Disclaimer: I don't own Rizzoli and Isles, 'Annie', or To Kill a Mocking Bird
This chapter takes place at Kylie's party
Maura tugged on her curls watching them bounce back into place. It had taken her only 20 minutes to get ready. The party had asked for children to wear nothing fancy. Maura had chosen to wear a plain brown tank top and dark jean shorts. She brushed the tangles from her hair and pulled her hair back out of her face with a sparkly black butterfly clip. She wanted to dress casual but still impress Kylie at the same time.
After she was done changing she packed an overnight bag. Tooth brush, toothpaste, blanket, pillow, pajamas, and a hairbrush were all neatly tucked into a large purple duffle bag. Maura was almost bursting with joy as she joined her parents in the living room. When they saw her glow her mother smiled and her father frowned, but said nothing. To him, children were to be quiet.
The party was in full swing when they got there. Kylie's family could really pull off getting a party together with only an hour after work. She saw Kylie sitting on the grand staircase blowing bubbles. She watched as a woman who must have been her mom scold her and take away the bubbles. Kylie stuck out her tongue behind her mom's back and met Maura's gaze. Instantly Kylie's face lit up and she ran over to Maura.
"This party is going to be amazing!" Kylie's excitement was radiating off her in waves.
"Where do I put my stuff?" Maura asked her, smiling back.
"Oh I'll show you to my room. You can just keep it there." Kylie took Maura's hand and led her up the stairs.
"My sister helped me design my room. I don't really like it, but she said I'd thank her for it later. Anyways, we have like a bazillion rooms in our house so come over anytime. Oh and be careful cause my brother likes to let out his pet snake. Don't worry though he doesn't bite. Oh! I had this pet hamster once that was all white. We got rid of him cause he kept trying to eat my fingers. I was really sad until I got this fish named Willy. He was my best friend. He didn't like to be taken out of his bowl and he vanished one day. I asked my mom what happened to him and she said she lost him. I didn't talk to her for a whole week." Kylie finished her rambling when they finally got to her room. Kylie's room was like a dream for Maura. Its main focus color was a soft grey and the walls sparkled with glitter on the paint. Her bed was a king bed with a soft grey butterfly duvet. It barely took up any space in the huge room. The walls were covered in pictures of smiling friends and dark fairies. Her dresser had a small lamp on it and the desk held many books and papers. The most fascinating part of the whole place for Maura though was the gigantic walk-in closet. She slowly made her way through it and felt some of the soft fabrics between her fingers. It amazed her how the girl had such nice clothing but the two times had seen her she was dressed in older, dirtier clothes.
Maura turned towards Kylie, who was watching her. "Why do you dress in your older clothes when you have all these nice ones?"
Kylie smiled. "I'm not allowed to play in my good clothes. Anyways, Maura, what would you like to do?" Maura shrugged.
"What do you want to do? I have never had a sleepover before" The girls sat on the bed and pondered what to do. Kylie's face lit up.
"I know what we can do! My sister and her friends play all the time." Maura watched as Kylie pulled her desk chair out from the desk and under a shelf. Standing on the chair she grabbed a candle from the shelf.
"I'm not really allowed to light this but you can keep a secret…right Maura?"
"Yes, but I can't lie." The blond replied. Kylie left the room for a second and returned with a box of matches. Kylie took Maura's hand and pulled her into Kylie's bathroom.
"Ok, here's how we play: you say 'Bloody Mary' 13 times in the mirror. " Kylie lit the candle.
"What happens after that?" Maura asked.
"Supposedly she comes out of the mirror and kills you" Kylie went to turn off the lights when she was stopped by a hand on her wrist.
"I don't to die, Kylie" Maura was shaking. She had no wish to die and this game seemed dangerous.
"Relax Maura, it's just a game." Kylie saw in Maura's eyes the fear that was in the blond.
"What if it's not?" She was close to tears now, but didn't want to show Kylie she was weak.
"Are you scared?" Kylie teased with a devilish grin. Kylie was surprised when Maura let go of her wrist and turned off the light herself.
"I am not a coward." Maura said.
"I never said you were"
"Let's just get this over with" By the dim candle light Maura could just make out their facial features. The flicker of the candle casted an eerie orange glow over them. Maura had never been so scared in her life by a game.
Kylie started the countdown. "On three ok?" Maura nodded.
"1..2…3"
"Bloody Mary"
"Bloody Mary"
"Bloody Mary"
"Bloody Mary"
"Bloody Mary"
The candle flame flickered wildly.
"Bloody Mary"
"Bloody Mary"
Maura was terrified as they continued and saw in the mirror Kylie felt the same.
"Bloody Mary"
"Bloody Mary"
"Bloody Mary"
"Kylie…I don't know if I can go on" Maura whispered franticly.
"We're almost there, you can do it" Kylie whispered back.
