Work Text:
Vanya stood in the kitchen, staring down at the notebook in her hands. Her eyes locked with the words on the page. The ink began pooling into one in front of her. Her hands began to shake with anger. She hadn’t noticed the car pulling into the driveway outside the house, the silence being interrupted by the beep as it locked.
“Vanya?”
Her gaze was momentarily interrupted, her thoughts dissipating as quickly as they had come. She looked towards the source of the noise and felt her hands stop shaking.
“Leonard,” she shut the book. The slam echoed around the room as she turned to him. “You’re home early-”
“That isn’t yours, you shouldn’t be going through it,” he took a step towards her, shrugging off his jacket.
“It isn’t yours either,” she looked down at the golden lettering glaring up at her. She placed a hand over it. “Where did you get this?”
“None of that concerns you,” he moved again, reaching out to grab the notebook from her. “Let it go, Vanya.”
Vanya pulled it back, the force sending her stumbling slightly. She looked down at it again as she held it closer to her chest.
“Why didn’t you tell me about this?” Her eyes returned to him, hearing him scoff.
“I was trying to protect you.”
“Oh come on,” she shifted her weight, moving back again. “You were trying to protect me? Protect me from what? The truth?”
“I was trying to protect you from them,” Leonard stepped towards her, grabbing her wrists. “You know them. They’d hide this from you, and they’d hide how he treated you.”
“Then why didn’t you tell me about this?” Vanya looked up at him, the silence following hurt in a way she hadn’t felt in a long time. She pulled her arms away and handed him the notebook. “I’m going to see Allison.”
“Seriously, Vanya? After everything we did together, everything I did for you?” He shifted, following her as she moved to the door. “Come on. You’ve gotta be joking.”
“Leonard,” she turned to him. “I don’t even know the first thing about you. I grew up with Allison. We’ve known each other for one day and you’re already hiding everything from me.”
Vanya grabbed her jacket, beginning to put it on as he slammed the book down on the counter. She jumped as her gaze shifted back to him. He looked insane. He moved around the couch separating them, grabbing her by her arms and pulling her closer.
“She doesn’t love you like I do,” he whispered. He held her tighter. “She won’t take care of you like I have been.”
“She’s my sister-”
“Who’s lied to you your entire life!” He stood closer again, watching her flinch at the sudden volume shift. “You read the notes! She never cared about you!”
“Let me go, Leonard.”
“I care about you! Don’t you realize that?”
“I said let me go, you’re hurting me.”
“I love you Vanya!”
She looked up at him, pulling her hands to her chest. It fell silent, the argument ringing in her ears. The eye contact was hard to maintain but Vanya was almost too terrified to look away from him.
“You’re the one hurting me,” Leonard watched her. “You don’t care about me. You never have.”
“That isn’t true-”
“I killed for you!” His voice raised again.
“You’re insane!” She pushed against his shoulders, trying to escape from his hold.
“You almost killed me and you’re calling me insane?”
“I don’t know what you want from me!” She looked at him, slamming her hands against his chest.
“I want you! I want you to realize how unimportant you are to your siblings and how you mean everything to me!” He dropped his tone. His eyes studied her for a brief moment, glancing slightly to her lips. “You would’t be anyone without me. You’re just an ordinary useless bitch-”
“I said to let me go!” She shoved him off her, kicking him as harshly as she could.
Time felt like it froze, only for a second. She watched his footing disappear from under him as he fell, slamming his head on the hallway table behind him. Her heart stopped as she watched him.
“No no no,” she dropped to her knees, staring. “No Leonard I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.”
She cradled him in her arms, his eyes dull, staring up at her. The silence rang in her ears as she clung to him. The image of Allison from the night prior flashed in her eyes and she winced, letting him go and shooting up to her feet. She placed her hands on her cheeks, feeling her anxiety begin bubbling up inside. Her chest and throat started to tighten and the nausea hit her like a truck. She moved back to the kitchen in a panic, grabbing her bag from its place on the kitchen table. Her eyes darted to the notebook staring mockingly back at her.
She turned and left the house from the backdoor, racing across the lawn. The door slammed somewhere in the distance. If there was one person who could help her, it would be her sister.