Chapter 11 - Nightmares

After the meal, they all began to bring some of the stuff from the 'bago into the house. There was still plenty to do around the place, but Thomas said Tobin shouldn't need to spend another night on the uncomfortable floor when he's got a perfectly good bed inside. Tobin couldn't get the words out that he wasn't entire comfortable being back in the old house. But once they all got inside, the floodlights filling the interior with pure light, it didn't seem so bad. Maybe it was the new flooring or the disappearance of the stains but he didn't feel like wanting to throw up now. Fangs and Toni walked down the corridor carrying the duffle bags with himself and Thomas following behind.

"There you guys are. You want us to carry any of your stuff in?" Toni asked, hitching the bag onto her shoulder.

When Tobin peered around the open door of his sisters room he found Sweet Pea and Cassie sat on the edge of the bed. He felt embarrassed intruding on their time, but they didn't pull away quickly like they were interrupted. If anything they both had a more relaxed air about them both. Like they both got over whatever it was holding them both apart during dinner. Whilst they were eating earlier he kept glancing over and seeing them avoiding each other's eyes. It was painful to watch. Tobin was glad when he saw a small tension ease from his sister's eyes. He would never tell her, but he was worried she was pushing towards the edge. Edge of what, he didn't know. But he didn't want to see her swallowed by the abyss.

"No", Cassie sighed, subtly pulling her hand out of Sweet Peas. "I'll sort it all out tomorrow. I'm kinda beat."

"What?" exclaimed Fangs. "How?"

Cassie shrugged with a lazy smile, "I'm a growing girl."

"Did you want any of us to stick around tonight?" Toni asked, her eyes darting towards Sweet Pea.

Tobin watched as his sister avoided looking at Sweet Pea who looked down at his empty hands whilst he rubbed them together, he too avoiding the direction the conversation was going in.

"No, that's okay," Cassie replied, a faint blush colouring her cheeks. She quickly got up off the bed and walked over to them. "Need a hand, Tobe?"

Tobin smiled and shook his head, Cassie led them down the corridor to Tobin's room. He looked down at the floor when he passed the closed door to their parents old room.

"Wow, this is a blast from the past," Fangs said as they all entered the bedroom. Fangs and Toni put down the bags next to the bed. Tobin looked around his old room and realised it felt like it always did. Comfortable. Warm. Safe.

"Are you staying here tonight?" Cassie asked with a frown.

Tobin looked around the room and realised there was no bad feelings about this room. That his bed looked more comfortable than any bed in the world in that moment.

"Yeah," Tobin nodded. "I think so."

"Good," Thomas said. "It's warmer in here then that Winnebago. I'll give you a hand changing the sheets before I head off. Toni did you want to help Cassandra with hers-"

"That's okay, Thomas," Cassie interrupted. "I can do it tomorrow. I'm going to stay in the 'bago tonight anyway. I'm too beat to do anything else."

"I can do it for you," Toni said wanting to be helpful. "At least you want have it to do tomorrow."

Cassie looked like she wanted to argue, but instead smiled and replied, "Thanks, Toni. That would be great."

"I'll go and get the sheets for you," she added and disappeared out the door.

Toni and Fangs slowly turned around and looked at Sweet Pea.

"Well?" Toni quietly asked expectantly at Sweet Pea just stared back, giving nothing away.

"What?" Sweet Pea replied with a guarded expression.

"How is she? Did she say anything?" Toni asked quickly.

"Did you make out" Fangs quietly asked with an expectant look.

Toni gave him an exasperated look but then looked back to Sweet Pea for an answer. Tobin heard this all whilst he and Thomas took the sheets from his old bed. Thomas rolled his eyes at Tobin, who felt a blush warm his face.

"I'm not going to answer that," Sweet Pea said pulling a face and looking away from them. But he couldn't stop a smile from creeping onto his face.

"You did," Fangs cheered quietly. "Ah man, the old gangs back together."

Thomas cleared her throat and said, "Maybe you all want to make sure Tobin here has got everything he needs for tonight, huh?"

