Thank you for beta'ing, A Star In My Universe! Like the title of this chapter says, Happy Halloween!

So up until now, I never realized YouTube wasn't a thing until 2005, so this fic is set in 2005!

Warnings: double homicides in flashback, racial slurs, violence, and references to stalking, murder, abuse, and pedophilia.

bruja-witch

"I just can't wrap my brain around the fact that she actually fuckin' did this," Daya blubbers in Adarsh's embrace. He and the significant others of the other girls had joined them on the bus to comfort them on the way back to each of their homes. "Also, me...I pushed her down a mountain! How in the hell did she survive?"

"Yeah, and fake a mental illness so she wouldn't have to go to juvy," Lorna puts in and then sniffles in Nicky's arms.

I got no idea how Ms. Rogers believed her," Flaca mutters with her head on Maritza's lap as the smaller girl strokes her hair comfortingly.

Alex scoffs and pulls Michelle closer to her side. "Maria probably made up a file of herself."

"Mm-hm, well I hope they find out she's lying and Charles lets her rot in a cell," Blanca says darkly as she sits in Diablo's lap. He looks down at her lovingly and they kiss. The other pairs of girlfriends make out as well, and Daya figures this could be their way of coping. She'd kiss Adarsh passionately to get this out of her mind if they were a couple, but instead, she just cries silently into his shirt all the way to Lourdes' apartment, and he rubs soothing circles on her back.

"I'm sorry that Maria betrayed you," Adarsh murmurs and Daya chokes on her tears because he sounds so sweet. "If she comes near you again...I'll get her locked up in a women's prison!"

Daya manages a smile at his protectiveness, but tears still course down her cheeks like rain. "Thanks."

After that, though, she doesn't want to talk, so he just lets her sob helplessly. She hugs the girls good night and Adarsh walks her to Lourdes' apartment and waits until she lets herself inside. He squeezes her hand softly before closing the door, and she locks it. She'd told the older woman and the rest of her family that she was sleeping over at Lourdes', so Gloria's aunt is expecting her. The place is dark and quiet, except for a strip of yellow beneath Lourdes' bedroom door. Daya turns on a light. "Lourdes, it's me!"

Lourdes comes out of her room with a book in her hands and she appears exhausted. "I almost fell asleep, but you woke me. That's okay, though."

"I'm sorry, I know it's almost midnight..."

"No worries, cariño," Lourdes tells Daya with a pleasant expression on her face. "I got the guest room all set up for you."

"Thanks, Lourdes." Daya gets ready for bed and under the covers quickly. She had been pushing Maria's wrongdoings as far as she could from her mind, but it suddenly all comes crashing back to her. She can't close her eyes without flashing back to Maria lying to her all this time about how they were such great friends.

She shuffles into Lourdes' room. "Can I sleep with you tonight? I'm so sad right now..." She inhales shakily and lets out a squeaky sigh.

"Of course, honey."

Daya gets on the bed and snuggles into her and Lourdes puts an arm around her. "I wish you were my real grandma."

"Well, as long as you think of me as your abuela, that's all that counts, right? You're still my granddaughter, even though we're not related."

"Yeah..." Daya begins whimpering against Lourdes, and the older woman trails her fingers through Daya's curls. It feels so nice.

"Now, what's all this sniveling about? Did you have a nightmare or flashback?"

Daya nods and glances up at her. "They almost died...your niece and great-nephews and my mom and Leon."

Lourdes' eyes widen in alarm. "What? How? When? Gloria never told me this..."

"She was probably shaken up and maybe didn't feel like mentioning it to you right away. On Monday, this fucker nearly careened into 'em, like on purpose, to frighten 'em. Leon was driving, my mom in the passenger seat...Gloria and her little ones in the back. Leon reported it to me, and hearing about it was so scary...what if we'd lost them...forever?" Daya gulps and shivers at the possibility.

"Ay dios mío, and your mother's pregnant, too." Lourdes says bitterly. "Bless their sweet souls...I would take care of you and your brother and sister and your child, but I don't want to think about such horror, my girl. You know I wouldn't survive losing Gloria or those babies of hers...when she dated that...that monster, it was my worst nightmare, hers, too. Also, your mother and Leon, I would've regretted not being able to know them better...and that little one growing in her belly."

Daya nods in understanding. "I would be a wreck without them."

"The Lord was watching over them that day," Gloria's aunt lets Daya know. "I hope He got rid of that mongrel once and for all, though."

Daya shakes her head. "It'd be a miracle, but I doubt that pig's dead. Plus, his goal wasn't to kill...merely to torture half our family."

Lourdes frowns. "I'm not sure about that...I think they just got lucky. God wasn't ready for them to go to Heaven yet. He may have taken my brother and his wife, but I'm not letting the rest of my family go up there."

"That's hella upsetting that Gloria lost her parents so young...and you must miss your brother and sister-in-law!" Daya's heart clenches in pain for both Gloria and Lourdes, who have experienced too many deaths in their family before Gloria even became a teenager. "I do admire how devoted you were in taking Gloria under your wing, though."

"In a car accident, too. Yes, they're on my mind a lot. I talk to them sometimes, pray for strength...and thank you. Gloria's my only niece...we were the last two remaining Mendozas. It was a dark day for both of us, and we were forever bonded. Only...I've never believed they were fatally struck by pure mistake. That was not part of God's plan." Lourdes sets her mouth in a thin line. "That wicked driver wanted her all alone, to himself, dead or alive, because she was in the car, too."

"Her?" Daya questions Lourdes.

"Gloria," Lourdes clarifies. "Eighteen-year-old boy comes to our house with fucking flowers for her, smirking almost, apologizing for the death of her mother and father...she was at school, so I thanked him and shut the door in his ugly face, wondering how he'd gotten away with vehicular manslaughter. It's because every cop back then was a shitbag!"

Daya gasps. "Oh my god. Holy fuckin' shit!"

"He came by to see her again and again until I got a restraining order. He wanted to be her grief counselor...even came to her elementary school and the bodega where I worked, to see if Gloria was there and helping me."

"Jesus, that's creepy," Daya whispers. A sick feeling washes over her. "She was ten..."

"I'm surprised to this day that he didn't murder me to get her completely by herself. The weirdest part of all this is...he looked eerily like Arturo, with his leery eyes and lizard lips. I knew he was trouble once she brought him home, and I'm not sure why she didn't see it, too, but he was charming and manipulative when they started going out, so..." Lourdes sighs heavily. "I shouldn't be telling you all this."

"No, it's okay...I won't let Gloria know you did."

"Alright..." Lourdes trails off and knits her brow. "Maybe it was Arturo's brother who killed her parents or something."

"Yeah, most likely."

Even though Lourdes had changed the depressing subject to a much more cheerful one, talking about when she met Gloria for the first time in a small house in Mexico as she was helping her sister-in-law give birth, Daya cries herself to sleep at both Lourdes' disturbing story and everything Maria was guilty of.


