Fiona tossed and turned over and over in her bed. Her nightmare being one that was constantly on her mind over and over for two years. No matter what she did, she couldn't get rid of it.
Fiona sat up in her bed quickly drenched in a sweat brought about from her dream. Her breathing was heavily and brought her hand up to wipe the sweat from her forehead. She looked around her and noticed her unfamiliar surroundings.
'How many nightmares can a person have in one night?' she asked herself as she threw the blankets off of herself and stood up. She walked to the window and opened the curtains looking at the lovely scene before her. It was early, the sun was only starting to rise and the view from her current room made it look even lovelier.
"Lovely, isn't it?" a voice from behind her asked causing Fiona to jump and turn around only to see Tina standing there. She was in her work clothes which consisted of a white lab coat with decent clothes underneath. She had a mug of coffee in her hand and glasses on her face. Her hair was in a bun at the top of head.
Fiona gave her a slight smile. "Yes. You have a beautiful house. I wish I can wake up to this kind of view everyday," Fiona said turning around and staring out the window once more.
Tina entered the room and walked over to where Fiona was standing and enjoyed the view as well. "I know. Why are you up so early? In your state you should be sleeping a little more," she said as she placed her mug on the windowsill. She didn't hear Fiona answer so she made an assumption. "Another nightmare?" she asked softly.
Fiona's head fell a little and she just nodded her head in response. "I've seen people like you but I've never met anyone who has the same nightmare as many times as you have," Tina said with a sigh. "What really happened Fiona? You always leave out details when asked," she said sternly while staring at Fiona expectantly.
Fiona didn't want to talk about it but she just wanted to get as much of it as she could off her chest. "Even before it happened, he had been abusive to me. He claimed that it was only because he cared and didn't want to lose me but it continued whenever he got jealous of me talking to my friends," Fiona started off slowly.
It was quiet for a little while after that before Fiona took a deep breath and continued. "Irvine and Moonbay were always trying to make me break up with him but I was too afraid of what he would do if I did. So I never even tried," Fiona said absentminded rubbing a small scar that was on shoulder.
"If he was abusive for that long, you should've told someone. They'll get a feeling of power over you and they'll think that they can keep doing it again. At least that's what I think," Tina said as she took a seat on the bed.
"I know that but it's a lot easier said than done. Because of something that was happening to me then, I finally made up my mind and wanted to get out of the relationship. I was scared so I asked Irvine if he could help me. He came over one day so we could talk. He was always like a brother so I knew that I could trust him with just about anything," Fiona said softly.
Tina knew most of what Fiona was saying at that moment but she continued to listen hoping to learn more. Even if she didn't learn anything new, she hoped that just talking about it would be able to help Fiona out some.
"Irvine came over and we talked about it but what I didn't know was that Todd decided to pay a surprise visit as well. He found something when he somehow got in and started accusing me of things. He started hitting me over and over. Irvine tried to help but ended up having his arm broken in the process," Fiona said as images of that day came to her mind.
Tina couldn't help but wince at the mention of what happened to Irvine. Their family was close to his so she knew him well. He was a strong person and to be hurt so easily like that made her wonder what else the guy was capable of. "What did he find that made him do all this?" she asked curiously paying utmost attention to Fiona's tale.
"I don't know but he went out of control when he walked in to Irvine trying to comfort me. I was feeling horrible and I was crying. He was only trying to cheer me up and gave me a hug. He happened to walk in right then and he started to yell out loud how I was cheating on him and that I was nothing but a slut… a whore, and every other nasty word imaginable," Fiona said although she actually knew what he found that day.
"Fiona, you're horrible at lying, but if you don't want to talk about it then I'll just drop the subject," she said with a small chuckle. It didn't mean that she wasn't curious but she had no other choice but to not go into it if Fiona didn't want to talk about it.
'Thank god,' Fiona silently cheered. She knew she could talk to her about it but there was so much behind it that would probably freak Tina out more than Fiona wanted. "Each time he yelled, he would hit me and once he even took a knife out and started to place small cuts in various places," Fiona said as she started to shake even more.
"Then the police came. Luckily Irvine had enough strength to get to the phone fast enough for them to get there before he might have killed you. You were close enough to death as it was when they brought you in," Tina finished for Fiona.
"In the end, I had a broken arm, a broken leg, several cuts and bruised all over my body, and a stab wound in my stomach where he did stabbed me before he ran off. I was in a coma for nearly a month. When I woke up, I found I lost something important in my life. My parents left shortly after that and I've barely spoken three words to them since. Not to mention all the nightmares I've been having since that day," Fiona said finding it hard to stand so she fell onto a seat covering her warm face in her hands.
"It's something that no one should have to go through. You were traumatized and wouldn't even speak for most of the time you were in the hospital. What did you lose? Maybe if you regained it things would get better," Tina suggested willing to hear all that Fiona had to say.
