When Paris woke up the next morning, she almost forgot where she was. Then images of last night came flooding back...
Her father stood next to her bed, staring at her with fire in his eyes. He unbuckled his belt, and Paris froze, for a moment she thought he was going to rape her. When she realized he wasn't going to, she relaxed, only to stiffen again when she realized what he was planning to do. She threw her arms around her head to protect herself. He dad yanked her hands away and shoved her onto her stomach, pulled up her shirt, and brought the belt down on her bare back. Hard. The pain was unlike anything she had ever felt before, as if she were laying on a bed of flamming hot pins. Her screams got caught in her throat - every time the belt came in contact with her skin she tried to scream but it knocked the breath out of her. After a couple of times she was able to, and she buried her face in her pillow. He then whipped her until her screams were no longer muffled by her pillow. He put on his belt and muttered something that sounded a lot like "mistake" under his breath. Paris didn't move until she was sure he was gone, then sat up. Her back was numb with pain. Shaking, she walked over to her mirror and wiped her face. Her mother came into her room.
"This is all your fault!" she screamed.
"What? How is this my fault? I didn't do anything to deserve this!"
"You went to that party. Thats what."
"Mom, you are on crack. You were the one that made me go!" Paris retorted.
"Excuse me?"
"You made me go. I didn't want to!"
"Quit being a smart ass!" Ms. Gellar slapped Paris across her face. Shocked and angry, Paris turned back to her bed. "All I can say is that you got what you deserved. Maybe we should have practiced that when you were younger. Maybe you would have turned out differently." She kept on yelling at Paris but she wasn't listening anymore. Finally, her mother left. She locked her door, slid to the floor, and curled into a ball, sobbing. She lay there for a few minutes, trying to get her thoughts together. She couldn't stay at home, but she didn't know where to go. Madeline and Louise were still at the party, either that or at another party. They probably wouldn't care either. The only other person she could think of was Rory Gilmore. Her words echoed in her mind: "If you ever need anything, I'm here." Even though that situation was awkward, Paris was pretty sure Rory meant it. She got on her computer and looked up Rory's address and how to get there. It was a good 30 miles away. Paris' spirits fell. She couldn't take a car and didn't have any means of transportation. She knew she could walk about 4 miles an hour, that would get her to the Gilmore's in about 8 hours. It was a little past midnight now, and if she left now she could be there before it got light out and her mother realized she was gone. Paris threw a few things in her backpack, along with her uniform just in case, and started for her balcony door. She turned off her computer and got a sheet of printer paper, on which she left a note: "If you love me, you'll come looking for me. PG." Wiping her eyes she carefully slung her bag over her shoulder and climbed quietly down. As soon as she got to the edge of her property she broke into a run, even though it hurt her back. At the end of her street she stopped to catch her breath, then moved on. She walked a couple of hours when a guy asked if she needed a ride. Normally she would turn it down, but she accepted tonight. Stars Hollow was out of the guy's way but he took her to the outskirts of Hartford. From there she only had 8 miles. She went into the woods and found a place where she could sleep for a while. A few hours later she was wakened by thunder. She jumped up and started to head for the Gilmore's. She had only gone about two miles when the clouds opened up and it started to pour. She was drenched in a matter of minutes. She walked as fast as she could and finally arrived at the Gilmore's about two hours later...
"Paris? You awake?" Rory's voice jolted Paris out of her daydream - or rather, nightmare. Paris just nodded and sat up, leaving room for Rory to sit. "I heard you crying, are you okay?"
Paris felt her cheeks. They were wet with tears. "I'm fine. I was just remembering last night, and everything..." Paris trailed off.
"How's your back?"
"It hurts."
"I'm sorry, Paris, I really am." It was quiet for a few moments. "I'm going to see if my mom is up yet. I'll be back in a few minutes." Rory climbed the stairs to her mom's room. "Hey, Mom, what are we doing for breakfast?" Rory asked. Lorelai was doing her hair when Rory walked in.
"Luke's probably. Why?"
"Paris."
"Oh, no! I forgot she was here! Is she doing okay?"
"I don't know. What she went through had to be pretty traumatizing. I heard her crying and went to check on her, and she said she was just thinking about what happened. And her back hurts. This is so weird, mom."
"Why do you say that?"
"Out of all the people she could go to, she came to me. When I told her if she needed to talk she could talk to me but I didn't expect it to be something like this!"
"It means she trusts you, sweetie. You are a very kind and honest person. Not to say her friends aren't, but it was you she came to, not them."