"Ugh..." Maria groans as she rolls over and winces in immense pain from being thrown off the cliff. She's amazed that she even survived in the first place. She must be pretty strong, and a sense of pride washes over her. She had completely pulled the wool over Piper's friends' eyes until her game got so boring that she had to expose herself. All she did was petty things. She hadn't wanted anyone to get seriously hurt, and although she knows they probably all hate her now, she feels a need to help them out of whatever messes they could get into while trying to figure out who her boss is. Not even she knows this person. He or she is simply standing over her in a red coat, but she's so tired from painkillers that she cannot physically look beyond the line of her vision, which is at their stomach. When they'd come in, they were wearing a mask resembling the Red Queen. She remembers one of the most threatening texts she'd ever gotten from them.

Don't forget bitch, if you want to win this game and prove to me that you're valuable, torture those cunts until their last breaths. Or watch me take away your life. -P.C.

It was fun at first. She'd gotten a thrill from it, especially when she tormented Piper's biggest follower, Alex. She hadn't a clue of how lucky she was-besides being poor, which sucked, she was also the most beautiful girl in their grade and got more advantages than others since she's white and her mom is a teacher. She had such a great relationship with her mother, and Maria was jealous of that. Lorna was the same, but at least her parents weren't perfect and people called her a stalker and she stepped up to help Blanca one time. The best part of all, was when she punched Piper. Maria replayed that recording a million times over until she and Blanca almost died laughing. She'd felt horrible for Daya and never forgave herself for running under Flaca with her car. She'd simply wanted to scare the taller girl into not telling the others that she was P.

She glances up when the individual in the red coat takes a few steps back. "I hope you're happy...I ruined their lives for you," she informs them in a croaky voice.

They give her an approving and respectful nod and then leave.


"Why are all these police cars surrounding our place?" Daya wants to know as she and Lourdes step into her apartment. "Fuckin' kids are gonna start rumors about us at school again. You know they already call you a junkie." Daya scoffs. "Random bitches, they come up to me and say, how's your junkie ma doin' these days? Packed any good drugs lately?"

Aleida sighs and rolls her eyes. "Ignore those motherfuckers! We was gonna talk to you about the round-the-clock cops, but we wanted you to enjoy your time with Lourdes without worrying for a while," she tells her daughter. She looks between Daya and Lourdes. "I suppose you should know now that we got some creep watchin' our every move, like a stalker. They tryin' to catch the pansy cocksucker."

Lourdes frowns. "That's terrible! I'm so sorry. I really hope this asshole gets busted soon before anyone is hurt."

"Yeah, I do too!" Daya agrees. "Was this stemmed from when some of y'all almost got killed when on the road?"

Leon shakes his head no as he and Gloria walk to Aleida's side. "We actually don't know to be honest, but...Christina spoke of a little girl coming through her window, bleeding...I know it may be hard to believe, since children make up things a lot, but the proof is on Christina's comforter, which we've washed a few times now," he tells them. "The stains are almost out, but that poor child was viciously murdered outside our home. Christina said a bad man committed that heinous crime."

Daya stares at them incredulously and Lourdes appears to be perplexed. "Oh my god!" Daya exclaims and then claps a hand over her mouth.

"That poor girl...and her family!" Lourdes comments.

"Charles reported that they identified the victim...her name was Sara Voth," Gloria adds. "We think he did that to scare us, like to show us that he could do anything. Like...he didn't get us while driving like a maniac, but he attacked an innocent kid...it makes us wonder what he'll do next, or if it's even one guy who's acting alone."

"Honest to Christ, and they're doing this around Halloween, too," Daya states bitterly.

"We can use my Santería to ward him off," Lourdes says while exchanging a smile with her niece.

"Yeah, let's pray the magic will work and the orishas banish this demon to Hell." Gloria looks up at the ceiling. "Eleggua, if you're listening, curse this monster for eternity and make him leave us alone."

"You think that's real?" Daya whispers.

"Of course!" Lourdes insists. "We'll have to get the candles to make it completely official, though."

"It's actually kinda cool," Leon points out, and Gloria and Lourdes beam at his words.

"Yeah, thanks to Lourdes blessing my stomach like some kinda bruja, my pregnancy ain't too difficult," Aleida says and strokes her belly while looking down at it affectionately. Everyone grins at that.


"I thought you was gonna be a knight?" Gloria asks Fahri as he's adjusting the straps of his blue overalls for his Luigi costume. She had planned to dressed as a witch, but decided to be Princess Daisy instead so she could go along with his Super Mario Brothers themed outfit. They'd gotten their costumes last minute and had to pick through what was available. She's wearing a yellow dress with a white ruffled collar, two squiggly strips of orange on the bottom, and large pieces of orange material hanging from around her hips. It spins around her as she twirls, and then it settles just a few inches off the floor, revealing the tips of her white flats. Her reddish-brown wig is firmly held in place by bobby pins. The jewels on her large gold earrings, necklace, and crown, are green and matching the long sleeved shirt and cap Fahri has on. Gloria slips on her white gloves and she's all finished.

"I wasn't sure yet of my Halloween costume at the time, so I said the first thing that came to my brain...and I wanted to be your knight in shining armor," Fahri admits while he ties the white laces of his black Converse and puts on his large white gloves.

Gloria blushes. "Aw, really? We had only known each other for a few days, but I remember we connected that night...and you already seemed hella protective of me."

"Well, I was. I still am." They share a delighted grin and Gloria sighs in blissful content. "Then, I figured I shouldn't be a knight since the thing I put over my head would hide my face at times, and I didn't wanna scare the kids, you know, when they can't see that this big silver dude is just me."

She's blessed that he was thinking of that. "Wow, you're smart. That didn't even cross my mind. I mean, Benny's Spider-Man, which doesn't show any part of him except his eyes and mouth, so..." Gloria trails off. "Anyway, you're awesome. That's all."

"Thank you, and you are, too."

Gloria beams. "Ready to go, Luigi?"

"I sure am, Daisy!" Fahri answers, and they link arms.

Even though the adults, Daya, and Lourdes know they have a stalker, they want to keep things as normal as possible for the children. Gloria, Fahri, and Lourdes are planning to take them trick-or-treating around the apartment complex while Aleida and Leon are staying at home and passing out candy. Afterwards, they're all going to Friendly's for dessert.

Gloria and Fahri look around at the kids when they're finished getting into their costumes. Benny pretends to shoot spider webs out of his hands and Leon helps him walk up the walls while holding onto him tightly, so Gloria just has to smile. Christina is a perfect Esmeralda and she twirls around in her light bluish-purple skirt and white blouse and shows everyone her newly curled hair, courtesy of Aleida, and fake gold hoop earrings. Julio waddles around adorably in his pumpkin suit. Emiliano holds his pirate hat onto his head as he hops up and down a few times in excitement. Farah comes by with her parents, they show her off as Jasmine, and she says hello to everyone. They'd taken pictures with Daya, who's Frida Kahlo, and going out with her friends later.

