AVAVA

( Vicki's PoV )

VAVAV

The next morning came the real issue. Her and her parents had talked, while Tootie had occupied Timmy in her room. It seemed there didn't seem to be many choices at their disposal. Her mother had tried calling Mrs. Turner, only to find out that she had left town over a month ago. Seems Timmy had been told that she was going out of town for work, but when her mother had called where Mrs. Turner worked, she had quit her job, but had left a number. It seemed that Mrs. Turner had went to live with her parents, and didn't plan on coming back. Which infuriated Vicki even more. If she left her husband because of the abuse and anger issues, why did she leave her only son? Did she forget he existed? Or did she hope that while he was beating on Timmy, he wouldn't notice she was gone until it was too late? Either way... she felt so angry. And not the normal anger she was used to. This anger just made her sad. So very sad.

Then they talked about calling the police. Which would get Timmy out of harm's way, but since he was still a minor, he would be placed in the foster system, causing him to have to leave everyone that he knew... and that still did care for him, and be placed in a completely foreign setting, which might cause him to spiral into depression. Her mother and father, both, were already worried about Timmy's mental health. And she really didn't want to bring up what he'd said last night. That might cause a whole new set of issues.

Taking him to the hospital would bring up the same chances, since it would be them bringing him in and not his parents. They could lie about how the injuries happened, but they would want to know who did it, to file a police report. Which of course left them at the same impasse. Luckily, further inspection of the boy showed that his nose hadn't been broken, nor was any of his ribs. Though the tooth he'd lost, would remain so. If they had the tooth, they might have been able to take him to a dentist and have it put back in. But Timmy didn't want to go back. When the topic of having her or Tootie retrieve the tooth, he said he would rather go get it. Which caused a familiar tug on her heart. Hed would rather deal with more pain, then put any of them in harms way.

"So..." Vicki put her head down, on the kitchen table. They'd gotten nowhere since they began. They were no closer to helping Timmy. "What do we do now."

"I don't know." Her mother looked at her father, who just looked away and down to the table. "Unless we can figure something out... we'll have no choice but to call the police. It won't be easy on him. But it might be the only option."

"He can stay here." Vicki insisted. Okay so it wasn't the best idea in the world, but it was an idea.

"He could. But if his father tried to make him return, there would be nothing that we could do to stop him legally." Her father said never looking up from the table. It didn't matter, she damn sure wasn't going to let Timmy go back there. Didn't matter what happened, she damn sure wasn't going to let him go back.

AVAVA

( Timmy's PoV )

VAVAV

Usually he was comfortable in Tootie's room. Ever since her crush on him had faded into nothing more than friendship, it always felt comfortable there. Normally it was pretty much the only time he had actually felt safe and comfortable. Well at least until last night. If someone had told him that he would feel safe and comfortable with Vicki, he'd have told them that they needed to have their head checked. That something was seriously wrong with them mentally. Which was what he was thinking, about himself, that something was wrong with him. That, maybe the last time his dad hit him in the head, it had messed him up.

What was more strange was the fact that he wasn't comfortable in Tootie's room. Hadn't felt comfortable since Tootie had dragged him into her room this morning after breakfast. And the fact that Tootie kept asking him how he was. If he was in pain. He was tired of answering the same questions over and over.

"So... uh... Do my clothes fit alright?" Tootie asked him, at least it was a different question. Something that was still odd, but it was somewhat normal.

"Uh, yeah. Have to hold them up though..." Tootie chuckled at his remark. He knew that, she knew he wasn't calling her fat or anything. She made it a point of joking on him whenever she could about his size. He was so much smaller than the other guys at school.

"Yeah, because you are so skinny..." Her smile vanished, as a thought seemed to have crossed her mind. "You, uh... you do eat enough, right?" Tootie looked away, obviously not wanting to ask, but still felt she needed to. He knew what she was asking. He was abused, it wouldn't be uncommon that he would be half starved too. And he had eaten with enthusiasm this morning. But that wasn't the case. He cooked the food at the house, he even bought the food. Even if his dad wasn't working, he was receiving unemployment. So he did eat enough, normally. But for the past three days he hadn't eaten more than a handful of cereal, and a toaster pastry, but that had been day before yesterday.

"I eat. I just haven't in a couple days. Haven't been very hungry. It was like my stomach was all knotted up." Could have been from when his dad had kicked him in the stomach, he wasn't sure. But he had woken up with an appetite this morning, so that was a good thing, he guessed. He sighed and laid back on Tootie's bed like he had many times before, wishing he could be comfortable.

"Timmy?" He made a small noise meaning that he'd heard her. There was silence for a while, then she continued. "Why didn't you tell me about this before?"

"I don't know." He'd wondered that before. But it all boiled down to the fact that he'd been embarrassed and ashamed. He didn't want Tootie to feel sorry for him. "I guess I was embarrassed."

"But we could have helped sooner." He knew that. He did. Which is why he had come here last night. That, and he hadn't have anywhere else that he could go. But he wasn't about to tell her that she had been his last resort.