"Bloody Mary"
"Bloody Mary"
"Bloody Mary"
They stood together waiting for their deaths. Kylie was to turn on the light when they heard a loud bang. Both girls screamed and grabbed onto each other.
"Kylie is everything ok in there?" They heard a woman's voice. Kylie was instantly relieved to hear her mother's voice. Quickly she blew out the candle and placed it under the sink with the matches. She flipped on the light, sprayed air freshener to cover the candle, flipped on the lights, and opened the door.
"Hey, mom!" Kylie said with a smile and pushed passed her mom pulling Maura with her.
"Why aren't you downstairs?" Her mother asked with a frown.
"Maura was putting her bag up here."
"Is she not sleeping in the tent?"
Kylie frowned. "No"
It was her mother's turn to frown. "And why not?"
"Cause…urm…well…she has this um…she is terribly afraid of spiders. I thought we would hang out up here so she'd have a friend to talk to" Kylie lied.
"Is that true, Maura?"
"Some spiders are very poisonous and they bite." Maura dodged the question making Kylie almost sigh in relief. Her mother seemed to buy it though.
"Well, you girls have fun and come down when you're hungry"
"Bye mom." Kylie shut the door behind her mother and fell against the door. They looked at each other for a second before both girls were laughing hard. They clutched their stomachs and tears fell from their eyes. Falling onto Kylie's bed they laid until their laughter subsided.
"I told you it was just a game" Kylie looked over at Maura with a smile.
"I was scared" Maura frowned.
"Well what do you want to do now?" Kylie asked.
"Do you have any movies?" Maura asked.
"Duh!" Kylie opened her t.v. stand to reveal about 30 movies. "Pick what you want."
Maura looked over all the movies. She read the titles starting from the right. Finally she came to 'Annie'.
"This one looks good" Maura handed it to Kylie, who popped it in the VCR. They climbed onto the bed and watched as the orphans sang while doing their morning chores.
"I wish I could be with them" Kylie said to herself.
"Why? You wouldn't have anything" Maura didn't want to tell her that she would rather be the one in the orphanage.
"I'm so lonely here."
Maura was almost speechless. She was the one who was lonely. Kylie had many friends and lots of nice stuff. Maura had nice stuff too, but she was lonely and her parents never talked to her. It was something Maura had accepted until met Kylie. Now she knew what it was like to have a friend. Even if they had only been friends for a day, it was better than to have never met her. Kylie had everything Maura had ever wanted and to know the brunette girl didn't appreciate it made her want them to switch places.
"You have me" Maura told her. It was a desperate plea of friendship, but the blond didn't care. She needed it.
"Yeah, I do don't I?" Kylie smiled at her and focused back on the movie. Maura smiled back satisfied with girl's answer.
Maura had started to find the movie less interesting now that Annie was adopted. She had loved the interaction with the other children and she looked at it as a learning experience. She really had no idea what to say and do around Kylie. She had been letting Kylie take lead, letting her pick what to do. She only suggested the movie to collect her thoughts. It only puzzled her when Kylie so easily spit out the lie to her mother once she had recovered. She had kept her voice even and didn't appear to be nervous. She needed to know the brunette's secret.
Maura took a look around the room again really noticing the details. Everything she had appeared new. Maura's own bedroom was simple yet didn't have any personal touches. Yet Kylie's room had pictures and clothes scattered on the floor. 'To Kill a Mocking Bird' was carelessly tossed onto the floor by the desk. It suddenly dawned on Maura what the blond didn't have. Control. She didn't control what she had, the clothes she wore, the way her room was designed, were all out of her control. Even the way she acted was controlled with her father's temper and her mother's silent pleas to behave. There was Maura could do to gain control either. It was something Maura could never have, but now she desperately wanted, needed.
Of course she could always run away. She could run from all the slaps and cuss words. Where would she go? To Kylie's? No. Kylie would only laugh at her and call her a coward because she would actually tell Kylie the truth about what was going on at home. Her mother had made her swear to keep it a secret. She trusted her mother enough to know that when she said it was an important secret to keep, it was an important secret to keep.
So that left Maura with nowhere to go and nowhere to run to. She had to fight through the pain. Somewhere down the road she could only hope it would make her stronger. It might even show her father she was worth the burden she had caused him. Now, looking at Kylie and seeing her fast asleep, she picked up To Kill a Mocking Bird and started to read. She prayed it would teach her more of the outside world. She needed to make a friend who she could run to. The police could protect her, or even better a detective. Maybe even a homicide detective. As Maura sat she started to hate that idea. She saw herself as the victim. The victim who had been stabbed in the heart and left to die on the cold pavement. She would have been left behind in life because she had gotten in the way of someone's plan for the future . She tried to shake the thought from her mind, telling herself that she had to stay positive. The idea still lingered in her mind because she knew that detective would care for her. It was all too bittersweet.
[TBC]