"Peek-a-boo!" Gloria puts her hands over her eyes, gasps in mock surprise, and uncovers her eyes. The kids giggle and copy her. "Aww, you're all adorable!"

Just before setting out to trick-or-treat, the teens hug everyone goodbye and head off to Alex's place to have a Halloween movie marathon and give out candy.


"I'm surprised we didn't figure out it was Maria sooner," Lorna mumbles as she steadies a bowl of orange and black M&Ms on her lap. Alex picks through a bunch of movies and lays the DVDs out in front of the girls and Diablo so everyone can pick. Daya, Adarsh, Allison, and Hassan are coming shortly. The girls still outnumber the boys, but at least it's not just one guy and a bunch of girls.

"Yeah...like one time, I thought I saw P, and they were shorter than all of us except you, Lorna," Flaca reports. "Alex and I were almost sure Maria was guilty."

"Well...many people are taller than me, so that didn't really narrow anything down," Lorna points out.

"Mm-hm...well, I'm kinda sick of discussing it or thinking about her, so..." Alex trails off with a shrug. She glances in Michelle's direction. "I do wanna kill her for getting your arm broken, though, babe."

"Same. I'm tired of conversations revolving around her and I feel like kicking her face in. I'm just relieved it's over with and she can't touch us no more," Michelle says.

"Ditto," Nicky murmurs as she pulls Lorna in close to her so the brunette can rest her head on the blonde's shoulder.

"She's like nothing to me," Blanca tells them.

"I get that, baby," Diablo sympathizes with his girlfriend. He gazes at her sadly and she cuddles into his side.

"I might pay her a visit just to threaten her ass!" Maritza declares, her hatred for Maria growing with each passing second. The bitch could've killed her girlfriend, and she's lucky she hadn't, or else Maritza would've committed homicide for the first time at just fourteen-really seventeen, but she will always think of herself as three years younger than her real age.

"It ain't worth it, sweetie...she's just a dumb puta," Flaca mutters. "Thanks for being protective of me, though!"

"You're welcome," Maritza tells Flaca sweetly and kisses her cheek. In return, Flaca pecks the top of Maritza's head a few times. The girls beam at the interaction, and then the couples come through Alex's front door. They admire the Halloween decor. The orange and black streamers and a Happy Halloween sign hang above their heads and the orange and purple lighting makes the apartment mysterious looking. They pass a gray table with a skull and a black tree on top, and there's a crow resting in the tree. A small orange and white striped pumpkin and a rat with beady red eyes rest beside a gravestone that reads Here Lies An Eldritch Soul.

Even though Daya and Adarsh aren't an item, Maritza has high hopes that they will be eventually. She swoons at how careful Adarsh seems to be of Daya as he helps her sit down and get comfortable on the couch. Daya walks slowly, as if she's fragile and could crumble and break at any second.

"Daya, seriously...if you wanna open up to us, we're here for you," Adarsh says softly.

"No, it's okay." Daya lazily picks up the film Mom's Got a Date with a Vampire. "This one." She passes it around so everyone else can read what the film is about. It sounds good. "Then Hocus Pocus and all the Halloweentown movies, including the latest one that you got recorded," Daya informs Alex, and the taller girl nods with a gentle smile. "Halloweentown High...and a lot of the heroines in each of these movies are our age! It's amazing, really."

"I know, right?" Maritza squeals.

"Okay, awesome!" Allison says happily, and everyone cheers.

"Shabammy!" Hassan bursts out and the teenagers crack up at his funny exclamation.

"Oh my god, Sahar's right...you're such a dork!" Allison teases him. "I thought you only say that for good luck!"

"It's my favorite word of all time to express joy!" he insists.

Allison rolls her eyes, but she appears to be amused. "You're weeeeird."

"Yeah, but you lost when we bowled together on our first date." That earns him a smack in the face with a purple pillow. "Ow! I deserved that." He gathers Allison's hands in his and they snuggle as Alex puts the first DVD in and plays it. "You sure this movie isn't too scary?" he asks her jokingly.

She pushes him aside playfully with her shoulder. "Shut up..."

They all chuckle at Allison and Hassan teasing each other, and then the film begins.


The doorbell chimes and Aleida peers through the hole to see that it's a horde of children with two adults behind them, so she opens the door with a grin. The kids, all under twelve, stand before her. "Triiiiiick or treeeeeeat!" they chorus. There's a princess, a mermaid, a viking girl, and a boy ninja standing before her.

"Enjoy, my little patients!" Leon grins and brings over an orange bowl with a green hand inside that moves when the children each take a handful of candy. It's an assortment of Hershey's Cookies and Creme bars, Crunch bars, Reeses Pieces Peanut Butter Cups, and M&Ms.

"Now, don't forget to brush!" Aleida jokes along with him. "Or you gonna have to see Doctor Leon and Nurse Aleida for another appointment!"

When the group leaves after chuckling and thanking Aleida and Leon, the door closes. "Hey...I love this game," Leon tells her as he pulls her in for a kiss that ghosts along her lips and makes her sigh in contentment.

"I do, too. You look real good in a lab coat," she compliments him.

"Thanks, honey. I adore your costume as well...your little white dress and matching hat and bright red tank top...wow."

She beams flirtatiously up at him and nibbles on her bottom lip. "You makin' a pass at me?"

He nods. "That is, if you're okay with it."

Aleida stares at him curiously. "What? Of course I am, you're my boyfriend!"

"I know, I just didn't wanna trigger you by accident or anything. I need to make sure you're comfortable when we have sex." He holds her hands and brings them up to his mouth for a gentle kiss upon her knuckles.

"Babe...I trust that you won't hurt me. I'm aware we haven't done it since...but I've been itching to fuck you again for a while now."

"Okay, my beautiful sweetheart," he says while holding her close and stroking her hair. "We'll play music and dance while we wait for more trick-or-treaters, how's that sound?"

"Perfect," she murmurs into his chest.

As he's picking out songs to play, another couple of kids around seven years old come to get candy, a boy dressed as a zombie and a girl in a ladybug costume. Their parents are with them and Leon and Aleida cheerfully serve the small family. She walks away from them when they leave.

That's when Aleida sees her in Daya's bedroom, near where a black plastic spider is hanging from its fake web and a bat in flight is held by a string on the side of one of Daya's windows.

A girl, about Christina's age, is standing before her. She's Hispanic and has bushy eyebrows, messy black hair all around her shoulders, high cheekbones, and she's very thin, almost malnourished. Her face is pale except for the bloody streaks on her cheeks like she'd been crying blood, and she's wearing a torn white dress. Aleida gasps in surprise. "Holy shi-okay, where you come from? I didn't see you at the door or nothin'."

"Is Christina home? I was looking for her."

Aleida gives the girl a puzzled look. "Nah, she out trick-or-treating. Didn't she tell you in kindergarten?"

The kid shakes her head no. "I just wanna be away from my family. They blame me for everything all the time...even when I try to do the right thing." She sounds wise beyond her years, in the way that she's speaking. It almost sounds like she'd practiced it.

