*A/N: Hello again! This is a bit of a lengthy chapter (nearly 5,000 words!) but lots of moving the story forward. Trigger warning for abuse, brief sexual activity, and swearing. You also find out who Hattie's father is in this chapter…
It was the first day of classes at Auradon Prep, and Red was scared shitless. She had never been to a public high school, she didn't know what to expect. All she had experience with was what classroom to go to and where to sit and to listen while the underpaid and overworked jailhouse teacher rambled on about stuff she already knew. Just the dormitory in Auradon Prep was bigger than the entire detention center was.
Red was anxiously getting her daughter ready for the day. She'd spent the entire summer in the dorm, and even she had to admit it was a bit of an adjustment period for them both. Hattie was still learning her mother's routine after having been with Nana for so long, and there were many sleepless nights for Red. All that on top of introductory level online courses that Principal Uma had signed her up for made her stressed for today.
Just as she'd finished getting Hattie dressed, there was a knock on the door. Red glanced over at the alarm clock—seven thirty. Crap, Chester would be here shortly. She went to answer the door, and was shocked when she found a lanky, strawberry blonde teenage boy with pale freckles over his nose and cheeks.
"Chester!" Red exclaimed happily, throwing her arms around him in a hug. She hadn't seen him since she'd gotten locked up. His parents never let him visit her in detention—they thought she would be a bad influence on him. He wraps his arms around the redheaded girl, embracing her.
"Hey there, mama," he said. "I wasn't expecting such a warm welcome." He was laughing now as she pulled away, turning her attention back to her daughter. He closed the door and moved to go sit on her freshly made bed, something he knew irked her, and when she noticed it she gave him a look that could kill.
"I haven't seen you in three years, Chester," Red said. "Did you really think I wouldn't be happy to see you?"
"I thought you'd be happy that I'm taking Miss Hattie off your hands for a while," Chester said, gripping the toddler in a hug and tickling her, making her laugh. "And besides, I thought I'd come a little early since it's your first day and all."
"Thanks, Ches," Red said, sitting down beside him. "Besides my Nana you're the only one I trust with her."
"Would this be a bad time to tell you I've never taken care of a kid before?" Chester joked. He had siblings, Red knew that, so they would all be fine. Red shoves his shoulder playfully. "Still a jokester, I see."
"Always," Chester said, beaming at her. "When your dad's the Cheshire Cat you've gotta be funny."
"But seriously, thank you for doing this. You didn't have to," Red said, sincerity in her voice.
"I know, but I want to. I want to see you be better without A—" Chester started before Red cut him off.
"Don't say his name," Red said, brushing her hair away from her face. At even the mention of him, she felt her anxiety flare. There was the very real possibility that he could be here, that she could run into him. She chewed her lip in nervousness, crossing her arms against her chest like she was a small child again. "I'm sorry for snapping, it's just that he really hurt me."
"I know," Chester said, staring down at the floor. "And I'm sorry I couldn't save you."
"Chester, it's not your fault," Red started. "You tried telling me that he was bad news, I should've listened. I don't blame you for anything."
Chester opened his mouth to speak again but was interrupted by a knock on Red's door. Red groaned as she got up to answer it. When she opened the door, there in front of her stood none other than Chloe.
Red spent as much time as she could avoiding the blue-haired princess. She found her sickeningly positive and annoying. It wasn't that she didn't like the girl or anything, just that Red had been burned too many times by having friends. This was what was best for her, and for Hattie. Red couldn't afford to have friends again, friends that would ultimately betray her, and lose her daughter. Not after she had just gotten her baby girl back.
"What are you doing here?" Red bit out.
"I thought I would show you to your classes, since it's your first day and all," Chloe said, a hopeful smile on her face. A part of Red softened, finding it endearing that this girl thought of her, thought to help her. Maybe she knew Red would be overwhelmed and confused, or maybe it was just a set up by the principal. Despite the warm feeling in Red's stomach, she made sure her face didn't betray her and show any happiness.
"Fine," Red grumbled. "Come in." She moved out of the way, and Chloe stepped into the room, closing the door behind her. "Chester, this is Chloe. Chloe, Chester. She's supposed to be my mom and make sure I don't get in trouble."
Chester let out a laugh, "Oh dang, then she's got her work cut out for her!" Red gave him an irritated look as Chloe looked horrified. Chester coughed before he spoke again, "I mean, Red's great at following the rules."
"Can we just get this day started please? The sooner it starts the sooner it's over," Red said.
"Uh, yeah, I'll take you to your first class," Chloe said, moving toward the door. Red walked over to her daughter, picking her up into a loving hug, kissing her cheeks.
