The morning before the last day of school before winter break wasn't one of the best mornings in Erica's life. Sure, it topped many, but she felt that she had messed up. She told Jason that Tracey took her to Trevor's and apparently Jason had mentioned it in passing when Franklin asked if he'd like to have Erica over since he was babysitting him while Johnny was at work. Jason had known his mistake when he said where Erica was, and the fact that she was at Trevor's didn't sit well. If she had just gone that Saturday, she and her cousin would have gotten away with it, but the red head begged to go back because she had drawn him a picture and wanted to give it to him. Tracey hadn't argued and mentioned Edward was in Los Santos, so he drove them up to Sandy Shores, and then drove them back around five.
Erica wondered why it took so long for Michael and Amanda to confront their daughter if they knew about it for almost a week. She realized it was because Tracey was barely home doing God knows what. The nine year old finished getting ready for school and stood at the top of the stairs and heard the screaming match take place downstairs. "Trevor is fine! I don't know why you two have such a problem with him!" Tracey yelled.
"He's a fucking psychopath, that's why!" she heard Michael yell.
"Who cares? He's fine with me and Erica! He's never done anything."
"He murders people. What other explanation do you need? He sells meth and illegal guns, Tracey," Amanda yelled.
"Well, you murdered tons of people and robbed banks. How can you tell me and Erica not to see Uncle Trevor, but I can see you every day?" Tracey countered. "And when you were my age, you were a fucking stripper with a kid and another on the way. So don't you dare tell me what to do!"
"If you're going to talk to your mother that way, get out," Michael said in a dangerously low tone. "And don't be bringin' Erica to Trevor's again, you hear me?"
"She fucking loves him," Tracey shouted. "And I will not keep her away from him." The front door slammed shut and Erica jumped from her spot. She grabbed her backpack and ran out the door only to see the blonde drive away. She slouched in defeat and made her way back inside the house to see who would be driving her to school. The tension in the room was just too much. She didn't particularly want to be alone in a car with either Michael or Amanda, but it was inevitable because Michael grabbed his keys and stormed out of the house. She followed him outside and got in the front seat of the car. She could tell he was incredibly angry as he drove and she almost wished she figured out another way to get to school. But she wasn't afraid of him because she learned the De Santa's wouldn't harm her, so she decided to talk her way through the ride and maybe he'd understand. If she could never see Trevor again, she'd be upset. She really took a liking to him and felt that he was a good person deep down.
"I hope you'll let me see Trevor again," she spoke.
"He's dangerous," he said and concentrated on the road.
"But not towards me."
"I don't get why you kids like him so much. He's psychotic!" he exclaimed. He had a strong grip on the steering wheel, making his knuckles white.
"Maybe, but he's really nice to me. And Tracey, too. I helped clean his trailer," she explained.
"What do you mean?" Michael asked. "Cleaned his trailer?"
"Yeah," Erica nodded. "Tracey's been going to his place every weekend to keep the place clean because she said it was really gross when she first went to visit."
"I had no idea Tracey could clean," Michael replied, but was obviously shocked. "But it's dangerous in general in Sandy Shores. I don't want you going there with her anymore. I can't stop her from going, but I sure as hell can keep you away from that drug infested desert."
"You and Amanda act like I can't handle myself," Erica crossed her arms. "I live in a trailer park worse than that one. I know how to handle myself."
"Yeah, well, you shouldn't go to Sandy Shores." He was rather adamant about this idea that she shouldn't go visit Trevor again. Of course she'd figure out a way to get there herself if she needed to, but that was beside the point.
"And why not? I'm going to go back home in March, aren't I? I don't see the difference."
"The difference is you won't be visiting someone who's insane."
"I'd rather visit an insane person that's really nice to me and knows what I'm going through than go back home to a mommy who doesn't care about me and her boyfriend who hates me," Erica replied coldly. She got out of the car and shut the door without saying goodbye and walked into Los Santos Elementary. She walked into her classroom and sat down. She was forced to sit in the front row due to her bad behavior. She had a feeling today was going to be a long day.
Since it was the last day before winter break, all they did was color, play games, and enjoy a lot of free time. Erica simply read on her tablet as she usually did, but she couldn't focus as much because of all of the kids chattering and eating snacks the teacher and parents brought in. She gave up on reading and just participated. She figured she could be good for just one day in school. Who knows? Maybe Amanda and Michael would be happy without a note to read or a phone call home. Perhaps she'd be rewarded for it because when she did the dishes the other day, Michael took her out for ice cream and told her what a great job she did.
