Chapter 2

Tris:

When I come to I look around at the house I am in. I am laying down on a humongous couch facing a flat screen TV with stocked bookshelves around it and a table in between the couch and shelves. To my right is a room in the corner of the house with mostly windows as walls with a glass door leading to the backyard and a circular, white table with white chairs, floral patterned cushions and a vase of roses. I go through that room and turn to the left into a modern, white kitchen with teal accents. Looking for someone I go back to the living room and see stairs and a door next to them that i had missed before that. I go through the door and there is a washer and dryer set with a small sink and a door leading to what I assume to be the garage. Since I don't see anyone or hear anyone I decide to go upstairs. Once I get up the stairs I come to a landing that is shaped like half of an octagon with six doors. The first door to my right leads to a bedroom with white walls and light pink/ light blue accents. The next door to the left is a closet that holds towels and bedspreads. The next leads to a light purple bedroom, then a full bathroom, then another bedroom, this one light yellow and white, (my favorite so far), then a half bath, and the last door led to the largest bedroom. This bedroom is unfurnished and has no signs of personalization, unlike the other three. It is completely white with a full wall of windows, a huge walk in closet, and a humongous bathroom. All of a sudden I hear a door downstairs slam and someone doing something in the kitchen. I slowly walk downstairs so that I don't become dizzy again and when I walk into the kitchen I see a girl standing there in a short light pink dress. She has dark brown skin and black hair that goes down to her chin. She is tall and willowy and I know that when she turns around she will have a smile on her face and a sparkle in her dark brown eyes.

"Chrissy?" I say hesitantly. She jumps and turns around, surprised. Then she sees me and starts bawling.

"Tris!" She says running towards me and wrapping me in a bear hug. I immediately stiffen and feel intense pain in my stomach and up and down my back. At first I just stand there not responding and then I hear the sobbing in my ear and I remember that this isn't someone who wants to hurt me. This is Christina. I then wrap my arms around her but am unsure and uncomfortable because I'm not used to being close to people anymore. After what feels like seven hours she pulls away and looks at me her teary eyes searching mine for any emotion. But I can't give her any, not yet. Because even though we are best friends I don't know who to trust anymore. I am suddenly snapped out of my thought process by Christina squeezing my hand.

"Trissy..." she whispers. And with that my resolve is gone. I burst into tears and crumple into her arms. She slowly leads me back to the couch and holds me until I can talk. However as soon as I try to talk I burst into sobs again. Then, with good intentions, she starts rubbing my back. Pain rips through me and I scream and pull away from her and land on my butt on the floor. I then proceed to curl into a ball and cry. Not caring anymore if she sees the bruises that are everywhere, the hickies on my neck and chest, the lumps of bandages over my back, or the way my bones can be seen because I am extremely underfed and can't keep anything down anyways. Once my tears are gone and I physically can't cry anymore I look up at her and see silent years falling down her face.

"What happened?" She whispers shakily. I take a deep breath and begin my story.

"Well," I begin, already choking on my words, "do you remember when my parents passed away when we were eight years old?"

"Yeah," Christina replies "I wanted you to come live with me but my parents said no. They didn't have enough money to take care of someone else."

"I was in the foster care system for almost one year. Three months before I was ten a man decided to adopt me. His name is Marcus, the social workers thought it would be a perfect fit because he has a son our age named Peter. It wasn't. Six days after my tenth birthday Marcus came home drunk and told me about his son that ran away from home and how he got me to replace him. He asked me if I knew where his son was and I said no, I'm sorry. He told me I wasn't sorry and that if I was I would find his son. Then he...he slapped me. That was the first time he ever hit me." I stop and take a deep breath "Slowly the beatings got worse. When I was thirteen he started beating me with his belt and he told me that it was for my own good. He would lock me in the upstairs closet after beatings without food and water from one day to almost two weeks. Then, when i was fifteen he, he started heating up metal things, rings, forks, baking trays, anything around the house...he would heat them up in a fire and burn me with them. Always telling me that it was for my own good. Always telling me that I wasn't sorry his son left and that I wasn't good enough, that I would never be good enough...for anyone." I stop for a moment and hear Christina let out a sob. "Lastly, when I was sixteen and exactly ten months Peter had his birthday party. He had never been nice to me and went along with whatever Marcus said and Marcus had always told him to not touch me, or let any of his friends get near me. So he let me be, until his party. I was told to stay up in my room while Peter had his party, Marcus wasn't going to be there because he said he didn't want to hear his son having sex. One of Peter's friends, Eric, came upstairs looking for the bathroom. He came into my room while I was changing into my pjs and he...attacked me, sexually. Peter heard me screaming and came upstairs. He pulled Eric off me and I was about to say thank you and then he he he... he raped me. I tried to stop him but he was too strong and too drunk to know who I was. Once he was...done. He fell asleep on me. Marcus came home and found us like that and told me it was all my fault, that I was too much of a temptation and that I forced Peter to have sex with me. I got an extra beating that night and two weeks in the closet with half a bottle of water and three crackers. Peter got nothing. When I got out of the closet Peter was waiting for me. He kept raping me and last night I drugged his drink and left." I stop, spent

"Tris, I'm so s-" Christina starts before I cut her off

"I don't want your pity, I just need your help." I say harshly "I didn't run away for me, they will come after me. I need you to do something for me, take care of something"

"I'll do anything"

"I need you to take care of my baby, I'm pregnant"

AN: Please tell me what you guys think and where you live! i live in Virginia but am in Vermont right now.