"Oh...I'm sorry to hear that." Aleida sighs and goes to pat her back sympathetically, but she flinches when she discovers that the child is freezing cold to the touch. "Alright, you know what, I'mma get you a blanket so you can warm up, okay? You can sleep over if you want."

"Thank you."

Aleida helps her sit on Daya's bed and goes into the living room for a blanket. When she returns to give it to the girl, she discovers that the girl is gone.

She wonders if she'd imagined that encounter since she's been drinking a lot of wine tonight.


"Are you sure I don't look ridiculous as Little Red Riding Hood?" Lourdes asks.

"You're fine, Lourdes!" Gloria assures her. The children pull on the women's hands to try to get them to go faster. "Hey, guys, there's no rush!" Gloria has to jog a bit to keep up with an overexcited Benny, Christina, Michael, Dylan, Lindsay, and Christina's new friend, Karima, who are all holding hands with each other. "Plenty of time to get candy."

"Yes, and I can't run anymore!" Lourdes tells the toddlers and keeps a tight grip on their tiny hands. Nobody wants the children to get lost or race out into the street. At times, they try to squirm away while giggling, but it never works in their favor. The adults prefer the cautious way of doing things.

Fahri is behind Gloria at the caboose, and that makes her feel a lot safer. He's with Farah and she sits on top of his shoulders as he holds her up there. Gloria melts at how wonderful he is with his great-niece. "Remember, kids, only go to the houses with lights in them, since that means someone is home, alright?" he says.

"Okay!" the five-year-olds shout in unison while jumping up and down. Christina and Benny's little brothers copy their actions, and Gloria thinks it's the cutest thing ever.

"I'm gonna ring the doorbell!" Benny announces. "Christina had a turn already."

"Alright, go ahead, Spider-Man," Lourdes allows him and Gloria nods in agreement with a smile. The adults lead the kids up to the door and Benny knocks and then presses a button that makes a small sound from inside the apartment.

A stony faced woman who appears to be in her mid fifties opens the door. She smells like cigarette smoke. Her left cheek is puffed out until she takes a sandwich bag from the pocket of her pink footsie pajamas and opens her mouth to let a green jawbreaker out and into the bag. She's dressed as a baby, as she's wearing high pigtails and a bib and is now sucking on a pacifier. She looks at them over her huge gold glasses. "Hey...I'm your new neighbor."

"Triiiiick or treeeeat!" the children exclaim in unison.

"Smell my feet, gimme something good to eat!" Christina says energetically.

"Have some manners, little girl," the lady chides her before anyone else can even apologize. "You remind me of my youngest sister when she was your age."

"Sorry," Christina mumbles shyly.

"Here ya go," the woman mutters and drops a handful of red lollipops into each kid's bag. "Anyway, don't stand there searching through the candy!" Someone starts moaning and then there's loud banging and cackling. She glances upwards in exasperation. "Shut up, Barb!" she hollers over her shoulder and then focuses back on the group. "Sorry, my sister and her fucking boyfriend took the Milky Way..."

"That's alright," Lourdes says.

"You bitch, it burns!" a hoarse male voice bellows in the background.

"Chill, motherfucker! I'll lick it off you!" a nasally female voice snaps.

The group gives each other puzzled looks as the lady grins at them and closes the door.

"Is it bad that she gave me the creeps?" Gloria wants to know as they move along. "I dunno, something seemed real off about her."

"I thought so, too," Fahri tells her, and she glances over her shoulder at him. "There's people who hate kids and hide it, and there's others who are terrible at being even fake-nice to children. She was the latter."

"She was just weird...and who answers the door to kids when they've clearly been s-m-o-k-i-n-g?" Lourdes asks rhetorically. "That's wrong."

"Yeah, whenever I have a c-i-g, I make sure the aromas aren't comin' off me around my babies," Gloria mutters. "So does Aleida."

"I do, too...I never have a b-u-m-p with Farah around," Fahri says.

"That's a good idea," Gloria tells him.


"Howdy, ma'am, how's my favorite girl tonight?"

Diane turns her attention to Charles, who's standing in front of her at the counter where she's working. He tips his cowboy hat at her with a wink. She giggles and leans over to kiss him fully on the mouth. "Just fine, good sir!"

He twirls one of her braids around his finger. "You look great in your pink cowgirl hat."

"Thank you," Diane says pleasantly. "That red plaid shirt looks nice on you!"

"Thanks! Hey...you sure you don't wanna wear a saloon dress, darlin'?" he asks her in a joking manner, and she just hits his shoulder with the back of her hand. They beam at each other.

Diane has her work shirt on, but she and Charles are both wearing blue jeans and boots. His are short and tan while hers are tall and black with gold buckles on each side. Friendly's is decorated with glowing jack-o-lanterns and bright orange, dark purple, and neon green fairy lights around the windows.

"You two look like you're goin' to a hoedown!" a woman dressed as a butterfly announces as she comes in through the doors, holding hands with a lady of Indian descent, who is a fairy in a blue sparkly dress and rainbow wings with a silver tiara on her head. Behind them are an African American couple whose costumes are a devil and an angel. Two of the women gasp and scream Diane's name as they come running towards her. The man follows them, also quick in his step, and the other lady simply looks on, confused.

It takes a second, but Diane recognizes her old friends from high school. The joyful butterfly wearing a black dress with pink and purple wings and swinging her brown ponytail a few times around could be none other than Debbie Denning, and Lila and James had apparently gotten married after all, to Diane's happiness. Their rings glitter under the fluorescent lighting.

"Happy Halloween!" Debbie squeals.

"Debbie? Lila? James? Oh my god!" Diane exclaims while exchanging tight hugs with each of them. "Thirties and still lookin' fab!" she compliments them.

"Aaaaahhh girl, it's you who looks the best out of all of us!" Lila squeals and squeezes Diane's hands while giggling. "I can't believe we haven't seen each other since we were eighteen..."

Debbie raises her hand. "I was twelve!"

On the first day of high school, a dark-skinned girl opens the locker next to where Diane is standing and getting her books out for her next class. "Tell me your name isn't really Gertrude Saurer Vause, the Nazi bitch!" she demands roughly.

"No, it's not, I swear, I'm Diane Lauren Vause, just call me Diane, please..." Diane begs her. She senses her eyes filling with tears and she sniffles as she forces the ball in her throat to dissolve.

The girl's expression softens and she cautiously wraps her arms around Diane. "My name's Lila Owens. Wow, your parents are hella cruel, naming you after someone so evil."

Diane nods her head yes and hugs her new friend back.

"Jesus, twenty-two years. It's been waaaay too long." James shakes his head. "We heard about your daughter in the papers and just had to meet up with you again."

"Yeah, and we'd notice those blue eyes a mile away," Debbie adds with a bright smile. "Thanks for saving my ass by the way."

"You're welcome!" Diane responds. "There's just no way I'd ever let anything like that happen to you. Last time I saw you, you were in pigtails..."