"Be good for Uncle Chester today, yeah?" Red told her daughter.
Hattie nodded in agreement, "Yes, Mommy."
"Can I take her outside today?" Chester asked. "I mean, like to a playground and stuff? It's supposed to be nice and sunny and I thought that maybe she'd like it."
"Yeah, just make sure you bring water and snacks. Oh, and I have a bag packed and ready for you in case you need it. And put sunscreen on her, too," Red said as she grabbed her school bag. Chester only rolled his eyes in response.
"Relax, Red, I got this. And don't worry, I'll keep you updated throughout the day if anything happens, okay?" Chester said, attempting to calm the redhead's nerves.
Red sucked in a deep breath, "Okay, I'm trusting you with my life." Red lowered her voice so that only Chester could hear, "I swear if you let anything happen to my little girl…"
"Red, she'll be okay," Chester soothed.
"Okay, it's okay. I'm okay," Red said to herself, but she knew it was a lie. She trusted Chester, and she knew she was coming back to her daughter at the end of the day. This wasn't like juvie, she had her daughter all the time now, so why was leaving so hard?
"Mami loves you, mija," Red said, kissing the girl one last time before handing her over to Chester. "I'll be back in a little bit."
"No! Mommy! Mommy stay!" The child in Chester's arms started screaming, fat tears rolling down her chubby cheeks as she squirmed to try and get to her mother. Red felt her heart crack even more, a lump growing in her throat as she had to turn to the door, leaving Chester to deal with her crying child.
No sooner than the door shut behind her, Red pressed her back against the wall outside her dorm, her face in her hands. She couldn't let this happen, she couldn't cry on her first day of school like she was a child, yet here she was. Red felt her tears sliding down her cheeks onto her hands, her body rocking. She had completely forgotten about Chloe until she felt a soothing hand on her arm. Red sniffed back more tears, moving her hands to look at Chloe's face.
"Hey, it's gonna be okay," Chloe said gently. Chloe didn't know much about kids, but she did know that they cried whenever their parents left, even if it was for a short while.
"I just feel so bad, you know? Like, not that I'm leaving her with him or anything but seeing her cry like that for me and having to just go. You must think I'm pathetic," Red said, laughing at herself while drying her tears.
"No, not at all. I think what you just had to do was really hard. You're a good mom, Red, and don't let anybody tell you otherwise. Obviously you trust him otherwise you wouldn't have been able to leave. You're coming back to her at the end of the day, remember that," Chloe said, Red just nodded, glancing down at her phone.
"Shit, it's almost eight. Can't be late for my first day or people will think I'm a criminal," Red said, laughing at her own irony, earning an eye roll and an exasperated sigh from Chloe. As they walked through the halls, people stared and whispered to their friends. Some of them audibly gasped as Red passed by, and it was hard for her to walk by and hear their harsh whispers.
"She doesn't look like a drug dealer."
"She's too pretty to be a crackhead."
"If all drug dealers looked like her I'd understand why they did it."
"She's probably already selling drugs out of her dorm."
"What is Chloe Charming doing with someone like her?"
"How many tattoos do you think she has?"
"You think she'd let me hit it?"
"How many guys do you think she's slept with?"
"Do you think she's bi?"
Red was able to make it through half of the day without crying. When lunch came around she tried to eat in the cafeteria like everyone else, but it became too much for her. All the stares, the whispers, the fact that Chester hadn't texted her any updates yet…it was too much. Red got up from the table, throwing away her half-eaten food and storming off into the bathrooms. She locked herself in an empty stall, sitting on the toilet as she quietly sobbed with her head in her hands. Chloe had taken her to all her classes today, but right now she was nowhere to be seen. Besides, Red didn't need her. There was no way Chloe could understand how she felt. In fact, Red didn't even know why she had wanted to find comfort in the blue-haired girl anyway.
The bell rang for fifth period and Red quickly collected herself, wiping away her tears and sending a quick text to Chester. It was just a check-in, just making sure everything was going well. Her last couple classes were even more mind-numbing than the first four were.
"Well, well, well, look what the Cheshire Cat drug in. Wonderland's finest fuck up," Red heard a voice say in front of her as she doddled in the margins of her notebook while she waited for her last class of the day to begin. When she looked up, her heart sank.
In front of her stood a tall, muscly boy with dark brown curls and dark eyes. There was the same familiar smile that ruined her life all those years ago…
"Ace," she breathed out, her heart quickening in her chest.
