Your Past
"What happened to you?" Thea asked worriedly as Punk looked across at her.
"Is Dominic home?" Punk asked.
"Yeah, he's still sleeping. So is Sofia." She said, "Why are you here?" She asked wearily.
"I met some of your friends last night." Punk nodded, "Nice guys." He said, walking past her and heading into the house as Thea gulped, following after him quickly.
"What the hell does that mean?" Thea followed him through the house.
"What do you think it means?" Punk asked her, turning around and looking across at her as they stood in the kitchen, "What the hell have you gotten yourself into, Thea? I'm in fucking agony here. Probably have a couple broken ribs. My shoulder keeps moving in and out of place." He said as Thea gulped, "What the hell is going on?"
"N-Nothing… Nothing is going on." Thea shook her head. All she had wanted was to keep her family out of this. Seeing her father so beaten up only made her feel incredibly guilty.
"Cut the bullshit. Just tell me." Punk said, "I'm not leaving until you do. If you're in any kind of danger or trouble, I need to know."
"I'm not." Thea defended as Punk stared at her. Who was she kidding… she knew he was onto her now. There was no way she could keep it to herself. Her dad, more so than anyone, could see right through her.
"Tell me what the hell is going on." Punk said in a serious tone. His scary dad voice that still scared her, even as a grown woman.
"Mommy." James made his way into the kitchen unhappily, "Am I not going to school today?" He folded his arms as Thea looked over at Punk.
"Mommy will take you in at lunch time, ok? Go… Go watch some of your programs on TV." Thea nodded to him calmly.
"Ok." James said, running back out of the kitchen and into the living room.
"If you are in danger… if the kids are in danger… I need to know." Punk said as she looked across at him, "Did you move here because someone is after you?" He questioned as Thea gulped, nodding slowly.
"Yeah." Thea said as Punk sighed to himself, running his hands over his sore face, "But… you can't tell Dominic. He doesn't know."
"What?" Punk shook his head, "Why doesn't he know?"
"Because I didn't want to worry him. And I knew he'd tell you and then the whole thing would spiral out of control. I thought it'd be better if we just moved away. My work were transferring people. I never got picked but I… I actually offered, so we had an excuse to go." She said.
"Who are these guys? What do they want from you?" Punk asked her.
"They used to deal me stuff when I was younger." Thea nodded, "I… didn't exactly have money for them. Not the kind of money they wanted." She said, "And I was too far gone to realise that they were gonna hold me to it." She said.
"Why now? It's been years since you used." Punk said.
"They wound up in prison. The head of the group, Austin, he ended up in prison for years so… no one ever came to me for anything." Thea shrugged.
"How long have they been harassing you?" Punk asked her. He knew it would be something like this that was going on. It was the only explanation.
"About a year. He came to the house a couple times. Found me at work in the parking lot. I gave him everything I owed but he… he wouldn't leave me alone." Thea said worriedly.
"This Austin guy… tattoo under his eye?" Punk asked her.
"Yeah." Thea nodded, "He was… he was friends with Jackson."
"Of course he was." Punk nodded to himself, "How much does he want from you?"
"It doesn't matter what I gave him. He just kept coming back." Thea said, "And I was scared Dominic was gonna find out or that the kids were in danger so I thought the best thing to do was to move. I never thought he would have come after any of you-"
"Who is this group? Where are they based?" Punk asked her.
"Southside." Thea nodded, "I… I hung around with them a little when I was younger. They're not… good people-"
"I've gathered that." Punk assured her, running his hand through his hair, "Why didn't you tell me? Why haven't you told anyone?"
"I thought I could just handle it on my own." Thea said.
"Trust me, that doesn't work for anyone." Punk said, "You need to tell Dominic."
"He'll flip out-"
"Yeah, he has a right to." Punk said, "You should have told him about this. I mean have these… have these guys hurt you?"
"No… no, they haven't touched me." Thea nodded honestly, "I just didn't know what to do."
"If you're in trouble you tell me." Punk said, "You don't just move away and think it'll all disappear. You can't run from shit like this. It just gets worse." He said.
"I just didn't want anyone to worry." Thea said as Punk looked across at her, "It just reminds me of that time in my life that still haunts me and keeps me awake. I just wanted to disappear."
"There's no such thing with people like this." Punk said.
"Isn't this what you did to people?" Thea asked, "You were a dealer." She said.
"I was more… a supplier." Punk said, "But that's not important right now." He shook his head, "You gotta tell me everything you know about these people."
"What are you gonna do?" Thea worried.
"Just tell me." Punk said, sitting down at the table as Thea gulped. She wanted to feel more relieved that someone finally knew what she had been keeping to herself, but it was harder to accept the reality of it. The reality being she was in trouble with very bad people.
