A/N: Thanks for the kind words, and sorry I didn't respond personally this time – this week has been busy! I hope you enjoy this chapter, which is longer this time!! And don't forget to go read the latest chapter of Make Me a Match if you haven't – it has changed to an M rating, so some may have missed it. Enjoy and reviewwwwww!
The rest of the agonizingly long weekend, Riley spent most of her time in her bedroom or doing laborious, mind-numbingly boring chores for her parents. Being in trouble in the Stokes house didn't mean just sitting around being bored; it meant hard work and zero privileges. She wasn't allowed to drive the car for the first week, no allowance, no Internet. Nothing. And Riley knew she could count on babysitting the younger two whenever they needed her to, which, since it was free for them, Riley imagined would happen pretty much every weekend. When Riley was grounded, she tended to be quite bitter about things, which only got her into further trouble with her regular mouthy comebacks. And, it made her loss of her sweet sixteen party that much harder to swallow.
On Sunday evening, just after nine o'clock, Sara knocked on her stepdaughter's door to say good night. Though Sara definitely thought Riley deserved to be punished for what she did, she did feel a little bad for her that it had all resulted in the loss of her party. As she walked in and closed the door to find the teenager laying on her bed, her head resting lazily off the edge, she realized what sheer boredom she must be experiencing.
"Hey, there." She greeted the teenager, sitting down right next to where Riley was laying, whose face looked a bit red from her current position. The parent in Sara took over the threat of Riley potentially biting her head off, and moved her head back onto the mattress. Riley frowned, but allowed her to do so. She hadn't been very rude to Sara the last couple days, just Nick, because he was the main cause of her boredom. Sometimes, she still considered Sara a bit of an aunt or big sister, who she could confide in when her father was being 'mean' to her. "That's not good for you."
Riley shrugged and played with the hem on her tank top. "It's entertaining." She countered. With no instant messenger or surfing to do, what did Sara think she would get up to?
"You could read a book." Sara suggested, being a regular reader herself, with an array of books in her own collection. She'd learned that Riley really didn't have the patience to sit down and enjoy a novel. It took too long, and she would much rather be out with friends, watching TV, or on the net.
"Or I could just gouge my own eyes out." She stretched her arms over her head, bending them over the edge of the bed, sighing loudly in her midst of utter boredom. Sara was about to tell her to go to bed, when Riley started up the predictable plea. "Seriously, Sara. Do you think it's fair for him to take away my party?" Riley had two days to ponder her punishment, and she still didn't see how her actions warranted what Nick had done. She was in need of even a miniscule amount of pity.
Sara sighed and lovingly stroked some of Riley's hair away from her face, thinking back to when she was a teenager, trying to put herself in her stepdaughter's shoes. Riley knew she'd messed up, but Sara couldn't blame her for being a bit conniving and sneaky. Nick had told her about Riley's little phone call to her grandmother, and they'd even discussed the possibility of letting Riley spend some time over there this summer.
"It's a shame about the timing, Ry, but can you honestly say you deserve a big party after all that you did?" Sara's voice wasn't parental, but understanding and knowledgeable. It was a voice of reason, though it was hard for Riley to listen to again.
"Well, maybe I did some things I shouldn't have." She admitted for the first time. "But, I mean, I make good grades. I do really well in school. Isn't that what you guys want me to do? You're always nagging about homework."
Sara nodded in understanding, still tousling Riley's hair. "Baby, school is a very important thing to us, and I know it is to you, but that's not everything. We want you to be a good person, and it worries us when you do things like you did on Friday." She tried to explain her point. It was true that good grades were one of the most important things, but being a responsible, good, trustworthy kid came above that, and right now Riley was certainly not displaying those qualities.
"I'm a teenager. I'm supposed to do stuff like that." She chipped at the nail polish on her thumb. Honestly, they would be so thankful they had her as a daughter instead of some of the freaks she came across during daily life at high school.
"Uh-uh." Sara said quite decisively, resting her hands back on the mattress. "Maybe when you get to college, some of it will be acceptable, but not when you're almost sixteen. And you can't let a guy take advantage of you like that."
Riley sat up to look face to face at Sara. "He wasn't taking advantage of me. I wanted him to."
