TW: more mentions of abuse and SA. Again, I tried to not get too graphic, but it's still present. If you are sensitive to that, skip the part after Darry tells Kate he heard her repeating "not again." This should be one of the last chapters that discusses it, especially to this extent.

(Darry's POV)

I looked at my watch again, and when the second hand crossed the 12 yet another time, I let out an exasperated breath. It had been less than ten minutes since Kate left to take out the trash, but the uneasy feeling I had kept getting worse as the seconds ticked by. How long does it take to bring a couple of bags outside? I didn't realize my anxiety was so obvious to others until Dally spoke up.

"Jesus Darry, quit it," Dally snapped at me, his eyes trained on my hands.

I looked down and noticed that when I wasn't checking the time, I had apparently been fidgeting with my hands. I forced myself to stay still, but I decided to address the subject of my concern. "Kate's been gone a while," I stated. Then I looked up at Johnny, hoping the teen behind the counter could tell me something that would make me feel better. "How far is the dumpster back there, Johnny?"

Johnny looked as troubled as I felt. His eyebrows were furrowed, and his big, expressive eyes displayed his worry. "It's against the building, not too far from the back door. I don't know what's takin' her so long."

I glanced around the diner, thinking maybe Kate ran into someone and was talking to them, but I didn't see her anywhere.

"Cool it, Darry. You're just being paranoid again," Dally said. Although he still didn't sound particularly kind, I could tell Dally was holding back on the amount of heat he could've used when he spoke to me. "You've been actin' like your girl's guard dog or something. You barely let her outta your sight."

"Did you ever stop and think maybe there's a reason for that Dallas?" I shot back at him, not matching his restraint when it came to the harshness of my voice. There was no way for Dally to know what Kate had confided in me on Valentine's Day, but I wished that he could just take the hint and lay off.

Dally raised his eyebrows slightly at me, looking like he was somewhere between being surprised and wanting to challenge me to a fight. Rather than wait to find out what Dally was going to say next, I shot to my feet and looked over to Johnny. "I'm going to check on her. Where's the back door?"

Johnny didn't even hesitate before he guided me behind the counter and through the kitchen, using just one of his crutches while he walked. I didn't recognize the two workers we passed, but they must've seen me around because they barely looked in our direction before returning to their work. We were just about to reach the door when I heard a scream.

"DARRY!"

I instantly maneuvered around Johnny and rushed out the door. I turned my head to the left just in time to see something that electrified every single nerve in my body.

In front of the dumpster, Peter and two other guys had a hold of Kate, who was struggling against them. Peter had a grip on her neck, and he slammed her back into the dumpster, her head hitting the metal so loud that I knew it had to hurt.

"HEY!" I shouted at the group as I sprinted towards them.

Either their reflexes were awful or I was faster than ever, because none of them moved more than a step before I was on them. I pulled one guy away from Kate and threw him down, then I shoved another before I tackled Peter to the ground. I easily pinned him down with my knees and sent a flurry of punches into his face. He tried to either hit me back or maybe even protect himself, but his movements were uncoordinated and weak, which I knew was from the alcohol I could smell coming from him.

In the midst of my fury, I heard a yelp come from somewhere nearby, and I instinctively turned to look at the source of the sound. I spotted Johnny crumpled on the ground against the building, his crutch lying next to him. Close by, Peter's friend with black hair was kneeling on the ground, groaning and clutching the back of his head. Just a few feet away, Dally was pummeling the guy with brown hair, viciously saying something about never touching the kid again. It didn't take a genius to realize the guy must've hurt Johnny, and Dally was showing him how much he'd regret it.

I was debating between continuing to pummel Peter and helping Dally and Johnny with the other two guys, but the sound of mumbling behind me suddenly caught my attention.

"Not again… not again."

Keeping my knees on Peter so he couldn't get up, I turned to look towards Kate. She was lying sideways on the ground with her eyes closed, but I knew she was at least semi-conscious since she was holding her arms close to her chest and her lips were moving. "Not again."

Those words were haunting. What happened here before we showed up? What exactly happened 'again?' Many ideas came to mind, and the more I thought about the possibilities, the more terrified I felt. Glory, she was only out of my sight for a few minutes. Nothing like that happened, right?

