Chapter Six: Home Sweet Home

*“Where did you get those bruises?” He asked her gently, trying to prod the answer out of her.

“What bruises?” She asked him, trying to brush his question off.

“The painful, swollen black, blue and brown ones that decorate the entire left side of your face.”

“Hey! Stop insulting me!” She cried, trying to act as if she didn’t know what he was talking about. Could he see right through her make-up?

“You know what I’m talking about, stop trying to change the subject.” He stood up and walked around the table, closing in on her. He watched her shrink back. She too, had stood when he had. As he advanced on her, she backed herself into the corner of the library shelves. Finally she had to stop because she couldn’t back up any more.

“Serena…” he paused. He could see she was still shivering, not to mention now she was practically cowering in fear. He wanted to say something to her. Something that would lead her to trust him. He wanted to… to… help her. Wasn’t that what it was called? Help? No, there was another word…

“Hiiro, please… just leave me alone. Really. I just fell down some stairs. Honest. Ask the girls. I’m a known klutz.” She barely whispered the words. He was so big, so intimidating that she wanted to just curl up and disappear.

“Stairs huh? Then why isn’t the other side of your face bruised?” He asked he calmly. Hysterics never helped anyone.

“I don’t know, it just isn’t alright? Can’t you just except that?” She said losing her cool. She brought her hand to her mouth and gasped at her outburst.

“No, I can’t. Where did you get these bruises?” He raised a hand and reached out towards her. He watched as she cowered in fear and tried to cover her head.

“Please don’t hit me!” Came her desperate plea. He stopped his hand cold. So someone had been doing this to her, it wasn’t just some klutz attack.

“I’m not going to hit you. Serena, look at me.” He commanded her. She slowly lifted her head and looked at him. He could see the diamond tears forming in her eyes. Once again he lifted his hand towards her, this time much slower.

He gently touched her face. Tilting her head to give him a better view of the bruises, his eyes widened. These were disgusting bruises. He could feel her shivering, even under his jacket. Remembering something he had seen earlier, he brought his other hand over to her arm and pulled it up. Under the sleeve of his jacket he could see bruises up and down her arm. He looked over her other arm. The same thing.

“Serena. Who did this to you?” He asked her.

“No one. I told you, I fell down stairs.” She held her head up high in prideful shame. It was obvious he wasn’t going to get an answer from her. And he was certain her friends didn’t know because otherwise they would have done something. No, this he was going to have to find out later, when she was more willing to tell him the truth.

“Hiiro, it’s six o’clock. I need to leave now.” She was able to squeeze out.

“Fine.” He backed off enough so he could let her squeeze past him to pack her books.

As Serena walked past him, she breathed a small sigh of relief. She had been so scared that he was going to hurt her… but he hadn’t. He had wanted to know who had. Well, she wasn’t going to tell him. Who knew what he would do? Besides, her father and mother didn’t mean to hurt her, they loved her. They just had some problems. But it was ok for them to use her as their punching bag, she didn’t mind at all, she loved them. She loved them. Loved them.

She was able to collect both her belongings and herself emotionally before she stepped out of the secluded area she and Hiiro had chosen to sit and work in. Quickly scanning for all of her friends, she decided not to disturb them and just headed straight for the door. As she reached the door, she realized she was still wearing Hiiro’s jacket. Now she would have to go back and find him.

“Keep it for our walk to your house. It’s still raining, and you’re cold enough as it is.” Came a voice from in front of her. Spinning around, she saw Hiiro with his book bag slung over his shoulder standing in the door.

“Huh? What do you mean until ‘we’ get to my house?” She asked him, trying to clear up something she thought she had heard wrong.

“I mean, keep it until we get to your house. Then you can give it back to me.” He reiterated plainly.

“No way. You can’t come home with me!” She cried horrified.

“Can’t? I can, and I am. Let’s go.” He stated stoically.

“But…”

“Let’s go.” He walked up to her and gently tugged at the sleeve of her sweater. Was he crazy? He was silent all day, and then he wanted to walk her home in the rain? Yeah, she was pretty convinced he was crazy.