"Riley, I know it's normal for teenagers to kiss a little, but do I really need to tell you what's on his mind?"
"I know, sex. But I wouldn't have let it go that far."
"Maybe you wouldn't want to, but do you really know Cory that well? What if he decided he wanted sex? He's stronger than you, and what's stopping him from slipping something into your drink?"
Riley rolled her eyes. "Why do you guys always think of the worst? Not every situation turns into a crime case."
"What makes us think of the worst is that we're parents." Sara went on. Riley rolled her eyes again and stood up, realizing she'd just led her stepmother into another lecture mode. She went to her bureau drawers to pick out some pajamas to wear, hoping to send her the signal to leave. Riley did not like to be lectured. "When you turn off your cell phone and don't tell us where you are for two hours, that worries us, Riley. That immediately makes us fear the worst."
"Well, I can take care of myself." She told her naively, folding her arms with her pj's in hand. Sara let out a disturbed breath. With all she'd seen over the years, all the young women and teenagers who thought they could handle themselves, that they were safe, she knew that wasn't the case. And her daughter, who she'd tried to educate on this sort of thing, was just like any other girl you might run into on the street. She thought she could protect herself. She thought a little mace and some self-defense moves would thwart off any criminal who might try to harm her.
"Riley," She began in a tone that only further annoyed the teen. "You're a strong girl, but not everything you can protect yourself from. That's what me and your father are trying to do."
Riley answered dismissively, wanting this conversation to be over. "Fine. I need to get to bed."
Sara realized Riley wasn't happy with her, but she needed a reality check. She sighed as she stood up from the bed, standing now at the same height as her daughter. "Okay. Good night. I love you." Sara wished her without giving her a hug or a kiss, sensing Riley would not appreciate that right now. The teenager didn't say anything as she watched Sara leave the room and shut the door behind her. It seemed no one, not even Sara, understood where she was coming from. Was it really such a sin to have a little fun? And Cory was not the bad news they thought he was – he was harmless. Riley just sighed and went about her routine of getting ready for bed, actually looking forward to tomorrow, when she could go to school and get away from her family.
CSI CSI CSI CSI CSI
On Tuesday afternoon, Sara sat in the waiting room of Marler and Jenkins Child Therapy office filling out a survey on her daughter's symptoms. Carly was currently in her session with Dr. Jenkins, after a bit of coaxing on Sara's part. The second grader wasn't exactly thrilled about sitting in a room with some stranger, getting asked questions about her feelings. Sara had promised her a trip to the park afterwards if she was a good girl.
The mother sighed as she looked at the checklist before of symptoms for possible disorders. Sara wished she could just check off the least frightening ones; symptoms that weren't so bad, and wouldn't land Carly a diagnosis of some sort of troubled child. However, she knew that wouldn't help Carly, and they needed to figure out just what was bothering her and get her some help. She checked off overly-emotional, timid, and nervous – words that a year ago would never have described her spunky Carly. Something had happened, and for some reason, Carly wouldn't tell them, or couldn't. Was there some biological explanation? Or had something so traumatic happened to Carly she did not want them to know?
Sara became lost in her worries until the waiting room door opened, and out walked Carly – not looking frightened or upset, but just that same sad expression that often occupied her face these days. She smiled at her daughter and stood up, opening her arms up for a hug. Carly quickly crossed the room and embraced her mother as Dr. Jenkins followed her, a clipboard in hand.
"Did you like talking to Dr. Jenkins?" Sara asked her daughter softly, craning her neck to look at her face. Carly simply shrugged and turned her nose in towards Sara's body, a place that was known to be safe. Sara smoothed her hair gently as Dr. Jenkins walked up to her, giving her an encouraged nod.
"Mrs. Stokes." He greeted her, looking fondly at the young girl he'd just had a session with. "Would you like to have a quick word?"
Sara nodded and leaned down to Carly's level. "Baby, I'm gonna talk to Dr. Jenkins. Can you go wait over in those chairs and watch TV?" She requested. Carly nodded and obediently walked over to a set of chairs out of earshot. After watching her go, Sara turned back to her therapist and cleared her throat nervously. She'd never been so scared for Carly's well-being in her life. What he was about to say could change how they lived their lives. What if it was something awful, and Carly was worse off than they thought? What would that do to their family?
