A/N: Thanks again for reviewing! This chapter is dedicated to Megan (Ladybug07) who sadly dislocated her toe today. Let's all send her some cyber-love. Get well soon Megan! Please enjoy…
The following Friday, Carly Stokes woke up yet again in the middle of her parents' bed, tiredly rubbing at her eyes. Usually, she was the first one up in the house, but lately Carly had been sleeping in. It was exhausting having nightmares and being afraid. Almost every night that week, she had crept into her mom and dad's bedroom during the wee hours of the morning. She could tell they were starting to get worried. Instead of that forgiving, only slightly concerned face she'd gotten before from her mother after complaining of a nightmare, her mom's face now always took on a troubled look when she ventured to her side of the bed at night. Carly wondered if she thought she was a freak, or if there was truly something wrong with her. The second grader wasn't sure why she was freaking out so much. Right now, she just really wanted to be close to her parents, and didn't like joining in on things with her classmates. Whenever she got called on in class, her palms would get sweaty, and her face red. It was embarrassing, and she wished her teacher would just quit doing that. Even if she knew the right answer, she didn't want to share it.
Her mother's side of the bed was empty, and she heard her downstairs fixing coffee for her and her dad. She turned the other way and saw that her father was still there, and watching her quite intently. Carly just stared back for a couple moments. He must think she's weird now too. And that recurring nightmare she'd been frequenting this week would come true – they'd walk away from her, so embarrassed by their own child.
Nick reached out and tousled his daughter's hair gently as she edged her way into the land of the living. He was concerned about his middle child. This last week for some reason, she'd taken a real nosedive. She was uncharacteristically scared, timid, and clingy. At least three nights in the last week, she'd ended up in their bed during the night. Not that he minded since she seemed truly scared. It wasn't a childish tantrum or trick to get to sleep in mom and dad's bed. She was truly petrified of whatever dream she was having. And Carly wouldn't tell him about it. All she would tell them was that she got scared and she wanted to be with them.
"How you doin', sweet pea?" His voice was slightly groggy from his own sleepy state.
"Okay." She yawned, squinting her eyes shut for a moment, then she opened them wide again.
Nick nodded and didn't want to push her, but she needed to start talking about what was bothering her. Otherwise he couldn't help, and that was truly a difficult thing for such a caring, devoted father.
"Did you have another nightmare?" He probed gently, reaching out to rub her little arm soothingly. Carly had always talked to him. Always. And while he knew that wouldn't last quite as openly into her teen years, he didn't think she'd be boarding herself up at age seven.
She nodded, and already knew his next question, so she answered before he could ask. "And I don't wanna talk about it. Sorry."
Nick smirked slightly and tousled her hair once again. She was very firm about her feelings and what she wanted to share, just like her mother. He knew it was no use in pushing much farther.
"Why won't you talk to me about it, sweetie? Hmm?" His voice was patient and caring. Carly's left shoulder moved up and down in a non-answer gesture.
"I just don't." She told him simply, now fiddling with the hair band on her left wrist. Nick noticed she'd started wearing them around her wrist because Riley did. She idolized her big sister. He wondered if Riley asked her about her nightmares, if she would talk to her.
"Okay." Nick whispered. "But you know you can, right? Whenever you're ready."
"I know, Daddy." She assured him, just as Nick heard footsteps on the stairs. Sara had her light blue silk robe on over her matching nightgown. It had been hard to resist her last night, but they had been interrupted by you know who.
She smirked at her husband and daughter laying there, looking lazy. Carly's face was much more relaxed now than it had been hours before, when she'd stood whimpering and scared at the side of her bed, begging to get in again.
"Two peas in a pod." Sara commented, quirking an eyebrow at similar they acted sometimes. "Get your lazy buns out of bed. Coffee's ready."
Nick scrubbed a hand over his face and began to sit up. Sara watched as he scooched Carly towards the edge of the bed and picked her up in his arms since she wasn't quite awake yet. He carried her to the door where Sara was waiting with a smile on her face.
"Has sleeping beauty not gotten her kiss from the handsome prince yet?" She wondered as she rubbed Carly's back in circles. Nick chuckled and pressed a kiss to the girl's forehead, then pulled back to see if he got a reaction. She yawned again.
"Nope, didn't work." Nick cleared his throat. "Maybe some tickling will."
Carly squirmed even before he began tickling her sides. She cackled loudly as she wriggled out of his arms and away from his tickling hands. Carly was at least slightly more awake now, as she grasped the banister to walk down the stairs. Nick wished she would giggle and smile like that more often, without being the result of a good tickling.
