Howdy again, gamers! Don't really have much to say but I hope you lovelies enjoy the chapter! ~Shaymie

Angela

"Is Molly alright? I haven't seen her for a few days."

"She's fine," Angela answered Selena's question with a shrug and took a sip of her drink, eyes darting over to the kitchen where she knew Chase was preparing for the night. The bar didn't open for another half an hour but she had to make a delivery and decided to just hang out until opening. Kathy was nice enough to make her a drink before going back to her room to relax before work. (Who cares if 4:35 was a bit too early to drink?) While Angela knew Chase would be here, she certainly didn't expect Selena to be hanging out as well. Hayden constantly complained about the dancer being late to work but here she was, almost two hours earlier than her usual time. "She just wants some time to herself. She's been really into baking bread lately."

"Oh, really? Maybe I should come over and try some." Selena smirked. She was trying to get a rise out of Chase, and it was working. Angela heard him mutter a few choice swears in the kitchen as something clattered to the ground. How long is he going to keep this up? He can't be in denial forever and there's only so much waiting Angela was willing to put up with, especially now that Molly's actually aware of her feelings. That really came as a surprise. Molly told her about her time with Selena and how it awakened some new, confusing feelings inside her. Angela spent a good amount of time after that discussion wondering if she should maybe try explaining some things to Molly since her poor little sister thought that she was some kind of pervert now, just because she had a few... interesting dreams about Chase and/or Selena. She knew Molly was inexperienced but she didn't think it was that bad.

Honestly it was kind of impressive that Angela somehow managed to completely avoid corrupting her sister.

"Hopefully you catch her at a good time. She's been moody lately."

"I'm sure I can cheer her right up." Selena's voice was practically a purr, and Angela had to give Molly props for not melting on the spot and actually going through with it. She's not going to cry about it like Kasey, but she was glad to see her baby sister growing up. It'll be nice not having to skirt around certain topics because Kasey was worried about "ruining Molly's purity" or whatever it was he called it. She had to grow up eventually and it was better to be there and be a helping hand instead of covering her ears to protect her. Honestly, Molly's lucky they're here to help. Dad could never have...

Dad always played favorites whenever Molly was concerned. He would have kept her as his little girl for as long as possible if he could.

Angela hated that she envied Molly for that. For as long as she could remember, her sister's always gotten special treatment. First Kasey spent literally all his time with her when she was a baby, then their father spared no expense making sure she could do everything she wanted. Molly was a perfect angel because she saw no reason to act out. Not when she could blink and get handed whatever she wanted on a silver platter. There was a logical part of her that knew it was wrong to envy that, after Molly told her that keeping up with perfection was hell, but the emotional part of her didn't care.

"I can give you her number if you want."

"What the fuck, Angela?!" She flinched at Chase's sudden yell echoing around the emptiness of the bar. About time he finally said something. It was starting to get a bit boring. Her lips twitched as he stormed out of the kitchen and glared at her. "What happened to that overprotective bullshit you were pulling earlier?"

"I realized that it's not any of my business who Molly hangs out with. She's giving Selena dance lessons so I figure they should have each other's number."

"You and I both know that's not what's going on," Chase hissed, turning his furious gaze to Selena. She didn't seem bothered by it in the slightest. She had a cocky smirk on her face as she looked him dead in the eyes. Angela liked her. She had guts.

"And what do you think is going on?"

"You... you're going to take advantage of her, because you know that she's too goddamn nice to say no—"

"I would never do something like that," Selena scoffed, picking at her nails. "I asked her plenty of times if she was sure about what she wanted. The answer was always yes. So I did what half the guys in this town are dying to do. Pretty girls like Molly are in high demand, you know."

Angela downed the rest of her drink and looked over at Chase. While she didn't like the way Selena referred to Molly like she was something popular to be marketed, she couldn't deny that the woman had a point. It's surprising that nobody else has really made a move on Molly before now.

Chase didn't seem to know what to say, his cheeks flushed as he looked between Selena and Angela with an indecipherable expression on his face. It looked like he was feeling everything at once and couldn't decide which one his face should land on. Is this going to be the thing that finally pushes him to stop being such a stubborn idiot about everything? He was going to push Molly away if he kept trying to play it cool the whole time. She's already convinced herself that there's no way Chase would like her. Angela had to bite her tongue when she heard that.

"You're okay with this, Angela?" Chase asked, finally focusing his anger on one person. She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. So he's going to try and turn this on her?

"I already told you, Molly's business is none of my own. She's an adult capable of making her own choices. Don't lash out at me because you're upset you didn't get to fuck her first."

