And now, the moment you've all been waiting for...
(By the way, you're all weird. No person in their right mind should want this to happen)
It had been two weeks since Duncan was released from the hospital and since the party where a little bet was made. Geoff was pretty smug with himself, since Duncan and Courtney hadn't started dating yet. Everyone else, on the other hand, all thought he was the mayor of Retard Republic. There was clear sexual tension between the two.
Duncan always had his arms wrapped around Courtney and she never shook him off, like she would have done a month or so ago.
Meanwhile, Scott and his family moved into their own house and started going to Wawanakwa High with the rest of his new friends. Most people thought he was a bit of a douchebag but Courtney didn't see it. Courtney and Duncan had also handed in April, giving her a teary (HA! Not!) goodbye as they exchanged her for a failing grade. It turns out that when your baby is broken, dyed and severely neglected, people don't take kindly to it.
"Duncan, you're so stupid, you know that?" Courtney asked as she watched Duncan trip over a flower pot and land on his face. Mr. and Mrs. Stanford watched from the kitchen, not amused, as they drank champagne. They had taken note that the punk was making reoccurring appearances at their house.
They still weren't aware that Alejandro was no more and Duncan was turning into something more than a friend.
"Well who was the genius who put that flowerpot there?" Duncan retorted and Mr. Stanford's eyes narrowed.
"That would be me." Mr. Stanford cut in and Duncan paled slightly.
"Uh, well it looks very nice." Duncan stammered. He wasn't going to lie, Courtney's father intimidated him. Especially now that he was free of his wheelchair and always seemed to be knocking things over.
"Come on, let's go to my room. We can watch a movie or something." Courtney laughed. Duncan stood up and followed the pretty brunette to her room where the TV was already on and muted. She unmuted it and they started watching some sappy romance movie. Duncan immediately snorted.
"This shit doesn't happen in real life."
Courtney simply rolled her eyes. "Obviously. People like watching unrealistic things on TV to make them feel better. They think they will find their knight in shining armour when really they're just being ignorant."
Duncan paused. "That's a very...optimistic way of looking at it."
"It's the truth."
That was the end of their conversation. They continued watching the stupid show, until it got so unrealistic that they were both on their backs, laughing their asses off. Duncan had tears coming out of the corners of his eyes. "I'll be here, my love! We shall run into the sunset with nothing to hold us back!" He mocked.
"The wind will carry us for days and our love for longer!" Courtney added. "How old are they? They have to be like twelve!"
"Real Romeo and Juliet right here." Duncan scoffed and Courtney looked at him curiously.
"Have you ever read Romeo and Juliet?" She asked and Duncan furrowed his eyebrows.
"I thought you were supposed to be the smart one? Romeo and Juliet is a movie!" Courtney facepalmed herself as Duncan, ignoring her, turned back to the show. The two characters were leaning in, ready to have their first kiss. It was supposed to be the big moment where the audience would start 'aw-ing' but instead, the two viewers wanted to projectile vomit.
It looked like Alejandro kissing Courtney. The girl looked horrified and the guy looked like he was some swag master, sucking her face off like a vacuum cleaner. "Ew." Courtney and Duncan said in unison as they both gagged.
Duncan turned to Courtney and wiggled his eyebrows. "Want to show them how it's done?"
"I would, but I'm scared I'm going to vomit in your mouth." Courtney replied, her eyes glued on the screen. She didn't really know what she had said but Duncan Lancaster sure did.
She had technically said yes. And that was good enough for him. Duncan tapped on her shoulder, waiting until she peeled her eyes off the screen to look over at him before he made his move. It wasn't some lust filled moment, he just simply leaned in and kissed her.
Courtney was shocked at first. It was so random. Well, maybe not exactly since she had technically said yes but still! Yet, she couldn't help but start moving her lips in sync with his, rolling onto her back so Duncan was laying on top of her as they kissed.
There were very few words to describe something so amazing and at that moment, Courtney couldn't find the right one. Perfect came to mind, yet it was too simple. It was flawless, exciting, impeccable. That was it. Duncan Lancaster was an impeccable kisser.
