Title: Thats Where Love Will Be
Author: Me
Summary: Angel and Tom's daughter must go through the pain and hassle of her freshman year at highschool. She's facing homophobes that bag on her parents, coming out of the closest, friends, and fights, and maybe a helping of true love? Meanwhile: Mark struggles with coming to grips with the fact that he may not be the same person he was when he was dating Muaren. Mimi and Roger prepare to bring a new life into the world, how will the rest of the BoHo's respond? Maureen and Joanne take on the task of rson. Angel/Collins, Mimi/Roger, Mark/OC, MoJo, and of course Ashlynn and Leah.
Rating: T
Fandom: RENT
Disclaimer: I own Ashlynn, Leah, Alicia, Miguel, but no one else. I mean I guess I own the three big guys, but I don't really want to you know? I own Billy too, but I hate him so it dosent count.
Authors notes:Please don't kill me at the end of this chapter, I cried, I bawled like a frikin' baby when I wrote this... (Hey at least I updated right? UNLIKE SOME PEOPLE I KNOW COUGHCOUGHYOUKNOWWHOYOUARECOUGHCOUGH)
Collins residence, Roger's POV
I frowned and helped Joanne onto the couch. It had been four weeks since Ashlynn was released from the hospital and with everything that had been going on, we had to be extra careful. Joanne hadn't spoken since they took Eric away, and if things got anyworse, I was afraid we would have to admit her to the hospital. Maureen was on the phone again to another lawyer. She yelled happily and hung the phone up.
"What's up Mo?" Collins flipped through his newspaper disinterestedly and looked up and Maureen.
"We're getting Eric back next week!"
Angel, Mimi, Ashlynn and Leah all looked up from whatever it was they were doing, "WHAT?!"
"Yup! Social services took Eric becuase we were a mixed race couple, and he's hispanic. They decided that we were unfit to raise him because we couldn't educate him on his culture, but the laws say that they can't do that! And just because I have breast cancer dosen't mean that as a couple, Joanne and I are unfit to raise him. AND! because Angel is listed as Eric's godfather, and she's hispanic, well... It all works in our favor, and my lawyer has gone to deal with it, and he'll be back here next week." I smiled, patting Joanne on the back.
"You here that Jo? You guys are getting your baby back!" Joanne blinked and stood up, walking over to Maureen and kissing her for the first time in four weeks.
"We're getting Eric back?" Maureen nodded and she and Joanne hugged each other. Ashlynn smiled and rubbed her casted wrist gingerly.
Joanne studied every fae in the room, like a blind woman seeing the sun for the first time. She picked Izzy up from the couch and Mimi shot me a warning glance, because I made a move toward them.
"She's gotten bigger," Joanne mutter, furrowing her eyebrow. "I forgot how fast they grow up, how much has Eric changed do you wonder?" Joanne set her back down and Izzy clapped her hands and laughed. "Ashlynn! What happened to you?!" Ashlynn smiled sadly, and rubbed the rapidly fading scar over her eye.
"Billy attacked me before school the day after they took Eric. I was in the hospital for three days." Joanne gasped slightly and put a hand on Ashlynn's face, where there was still a shadow of a bruise.
"Oh my word." Joanne stood up and walked toward Ashlynn. "Did you press charges?"
Leah jumped in and put a hand on Joanne's shoulder, leading her to the couch. "He got away, no one has seen or heard from the little bastard, and Ashlynn got ten days wroth of suspension for "gang" fighting." Joanne frowned.
"How long ago was this?"
"Four weeks." Angel wrapped her arms aroun Ashlynn and held her close.
"Oh my gosh! What else have I missed.?" Collins smiled gently and walked over to them. I sat down on Joanne's other side.
"I had my first several rounds of chemo," Maureen murmured sadly. Joanne nodded and caressed her cheek.
"I'm sorry I missed it baby."
"Roger and I set a wedding date."
"Mark and Miguel moved in together."