"I'm just gonna take that hatchet, run with it through a deep, dark forest while yelling, and then lunge at the little cunt...making her scream and cry bloody murder!" Carol declares theatrically.

Barb cackles evilly. "Oh, what a bloody murder it will be!"

Diane gasps at the oldest two Denning sisters' cruel, unfeeling words. Chills flood her insides and she's terrified for Debbie. She has to stop this from happening.

"Sweetie, I heard your sisters talking about how they were literally gonna kill you," Diane warns her younger teammate after their tri-county regional gymnastics tournament. They're in Debbie's room and Diane is helping her pack for Plano, Texas. "It was in their room...and you gotta tell your parents."

"That just makes no sense. Barbie and Carol may be a little rude and jealous of me, but they wouldn't go that far. It's not my fault that our parents care about my achievements more than my big sisters'."

"It isn't, but I heard the plan, Debbie! They're sociopathic! You're in real serious danger," Diane insists worriedly. "I could just see Carol's eyes turning creepy behind her big, ugly, yellow glasses as she got excited. I...I even found sketches in Carol's desk drawer of you being hung up by the red ribbon that you twirl, and she drew boobs on you, even though you don't have 'em yet...and then pieces of glass in your Yoplait...but that was just her brainstorming. Barb suggested they play it off as an accident."

Debbie's eyes widen in fear. "No, that can't be right...Barb always defends me against Carol!"

"Not this time. She's gonna betray you in such a heartbreaking way..."

"If I tell my parents, they won't believe me."

"Maybe not, which means if they don't, then you gotta run away as far and as fast as you can so those malicious bitches will never, ever find you."

"Please go with me...I never wanted to move either...Coach Emery is the best, and at Trudy's Gymnastics Institute, the coaches are gross! Mom and Dad don't care about that, I guess." Debbie clutches Diane's hands and the poor younger girl is trembling at this point. "I can't be alone out there...I'm not even a teenager yet."

"I feel so bad I can't go with you...I wish I could, but even though I'm eighteen and can legally adopt you, I can't afford to. My brother made it big as a football star, so he had enough money to bring me here by plane. He's staying in a hotel at the moment, but he can bring us to New York. I'll help you get into a taxi, and like...go to the big city or something. It's lovely there, and you could even be on Broadway if you wanted. We might not see much of each other, though, since Julliard keeps me pretty busy..."

Tears trickle down Debbie's cheeks. "I'll miss you."

"I will too, Deb." Diane embraces her and kisses the top of her head. She glances up at Diane, her brown eyes shining with moisture. "So much."

"You were my favorite bestie in all my twelve years of living."

Diane manages a smile at this, but chokes on a lump growing in her throat. "You're like the little sister I always wanted."

"I'm an annoying, whiny brat according to Carol and Barb. Who wants that?" Debbie sniffles and glances down at her feet.

"They're just awful and envious. Don't listen to them, okay? You're beautiful and talented...if I was your sis, I'd be real proud of you. I already am, even if we're not related."

Debbie grins. "Thank you."

"Honey, don't even mention it." Diane blinks back tears. "Now, what I want you to do is go to this place." She writes down Lila's address on a piece of paper and presses it into Debbie's open hand. "It's where my friend Lila lives. She's got a bunk bed, too, and she won't judge you about your tadpoles." At this, Debbie's misty eyes light up a tiny bit. "Tell them Diane Vause sent you. Okay?"

Debbie holds it tightly as if it'll fly out of sight. "Yes."

"Great!"

"My parents told me they'd bring me to let my tadpoles into the lake tonight, but they're busy until ten, as usual. All they care about is if I do perfect pirouettes." Debbie rolls her eyes. "They constantly say they do everything for me, and it's like...oh, I'm sorry for being born! Like, you don't fuckin' have to, you know?"

"I know the feeling," Diane mutters. "I'll take you...and then you can be on your way to Lila's apartment." She gestures to the big cardboard box that houses Debbie's things. "You're all ready."

"Yeah...I am."

Diane is a witness to Barb being pushed up against the wall by Mr. Denning, since Barb had said her boyfriend's mother said she could live with the Howards and graduate with her senior class, but he had refused, telling her she couldn't just take herself out of the family whenever she wanted to. "That's final, Barbara!" he yells in her face.

"I agree. Listen to your father," Mrs. Denning adds.

Debbie is twirling on the tip of her right toes and keeping her heel off the ground while pointing her left foot through each turn for her pirouettes. Diane can tell she's upset by how Ron had acted, but she's distracting herself from her family's drama.

"Whatever," Barb grumbles and Carol scowls from her position on the couch while sucking on a jawbreaker, making her left cheek bulge out.

"You both are expected to babysit Debbie while we speak to her coach," Alice instructs them. "I left out slices of pizza for dinner."

Carol spits out her jawbreaker into a trash bag and glares up at Alice. "Fuck no, Mom! I'm not staying home. This is our last night here...we have the rest of our lives to cater to that little brat!"

Debbie sticks her tongue out at Carol and Diane stares coldly at the bitch.

"I have more interesting things to do than the chess club," Barb says mockingly. Carol gives her the middle finger in return.

"I'll do it!" Diane cuts in, and they all glance at her in surprise. "I really don't mind." Debbie looks relieved. "You don't even gotta pay me! I'm a family friend, after all."

Ron sighs. "I guess that's all right." He glances at his wife and she nods. "Thank you."

"No problem!" Diane says cheerfully.

The sisters take the bait. Carol gets up off the couch and Barb practically races to the front door and opens it wide. "Good, we're not stuck with her!" Carol whoops and then they depart. Alice and Ron are about to leave as well, but Debbie stops them in their tracks.

"You two broke a promise!" she insists. "You both hooked pinkies with mine and said we'd release my tadpoles tonight!"

"We're talking to your coach," Alice informs her. "We can maybe go when we get a chance in Texas."

"They're gonna die if I don't release them!"

"Diane can take you tonight, then," Ron says briskly.

"We only have a busy life because of you," Alice reminds her.

"Don't blame her for your hectic schedules!" Diane tells Debbie's parents. "She didn't ask to be talented in gymnastics and dance."

Debbie sends her a thankful smile. "Another thing...Daddy, I hated how you talked to Barb so meanly. I agree with her...I don't feel like moving either...Trudy's Gymnastics Institute has got a big problem with molestation, apparently."

"I won't hear anything else about this, Deborah!" Ron snaps.

"Not the rubdowns again," Alice complains. "We told you, that's how they keep your muscles nice and relaxed. You girls need massages after all those meets!"

Diane gags internally and Debbie closes her eyes while cringing in disgust. "Stacy said the coaches touch us inappropriately," Debbie reports.

"Don't listen to rumors!" Ron scolds her. "Be grateful that you're the center of our universe!"

