can you really blame her? "Can you drive me back to my house?" In Rosewood, everyone knows where everyone lives.
"You don't seem like you want to go back to your house. What's going on at your house?" Aria was tempted to tell him what Thomas has done to her, but she knew that if she did there would be horrible consequences.
"Nothing, my mom and I are just fighting. It's nothing really."
"Where is your daughter? You have a daughter right?"
"Yeah, I do. Her name is Amelia, she's at home in her crib."
"Amelia, that's a cute name."
"Yeah, I named her after the books 'Amelia Bedelia," Ezra was giggling, "I loved those books when I was little. I know it's a very childish thing."
"No, no it's okay. I understand. I always said my first child was going to be named Malcolm because I loved Malcolm in the Middle when I was little."
"Well, Malcolm is a really cute name. That name for a boy would be so adorable." Ezra stopped the car infront of Aria's house, and Thomas was in the front door. "That's my step-dad, I have to go. Thanks for the ride."
"Are you going to be in school tomorrow? I know you haven't been going. You know I could help you."
"I haven't been going because I don't have anyone to watch Amelia."
"I could watch Amelia for you."
"Don't you have a job you have to do?"
"No, not really. I am a writing a couple of short stories for this book that is going to be published soon. I sit at my apartment all the time writing and not doing anything else."
"I don't know. I'll think about it and get back to you later." Aria got out of the car and turned around, "Thanks again for the ride."
Aria walked to the door and she could tell Tom was furious. She knew what that meant, she wasn't going to get to go to her room and be alone.
"Who the fuck was that?"
"That's Ezra, he was my English teacher."
"Why the hell was he giving you a ride?"
"Because I wasn't going to make it back in time to be here when Mom left."
"Well, you need to go to my room and get on my bed." Aria walked up the stairs past her room and to the room her mom shares with Tom. That bedroom is beautifully decorated, but holds ugly secrets and memories. Tom was right behind Aria. Aria laid down on the edge of the bed. Tom hovered over her. Aria's heartbeat was getting faster and faster, but not in the good way.
"You've been such a bad little slut. Picking up rides from random teachers isn't a good way to get through life." By now, Tom was hovering over Aria in only his boxers, and he was trying to take off Aria's dress. "How much do you love me?" Aria lay there silently, "I said to tell me how much you love me?" Then Tom smacked Aria's face with an intense force.
"I love you so much; I can't imagine a life without you." Aria said without emotion.
"That's what I like to hear from your sexy mouth. Now I want you to do what I love." Aria flipped Tom over onto his back. She pulled down his boxers and started doing what he likes her doing. Then he flipped her over and started licking all over her. Aria tried to keep herself from crying, because she knew that if she did he would start hitting her again.
When Tom decided he was done, he told Aria to leave so he could go to sleep. Aria gathered her clothes and went to her room. Once she was in her room, she exploded with tears. She threw her clothes to the side, and went to her bed. She opened the drawer on her bed side table and took out a journal and scissors.
She picked up the scissors and took them to her thigh. She made two lines adjacent to each other. One for earlier and one for a moment ago. Whenever he hurts her she cuts, so far she has thirty-five lines. Five lines for when she found out she was pregnant. She figured her upper thigh was the best place to cut because nobody ever looks there. Nobody even noticed when she was giving birth, nobody ever pays attention to her.
'Nobody pays attention to me. Nobody likes me. Everyone would be better off if I were dead. I'd be better off if I were dead.' These were the thoughts that went through Aria's mind every night. She thought they were true. She was never told any different.
Aria's sleep was always filled with nightmares of Tom. She hasn't had a peaceful night since she was in the hospital away from Tom. She knew Tom couldn't get her when she was in the hospital. She was safe there. Here, she always looked over her shoulder to make sure he wouldn't attack her from behind.
When Aria woke up, she decided she was going to let Ezra take care of Amelia. What's the harm in letting him take care of her? Aria got out of bed, and an overwhelming pain shot out of her leg.
"Shit, why do I do this to myself?" Aria said to myself.
She limped to her closet and picked out her clothes today. Pants and a t-shirt, the outfit of teen moms. While she was getting dressed, Tom walked into her room. He stood in the doorway and watched her get dressed. "Your mother is at work already. I thought we could have some fun. What do you think?"
"I can't. I'm going to school. I found someone to watch Amelia."
"Amelia's my daughter! I am allowed to watch her!"
"Really? I thought you lost your parental controls when you paid Noel Kahn to say he's her father."
"You little bitch! You can't take her away from me! I'll call the police!'
"Really? What are you going to tell them? That you got your step-daughter knocked up and you pay her ex to say he's the father? Is that what you'll tell them?"
"Fine, take her! Take her to whoever the fuck is going to take care of her! But don't think you're welcomed back here."
"What're you going to tell my mom? That you kicked me out because you aren't allowed to take care of your bastard child? That's a genius idea."
"Don't you mouth off to me you skank. You got yourself knocked up. You threw yourself at me! Don't you see how easy it'd be to get your mom to understand that?"
Aria then tried to get out into the hall, but Tom then pushed her back into her room and into her bed post. She crouched on the floor in pain. "See what happens when you mouth off to me?" He then kicked Aria's sore leg. "You get ten minutes to collect your shit and leave. Don't come back whore."
By now, Amelia was screaming, and Aria was still on the floor writhing in pain. She knew she had to get up to get her things. She stood up, and grabbed a handful of clothes put them in her bags. She then grabbed Amelia's diaper bag and filled it with diapers and wipes. She grabbed another bag and filled it other necessities. She grabbed Amelia and kicked all the bags to the stairs and kicked them down the stairs.
"That better be you leaving! You have two minutes!" Aria opened the front door and ran to her car. She put Amelia in her seat and filled the trunk with the bags. She ran back into the house and found the safe in the basement and took what must've been six hundred dollars. She ran back upstairs and then ran outside. "Get out of here now!"
Aria backed out of the driveway and drove away with tears in her eyes. She headed toward Ezra's apartment. She sat in her car for what felt like an eternity. She was still in so much pain, but she had to get to school.
She got out of her seat slowly, and opened Amelia's door and grabbed her. She walked up to Ezra's apartment and knocked on the door. Ezra opened the door, he had a smile on his face until he realized Aria had just been crying.
"Aria, what happened?"