It was time to make gingerbread houses. The students had to form groups of five with their desks in order to share the icing and candy to decorate the houses with. Erica reluctantly joined a group of four girls near her since the teacher chose the groups. She sighed and sat beside Dinusha Panagokos. She was taller than most girls, but not the tallest. She had dark brown skin and these large dark eyes that completely contrasted with Erica's blue ones. Dinusha was chubby, but Erica wouldn't call her fat. She was very quiet and only spoke when spoken to, so she didn't say a word when Erica moved her desk next to hers. The girl sitting across from Erica was Sarah, a brown haired girl with brown eyes who tried to act older than she was. The girl next to her, Hannah, with her dirty blonde hair, did the same. She always wore pink lip gloss that she didn't need. And then there was brown haired blue eyed Jessica who was the leader of her group in which Sarah and Hannah belonged to. Erica would say that the girl was a bit of a bully, always picking on someone. She had made remarks about Erica, but the red head ignored her since harsh words didn't affect her too much.
The three popular girls were chatting quite a bit while Dinusha and Erica remained quiet. Erica couldn't stop thinking about how she may never see Trevor again, and this made her sad on the inside. She really took a liking to him and there was some kind of connection there; it was kind of like he had gone through similar things at her age. She wondered if he could be someone she could vent to when she thought about her mother at times. She'd have to get his email or something from Tracey if she wasn't mad at her for telling Jason where she went. She didn't mean for Franklin to overhear anything and she felt horrible about it.
She absentmindedly built her gingerbread house as the teacher and the aide instructed them in the front of the room. She realized that the house was built and they could begin decorating. She hadn't really been paying attention, but she saw that Dinusha had tears in her eyes as she looked down at her desk. Erica decided to eavesdrop and see what was going on. "It's a shame you don't have a mom. They're great, you know. Two dads is stupid and too weird," Jessica was explaining, being mean as usual. Dinusha was too shy and too quiet to say anything, so she didn't. "Must be weird being adopted. I mean, you weren't even loved by your real parents." Sarah and Hannah put in their share, snickering at everything Jessica was saying.
"Stop it," Erica spoke up. Jessica made her so angry sometimes, especially when she saw what she did to other girls at recess. There had been a time where she wanted to pounce on the girl and slap her in the face, but Jason had held her back.
"Oh, looks like ginger over here says to stop," Sarah chuckled.
"Stay out of it, you freak," Jessica snapped. "This doesn't concern you."
"Dinusha," Erica turned towards her, "I'd rather have two cool dads than a whore for a mother and horseshit for a father," she said, looking directly at Jessica. Nobody here knew she lived in a trailer park for a majority of her life. She knew pretty much every swear in the book, but she rarely used them. However, this girl really made her blood boil. She would use the term trailer park trash to describe herself even though she tried to overcome it.
"What did you say to me?" Jessica seethed. "Look, this isn't your business! Stay out of it." Dinusha was openly crying just looking down at her lap as the comments continued. Erica looked over to the teacher and the aide who were completely oblivious to the situation. Erica stood up and walked over to Jessica's desk.
"That's a nice gingerbread house you've got there," Erica said nonchalantly. The girl put a lot of effort into it since there were patterns on the roof and the doors and windows were carefully placed. "It would be a shame if, oh, I don't know, I did this," Erica took her fist and crushed the graham crackers, ruining Jessica's hard work. The teacher took notice, but before she could get over to the girls in time, Erica spit right into Jessica's face. "Don't you bother her again, or I'll do more to you than just spit in your face, bitch."
"Erica Meyers!" the teacher said, pulling her aside. "Come with me." The girl did as she was told, glaring at the other girl.
"You bother anyone again, I'll mess you up!" she yelled at Jessica before leaving the room.
"What has gotten into you?" the teacher, Miss Johnson, asked her with anger in her tone as she walked her down to the principal's office.
"That girl is always bothering people, and I finally did something about it," Erica looked at her with narrowed eyes. With the teacher and principal, Erica had to explain what had happened. "Jessica was making fun of Dinusha for having two dads and just saying mean things. So, I got really mad, broke her gingerbread house, and spit in her face. She really deserved to get the living shit-pardon me-beaten out of her. And Sarah and Hannah laughed and went along with it the whole time while Dinusha was crying. What those three stupid girls didn't know was where I come from, you have to be tough," she finished.
