a/n: mature subjects are explored in this chapter. proceed with caution if that kind of thing makes you uncomfortable. i'll put an * when said content begins and a line break when it ends. from there it will be briefly referred to and/or mentioned.
Exhausted, Clementine no longer had the energy to fight Troy. The water and granola Luke offered earlier was nice while it lasted, but the problem was that it didn't last long enough. The gnawing in her stomach returned as did the dizziness in her head. Troy's grip on her arms soon became the only reason she could walk at all, otherwise Clem was sure she'd be on the floor.
"Over there," Tavia pointed to a lone, grey door. "Take her into that back room. I'll join you shortly. Carver needs me to give these announcement papers to Rebecca." She waved them, "among a few other things. Then I'll be back here to finish up."
Troy nodded, tightening his hold on Clementine, before heading toward the door.
Anything happens you scream. The girl's heart thumped hard in her chest. She didn't want a reason to scream, but looking up at Troy made her fear that she might have to. There was malice in his eyes, and he obviously didn't like Clem. To him she was trouble. She actually already got him in trouble and punished. Even though it wasn't her fault, Troy wanted someone to blame, and she was easily his first pick.
Clementine did her best to swallow her panic. Everything would be fine. Luke said that he'd be right there if something happened. He promised to keep her safe, and he meant it. Clem could feel that he cared for her already, so he'd keep to his word. Right?
As Troy unlocked the door, Clementine looked around the halls for Luke. Where was he? She couldn't see him, and that meant he didn't see her either. A hand wrapped around her shoulder and tried pulling her into the room.
Not yet. She begged. Clementine twisted in Troy's grasp, pushed against his hands, kicked — just anything that would buy time with the last bit of energy she had. Luke needed to see where she was. He wouldn't know anything once she was beyond that door, which meant he'd be useless if she needed help.
When the strength of her resistance dwindled, Clementine called Luke's name as Troy managed to drag her back. He dropped her the moment she was in and slammed the door shut. Meanwhile, Clementine knelt panting on the floor, out of breath from struggling and yelling.
The girl squeezed her eyes closed. Please let him have heard me. She wasn't comfortable alone with Troy, and with the way he looked at her Clem had every right to feel uncertain.
"Don't you fucking touch me." She spoke with venom. Troy had stepped forward, his hands outstretched.
He smirked. "It's kind of my job right now to touch you." The man grabbed her, tugging her to her feet. "You wouldn't want me to get in trouble again because of you, would you?"
Did he honestly think she cared what Carver did to him? Sure Clementine felt bad, but not enough to save his skin at the risk of her own. Troy stood close. Close enough that Clem noticed the lines in his face and that his eyes were about level with hers. Good. It would make what she was about to do that much easier.
"You gonna—"
She spit in his face. It was stupid. She knew that, but his disgust and surprise almost made the mistake worth it. Almost. There couldn't have been a worse time for her to take a power trip. In this situation Clementine held very little influence, and much like Carver, she was at Troy's mercy.
It was only when she looked at the twist in his demeanor that Clem began to regret her action. Her heart stilled in her chest. Her blood ran cold. She couldn't breathe.
He didn't even say anything to retaliate, which told Clementine that she really screwed up. While wiping his face Troy pulled his gun from its holster. He pointed it at her. "Take the jacket off."
God, she was so stupid. Why had she done that? "Troy—" Clementine could hardly speak above a whisper.
"Do it, damn it." His voice was cold like ice. Troy was done playing games with her. He was going to make her empathize with him. Make her feel the pain and degradation Carver put him through.
* With trembling fingers, Clementine peeled off her coat. Her long sleeve purple shirt came next. Then the jeans. The shoes. By time she got to her socks, Clem was holding back sobs. Troy stood so close to her now. She could feel his body heat as he placed his finger under her chin, forcing her to look at his devious sneer.
"Enough," he said.
A sob bubbled from Clementine's lips and tears pooled in her eyes. "Please stop."
"Don't make a sound," was his response, followed by the cold press of the gun against her side.
After a moment she gasped. His filthy hand climbed up her stomach, squeezing and grabbing at things that he shouldn't. She wanted to vomit. She was going to vomit.
Luke.
Her lower regions were sore, but even more tender were her breasts. His hands hadn't been very gentle. They were rough and eager, poking and prodding in areas they didn't belong in. When he finished, Troy ordered her to put her clothes back on. It was clear that he didn't think twice about what he'd done. He didn't even look ashamed or apologetic. Mostly he stared at Clem as if he'd accomplished something. And in his mind he had. He basked in her mortification, relished in actually. This was his way of getting revenge for the trouble she'd gotten him in, and for now he would call it even.
Clementine couldn't find the strength to move just yet. Instead she sat on the floor, dazed. Her first instinct was to deny what happened or pretend it didn't altogether. Yet just next to her were the clothes she'd been forced to shed, and her aching body itself was proof enough of what happened.
On the other side of the room Troy rummaged through Clem's bag. He was convinced that she was hiding a weapon he hadn't found while "searching" her. Of course he'd find nothing. Clementine had thrown her gun before getting in the car, and Luke had taken her hammer.