But just as that impeccable moment had come, it was ripped away with so much force that it was sent both teens staggering. Literally. I'm not being metaphorical here, they were literally sent staggering backwards.
Mr. Stanford had come in the room, about to tell Duncan that it was getting late and it would be best if he went home when he saw, to him, the most atrocious, disgusting and most sinful thing he could imagine; his daughter cheating on her perfect boyfriend, Alejandro, with someone as degrading as a Lancaster.
Mr. Stanford shoved Courtney off of the punk, nearly making her roll off the bed but she managed to land on her feet, stumbling back. Duncan, on the other hand, was ripped away from the brunette and thrown to the floor. Like Courtney, he managed to catch himself before he hit the ground.
"WHAT IS GOING ON IN HERE!" Mr. Stanford screamed and Duncan visibly paled. The guy was scary most of the time but he had never seen someone with so much rage in his eyes. Not even in Chef's eyes when he lit the cafeteria on fire or in Principal Mclean's when Owen let it rip in the his office.
"I...uh..."Duncan whipped his head to Courtney who looked equally scared and at a loss for words.
"Dad I-" Courtney started but was cut off when her father lifted his hand, silencing her.
"Duncan, I think you should leave." Mr. Stanford informed the boy calmly.
"But-"
Mr. Stanford whirled around, his fists clenched and a bonfire in his eyes that made Duncan shrink back even more. "Get out of my fucking house."
Duncan paused. He really didn't feel comfortable leaving Courtney in the hands of someone who was so.. angry. But he had no choice. He couldn't simply tell Mr. Stanford that he was staying. So reluctantly, Duncan nodded his head. "Yes, sir."
Courtney watched Duncan leave, her heart sinking to the bottom of her stomach. Why did he have to go? A few moments later, she heard the front door slam. "Honey, come here!" Mr. Stanford screamed and within a few moments, Mrs. Stanford appeared at the bedroom door.
"Yes dear?"Mrs. Stanford asked sweetly as she played with the diamond rings on her fingers.
"Close the door. Lock it." Courtney's father ordered. Mrs. Stanford nodded, shutting the bedroom door and twisting the lock on the door so it clicked. What nobody else seemed to noticed was how the door didn't quite lock and that clicking noise just so happened to be made when Mrs. Stanford's ring tapped the metal doorknob.
"I walked in on your daughter, on top of the Duncan boy." Mr. Stanford spat. "Not Alejandro. Not even that damn Justin kid... but Duncan Lancaster." Mrs. Stanford didn't say anything, she just remained silent as she watched as her husband walked towards her daughter. "You've raised a filthy slut!"
"I'm not a slut." Courtney whispered, not making eye contact with her father. He didn't like that though.
Not. One. Bit.
Mr. Stanford roughly grabbed Courtney's chin and yanked it up so she was looking directly into his eyes. She could feel where his fingers were making bruises on her skin but the adrenaline pumping through her blood numbed the pain. "What did you just say to me?"
"I-I'm not a slut." Courtney said a bit louder. "I broke up with Alejandro a long time ago... He was a bad kisser." At those words, Mr. Stanford let go of Courtney with a chuckle. She felt relief wash through her veins as her father turned away.
"He was a bad kisser." He laughed.
Courtney felt herself go flying into her dresser. It took her a moment to realize that her father had backhanded her and she now had a large chunk of wood from her now broken dresser lodged into her ribcage. She was dizzy, hurting, and it felt like the entire room was spinning in circles around her. But when she finally came to her sense, it was too late.
Mr. Stanford grabbed Courtney by the collar of her shirt, lifting her off the ground and slamming her into the wall, digging the stake further into her torso. Courtney shrieked in pain but was silenced when Mr. Stanford's fist came in contact with her nose.
He grabbed a handful of brown hair and slammed Courtney's head into the wall. Courtney's vision swarmed and she didn't have time to focus before he did it again and again and again. Over and over until there was blood on the walls and matting her hair.
