Chapter Eleven: Betrayal

Emma

"What happened?" I ran over to Craig as soon as my mom let him in. His face was all messed up and he was limping. I hung up his jacket and he shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans.

"Don't worry about it. We are going to have a good time, regardless of what happened, okay?" he said sternly. I slowly nodded my head and linked my arm through his, leading him to the dining room table. A little family dinner was one of the steps that Craig and I were taking towards a heavier relationship.

"Are you okay?" my dad asked Craig when he sat down.

"I'm fine," he said, smiling to add emphasis. My mom walked in the room and joined us at the table.

"So Craig, how do you like Degrassi so far?" she asked him.

"Mom," I complained, sighing.

"It's okay Emma," he said. Then he turned back to my mom. "I really like it a lot. Most of the people are really friendly. I'm doing well in every class except math, and I've joined a few clubs," he told her. I could tell he was trying really hard to please both of my parents.

They made small talk all through dinner. I joined in on a few subjects, but I mostly just sat back and learned more about him. I was glad to have something normal happen with a guy for once.

After dinner, Craig offered to help me clear the table and wash the dishes. My parents went into the living room to watch TV and we set to work.

"How about I wash and you dry," I suggested.

"Sure," he shrugged.

We stood in silence for a few minutes. When the dishes were about halfway done, I stopped.

"Craig, what happened?" I asked him. I reached for his cheek and lightly stroked it. He didn't flinch but I could tell he was in pain.

"Why don't we go for a walk when we're done? That way we can talk without being interrupted," he said.

"I'd like that."

"You know what I'd like?" he asked.

"What?"

"For you to finish washing!" He dipped his hand in the sink and grabbed a bunch of soap bubbles, quickly tapping them onto my nose.

"You're gonna get it!" I yelled, splashing some water back at him. A few minutes later, both of our shirts were wet and Craig leaned forward to kiss me.

"I'll finish up in here," my mom said from the doorway, completely startling both of us. We jumped apart and Craig looked down at the floor.

"We're going for a walk," I said, grabbing Craig's hand and leading him out of the kitchen. We stopped by the door; put on our jackets and left as quickly as possible.

Marco

I sat at The Dot for a long time before I finally let myself understand that she'd actually stood me up. Manny had never done that to me before. We had a date and we were supposed to meet there around six for dinner. I waited until almost eight o'clock. I felt like an idiot as I walked out.

What if something happened to her? I should have called ten minutes after I got there. She could have been in a car accident. I frantically dialed her cell phone number and it went straight to her voice mail. Not a good sign. I tried her house number and her father picked up on the third ring.

"Hi Mr. Santos, it's Marco. Can I please speak to Manny?"

"I'm sorry Marco but she doesn't want to talk to anyone," he told me.

"Is she sick?" I asked.

"No, I don't think so. She just told me that she didn't want any calls."

"It's just that she was supposed to meet me at The Dot at six for dinner and she never showed up," I said, sighing.

"Why don't I ask her if she wants to talk to you?" he offered.

"That would be great, thanks."

I waited a minute as I heard him call her name.

"Daddy I said I don't want any calls!" she screamed. It sounded like she was crying. Her voice suddenly got louder, so he must have gone into her room.

"It's your boyfriend honey," he said calmly. I knew if I talked to my father like that, he'd probably slap me. "He was really worried when you didn't show up for your date."

"Give me the phone," she snapped. "I don't want to talk right now," she said to me.

"Manny, what's wrong? You didn't show up tonight and now you're upset. What happened?"

"Nothing happened, okay? Please don't bother me; I'm just really tired. I have a bad headache and I don't feel like talking. I didn't come to dinner because I wasn't ready on time. I'll talk to you later," she said. I could tell she was lying, but why?

"Do you want me to come over?" I asked.

"No!" she shouted. "Goodbye Marco."

The dial tone echoed in my ear as she hung up on me.

Craig

"Ready to tell me what happened?" Emma asked. She was holding my hand as we made our way to the park. "Who did this to you?"

"Sean," I admitted. "I don't understand it at all really. One minute he's my friend and the next, he's beating the crap out of me," I sighed. "He knew I had sex with Ashley."

"Did he find out about the…you know…?"

