A/N: I have a new fanfic, as you can probably see. This one is a bit different from Bittersweet, though. There's only one girl at CGL, she's not actually sleeping in D-tent, all the guys will be attracted to her, at least physically, and it's in third person. So, yeah, enjoy. And to all readers of Bittersweet: I have chapter nine halfway done. Here you go.
Disclaimer: I own Jill, Beverly, and Clark Welsh. I'm pretty sure that's it. I own nothing you recognize.
Tears Subside As Scars Fade
Chapter 1: Take Me Away
"I cannot believe that bastard left us," Beverly Welsh says, unscrewing the cap to the bottle of vodka and taking a swig. She turns to her fourteen and a half year old daughter and glares at her through watery eyes. "This is all your fault, you little bitch." She adds on, raising a hand and smacking the young girl across the face.
"I'm sorry Momma." The blonde replies. A lone tear runs down her face as she brings a hand up to her now red cheek.
"Sorry won't bring your father back, Jillian," The older woman says, hatred laced with each word. She takes another swig out of the bottle and sets it down, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. She glares at her daughter for another moment before searching for her address book. "I have no choice but to send you away, now. I am in no position to be raising a child all by myself."
"Not that you were all that good at it before." Jill says under her breath. She takes one last look at her mother before walking toward her room and shutting the door. She locks it before walking over to her bed. She pulls the box out from under her pillow and lifts the top carefully. She takes out the pictures, from happier times, when her father was a respectable man, had a decent job, and her mother was a stay at home wife, and was kind to those around her. She throws them onto the floor and digs through the box of sentimental objects. She finally finds her pocket knife and pulls it out, flipping it open and lightly fingering the blade. She rolls her sleeve up and pulls it up to her arm.....
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"Jillian! Wake your fat lazy ass up! You need to start packing!" Jill opens her eyes to see her mother standing over her, drinking from a bottle of beer. She looks over to her clock.
'It's not even 10:00 in the morning and she's already drinking.' She thinks, looking back to her mother.
"Where are you sending me, Momma?" She asks, sitting up in her bed.
"The only person who didn't hang up on me was my cousin, Lou Walker. She lives about an hour and a half away. She runs some place called Camp Greenlake. It's a juvenile correctional facility for boys. You'll be the only girl there, so be careful that you don't get raped, you hear me? I don't wanna be a grandma." Beverly replies, taking a sip of her drink.
'Like you'd care. It's not like I'm ever going to see you again.' Jill thinks, wishing she had the guts to say that out loud. But she didn't want to risk getting hit again.
"She's sending a bus for you. It'll be here in two hours, so get to packing." And with that her mother exits the room, leaving Jill to get ready.
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The bus ride to Camp Greenlake wasn't that long, but it gave Jill some time to think about her past. Up until she was six, almost seven, everything was fine. Her father, Clark Welsh, was District Attorney of her hometown, Summerlake, and he was an amazing husband and father. Then he got into the drugs, he claimed it was from the pressure of election time. His opponent found out and exposed him, and he spent six months in jail. Her mother had started drinking, but not as much as she was now. Everything was fine at home until he got out of jail.
Flashback
"I'm back." He said, his voice so soft that they could barely hear him. He looked so evil, with that smirk on his face. Jill almost didn't recognize her father. He took a step towards Beverly and kissed her hard before smacking her so hard she fell to the ground. He then turned to Jill and threw her down, punching her basically anywhere he could reach.
"Get off of her!" Beverly screamed, smacking her husband and trying to pull him off of her daughter. Finally, he stood up and wiped the blood off of his hands.
"I need a drink."
End flashback
That was the night everything came crashing down. Things weren't the same after that. Her father was still doing drugs and drinking, beating her and her mother if they made the slightest mistake. Her mother began drinking more after that, too. Soon her father decided they needed more money, and he began dealing drugs. He told Beverly that she needed to become a hooker, and said that she wasn't that ugly and they could probably make some money off of her. He even suggested that Jill became one, but her mother refused to allow it. Three months into her job, Beverly found out she was pregnant by one of her clients, and Clark beat her until she miscarried.