"Works every time." He commented as they followed her down. If only all the world's problems could be solved by tickling.
"I haven't gotten my kiss yet." Sara mocked being offended and stopped on the stairs, not willing to go any further until Nick got the hint. He sighed and gave her an amused look as he climbed back up two steps to meet her.
"So childish." He told her, leaning up from the step below her to capture her lips in a sweet, tender, good morning kiss. They kissed for several moments there on the steps until Sara pulled back.
"Much better." She smirked, fixing his flattened hair a little to her liking. "Now, I can function."
Nick shook his head but smiled at her comment, then grasped her hand as they finished walking down together. They heard the downstairs shower going, so Riley was thankfully up without having to get a rude awakening. Carly was already helping herself to some Cheerios. Nick went to the coffeemaker to pour himself some brew while Sara got the milk from the refrigerator to help Carly with. As she walked over to where she was pouring her Cheerios, Carly must not have had the control over the box she needed, because it suddenly started pouring out heavily. The child wasn't able to stop it in time, so Sara grabbed the box and turned it upright.
"Whoops." Sara told her lightly, moving the box to the side of the counter so she could scoop the extra remnants back into the plastic lining. Carly was silent for the first several seconds, but then she just started crying. Her mother looked back at her husband, who was just as confused as he was. Sara swallowed and put the box down, then turned Carly to her for a hug.
"Baby, what's the matter?" She cooed, gently stroking her brown hair. "It's just a little cereal."
Carly struggled to compose herself. "Are you mad at me?"
Sara rubbed large circles on Carly's back in reassurance. "No, honey. Why would you think I'd be mad at you? It was an accident."
Carly didn't answer, just cried softly into her mother's stomach as Sara comforter her. She made gentle shooshing noises, and reassured her that everything was alright. Nick finished making his coffee, and then leaned back against the counter, studying the sight before him. Carly was really starting to get him concerned now. Once happy-go-lucky, his precocious daughter now scared so easily that she broke down in tears when she spilled cereal.
After a minute or so, she had calmed down again. Sara dried her eyes, poured the excess cereal from the bowl back into the box, poured her milk, and sent her off the kitchen table. Nick cleared his throat a little and met Sara's eyes as she began clearing the mess up from the floor.
"Something's goin' on with her." He said as softly as possible, so Carly wouldn't overhear. His eyes showed concern. They'd seen so much over the last week or so they couldn't deny there was a real issue.
Sara nodded as she scooped the Cheerios up in her hand. "I know." She whispered. "We'll talk later."
The rest of the morning for the Stokes passed quite uneventfully once Carly had settled down again. At least it was Friday, and tomorrow they could all sleep in and not have to worry about the hassle of school. Maybe there was something going on in class that they didn't know about. Was someone threatening her or doing bad things to her? There were many possibilities, all of which scared Nick and Sara more and more. And Carly was doing nothing to soothe their worries, because she wouldn't talk.
CSI CSI CSI CSI CSI
Riley Groves walked down the hallway of Clark High School after her third period class. By Friday, she was always exhausted and ready for a little fun after being cooped up all week doing homework. Only four more classes to go, and she could finally go have a little fun. Then tomorrow, she could sleep!
"Very nice! How much?" The voice of one of her good friends, Cody, asked in a Borat accent from behind her. Riley smiled, but then wiped it away before she turned to her side to look at him.
"Seriously, that's getting old, perv." Riley countered as they made their way to her locker.
"Do you want to make sexy time later?" He continued, earning him a shove in the arm. If Cody knew anything about high school girls, shoving and hitting was a good thing. Riley's amused death glare caused him to hold up his hands in surrender. "Alright, I'll stop."
"Thank you." She told him as they reached her locker. Riley began turning her combination on the dial as he leaned against the locker next to hers. Even Riley was too tired to come up with a witty comeback at the moment.
"So, are you gonna be free enough tonight to take your nose away from those damn algebra and history books and have a little fun with yours truly?" Cody hoped she would say yes. They'd become friends back in middle school when Riley had first moved here, and their friendship had really blossomed in high school. And if he wasn't mistaken, he was developing a bit of a crush on the free spirit.
"Depends." Riley chucked her algebra textbook down on the bottom of her locker, and fished out her AP English novels. "Are you going to be quoting Borat or Monty Python all night?"
"Of course not!" He told her. "I'll be too busy slamming down beer to do that."
Riley raised her eyebrows and shook her head in amusement. Cody was definitely a fan of the booze. "Cody, I'm not getting wasted with you again."
"Why not? Your parents didn't even find out last time!" He pointed out.