"All this is causing so many problems!" Debbie gestures to the moving boxes labeled Merritt's Movers. "I'm ruining my sisters' lives and now...they wanna destroy mine!" Her voice rises as she talks faster. "Last time they watched me, Carol grabbed my jar of tadpoles and held it above my head, threatening to break it. I begged her not to and for Barb to step in, so Barb did. She told Carol not to be such a monster...they were plotting to take me to the lake and end me!" Debbie's parents give her an incredulous look, but she goes on a mile a minute, but between high-pitched gasps of air. "Barb gave Carol some strange, pointed look and Carol grinned wickedly back at her. I snatched the jar from Carol...and they would've killed me had Diane not arrived! They were gonna do it even when I apologized about us moving away for the fifty thousandth time!"

"Quit being so dramatic," Alice reprimands her firmly, and she deflates.

"Don't you even listen to your daughter?" Diane yells, finally getting them to stop looming over Debbie, who looks so tiny compared to them. "She doesn't want to go anywhere, she wants to stay here! Why can't you just let her be happy and be a kid? She's only twelve years old." Frowning, Diane points at the window. "Those fucking coaches are pedophiles, and she likes Coach Emery! Your other daughters want to murder her because you two insist on moving all the time when Debbie doesn't even want to! You just exploit her and..." She tears up. "Fuck you!" she hisses and quickly averts her eyes to Debbie, who is smiling and wiping her eyes. It's probably the first time anyone has shown love to her at all.

"Stay out of this!" Ron commands Diane.

"Debbie, go to bed immediately!" Alice instructs her.

"We're getting outta here at eleven tomorrow morning," Ron adds.

"You guys are dicks!" Debbie hollers at them while stomping up a few steps.

"Watch your tone, young lady!" Alice shouts after her.

"You're gonna get a paddling on your ass once we get to Plano, I'm too tired to do it right now," Ron says.

"I'll help her get ready to sleep," Diane mumbles. She starts to lead Debbie the rest of the way up the stairs, but then, remembering how dismissive they'd acted, she sees red. She runs into the kitchen and grabs two knives in the heat of the moment while she's shaking with fury. She points it at them while breathing heavily and they take a few steps back. She wants to let her rage out on them as her motherly instincts fill her up. She's extremely protective of Debbie.

"Don't, please!" the young girl cries out, so Diane stops what she's doing and puts the weapons back on the counter.

"I'm sorry...misplaced anger came over me," she mumbles. Alice immediately picks up the phone to call the cops. Diane rushes to meet Debbie in her bedroom. She keeps her arms around Debbie, who sobs in her embrace until Barb and Carol get home, effectively interrupting the phone call that Alice had been making.

Suddenly, there's hollering and screaming and the sound of plates and glass shattering. Debbie gasps and clutches onto Diane, who's having a hard time keeping her own breathing steady. "Should we ring nine-one-one?" the smaller brunette wonders aloud, the volume in her voice lowering as Diane covers her mouth. Debbie's eyes widen in horror.

"No, it's way too dangerous. They could hear us, and we'd be next," Diane responds in a hushed voice while holding her close.

"Please don't do this!" Alice yelps and whimpers. "I'll...I'll call the police! Just sto-"

"Oh my God, you're crazy..." Ron says weakly. "Ah! Jesus Christ, that was a bone crunching..."

"Sorry, Daddy, but you pissed me off for the last time!" Barb shouts and then something hits the floor.

"Don't apologize to him, Barbie!" Carol snarls, and then there's a crashing sound and screeching as Alice begs for her life.

"What's going on?" Debbie asks fearfully, muffling her voice slightly with her pillow.

"Shh," Diane whispers and puts her finger to her lips. "Don't make a sound...wait til they leave..." She rubs comforting circles on Debbie's back and hums to her softly. "I'll fix your hair into braids, but you need to be quiet."

Debbie nods.

"You too, Mommy!" Carol growls, and then there's another thud. "Diane should've stabbed you fuckers!" A loud boom echoes through the house and both Debbie and Diane cover their ears.

"I'm gonna check it out, okay?" Diane says almost silently. She tiptoes to the stair rail and peers over it to see that Carol and Barb have just brutally murdered their parents with hatchets. Blood stains the walls and the floors, and Diane can't look at the disturbing scene anymore. It's like something out of a horror movie or a haunted house maze, but this is real. She needs to keep Debbie from seeing it.

When all is quiet since the house is empty of the living at least, the girls leave the house without passing the dead bodies of Debbie's parents. Diane protects her from seeing them by leading her out the back door and around the house to the front yard with her arm around the tween girl. "We could have just gone through the kitchen..." Debbie's breath hitches as she tightens her hold on her jar of four tadpoles in water. Fresh crimson drips down the windows and parts of the glass are broken. "Oh no! You don't think..."

"I'm sorry, Debbie. They're gone." Diane's heart clenches in pain for her. Even though her parents were pieces of shit, they weren't nearly as bad as the evil people who had raised Diane, and Debbie doesn't deserve to be an orphan. She guides Debbie into her car and the younger brunette hastily puts on her seatbelt and hugs her knees to her chest. Debbie's older sisters had left tire marks in the road from when they'd headed off in their vehicle, and Diane hopes they don't return.

"They were dead to me anyway once I decided to leave here," Debbie mumbles while still grasping the jar. "I never wished them actual fatal harm, but I didn't appreciate them as well as I should have. They gave up their whole lives for me..."

"You don't need to feel guilty! They chose to do that. Listen...it's neither of our faults that they were murdered." Diane climbs in the back to hug Debbie for about five minutes as the kid lets out all of her emotions. Then, Diane takes her to release her tadpoles and they go back to her house while avoiding her slain mother and father. The police ask them questions and EMTs carry the corpses out on stretchers. Diane calls Mitch for help in backing up hers and Debbie's story, that they were in Debbie's bedroom at the time of the murders. The cops believe them since the girls are physically shaken up.

The next morning, Mitch assists them in moving Debbie out. The U-Haul arrives at eleven and Diane, Debbie, and Mitch load her stuff into the large truck. The sisters never come back, much to their relief. Mitch takes them all to New York and arranges with a taxi driver to bring Debbie to Lila's address.

Once Debbie's ride arrives, Diane hugs her tight and pecks the top of her head and then both of her cheeks. Debbie winds her arms around Diane's waist and snuggles with her for a minute or two before the guy starts honking and she really has to go. They blow each other kisses and Diane waves at her as Debbie's hands are pressed against the glass and moisture glistens on her cheeks. The taxi disappears from sight and Diane blinks back tears. Mitch puts a comforting arm over her shoulders and kisses her temple like the sweet big brother that he is. Diane crosses her fingers behind her back, hoping for the best.

"She was lucky to have you."

Diane nods, sniffling. "You got no idea, dude." He doesn't quite know the whole saga, since it's too personal for Diane to share that Debbie had a hit out on her.

"The way you took such good care of Debbie showed me that you're gonna be an awesome mom one day. I can't wait to meet my niece or nephew."

She beams with pride. "Thank you...but who says I'll even find someone in the first place so I can have this child?"

Mitch messes with her hair. "I'm sure you will."