"Yeah, but that doesn't mean it isn't awkward."
"I know, but just be the wonderful person you are, and I'll be the wonderful mother I am and talk to her and clean her back."
"Okay, I'm going to shower then we can get breakfast."
Lorelai followed Rory downstairs and sat next to Paris on the couch. "How are you doing this morning?" she asked.
"A little better."
"Does your back still hurt?"
"Yeah, not as much as last night. That stuff you put on it helped."
"I'll clean you up again if you want."
"Okay."
Lorelai got out the first aid kit and worked on Paris' back.
"Ms. Gilmore -" Paris began.
"Lorelai, please. Ms. Gilmore makes me sound too old, like my mother."
"Lorelai, I just wanted to thank you for letting me stay here. I know you probably think I'm a horrible person, everyone seems to think that," she paused, her voice cracking and her eyes filled with tears.
"You aren't a horrible person, Paris," Lorelai began, putting her arms around her.
"But I am. I've said such cruel things to Rory, I'm surprised you even let me inside. If I wasn't a horrible person none of this would have happened. My father must hate me, thats the only reason why he would have done this!"
"Your father doesn't hate you."
"But he does, he does! Why else would he have done that? I didn't do anything! He said I was a mistake. Maybe I am a mistake. Maybe I shouldn't have been born. Everyone's lives would be so much easier if I wasn't around." Paris was crying so hard she could barely speak. Lorelai pushed her back, her hands on Paris' shoudlers.
"You are not a mistake Paris. Don't think that, and don't let anybody say that you are. You were put here for a reason."
"What reason is that? I'm never happy, my parents hate me, my friends hate me...I hate me."
"Paris, don't hate yourself. The things that have happened to you have been out of your control. Your friends don't hate you, and your parent's don't either. Sometimes...sometimes its hard for certain people to show how much they care for someone. Everyone loves in their own way. Like my mother, we never got along, and we still really don't, but I know she loves me, and I love her even though its not the way I love Rory. See, you and I are kinda the same. My mom said some pretty hateful things to me when I was younger, and I thought I hated her and she hated me, and sometimes I hated myself too. Now look where I am. I made it through the hard times, and you can too. Life may seem pretty crappy right now, but things will get better. Just take it one day at a time, and don't sweat the small stuff. You are a very strong person, Paris, and you can get through this."
All Paris could do was nod a thanks. Lorelai hugged her again for a few minutes.
Rory walked out of the bathroom and sat on a chair. "How are you doing?"
"A lot better, thanks to your mom," Paris said, wiping her eyes.
"Good. Girls, I'm going to go get ready, then we'll go to Luke's for breakfast. Luke's food will make anyone's day better." With that, Lorelai bounded up the stairs to her room and Paris went to the bathroom to change.
A few minutes later, they were about to walk out the door when the phone rang.
"Hello?...Yeah, she's still here...Better, I think...Okay, I'll let her know. Thanks Madeline," Rory said, hanging up the phone. "She wanted to say your mom hasn't called her house yet. So she called your house and asked to speak to you, and your mom said that she didn't know where you were but said something about how she knew you'd be back soon."
"So she's not even looking for me?" Paris asked, trying not to let them hear the hurt in her voice.
"At least she knows your missing. I'm sure that if you don't come home tonight or tomorrow she'll get more worried and start looking. Forget about that for now, and lets go eat at Luke's," Lorelai said, putting an arm around Paris and guiding her out the door and walked over to Luke's.
After breakfast they went back to the Gilmore's.
"Ugh, it looks like its going to rain again," Rory commented as they walked up the driveway to the house.
"Good stay inside day," Lorelai said.
"Do you want to work on our English project?" Rory asked, trying to find ways to keep Paris' mind off her situation. She nodded, and started to follow Rory into her room. Lorelai caught her before she went in.
"Paris, I think that you should talk to your mom tomorrow. Maybe not go back if you aren't ready yet, we aren't kicking you out - you're welcome to stay here as long as you need - but you need to talk to her about what happened. Get things off your chest, find answers, not put it off longer than you have to. Give her a call, something, try to work things out, okay?" Lorelai said. Paris nodded and went into the room. She new she had to talk to her mom, but she wasn't quite ready yet. Her back was still killing her, and she was dreading going to school the next day. Pushing those thoughts out of her mind, she focused on their English project, putting everything she had into it.