Luke. Clem became angry at the mere thought of his name. He was supposed to be here. He said he'd be here. So why wasn't he?
"Who's this? Your dad?" Troy squinted at a ripped photo.
Clementine's eyes widened. "No," she fixed him with a hard stare.
"Who the hell is it then?" he turned it this way and that as if the answer were hidden in Lee's face.
Clementine stood, there was motivation to move now. Her hands clenched and unclenched at her sides. She couldn't let him touch Lee. That was the last she had of him and parting with it wasn't acceptable. Troy had fondled her, touched, and groped her. Fine. She would get over that. But damaging Lee Clementine would not.
A slow, mischievous smile spread across the man's face. He held his gun up once more. Though Clem didn't stop until her toes all but touched him. This is something she would not back down from. Soon it became apparent to Troy that this floppy piece of paper was of value, and it was his ticket to mess with the girl some more.
"What if I were to, I don't know, accidentally…" Putting the firearm down, Troy held the picture between his fingers on each hand, threatening to tear it in half.
"Do it and," Clementine used her foot to slide the gun across the floor, away from him and into her hand. That was too easy. She aimed. "And I won't hesitate to shoot your fingers off."
Troy threw his head back and laughed. What the hell was so funny?
When his amusement ceased he settled for a smirk. "There's no bullets left anyway." He used Clementine's words from earlier against her.
In disbelief the girl attempted to fire the gun. Nothing. It made but a pathetic click sound.
The weapon fell to the ground with a clatter, and Troy's laugh soon filled the air again because he knew. He knew he had pulled one over her. He had allowed Clementine to think that he could kill her, would kill her, in the blink of an eye. She let him defile her because of that terror.
"Oh my God," Clementine breathed, putting a hand to her stomach. She felt like a fool for letting any of this happen. Luke shouldn't have saved her today. Shouldn't have brought her here. Shouldn't have made empty promises. However, she couldn't blame it all on Luke. After all, Clem had been dumb enough to believe in him. A small part of her still did. But it was a very small part.
"You don't want to get on my bad side, kid." Troy stood from his spot on the ground. "You pull that kind of shit on me again and it'll be worse next time."
Clem didn't want to fathom what he meant, even though she had a pretty good idea and visual.
Troy left then, and two slips of paper fell in his wake.
Clementine bent to retrieve them. It was Lee. He'd been torn through his middle, but still he managed a smile at Clem. She hugged him to her chest. In that moment she wished she had been bitten, too. Clementine wished she could've died right there next to Lee because life after him felt unbearable. A day hadn't gone by where she had been truly happy, happy like she had been with him. So what was the point?
Slowly, someone opened the door. Clementine prayed it wasn't Troy back for more. She wasn't sure she'd be able to not put her hands on him if he did. She would strangle him for what he'd done to her and Lee. Would —
"Clem?"
She snapped her head in the voice's direction. For a moment, her heart sputtered. For a moment, she was excited. And then she remembered, "Luke." She sounded less than enthused to say the least.
"Christ," the brunette raced to her side. He tried to overlook the fact that she wore nothing but a bra and panties, but it was a hard thought to neglect. Nonetheless, he focused on her eyes, even if they refused to meet his own brown gaze. "Are you alright? What happened?" Luke paused, taking in her face. Immediately, his alarm faded to quiet concern. "Clem, why are you crying?"
Clementine put her fists to her eyes, "because you were supposed to be here, damn it!" And he hadn't. And because of that she suffered, losing an innocence and a photo she could never get back.
"I tried." Luke offered, but even to him the excuse sounded lame. "I lost track of where you were. Then Rebecca she… she. Jesus, Clem, I'm sorry. Please look at me." He begged. He wanted to see how she felt. If she wouldn't say it, surely Luke would read it in her eyes. Would he see hate swirling in her hazel depths? Disappointment? Distrust? Luke couldn't bear the thought of any of them.
He noticed then the two halves of a picture in her hands. Was that what she was crying over? Luke could fix that. He was good with hands on things. Though first he needed to settle Clementine, who still hadn't finished crying.
Without thinking, he pulled her against him. Not because there was a slight attraction, not because he wanted to touch her, but because he owed it to her. His absence led to the loss of something precious to her. Even if he could fix her picture, the fact that it was ripped in the first place was his fault.
Clementine resisted leaning against him at first, but in the end she laid her damp cheek against his chest. She held less faith in Luke now, yes; although that didn't mean she couldn't use some comfort after Troy's man-handling. No one had embraced her like this since Lee, not anyone with such warmth and security. It felt good to be held for once. To forget about being tough for the world and simply be human. To just be.
"What can I do to help?" Luke asked lowly. He would do anything to redeem himself. He prepared for some difficult task, something impossible, but Clementine demanded only a simple thing.
"Tape. I just need tape."
a/n: oh, luke. she's not just upset about the picture, you dummy. anyway, thank you for the new favorite on this story. :3 really brightened my day to see that! to all who are reading i hope you are still enjoying the story. please stay tuned for more cluke ~