I scrambled off of Peter, not caring when my foot landed on him and he let out a whimper. Then I kneeled down in front of Kate and reached my hand out to gently put it on her shoulder. "Kate honey, open-"

As soon as my hand touched her, she flinched violently and threw a lackluster punch towards me as she let out a pained "No." I barely felt her knuckles hit my arm, but I instantly retracted my hand. I wasn't going to give her a reason to be any more scared than she already was.

Her eyes were suddenly open, but there was a strange look in them; it was like she could see me, but not really see me. It reminded me of how Pony looked a few months before, when he got so sick that he thought I was Dad. A chill ran down my spine at the memory.

"Kate, it's me. Darry," I said softly, trying to coax her back to full consciousness. I made sure my hands were in view so she knew I wasn't going to do anything. "I'm not going to hurt you. I promise."

Kate studied me, and every time she blinked her eyes, it seemed to clear more of the fog. After a few seconds, she started pushing herself up from the ground. I wanted to help her, but I also didn't want to make things worse by reaching for her, so I remained frozen in place.

When she was finally sitting, I could see red marks on her arms, face, and sickeningly, her neck, which also had smeared blood on it. I wanted to pull her into a hug and check her for serious injuries, but I couldn't do that until the wary look on her face was gone.

"Darry?" Kate asked, almost like she wasn't sure it was really me kneeling in front of her. Still, her voice already sounded stronger than before, despite the hoarseness.

I let out a sigh of relief. "Yeah baby, it's me." I slowly reached my hand towards her face, and I was glad that she didn't pull away. I gently held her chin between my thumb and pointer finger so I could move her head a little to check her injuries. "You got blood on your neck. Did they cut you? How bad are you hurt?"

She shook her head and let out a shaky breath. "No, I'm fine. Just a little shook up."

I just pulled three guys away from you. You've got to be more than 'a little shook up.' I let go of her chin and gave her a look. "You can tell me, Kate. I know you're tough, but I need to know if you're hurt."

Kate shook her head again, but I didn't miss her wince. Then she gave me what was probably meant to be a reassuring smile, but her eyes were missing the conviction. "The blood's not mine. I'm fine, really."

She was stubborn, but I was determined to not let her just tough it out if she really was hurting. I opened my mouth to say something, but the rumble of a car interrupted me, and I turned around to face whoever had shown up.

Stepping out of a familiar black Eldorado was my former best friend, Paul.

I got to my feet and stood in front of my girlfriend, ready for another round of fighting. After Paul walked around his car, he froze as he took note of the scene in front of him. Dally was crouched next to Johnny, talking softly to the younger teen, who was still on the ground. Several feet away, Peter's two friends were struggling to stand up, with the black-haired guy trying to help his friend get to his feet. Meanwhile, Peter seemed like he was barely conscious as he was lying on the ground between me and Paul, moaning and bleeding.

"Aren't you supposed to be at school?" I asked Paul bitterly, not because I was jealous of him being able to go to college, but because I didn't want him anywhere near the gang or my girlfriend. "What are you doing here Paul?"

Paul's eyes lingered on Peter before he glared back at me. "I'm in town for the weekend, so I brought my cousin and his friends out to a bar. When they disappeared, I went looking for them." Then he took a challenging step forward. "Turns out some greasers decided to pick a fight with them."

I straightened my back and squared my shoulders, which caused Paul to immediately stiffen, probably because he realized that even though he was a college football player, I could still beat him in a fair fight. "We didn't look for a fight," I said, barely able to keep my anger in check. "Your cousin and his friends knew where to find Kate, and they came after her at work."

Paul's eyes glanced past me and assumingly at Kate. For a moment, I could see a glimmer of the kid who didn't hate me or care which part of town I grew up in. The moment passed, and he took another step forward as he motioned towards Peter, who was still on the ground, but the kid had managed to grab his bleeding nose. "You could've just told him to get lost. You didn't need to beat the tar out of him!"

"What would you have done if you saw three guys hurting your girl?" I shot back viscously, taking a step towards him. If he wants a fight, I'll give him one.

"He's still family, Darrel," Paul retorted. "What would you do if I beat up one of your kid brothers like that?"

At those words, I could barely keep my temper under control.

"Is that a threat?" Dally asked harshly from where he was practically holding Johnny up. If it wasn't for the teen hanging onto him for support, I was sure Dally wouldn't hesitate to exchange blows with Paul. He'd have to beat me to it though.

"No," Paul said calmly, his eyes only looking at Dally briefly before he looked back at me. I saw another flash of my former friend in his expression, and I had a strange feeling that Paul was telling the truth and he really wasn't threatening to go after my brothers. "I just want you to know where I'm coming from."