Courtney slumped to the ground, her head lolling to the side as he father huffed and puffed above her. I guess abuse takes a lot of energy. He looked like he was done; that those three minutes would be enough torture for his only daughter but in fact, he was only getting started.
Courtney felt herself being picked up again and thrown across the room like a rag doll. She nearly collided with her mother who was cowering in the corner by the door. Mrs. Stanford wasn't a bad mother. At least she tried not to be. All she saw was her daughter in pain and the wooden stake in her side was contributing to it. So she did what any normal person would do and wrapped her hands around it and yanked it out.
What many people don't know is that with wounds such as being impaled by a wooden stake, the last thing you should do is pull out said stake. That chunk of wood might be the only thing that is blocking the blood from leaking out of newly severed blood vessels. Meaning that when someone rips the stake out of you, it will not only be painful, but will also cause you die much faster.
But Mrs. Stanford didn't know this.
Courtney screamed as she felt the wood slide out of her side. She didn't have long to bask in the agony though, because Mr. Stanford was coming and he looked deadly. Courtney reached up to the doorknob and turned it, wanting to scream in joy when it opened. She scrambled out of the bedroom, with a newfound strength as she ran from her father.
Courtney whipped open the front door and sprinted don the driveway, not noticing that Mr. Stanford had stopped chasing her and was still inside with his wife. Courtney stopped at the end of her driveway. Where could she go?
Need to run. Get away. Just run. Courtney turned left and bolted down the road, not realizing that her feet were carrying her to Duncan's house.
But the thing about life threatening injuries is that when you have them, everything else is just a little more impossible. And that includes consciousness. Courtney had only made it three blocks before she started tipping. She stumbled to the ground, landing on her hands as she tried to crawl.
Need to run. Get away. Just...
Duncan was walking back to his house, the entire incident replaying in his mind. The kiss, her father, the screams. He had honestly feared that Mr. Stanford was going to hit him. Of course he had to leave! If Duncan had stayed then there was no way in hell that he would have left that house without a bruise.
Duncan stopped short. He had been so sure that he would have been hit. So what stopped Mr. Stanford from hurting Courtney?
"What am I doing?" Duncan hissed. He whipped around and started sprinting in the direction he just came from, pulling out his phone as he did so.
"911, what's your emergency?"
"I think the girl I love is about to be beaten by her father." Duncan answered, his heart dropping as he saw a figure laying in the middle of the road up ahead. "Fifth street. Get here now." And then he hung up.
Duncan collapsed by Courtney's side. She was face first on the ground, blood seeping from the back of her head and when Duncan flipped her over, he saw that her entire shirt was stained red. "No, no, no." Duncan whispered, cradling the girl in his arms. "Somebody get help!" Duncan screamed. "You'll be okay, Court. You're going to be fine."
He could barely hear the sirens in the distance, drawing near as people heard the commotion and crowded around the two. A girl from school, Gwen, was in the crowd, her hand covering her mouth as she watched the scene in horror. "Courtney?"
Duncan froze, his comforting words to Courtney stopping. He slowly looked up, his eyes filling with tears. "I can't hear her breathing."
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHA
WHO'S A PROUD AUTHOR? I'M A PROUD AUTHOR! Cliffhanger of the century! I honestly never meant for it to be so graphic but whatever, I'm still happy with it. Oh and sorry about the late chapter! I guess I just suck at updating.
Anyway, this story is coming to a close, probably with only one more chapter left. I might make it longer because I really do want to get to 200 reviews but I have a really good ending if I want to end it now. Plus I'm kind of done with fanfiction and this story in general.
Question time!
1. Were you expecting that? (Don't lie, I know you were. I'm pretty sure every person who's reviewed has asked at least once for Mr. Stanford to be abusive.)
2. How did you like it?
3. Should I end it next chapter or make it longer? Note: I'm making this decision by myself so really, I just want to know for curiosity's sake.
4. What are your thought on my writing?
5. What are your thought on The Baby Project?