It had been almost a year since Betty left Owen and Amelia to go back with her parents. She never actually told them the truth, the truth that she didn't want to go. Or the truth about why she had really run away. She had even lied about Leo's biological father. And now here Betty was standing outside of Owen's house in the middle of the night. She was just standing. She didn't understand why, but she couldn't bring herself to knock. Then she heard a familiar voice behind her. Owen's voice.
"Britney?"
Betty turned around to see Owen holding a sleeping Leo. He had gotten so big. She blinked, "Uh...Hi Owen...I um...I prefer Betty."
There was a reason why she had lied about her name, which was because she wanted a clean start. And there was a reason why she had never called her parents while she was staying with Amelia and Owen, but that's an entirely different reason. Well, not really. It ties into the whole wanting a fresh start thing, but it's a little deeper than that.
"Okay. Uh...what are you doing here?"
Owen observed as Betty was shifting her weight from left foot to right foot and back again while also not meeting his eye. He couldn't tell if she was high or just nervous. He hoped it was the latter.
"I'm...uh looking for Amelia. I need to tell her something."
"She...um…she's not home at the moment. She's...we're...uh…taking a break."
Betty looked down, "Oh."
Owen watched Betty with her arms crossed, rubbing them as if she were trying to keep warm. She was only wearing a thin jacket, and it was pretty cold out.
"How long have you been out here?"
Betty shrugged, "Not long. Just a few minutes."
Not that she would admit it, but Betty had been outside Owen's house for a lot longer than just a few minutes. When she first got there, her phone rang a lot. It was her dad calling her, but she didn't answer. She would never talk to him again. Not after what he had done.
Owen walked closer to his front door. He unlocked and opened the door, "Would you like to come in? Maybe you can tell me what you need to tell Amelia."
Betty nodded, "Yeah. That...That's fine."
Betty stepped into the house first and Owen came in after her. She sat down on the couch while Owen headed to lay Leo down in the nursery, before coming back and sitting beside Betty on the couch.
"So...what brings you here to look for Amelia in the middle of the night?"
Betty swallowed, "I...um...I wanted...I think you should know the truth about Leo's birth father."
"Is that what you wanted to tell Amelia?" Owen wondered
Betty shook her head, "No, but I think you should know. Just in case."
"In case of what? That the drug dealer who provided the sperm for your egg to create Leo will come and want custody?"
"No. I only said my drug dealer was Leo's father because I was scared and too ashamed to tell the truth."
Owen gave an understanding nod, "Okay. Who is Leo's birth father?"
Betty couldn't even look Owen in the eyes as she mumbled, "My dad."
"What?!" Owen asked shocked
"I ran away because of my dad. Because I was pregnant and I was scared of what would happen if my mom found out about me and my dad." Betty explained
Owen looked confused, "Betty, what are you talking about?"
Betty bit her bottom lip, "Um...I was seven the first time he came into my room and we cuddled...without any clothes on. Then on my twelveth birthday, he came into room and we had sex."
"Oh Betty." Owen said as he let out a sigh and reached out to hug her.
Betty wrapped her arms around Owen and hugged him back tightly as she finally cried out the tears that she had been holding back. She wasn't ready to say the truth about why she had actually come back. How could she tell Owen about what happened at home before she had left, especially since it was all her fault?
Owen rubbed the teen's back, "Hey. Hey, you should get some sleep. I still have the bed in the guest bedroom."
"Okay. Goodnight Owen."
Betty stood up and walked to the guest bedroom, the room that had been hers when she lived here. 'It felt good to be home.' She thought
In the morning, Amelia rushed over to Owen's house after he had called her to tell her about Betty. When Betty heard Amelia enter the house, she came out of the guest bedroom, ran into Amelia's arms and cried.
Amelia held the teen tightly as she rubbed her back, comforting her by whispering 'It's okay' into her ear.
"What happened?" Amelia mouthed to Owen from over Betty's shoulder.
Amelia knew about Betty's dad being Leo's father, because Owen had told her, but she didn't know why Betty had run into her arms, crying.
"Her dad." Owen replied as he shrugged
Owen didn't know the details, but he knew that Betty's father was responsible for why he had found her outside his house last night. And if he wasn't concerned about Betty's well-being and what would happen to Leo, he would have gone and killed Betty's father. The man who had hurt the girl that Owen had come to see as his daughter.
Amelia led Betty over to the couch, "Come on. Let's sit down and talk."
"I should have told you that I didn't want to leave."
Amelia nodded, "Okay. Why didn't you?"
"I was afraid of what my dad would do if he found out that I wanted to stay." Betty explained, crossing her arms over her stomach.
"Tell me about your dad."
Betty took a deep breath but then she shook her head, "I...I can't. I'm not ready."
"Okay. That's alright. What would you like to tell me?"
Betty shrugged. She had thought she was ready to talk about it with Amelia, but now that it was time she wasn't ready. She just couldn't, because she knew what she would be asked to do and she couldn't do that. Not yet. Maybe not ever. She was terrified of her father and to face him again…she might die. Literally. Not figuratively.
"You know that you can tell me anything, right?"
Betty nodded, "Uh...huh." She bit her bottom lip, directly her eyes downward, "My mom's dead."
"I'm sorry. I know how you feel. My dad was killed right in front of me when I was just a little girl." Amelia replied
Betty shook her head, "My dad...he...um...he held me down and raped me as my mom was forced to watch. The he killed my mom right in front of me. He threatened to kill me if I called the cops so I just came here instead."
"Don't worry. I'm not gonna let anything happen to you." Amelia assured the teen
"My mom and I were gonna leave him last night, but he came home from work early and caught us packing." Betty explained, "Where am I gonna live now?"
Amelia hugged Betty, rubbing her back, "You're gonna come live with me. I'm not gonna let him take you back again."
"Thank you." Betty replied, letting out a sigh as she hugged Amelia back.
Hope you enjoy. Comments are greatly appreciated.