Toni turned to her Grandfather and grabbed the musty smelling sheets. Fangs punched Sweet Pea on the shoulder and helped out. Sweet Pea felt the smile drain from his face. He was surprised she had kissed him, especially after the way she kept herself from him all evening. But he won't deny he wanted it. He wanted it more than he realised. Rubbing his thumb across his lower lip, he remember her taste. How soft her lips were. Yet underneath was the same urgency he too felt. Cassie came back into the room with a pile of sheets. He watched her hand them over to Tobin whilst Toni took the others. Toni pushed Fangs out of the room, who was failing to keep a goofy smile off his face as he looked back to Sweet Pea. Cassie stood awkwardly, until she finally met his eyes. He saw a smile pull the corner of her lips. Her soft lips. But there was a guard there again. She pushed her hands into her jean pockets. The same hand that pulled away from him when everyone came in.

"I guess I'll head out," Cassie said. "Tobin, there is always room in the 'bago if you can't sleep here tonight."

"Think I'll be okay," he replied, finishing his bed. "'Sides, this bed is a hell'uva lot comfortable that the 'bago floor."

"You can take the bed this time?" Cassie suggested.

"I'm good."

Cassie looked at her little brother and realised that he was actually fine with being back in his old room. Which surprised her. After his reaction to their parents room she would have thought it might keep him from stepping foot back into the house. But he looked calm. He looked more comfortable than she did.

"Alright," Cassie said finally. "I'll see you in the morning."

"I'll see what the others are doing," Sweet Pea said following Cassie out of the bedroom. They walked down the corridor in awkward silence. He knew before when they kept their relationship secret because of the Serpents and her Father, but they were older now. There was nothing keeping them apart. Except for maybe themselves. He frowned to himself when the thought came to him. Did she even want to be with him? When they reached Cassie's room, she looked into it see Toni doing all the work whilst Fangs was strumming on her old cherry red Fender Strat guitar.

"I'm heading out," Cassie announced. "Are you sure you don't need a hand?"

"I've got it," Toni smiled. "We'll see you tomorrow."

"See ya," Fangs smiled, then when Cassie turned away he gave Sweet Pea a smirk who followed her out.

"Some couple of days, huh?" Sweet Pea said softly as they walked towards the 'bago. He didn't know why he suddenly felt so out of pace with her.

"Some couple of years," she replied wearily, with a small smile up at him.

God that smile, he thought. Every time she sent one his way he could feel his stomach clench.

He opened the door for her and she stood on the first step. From this height they were almost eye level.

"You sure you didn't want anyone to stay tonight?" he asked concerned. "I mean, I'm sure Toni wouldn't mind."

"No," Cassie smiled and looked down at her shoes, failing to hide the blush creeping on her cheeks again. "I'm just going to crash."

"Sure," he replied. He tossed a look back at the house. No one was there yet.

"Listen, Cassie," Sweet Pea said softly, taking a step closer to her he leaned against the door jam, inches from her face. "I can't even begin to understand what you are feeling right now. Or what you have been through. But I need you to know. I'm around. If you ever want to talk."

Cassie pushed her hair behind her ear and looked up at him, "I know."

She couldn't hardly think with him standing this close to her. Seeing his lips, smelling his scent. Like motor oil and deodorant. It was a drug, and she wanted more.

"And even if you didn't want to," he swallowed and her eyes followed his throat. "go back to the way things were between us. I'll always be there-"

She couldn't resist. Grabbing the lapels of his leather jacket, she pulled him to her. Closing the distance between their lips, she got her taste of him again. His fingers wrapped around her neck, crushing her closer. Using his other hand to pull her towards him. She didn't feel the pain from her lip this time, as their kiss deepened. Didn't feel it and didn't care if she did. She wanted so much in that moment to forget about everything, what she found in her parents room, the attack, the home. She wanted so much in that moment to fly. But she knew she couldn't. Not yet. She gently pulled herself away. Both taking a few moments to get back to the present, Sweet Pea, with his hand still on her cheek, smiled lazily at her.

"That is, huh," Sweet Pea gently cleared his throat, "Better than I remember."

Cassie ran her fingers over his lips. He closed his eyes in the contact. The front door to the house opened. Cassie looked over to see Tobin say goodnight to everyone.

"You better go," Cassie said softly.