"Even though this girl is a bully, you can't do that. You have to explain to an adult and tell Miss Johnson here what Jessica is doing," the principal explained. "This is unacceptable behavior, Erica."
"So Jessica doesn't get sent here when she bullies girls every day, but when someone finally sticks up to her, they get in trouble. Makes sense," Erica crossed her arms defiantly.
"Erica, if you go in there and apologize to Jessica, we can forget this whole thing happened, okay? It's the last day before winter break. Let's not ruin this last day for everyone."
"What happens if I refuse to apologize?"
"I'll have no choice but to send you home."
"Then you best send me home because I'm not apologizing to her."
When Amanda came to pick up Erica, she had been angry because of the fact she had been told she broke a kid's gingerbread house and spit in her face. But when she picked her up in the office, she immediately broke down when they got out to the car. On the drive home, Erica explained the full story to Amanda through her tears. She said how sorry she was, but she wasn't sorry that she had done it because that girl deserved it. She also let everything spill out- her thoughts earlier about how she'd never see Trevor again and how she was afraid Tracey was mad at her. She continued to cry and say how much she missed her mother, but at the same time, she didn't want to see her.
Amanda helped her into the house and carried Erica's backpack for her. The two sat on the couch, Erica being a bit uncomfortable sitting so close to someone. She never really cuddled up to someone before due to her mother's constant rejection when she was younger, but there were times when she felt she really needed it; this time was most definitely one of those. It was as if Amanda could read her mind and she put an arm around her, pulling her closer. Erica rested her head on her chest as the tears fell. She closed her eyes, enjoying the close contact. As Amanda stroked her hair in calm, even strokes, she realized she genuinely felt safe with her. She couldn't remember the last time she felt so secure. "Am I in trouble?" she finally asked in a soft voice. She had to know.
"No," Amanda finally responded after a long pause. "You're not in trouble. That girl was asking for it. Maybe she'll finally stop picking on everyone, hmm?"
"I hope so," Erica smiled through her tears, but didn't get up. She was enjoying this too much. "Will I see Trevor again?"
"Why do you ask?"
"I really like him," Erica's tears stopped. "I overheard you talking to Tracey today. I know there's something weird about him, but I don't think he's so dangerous. I mean, he didn't do anything bad when me and Tracey were there."
"Sweetie, he's done things that I'd rather not repeat," Amanda replied.
"But maybe," Erica sat up and looked directly into Amanda's eyes. "Maybe he just needs people to care about him. Maybe he wouldn't be so bad if we were nice to him." Before Amanda could respond, the house phone rang. She got up to answer it even though she never answered the house phone. It seemed as if she was trying to avoid the entire situation. "It's for you, Erica," Amanda held the phone out to her. "It's Dinusha."
"Thanks," Erica said. She took the phone and sprinted up the stairs to her room and shut the door. "Hello?"
"Hi, Erica. It's Dinusha," the nine year old on the other line responded. "I just called to say thank you. Nobody really stands up to Jessica."
"It's really no problem," Erica shrugged.
"I just didn't really expect that from you because, well, you know…"
"I get in trouble a lot?" Erica laughed. "Yeah, well, it's one thing to get in trouble, but it's another thing to be a bully. I hate people like her."
"Thanks so much for sticking up for me, though. It means a lot. Anyway, maybe over winter break we can do something together. I see you reading a lot, so maybe we can go to the library or book store one day after Christmas," Dinusha suggested.
"Sure!" Erica said and winced since she sounded too excited for her liking. "You like reading, too?"
"Yeah, but I don't read anything like you do. I saw you reading complicated stuff," Dinusha giggled. The two chatted for a little longer until the other girl had to go to the grocery store with her parents. Erica hung up the phone, smiling to herself. Had she made another friend already? Her entire attitude had changed from sad and angry at everything to having a positive outlook. She put the phone back on the receiver downstairs and saw Amanda watching television on the couch. She wasn't sure why she did it, but she plopped down next to her and put her head on Amanda's lap.
Hey guys! I'd like to thank BasaFILLET for Dinusha Panagokos! I'd also like to thank the people who reviewed last chapter. I am so glad I didn't butcher Trevor's character like that! I will say, reviews like those always put a smile on my face. Thanks so much! And thank you to the readers and people who followed/favorited!