Well, I've finally updated it! I wasn't originally planning on it, but I got so much positive feedback and requests to update it, I did, so I hope you like it. I'm planning on adding another chapter if anyone wants me to.
Her father stood next to her bed, staring at her with fire in his eyes. He unbuckled his belt, and Paris froze, for a moment she thought he was going to rape her. When she realized he wasn't going to, she relaxed, only to stiffen again when she realized what he was planning to do. She threw her arms around her head to protect herself. He dad yanked her hands away and shoved her onto her stomach, pulled up her shirt, and brought the belt down on her bare back. Hard. The pain was unlike anything she had ever felt before, as if she were laying on a bed of flamming hot pins. Her screams got caught in her throat - every time the belt came in contact with her skin she tried to scream but it knocked the breath out of her. After a couple of times she was able to, and she buried her face in her pillow. He then whipped her until her screams were no longer muffled by her pillow. He put on his belt and muttered something that sounded a lot like "mistake" under his breath. Paris didn't move until she was sure he was gone, then sat up. Her back was numb with pain. Shaking, she walked over to her mirror and wiped her face. Her mother came into her room.
"This is all your fault!" she screamed.
"What? How is this my fault? I didn't do anything to deserve this!"
"You went to that party. Thats what."
"Mom, you are on crack. You were the one that made me go!" Paris retorted.
"Excuse me?"
"You made me go. I didn't want to!"
"Quit being a smart ass!" Ms. Gellar slapped Paris across her face. Shocked and angry, Paris turned back to her bed. "All I can say is that you got what you deserved. Maybe we should have practiced that when you were younger. Maybe you would have turned out differently." She kept on yelling at Paris but she wasn't listening anymore. Finally, her mother left. She locked her door, slid to the floor, and curled into a ball, sobbing. She lay there for a few minutes, trying to get her thoughts together. She couldn't stay at home, but she didn't know where to go. Madeline and Louise were still at the party, either that or at another party. They probably wouldn't care either. The only other person she could think of was Rory Gilmore. Her words echoed in her mind: "If you ever need anything, I'm here." Even though that situation was awkward, Paris was pretty sure Rory meant it. She got on her computer and looked up Rory's address and how to get there. It was a good 30 miles away. Paris' spirits fell. She couldn't take a car and didn't have any means of transportation. She knew she could walk about 4 miles an hour, that would get her to the Gilmore's in about 8 hours. It was a little past midnight now, and if she left now she could be there before it got light out and her mother realized she was gone. Paris threw a few things in her backpack, along with her uniform just in case, and started for her balcony door. She turned off her computer and got a sheet of printer paper, on which she left a note: "If you love me, you'll come looking for me. PG." Wiping her eyes she carefully slung her bag over her shoulder and climbed quietly down. As soon as she got to the edge of her property she broke into a run, even though it hurt her back. At the end of her street she stopped to catch her breath, then moved on. She walked a couple of hours when a guy asked if she needed a ride. Normally she would turn it down, but she accepted tonight. Stars Hollow was out of the guy's way but he took her to the outskirts of Hartford. From there she only had 8 miles. She went into the woods and found a place where she could sleep for a while. A few hours later she was wakened by thunder. She jumped up and started to head for the Gilmore's. She had only gone about two miles when the clouds opened up and it started to pour. She was drenched in a matter of minutes. She walked as fast as she could and finally arrived at the Gilmore's about two hours later...
"Paris? You awake?" Rory's voice jolted Paris out of her daydream - or rather, nightmare. Paris just nodded and sat up, leaving room for Rory to sit. "I heard you crying, are you okay?"
Paris felt her cheeks. They were wet with tears. "I'm fine. I was just remembering last night, and everything..." Paris trailed off.
"How's your back?"
"It hurts."
"I'm sorry, Paris, I really am." It was quiet for a few moments. "I'm going to see if my mom is up yet. I'll be back in a few minutes." Rory climbed the stairs to her mom's room. "Hey, Mom, what are we doing for breakfast?" Rory asked. Lorelai was doing her hair when Rory walked in.
"Luke's probably. Why?"
"Paris."
"Oh, no! I forgot she was here! Is she doing okay?"
"I don't know. What she went through had to be pretty traumatizing. I heard her crying and went to check on her, and she said she was just thinking about what happened. And her back hurts. This is so weird, mom."
"Why do you say that?"
"Out of all the people she could go to, she came to me. When I told her if she needed to talk she could talk to me but I didn't expect it to be something like this!"