We all stood there in a quiet stare down. Peter's two friends had managed to get to their feet, but they remained frozen while they looked around with wide eyes, apparently not sure what to do.

"Let's call it even for now, alright?" Paul eventually offered, sounding almost apologetic. "I'll take these idiots home and we don't need to cross paths again."

As much as I wanted to keep fighting so I could blow off some steam, I knew I had to use my head. Priorities, Darry. Keep everyone safe and away from cops and hospitals. "Fine."

Immediately, Paul and the other two guys helped Peter into Paul's car. Once the four of them got into the Eldorado, tires squealed as Paul sped away.

As soon as the coast was clear, I turned and crouched in front of Kate. She was still sitting in the same spot, but she had her arms wrapped around herself, she was shaking slightly, and her eyes looked foggy again. Her mouth was moving too, and even though I couldn't quite hear her, I knew she must've been repeating the same words from earlier: "Not again."

"Kate," I said as gently as I possibly could. "It's Darry. You're safe. I'm right here."

Her eyebrows twitched, and after she blinked a few times, I could see her returning to me again. I smiled at her, and after I kept reminding her that she was with me and safe, she took a deep breath in and let out a long exhale. Kate's voice was so small and quiet, it was almost impossible to believe it was her speaking. "Hi Darry."

I offered her a small smile. "Hey sweetheart." Then I carefully put my hands on her shoulders and looked her over one more time, double checking for injuries. The red marks where hands had been on her were still visible, as well as the blood that she said wasn't hers, but I couldn't see anything too concerning. "Tell me the truth, Kate. Is anything hurting?"

She seemed to consider things for a moment, and when she answered, her voice sounded stronger, with a bit of humor mixed in too. "It feels like someone's hitting my skull with a hammer." She moved her hand towards the back of her head, and when she winced, I knew even before I replaced her hand with mine that there would be a bump there.

"You already have a knot here Kate," I said sadly as I felt the area with my fingers. I couldn't feel any sticky liquid, so I figured she wasn't bleeding. Thank the Lord.

"I'll ice it at home. Probably take a few aspirin too," she said casually. I could tell she was trying to act like she was alright, but there was still a fearful look in her eyes that made me know she wasn't.

Before I could say anything else, Dally's angry voice caught my attention. I turned and saw Johnny leaning against the wall with his crutch under his arm while Dally was shouting at him. Given how he was slumped heavily on the crutch and the grimace on his face, I knew Johnny was in a world of pain, and after everything that Johnny had been through in just his first sixteen years of life, it hurt to see him like that once again.

"What were you thinkin' man? Jumpin' into a brawl with your back all fucked up?!" Dally spat at Johnny as he paced in front of the younger boy.

If anyone else had been yelling at him, Johnny would have surely been terrified and look like a kicked puppy, but for some reason, he was comfortable enough with Dallas that he looked up at the hood. "I wasn't gonna just stand there and do nothin'," Johnny said in a surprisingly normal speaking volume, but coming from him, it practically sounded like he was yelling. "I'm not a little kid, Dal. I can handle mysel-"

"Yeah? So I didn't just pull that guy off ya?" Dally snapped. "I didn't just save your sorry ass from gettin' beaten with your own crutch?" Even though he was furious and yelling in Johnny's face, I knew that was just Dally's way of coping with his concern for the younger greaser.

I can relate to that more than just about anyone.

It looked like Johnny wanted to argue with Dallas, but he didn't say anything. Instead, Johnny kept his mouth shut, dropped his head, and scowled down at his feet, looking both defeated and upset.

"You okay, Johnny?" Kate asked as she slowly got to her feet. I stood up with her and immediately wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her against my side, and with my free hand, I held one of hers.

Johnny was obviously not okay, but the kid was as tough and stubborn as they come, so he glanced over in our direction and nodded his head. "I'm alright," he said, his voice strained from his discomfort.

"You ain't alright, Johnny. You're lucky you can still stand after that stunt you just pulled," Dally growled. Thankfully, he wasn't yelling anymore. Instead, Dally was just speaking angrily. "Christ, you got a broken back. What the hell-"

"Enough," I said, successfully making Dally finally shut his mouth.

