Author's note: Alright, the next chapter is here and the plot is moving along even further. You're either going to hate me for writing this chapter or hate me even further for the ending. Merlin finds out more about Vivian and Arthur does something completely unexpected. College is great, for anyone that cares, and I hope you are having a wonderful Sunday.

Warnings: Rape. If this chapter is more disturbing than the rest, then I apologize.

Disclaimer: I don't own shit.

Hey girl, open your walls,

Play with your dolls,

We'll be a perfect family,

When you walk away; it's when we really play,

You don't hear me when I say,

Mom, please wake up,

Dad's with a slut,

And your son is smoking cannabis,

No one ever listens; this wallpaper glistens,

Don't let them see what goes down in the kitchen

(Merlin's p.o.v)

A week passed, then another, and another. It was a Friday, a cold, bleak, Friday in November. It was the twenty-sixth, almost into December. It was like he was floating; being tossed through the wind without any feeling. He felt numb inside; a freezing aching pain in his chest. Just last Saturday, he and his Mum had to go shopping because he had lost a lot more weight. She was worried; he knew that and she was starting to blame herself.

However, he was more worried about her. She looked tired, like she wasn't getting enough sleep. Some days she couldn't even get out of bed because she was so weak. She complained of dizziness and headache, and for three days last week she didn't eat. Her stomach hurt, or so she said. He believed her; he noticed the changes. Was Uther hurting his mother too? Or was there something more going on?

So he stood outside Vivian's house, not really sure if he should be there. She hadn't been to school since the Halloween party. When he spoke to her friends, they just shrugged and said she was sick. They didn't say how sick, but one did mention something about a flu. But could a flu last three weeks? He didn't know, but that didn't sound right.

He knocked on the door twice, waiting for Vivian or one of the servants to answer. He was tempted to leave when the door opened, revealing the short girl with curly blonde hair. Her eyes widened slightly when she saw him. "Merlin, what are you doing here?" she hissed.

"We have a project to work on, remember?" he brought up casually, a little offended by how she snapped at him. "And you haven't been at school since the Halloween party. Are you alright?"

Her eyes softened a little and she held the door open wider. "Come on in," she moved away, allowing him to go through. "I'm grounded right now. My dad saw me come home all drunk and he was mad. Really, really, mad."

He narrowed his eyes. "And he's been keeping you in the house?"

She nodded. "I don't know for how long, but it's almost been a month since I was at school. He's called in, saying I'm really sick with some flu, but he can't keep that up forever. He won't let me leave, Merlin!"

"What happened when you got home?"

She glanced at the door almost nervously, very out of character from her usual bubbly, yet kind of weird sense of humor. "He waited till you and Arthur left. Then he took his belt off and whipped me with it a few times," she motioned for him to follow her up to her room, poking her head out the door to make sure no one was following them. She then closed it, removing her shirt with her back to him.

Dozens of long, pink scars were across her small, pale back. Some were longer than others, gleaming in the dim light of her room. Dried blood lay on them and she put her shirt back on, glaring at the wall. "It seemed to go on for hours," she continued numbly. "I couldn't move; it hurt so much. He just kept yelling and hitting. I had a black eye for two weeks; that's why I wasn't at school. He didn't want anyone to suspect."

She wrapped her arms around herself, sitting on the edge of her bed. He didn't know what to do; what could he do? Tell the police that her father was hitting her? "I'm sorry," he found himself saying. "Maybe we shouldn't have taken you home; the hospital might have been a better place-"

"Don't!" she snapped, shaking her head. "Don't apologize; I don't need it. It was my fault for going when he told me not to. I deserved what I got; I always deserve what I get," her eyes stared blankly at the floor. "He told me I was the reason Mum left him; that everything is my fault. That if I wasn't such a bad girl, he would treat me better."

"Treat you better?"

She waved her hand dismissively. "Ah, well, it doesn't matter now," she leaned back on her bed precariously, stretching like a cat. "So, you want to work on that project some more?"

"Oh, uh, sure. If you want to."

She leaned forward, chin placed on her hands. "I want to learn more about you. You see, I know more about you than you think."

"Like what?"