"Yeah. I guess that's why he did it. She told him that I gave it to her! And he believed her! After all the cheating she does, he still believes her about this? It's unreal."

"Well, he probably still feels like he should protect her. Do you want to press charges?" she asked.

"No. There's no reason to make him even more pissed off. Besides, I'd do the same thing. Of course, I never would've been friends with any guy who slept with my girlfriend in the first place."

"How did you even get home? I bet you were really messed up right after it happened." We walked into the park and sat down on the swings.

"Jay," I said.

"What?"

"Yeah. Jay's the one who stopped Sean. And he walked home next to me in case I passed out or something. I guess we're sort of friends now."

"Oh please! He probably only did it because he wanted to earn brownie points with me or something. Jay butts into my business way too much," she groaned.

"He's only trying to protect you. He's actually a good guy," I said.

"You don't know him like I do Craig," she said with an annoyed tone. "Trust me. He doesn't ever talk to anyone. He comes over my house once in awhile to snoop around and dig up all of our problems. I don't really even consider him family. I mean, my mom's brother is his dad, but he's not around at all. My mom said that he's basically a loser and he never wanted to be a part of Jay's life."

"That's really sad," I commented.

"No it's not. Jay always said he doesn't need a father; that he never wanted one anyway. I've never even met his mom! Some cousin. My mom said that he's protective of her or something," she rolled her eyes. "It's not like she's a kid. My guess is that she has some kind of drug problem or something."

"Emma, you're being really insensitive. I can't imagine life without my dad. And if his mom's messed up, that's got to be even worse," I pointed out.

"I'm sorry," she sighed. "We just get into so many fights that we can't seem to get along. He hates me, so I just kind of reflect the hate back at him."

"Hey, why don't we go get some ice cream?" I suggested, happy to move on to another subject.

"Sure. Anything to stop talking about Jay," she said, grabbing my hand and pulling me off the swing.

Paige

Jay insisted that I go to the hospital to get my hand looked at. I didn't want to have to explain myself, but he came up with some lie about me punching the wall when I got pissed at him for making fun of me.

Surprisingly, the doctor bought it—I just think the guy didn't really care one way or the other; he just wanted us both gone quickly—and sure enough, I broke three of my fingers and sprained my wrist. I had to get a stupid cast, but it was definitely worth it. Jay was the first—and probably only person—to sign it. He wrote 'cheers to the champ.'

"My mom's gonna be pissed when she finds out about this," I said as we got back in the car.

"You're actually going to tell her?" he asked me in a surprised tone.

"No, but Steve will. He'll do anything to pit my mom against me, I thought you knew that already," I said, sighing and resting my head against the window. A few minutes earlier, I'd felt triumphant for my battle wound; but it'd finally sunk in that I wouldn't be able to get out of this one.

"Are you joking Paige? You actually think that Steve is going to tell your mom that you beat him up? A grown man would never admit to a teenage girl breaking his nose. He'll probably make up some story about a bar fight and how he was defending her honor. She'll think he's her hero and that'll be the end of it," he said.

"You're probably right. She won't even notice my hand in a cast since she comes home from work and goes right into the fridge for a beer. Then she gets drunk and forgets all about me," I said. A few tears fell from my eyes, but I wiped them away before Jay could see.

"At least your mom has a job," he said.

"Can we stop for some food? I'm starving," I said, changing the subject.

"Yeah but let's make it quick. I want to get home soon. This is the longest I've ever left her," he told me.

"I'm sure she's fine."

Ellie

As soon as I got home from my date with Alex, I went straight to my room. I didn't like it when my mom asked me too many questions after dates. She still thought that I was dating my ex-boyfriend and I wasn't about to break the news to her yet. Things were getting serious with Alex.

I lay on top of my bed and stared at the ceiling for a little while. All I could think about was Alex, and how I pretty much turned her down. That's probably the way she saw it anyway.

I just don't know if I'm ready for this. Alex is the first girl I've been with, and if she's my actual girlfriend, I'll have to come out. I won't make her sneak around all the time. It's not fair to her at all. I care about her, so I want to be fair.

But I'm not sure if I really want to come out. I know that none of my friends would really care, not even Manny. She doesn't make remarks about Spinner, so why would she say anything bad about me?