Dally stared daggers at me, obviously frustrated and furious, but rather than get in a fight with each other, I hoped he would listen to me and do what I said. "I'm going to bring Kate home. Dally, take Johnny to the house and tell the guys what happened. If you think he needs to go to the hospital-"

Johnny's eyes just about popped out of his head at the word. "Darry-"

I ignored him and kept speaking directly to Dallas. "If any of you think he needs to go to the doctor, take him. Don't worry about money or anything else, I'll take care of it. Just make sure he's okay."

Dally nodded with a serious expression painted on his face. Despite the anger and borderline hostility we had towards each other for the previous few weeks, I was pleased that Dally understood where our priorities needed to be and pushed his grudge towards me to the side. He wouldn't let anything stand in his way to make sure Johnny was okay.

I took the truck keys out of my pocket and tossed them to Dally, who caught them easily. "Take the truck," I instructed. "I'll take Kate's car. I'll call the house in a little bit."

"You don't need to Darry," Kate said softly. "I'll be fine."

I turned to face her, and even though she was still putting on a brave face, the traumatized look in Kate's eyes told me I was doing the right thing. The memory of Kate muttering "not again" also added to my validation while simultaneously making a shiver run down my spine.

"I want to make sure you're safe and sound," I said simply. I would've wanted to bring her to our house, but after everything that happened, I figured she'd rather be away from a chaotic house full of young greasers.

It looked like Kate wanted to argue, but her resolve quickly disappeared and she gave me a small nod. "Okay."

In the following few minutes, Dally took the truck to bring Johnny to the house while Kate and I went back into the diner to get her belongings. Rachel and two other workers spotted us and asked what happened, so Kate gave them a simplified version of the incident, obviously not wanting to get into too many details. While her other two coworkers didn't ask too many questions before returning to work, Rachel stuck around and asked Kate if she was really okay and if my girlfriend wanted her to stay at her apartment for the night.

"Thanks Rach, but I'll be alright," Kate said. She sounded tired, and I wondered if it was from the emotional toll everything was taking on her, or if the knot on the back of her head had something to do with it. "Darry's bringing me home."

"Good. Your bodyguard won't let anything happen to you," Rachel said with a slight grin, only glancing at me momentarily before looking back at Kate.

Bodyguard? Well if that was the case, I've been doing a pretty lousy job of it.

"Call me if you need anything, okay?" Rachel added. "And don't worry, we'll tell Connie to ban those guys from ever comin' here again."

Kate gave her friend a small smile. "Thanks Rach."

With that, Kate and I walked to her car, and I drove us to her apartment.

I hung up the phone just as Kate stepped out of the bathroom. She had changed into a pair of sweatpants and a loose T-shirt, and her hair was still dripping from the shower she told me she needed. I could understand that she wanted to wash off the events of the night, so while she showered, I sat down in the living room chair and called the house.

"Is Johnny okay?" Kate asked worriedly. She stood a few feet away and leaned against the wall, giving me the impression that she was nervous or uncomfortable. I just hoped it wasn't my presence that caused her to feel like that.

I nodded and spoke softly when I replied. "Yeah, I think so." I tried not to look at the bruises forming on her skin while I spoke, but for once, my attention was being drawn by something other than her eyes. "After Dally brought him to the house and looked him over, the rest of the guys checked him too. They said his back's hurting, but he still has feeling and movement in his legs, so they don't think it's serious. I'll check on him tomorrow to make sure, but he'll probably be okay after some rest."

It took a second for my words to sink in, and when they did, Kate gave me a confused look. "You're staying?" She didn't sound mad about the idea; it was more like she was surprised and maybe even glad.

"Of course I am," I said lightly, keeping my eyes on hers.

Kate wrapped her arms around herself and almost sounded shy when she spoke next. "Don't you need to be home with your brothers? And what about work tomorrow?"

I shook my head. "The whole gang is staying at the house tonight to keep an eye on Johnny, and they know to call if anything changes. I told them where to find the number to your apartment if they end up needing it."

She didn't look convinced, so I stood up and walked over to her. I put my hands on her shoulders and gave her a grin. "And I'm sure my brothers can survive one night without me. They're probably happy to have me out of their hair for once. As for work, I'll call my boss in the morning and let him know I won't be coming in."

At my last statement, she seemed to get flustered. "Darry, you don't have to-"

"Kate, I want to. I don't want you to be alone tonight, and I want to see how you're doing tomorrow." Then I suddenly realized I never asked her how she felt about me staying the night at her place, so I changed my tone and tried to not sound like I was bossing her around. "If you're okay with it, I'd like to stay. I just want to make sure you're okay."