Her mother wasn't the kind, loving person that Jill remembered after that. She became a cold, bitter drunk, hardly speaking to Jill at all unless it was to insult her. Then her parents failed to pay bills. Jill was made fun of at school for wearing her grimy second-hand clothes and always being dirty and smelly. She was a smart girl, but she failed most of her subjects because her parents never paid the electricity bill and she couldn't do her homework. She would've gone to a friends house, but she didn't have any. She was all alone. The bus comes to a stop in front of a cabin with a car, two trees and a hammock outside. A woman with curly red hair pulled back into a ponytail and hidden under a cowboy hat was waiting on the porch for her.
"You must be Jillian," The woman says, smiling at her. "Oh, come here, give me a hug. I think you were two the last time I saw you, and now you're all grown up. Technically, you're my 2nd cousin. But you're mother was more like a sister to me, so you can call me Aunt Lou. Oh, you look just like you're mother."
'I hardly take that as a compliment.' Jill thinks, forcing a smile. She used to think that her mother was the most beautiful woman in the world. But then she started drinking, and she was always pale and had these dark rings under her eyes and her hair was always a mess.
"You can call me Jill. Please." Jill replies. She hated being called Jillian. That's what her mother always called her.
"Jill it is then," It was hard to tell whether or not this woman's cheery personality and kindness was real, or if it was all an act. She hoped it wasn't an act, she was sick of people being fake. "Come now, I'll show you your room and you can meet some of the campers," She leads Jill to a room in the back of the cabin. Inside there was a bed, two dressers, a closet, and a small bathroom. The warden turns to Jill and smiles. "I figured you would want to decorate it yourself, to make you feel more like you're at home," Jill nearly snorted with bitter laughter at this . The last place she wanted to be reminded of right now is home. "I'll be right back." And with that said, the warden leaves the room. Jill sets her bag on her bed and looks around. She sits on the bed with a sigh and almost two seconds later the warden returns, this time with a short man, who's nose was covered in sun block, right behind her.
"Jill, this is Dr. Pendanski. Pendanski, this is my 2nd cous-." The warden stops herself and smiles at Jill. "I'm sorry, my 'niece' Jill."
"It's very nice to meet you, Jillian. You'll be digging with D-tent. D stands for-." Dr. Pendanski starts.
"Digging?" Jill asks, standing up and looking at the warden with confusion evident in her green eyes.
"Well, the boys here dig holes to build character. I figured you might as well join them, since you won't have much else to do. You don't have to dig the entire five deep hole, you only have to dig until the first boy from D-tent finishes." The warden replies, showing Jill a smile that was definitely fake.
"Well, I guess I could, if it's the only thing to do." Jill replies, smiling slightly before looking down at the floor.
"Excellent! Now that is the type of spirit I would like to see more often here at Camp Greenlake! Jillian, let's go meet the boys of D-tent!"
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"Boy, could I please have your attention? I have a very important announcement to make!" Pendanski says, entering the tent. The boys look up from there activities, some glaring slightly at the man they call mom, some smirking at him. "Now, the wardens 'niece' has come from Summerlake, Texas, a small town not to far from here. She will be staying at camp for quite a while, and digging with you all. Jillian, could you please come here?" Jill enters the tent, her cheeks tinted pink from embarrassment. She looks up to meet the shocked faces of the D-tent boys and a smile tugs at the corner of her lips before she looks back down, her hair falling in front of her face. "Boys, this is Jillian Welsh, the wardens 'niece'. Jillian, this is Rex, Jose, Alan, Theodore, Stanley, Ricky, and Zero. You may go back to the wardens cabin whenever you are ready, but I think your aunt would appreciate it if you got to know these boys better, so you can have people to talk to while you're here." Pendanski smiles at her before exiting the tent. A black boy with thick glasses that was introduced as Rex steps forward.
"Mom got it all wrong. Don't listen to him. I'm X-ray. That's Magnet, Squid, Armpit, Caveman, Zigzag, and Zero." He points to each boy as they're introduced. Jill nods when he's done.