"Yeah," he replied, his eyes barely straying from her lips.

"I'm serious," Cassie smiled and gently pushed him, which made him smirk.

"Here," he said, as he came in closer to her and reached behind. With a torturous slowness his hands traced across her hips and across the top of her bottom. Cassie raised an eyebrow at him, but kept her mouth closed. He reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone. All to quickly his hands left her body and he leaned against the doorjam. The screen lit up his face. She felt the familiar stomach flip as he ran his tongue over his lip as he typed something into her phone.

"Yo, Sweet," Fangs shouted from the road. "Are you coming? Or are you staying?"

Cassie watched as Sweet Pea shook his head slightly but didn't stop typing.

"There. Now you can reach me anytime," he said as he handed the phone back. Their fingers touched and Cassie looked up to see him watching her with a small smile.

"Anytime?" Cassie said. Implication in her voice.

Sweet Pea's smiled grew and he licked his lips.

"Anytime," he confirmed, with a raised brow.

Cassie nodded and watched as he walked away. The others raised their hands in goodbye. Thomas and Toni left with Fang following behind on his bike. Sweet Pea looked back at her and winked. She smiled and watched him disappear down the road. Cassie looked over at the house to see Tobin in the door. She waved and he smiled, disappearing behind the door. Looking at the house now, there were reasons why she didn't want to spend the night in there. Closing the door behind her and locking it, she walked into the bedroom and pulled the curtain across. Once in the dark room, she clicked on the bedside lamp and pulled out the objects from the deep cupboard. A gun, a little black book, rolls of cash and a dead phone. All she recently acquired. Picking the gun back up she put it into the black bag the others came in. Out of sight. Once on the bed, she comfortably flicked through the notebook. It was nearly full with sections of numbers and letters. None of it looked familiar or even recognisable as something normal. She was never very good at puzzles. She didn't have the attention span.

Picking a random line, she put it into google. No results. She saw the 'Did you mean…' but she checked and it was definitely what she put in. She tried it a couple of the others but nothing came up. The last number in the book didn't seem quite as long as the others. But she didn't see the point in putting in this set when they others had failed. With a sigh, she threw the book aside and picked up the bundles of money. Why would her parents have hidden money in the walls. She would understand if it was a safe or, hell, even the sock drawer, which is what she used to do. And why hide it with an old phone and a book with strange numbers. She didn't like how it looked. And if she was honest with herself, that was part of the reason why she didn't want to tell anyone about it just yet. To accuse her parents of anything shady would just put her over the edge. She needed to find out for herself first.

Putting the items back in the bag and into the cupboard, Cassie leaned back on the bed. She couldn't concentrate tonight. Not while she still tasted him. Still felt his hands on her. Pulling out her phone she toyed with the possibility of him being there with her now. Just a few typed letters. Would he come back now? And if he did, what would happen? She wasn't prepared for the chemistry she felt between them. Remembering how it was when she was younger, it was comfort having him around. He made he smile and feel protected. But this was something much different. It felt like wildfire was flickering across her skin when she caught him watching her. And if he was with her in that moment, she thought as a hand gently traced the exposed skin above the top of her jeans, her shirt having rolled up to beneath her ribs, where would she stop? Her fingers felt the jagged grooves that scarred her skin. What would he say when he saw the true damage of that night? She fell asleep with this on her mind.

Tobin quickly walked back to his room, his eyes averting the empty house. Once back in the old room, the smell of the new sheet, even after all this time, reminded him painfully of his mom on laundry day. But he found that he could think of them without the blind panic that usually followed when he was in the Home. This was a good memory. Good thoughts. Like her smile when she would come into his room, her chastising at the mess. But she always ended up helping him clean up. Pulling off his clothes he climbed into his childhood bed and stared around for several minutes, before the softness of the bed lulled him into oblivion.

When Fangs, Toni and Sweet Pea all got home that night they were all feeling weightlessly buoyed from the evening with their old friends. But waiting for them when they each got home was a large package. Each opened it and stared at the contents in a mixture of curiosity, disgust and disbelief.

"They can forget it, if they think I'm gonna wear this," Fangs shook his head and closed the box on the Riverdale High clothing and dumped it next to the trash.