Diane shrugs. "Maybe, but who really knows?"

Diane turns to Charles, who appears to be slightly confused by her reunion with her old friends. "Babe, these are Debbie Denning, and Lila and James Washington. I was real tight with 'em in high school." She gestures to Charles and looks at them. "Guys, this is my boyfriend, Charles Ford."

He shakes hands with them. "Nice to meet y'all!"

"You too, man," James says.

"Yeah, same!" Lila adds. "I'm glad you found him, Diane."

Diane beams and pats his back. He gazes down at her with a smile and his eyes twinkle with love. "So am I," she murmurs.

"Mm-hm! I couldn't agree more! How long you two been together?" Debbie wants to know.

"Since the fifteenth of this month...so sixteen days, or two weeks and two days," Diane responds.

"Wow, cool!" Lila comments, and the others look pleased as well.

"Okay, Diane and Charles...this is my girlfriend, Nita Reddy," Debbie announces as she puts her arm around the slightly older Indian-American woman. "We were roommates in college and have been inseparable ever since."

"I'm now the governor's secretary and am trying really hard to get him to make same-sex marriage legal in New York...everywhere, actually, but our state, especially," Nita tells them.

"It should have been a long time ago," Diane mutters as she and Charles exchange handshakes with Nita. "Debbie, it's wonderful that you met somebody who makes you happy."

"Oh, she does!" Debbie gushes, and Nita kisses her cheek with much tenderness. Diane puts her hand to her heart, relieved at her own quick and smart thinking and her snooping skills. If she hadn't eavesdropped in on Debbie's big sisters and looked through Carol's book of spooky drawings, Debbie would've been dead about twenty-two years now. She wouldn't have ever turned thirteen, experienced her teen years, graduated, grown up, lived on her own, gotten into a relationship, made more friends, discovered her sexuality, or found herself.

"Awesome!" Diane exclaims. "So...I work here, but I'm also an English teacher at Martin Van Buren High and I'm a waitress at the Sparrow Tavern. I've lived in Queens for the past twenty years...but it's a shame we never ran into each other! I'm glad y'all dropped by now. What are you guys doing for work and stuff?"

"That's interesting! I majored in Art History, so I teach that at NYU," Lila informs her. "James and I have a daughter, Poussey."

"Oh yes, she's a classmate of Alex's. If we'd reunited a hell of a lot sooner, we could've hooked our girls up together!" Diane jokes, and everyone laughs.

"I'm a general in the Army," James mentions. "We move around a lot, and I'm often stationed in Germany and France if I go overseas. Because of that, Poussey knows three languages!"

"Wow, that's cool!" Diane comments. "She's a bright kid."

"Yeah," the Washingtons say proudly. "Thanks!" Lila murmurs.

Thank you!" James adds.

"As for me...I'm not an Olympic gymnast, mostly because I don't want to get caught up in the fame and fortune and I don't wanna be on television for reasons." Diane nods in understanding. "Sooo, I'm a children's therapist, I teach gymnastics at Gymstars Brooklyn, and I do ballroom dancing at Fred Astaire Dance Studio in New York City as a hobby!" Debbie reports.

"Nice!" Diane compliments her and she beams with pride.

"I'm a police officer," Charles lets the newcomers know. "I work at juvenile hall, but I put both children and adults under arrest."

"Should we be safe or worried around you?" Lila asks with amusement in her tone.

"I'm a good cop. I only put motherfuckers who really deserved it behind bars immediately. The rest get a fair trial." Charles grins and swings his arm around Diane. He kisses her temple. "Right, baby?"

Diane giggles. "That's correct."


"You sure you looked everywhere for her?" Leon asks as he and Aleida walk up to Friendly's while holding hands.

"Yeah, even under all the beds. She disappeared like a ghost! Or maybe it was a hallucination from all the alcohol I had tonight." Aleida rolls her eyes. "I dunno...if you didn't see her, and the police didn't either, then...I'm fuckin' loca. I think this stalker shit's getting to me and I was daydreaming."

"Well...it's a possibility that she just vanished without either of us noticing."

"That's so weird, but maybe."

As soon as they step inside, they see several guys dressed as Klu Klux Klan members harassing Diane, Charles, three other women, one white, one African-American, and one Indian, and another African-American man. "What was that, nigger lover?" one of the assholes asks the white lady standing beside Diane. He and his buddies guffaw much too loudly.

"We kindly asked you to leave!" Diane practically shouts at them. "You are harassing us."

"I can't hear you, ape jumper!" the second piece of scum jeers and pushes her, but Charles prevents her from falling on the floor and forces him out with the other man's help.

"Looks like we got here just in time," Leon mutters and Aleida calls the police. Even though Charles is a cop, she can see that he doesn't have his duty belt with him and he would need backup.

"Aw, what, you're dialing nine-one-one on us, you jigaboo fucker? Stupid spic!" a third taunts her. He tries to get in her face and grab her phone out of her hands, but Leon punches him out of her way. Before his pal can get revenge on Leon, the three African-American guys just about throw the both of them out, literally. Luckily, they're knocked out cold and are groaning in pain by the time they get arrested. Diane and Aleida just beam proudly at their men and the other women appear to be quite impressed, one of them making out with the man that Aleida and Leon don't know.

Diane and Charles quickly make introductions after hugging Aleida and Leon, who are happy to meet Diane's friends from childhood and Nita, Debbie's girlfriend.

"You guys could come on our group dates!" Aleida suggests.

"We would love that!" Lila says eagerly and she and her husband exchange an excited glance.

"Yeah, it would be fun!" Debbie agrees enthusiastically, and Nita looks just as eager by the idea.

Just then, Fahri, Gloria, Lourdes, and the kids file in. Lila, James, Debbie, and Nita are all too pleased to meet more new people. Everyone is in such good spirits, and Debbie seems to get along great with the little tykes. They show her and the others all of their treats they'd gotten.

"Oh, wow, so much candy!" she gushes as she kneels down in front of them. "Such cute costumes you all have on!"

"I a punkin!" Julio announces while hopping up and down.

"Gosh, that's adorable!" Debbie comments. "Did you and your big brother go to the pumpkin patch with your mommy?"

Julio nods his head yes. "We got big ones!"

"Yeah, like this!" Benny extends his arms as wide as they can go. "I hug it aaaall the time!"

Everyone grins and Gloria ruffles her sons' hair. "He really does," she says through a chuckle. "They both do."

"Aww!"

"I'm Esmeralda," Christina lets Debbie know. She puts her arms around Karima and Lindsay. "These are Pocahontas..." Christina pats Karima's head, "...and Mulan!" She plays with Lindsay's hair and then points at Farah. "That's Jasmine."

"I wanted to be Mulan because she looks like me!" Lindsay says proudly. "We rock!" She makes the universal sign for it and they all chuckle.

"Yeah, and rule!" Karima adds. "I could be Pocahontas' twin sissy!"

"You girls make such lovely Disney princesses!" Debbie praises them.