"That's not... I don't..." Chase's face was the reddest she's ever seen. She didn't think it was possible for him to get embarrassed to this high a level. She held his gaze until he looked away, running a hand through his hair. "Goddamn it..."

Told myself I wasn't going to meddle around in Molly's business, but here I am yet again...

"I don't know what your deal is and why you don't want to accept that you like Molly. Maybe take some laxatives for your emotional constipation before you end up hurting my sister."

Angela rolled her eyes at his lack of response and the way he just went off to hide in the kitchen. She had a feeling he was going to burn her food tonight. Maybe spit in it if he was in the mood. So be it. Nobody else was going to talk sense into him so she had to do it. It's not like she's necessarily trying to push them together. She's just sick of the cold shoulder he's been giving Molly lately. They still had their morning tea, but he practically hid in the kitchen when Molly stopped by the bar. She was worried that she somehow did something to upset him.

Chase called Luke immature but at least Luke could own up to his feelings.

Angela scoffed and pulled out her phone. She considered asking Molly to come by to hang out but decided against it. That could be disastrous if Mr. Grumpy snapped at Molly because of his shitty attitude. Instead she just texted her sister and checked up on her, reminding her to take care of herself and drink some water. Molly tended to get hyper focused when she was baking. It was a bit scary sometimes. Molly had a bad record of neglecting her needs and getting sick because of it. It's gotten worse since the accident. Was she using baking to fill the hole left from ballet?

She did say that she felt useless if she couldn't perform...

Angela bit back a groan. There was so much shit she had to talk through with her siblings that she didn't think she'd ever really be ready for. Luke's still the only person who knew about the abortion. She wasn't sure how to bring it up without it sounding like she was just jealous of Muffy's pregnancy. Maybe she'll wait until after the baby's born to bring that up. Then there's the whole issue with Molly feeling like she had to replace their mom because she felt responsible for her death, which was just completely ridiculous. Mom never once blamed Molly for her problems. Not even in her diary. Mom loved her. Molly's just doing her typical Molly thing and taking all the blame.

And then there's Kasey...

She nearly leapt out of her skin when her phone started ringing, the screen lighting up with Molly's contact photo. They were already texting. Her finger must have slipped. Angela was tempted to just let it ring out but decided to pick up. It's always fun to tease Molly a bit for her clumsiness, and maybe Chase will poke his head out when he hears her name.

"Hey, Mol—"

"Um... Angie...? Can you come home, please?" She was out of her seat before she even realized it. Molly sounded like she was on the verge of tears, and Angela could tell just by listening that she was two seconds away from an anxiety attack. She's heard Kasey and Ash talk her down from them enough times to know what it sounded like. She heard Chase asking what was wrong as she left but she couldn't be bothered to waste time giving him an answer. "I'm sorry. I just... I don't feel good. I don't want to be alone right now and I don't want to bother Kasey because he finally has some time to spend with the kids."

"You don't have to apologize, Molls. I'll be home as fast as I can, okay?"

"The kitchen's going to be a mess when you get here," Molly sobbed. Angela almost wanted to laugh because of course her sister would still be worrying about unimportant shit like that at a time like this. Wouldn't be Molly otherwise. "I thought baking would help my nerves but all it did was give me more quiet time to think!"

"It's going to be okay, Molls."

Molly's sobs grew louder. Angela has never cursed Castanet's lack of public transportation more than she did now. She wished she remembered those grounding techniques Kasey used with Molly. She wished she wasn't so goddamn awful at comforting Molly. She didn't know what to say. She never knew what to say. She couldn't just say nothing, but saying the wrong thing wasn't going to be any help. It'll only make things worse.

She tried her best to calm Molly down but it was impossible to tell if her words were actually helping. Molly said that she just didn't want to be alone, so Angela focused her energy more towards running as fast as she could. Despite stumbling more than a few times, she made it home in record time, chest heaving as she slammed the door behind her. Molly yelped at the sound. She was sitting on the couch with Pretzel in her arms. For once Angela was actually grateful for the cat being here for Molly when she couldn't. He didn't even flinch when Molly buried her face in his fur and let out a choked sob.

"Oh, Molls..." Angela sighed, taking in her sister's trembling form. She hated seeing her like this. It didn't feel right seeing Molly as anything but sweet and cheerful. She deserved nothing less than the world after all the shit she's had to pull through. Angela didn't have a clue what it was like inside Molly's head— then why do you envy her so fucking much?— but it had to suck. She walked over and joined her sister on the couch, putting a hand on her back. "I'm right here, Molls. It's okay. Do you need me to get you some water?"