"I know... but it was hard to admit it. I just thought that if I could just hide it... that it wouldn't be true. That it would stop, or go away." That is what he had thought... or hoped at least. But it never happened.

"So... what was it like being all cuddly with Vicki?" He could hear the humor in her voice, and the surprise. It was no secret that Vicki had become a bit nicer... but she was no where near cuddly. But he was glad for the topic change.

"I don't know. It was... odd. I was actually comfortable, believe it or not." He was starting to feel nervous again. Just talking about Vicki just made him realize that she wasn't here, and oddly enough that made him feel nervous. But there wasn't much that he could do about it.

AVAVA

Lunch passed by with just Tootie and him at her house. Vicki's father went to work, and Vicki and her mother said they had errands. Which Tootie said was odd, since Vicki never bothered to go out to do errands before. He tried not to let it get to him. He tried not to think about Vicki not being there, because it was just so strange. Yesterday... before his dad had beat the hell out of him, if someone had of asked him what he thought about Vicki. He would have told them that she was cold-hearted, and mean-spirited. Would have told anyone who asked, that he would rather roll around on broken glass, get cut up, then go for a swim in a pool of lemon juice, then to have to be around the redhead again. But last night, he just wanted to be around her, close to her. Well after he had shown her what had happened to him. The compassion in her voice... the way she rubbed his back, had just put him at peace.

About an hour after lunch he borrowed more of Tootie's clothes and took a hot bath when his back muscles started to get stiff again, when his body started to ache again. Then, when he finally felt as relaxed as he could get he dried off and got dressed. He started off in Tootie's room while she was taking a long bath to soak. Then he started to feel anxious. He wandered out of Tootie's room, and went into the living room. He didn't stay long, it hadn't felt right... he didn't feel safe. Finally he ended up in front of Vicki's room. He had only ever passed her room before on his way to Tootie's room. The door, unlike now, had always been closed.

He stood there looking into the older teen's room. Something about the scent of the room drew him inside. He couldn't explain what it was. He knew that Vicki didn't wear any perfume, and she used the same shampoo that Tootie did... so that couldn't have been the scent. It was a scent that his mind associated with Vicki. So without thinking so much he continued into the room, went to the place in the room that had the strongest scent... Vicki's bed...

This is so insane, he thought to himself as he laid back on her bed. His brain, most of his brain screamed that he shouldn't be there, he shouldn't even have considered laying on her bed, much less actually laid on it. But there was that small fraction of his mind that told him that he was safe there. Nothing could hurt him in Vicki's domain. No one was stupid enough to go into her domain uninvited... except the obviously insane person that he was at the moment. He closed his eyes, inhaled deeply, and just let the world vanish.

AVAVA

( Vicki's PoV )

VAVAV

She and her mother had spent most of the day trying to figure out what to do. They spent hours talking about different scenarios. At first it was more of what they could do, then as everything seemed hopeless they started talking about fantastical ideas about what they could do. Which didn't help much in the way of solving any issues, but it did make them feel better. But the only option that they had available at the moment was to just have Timmy stay with them until they were forced to make another choice. Timmy couldn't continue to wear Tootie's clothing, and her boxers. So they would have to get his... but they couldn't take him back to that house.

So Vicki and her mother went instead.

AVAVA

When they got to the house, they had expected to deal with a belligerent drunk. Or at least an argument. Instead, no one answered the door. So Vicki let herself in, using the key hidden in the same spot as it used to be, followed by her mother, who ran into her as she stopped. A lot of destruction in the living room. Her eyes scanned the wreckage. There was a hole in the wall, that her mind kept telling her that Timmy's back would fit into the broken sheet-rock. Many holes in the walls that looked to be from a fist. But that wasn't that caused her to stop. It was the blood that had dried on the floor. In the middle of the dried blood was a rock. No... not a rock. It was Timmy's tooth. She could imagine him on his knees, bracing himself against the floor with his hands, as he spit out that tooth. She was angry... she was sad... how in the world could anyone do this. To Timmy, no less. Timmy was about the sweetest, kindest boy she had ever known. He didn't deserve this, no one did. She started to shake.

"Vicki, honey it's alright." Her mother said as she felt her mother wipe her cheek. She hadn't even realized that she'd begun to cry. Didn't even know why she was crying. Something about this place just made her hurt so much inside.

"Let's just get his stuff, I don't like it here." Vicki muttered, both of them started towards the steps that would lead them to Timmy's room.

Timmy's room seemed to be the only room that was void of destruction. She thought it was ironic. When she had babysat the boy, his room had easily been the messiest, and now it was spotless and clean. Her mother started with the dresser drawers, then with the closet. Where she found a couple suitcases, and started filling them with his clothes and underwear. While Vicki started with other things. She grabbed his laptop, then took a few pictures of him and Tootie, and some of him and his other friends. She couldn't remember their names, but they both had moved away a few years back. She was sure that he would want them.