"So I'm assuming Pendanski is Mom?" She asks, raising her eyebrows questioningly.
"Yup." X-ray replies, heading back towards his cot.
"So, you're the wardens niece?" Armpit asks, sitting up and looking at her intently.
"Well, actually she's my 2nd cousin, but she insists that I call her Aunt Lou." She replies, shuffling her feet nervously.
"How old are you?" Zigzag asks, looking at her with wide, paranoid eyes.
"Almost fifteen."
"You go by Jillian or Jill?" Caveman asks, smiling warmly at the blonde girl.
"Jill."
"Girl, what's with all the short answers? And how come you ain't lookin' at us? You shy or somethin'?" X-ray asks, looking at her curiously.
"Well, I was raised to only speak when spoken to, and whenever I tried to initiate a conversation with my parents, I was told to shut up, so I'm not really used to talking much." She replies looking up and pushing her hair behind her hair, something she did whenever she was nervous.
"Well, we won't snap at you or nuthin'. Unless you really piss us off." Squid says jokingly. Of course, Jill didn't know if he was joking or not, so she smiles slightly and laughs nervously.
"So, how did you all end up here?" She asks, hoping to get to know them better. That was what her 'aunt' wanted.
"You'll find out tonight. I'm sure that Mom will make you join our 'circle'" Magnet says, smiling at her.
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Sure enough, Pendanski asked Jill to join them that night. She pulls up a chair and, upon their requests, sits between Squid and Magnet.
"So, I think that tonight, we should get to know Jillian a bit better." Pendanski suggests.
"Okay, but before we do that, could you please call me Jill?" She replies.
"Jill is a nickname, Jillian. I refuse to call you kids by your ridiculous nicknames," Pendanski says, shaking his head no. "Besides, Jillian is a beautiful name. Why would you not want to be called Jillian?"
"My alcoholic mother calls me Jillian, and I'd rather not be reminded of her." Jill replies, glaring at Pendanski..
"Alright, Jill works. Would you like to tell us about your home life, Jill?" Pendanski asks. She reluctantly told them all about her parents. How her mother slowly went insane, her father had affairs, and eventually left them, her mother began drinking more, everything. By the end of her story, the boys were in shock of what she had to go through. A few people could relate to it in some ways, but only one really related to it.
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After the counseling session, Jill walked out into the dessert and sat on the ground with her feet dangling in a hole, looking up at the sky. She was so deep in thoughts about her past that she didn't even notice that someone had come and sat next to her until she heard Squid's voice.
"Hey." He says smiling at her slightly through the darkness before looking up at the stars and playing with his fingers.
"Hey Squid." She replies. She sighs and tries to hide her tears. She didn't want any of the boys thinking she was weak.
"My dad left when I was seven," He says after a few minutes. "I don't know if it was for another woman, though. He just left one day. Said he was goin' to the store and he never came back. My moms been drinkin' ever since." Jill looks at him, trying to read his face through the darkness. She smiles weakly after a moment, grateful to have someone who went through something similar to what she went through. Finally, she replies.
"I feel guilty about this, but I was kind of glad when my mom sent me here. I wanted to get away." She says, letting a few more tears escape.
"When I got here, I couldn't get the look that was on my moms face when I was caught out of my face. She just looked so, distant, you know? And I'm worried about her, bein' alone with nobody takin' care of her. And I know she needs it." He says, looking back at Jill and wiping a tear off her face. She nods, knowing exactly how he feels.
"Jill!" The warden calls from her doorway. Jill stands up and dusts off her pants, Squid following suit.
"I'll see you tomorrow." She says. Squid nods and she begins her walk back to the cabin.
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A/N: Sorry if it sucked. I'm trying to make this different. I don't know who she's gonna end up with, so don't assume it's going to be Squid. I'll let you guys vote, and I'll decide which pariring I like more as I go along with the story. Review and I'll update soon. Oh, and I kind of wrote that whole 'My mother calls me Jillian when she's drunk' thing based on a scene from Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story. Hehe, it was stuck in my head.