"The one and only, baby girl," he said. Red hated to find that even so many years later he hadn't lost his charm on her, and she even more hated how her body remembered how he made her feel. She thought she might cry at the sight of him, but not from happiness. No, these tears would be of sadness and hatred, hate for what he did to her.
His lips turned upward into a smile, "You're staring, you know that? If you want something all you gotta do is just ask," he said the last part with a wink. This was the one class that Red had without Chloe. Granted, Chloe didn't sit by her in any of her classes, and as much as she hated to admit it, it was nice to have a familiar face with her all day. And naturally, Ace had to sit right beside her. He was as casual as ever, leaning back in his chair as he laid his hand on Red's thigh, inching his way up as the teacher lectured on about the syllabus. She felt dirty with him touching her, all she wanted was to shove him away, but she didn't. She didn't want to cause a scene.
When the last bell of the day rang, Red practically ran for her dorm, not even realizing Ace was following her. He didn't have to walk as fast as she did since his legs were longer. By the time she reached her door and began searching through her bag for the key, Ace was behind her and quickly spun her around before planting a harsh kiss on her lips. Taken by surprise, Red shoves him as hard as she could, and he's just as surprised as she is.
"What the fuck, Ace?" she asked. He places a hand on her door, putting his fingers beneath her chin to make her look at him.
"Come on, baby. You really think I didn't notice you giving me the 'fuck me' eyes? How long has it been since someone touched you?" Ace asked, trailing his hand from her chin to between her legs, and her disgust only grew.
She let out a long sigh, rolling her eyes. Red knew he wouldn't let this go. One time, that was all he needed, and then she would call it off. "Fine," she growled, hating herself for giving in to him. "But you're wearing a condom or else you leave right now with blue balls."
"Oh, come on," Ace said, rolling his eyes.
"You really wanna push it?" Red said, turning and shoving the key in the lock. Chester wasn't back with Hattie yet, so she figured there would be enough time to get Ace off her trail.
"Fine," Ace said, following her into her room and slamming the door behind him. "But you know how much I hate condoms. They don't feel as good."
Red let out a dry laugh at his comment, "They don't feel as good but you'll still come in less than two minutes." Ace's hand collided with her cheek, leaving a stinging trail of heat behind. She looked at him, unwilling tears threatening to spill over from the force of his slap.
"You know better than to talk to me like that, baby. You're lucky I'm even agreeing to a condom," he said, his voice darker than it was five minutes ago.
"Do you want me to get pregnant?" Red asked, trying to gauge what his reaction would be. Maybe he would want to be better if he knew he had a daughter. Maybe he would be different than she hoped, even though her gut was screaming at her that she was right.
"Fuck no. You get pregnant, you're having an abortion. I don't want any kids," Ace said, undoing his jeans and rolling on a condom. "Now turn around, you know I only fuck from behind."
Red undid her own jeans, peeling them halfway down her thighs before bending over onto her bed. He grabbed her hips, slapping her ass, before burying himself inside her. Ace's eyes rolled back at the feeling.
"Fuck baby, you feel so good. Just like the last time," Ace said as he thrust into her. At first it hurt, feeling him inside her after over three years without sex. Red closed her eyes burying her face into the comforter as she tried to forget where she was, what she was doing. Soon enough he was done, pulling out of her and throwing the condom in the trash can by her desk.
"You know baby, we could be together again. We could have everything we worked so hard for back again. I already have my boys lined up," Ace said.
"No, Ace. I don't want that life anymore," Red said, shaking her head, and he scoffed in return. Part of her wasn't surprised that he never changed, despite hoping that he did.
Ace looked around Red's room, taking it in, "Red, why do you have all this kid stuff in here?"
Red felt her heart quicken, and it was at that moment that Chester decided to bring Hattie back to her mother. "Hey, Red, Hattie did great today with Uncle Chester, just like you said she would!" Chester said as he burst through her door, cradling the small child in his arms. His eyes widened when he saw Ace in the room. Red gave him a look that could kill, silently pleading that he would get out and take her daughter with him.
"Oh…nevermind. I'll be…going," Chester said, turning around and leaving the room.
"What the fuck was that?" Ace said when the door closed. Red could hear the anger rising in his voice.
"What do you mean?" she asked. "It's Auradon, anyone can go here, even Chester's crazy ass."
"No, that's not what I meant and you know it," Ace said, furiously walking around the room, hands planted firmly on his hips. "Why did he have a kid? And 'Uncle Chester?'"
Red let out a hard breath, not answering either of his questions. "Answer me, goddamnit!" he screamed before composing himself again. "Is it mine?"
"Yeah, Ace, she's yours," Red said quietly, nervously fidgeting with her fingers.