"Yeah, but I had to sleep it off until noon which they weren't happy about." She zipped up her bag and shut her locker with a bang. "Plus, I don't want to chance it again. If my dad found out, I wouldn't see the light of day for months."
Cody sighed and followed beside her as she slung her backpack over her shoulder and headed for the English hallway. "So, I'll pick you up at eight?" He checked. Cody was already sixteen and had a brand new car.
Riley let out a dismissive laugh that he didn't take as a good sign. "Yeah, right. It's probably best if my parents don't see you. Don't you remember what you did last time you were over?"
Cody smirked at the memory of her parents' faces. He had been maybe a little too friendly with Riley in the pool outside. Cody admitted he flirted shamelessly, and had perhaps taken it a little too far when he pulled the string on Riley's bikini top. How was he supposed to know that her stepmother was watching from the kitchen window? That had been about a month ago now, and he hadn't shown his face there since.
"Oh, yeah. A slight misstep, but I am known to win the parental units over with some smooth talking and an impressive vocabulary." He bragged as they neared Riley's classroom.
"Not my parents." Riley told him honestly. They remember every little detail about her friends. And while Cody was better than most of the losers she tended to hang out with in middle school, he still wasn't their idea of a good friend for their daughter. He was a smart kid, but needed some…guidance, to put it nicely. Cody only flamed the worst qualities their daughter possessed sometimes. When she hung out with him on a frequent basis, she tended to be mouthier and more rebellious.
"I'll call you!" Cody called to her as she walked the final steps to her English class, the bell already ringing. Riley waved at him and shut the door to the classroom behind her.
CSI CSI CSI CSI CSI
The music blared loudly, creating a thumping through Riley's veins at every drop of the beat. These were the type of parties she lived for. Riley was definitely not the type to enjoy a laid-back, chatty kind of party. She liked the kind where you couldn't really hear, and everyone was dancing and having a good time.
Currently, she was laughing as she danced with several of her friends in the middle of a large group in the living room. It was a relief to finally get out of her house and see her friends. Basically, Riley only saw them during the week at school, and online chatting after her homework was done. She reveled in her chances to let loose like this.
She could feel Cody's eyes on her every now and then. It was obvious he had a crush on her. Riley wasn't sure if she liked him in that way or not. They'd fooled around a little, but nothing serious. Her parents had basically forbidden them from ever becoming a couple because they thought he was a bad influence.
She'd gotten permission to go over to her friend Mandy's house, which wasn't where she was now. Well, she was here with Mandy, if that would ever count for anything. They just didn't know it was a huge party and there was alcohol. Riley was only going to have one drink tonight, but could practically hear her father reminding her she'd still get busted in some way for being there if the police showed up. Her house was only a block and a half away, so she wasn't going to be drinking and driving. Plus, she could make the getaway if she needed to.
Riley suddenly felt a pair of hands on both sides of her hips, and a body up close to hers. She turned her head to see who it was, and wasn't surprised it was Cody. She smiled and they began dancing together, grinding up against each other's bodies. Riley could tell he'd had quite a bit of alcohol, but they were having fun so it was okay. It's not like she was going to have sex with him. Before she knew it, they were sitting on the couch, her in his lap, as they kissed heavily. His lips tasted so good, though she could distinctly taste beer on them. Riley didn't care, though, and they sat there making out for several minutes. She didn't even realize where his hand was until he had cupped her bra underneath her shirt. Riley let out a gasp, but then she heard someone yell, "Cops!"
They were already standing there in the doorway to the living room, observing all that was going on in front of them. Riley gasped again for a different reason, and sprung away from Cody, straightening her top as she did so. She, along with dozens of other teens, sprang for the back door. Riley managed to clear the doorway and took off running towards the direction of her house. It had seemed like such a good idea to drink a Smirnoff, but now she wasn't feeling so hot, and if her parents saw her, they'd be able to tell she was drinking. Shit, shit, shit.
Two minutes later, she reached her front door. She stopped on the porch and took a minute to compose herself. Riley smoothed out her top, ran her hands through her hair, and wiped at her mouth and chin in case her make up was smeared. Taking a deep breath, she opened the front door, and in all her partying, she hadn't even realized what time it was.
She closed the door and walked to the living room to let her parents know she was okay. Her father was on the telephone, and shot her a stern look as he wrapped up his conversation with someone.
"Nah, she just walked in. Thanks again." He hung up the phone and crossed his arms, obviously not at all pleased with his oldest. Riley gulped and hoped he couldn't smell the alcohol from where he was standing. "And where the hell have you been?"