Almost Easy

Chapter Forty-Two:

We made it through A Walk to Remember, The Hot Chick, Mean Girls and How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, before Mike called it a night. He was surprisingly well behaved. He had a few pervy jokes that were mildly uncomfortable, but that was it. He didn’t bitch at all about the chick flicks, much to Tiffany’s dismay.

By the time all of the guys got home, we were starting on our second movie. Tiffany had managed to cuddle with Zacky and Hayden and Jimmy were spooning. I used Oliver as my pillow and Matt and Mike sat on the floor in front of us. Doug smiled when he walked into the living room and saw all over us strewn everywhere, watching girlie movies. He announced that he would order pizza for everyone, before joining us.

When the movies ended, I said goodnight to everyone and practically dragged myself upstairs and onto my bed. I’m exhausted, but even with my sleep-inducing meds, I can’t sleep. There’s too much weighing on my mind.

As much as I try to be optimistic about this whole situation, it’s proving to be a lot more difficult than it should be. I’m a pessimist by nature. I don’t know. I just don’t really see a silver lining surrounding everything right now.

I kinda just want to put my fingers in my ears, stand on a mountain top, and scream, ‘Fuck the world! AND YOUR COUCHES!’ But, the likeliness of that actually happening is slim to none.
I stared at my phone, trying to will it to provide me with the answers and advice I needed. I was met with only eerie silence.

When I was little, I’d play hide and seek with my father. Well, that’s what he would call it. My job was to go hide, but when he found me, he got a reward. His reward always hurt me in some way. I remember one day, he got home in a particularly bad mood. When he found me, hiding in a crawl-space underneath our house, he used his cigarette to give me burns on my lower back. My scars are faded now, but if you look hard enough, you can still see them. They’re constant reminders that shit really did happen and I’m not crazy. Well, I’m not completely crazy, anyway.
There a lot of things that I’ve shared with Oliver. I mean, I’ve even told Brian things that I never thought I’d talk about again. Some things though, some things are meant to be buried and never talked about. Ever. Burning me is one of those buried things.

When people realize that you’ve been through enough shit in your life, they start looking at you differently. I don’t want that. I can handle a lot of things, but I can’t handle looks of pity. Cuss me out. Pull my hair. Punch my stomach. Break my nose. But, don’t look at me with your pity. I don’t want it. I don’t need it. I never asked for it. Pity makes everything cut so much deeper than it already does. I don’t need that.

I sighed and grabbed my phone and started playing Pandora.

Telling Layla’s story spoken, ‘bout how all her bones are broken.
Hammers fall on all the pieces – two months in the cover creases.

A loud noise made me jump. I turned down my music and strained my ears to listen, only to be met with silence. Weird. I walked over to my window and peered from in between my curtains. There’s no one there. Hm. I shrugged and plopped back down on my bed. I turned my music back up.

All my complaints shrink to nothing.
I’m ashamed of all my somethings.
She’s glad for one day of comfort, only because she has suffered.
Fully alive – more than most…

I heard another bang. I frowned and turned off my music completely. I know I’m not imagining it. There’s no way.

I hopped off my bed and walked back over to my window. I did my best to hide behind my curtains before looking out this time. There’s something out there. I can see something in the shadows. The light that overlooks the backyard doesn’t reach the stretch of land below my window. I can’t make out much. A flicker of something caught my eye. It’s not something, it’s someone.

Without warning a bright light illuminated the being creeping in the yard. It looks like a phone. Just as soon as it was on, it turned back off. It was only on for a few seconds, but it was enough.

I was wrong. It wasn’t ‘someone’. There were two people lurking in the yard, my father and Derek. You know how there are some people that you never hope will ever meet each other? Hitler and Darth Vader. Voldemort and Sauron. Crowley and Dr. Sheldon Cooper. My father and Derek are two that I had hoped never crossed each other’s paths. Putting them together is like throwing gasoline on top of an already blazing fire. It’s only going to get worse from here.

I know that I should step away from the window and go get Doug, but I can’t move. I’m frozen with fear. Sure, I could put up some of a fight before, but now, while I’m recovering, I really can’t. If I undergo anymore trauma, I’ll get permanent brain damage. I really don’t want that. I have enough issues to deal with already.

The light shone again, only for a few more seconds. It was bright enough to show my father’s smirk and Derek blowing me a kiss. It was enough to rattle my bones and get my feet moving. I went downstairs as fast as my legs would carry me. I was panting by the time I was outside of Doug’s office door. I took a deep breath and rapped on his door. I really hope he has a plan for everything that’s about to go down, because I sure as hell don’t.

Notes

Music Credit:
"Fully Alive" -- Flyleaf

Alright, you lovely people, a few things -

Due to the length of time it takes someone to recover from brain surgery, the time lapses between chapters will be moving a bit faster than before. (Don't worry - it'll tell you how long it's been.)

The POV is going to be switching a lot more than it has been. So, prepare yourself. SO much drama coming up.

Also, one last thing, this is turning out to be quite the monster. I didn't really plan on it being even this long. It's safe to say that it'll be going on for awhile longer. (Hopefully that's good news for everyone!)

Thank you for all of your support!! :) Comments? Predictions?

Xo <3
-Katie