The next few days were okay at home for Miranda. Her father had acted like he had actually missed Miranda and Austin around everyone but them. He hadn’t hit her and she was glad.
She had gotten to talk to Karlee on the phone a few times and Karlee was truly glad to have her back. She tried calling JC on his cell phone but he would answer and then tell her he was busy and would call back later. He never called and neither did any of the other guys. She sneaked online and wrote him an email but a day later when she check it’s status she saw that it had been deleted.
That Sunday after her arrival home and still not attending school she spent over three hours in her room crying. She missed JC, she missed Justin. She missed them all. There wasn’t a minute that didn’t go by that she wasn’t thinking about one of them.
After she had changed into her PJ’s there was a quiet knock on her door. She knew it was Austin since her father had gone out earlier and not yet returned. She opened the door of her room to find him standing there with a small box wrapped messily in blue paper. She smiled and let him enter the room. He sat on the edge of her bed and waited until she had closed the door and joined him. "Whatcha got?" she asked curiously.
"A present."
"For me?"
"Yeah. So you aren’t sad anymore. I don’t like it when you’re sad Randy. It makes me sad."
"Can I open it?"
"Yes I want you to." She opened up and found there was nothing inside. She gave him a weird look. "There’s nothing in here Tin."
"Yes there is Randy. There is a kiss in there for every time you get sad. I blew a lot of kisses in the box for you." Miranda picked him up and grasped him tightly and started to cry tears of joy.
"Don’t cry Randy. I gave you those kisses so that you wouldn’t be sad."
"I’m not sad Tin. I’m crying because I’m happy."
"Happy?"
"Yup. Someday you’ll understand."
"Randy?" he said looking at her.
"Can we call JC?"
"Umm, yeah, hold on a second." She slid the box under her bed and smiled through her tears. She let Austin get on her back and they headed downstairs.
:::The Phone Call:::
"Is JC der? Hey JC! It’s me Austin. Why you not talking to my sister. Yeah. She was crying."
"Austin!" Miranda screamed.
"No! I don’t think she wanted me to tell you that." Just then their father pulled up in the driveway. "Austin get off the phone now."
"But Randy. I’m talking to JC."
"Austin!" she shouted. But, it was too late. Their father entered the house and
"Who the fuck is on the phone?" he shouted. JC feared for Miranda now more then ever.
"It’s my friend Daddy." She whimpered.
"Is he some guy you fuck slut? Did you meet him while you were gone?" he asked striking her cross the face. JC put the phone on speaker phone.
"Listen." He hissed to the others. The did so painfully. Blow after blow to her and they couldn’t take it anymore. JC told Austin to hang up the phone and hurry upstairs and not tell Miranda they would be arriving tomorrow.
:::The Next Morning:::
Miranda’s father had rushed out of the house early that morning. He had knocked Miranda out once again. She woke up the next morning and examined her surroundings. Without sitting up she look around for Austin. She managed to choke out, "Tin. Tin." No response. "Austin, please baby." She whined as she started crying.
"Miranda." She heard a soothing voice.
"JC?" she said opening her eyes.
"Oh Miranda." He said wrapping his arms around her. She quickly pushed him away.
"Ouch."
"I’m sorry Miranda. I’m sorry I let you go. I’m sorry I let you get on that plane. Please say you’ll forgive me." he pleaded.
"JC. It was my own stupidity. Nothing you guys could say or do would change my mind about leaving. That’s what I wanted and hell, that’s what I was going to do, and no one was going to get in my way."
Just then her father came in with a knife. "Who the fuck are you he bellowed?"
"Daddy! Don’t hurt him. He was just leaving. Right JC?" he nodded silently.
Her father came over to him and said, "Don’t you go near her again."
"Why don’t you stop beating the shit out of her? She’s your friggin’ daughter."
Without saying a word he took the knife and stuck it in JC’s side. "Oh Daddy!" Miranda shrieked. "Come on JC. Let me go get a towel." She hurried out of the room and when he returned her father was no where in site. "Oh JC. You’re going to be okay! I know you are. You’re strong. Please don’t go." She was now crying so hard she was shaking.
The shaking continued. "Don’t go." She demanded. "Please."
~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~
"Miranda! Miranda! Miranda! You’re having a bad dream. Wake up."
She opened her eyes quickly and looked at JC. "Oh JC. You’re okay!" she said lifting up his wife beater that he was wearing under his plain button down. She make sure there was no mark and let it fall back into place. She smiled and hugged him tightly. She quickly let go. "Ouch."
"You were having a bad dream about me?" he asked.
"Yeah. I dreamt that you stood up to my father and he stabbed you." she started crying just thinking about it.
"Oh Miranda. Don’t cry. I’m here. I’m living. I’m fine, and I’m sorry I let you come home."
"No JC, it’s my fault. I should have listened to all of you. It’s my own stubbornness that got in the way."
JC decided to leave it that. "Miranda, oh honey, you’re poor face. Where else did he hit you?"
Miranda lifted her shirt and JC gasped. He wrapped his arms around her gently. "Please go to the police, Miranda. He needs to stop doing this to you. The only one who will be able to stop him is you, you Miranda. You’re the only one who has the power to do that and I think, I mean I know you should take advantage of that and help yourself."
Miranda cried as JC spoke softly to her. "I know you’re right JC but I’m scared, so, so scared." She replied burying her face in his shoulder.
"Miranda, we’re all here with you now there is no reason to be scared anymore."
"All?" she questioned.
"Yeah, all," Justin said, while entering the room with Lance, Chris, and Joey behind him.
Justin immediately walked over to her and hugged her gently, not wanting to put her in pain. "I’m sorry. I’m sorry I was so rude to you. I just didn’t want you to leave and have this happen. I did the worst thing possible by letting you go, and I’m so sorry." He cried softly as he mumbled into her hair while taking in the scent.
"Justin stop. It’s not your fault. It’s none of your faults. It’s my own f*cking fault. You’re all blaming yourselves and not me. It’s my fault and I want you all to stop."
"But Miranda…its partially our fault as well." Joey said stepping up and speaking for the first time. "We didn’t have to let you and Austin leave. We could have locked you in that house until you realized the dangers of coming home."
Miranda’s ears perked up at the sound of a car door outside. "You guys. My dads home. Get out of here now!" she shrieked. "Austin upstairs." She ordered. The guys stood firmly where they were and didn’t make any movement whatsoever, except for their eyes which roamed from each other to Miranda and back to each other again.
"You guys…" she sobbed. The door behind her opened quickly slamming against the wall.
"Miranda!! Who the f*ck are these boys? Are they your sex toys? Do they use you? I hope so because you’re worth shit and that’s all your here for is to be used. Do you hear me Miranda? USED!" Miranda didn’t say anything, all her words were expressed through the tears she was shedding.
Lance stepped forward. "She is not worth sh*t and she is not here to be used. She’s a human being. Why don’t you treat her like one?"
"Who the hell are you? Are you f*cking her? Huh? Are ya? I know she’s a slut but I didn’t think she would go after five at once." While Miranda’s father was in Lance’s face Justin slipped out of the room quietly and pulled out his cell phone.
"No, I’m not!" Lance pushed him away from his face. "Stop calling her names as*hole. You’ve put her through hell. Some father you are. I’m sorry she had to get the sh*t beaten out of her so many times before someone stood up to you and stopped what you’re doing."
He pushed back and was about to strike Lance but there was a sudden knock at the door.