During the night some of the group dreamt of the others, but one's dream turned dark. Cassie turned over in her sleep, her skin and hair slicked with sweat. Her brows furrowed, her dreams were a mess of memories and fears. She was running through never ending hallways. Sometimes it would be cold and stone, with 20 foot statues staring down at her. Lightening flashed and it was the hallway at school. Lockers lined the never-ending corridor. She stopped to catch her breath. When a noise made her turn around. It was so dark behind her she couldn't see anything. It was muffled noises she couldn't quite make out. Scratching came from a nearby locker. Walking towards it, the locker began to shake. With a reached out hand she was inches away when it exploded, like a gun shot. Uncovering her face, she found she was in her old room. Her sheet pulled over her head as the lightening outside her room lit up her dark room. Making everything seem more sinister than it really was. Getting out of the bed, she walked out into the dark hallway towards the bathroom, rubbing the sleep out her eyes. Walking past her parents bedroom, she heard muffled voices from inside, but didn't think too much of it. They were always falling asleep with there TV on. It wasn't until she was walking past Tobin's room than she really woke up.

"Jeeze, Tobe," Cassie said softly, grabbing her chest.

Tobin's pale face was peering around the open door, his eyes wide.

"It's just a storm, it's nothing to worry about-"

"Did you hear it?" he whispered.

The last remains of the sleep left her as she stepped closer to him.

"The storm?"

Tobin frantically shook his head. He eyes kept darting past her towards their parents room. Cassie frowned to herself, "What was it?"

"It sound like a gunshot."

Cassie stared at him and was about to tell him everything was ok, when another deafening bang shattered the silence around them. Cassie jerked around, her eyes wide. It was definitely not the storm.

"Cassie," Tobin hissed, his face screwing up in tears. "Don't."

She had taken a few steps closer to her parents door without thinking. Turning she saw her brothers fear and decided. Grabbing his hand she hurried quietly to the back door. As she turned the knob, it jarred. It was locked. They heard movement and a distant door opening. A whimper escaped Tobin as he shrunk a little into himself. She practically dragged him to the cupboard opposite the back door.

"Don't make a sound," Cassie whispered, roughly clamping her brothers mouth closed as he began to cry.

She silently closed the doors and tried to think. The key was where it always was. In the kitchen drawer. They had to move it there after a break in a couple of years ago. Her legs were locked in fear, but hearing the muffled cries of her brother on the other side of the doors, she crawled to the corner and peeked down the corridor. It was dark, except for when the storm outside flashed white light around everywhere. Flickers of light was coming from the ajar door to her parents room. A door that was closed moments ago. She got up and walked soundlessly down the hallway. Her hearing was trying to pick up any noises but the rain began to pelt the roof of the house noisily. When she got to her parents room, she peeked into the small opening. The flickering light from the TV behind the door sent veiled shadows across her parents bed. A weird smell made her nose twitch. She saw the familiar mounds in the bed but something looked different. Without thinking she took a step into the room. Her eyes fixed the bed. A dark wetness was splashed around the room.

"Mom?" her voice was barely above a whisper.

When she reached the bed, she saw the bodies for her parents, staring lifelessly at the ceiling. She pulled her hands away from the chilled, sticky skin of her mothers arm. They came away dark and wet. A sound came from behind her. Turning, at first she saw darkness in the open walk in wardrobe, but then the darkness moved. A large hulking shadow uncurled from the darkness behind him. Cassie screamed and a shadow lifted his arm. A deafening bang followed by burning pain.

Cassie woke up, covered in sweat, she choked back the scream in her throat. Her hand clutching her shoulder feeling the fire beneath her skin like it had just happened. Looking around the room, she remembered where she was. Her heart thundered beneath her breast. Rushing into the next room she scattered everything everywhere as she searched from a pen and notepad. Once at the table she began to write everything. Not once in two years did she remember how that night had began. And she knew in her soul that it wasn't a nightmare. It was a memory. It wasn't until the soft light of morning, long after the sweat had chilled dried her skin. that she stopped writing. There was still so much of that night she didn't remember. But looking over her fanatic notes scrawled hastily down, she finally began to piece it together.