The Pain of Hiding

Part Two:

Darcy woke up before Clare did the next morning which was a bit of a shock. The last time that she'd been home, Clare had always awakened before her. That's when Darcy remembered what had occured last night. Sighing, she got out of bed and walked into the bathroom, staring at her reflection in the mirror as her fingers clutched at the edge of the counter. She needed to talk to them. Needed to make them realise what they were doing to her sister. Steeling herself, she took in a deep, calming breath. Her eyes fluttered shut for a moment before they slowly opened and she let go of the counter, walking slowly out of the bathroom.

She tiptoed out of the bedroom, determined note to wake up her sister. Moments later, she arrived in the kitchen and saw her mother sitting at the kitchen table with her hands wrapped around a coffee cup. She looked rough, like she hadn't slept at all. There were dark circles under her eyes and her hair was a mess. Darcy bit her lip hard and took a seat.

Helen looked up from her cup of coffee and tried to smile at her oldest daughter. "What are you doing up so early, honey?" She asked softly, sounding surprised.

Darcy swallowed hard and said, "How come you never told me that you and dad were fighting?" She inquired, instead of answering.

Shock overtook her mother's face at those words. "Darcy..." She began only to be cut off.

"Don't try to deny it, mom! Clare and I heard you and I asked Clare and she said that it's been happening for months now." Darcy almost yelled, eyes on fire and face twisted into a grimace of anger. She shut her eyes and took in some calming breaths before opening them again and locking them on her mother. "I know that you're trying to protect me, but you don't need to. I'm not crazy mom! I know that you're afraid of me going back to the way I was after I was raped-but that's not going to happen. I've gotten help to deal with it and I think that I deserve to know what's going on with my family. Especially since my baby sister has had to deal with it all on her own. Thank God for that boyfriend of her's. He listens to her. He even gave her headphones to shut out the yelling between you and dad but ignoring it doesn't take away the problem and Clare is smart mom. She's so smart. And she knows that something is wrong, so why don't you and dad figure things out? This isn't a healthy enviroment for her to be around."

Helen sighs tiredly and runs a hand through her messy hair as her weary eyes rest on her daughter's. "It isn't that simple, Darcy. Your father and I-there's alot going on between us that's wrong. It's hard to explain."

Darcy swallows hard. "Are you going to get a divorce?" She asks.

"I honestly don't know, honey." Her mother replied honestly.

Darcy frowned softly as she eyed the house with the hearse parked in the driveway. She wondered briefly if this was a good idea. She didn't really know Eli, having only met him yesterday, and yet she knew that he cared about her baby sister. She couldn't help but want to thank him for how he'd tried to help Clare deal with the drama between their parents.

She raised her eyebrow when the door suddenly opened and the boy in question stepped outside.

Eli's brows furrowed as he looked at her in shock. "Darcy? What are you doing here?" He asked, wondering why his girlfriend's sister would be coming to see him.

Darcy leaned against her mother's car, liking eyes with Eli, brown on green. "I wanted to thank you for how much you've been helping my sister. She really needed someone and you were there for her whenever our parents fought. And it was a nice gesture for you to give her your headphones, so she could drown out the yelling."

He shrugged in embarrassement, staring at his feet. "She didn't deserve to go through all of that alone. I really care about her."

Darcy smiled sadly. "I wish I could've been there for her. I obviously haven't been a very good sister to not be there when she needed me the most."

Eli shook his head in disagreement. "I don't think Clare would agree with you on that. Whenever she talked about you-especially the days before you came home, she'd tell me and Adam how much good you were doing in Kenya. How you were helping all these little kids that needed someone like you. She's really proud of you." He replied.

She grinned at him, pushing her light brown hair away from her face as she stared down at her watch. "I should probably be getting back. My sister will probably be up soon, if she isn't already and our mother is planning on making mine and Clare's favorite breakfast. You should come. I think that she would be happy to see you." She offered as she opened the car door and slid into the driver's seat.

Eli gave her a smirk and raised his eyebrow before he slowly shook his head. "I'll have to take a raincheck on that. I'm supposed to hang out with Adam this morning and then get ready for my date with Clare tonight."

Darcy smiled at him one final time before waving and driving off without another word. Her eyes lit up as they landed on The Dot and she parked infront of the restaurant. She'd done everything that she needed to do for her sister today. Now it was time to do something for herself.

THE END