"Mrs. Stokes, I had a very good session with Carly. She's a lovely little girl." He began by complementing the woman's child. She was a very agreeable child, and had a pleasant disposition.
"Thank you. Did you find what the problem is?" She tucked a piece of hair behind her ear nervously.
"Well, that's going to take some time." He told her honestly. "It takes time to build up trust with my clients to where they feel comfortable sharing certain things with me. I imagine that perhaps Carly has been experiencing some regular school-aged anxiety, but she's not quite sure how to deal with it."
Sara nodded and breathed out in relief, glad that her child didn't have to have a lobotomy. That sounded manageable, though there would still be much work involved, she was sure.
"Okay. So you think you can help her?"
Dr. Jenkins nodded and smiled. "I think I can definitely help her out. She just needs to learn how to deal with her anxiety."
Sara and Dr. Jenkins shared a few more words, and they both felt very encouraged by the results of the first session. She thanked the man and called Carly back over. On the way to the car, Carly took her mother's hand and squeezed it, feeling safe once again. The therapist hadn't been so bad, but she was glad it had been over. He'd made her think about and talk about things that made her sad, and wasn't sure if she liked that. In a way, it was nice to get it out, but she didn't like being sad. Carly didn't say anything as Sara led her to the car. As they got in and Sara turned the ignition, she decided to probe a little bit.
"So, what did you and Dr. Jenkins talk about?" She asked calmly as she put the car in reverse. Sara sensed that Carly wasn't in the most talkative moods, having just talked to the doctor for half an hour. The little girl sighed after she buckled her seatbelt.
"Stuff." She told her mother simply, looking out the window at nothing in particular – the little kid giggling with his puppy on the sidewalk; the kids playing soccer in the distance.
Sara smirked and looked over at her, expecting slightly more than that. "Can you tell me a little more?"
Carly shrugged, indicating she was not in the mood to discuss things. Sighing, Sara steered the car in the direction of the park like she had promised. Hopefully a little physical activity would put her in a more talkative, contented frame of mind.
CSI CSI CSI CSI CSI
Later on that evening, after dinner had been eaten, Nick caught his wife's hand gently after he'd assigned Riley to do the dishes. She griped once again and gave him a glare, but knew it was in her best interest to just do it. Nick guided Sara away from the children, towards the stairs where they could have a small semblance of privacy. Both had been too busy cooking or caring for the children to grab more than a quick kiss upon Sara's return with Carly. Facing each other, they exchanged a few soft kisses before Nick pulled back, gently rubbing her arms, which set around his hips.
"So how did Carly's session go?" He whispered, not wanting to make the kids worry. Carly was of course especially anxious whenever they talked in secret about something.
"Well." She told him. "Dr. Jenkins said he thinks Carly's just having trouble dealing with normal anxiety, and that he's gonna teach her ways to deal with it."
Nick nodded as she spoke in agreement, but it didn't seem to sit completely well with him. "Don't you wonder if she's been through something she's not telling us?"
Sara rubbed at her brow, frustrated by the last few weeks. "I don't know, Nick. Maybe. I mean, she's always been able to talk to us about things that bother her. What do you think it would be?"
Though he didn't want to bring it up, Nick himself had been pondering the possibility that something serious had happened to Carly. "Well, I hate to say it, Sar, but you know some scumbag adults do or say stuff to kids, and warn them not to tell their parents. Threaten things."
Sara closed her eyes and swallowed in fear. She had been fearing this too, but didn't want to say it out loud. Now that her husband had, it further acknowledged the possibility in her mind. "I hope not." She whispered, with a slight tremor in her voice. Nick sensed her unease, and placed a reassuring kiss to her forehead.
"Don't worry, babe." His low, soothing voice told her. "We'll get to the bottom of this; us and Dr. Jenkins, and we'll get her the help she needs."
He enveloped Sara in a warm hug, rubbing at her back to comfort her. Nick was trying to be strong for her, but he was having trouble himself. He was feeling anger at the moment at the possibility someone had hurt his little girl. He was supposed to protect her, and now she had been damaged. However, he pushed these feelings aside, because right now Sara and Carly needed him.
Speaking of Carly, moments later, they heard the familiar sound of her crying in the next room, which forced them out of their loving embrace.