"What the fuck, Red?" Ace screamed, lunging for her throat and pressing her against the wall as he squeezed his hand around her neck. "Were you ever gonna tell me?" This was it, this was the start of their screaming match that would probably last for hours.
"Do you want honesty? Because not really!" Red screamed back at him when she could finally gasp for air again. He lets her go, throwing her on the floor beside her bed.
"God, Red, really? You're a fucking bitch, you know that?" he screamed. He picked up her glass vase of roses, throwing them off the desk, the glass shattering on the floor just mere inches away from her.
"Yeah, maybe I am," Red said quietly before raising her voice, trying to gather herself enough to stand up, "But at least I'm not gonna be a deadbeat dad."
"Oh, look at you, all high and mighty, acting like you're better than me," Ace said, trying to insult her and instead only earning a scoff and an eye roll.
"I am better than you!" Red screamed. "At least I stayed in my child's life!"
"Did you really give me a choice? I mean, really, when were you gonna tell me, Red, huh?" He might have stopped screaming at her, but now he was attacking her personally.
"Oh I don't know, maybe when you never came to visit me, or write me letters, or literally any form of communication?" Red screamed, she was done, all those years of hating him were coming out now. All her pent up rage being exposed.
"It never occurred to you that I might want to know that you were fucking pregnant? God, and you always said I was the selfish one. You don't even think to consider other people. If you had told me we could've gotten rid of it."
"No, you don't get to turn this around on me," Red said, her voice turning low with white hot anger. "You ratted me out to save yourself and get a lighter sentence, you threw me to the fucking wolves. You're a real great father, you know that? She has a name, and she's not some kid—she's your daughter. I didn't want to have a fucking abortion. And don't even try to pretend that you want to clean up your act now and be a fucking little league soccer dad when you literally just said you didn't want kids, asshole."
"Yeah, you're right. I don't want kids, but it would've been fucking nice to know I have one! But guess what, you're a fucking bitch, all you were to me is goddamn drug mule and my slut, and that's all you ever will be, so don't get it fucking twisted that you're somehow better than me, because you're not. You'll always be a drug dealer, Red. You really think people here will see you any differently? I don't have a fucking kid, you do."
Red let out an ironic laugh, "So we've resorted to insults and name-calling, have we? Well why don't I play the game too, huh? You wanted to know you had a kid? Why? So you could verbally tell me you didn't want anything to do with her? All you'll ever be is a deadbeat ex-drug dealer who will keep trying to restore his former glory and never get there. You're a fucking asshole who will never amount to anything for the rest of his life. I can't wait to see you rotting in hell when I die."
"Fucking cunt!" Ace yelled, throwing his arms up, and he shoved her. He shoved her so hard she fell backward onto the floor, right there the broken glass was. Sure they'd fought before, but never to this extent, and it was never this bad. Ace looked down at her, scoffing before he walked out of the room, slamming the door behind him.
Red bit her lip, trying to hold back tears but they came anyway. This wasn't what she wanted. She hoped that he had changed, that maybe he'd want to be in his daughter's life, that he would give up that lifestyle. But she was wrong. Red sat on the floor for a minute, collecting herself before she slowly stood up. There was a quiet knock on her door, and she silently cursed whoever was on the other side.
"What?" Red screamed at the person before her as tears flowed in rivers down her she realized who it was she felt an inkling of remorse for shouting at her.
"I heard screaming," Chloe said quietly. "I wanted to check on you and make sure you were okay."
"Yeah, I'm fine," Red sniffed. She had to stop crying in front of Chloe. Twice in one day, that had to be some sort of record.
"You don't look fine. Your face is red and your arm is bleeding," Chloe said. "Can I come in?"
"Sure," Red said, moving out of the way so the blue-haired girl could enter. "Sorry for the mess, my housekeeper was off today."
"Red," Chloe sighed. She knew this was all just an act. It was all a tough-girl front so she wouldn't get attached to someone again, but Chloe was determined to break through Red's harsh exterior. "I know we're not really 'friends,' but you can talk to me. It looks like there's a lot on your mind that you need to let out."
"Why? So you can gossip about me to your friends?" Red spat venom at her.
Chloe let out a sigh, she expected this, honestly. But she guessed if she wanted Red to trust her and be vulnerable with her, Chloe would have to do those things herself, too. "Red, I don't have friends."
"Bullshit," Red said, sitting down in her chair at her desk as Chloe sat cross-legged on her bed. "I saw you today with all those prissy princesses hanging around you."
