Hiya! What's up? Head's up feet down! Anyway, thanks to rucas and whispering hart for reviewing on chapter two and about what I said first… yes, I do have a very… or more like extremely weird sense of humor.
It's gone back to Cory's point of view
"Cory." When I came out into the kitchen that morning. She hadn't even greeted me good morning before Topanga called my name. And her voice was wearing a more than somewhat distressed tone. "About Tony…" Topanga had been sitting on the edge of the sofa by the sleeping Hispanic. But now she got onto her feet and slowly and with her whole body telling me about her distress she came over to me.
"What about her?" For Topanga to be able to have her attention on the young female on our couch I picked out toast bread, peanut butter and strawberry Jam along with milk from the cupboard and the fridge and put it on the table before I realized Topanga hadn't answered. "Topanga?" I looked up on her, she was standing still right by the table with her hands in her pockets and a serious expression on her face. "What about… her?" I nodded towards Tony and picked up a bread and the knife with peanut butter.
"You know that thing she scared Auggie with yesterday? About a son that walked into his father's footsteps that died because of it?" I sighed- how could I forget. It had been everything Auggie talked about last night. And he was scared half to death. Then nodded still looking down and putting jam on the peanut butter. "It wasn't just any father and son…" I nodded again, without looking up. "It was Tony's dad and brother."
I stopped in the middle of the movement with putting peanut butter onto another bread to put it over the first one and looked up at Topanga. I had expected, well at least hoped that she would look less serious this time around so it wouldn't be true. But she only wore the same look on her face that she did when she was watching the news about all of the tragedy and wars in the world.
"Oh God." I let go of the breads and sunk down onto one of the chairs. "Are… Are you sure? How? What happened? Do you want to tell me what she said? Should we not for Tony's privacy? How could she tell you? Is there something we could do to help?" One question after the other popped up into my head and demanded to be asked. "How did she tell you?" Topanga sighed and sat down next to me. "Are you alright?" It was the last question coming up- and I knew that if this had just been another day and another talk she would not have been happy about it. Right now she didn't seem to care though.
"She had a temperature tonight." Topanga started. "I woke up from hearing her throwing up and got up to comfort and then let her stay in the sofa. During the night, her fever rose and she got a bit delirious. During that time she said that it was her dad and brother and that they were both in heaven." Topanga sighed again. "Apparently they both died in the army. But that's all I know. And Cor…" I raised an eyebrow. "Don't go too fast forward with her. Then she's never going to let us help her."
I nodded yes. I understood perfectly well what was needed. And past my wife I looked towards the couch and to the sleeping one. I drew a shaky breath- what had really been going on in this girl's life until she was this broken?
I had a good feeling that with Tony being Tony. I might never know. But as she was still sleeping and none of us had the heart to wake her up I continued making the PB&J's while Topanga checked her schedule to find that she didn't have to be in court just today. Just perfect timing huh?!
I left the house and went along with Auggie to his school before I and Riley met Maya on the subway station. Maya and Riley walked away without me and I got into the last wagon of the train and sat down. And I could probably just have sat down in someone's lap because I was dreaming so far away and thinking about what had happened to Tony. And now when I had just a little bit of answers- I wasn't so sure if I would have wanted them.
"God Tony." As we neared the station closest to the school I put my head in my hands. "Why won't you just let me help you?" I looked up, and noticed several people looking at me. "Dang! Did I say that out loud?" A black man that stood closest to me nodded. "Oh, sorry." I stood up, and then left the train but didn't catch up with the girls as I didn't want to be at risk of embarrassing them again. Thank God they hadn't seen me talking out loud there.
During the lesson I could see several people looking around, even if it probably wouldn't have took since they would all have been able to hear if Tony was there. But I decided not to say anything. Not because of that I didn't want to spread what Tony had been through. But because I had the confidentiality and actually did want to keep Tony's private life just that- private!
"Hello." When I came home that day I noticed Tony sitting in the sofa changing between the channels on the TV. "Feeling any better." Tony didn't answer and I walked over to Topanga. Who was, wearing the same distressed expression as earlier looking towards Tony. Frowning a bit more for Tony's ever move it seemed. And I would have done anything and everything in my power to take away Topanga's worry, and Tony's pain.
Actually, that was pretty much how it went for the next couple of days. Topanga worried and stayed home, Tony didn't say a word about what she had said when she went delirious to anyone. And the very least to me and my wife. In Tony's class they continued with their works to present a man or boy who had made a big change in their life. And even though Riley had decided to, like she said make it about Auggie. I could several times find Maya glance to me with a mischievous smile. But as soon as I was near she hid whatever she was writing.
Tony returned to school on Friday. Topanga tried to keep her home until after the weekend but the younger Hispanic just refused to listen. But still sat several wagons away from both me and the girls. And by the time we reached John Quincy middle high- she was angrier and ruder than ever. And while we were on our way through the hallway I decided to try just one more time.
"Tony?" She didn't look at me. "Please, can't you let me help you?"
"What do you want?" Tony asked, and the rude tone was back. "Seriously, I never asked for anything from you. Why do you keep on stalking me?" I suppressed a sigh, Tony had spoken before I had the time to say anything.
"Tony, let me help you." The young girl just snorted at me. "Tones, we're here for you. Why won't you let us?" She just glared up at me and my heart was breaking worse than ever. "What happened to make you so broken?" The questioning had left my lips before I had the time to stop it. And quickly, just for a very split second I could see something flashing by in Tony's eyes. Before she threw her arms out, and there right in the hallway she let the tough cover and the rough attitude on again.
"Do you know what? Fine! So what do you want to know about me that you think you can help me with?" She gave a snorting laughter. "Do you want to know that my dad was in the army, that I only met him twice before he died when I was five? Huh!" I tried to stop her. This was what I hadn't been so sure if I wanted to know- but either way. This wasn't the right way! "Do you want to know about my brother- Jesse? Do you want to know how I begged and begged and begged for him not to join the army for being afraid that he would follow in dad's footsteps more than just that?"
"Tony I…"
"Oh, be quiet now. You wanted to know. Didn't you? So did you want to know that Jesse didn't follow my advice? That he PROMISED me he'd be back? Do you want to know he had a freaking daughter when he was fifteen, just like I am now? And as soon as he could he joined the army, four years later only? While both I and his girlfriend, our mum and his daughter begged him not to? That he wanted to support his kid?"
More and more students had followed the loud tone in Tony's voice and were staring towards the Hispanic taking a few nervous steps back and forth before she gave another short snort before she continued.
"Do you want to know I told him? I told him that it was going to turn out like it did. I told him that Kayla would need her dad a lot more than what she would have ever needed that money. And I told him that Sienna would need the father of her daughter. I told him that mum wouldn't need the money but only her son and her first- born. I told him! I told him everything was going to turn out JUST THE WAY IT DID!
Tony is portrayed by Isabela Moner, Jesse by Leo Howard, their mum by Gwyneth Palthrow, Sienna by Zendaya and Kayla by Millie Davis.
Random fact
Actually, the idea to Tony's story and this whole fanfic came from a song. What song it is will turn up in the next chapter. But all it took was that I really, really wanted to write something girl meets world. And that song and voila!