"Nolan!! Stop it!!" She yelled tearfully at her younger brother. Nick sighed and kissed Sara's forehead, and cleared his throat.
"I'll go see what's up."
Nick walked into the living room to find Nolan doing his favorite 'trick' which he knew annoyed his older sister. He pulled the skin under his eyes down, exposing the red tissue under his eyes, all while making a hideous face. Carly had a pillow over her face as she cried. Nick promptly picked his son up and carried him into the dining room, pulled out a chair and set it facing the wall.
"I have told you many times not to do that to your sister, young man." Nick told his son sternly as he set him in the chair. "You can sit in time out for five minutes and think of a good apology."
He kept it simple, leaving Nolan to cry softly to himself in the time out chair. Nick shook his head as he crossed the room again to tend to Carly. She still had the pillow up, so Nick gently took it from her hands. When she saw her father's caring face, she started crying harder in relief, Nick figured. Moments later, she was sitting in his lap on the couch being hugged and kissed as she calmed down.
"It's okay, darlin'. He was just being silly, but he's been told not to do that." Nick assured her, rubbing circles on her back.
Carly struggled with her breath as she prepared to speak. "I don't like it when he does that."
Nick kissed her head again. "I know you don't, baby. He's in time out, and he's going to apologize."
Carly moaned desolately and continued to sniffle as Nick held her in his arms. Nick decided to try to change the subject. "What did you do at school today, baby?"
Carly sniffed and wiped at her wet eyes. "We got to do a science experiment." She told him.
"You did?" He was pleased he'd gotten her to talk, even if it was one sentence. "What was it about?"
"Tornadoes. We used some soda bottles and made a little tornado in it." Carly was starting to feel calmer now. Her daddy was good at helping her do that. As long as she had him and mommy, she would be okay.
"That sounds cool. Maybe you can show me later."
Carly nods and Nick sees her eyelids drooping slightly. All the emotions of the day always seem to catch up with her shortly after dinner. "I just wanna cuddle." She tells him, snuggling further into his arms.
"That's more than fine with me." Nick whispers, kissing her small, delicate head once again. As his first born, well, at least until he found out about Riley, he had been so enthralled with all her baby features, and how she was changing as she grew. As a baby, he could spend hours just gazing at her tiny body, and marveling at just how small and delicate every part of her was. Her tiny fingernails, her pudgy little arms, her small ears that somehow resembled either his or Sara's same parts. And all those hours of studying her while she slept, it made him so much more protective. He never wanted to see that perfect pale skin bruised or cut; none of those toes stubbed, or fingers shut in doors. Nick never thought he'd be able to let her out of the house unsupervised, but as she got older, she got more curious and he wanted to show her everything. He wanted to take her on her first trip to the zoo to see the animals; take her to the playground; take her on her first roller coaster. Every time she discovered something new, it was like it gave him another wave of hope and love for this tiny being. Every giggle she gave him, every smile, every hug, he savored. He loved being her father, and he suspected she loved being his daughter.
Nick watched her for almost fifteen minutes as she laid there, slowly falling asleep, until Sara came back into the room after having a word with Nolan about his little stunt. She held his and stood in front of her husband and daughter, Nolan looked ashamed and remorseful.
"Is she sleeping?" Sara whispered, and Nick nodded affirmatively.
"You can apologize tomorrow, bud." Nick told his son as he stroked Carly's arm.
"Sorry, Daddy." He apologized to him as Sara had prompted him. Nick thanked him for the apology and then carefully stood up with Carly in his arms. She lay in his arms limply as he carefully steered himself and her body up the stairs to her bedroom. After tucking her into her bed, he planted one last kiss on her forehead and adjusted the covers. He knelt down next to her bed, not able to pry himself away from her just yet. Nick hadn't felt this protective of her since she was a toddler, getting into all kinds of pickles. He didn't think his protectiveness could get stronger over time, but it was. With the awful things in the world he knew about because of his job and tried to protect her from, he couldn't protect her from whatever was bothering her. He wished she would just talk to him or Sara. Or even Dr. Jenkins, though he wasn't completely comfortable with her spilling all the beans to a stranger. If it would help her, he would do it. And what was killing him was that she wouldn't let him.