"It means she trusts you, sweetie. You are a very kind and honest person. Not to say her friends aren't, but it was you she came to, not them."
"Yeah, but that doesn't mean it isn't awkward."
"I know, but just be the wonderful person you are, and I'll be the wonderful mother I am and talk to her and clean her back."
"Okay, I'm going to shower then we can get breakfast."
Lorelai followed Rory downstairs and sat next to Paris on the couch. "How are you doing this morning?" she asked.
"A little better."
"Does your back still hurt?"
"Yeah, not as much as last night. That stuff you put on it helped."
"I'll clean you up again if you want."
"Okay."
Lorelai got out the first aid kit and worked on Paris' back.
"Ms. Gilmore -" Paris began.
"Lorelai, please. Ms. Gilmore makes me sound too old, like my mother."
"Lorelai, I just wanted to thank you for letting me stay here. I know you probably think I'm a horrible person, everyone seems to think that," she paused, her voice cracking and her eyes filled with tears.
"You aren't a horrible person, Paris," Lorelai began, putting her arms around her.
"But I am. I've said such cruel things to Rory, I'm surprised you even let me inside. If I wasn't a horrible person none of this would have happened. My father must hate me, thats the only reason why he would have done this!"
"Your father doesn't hate you."
"But he does, he does! Why else would he have done that? I didn't do anything! He said I was a mistake. Maybe I am a mistake. Maybe I shouldn't have been born. Everyone's lives would be so much easier if I wasn't around." Paris was crying so hard she could barely speak. Lorelai pushed her back, her hands on Paris' shoudlers.
"You are not a mistake Paris. Don't think that, and don't let anybody say that you are. You were put here for a reason."
"What reason is that? I'm never happy, my parents hate me, my friends hate me...I hate me."
"Paris, don't hate yourself. The things that have happened to you have been out of your control. Your friends don't hate you, and your parent's don't either. Sometimes...sometimes its hard for certain people to show how much they care for someone. Everyone loves in their own way. Like my mother, we never got along, and we still really don't, but I know she loves me, and I love her even though its not the way I love Rory. See, you and I are kinda the same. My mom said some pretty hateful things to me when I was younger, and I thought I hated her and she hated me, and sometimes I hated myself too. Now look where I am. I made it through the hard times, and you can too. Life may seem pretty crappy right now, but things will get better. Just take it one day at a time, and don't sweat the small stuff. You are a very strong person, Paris, and you can get through this."
All Paris could do was nod a thanks. Lorelai hugged her again for a few minutes.
Rory walked out of the bathroom and sat on a chair. "How are you doing?"
"A lot better, thanks to your mom," Paris said, wiping her eyes.
"Good. Girls, I'm going to go get ready, then we'll go to Luke's for breakfast. Luke's food will make anyone's day better." With that, Lorelai bounded up the stairs to her room and Paris went to the bathroom to change.
A few minutes later, they were about to walk out the door when the phone rang.
"Hello?...Yeah, she's still here...Better, I think...Okay, I'll let her know. Thanks Madeline," Rory said, hanging up the phone. "She wanted to say your mom hasn't called her house yet. So she called your house and asked to speak to you, and your mom said that she didn't know where you were but said something about how she knew you'd be back soon."
"So she's not even looking for me?" Paris asked, trying not to let them hear the hurt in her voice.
"At least she knows your missing. I'm sure that if you don't come home tonight or tomorrow she'll get more worried and start looking. Forget about that for now, and lets go eat at Luke's," Lorelai said, putting an arm around Paris and guiding her out the door and walked over to Luke's.
After breakfast they went back to the Gilmore's.
"Ugh, it looks like its going to rain again," Rory commented as they walked up the driveway to the house.
"Good stay inside day," Lorelai said.
"Do you want to work on our English project?" Rory asked, trying to find ways to keep Paris' mind off her situation. She nodded, and started to follow Rory into her room. Lorelai caught her before she went in.
"Paris, I think that you should talk to your mom tomorrow. Maybe not go back if you aren't ready yet, we aren't kicking you out - you're welcome to stay here as long as you need - but you need to talk to her about what happened. Get things off your chest, find answers, not put it off longer than you have to. Give her a call, something, try to work things out, okay?" Lorelai said. Paris nodded and went into the room. She new she had to talk to her mom, but she wasn't quite ready yet. Her back was still killing her, and she was dreading going to school the next day. Pushing those thoughts out of her mind, she focused on their English project, putting everything she had into it.