“I don’t care, Margaret; I don’t have time for them – you know that!”

“They’re your mistakes, too! I don’t want them, either; what the hell do you suggest I do?”

“Take responsibility for your own actions – you’re the one who said you were on birth control.”

I feel warm, wet tears roll down my cheeks; they were arguing again – about Erin and I. And I could tell it was nothing good. Even I, as a six-year-old, understood that our parents never wanted us. I feel someone’s arm snake themselves around my tiny body and I relax slightly. Jimmy pulls me closer to his lanky body, rocking me gently. I feel someone else’s eyes burn into my back, and I snuggle close to him.

“Jimmy,” Brian speaks up on the couch across from Jimmy and I. “What are you doing?”

“The mean people are making my Danny upset,” he replies in a childish voice, kissing my hair. I can practically feel Brian roll his eyes.

“Honestly, just put her down. It’s pointless to get attached; it’s not like she’s staying here anyway.” I look up at Jimmy to see him frowning deeply.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he demands.

“Zack can’t keep her because of the band and Margaret plans on moving to Michigan anyway.”

“Neither of them seem to want them,” he points out sadly. “So I can just keep them!” Brian just shakes his head.

“You can’t keep them, either,” Brian argues. “They’re not pets. Besides, they’re a waste of space and of no use to us.” Jimmy glares at him and opens his mouth to argue back, but Zack chooses then to stomp back into the living room.

As soon as he sees me, his angry expression softens and he strokes the little scruff on his chin.

“Danny, honey; what are you doing out of bed?” I avoid his gaze, keeping silent. “C’mon; let’s get you to bed, sweetie.” I shake my head, to which Jimmy pats my back gently.

“Listen to your daddy, honey,” he tells me quietly. I shake my head ‘no’.

“He doesn’t love me; he hates me!” I yell.

“Daenerys…”

“And I hate him!” I announce. I feel Jimmy go rigid; I ignore the broken look on Zack’s face instead glaring over at Brian who snickers in amusement.

“Okay, I really think it’s time for bed,” Jimmy announces, lifting me off his lap. I look up at him desperately, but he just shakes his head at me sadly, his eyes full of gut-wrenching disappointment. “Brian, could you take her to her room? I need to talk to Zack.” Brian narrows his eyes at the use of his first name, but gets up anyway. He grabs my arm roughly and begins pulling me down the hall.

As soon as we get to my room, he shuts the door behind him, glaring down at me.

“You really hurt your daddy’s feelings, “he tells me. I scowl up at him.

“I don’t care,” I reply. “He hurt mine more.” Suddenly his hand connects with my cheek, leaving an unfamiliar stinging sensation that causes my eyes to well up with tears.

“Don’t be so selfish, Daenerys,” he hisses angrily. “Now get to bed. And don’t get out again; non one fucking wants you.”

Trembling slightly, I do as he says. Satisfied, he switches off the light, slamming the door after him. He leaves me to face the darkness alone, allowing me to take everything he said to heart.

~

I am awoken with a start to see one of the rehabilitation center workers standing over my bed, frowning deeply.

“Get your things,” she snaps. “Your uncle is here to check you out.” I frown, slightly confused, but she leaves in a hurry before I can ask her what she means.

I rub the sleep out of my eyes and sit up slowly. It was rare that I ever fell asleep before eight o’clock, but being thrown head-first into such a new environment had definitely taken its toll on me. As I gather the very few things Zack had thrown into a bag for me before he had picked me up from school early and brought me here, I can’t help but wonder just who the worker meant when she said “uncle”. The only biological uncle Erin and I had was Zack’s younger brother, Matt. I’d never been particularly close to him, and, for once, neither had Erin. This basically eliminated him from the realm of possibilities.

However, it could very well be one of the guys, and after pondering it on my way down the hall towards reception, I came to the conclusion that it was most likely Brian. And not a minute later, I found I was indeed correct.

As soon as he sees me, he gives me a half-smile. He grabs my shoulder gently and nods politely at the glaring receptionist before ushering me outside.

The air outside is cooler than usual; a sharp wind blows in my face, causing me to shiver. I silently wish I had bothered to put on a jacket before I left. It’s just then that I realize my arms are completely bare, exposing my cut-up skin.

I freeze completely, causing Brian, who is busy unlocking his car door, to give me a questioning look.

“’You okay?” he asks, raising an eyebrow at me.