Out of the library, things had picked up. The wind was much stronger, and now thunder and lightening ruled the sky. Serena shivered and whimpered. If there was anything worse than her chem. class it was thunder and lightening storms. As much as she loved rain, she was scared to death of full-blown thunder and lightening storms. She felt a strong arm encircle her waist and bring her in closer to a warm body.

“You’re falling behind.” Was the reason he gave, but they both knew her was trying to make her feel better about the storm.

“We’re almost there.” She told him. He looked up at the surrounding neighborhood. It was filled with dirty apartment buildings and trashcans. Under what eves hung in the allies clung groups of homeless people around fire barrels and he could hear sirens and a car alarm in the distance. He could see the street- lights were fading and the light they shone was minimal as it was. Finally she stopped in front of a small apartment building. He could see no lights in the building that were on, and felt incredibly vile about leaving her here in a place like this.

“Thank you Hiiro. Not many have ever walked me home. Here’s your jacket. Get out of here fast, alright? Bye!” With all the energy she could muster, she flung his jacket back at hims and ran up the concrete steps and into the building, leaving Hiiro standing in the rain, completely stunned.

He stood there for a second longer. Then, turning slowly, he began on his trip back in the other direction of his own apartment. The neighborhood gave him an unsettling feeling in his stomach that he just couldn’t decipher. He had seen this kind of slums before, when Duo had taken them back to where he had grown up. Of course, Duo had insisted that the neighborhood had been much better when he was younger, just that it had become run down after the loss of the church he had grown up in. He gave Serena’s apartment building one last glance before turning the street corner.

>>>)(<<<

Serena shuddered as she stood against the door to the building. She had been rather rude to Hiiro when she had told him to leave. Well, she didn’t have time to think about that tonight. She was a little late, and the thunder and lightening was making her jumpy as it was.

Climbing the cold stairs, she realized the lights were all out. Her parents must not have paid the power bill. It couldn’t be a fuse because the small stair lights still flickered faintly. Reaching her floor and her door, she took a huge breath and stepped inside.

“Mom? Dad? Anyone home?” She called hesitantly. When she received no response, she assumed they were either gone or passed out. Checking the rest of the three rooms, she found no one. So they were out. Letting her guard down a bit, she relaxed enough to finish all of her chores in record time, even in the dark. She had managed to find a small collection of candles and a flashlight, so she lit the candles and spread them out in the apartment. Then she took the flashlight with her and sat down on the floor in her room to complete her homework for history class.

“Serena!” A voice screamed. She woke with a start. Serena looked around her. She noticed the book and binder she had neglected when she had fallen asleep. Her back was sore from the sitting position she had been in, and the rest of her hurt in general from her ‘accident’ the night before. The voice came again.

“Serena! Get your ass out here!” Daddy was home. She brushed her books aside and opened the door to her room. Walking out to the family room, she spied her father holding a bottle of Jack Daniels and taking a swig every now and then of the gruesome liquid.

“Dad, you’re home. Here, why don’t you let me put you to bed daddy?” She asked him as sweetly as possible.

“Bed? Bed? Daddy? An excellent idea sweetheart! Bed!” He stumbled and tripped to his bedroom door. Serena saw he has a problem opening the door, so se walked over and helped.

“Come on daddy, give me that bottle and I’ll tuck you in.” She coaxed him.

“No! I want to keep my bottle!”

“Now daddy…” he cut her off.

“No! Who wears the pants in this family bitch? You will respect your daddy!” He made an attempt to hit her, but she ducked out of range. Then he did drop the bottle… and made a grab for her.

As hard as she struggled against him, she couldn’t break his iron grip. He had her hair in one fist and her wrist in his other. He pulled her in closer and crushed her lips to his bitter drunk ones. She denied him access to her mouth when she felt his tongue seeking an entrance. Scared and too weak to do anything about what was about to happen, she tried to scream.

“Bitch! Didn’t that whore of a mother teach you little girls should be seen and not heard?” He whispered into her ear in a dangerously low voice . This time he found an old piece of cloth and tied it around her mouth like a gag. Throwing her onto the bed in the center of the room and stripping her clothes, all she could do was pray. Then, as an act of compassion from God, she fainted as her own father began to defile her in ways she never thought him capable.*