"That we are the same," the words she said on the night he and Arthur found her ran through his mind. "But how long can you keep pretending everything is alright?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," he dug a notebook out of his bag, pretending that his heart wasn't thumping violently in his chest. "I don't think we're the same."

"Don't lie!" she glared at him furiously. "We are the same! Even if you won't outwardly say what's wrong with you, I know what it is. I am the same way; only I've learned to embrace it. There's no escape for either of us," she didn't smile; only stared blankly at him. "You haven't give up hope that someone will help you. That someone will hear your screams of pain and run in to stop the violent act. To spend night after night wondering if he's coming back to your bed for another go. To go to school and talk with your so-called friends who think they know everything about you. That is where we are different, Merlin."

He sat there, speechless by her outburst. "Vivian," he began, the puzzle pieces finally falling into place. "Is someone…hurting you?"

"Doesn't matter," she shook her head. "Nothing matters. The second I graduate, I'm leaving and never coming back. He won't be able to stop me! No more, no more, no more!"

"Vivian!" he called out, taking her hand. "Calm down. Please, won't you tell me what's wrong?"

"You already know what's wrong, you idiot!" she snapped. "Why won't you get your head out of your arse and figure it out!"

She then froze at the sound of a car pulling into the drive way. She dashed towards the window, seeing a man with thin blonde hair that looked like it was residing a bit due to age. He was dressed formally, stepping out of the passenger side and looking up towards the house. "My father is home!" she called out, pushing him away from the window. "Into the closet!" she pushed him, scooting stuff aside and closing the door. "He didn't see you, so we're good!" she shoved his backpack under the bed, making sure the closet was shut before hissing silently. "Be quiet! If he finds you, we're both dead!"

Through the keyhole of the closet door, he could see Vivian sit on her bed, staring blankly at the wall. The door to her room opened and the man, Vivian's father, walked in. "Hello Vivian," he greeted, removing his coat and setting it on the chair. "Did you have a good day?"

"Yes," she said blankly as he sat on the bed next to her. "Did you have a good day, Daddy?"

"Oh yes," he leaned towards her, pushing her body against the bed, nuzzling the juncture that connected her neck and shoulder. "And you can make it better."

He wanted to look away, but he couldn't. His eyes widened at the horrible act of taboo that was occurring before his eyes. He wanted to break down the doors and save her, but she locked the closet and there was no way he could get out without her opening them. The man, her father, stripped her down to nothing, using her body in such an unholy way he wanted to vomit.

He couldn't move. It was like his body was frozen with fear; a feeling of nostalgia hitting him like an icy cold wave. He'd seen this scene, over and over again. Instead of Vivian and her father, it was him and Uther. His face smooshed into the bed, the slap of wet skin hitting skin and the smells of sex filling the room. Her father groaned, but she remained quiet. Eyes staring numbly up into the ceiling as her father pushed himself into her. He could see tears threatening to build in her eyes, but they did not fall.

Was she truly broken? Yes, he could see it. She didn't even fight him; she just let him have his way with her. In just under two minutes, it was over. Her father collapsed on her, groaning the name Charlotte and then pulled out of her. Buckling his pants back up and grabbing his jacket, he went back to kiss her deeply. "You're a good girl, Vivian," he crooned, stroking her head like a pet. "So much like your mother."

She didn't say anything, just stared right through him. He left, the sound of the shower being turned on. She collapsed on the bed, slowly putting her clothes back on and then trudged slowly to the closet door. "Now you know," she stated, stumbling on her way to her desk. "If you dare tell anyone, I will kill you!"

He just reached out to her, pulling her into his arms. She froze, obviously not expecting the hug. "I'm sorry I didn't see it before," his face was slightly pressed in her hair; body so much smaller than his. "I should have known what you were hinting at this entire time."

"I know a dead person when I see one," she trembled in his arms, body shaking like a leaf in the wind. "Aren't you going to call me a whore? That I deserve to be used as his wife? I'm not my mother," she trembled again, tears threatening to break from her eyes. "I don't want to be my mother!"