"Alicia got promoted"
"I quit my job at NYU, now I'm working at Ashlynn's school."
"My mom died."
"Waoh. I missed all of that?" I nodded and touched Joanne's face.
"We're just glad to have you back Jojo." Maureen smiled at me.
Our family had come a long way in a few weeks. I smiled and pulled my fiance closer to me, holding her tightly as she bounced our baby n my knee. Izzy clapped her hands. Ashlynn curled up into a tight vacll and bit the tip of her thumb. She was still hurting over the whole thing with Billy, I guess it reminded her of her childhood.
Leah sat down on the couch and lifted Ashlynn's head onto her lap while Angel bustled about the apartment, cleaning. It was the first tim ein a very long time that I had seen her out of drag. Collins was sitting in his chair, his head in his hand, and a folded newspaper in the other. Everyone sat like that silently for a long time, brewing in their own secret sense of pain, I gathered.
"Daddy," I looked up from playing with Mimi's curls when Ashlynn spoke.
"What baby?"
I froze, and looked at everyone in the room. Angel had stopped bustling and sat down on Collins lap, Mark and Miguel were sitting cross legged on the floor, Joanne and Maureen were huddled up on the couch together. And Leah and Ashlynn were holding each other like they would never let go.
"Will it ever stop hurting? Will it ever get easier?" A tear dropped off of Ashlynn's face.
Ashlynn's room, the nest day. Leah's POV
I had given up trying to get Ashlynn to go to school on Mondays. She said she just couldn't face the pain of going and knowing she lot her dignity on that day. I told her she hadn't lost it, but if she kept hiding, she would let Billy take away that one last thing she had left. We curled up together on the bed, whispering sweet nothings to each other. The doorbell rang and Ashlynn rolled her eyes, hoisting herself off the bed.
"Who the hell is that?"
"I don;t know baby, I'll be right back." Ashlynn pressed a gentle kiss to my hairline, and walked out of the door. I heard her greet someone, but I didn't hear anything else.
I got up off the bed and walked into the living room, two police officers and Alicia were standing there. I gasped.
"What's going on Li?"
I walked over to Ashlynn as I spoke and looped my arm through hers. "Alicia?" Alicia refused to make eye contact with me, or Ashlynn and walked over to us, pulling Ashlynn in a hug.
"I'm sorry baby." Ashlynn stiffened.
"What's going on Lic?" Ashlynn's face was confused, for a split second, then her body stiffened again and she pushed Alicia away from her.
"Alicia! Tell me right now!"
One of the other officers put a hand on Ashlynn's shoulder.
"Ma'am, there was an accident this aftrnoon, two hours ago." He bowed his head and then shot a quick glance at Alicia.
"What? What are you saying. Where's My mom and dad? Alicia! Tell me where they are!"
"THey were in a taxi, we don't know where they were headed, but a semi truck ploughed the passenger side," Ashlynn's body seemed to go soft and she leaned into me.
"ALCIA! TELL ME WHAT"S GOING ON! WHERE ARE MY MOM AND DAD?"
"We were the first officers on the scene, it didn't look good, we couldn't even recognize the passenger closest to the door..."
"Please!"
"... The other passenger wasn't breathing..."
The words started to fade for me, I couldn't understand what they were saying anymore. Alicia's arms slid around Ashlynn and I and lowered us to the ground.
"It's too early to tell Miss, I'm sorry."
"Where are they? Where's my mom and dad? Please... I just want to know where they are." I couldn't help but breaking down and crying alongside Ashlynn as she sagged into me, whimpering. "Where are they?"
I wrapped my arm's around her, craddling her to me as we cried, Alicia tried her best to comfort her through her own tears.
"We were afriad it was to late..."
"NO!"
"... Paramedics were able to revive Tom Collins, but Angel Collins remained in a coma, Tom lasped back as we arrived at the hospital." I shut everything out and rocked Ashlynn slightly.
"Please tell me where they are!"