"My dignity, my faith in men, and something that was far more irreplaceable. I could just go on about all that I lost. Some of those, I don't think I'll ever be able to get back," Fiona said although she was kind of feeling better after getting all of that off her chest. Two years worth of pain. Yet no matter how much leaves, it would always be there.
"Obviously you haven't lost all faith in men," Tina said with a smile as she glanced out of the room and towards Van's. "You took to Van awfully quickly. Anything about that you want to talk about?" she asked getting really interested in the subject of her only son.
"Van had just become a very good friend to me. There were a few times that he'd listen and just be there for me. He's a good friend but that's all that he can be. I don't think I can ever start dating anyone again," Fiona said grimacing as she clutched onto her pant legs. The dream she had came back to her but she just shook it off quickly.
"Van's nothing like him Fiona. He a protector, not a destroyer. Would it really hurt to just give him a try? Besides," she said with a grin as a thought came to her. "You two would have the cutest children," she said and laughed at how red Fiona's face turned. "I'm just joking with you Fiona. You took it a little seriously though," she said with a grin.
Fiona's breath sped up a little but she remained calm as she watched the older woman. She looked away for a moment but she eventually looked towards Tina. "It must be nice, being as carefree as you are. Almost as if you have no worries in the world," Fiona said kind of envious of Tina.
"I'm like this because I know that I won't be around forever. Yet I also know that no matter what, I'll have people who love me close by. Those that will stick with me no matter what I go through. Just like how you had Irvine and Moonbay in that time," she said smiling as she stood up. "Don't be so hesitant about the good things that are left in your life, you may just miss out on a great opportunity if you just shut everything out like you have been," she said before grabbing her cup and slowly walked towards the door.
"Wait!" Fiona said causing her to stop and then turn back towards Fiona with kind of a knowing smile. "Is there any chance for me to ever be able to be normal again?" Fiona asked twitching a little.
"There's always a chance if you're willing to take it. You were hit with unfortunate circumstances but that doesn't mean that you can just let it rule you're life. This was forced on you at such a young age but you still have your future ahead of you," Tina said before bowing her head slightly and leaving the room.
A few moments after that, a tired looking Van came stumbling out of his room. He saw his mother walking away from Fiona's room and then looked in at her a little confused. "What were you two talking about so early in the morning?" he asked her scratching his head in confusion.
Fiona couldn't help the giggles that erupted from her throat. It was just that he looked cute doing what he was doing. "It's nothing," she said feeling more at ease than she had ever been in a while. She saw him shrug tiredly before he turned and headed towards the bathroom. "Van wait!" she said causing him to stop.
Van came to a stop and turned to see Fiona walking towards him. She looked a little hesitant about something and that confused him a bit. "Is something the matter Fiona?" he asked a little confused.
'Don't be so hesitant about the good things that are left in your life.' The words spoken by Tina rung through her head. It made her realize that she wasn't being very fair to Van up till then. Up till then, she was basically comparing him with her old boyfriend and he didn't deserve that.
Fiona took a few steps forward until she was right in front of Van. "I just wanted to say thank you," she said before reaching up and she gave him a small kiss on the cheek before she walked back to her room quickly leaving a speechless Van in her wake.
To say that Van was shocked would be the understatement of the century. His hand reached up and lightly touched the place that Fiona's lips had been only a few seconds before. "Wow," was all that he could say. He didn't know what she was saying thank you for but he didn't really care because he was still too stunned by Fiona's gesture to even care.
Off around the corner, a woman was silently cheering the scene she just witnessed. 'There's definitely hope for her and I think it's in the form of my young son,' she said turning to walk down the stairs only to yelp in surprise.
Dan stood there looking at his wife with a curious expression on his face. "What have you done this time dear?" he asked and saw a guilty expression cross her face yet it didn't look like she really felt bad about it either.
Tina Flyheight just smiled a strange looking smile and looked up at her husband. "My job," she said before walking around him only to have him lightly grab her arm just to stop her. "Is something wrong dear?" she asked in an innocent voice.
"You're such a child sometimes sweetheart. You always give answers without actually answering the question," he said but he had to admit that was one of the things he loved about her the most. She could continue to grow older physically but she would never become too old mentally. Yet she also knew limits to how to go about it. She had her serious moments as well.
"You'd be disappointed if I didn't act that way," she answered him with a sweet smile. "And I was actually doing my job. A doctor works with patients to ease their pain. That's what I was doing for Fiona," she said before her face became a little more serious. "She finally opened up and told me what actually happened to her. She's also showing more emotion again," she said proud of her work.
"Psychiatrists weren't able to get that much out of her. So I find it a little unbelievable that you got through to her so easily," Dan said with a slightly skeptical look. "How'd you do it?" he asked her looking at her quizzically.