"Thank you," they say altogether while twirling around at the same time, making their dresses fan out.

"We're superheroes like Benny!" Michael tells Debbie and pumps his fist. "I'm the Black Panther!"

"I'm Superman!" Dylan continues. "I can fly!"

"I can, too!" Benny says.

"Look at you kids, saving the world! You know, princesses and superheroes can work together to do that, and princesses are definitely superheroes, too! Girl power!" Debbie gives each of the children a hi-five.

"Arrrrgh! I a piwate!" Emiliano shouts in her direction.

"Aaaah, scary!" Debbie jumps back from him in an exaggerated fashion, but she's fighting a smile. "Oh, no!"

"Gimme my money!" he hollers while pointing at Leon.

The adults laugh at this and Leon pretends to give the tiny boy some cash. Aleida beams at her son interacting so well with her boyfriend, even if it was just one sentence, a playful demand, in fact. It's a first, and she feels happy tears coming on. He doesn't even talk all that much like his big sister does.

"Now what do you say to the nice man?" Aleida asks Emiliano teasingly.

"Thank ooo!" Emiliano replies.

"Good job!" Debbie praises him and Aleida gives him a hi-five.

"She's excellent with the kids, huh?" Diane asks discreetly while Debbie and the children continue to converse cheerfully.

Charles, Aleida, Leon, Lourdes, Gloria, Fahri, James, Lila, and Nita nod their heads yes while grinning. "Well, Deb is a child therapist," Nita says proudly. "She's a natural."

"They seem very comfortable with her too," Lourdes notices aloud while glancing over her shoulder.

"Yeah...she's a positive person to be around. She was an excellent babysitter for Poussey," James informs them.

"She didn't only do it for the money...and she's like a mentor for our girl," Lila tacks on.

The wheels start turning in Aleida's head and she exchanges a knowing glance with the others. "Y'all think maybe we gotta take the kids to her?" she wants to know. "Like, they don't get bad dreams that much, but their pasts have been hella dark."

"Yeah, that's an excellent idea, baby," Leon replies and brings her hand that he's holding, up to his lips for a kiss.

"Mm-hm!" Diane and Charles agree at the same time.

"I would definitely recommend her for them," Lila murmurs.

"Same here," James adds.

Gloria nods vigorously. "Certainly. I went to a child therapist right after my parents' deaths. She helped a lot with my grief."

"Oh, that's good!" Fahri comments. "Every kid who's been through something awful deserves a child therapist."

"I couldn't go to one when I was younger...but I'm glad I got Lourdes now," Aleida tells them, and they offer her encouraging smiles.

Lourdes winds her arms around Gloria and Aleida in a loving manner and beams. "It's settled, then. Debbie's their therapist."


While she's sleeping and dreaming of being a fairy and flying through pretty flowers, colorful rainbows, and cotton-candy clouds, Christina giggles. Suddenly, though, she bumps into a thorn, but just slightly. It's enough to make her jump in surprise and wake herself up. She rolls over, groaning softly, and upon seeing an outstretched claw from under her bed, she jolts up, breathing heavily as thunder claps outside a few times and then rumbles. "You're not real, you're not real..." she whispers while squeezing her eyes shut, trying to dispel the illusion. She opens them again and it's still there and crawling up towards her face. She rubs her eyes free of sleep, but it just won't go away. She starts to scream, but the monster under her bed comes all the way out while keeping his furry hand clamped over her mouth, silencing any sounds trying to come out of her. She whimpers as she sees a wolf rise to his feet and all of a sudden, she feels faint and keeps gasping in and out as she pulls her comforter tighter around herself.

"If you be very quiet and don't wake up your tía, then I will not eat you. I just wanted to say hi...shhh..."

Christina can only breathe raggedly as she nods obediently and stares at him in horror. Hi, she mouths as a lump makes its way into her throat. She gulps it down, but it won't disappear. Don't cry, don't show fear, she tells herself. Her heart is hammering against her ribcage and she's trembling. The storm outside doesn't help her calm down, either.

"Shh...good girl." He slowly removes his hand from her mouth and rips the cover and sheet off of her. He bends down to sniff around her legs. "You didn't even piss the bed this time."

She wonders how he knows about her accident from almost two months ago, but she's too frightened to answer. She can't, anyway.

"I really like your Hello Kitty socks, but I prefer Barbie. At least she's got tits, but you know what? Your tía's way sexier. I yearn for the day I can have her again. Tell her thanks for not killing my buddy!"

She keeps her misty eyes trained on him as he escapes out the window and then she closes it with some difficulty since it's heavy. Some water gets in as the rain falls heavily from the black clouds. He climbs down what the grownups and the big girls call a fire escape and takes off into a sprint. She spits one of the beast's hairs out of her mouth and wrinkles her nose in disgust. Lightning crackles, turning the sky slightly blue.

"Tía Gloria!" she cries frantically, shaking her auntie awake. "Tía Gloria, I saw him!" She jumps when the thunder booms and lightning flashes again.

Gloria appears to be confused and then she focuses her tired gaze on Christina. "Who, sweetie?"

She chokes on her tears as she begins to hyperventilate. "The m-m-monster u-under my b-bed! He-he looks like...the big..." She hiccups loudly. "The big bad w-wolf!"

"What?" Gloria sits up, tucks Christina's unkempt bed hair behind her ears, and brushes her tears off her cheeks. She rubs Christina's back comfortingly. "Oh, little one, you had a nightmare...that's all it was. Just a bad dream, alright? We gotta stop readin' you Little Red Riding Hood right before you go to sleep."

Christina shakes her head and sniffles. She inhales and exhales shakily. "No, I felt him and...and he 'membered when I wet myself...and he knows you!" She sobs so hard that she feels the need to vomit. She races to the bathroom with Gloria right behind her, and then her aunt holds her hair away from her face as she throws up into the sink. She'd gotten so sick that she wasn't able to make it all the way to the toilet. She then rinses out her mouth and spits out any disgusting leftover bile until she can't taste it anymore. "Yucky!" she exclaims as she watches the yellowish-green liquid go down the drain. She glances up to face the mirror and sees that her face is pale and she feels sweaty and gross. She's unsteady on her feet and almost collapses as her heart rate slows down, but Gloria catches her. "I'm too hot," Christina mumbles while pulling down her pink pants and tugging her blue and green Hello Kitty socks off.

"Poor baby," Gloria murmurs while running a gentle hand through her messy curls. "You want a cool bath?"

Christina nods, so Gloria helps her undress the rest of the way. After being bathed, Christina clings to Gloria when her aunt is trying to assist her back in her bed. "Nooo! I wanna stay with you."

"That's perfectly fine, you can," Gloria says sweetly and wraps her arms around Christina. She burrows into Gloria's safe embrace and cowers when the thunder roars. Rain patters on the windows violently and trees sway in the wind. She's only relieved she's cozy inside. It takes a while for her to fall asleep again, but she does.

Thank you for reading and reviewing, Johanna002, MinervaSnape394, and A Star In My Universe!