Chapter Thirteen: Victims of Circumstance

A.N: Sorry about the huge break between this and the previous update. I've been very distracted with real life stuff, but I'm back on the train now. Please enjoy, and please feel free to leave a comment if you are reading. I have guest comments switched on so you don't need an account to review. I love every kind of feedback (except the one that just tells me to read your own story with a link. That's just rude.) Later! ~Chasing the Spotlight
A.N.2: Rest in Peace, Shadow you beautiful girl. I miss you dearly. You have 'immortalized' as the goofy girl you were.

Mark had his eyes closed while he was lying on the sofa. He'd just returned home from getting groceries and was exhausted. Sara was in the room as well, sitting on one of the recliners with her feet up, her legs disappearing under the layers of her skirt. He smiled as she hummed to herself, the scratching of her pen on paper the only sound besides the ticking of the clock in the hallway. Zeus was asleep in his bed under the window, his golden fur seeming to glow in the afternoon light. The three of them had the house to themselves, but he knew the peace would disappear as soon as his children returned home.

He'd kept the fact he was hosting Ashley and Maria for the next two years a secret, deciding to surprise his children. They'd been through so much over the summer and he figured they needed something good to brighten their moods.

He opened his eyes to look at Sara, who looked up at him almost immediately.

"You do have the room to host them, right?" she asked, almost reading his mind. He smiled.

"This house has six bedrooms, seven if you convert my study. Only three of them are currently occupied."

Sara gave him a soft smile and climbed up. She came over to join him, curling her much smaller frame into his side. She reached her hand up to entangle her fingers with his, her body pressing closer to his.

"You forgot about April again," she said, squeezing his fingers. He squeezed them back.

"No, I didn't," he replied. "Her room will remain unoccupied. Ashley and Maria will have the other two rooms." He kissed the top of her head. "Besides, her room is locked."

Sara turned her head to look him in the eye.

"Why?"

Mark bit his lip and kissed her again.

"Why leave it unlocked if no one is using it?"

Sara smiled and snuggled back into him, gently stroking her fingers up and down his arm as it curled around her waist.

In truth, he'd locked April's door because her absence was a constant reminder of his failure. Seeing her room empty left his stomach riddled with knots. If he'd been more attentive, more protective, she would still be in her room, but it had been just over three months and she was still missing. Well, not missing. He knew exactly where she was, but she was certainly missed in the household. The house felt just that little bit more dull without her.

He was just falling asleep when there was a knock on the door. Sara giggled as he groaned.

"Do you want me to get that?"

"Please."

Sara kissed his temple before getting up, leaving him alone in the living room. Zeus stood from his bed and sauntered over, sitting in front of Mark. He sat and stared at his master before turning away as Sara's voice echoed down the hall.

"Someone for you, love!"

Mark groaned again, hauling himself up. He tucked his hair back into a pony-tail as he walked, wanting to at least be a little presentable. Whoever it was didn't need to see him looking homeless.

Sara gently pet his arm as she wandered back into the living room, revealing who was behind the door.

It was a young woman, probably in her very early twenties. She had long red hair, tied in a high pony-tail, and sparkling green eyes. She was dressed in a black, long-sleeve dress with a rounded white collar and platform boots. Mark raised an eyebrow. She looked like a red-headed Wednesday Addams. She seemed familiar, but he couldn't place her.

"Mister Calaway?" she asked, pushing her hair back over her shoulder.

"Yes?"

The girl smiled and reached into her bag, producing a small draw-string bag and a note.

"The letter is for you, the baggy is for Anna and Gunner," she said, handing them to him. He felt his brow furrow, looking between the items and the girl. Who was she?"

"Thank you, but I-"

"They're from April."

Mark looked at her, swallowing back his words. It had been weeks since anyone in the family had heard from April, not since she'd sent the Bratz Journal to Anna. Anna had said she'd seen April very briefly, but the two had had a small argument and he knew his daughters were stubborn, so neither would admit to being wrong.

The girl smiled and waited for him to speak. Eventually, he found the words, along with recognition.

"Thank you, Rayne. Tell Kevin I said hi," he said with a grin. She smiled in return and waved, heading back down the path. He watched as she disappeared from view, only shutting the door when he was sure she was gone.

Mark looked down at the note and baggy. One for him, one for the twins. He put the baggy in his pocket and returned inside, heading straight for his office. Once there, he sat down and opened the envelope, smiling softly at her handwriting.