Kate gave me a small, sad smile before she leaned into my chest and wrapped her arms around me. "Thanks Darry."

I reciprocated the hug and held her tight. "Of course, honey. Anything for you." We stood there for a minute, neither of us wanting to pull apart, but when Kate yawned, I figured it was time for us to get some sleep. "Come on Kate, it's been a long day and you're tired. Let's go to bed."

The two of us went to Kate's room and got into the bed. Just like whenever she'd spend the night at our house, we both laid on our sides, with her back pressed against my chest and my arm wrapped around her, pulling her closer to me. Once she was comfortably situated, I kissed the top of her head and she held onto my hand that was draped over her.

Since we were exhausted, I thought both of us would fall asleep quickly, but even after I felt Kate's muscles relax as her breathing evened out, I couldn't fall asleep because I was still worried about her. My mind was spinning as I thought about everything that happened to her, both from that night and in her past. Not only that, but I couldn't stop myself from thinking about what else could've happened if I had waited longer before looking for Kate.

Before I could get too lost in my head, I heard a quiet murmuring noise coming from Kate, which told me she was sleep talking. I had never heard Kate talk in her sleep before, so while I thought it was unusual, I didn't think too much of it. After a while, her mumbling got a little louder and more enunciated, so I was able to figure out what she was muttering. "Not again."

My heart dropped into my stomach. She's reliving it in her sleep. I was debating whether or not to wake her up, but when I heard a faint sob coming from my sleeping girlfriend, I knew I couldn't let her keep being tortured in her sleep.

Since she had one of my hands in a tight hold, I used my other hand to push myself up into a sitting position. Once I was sitting, I put my hand on her shoulder and gently shook her. "Kate, wake up."

She kept mumbling "Not again" over and over again, and she curled inwards slightly, shielding herself from whatever was plaguing her mind. She let out another sob, and her whole body started trembling.

"Kate, it's me, Darry," I said a little louder than before. I gave her shoulder another shake. "Wake up, honey."

Kate woke with a jolt and a gasp. From where I was sitting, I could see her eyes open wide for a moment before they shut tightly. She squeezed my hand that she was still holding, and she was breathing rapidly, but I could tell she was trying to calm herself down and take slower breaths.

"It's okay Kate. You're safe," I cooed. As she calmed down, I continued to whisper soothing words to her, hoping that it was actually helping. After a few minutes, she seemed to have calmed down, so I dared to ask her a question. "Do you want to talk about it?"

She stayed where she was and shook her head, still not looking at me. "I'm okay."

I could tell she was lying, and it wasn't just because of the shakiness of her voice. "Sweetheart, I don't think you are. I'm worried about you."

Finally, she turned to look up at me. "Really?"

I nodded and moved her hair off of her face before replying. "Yeah, really. Besides the obvious reasons, you were just having a bad dream and you were repeating the same thing that you were saying when I showed up behind the diner."

Kate looked confused, then she let go of my hand and slowly sat up, apparently interested and likely concerned about what I told her. "What was I saying?" she asked quietly. She looked scared to know the truth, but she was determined.

"Both times you kept saying 'not again' and it's honestly scaring me," I all but whispered back. The room was engulfed by silence, which allowed my mind to wander again. What happened 'again?' All of her clothes were still on when I showed up, so they couldn't have done anything like what Victor did… right? I needed to know for sure. "They didn't… they didn't touch you, right?"

If they did, I'm going to kill them.

Kate's face blanched and her eyes went wide. For a moment, I was terrified that I had been wrong, but thankfully, Kate shook her head. "No Darry, nothing like that happened."

I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. I was relieved to know nothing like that happened behind the diner, but there still must've been a reason for Kate to get so worked up since "not again" had become basically a mantra for her when she wasn't fully conscious. "So what did you mean by 'not again?' What happened before I got there?"

She tore her eyes away from me and looked down at her arms, putting her hands over the bruises that were starting to darken. It took her a minute or two to come up with the words she wanted to say, but I waited patiently and wrapped an arm around her to pull her closer.

"I guess when I started fighting against them, it brought up some memories that I'd rather not remember," Kate said quietly. She took a shuddering breath and started rubbing her hands up and down her arms, apparently trying to soothe herself. "Then when their hands grabbed me and they had me trapped… it freaked me out, and it brought me back to the worst night of my life."