It's my mom that I'm worried about. Ever since my dad left, she's been a total bitch. Well, she was one before that too. I could see why he left her, especially since she cheated on him countless times anyway; but I was still mad at him for leaving. He moved to the states so I don't get to see him at all. I only get spontaneous visits and letters every so often. But I think he'd be cool about it.

Since I wasn't getting anywhere with trying to decide, I put my favorite CD on and started to draw along to the music. It was something that always helped me clear my thoughts.

I drew for nearly an hour without actually concentrating on the sketch pad. I let the music run through my fingers and into the pencil. When I was finished, I turned the music off and saw what I'd drawn.

I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket and dialed her number.

Jay

"Hey mom!" I called when we got in the apartment. "I'm home! And I brought Paige with me!"

"Jay! She's probably in bed," Paige hissed. "It's almost midnight."

"We would've gotten here sooner if you hadn't decided you wanted food from two different places. Fast food is all the same," I complained.

"I still don't think you should wake her up. You and I both know that if she wakes up she won't go back to sleep," she said.

"Well, I'm going to check up on her anyway. You can go to my room and do whatever it is you need to do before bed," I told her.

I walked down to the end of the hallway and quietly pushed the door open. My mom was such a light sleeper that she usually woke up if it gave the tiniest of squeaks.

My entire body filled with panic the moment I saw that her bed was empty. I checked the bathroom and kitchen before jumping to any conclusions. I ran as fast as I could to my bedroom and pounded on the door.

"I'm naked!" Paige screeched.

"I don't care. My mom's gone!" I yelled. I heard Paige shuffling around and she finally opened the door a few seconds later.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean she's gone! She's not in the fucking apartment Paige!" I screamed. My face started to get hot and I could feel the tears coming.

"What about Susan? Where is she?" she asked. She always was the calm one out of the two of us.

"I don't fucking know!" I yelled.

"Calm down. Call Susan. Maybe she had an episode and she had to take her somewhere."

"Good idea," I said, swallowing hard. I desperately tried to calm myself down by taking very deep breaths. I dialed Susan's number and waited. As soon as she picked up, I started to freak out again. "Where are you?" I shouted.

"I'm at home," she said. I could tell she'd been sleeping by the softness of her voice.

"Where's my mother?"

"Relax Jason; she's asleep in her bed."

"No, she fucking isn't! Why the hell would you leave her?"

"She fired me," Susan replied, yawning.

"She can't fucking make the decision to fire you and you know that!" I screamed.

"Jason, to tell you the truth, it's just gotten to be too much. I need my own life too. I'm sorry but I can't do this anymore. I'm not paid enough and I don't have time to myself anymore. I waited until your mom was asleep to leave. Check under the bed; you know she goes there when she's scared or upset." I slammed the receiver down and turned to Paige.

"Can you go look under her bed?"

She ran off to the bedroom and went inside. She came back out shaking her head.

"She's not there Jay. I'm sorry."

"Well then where the fuck is she?"

Alex

My phone rang around eleven thirty. I saw that it was Ellie and answered it a little too enthusiastically.

"Hello?" I practically shouted.

"Hey Alex. I know it's kinda late to be calling, but I just can't stop thinking about our dinner tonight. I was wondering if maybe you could come over for a little while so we could talk," she said. How could I turn that down?

"Hold on, let me go ask." I left my cell phone open and slipped it in my pocket. Then I ran downstairs where my parents were curled up on the couch, watching some old movie. "Can I go to Ellie's?" I asked.

"Alex, it's eleven-thirty; it's too late," my dad said.

"Please?" I begged. "We have something really important to talk about."

"You can't walk there now," my mom said.

"Can you give me a ride? Ellie will bring me home. I promise I'll only be gone for an hour. It's just really important."

My parents exchanged glances and my dad grabbed the remote and paused the movie. He stood up and grabbed his keys from the coffee table.

"I'll take you," he said. "I'll be right back," he told my mom.

"Thanks dad!" I squealed, wrapping my arms around his neck and hugging him." I pulled the phone out of my pocket. "I'll be over in a minute!" I told Ellie.

"I'll see you then," she said.

"Okay, bye."

My dad opened the door to leave and we found Craig and Emma standing on the steps, kissing. Dad cleared his throat and they jumped apart.