Dad,

I know that I should have said this to your face, but you know how much I will or won't say in person. This is hard for me to write. I didn't think this would ever need to be written, but I need to get it out of me, and you're the only one left who doesn't hate me. I suspect you will after this.

I didn't say it to your face, and I should have, but I'm currently 18 weeks pregnant. The doctor currently suspects it's a girl. So you have your first grand baby on the way. These last few months haven't been easy, and I don't expect them to get easier from here. I know how hard it was for you to raise the three of us. I'm completely terrified of what's to come, but you've taught me everything I need to know to raise this kid right. If she turns out to be anything like you, I will have raised her right.

I know you must be worried about me, Dad, but I can 99% guarantee that I'm okay. I'm living in Chicago with Kevin and Scott, and they've even enrolled me in school. Scott said you signed off on the forms. Thank you for that. It means a lot that you're giving me the room to do what I need to do.

Everything in my head is a bit of a jumble right now. I don't know what I'm supposed to be doing. I feel like I've just taken a head-first dive from a steel cage and my brain is a mess, but I think I'm doing okay. When I get too down I just remember what Mom used to say about finding the right path.

When life starts to get blurry, adjust your focus. And that's what I'm doing. I want to focus on making sure my baby grows up to be happy and healthy, which is why I left LA. Too many distractions there, whereas here is nice and slow. I can really breath.

I don't know when I'll be back, but I hope you welcome me with a big hug when I do come back. I miss your hugs.

Love always,

Your little Apple.

P.S: Her name will be Hailie.

~X~

Anna gripped her steering wheel, staring out the window beside her. Grace was sitting in the front yard of her house, petting a large, white, fluffy cat. Scott was somewhere inside, she knew that as she'd watched him enter. It dawned on her as she'd pulled up to the curb that what she was doing constituted as stalking, but she didn't care. Something had turned Scott back into the angry boy she'd first met in January, and she would do everything she could to help him. He'd been in a good place before the death of his mother, and she knew how close they had been. Leah had been nothing but sweet to her, and she knew her to be Scott's rock. His mother and sisters were all he really had.

Then his father had returned and taken her from them, leaving Scott a broken mess. His mother's sister, Becky, had moved from San Francisco to raise her nephew and nieces, making sure they were safe, but she'd arrived after Scott had disappeared. She had only an inkling of an idea about what had happened to him, and she'd told Anna as such.

Anna watched as Grace suddenly turned to the house. The cat raised its tail and followed after her as she darted inside. For a brief second, she caught a glimpse of Scott's long blond curls. He was at the door, calling his sister inside. He didn't appear to have noticed her.

When the two of them disappeared, Anna sighed and left her car, slowly but surely walking to the rusted, chain-link gate. The grass was overgrown and covered most of the front yard. The top of an old rusted car could barely be seen. The front walkway had a small table and chairs. There was another cat sitting on one of the chairs that she hadn't seen. This one was big and gray with large orange eyes. She knew the name of this one; Puff, like a puff of smoke. Scott had joked that his sisters had argued over naming her Smokey but it had been too obvious. She remembered the musical laugh he'd had that day. It had been a wonderful sound. Now she had no idea what his laugh would sound like, or if he'd ever laugh again.

The cat mewled as she stepped closer, not loud enough to alert anyone to her presence, but enough to startle Anna. Puff appeared to smile, licking her mouth and looking up at Anna.

"Don't give me that look," the girl said, gently scratching the cat behind her ears. "I need to know. I'll leave him alone after that."

Knock. Knock. Knock.

The silence seemed to grow as she stood there. What would he say if he knew she'd followed him home? What would he do? Would he be upset?

The door opened to reveal his face, and the dark look that crossed his eyes gave her the answer; he was angry.

"Anna, what the hell are you doing here?"

She felt her voice catch in her throat. What was she doing here? She'd driven all this way and hadn't even thought about what she would say when she saw him. It was almost like she'd been on autopilot. Something had driven her here, but now that she was face to face with him, she'd forgotten why.

He raised an eyebrow as he waited for her to answer.

"Are you going to answer?"

She swallowed the lump in her throat and straightened her shoulders.

"I want to know why you left. Where did you go?"

Scott rolled his eyes and went to close the door. She slammed her hand on the old wood and glared up at him.

"I'm a Leo, Scott. I'm stubborn as Hell. I'm not leaving until you give me an answer."