"I just happen to know what she's going through. I know her better than those psychiatrists. They're paid to do their job but I did this for free. Fiona's a good girl but just needs a push in the right direction," Tina said walking around Dan and down the stairs since she needed to leave.
Dan couldn't help but smile. He definitely had a great wife. At a young age she was considered a genius despite her immaturity. The two got married when they were young and had Maria shortly afterwards. Despite this, she still went to college and she somehow got her masters in only four years when it would take others a few more than that. Then they had Van shortly after that. He knew that Van and Maria were destined for great things, just like her.
Dan was about to follow after his wife when Van came running past him in a hurry. Dan looked at his watched and was surprised to see what time it was. "In a hurry Van?" Dan asked following Van down the stairs.
Van ran into the kitchen and grabbed a piece of toast before turning to look at his father. "Yeah I need to get going or I'm going to be late," Van said rushing towards the door but his father spoke and Van had to stop and turn towards him.
"Van I need you to escort Fiona home first. She is still a bit sick and your mother and I would really prefer it if you make sure she got there safely. We would take her ourselves but we need to get to work. Don't worry about school. I'll write a note to the office if you still manage to get there late," Dan explained and he saw Van just slowly nodded his head after the explanation.
The two of them walked silently towards Fiona's house. It was an extremely awkward silence brought about by that small kiss that Fiona gave to Van. It may have only been on the cheek but it still made them feel strange.
Fiona took a quick look at Van as he walked carrying his backpack and her own across his shoulder. She felt she could carry her own but he said wouldn't give it to her until they reached her house. 'I'm sick, not on my deathbed,' she thought a bit bitter about it.
Van turned towards her and asked her a question that was on his mind for a while. "So how long are you going to be out of school for? We kind of have the presentation the day after tomorrow," he said rubbing the back of his neck. They were nearly finished with it but there were still some work that they needed to do together.
"Oh no!" Fiona said suddenly remembering the project. She'd been feeling so lousy that she completely forgot all about it. "Your mom said at least two days. What are we going to do about finishing it?" she said as he brain scrambled for any sort of answer to the problem.
"Don't worry about it. I'll talk to the teacher and tell him the circumstances. I'm sure the old man will understand. If you want, I can also come over later today and we can finish the project," Van suggested thinking it sounded relatively reasonable.
Fiona thought it over for a second and then nodded her head. "I guess we have no other choice. We need to get it done now or we'll not be able to get it done before we have to present," she said as they reached her house.
"Here," he said holding out her bag to her. He was kind of surprised how heavy the thing was. He wondered if she always carried a bag that heavy around all the time. "I'll see you later," he said turning in the direction of the school and started to walk off. There was something on his mind though. He figured she might not be happy about it and was contemplating asking her about it.
Fiona watched Van start to walk away and started to walk into her house. She suddenly saw him stop and then slowly start to walk back towards her. "Is something the matter Van?" she asked hoping that he wouldn't bring up what she did earlier that morning.
Van seemed to be looking anywhere but at Fiona. He rubbed his neck nervously and then looked up at Fiona. "Um… Fiona. I was wondering," Van stuttered and groaned. 'No preparing seems to be helping me with this,' Van thought sorting for anything in his brain to help him.
Fiona looked at Van quizzically. She wondered why he suddenly looked a bit nervous. "What is it Van? What were you wondering?" she asked looking at him. For some reason though, she felt like she knew what he wanted to ask. For some odd reason, it didn't bug her.
Van took a deep breath. 'I won't make the same mistakes as Thomas,' he thought putting on a smile on his face. "When you're feeling better, do you maybe want to go to the movies? Of course if you don't then I won't bug you about it again," he said the last part a little quickly showing how nervous he felt.
Fiona just stood there. She was slightly surprised but also had a strange feeling that was going to be what he wanted. Sure Thomas asked her several times but he was forceful about it. Van asked her as a real gentleman would.
'Don't be hesitant,' the words continued to ring through her mind and she felt a bit overwhelmed. 'You may just miss out on a great opportunity if you just shut everything out.' The words of Van's mother rang through her head as she stared at Van as he waited for an answer.
'Time to move on,' she thought putting a small smile on her face. "Sure, that sounds nice," she said and she saw him visibly let go of the breath that he's been holding while waiting fro her answer. She couldn't help but giggle.
Van couldn't believe his luck. He'd done what so many in his school had tried. He couldn't help but grin at her answer. "Great!" he said happily. "We'll talk about it when I come over later. I have to get to school anyways. I hope you feel better by then," he said waving before running towards the school before he was nay later than he already was.
Fiona watched him part. 'He's different from everyone else. He's actually sincere about what he says," she said before she turned and walked into her house once Van was out of sight of her house.