AN: So, just a little interlude before it gets all dramatic again. Takes place a few days after Daisy and Tea's conversation. I considered writing Tea's angsty internal battle about what to do, but it felt frivolous. Plus, more fun with rarely seen/used secondary characters! Yay?
Warnings: language
Disclaimer: I don't own "Skins".
Chapter Sixteen
Share the Silence
Tony's house had never seemed so intimidating before. It's just a house. A plain, boring, downright ordinary house.
So why is she standing on the porch, hand hovering just above the doorbell, completely terrified to actually ring it?
Fuck it.
She pushes the bell, refuses to be frightened by a damn house. No matter who happens to live there or what it means that she's there at all. The door swings open before she can even lower her hand.
Standing there, completely nonchalant and bored, is Eura in all her silent glory. She looks different in the light of the sun instead of the pale moon or harsh fluorescents, face clean of makeup instead of painted to be seductive and coy. Blue jeans and a tee-shirt instead of ripped tight and micro minis and vests that cover the bare essentials and not much else. Playing the role of perfect daughter for her parents instead of the silent and enigmatic, Tony-esque visage Tea's seen at the few parties they both happened to be at.
"You've been standing there the whole time, haven't you?" Tea asks with a self-deprecating smile that's really more of a grimace. Eura's simple but knowing nod confirms that she witnessed Tea's moment, or rather several moments, of crippling uncertainty. "Of course you were."
It's such a Tony thing to do, to make her stand out there like a moron until she manned up enough to actually do something before opening the door. Eura steps aside ad lets Tea inside, the door swings shut behind them.
"Right...Tony in?" Tea asks. Eura shakes her head and puts her hand to her lips in the universal sign for smoking. "Out for a smoking?" Another negative response and a rising of her eyebrow. "Went to get more?" Affirmative this time, Eura's lips quirking into a half-smile. Jesus, how does her family deal with this? Tea almost asks, but she figures it's just easier for her parents to ignore it and Tony, of course, doesn't seem to have a problem deciphering exactly what she's trying to say. "You know when he'll be back?"
A careless shrug that could be any minute now or possibly I don't have a fucking clue. Tea's not really sure which, but it's as much of an answer as she's likely to get. It doesn't matter which one it is anyway because her options are pretty much limited either way. She can stay and hope he shows up sooner rather than later, or she can leave now and come back later.
"You mind if I wait?" Tea asks because she's pretty sure if she goes now she won't have the courage to come back again. She wasn't entirely convinced she'd go through with it this time.
Eura starts off towards the living room with a slight tilting of her head that tea takes to mean she should follow. So she does, vaguely wondering how she went from being the head bitch in charge to following Tony's sister's silent orders. It's actually a little disconcerting.
But then, she's a lesbian about to tell a boy that she's like to keep fucking him, so maybe disconcerted is exactly the way she's supposed to feel…
Eura points to the couch in a silent command and then disappears into the kitchen. Tea sits down hesitantly and Eura comes back with two bottles of root beer to settle down into place beside her. Tea takes one of the bottles, wishes briefly that it was filled with something less kid-friendly, then decides that alcohol would probably make things worse. Or better. It could probably make this easier. They call it liquid courage, don't they?
The silence stretches but it's not uncomfortable, and Tea does't feel the need to speak, to fill the air with empty words.
"Get out." Tony's cold words shatter the silence. Oh, god, she waited too long and he fucking hates her. He won't listen to a word she's going to say. This whole stupid thing has just exploded and she's just lost half her friends in one fell swoop.
It's over.