She sobbed quietly into his chest, with him smoothing her hair. "I don't think you're a whore. If you are, than so am I. We're the same," he could feel tears threatening from his own eyes as well. "I don't know how to get out of my situation. I…didn't know what to do!"

"Me either!" she lifted her head to meet his eyes. "Is there any way out? I hate him, but…he's my father! I don't know, I'm so confused. I don't know who to go to! Those people, counselors and doctors, they make it sound so simple to get help. But it's not simple! I feel so trapped, Merlin. I don't know who to turn to."

"You have me," he held her tighter. "I'm here, I understand better than any of those stupid counselors."

"Hold me," she commanded. "Just for a minute more. I think I'm too weak to stand on my own right now."

"Okay."

So he stood there, rubbing her back slightly as her sobs quieted down. It was strange to see her cry. Next to Morgana and his Mum, she was the strongest person he knew. For how long had her father been doing this to her? Yet she was one of the Queen Bees of the school and made good grades. Yet to come home and be raped by her father and still go to school with a smile on her face. Well, she had to be like steel. Steel that was slowly rusting.

"You need to go home," she muttered into his chest. "You need to do it now before he gets out of the shower. Go!"

She threw his bag at him, motioning for him to run down the hallway and to the stairs. He had just closed the door the house when he heard the shower shut off. Would Vivian be in trouble again? Would her father come after her again? If he called the police and reported what he had seen, would her father deny it? Would Vivian testify against him? He somehow doubted that; having a sinking feeling that she was trapped.

BZZZZZZZZ

His phone vibrated in his pocket, the repeated buzzing signaling he had an incoming call. "Hello?" he asked, bringing the phone to his ear.

"Merlin," Arthur's voice called into his ear. "You need to go to the Northside hospital. It's your Mum."

In no time, he was standing in the waiting room, pacing back and forth in anticipation. His friends had already replied to his texts when he was sitting in the cab, being transported to the hospital in fifteen minutes. Morgana was very upset; as were Gwen and Elena. Mithian asked him if he needed anything and Freya said she would be there with him, but she was at a convention with her parents in another town.

So he paced in the hospital after telling the receptionists who he was. They allowed him to wait outside her room, the doctors' busy working on her and making him stay outside. The only one allowed in there right now was Uther. He was so nervous, pacing around and digging in his nails into his palms. What was he going to do? If his Mum died, Uther would have total control over him. There would be no escape.

"Merlin!"

He heard Arthur's voice come down from the hallway. He was still in his football gear, looking a bit sweaty and unkempt from running all the way to the hospital. "Father called me during practice and I called you as soon as I heard," he panted, wiping his forehead. "Did they tell you what was wrong?"

"She's been taking sleeping pills," he answered, finding it all very hard to believe. His mother had always been a sound sleeper. It didn't make any sense that she needed pills. "They said she overdosed a little and that's why she's been feeling unwell these past few weeks. They're stabilizing her right now. If she dies…"

"Merlin!" Arthur cut off, grabbing him by the shoulders. "Your mother is not going to die. I promise you that."

"How do you know?" he snapped, glaring up at him heatedly. "Are you a doctor?"

"No," Arthur glared back at him. "But I know that they put her on meds just in time. She's not going to die. Not for a long, long time."

His glare died down a little, and he fixed his attention to the floor. Arthur sighed, stepping towards the nurse that had just walked out of the room. "Are we allowed to go in now?" he asked politely.

"Not yet," she shook her head, adjusting her glasses. "I will tell you when you can, so don't worry. The doctors are positive she'll recover just fine. They want to run a few more tests first, alright?"

Arthur nodded. "Thank you,"

She walked away, turning the corner to the right. Merlin shook his head. "That doesn't make me feel any better."

"Well it's better than nothing," Arthur countered, leaning against the wall. "At least they're positive about the situation."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means your negativity is just painful to listen to," Arthur retorted, rolling his eyes. "I understand that you're worried, but you don't need to be so pessimistic. The doctors here are some of the best in the UK. My father would only get the best for her."

"Well that's fucking wonderful," he grumbled. "Maybe your father can just cure her with his money then, hm?"