"Yeah, I have them, but they don't really know me. They couldn't tell you the first thing about me," Chloe said, staring down at her lap.
"So then tell me, princess, what's the first thing I should know about you?" Red asked, raising an eyebrow.
"That I'm gay," Chloe said quietly. "It's all anyone sees when they look at me."
"Well gay certainly sounds a hell of a lot better than drug dealer," Red said, unequivocally.
"Red," Chloe started. "I don't have the life you think I do."
Red scoffed at the blue-haired girl, "Enlighten me, princess."
"My parents hate me," Chloe started, unable to look Red in the eye as she traced circles on the comforter. "They say they don't but I can see it in their eyes. I'm the family disappointment because I'm not straight and everyone knows it. I wish I could just be normal. I hate that I like girls. I hate that I think they're pretty and want to kiss them all the time, but I know I'll just wind up married to a man that my dad chooses so the kingdom can get richer. Just like you said."
"We finally have something in common," Red said ironically. "We're both the family fuck-up." When Red looks at Chloe's face again she sees the girl is crying, and Red doesn't know how to comfort her. It's weird that she even wants to comfort her in the first place. They're not friends. Chloe just sees Red as a burden, someone the principal makes her take care of so that she doesn't get in trouble while at school.
"Chloe, I—" Red stuttered. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said those things to you when you were interviewing me."
"No, I deserved it. And you were right anyway. I am a nobody. I try and try to be perfect but I just can't," Chloe said, her body shaking as she cried.
Red didn't know what exactly possessed her to get up and sit down next to the crying girl. And Red certainly didn't understand why she wrapped her arms around Chloe, patting her hair as the girl cried into red waves. Red didn't know how people were supposed to comfort each other, so she did the only thing she could think of, the only thing she knew would work. At least it had worked with her daughter, anyway.
"Chloe, I'm so sorry. I didn't know you were feeling that way, and I just said things that made it worse," Red said, remorse heavy in her voice. Chloe pulled herself out of the redhead's arms, sniffing back more tears and giving her a soft smile.
"It's okay. You didn't know at the time," the girl swallowed down a lump of emotion in her throat. "You're the only one who knows I feel that way."
For a second Red's heart stopped. She was entering dangerous territory now. She was entering friend territory. That couldn't happen. Friends were bad news. Friends only got you in trouble. Despite the blaring alarms sounding in Red's mind, she couldn't push away the feeling that she needed to help this girl. It reminded her of when Hattie had one of her meltdowns.
"I won't tell anyone," she said. "As long as you don't tell anyone about Hattie."
"Deal," Chloe said, but not without an ultimatum, "As long as you let me take care of your arm."
When Chester brought Hattie back that night he made sure that everything was calmed down before knocking on Red's door. He certainly hadn't expected to see Red in the state she was in.
"Hey, Red," Chester said, his voice soft. It was like he was trying not to harm the girl any more than she already was. "You okay?"
"Yeah," Red said, and it didn't take Chester being a genius to know that she was lying. "I'm okay."
"You have a handprint-shaped red mark on your face, your eye is starting to bruise and you have a massive bandage on your arm. I don't think you're okay," Chester said.
"No, really," Red said, trying to be brave. "It's just that Ace finally found out about Hattie and he didn't take the news so lightly."
"So what are you gonna do now?" Chester asked. The little girl in question was playing on the floor with her toys, but it was getting dark outside and she had an eventful day, too. Red glanced over at her child, a loving expression on her face.
"I don't know," she said. "But I'm not letting him get to her. I don't want her to grow up like I did." Hattie dropped her toys, waddling over to where her mom sat on the bed.
"Momma, up," the girl said and Red reached over and lifted her daughter onto the bed between her and Chester. Hattie looks at her mother's face, reaching out a hand toward the cheek that was still aching from being slapped.
"Mommy hurt?" she asked, and Red could have sworn there was a worried expression on her daughter's face.
"No, baby, Mommy's okay," Red said, and the child crawled onto her mother's lap, wrapping her arms around her. Red knew this behavior, but it took Chester by surprise and he raised an eyebrow as Red leaned back on her pillows, positioning her daughter so her head was on her chest. "She's tired," Red said. "Every night when it gets around her bedtime she gets a little clingy and won't want to leave my side."
"Oh," Chester said, "I'll head out for the night, then. See you in the morning?"
"Yeah, see you in the morning," Red said. And with that, Chester was gone, allowing Red to savor her baby snuggles with her sleepy daughter. Usually Hattie slept in her own bed, but just one night of holding her daughter close wouldn't hurt, and soon enough Red herself was enveloped in a deep sleep.