She sat on the bed as she felt more tears running down her cheeks. She couldn't figure out why this was effecting her so much. In her mind she knew this situation was a sad one, a depressing one. But she was Vicki. She had ice for a heart, and didn't have these feelings. She couldn't have these feelings, not for the Twerp. She let out a frustrated groan. She took a deep breath, and found herself smiling. Something about the smell of this room... it was nice. It was calming.

"Victoria." She looked up to her mother, obvious she had tried getting her attention without success. "Sweetie. It's alright to be upset about this. It's... normal."

"Not for me." She wiped her eyes and cheeks with the collar of her shirt. "This isn't like me at all. I'm not this touchy feely person. I mean, you of all people know I wasn't very nice. And he got it from me the worst."

"Well. Maybe that should tell you something right there." Her mother said standing up picking up the suitcase. Vicki followed suit picking up the things she'd collected. "Let's get out of here before Mr. Turner gets back, we don't want to have that fight today."

AVAVA

Vicki and her mother picked up something for dinner before heading back to the house. Yeah, they were only a few blocks away from their house, but neither felt like cooking anything for dinner. They talked a bit on the ride back to the house, though the topic of her caring about Timmy was not brought back up again. She didn't know if it was because she didn't want to talk about it, or if her mother sensed it was a confusing, therefore touchy, subject for Vicki.

When they entered the house with dinner, and Timmy's belongings, they were greeted by an anxious looking Tootie. Vicki was worried when she didn't see Timmy in tow. He was usually close to her, or Tootie. Usually Tootie, but last night and today, when she had been there, Timmy had been closer to her. She looked around, expecting that he would just pop out at her.

"Where's..." she started when Tootie looked at her.

"I tried telling him it was a bad idea... but he wouldn't wake up long enough to listen..." Tootie started, then looked up stairs. "Try not to get mad at him... Please Vicki..." Tootie pleaded.

Vicki ascended the stairs and noticed her bedroom door was open, she vaguely remembered leaving it open last night, since she had slept on the couch with Timmy. Well, she didn't have much a choice in the matter, since she had made Timmy lay his head in her lap, then when he had fallen asleep, she didn't want to wake him up by moving him. A flaw that she hadn't seen when she made the plan to get Timmy to sleep.

When she got to her doorway, she just stared inside. She didn't know what to think about the brunette boy curled up on her bed. What was he even doing in there. What had possessed him to even go into her room. Wasn't he afraid of her? Well considering that he had been curled up with her last night, maybe he wasn't. She had just assumed it was due to him being upset and scared, that he would come back to his senses today. But no. There he was, sleeping peacefully on her bed.

"Hey Twerp," Vicki called after she had gotten to the bed. He stirred slowly, his one good eye opening, the other opened slightly. Looked like the swelling was going down. That was a good sign.

"Vicki?" His voice was slurred from sleep, and a smile slowly stretched across his face. Not a big smile, but just enough to know that he was happy to see her.

"What are you doing in my bed?" She didn't snap at him, or even raise her voice. She wanted to, because after all, this was her private place. Her sanctuary. Her eyes darted to her dresser, as if she could tell if they'd been open or not from a mere glance, but she couldn't tell. However, she was curious, and wanted to know the answer to her question.

"I felt anxious, but in here I felt at ease. I felt safe. I know it sounds stupid... but I do." He sat up, getting off the bed, he smoothed out the covers best he could with his hand. "And it smells nice."

"So you... feel safe in here?" That was an odd thing to say. How could he feel safe with her? Didn't he hate her? Then she sniffed the air slightly, as his last comment sunk in. "I don't smell anything."

"I don't know." Timmy shrugged, "It's not a strong smell... just... something subtle, something that I can only associate with you. I can't explain it."

Her room smelt like it always did, like her clothes did. It smelt... like her. Now that she thought about it, she remembered having a similar calming reaction that he described, when she was in Timmy's room. "Look, just don't make a habit out of it, alright, Timmy?" He nodded his head, and she told him about his things being here, and that after dinner they would help him put his stuff in the guest room. He seemed more than pleased to be able to stay. And it made her happy that he was pleased, for some odd reason.

That night after they had eaten dinner, and helped Timmy move into his room, with a few pokes from her sister about letting Timmy sleep in her bed, without any kind of reaction from her. She took her shower, and had gotten into bed. With all the swirling thoughts and emotions going on in her head, she was more than happy to just fall asleep.

She didn't know how long she had been asleep, when her eyes opened. She glanced over at her clock on her nightstand. It was only two-thirteen. What was she doing up? Then she felt something move behind her, she turned over to look at whatever it was that had moved. It was Timmy, curled up against her back, sleeping peacefully. She didn't know what she had done to make this boy want to be close to her. What made him feel safe and comfortable around her... because she didn't think, that before he had shown up all beaten up like he was, that she had ever been nice to him. Less mean? Yes. But not nice. Whatever, she'd let him sleep here for the night. She was too tired to push him out of her bed. Either that, or she just didn't feel mean enough...