"What do you think is going on?" Cassie asked, sitting at the kitchen table with her mother.
"I don't know." AJ said worriedly. She hadn't slept all night. She couldn't. She dreaded to know what was going on with Thea. What she had been keeping from them.
"I thought she was clean." Cassie said.
"She is. I know Thea. She's not been using." AJ said confidently, "I don't know if this is from the past, when she was young… I don't know anything." She shook her head.
"I don't even remember her being on drugs." Cassie shook her head.
"You were only five or six." AJ shook her head, "Count yourself lucky." She nodded.
"I do." Cassie assured her, "You think this is to do with money?"
"Well your dad thinks so." AJ nodded, "I never thought she was involved with actual dealers. I just thought she got it from friends." She shook her head.
"It's not your fault." Cassie shook her head.
"Yeah well ask your dad." AJ said, still mad with Punk over what he had said to her.
"He's angry and worried. You know how he gets." Cassie shook her head, "Maybe once Thea tells him what's going on, we'll know better." She said as AJ nodded. She was just trying to keep her mom calm.
"Did I not do enough?" AJ wondered to herself, "Did I not protect her enough?"
"Mom, you did everything you could." Cassie said, "Dad has no idea what it was like. If it wasn't for you I don't know if Thea would have… gotten through all of that." She said, "This is not your fault."
"I should have looked into it more. I should have… I should have tried to make sure she wasn't in trouble-"
"You were on your own looking after three kids, splitting yourself between all of us, your job, your sanity." Cassie shook her head, "You did your absolute best and that was enough." Cassie made clear.
"Me and your father should have done everything we could to prevent you girls from making the same mistakes we did." AJ shook her head.
"And you have. You guys raised us to know our good from bad. Thea just ran into some trouble when she was young and maybe… maybe it's caught back up to her but we'll help her. And we'll make it right." Cassie nodded.
"She always told me that she got… the drugs from friends. That it wasn't dealers she was meeting." AJ shook her head.
"She probably just didn't want to worry you. And she was so far gone with it that she would have told you anything to get you off her case." Cassie said, "I mean I don't… I don't remember what she was like but from what I hear… she was pretty bad."
"She was terrible. And that's her past now. And believe me, pasts can come back and haunt you. We know that better than anyone." AJ shook her head.
15 years ago…
"Where are you going looking like that?" AJ stood in the kitchen, just home from work as she helped 6 year old Cassie get her homework out. She was met by her eighteen year old daughter in some denim shorts and a crop top.
"Just out." Thea said briefly.
"Oh, out. I know that place." AJ nodded to her.
"Out with some friends. I don't have details." Thea shook her head.
"Thea, it's freezing outside. You're not wearing that." AJ rolled her eyes, "Go put some jeans on or something."
"Don't say you're feminist and then tell me to change my clothes." Thea said with agitation as AJ rolled her eyes.
"I'm more thinking about you getting hypothermia actually." AJ said.
"Could I get twenty dollars?" Thea asked.
"For what?" AJ shook her head.
"Oh, mom… for like food and stuff. Why do you need to ask so many questions?" Thea asked angrily as AJ looked over at her.
"No, you're not getting money." AJ shook her head. She had a bad attitude, mixed with always being out with her friends and getting high, AJ for sure was concerned about her.
"Seriously?" Thea looked across at her.
"Yeah, seriously." AJ said, "I'm not your personal bank."
"Fine, I'll just starve then." Thea shook her head.
"Fine." AJ shrugged, unbothered by her dramatic behaviour.
"Don't wait up for me." Thea said, putting her leather jacket on.
"Thea, I want you home by eleven." AJ called as Thea stormed out of the kitchen and headed out of the house.
She headed down the street, taking her phone out and texting some of her friends. She was aware that she was hanging around people that weren't particularly good. Not good for her or society. In between breaking up and getting back together with Jackson, consuming too much alcohol and trying substances she shouldn't have been, it was beginning to slowly get out of her own control, and that was the dangerous part.
She walked further into town before arriving at an apartment block, heading inside and walking upstairs where she knocked on a door.
It didn't take long until someone answered, seeing the familiar face and smiling,
"Hey, it's Thea!" Austin exclaimed happily, "Get in here." He smiled, wrapping his arm around her and walking into the busy apartment, closing the door over with his foot, "You may as well be wearing underwear." He chuckled, checking her out.
"Yeah, give it a few hours." Thea nodded, patting him on the chest as Austin chuckled.
"We got drinks in the kitchen, come with me." He smiled, keeping his arm around her and walking into the kitchen.