I swallowed the lump in my throat down as soon as it appeared. Before I could even try to comfort her, Kate looked up at me with watery eyes. "I think… I think I need to tell you something."

The way she said it told me it wasn't going to be good. I thought what she told me on Valentine's Day would be the worst thing she could confess, but I had a horrible feeling that I was about to be proven wrong. It doesn't matter how bad it is, if Kate wants to talk about it, I'll listen. I need to be there for her, no matter what.

"Okay," I said with a small nod, inviting her to say whatever she needed to.

Kate looked down again, and even after I squeezed my arm around her a little, she didn't look back up at me. "I told you about the beatings and the assault, but it wasn't that simple."

She took another breath and started explaining everything.

"When I was younger, I couldn't do much about anything Victor did; he would just do what he wanted and that was it. Things changed when I got older. I started fighting back, but that just made things worse," she said. Her voice started to sound distant, and I was concerned that she was replaying those awful memories, or even worse, she was slipping into a flashback and practically reliving them.

I didn't want her to relive her torturous past if it was going to be too much for her. "Kate, you don't need to-"

"Yes, I do," she said quickly as her head snapped up to look at me. She seemed determined, even though her voice still wavered. "I need you to know everything, and if I don't say it all now, I'm scared that I won't ever be able to."

I wanted to tell her no, she didn't need to tell me everything, but if she thought it would be helpful, I wouldn't argue with her. This is going to be hard for me to hear, but not nearly as hard as it would've been to live through it. I can be strong for her, no matter how difficult it's going to be for me. I can take some of her burden.

I sighed, then tightened my arm around her before rubbing my hand up and down the outside of her arm, trying to comfort her the best way I could. "Okay. Tell me everything you need to. I'm not going anywhere. I got you."

She nodded, and after she took a few shaky breaths, she looked down again and started talking. "When I fought back, he'd hurt me more, sometimes he'd even restrain me, then he'd do whatever he wanted. When that wasn't enough, he'd threaten me with every horrible thing you could think of, then when that stopped working, he'd threaten doing things to my mom. That worked for a long time. I couldn't let him hurt my mom because of me."

I blinked my eyes rapidly in an attempt to prevent any tears from forming. She was more worried about protecting her mom than helping herself from that monster. I could understand the need to protect a loved one, although in my experience, it had always been in very different situations than what Kate was talking about.

"Then one night, and it was the last straw," she continued. Her voice changed again, and I knew whatever she was about to say could break me if I let it. Stay strong, Darry. Stay strong for Kate. "It was the day after graduation. Victor and two of his friends showed up at the house. I could tell they were drunk just from their voices and the sounds of them knocking things over as they stumbled through the house. My mom wasn't home, thankfully, so I tried to leave through my bedroom window before they knew I was there, but I wasn't quick enough."

It felt like my heart was literally breaking as Kate spoke. I knew where the story was going, and it took every ounce of willpower I had to not tell her to stop talking. I can take it. I have to. I have to be strong for her.

"All three of them came into my room. They pulled me from the window and threw me down onto the bed. I fought hard, but I couldn't win that fight, not against three grown men. They pinned me down and they each had their way with me," she choked out. She covered her mouth with her hand, trying to stifle her sobs, but I wished she didn't.

"You don't need to hide your emotions, Kate," I said calmly before giving her a soft kiss to the side of her head. "Not with me."

She nodded and removed her hand from her mouth, but I could tell she was still trying to stop herself from crying. I waited patiently to see if she was going to say anything else, and after at least a full minute, she did. "When they were done, they just left me there. I was so hurt and ashamed… I didn't even want to keep breathing."

I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to stop the tears from falling onto my girlfriend's shoulder. I can't cry right now. I have to be strong for her.

"Eventually, I packed a bag and went to Rachel's that night," she continued, her voice slowly sounding stronger. "The two of us went to the diner the next day to talk with Connie about increasing my hours since I needed to move out. Within two days, I was working full-time and moved into my apartment."

Sensing the end of her awful story, I wrapped my other arm around her and pulled her into a tight hug. She seemed to melt into the embrace, even if she didn't move to put her arms around me.

We sat there silently for a while. Kate was still crying, but her sobs gradually got softer and quieter. After one last sob and a deep sigh, she mumbled, "That's it. That's the last of my secrets. You know everything now."

