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I don't want to be a menace anymore/what could a menace be good for?
The Buckley household rang with raised voices as mother and daughter fought.
"What is wrong with you?" Robin yelled at her mother, "all my life, I have been trying so hard to do everything, everything, to live up to your standards. Even though when I knew what you want is bad, whether for you or for me or for both of us, I still do it. What will it take for you to see me? To treat me normally? TELL ME!" Robin screamed, tears streaming down her face. Her mother scoffed.
"Normal? You first walked at about one and a half years old, talked at about two. You are sensitive to sounds, and you can't keep still for too long. You are not normal. You're as abnormal as they come."
Robin stumbled back in shock.
"Abnormal...?" She whispered, before turning away and running upstairs, her eyesight blurry with still flowing tears.
Robin all but slammed her bedroom door close as she crashed down her bed, sobbing. Her mother's words echoed in her head. Abnormal. Abnormal. Abnormal. She looked down at her feet, which she realized she began tapping. She stopped herself, the urge to do it again like a weight. She opened the drawer of her nightstand and found what she was looking for: her knife.
TRIGGER WARNING: SELF-HARM
Robin looked at herself in the mirror, then at the blade in her hand. Steeling herself, she cut her forearm, the pain a welcoming feeling. Being hurt is better than not feeling anything at all, she supposed. She was careful, of course. One wrong cut, one deep incision, and she might get more than she bargained for. Washing her arm and the blade, she exited the bathroom and returned to her room.
If there is one thing Nancy Wheeler prided herself in, it's that she can read other people with ease. No matter how hard they try to hide their true intentions or feelings, she always saw right through them. That is, until she met Robin Buckley. She sighed. Even though they've grown very close together in such a short period of time (looking for a way to defeat a psychotic telekinetic with vocal cord problems will do that, Nancy supposed) , she still can't understand the blonde. On the outside she was this awkward, bumbling genius who tends to ramble, but Nancy knew there was more to Robin than meets the eye. But Nancy, for the life of her, just can't figure out what. The walls that the Buckley girl had erected around herself was as impenetrable as a four-inch thick steel door of a bank vault. But little did she know that all of that was about to change soon...
The days after Robin and her mother's verbal altercation was torture. Well, perhaps for her mother. Robin didn't mind the minimal interaction. Hell, she was even glad to not regularly seeing her mother. But try as she might, the pain of the word her mother described her still stung. Maybe her mother was right. Maybe she was abnormal. Maybe she is indeed a freak.
"Stop wallowing in self-pity and get your ass down here! We're eating!" Robin's mother yelled from the stairs. Robin closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Here goes nothing. Surprisingly the dinner went better than Robin thought. After eating she gathered her plate, washing it as quickly as possible before going up to her room without so much as a good night to her mother.
Robin was basically a robot the following day. Sort the returned CDs. Dust the shelves if necessary. Rinse and repeat. Steve, fortunately, took notice and decided to let her be. Just then the bell on top of the store's door tinkled, announcing the presence of a customer. Huffing, Robin went to greet the person. She froze when she saw who it was.
"Nance! 'Sup? You need anything?" Robin asked with forced cheer. If Nancy noticed, she didn't comment.
"Um, nothing. I just wanted to chat. How are you holding up?"
"I'm good." Robin lied. "You?"
"Could be better. It's like the adrenaline from fighting Vecna still runs in me after all this time, you know? Hell, I even get nightmares, especially about the things that bastard showed me.
Robin laughed bitterly. "Guess we're both on the same page."
Nancy tilted her head questioningly. "Oh? How?"
"Nothing. I'm just joking." Robin said in an attempt to change the subject.
"Robin, what is it? And I'm not leaving until you explain."
"Why do you care so much, anyway?" Robin snapped.
"Because," Nancy said softly, "you're my friend. You're my friend, and I'm here for you. Always."
The dam broke, and Robin all but threw herself at Nancy, sobbing on the brunette's shoulder.
"Shh, shh. Honey, what's wrong?" Nancy whispered. But Robin was crying so hard she can barely speak or breathe. Nancy rubbed circles on Robin's back, murmuring wordless sounds of comfort. After a while Robin's sobs subsided.
"It's-it's my mom." Robin sniffled, and Nancy tensed. Robin, on more than one occasion, has mentioned her mother, and not in a proud way.
"What about her?" Nancy asked.
"We had this huge fight a few days back. You know how much of a bitch she is, selfish and unappreciative and not giving a f*ck about other people's emotions."
"Robin," Nancy said quietly, "what did your mom say?"
"That I'm..." Robin's breathing became uneven, and Nancy squeezed Robin's hand.
"You don't have to say it, if it makes you uncomfortable."
"She called me abnormal." Robin mumbled. Nancy saw red. That bitch.
"Well, she's not wrong. I mean, I'm six months delayed, have poor balance and fidgety and I tend to ramble and-"
"Hey, hey, hey. Look at me. Robin, look at me." Nancy said firmly but gently when the blonde won't cooperate. She did, eyes shining with unshed tears.
"You are not abnormal, do you understand? Chatty? Yes. Awkward? Definitely. But not abnormal. Never abnormal."
"But-"
Nancy put a finger on Robin's lips to stop her.
"It's OK to be who you are right now. Do not become someone who you are not. Stay true to yourself."
Robin sniffled. "Thanks, Nancy. I needed that."
Nancy smiled. "I'll be here. Always."
Nancy refused the silent invitation of the doorbell and straight-up banged her fist on the Buckley house's front door. As she hoped, it was Robin's mother who answered.
"What do you want. My daughter isn't in."
"I'm going to talk to you." Nancy said coldly. "Get inside."
"This is my home. You can't-"
"Inside. Now!" Nancy growled. Once they were inside, Nancy slapped her friend's mother.
"What the- how dare you!"
"How dare I? How dare I? Let's see. You've subjecting Robin, your own daughter, to incessant verbal abuse and no doubt physical as well all her life. I saw it. Her anxiety. Her body language, like she's ashamed of being who she is."
"What? A freak?" Robin's mother said, and Nancy raised her fist threateningly.
"Yeah, that. All Robin wanted was to be loved unconditionally, be accepted wholeheartedly, and you shun her. What is wrong with you, huh? She doesn't deserve that. She doesn't deserve a... a monster like you. I swear to God if I hear another story of abuse, I will report you and make sure you lose everything. Do you understand, bitch?"
Mrs. Buckley, surprisingly nodded in affirmation.
"She's with me, and you will not pick her up unless she wants you to. That's not a question."