Arthur pushed himself off the wall, storming towards him. For a minute, Merlin thought he had crossed the line and Arthur was going to hit him. He moved till his back hit the wall, eyes closing briefly in anticipation for the hit that was going to come, but it never did. Arthur just grabbed his hand, dragging him in the opposite direction the nurse went in.

Arthur poked his head into the chapel, then pushed Merlin inside. It was vacant; empty without a single person. A lone cross stood on the alter, gleaming in the late afternoon sunlight. Merlin pulled away from Arthur, glaring at him. "Why are we here?"

"To get you to calm down before you freak out on someone. I don't care if you freak out on me, but it would make your Mum upset if you do that to anyone else."

The blonde had a point. Damn. He paced around, trying to get his hands to stop trembling. While was worried about his mother, he felt guilty about worrying for himself more. If she died, he was defenseless. He would be an orphan; permanently trapped in Uther's household. Uther would have full custody over him since his father had died years ago. What was he going to do? "Da died years ago," his voice cracked a little. "I don't want to lose Mum. Not now!"

"Hey," Arthur's voice softened a little and to his surprise, he pulled him into his embrace. "Don't cry. She's not going to die, I promise."

"You don't look like a doctor," he mumbled, face as red as Arthur's football shirt. While the taller boy was slightly sweaty, he didn't at all mind. He had deodorant on and he smelled like the earth. His arms were strong, supporting his weak and thin frame. It felt right to be hugged by him, though his mind was screaming at him that he wasn't worthy. That he was disgusting and a whore. Yet, he pushed past those thoughts, focusing on the sound of Arthur's heart beating against his chest.

"I'm not a doctor," Arthur admitted. "Not that smart."

"I don't think you're dumb."

"Never said I was," they still stood there; their silhouettes shadowed on the wall behind them. "No, when I am graduated and done with college, I will inherit father's company. Whether I want to or not."

He lifted his head to look up at Arthur in confusion. "You don't want your father's company?"

Arthur shook his head. "I want to be an Actuary," Arthur confessed, cheeks now a light pink. "But father says that the company deals with bonds and stocks, and the career I want doesn't have what it takes. He said I will get the family business even if I don't want it."

"But that's not fair!"

"Life's not fair, Merlin," Arthur argued firmly. "Sometimes we have to do things we don't want to do for the sake of someone else. My father just wants me to be successful; what parent doesn't want that? You want to be a musician, don't you?"

"No," Merlin shook his head. "I want to teach. I love kids and I love sharing music with those willing to learn. Mum will support me no matter what, but if she dies…"

"Merlin!" Arthur snapped. "Don't think like that! Even if something did happen to her, do you really think you'd be alone?"

"No," he admitted softly.

"That's right. You'd have my father, Morgana, Mordred, Gwen, Leon, Perci, Gwaine, Elyan, Elena, Mithian, Freya, and Will. The list goes on," Arthur sighed. "And you'd have me."

Arthur's eyes locked into his. Bright blue colliding with his dark blue orbs. Then, the worst and possibly best thing in the world happened. Arthur's lips met his. He braced himself, imagining that his kiss would be cold and forceful, but they weren't. They were soft and gentle; warm against his cool ones. His hands stopped trembling; lips moving against Arthur's as if they had a mind of their own. It felt right; he felt safe and wanted. He felt loved.

And then, he thought of Gwen and instantly he pulled away. "What are we doing?" he sputtered, tearing himself out of Arthur's arms. "You're dating Gwen! Our parents are married! This is wrong!"

Arthur didn't say anything. He just marched off angrily and Merlin could feel his emotions project off him. He collapsed down to his knees, holding his face in his hands.

"What have we done?" he asked. "What have I done?"

Places, places, get in your places,

Throw on your dress and put on your doll faces,

Everyone thinks that we're perfect,

Please don't let them look through the curtains,

Picture, picture, smile for the picture,

Pose with your brother won't you be a good sister?

Everyone thinks that we're perfect,

Please don't let them look through the curtains,

DOLLHOUSE I see things that nobody else sees

DOLLHOUSE I see things that nobody else sees

~Dollhouse Melanie Martinez~

Oh snap, things are heating up. Well, please review!