I stayed quiet for a moment, trying to keep my emotions in check and figure out what I wanted to say. While we sat in silence, I pressed my lips to the top of her head, trying to convey my support and love for her.

Finally, I just had one question for her. "Did you ever tell your mom about any of this?"

She shook her head. "No. I never even told her about the beatings, let alone anything else. Like I've said before, I think Victor was awful to her too. Even if she figured some of it out on her own, I didn't want to burden her by telling her; she doesn't deserve that."

I didn't know how to respond to that. I had never been in the kinds of situations Kate was forced to live through, but part of me wished she could've told her mom about Victor. I knew that if my brothers told me they were dealing with something like what Kate had experienced, or anything else really, I'd move mountains to take care of it for them. That's what any parent or guardian should do; take care of their kids.

But Kate didn't have the same support. After her dad died, Kate and her mom were alone until Victor came around; then they were both victims, just trying to survive the hell they lived in. And her mom is probably still dealing with it.

"I've never told anyone what really happened that last night in the house," Kate suddenly added. "I just told Rachel I couldn't go back, and I let her come to her own conclusions. Without her or Connie, I don't know what I would've done."

Despite my best efforts, I felt tears finally trickle down my cheeks, so I made sure to take a few deep breaths before I even dared to speak again. I can't let Kate know how emotional I'm being. What right do I have to feel this way when she's the one who had to live through that torture?

After another minute or two passed, I was able to form words again.

"I know all of this is beyond difficult to talk about, but thank you for trusting me with it," I told her, hoping she knew how sincere I was being. "And I am so proud of you. You lived through hell, and you're still the sweetest, most caring person I've ever met."

She threw her arms around me and pressed into my chest even more, and I instinctively tightened my arms around her.

"Thank you," she said, her voice even stronger than before. She almost sounded like herself again. "You make me feel safe, like nothing could ever hurt me. I trust you, and you deserve to know what kind of baggage I have. That's why I needed to tell you everything." Then she let out a quiet sob. "I'm sorry to burden you with all of this."

"Hey, none of that now. You're not burdening me," I said in the softest form of scolding I could manage. "You've carried this for so long, it's about time you let somebody else take some of the load." Then I let out a long breath, and even I could hear the waver in my voice when I spoke next. "I'm so sorry, Kate. I wish none of this happened to you, and I wish I knew about it back in high school. Maybe I could've done something about it back then."

"It's a good thing you didn't know," she said as she pulled away from me slightly. She had the smallest hint of a grin on her face. I was taken aback, almost feeling offended that she was glad I didn't know about her home life when we were in high school, but that feeling quickly vanished after she elaborated. "What would've happened if you knew about everything, and it led to something happening to Victor? What would've happened if you got locked up for it?"

Her next point went without saying: "Then what would've happened to your brothers when your parents died?"

"I could've figured something out," I replied, even though I wasn't too confident in my answer. What could I have done back in high school to save Kate from her own step-father? Since the police didn't ever listen to greasers, there was really only one thing I could've done about it. "I could've gotten Dally or Tim to help. Anything to keep you safe."

"I'll settle for having you with me now," she said with a small smile.

I tried to return her smile, but I had a feeling my attempt fell short. It was hard to smile after your girlfriend just told you the most horrifying thing imaginable happened to her. Then I pressed my lips against her forehead before pulling her tight against me again. "Glory Kate, I love you so much, and I swear I'll never let anything like that happen to you again."

I felt her relax in my embrace and let out a breath. She mumbled into my chest, and even though it was difficult to hear her, it sounded like she said something close to "I know you won't" followed by "I love you."

After we sat there for a while, I could tell Kate was tired again. While keeping her in my arms, I started easing us back into the mattress so we could lie down and get some sleep. We eventually got situated so Kate's head was on my chest and my arms were wrapped around her.

Once we were settled, Kate looked at me with nothing but love in her eyes, which looked far better than the fear or unease she had displayed for the better part of the night. "Thank you, Darry… for everything."

I was finally able to give her a genuine smile. "There's no need to thank me." Then, after I gave her a quick kiss on the cheek, I looked into her beautiful eyes. "I love you, Kate. Now get some sleep."

She smiled back at me. "I love you too."

In under a minute, both of us were fast asleep.

Now we know pretty much everything about Kate's past.

I hope it wasn't too graphic as I purposely avoided using certain words, phrases, etc. and I promise the entire story doesn't necessarily revolve around this- it's just a part of it.