"Hey Dad," Craig said. His cheeks were turning bright red.

"I think it's time to come in now. Emma, you're more than welcome to visit for a little while if you want. But no bedroom," he added, giving Craig 'the look.'

"Where are you guys going?" Craig asked us.

"Ellie's. She wants to talk," I said, grinning.

"Good luck," he told me.

"Thanks."

"Hello Alex, it's nice to see you," Ellie's mom greeted me at the door. "You can just go straight to her room. She told me you had stuff to talk about. I hope you're not fighting," she said.

"No, we're not fighting," I said, suppressing a grin.

"Well, go on then. I don't want to delay you any longer."

I slipped in past her and walked down the hall to Ellie's bedroom. I knocked on the door and she opened it. She grabbed my hand and pulled me inside, then shut the door behind me. She kissed me then—right up against the door.

"What was that for?" I asked, smiling.

She walked over to her bed and I followed her. We sat down together and she sighed. I wasn't sure if it was a happy sigh or an overwhelmed sigh. I think it was a mixture of both.

"Alex, I love our dates and I love spending time with you. I also love kissing you. And I also know that if I'm officially your girlfriend, I'm gonna have to come out. And I'm gonna need your help."

She looked so cute when she was concerned. I leaned forward and kissed her softly.

"I would love to help you," I told her. "Hey what's that?" I asked. I saw an open sketch book at the end of her bed.

"Nothing!" she said, grabbing it and closing it.

"Was that me? Let me see," I tried to get it from her but she put it behind her back.

"It's not done yet," she said.

Then she took me completely by surprise when she threw the sketch book to the floor and pushed me down onto my back. She kissed me hard and slipped her tongue in my mouth.

"Should we be doing this here?" I whispered.

"I don't care," she said back, kissing me again.

After a few minutes, I found my hands sliding up her shirt. We'd never even gotten that far before. I didn't care what Ellie and I did, as long as we could be together, but it was a nice change. I pulled her shirt off over her head and she did the same with mine. We kissed like that for a few more minutes before I started to take her bra off. She pulled my hands away.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"You first," she said. Her cheeks turned pink and I could tell she was embarrassed.

"We don't have to do this Ellie," I said, putting a hand on her cheek. "Not until you're ready."

"I am. I just want you to take yours off first," she said, giving me a small smile.

I sat up a little and took my bra off. Ellie gasped a little and stared.

"Something wrong now?" I asked as I lay back down. I felt completely comfortable around her.

"No. I've just never…" she didn't finish her sentence. Instead, she took her own bra off and looked at my face to see my reaction.

"You're beautiful," I told her. I grabbed her shoulder and pulled her down on top of me. Our half naked bodies were pressed together as we kissed. It was one of the best feelings in the world. I completely forgot about the time I was supposed to be home and just focused on Ellie.

I'd just started to unbutton her jeans when the door popped open.

"Alex! Your dad is…"

"Mom!" Ellie yelled, pulling her shirt off the floor to cover her chest.

"What the hell are you doing?" her mom screamed, dropping the phone on the floor. "What the fuck are you doing to my daughter?" she yelled at me. I scrambled to get my shirt on and pulled my bra off the floor.

"Mom, she's my girlfriend!" Ellie screamed. She was already crying, and I suddenly knew why she told me her mom was so horrible.

"Get the fuck out of my house!" her mom yelled at me.

"Ellie, I'm sorry," I said. I leaned forward and kissed her cheek; I didn't really see the harm in it since her mom had already seen us.

"GET OUT!" she yelled, louder than before.

"Mom, you can't treat her like this!" Ellie yelled at her mother. I watched as her mother ran at her and slapped her across the face.

"You little bitch! How could you do this to me? I want you out too!" she screamed.

"What?" Ellie cried.

"Now. Both of you. OUT!"

I grabbed Ellie's hand and dragged her out of her bedroom. She stopped in the living room to put her shirt on. She couldn't stop crying and I had to half carry her out to her car.

"I got your keys," I whispered, breaking the silence of the night outside. Ellie was leaning against the car, sobbing. "I'll drive," I said.

I helped her get into the passenger seat and put her seatbelt on for her. I saw her mom screaming over the phone and glaring at me through the window before I pulled out of the driveway.