“It’s cold,” I manage to choke out. He frowns, looking down at my bare arms. His eyes then widen in realization.

“Oh.”

Brian slides off his jacket and walks over to me. He wraps it around my shoulders, squeezing them gently. He ten walks back over to the car, beckoning me to get in.

As soon as we get on the highway, a comfortable silence falls between us. I can feel myself beginning to fall asleep, so I pull the jacket tighter around my shoulders, finding a strange comfort from the smell of cigarettes that fills my nostrils. Just as I close my eyes, curiosity decides to set in, and I sit up again, looking over at Brian.

“Does Zack know you’re doing this?” He glances over at me for a second before focusing his gaze back on the road.

“Not yet,” he replies and I frown.

“Why are you doing this?”

“I know what that place is like,” he explains. “I know that they would have just kept you in there for years, and Zack would’ve just let it happen.” I immediately think about what Tori told me earlier; how she had been there for two years – two years clean – and they still insisted on keeping her there. What for? For money? Probably; that did seem to make the most sense.

“How do you know that, though?” I ask and he frowns.

“I had a bit of a drinking problem a couple years ago,” he tells me. “I only spent a few months there, but they tried to get me to stay longer. If it weren’t for Michelle, I could’ve been stuck there for much longer.”

“If Michelle helped you as much as you say, then why do you cheat on her?” I notice him get a little tense. He remains silent for a minute before forcing a strained laugh.

“Getting a little personal, are we?” He tries to say it jokingly, but his voice is rather shaky.

“What’s the point of staying married to her when you’re just using her?” I demand, slowly becoming more and more passionate about the situation.

“It’s complicated,” he snaps. This just causes me to frown even deeper. “Look,” he continues. “I really do not want to talk about this. I’ve made a few mistakes in the past few months and they’re eating me alive – Michelle means the world to me, and it kills me that I’m doing this to her when she trusts me.”

“Then what makes you keep doing it?” He hits the steering wheel out of anger.

“I don’t fucking know, alright?” he yells, causing me to flinch slightly.

We fall silent again, and I pull my legs up onto the seat, hugging my knees to my chest. Brian sighs beside me.

“Look, Danny,” he says softly. “Why don’t you try to get some sleep before we get back to Huntington, okay?” I nod and he squeezes my knee gently. “I love you, Daenerys, okay? I know I used to be an asshole when you were younger, but I’m not like that anymore. I promise.” I just nod again, shutting my eyes tightly.

I hear him start to hum softly; I fall asleep to the beginning of “Dear God”.

~

Soon, I’m being shaken awake again. I look up to see that we are in the driveway of Zack’s house. There’s a single light on in the living room, and I see a couple people moving around in there. Brian lets out a long sigh and I feel myself trembling in fear of facing Zack.

“Danny,” he says quietly. “Everything is going to be okay.” I unbuckle my seatbelt so I can be more comfortable in my seat.

“I don’t want to talk to him alone,” I admit quietly. He strokes my cheek with his finger and I shiver slightly.

“You won’t have to,” he promises me. I look over at him hopelessly.

“It won’t be enough,” I tell him. “He didn’t listen to you the first time; what makes you think he’ll listen to you this time?” He laughs.

“I’m not the only one who will be talking to him,” he reminds me. “Once you tell him everything you told me…” I shake my head furiously at that. “Daenerys… I hate seeing you falling apart like this. You’re very special to me and…” His voice trails off and I blink. He taps my chin with his finger and smiles softly. “I love you, Danny…”

It takes me a moment to register what is happening. I cannot bring myself to understand why on earth his lips were now pressed against mine. It was far different from when I kissed Will – Brian tasted of cigarettes, and he didn’t give me the same excitement I got before. Not only that, but it felt wrong – much more wrong than when I was with Jimmy.

I push him away roughly.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” I demand. He looks at me with a guilty expression on his face.

“I’m sorry…” I ignore him and open the car door.

“I can handle Zack myself,” I announce, dropping his jacket on the seat and slamming the car door. Once I get to the door, I hear him start up his engine and drive away.

I hold back a wave of tears as I push open the unlocked door, somehow feeling somewhat relieved about being home.

Notes

A/N: I will probably update one more time between now and Monday, since I know that it's gonna bother me if I update this story on Mibba and on here and they're not both on the "Daenerys" chapter. So I'll try and do that...

Hope you all enjoyed =)

~WOLFY~