Scott stared at her, looking her up and down. For a moment, he was silent. A long moment.

"Fine."

He stepped aside, allowing her to step in.

She followed him into the living room, where Penny and Grace were sitting with the white cat and a large dog. It was black and brown with a red bandanna around its neck. It was curled up on the sofa next to Grace. It watched as Penny moved a popcorn-shaped piece around a game board.

"Rocco," Scott said, causing the dog to look up. It barked once then returned its head to Grace's lap. Grace looked up and grinned.

"Anna! You came back!" she said. Her smile lit up her face, causing two small dimples to appear in her cheeks. She recognized them as a Levy-family trait; Scott and Penny had them too.

"Back?" Scott looked at Anna who gave him a sheepish smile.

"I came over during the summer to see if you'd reappeared. I stayed for dinner and helped Becky with the girls," she explained. Scott raised an eyebrow but nodded.

"You're still not gonna get an answer out of me," he mumbled, leaving the room. He disappeared into the small kitchen, hidden behind a beaded curtain.

Penny sighed from her seat on the floor. The white cat was curled up in her lap.

"He's just mad because he thinks everybody is getting into his business," she said. She gave Anna an apologetic smile and gestured for her to join them.

Anna sat on an old cushion on the floor. The room was definitely the most used of all of the rooms in the house. The sofas had holes and stains on them, the carpet worn in the places people walked. Along the wall was a small entertainment unit with a TV and VHS tapes. An old stereo sat on a coffee table under the window near the door, piles of CDs stacked next to it. On the walls were family photos and drawings from the three children from various times. There was a hallway off to the side that lead deeper into the house and into the small backyard.

"I just want to help him," she said eventually. Penny smiled.

"Scottie doesn't like getting help from people," she said. Grace nodded.

"He likes to do things all by himself, even if he can't," she added. Anna rested her head on her hand, scrunching her mouth.

"Independent 'til the end," she muttered, staring up at the beaded curtain. Scott was sitting at the kitchen table doing his homework. His hair had been tied back into a loose ponytail and he was wearing a Sandman t-shirt. A red flannel shirt was tied around his waist. He looked very much like the grunge boy she'd fallen for, but there was a sadness to him now. A dark cloud hung around him, and his shoulders were tense, as if he was preparing for a downpour.

He must have felt her looking at him since he looked up, only briefly catching her eye. She tried to read his expression, but he looked away before she could. She frowned and turned back to Grace.

"What's kitty's name?" she asked. She reached across to give the cat a gentle scratch. It immediately started purring and blinked slowly at her.

"This is Hercules. He's Puff's husband," Penny said with a toothy smile. Hercules' tail flipped to the other side of her hand.

"We had a wedding for them and everything!" Grace said, leaping over the back of the sofa. She disappeared down the hall way for a few minutes.

A few thumps and bumps later, she reappeared with a photo album. Penny joined them on the sofa as they flicked through the blurry Polaroids of a cat wedding.

Anna's attention wasn't on the photos, though. She could see Scott looking at them through the beads, thoughtful look in his steel-gray eyes. What could he be thinking behind that cold gaze? She was looking at him through the corner of her eyes, and she could see as he shook his head, letting out a sigh. He looked back down at his notebook and continued to write, his eyes darting back and forth between his beaten up text book and his notes.

It was like that until Becky arrived home. Anna played board-games with the girls while Scott studied in the kitchen. As soon as the front door opened, a large brown and black dog came barreling down the hallway. She was a little round in the middle, but she was a very happy, boisterous dog named Shadow. Anna had met her the day she'd visited looking for Scott.

Becky had barely made it through the door; Shadow had tackled her to the ground and was licking her face.

Scott was to his feet and shooing the dog away before Anna could even react.

"Get lost, you dumb dog," he snapped, pulling on Shadow's collar. The Kelpie-cross-blue-Arab yipped and backed away, allowing her master to pull his aunt to her feet.

"She's way too excited," Becky said with a laugh.

"Hey, Becky," Anna said, removing Puff from her lap.

"Oh, hello Anna. I didn't know you'd be joining us today."

"Neither did I," Scott muttered, taking the groceries out of her arms and disappearing behind the beaded curtain.

Becky and Anna shared a look that said exactly what needed to be said; Scott was acting very out of character. It was almost like he'd been replaced with a more sullen imitation of the once kind boy.