"I d-don't think I'll be able to drink it right now... Can you just stay with me?" Molly peeked up at her with tearful eyes. She didn't even need to ask. There's no way Angela would leave her now.

She wasn't sure how long she sat with Molly, rubbing her back and quietly murmuring reassurances, before her sister wordlessly climbed into her lap. Pretzel leapt out of her arms but didn't go far. He perched on the other end of the couch and kept a watchful eye. Maybe she'll give him a couple treats when this is over. She didn't want to think about the state Molly could have been in if Pretzel wasn't around.

Angela had texted Luke and asked him to bring some take-out from the bar since neither of them were going to feel like cooking after this. Molly seemed too tired to even speak, which was fine by her. She didn't really know what to say. But Molly just wanted her here so she didn't have to say anything super meaningful. She held her sister close and rested her cheek on top of her head.

Luke was probably going to take a while to show up, and she didn't want to spend the whole time in silence. That was Molly and Kasey's thing. Too much quiet made her anxious. So after some time passed and she was sure Molly had calmed down—she wasn't trembling anymore and that had to count for something—Angela found herself humming a song she once used to get Molly to sleep. It would mostly be nights before a big performance or even just a big test at school. She's never really handled her anxiety well.

"...moon, please forget to fall down," Molly started singing along quietly, her voice muffled by Angela's chest. Angela smiled and ran her hand over her back soothingly. She was surprised Molly even remembered the lyrics considering how long it's been. It used to be a tag-team effort getting Molly to sleep on those nights. Kasey would make her something warm to drink while Angela stayed with her until he came back. Then he'd replace her on the bed and tell their sister stories until she fell asleep. If they were lucky then Dad would join them, using a flashlight to make shadow figures to go along with Kasey's stories.

Molly finally cracked a smile when they moved to another song. After a few more, she felt well enough to stand up. Angela didn't want to say anything but her thighs were starting to fall asleep from supporting her weight. Molly definitely wasn't underweight anymore, that's for sure. She didn't have to bundle up in half a dozen sweaters to stay warm anymore. Her hands used to be so cold all the time... God, they should have known something was up sooner.

Of course Molly's first instinct was to go straight to the kitchen. She wasn't lying earlier. It really was a mess. Angela told her that she didn't have to cook since Luke was bringing dinner from the bar. She had to remember to pay him back. He was willing to do it, no questions asked. She loved him more than words could even explain. He was more sweet and thoughtful than he seemed. She could bet he ordered their favorites. Molly fixed her bun and got to work cleaning the kitchen. Pretzel let out a loud meow as he hopped down from the couch. He shook himself out and padded over to the entrance of the kitchen, though he didn't set a foot in it.

"You don't have to stay with me anymore," Molly murmured, setting aside a bowl covered with plastic wrap. She gave Angela a wobbly smile that nearly broke her heart. Why was she still trying so hard to be strong? "I'm fine now. Sorry for calling you like that."

"What are you apologizing for, Molly?"

"You already have to deal with enough of me... And then I bothered you when you were busy doing work that I'm not strong enough to do... I should have just worked through it on my own."

"Molls," Angela sighed, biting her cheek. Molly worried so much about being a bother to people that she never showed when she was upset. Angela found it hard to blame her, though. They all did the same damn thing. They were all so different but there were some things that they painfully had in common. None of them were good. "I don't know how many times I have to tell you that you're not a bother. You're my little sister. I'd do anything for you. Kasey would, too."

"I shouldn't have to rely on you two so much. You have your own lives... I don't want you canceling dates with Luke for me." Dates could be rescheduled. Angela wouldn't care and she knew for a fact that Luke wouldn't either. Molly's more important. Hell, Angela would cancel a date for Kasey if she had to.

"There is no date on the planet that is more important than you, Molly. And you don't rely on us. There's nothing wrong with needing help sometimes. Nothing wrong with needing it a lot, either." Molly still looked a bit doubtful, but she nodded and excused herself, heading to her bedroom. Angela blew some hair from her face and sunk into the couch. That's the best she's getting for now. It was like pulling teeth trying to get Molly to actually open up about things. There's a handful of topics that were still taboo to talk about around her.

Molly came out a few minutes later with a towel and a pile of clothes, saying that she was going to take a shower before Luke got here. Angela gave her a thumbs-up and leaned her head against the back of the couch. She waited until she heard the water start to heave a heavy sigh.

She should've asked Luke to bring some alcohol.