Chapter Text
(y/n) sunk back into their seat nervously.
“What’s wrong, lovebug?” (y/n)’s mom, Victoria, asked them.
(y/n) rolled their eyes, glancing out of the car window. The rain outside was a perfect match with (y/n)’s feelings at the moment. Gloomy, upset, “down in the dumps,” if you will. Moving to a new city should be exciting. But it wasn’t. Not for (y/n), anyway.
“I just don’t want to go…” (y/n) muttered, looking at their mother.
“I know, sweetie… But it’s what’s best for us right now. You know, we’re really lucky that my friend, Clara, is allowing us to stay with her until we can get back on our feet.”
(y/n) understood why all of this was happening. Deep down, they knew their mom was doing what was best for the two of them. Victoria didn’t want to move either, but it was the only choice if they wanted to be away from (y/n)’s father.
Victoria smiled softly, trying to make their child feel at least a little better. “Don’t worry, you’ll be just fine there. I heard Clara has some children of her own! You’ll be able to make friends much easier that way, right?”
(y/n) pulled their knees to their chest and put on their headphones. “Whatever you say, Mom…”
The drive to Hurricane was agonizingly slow, despite only being two hours away. Water continued to fall down the window as (y/n) subconsciously followed the droplets.
‘It’s not fair…
Why does he get to stay, and why do we have to leave?
I did nothing wrong… So why does my life have to change?’
The more (y/n) thought about the situation, the more upset they became. While the situation was entirely unfair, it was the only way Victoria could ensure (y/n)’s safety.
Victoria pulled into the driveway of a lovely, lavender home.
“Is this where we’re staying?” (y/n) questioned, removing their headphones.
Their mother smiled and nodded, taking the keys out of the car. “It indeed is! Beautiful, isn’t it?”
The house wasn’t small, but it wasn’t large either. The front door was white with a round golden knob. The porch had a white table and chairs set, complete with nice throw pillows. (y/n) grabbed their duffle bag from the back seat and followed their mother to the front of the house, almost tripping on the steps.
Before Victoria could even knock, a woman with short, blonde curly hair opened it.
“Victoria, you’re here!” The woman exclaimed.
(y/n)’s mother laughed and hugged the blonde lady. “It’s so nice to see you again, Clara! Well, not on these terms of course, but nonetheless, it’s still a blessing to see you!”
“Come in, come in! Make yourself at home. It seems terribly cold outside today!”
(y/n) reluctantly followed her mother inside. The living room was decorated beautifully. Elegantly, really. A velvety purple couch sat against the wall, facing the direction of a surprisingly large television. Paintings and pictures of Clara’s children were scattered around the walls. A gold coffee table sat in front of the loveseat. The place was really pretty, (y/n) had to admit.
‘These people must be rich…’
“It’s unbelievably cold out there! I don’t know how this little one is surviving without a heavy coat.” Victoria said with a small chuckle.
(y/n) turned to face the two again, blushing a bit from embarrassment.
“You must be (y/n)! You likely don’t remember me, but I remember when you were such a tiny little thing. Haven’t you grown up to be such a darling!” Clara giggled.
(y/n) was a bit uncomfortable, but forced a smile on anyways. It was nothing against Clara, this lady seemed very nice. But (y/n) tended to be careful around unfamiliar things or people.
“Well, I should give you two a tour of the house! We wouldn’t want you to get lost, now would we?” Clara said.
Victoria nodded. “A tour would be wonderful!”
(y/n) followed close behind their mother, walking into several rooms. The layout was fairly simple. The first floor was home to the living room, a small den used for the children’s toys, the kitchen, a laundry room, access to the garage and back porch, and a bedroom with an attached bathroom. The second floor gave access to three bedrooms and a bathroom. It was a really impressive house. Everything was very clean and well-furnished. It was a bit surprising to (y/n).
“This is Evan and Elizabeth’s room,” Clara explained. “Now, (y/n), Elizabeth will likely warm up to you quite quickly and ask you to play with her. I’m just warning you that she is very hyper.”
(y/n) smiled a bit. “I don’t mind. It will be like having a little sister.”
Clara smiled and nodded. “Evan might take a little longer to warm up to you. Poor thing is just so shy… And Michael- well, he’s Michael.”
‘What is that supposed to mean?’
“The children are at school, I assume?” Victoria asked.
“Yes, they should be home soon. And William too! He’ll be delighted to know you made it here safely. Come now, I have to start making the kids their snacks. You can help if you’d like!”
Clara and Victoria headed downstairs chatting as usual. (y/n) looked across the hall at the door with a sign that read “Mike’s Room: DO NOT ENTER!!!” They had to admit, they were quite curious. But they shouldn’t look in there. That’s rude! But (y/n) would be lying if they said they didn’t try and catch a glimpse through the crack in the door.
After walking downstairs, (y/n) heard the two women talking in the kitchen.
“I must say, I am so terribly sorry for what happened with you and Richard, I never knew he could be capable of such things…” Clara said with a tone of sadness in her voice.
Victoria sighed. “It’s not really a surprise to me. He’s been that way since we first were together. But once he started screaming at (y/n)... My heart just couldn’t take it anymore.”
“I understand… It’s quite a horrible thought, really. But here, the both of you will be safe.”
“Thank you again, Clara. You have no idea what a relief it is to have you all supporting us.”
“Of course! If you ever need anything- anything at all, please let us know immediately.”
(y/n) cleared their throat, walking into the kitchen.
“Oh, (y/n)!” Clara exclaimed. “I didn’t notice you there, you gave me quite a fright!”
Victoria and Clara chuckled a moment before Clara handed (y/n) a cookie.
“Here, darling, eat up. You must be at least a little hungry after such a long car ride! Luckily for you, supper will be ready in just a few hours!” Clara explained sweetly.
(y/n) tilted their head. “What are we having?”
“Beef stroganoff! It was Michael’s pick for a special meal this week, and that’s what he requested!”
“Oh, how sweet! I never thought about doing that with (y/n)!” Victoria chimed.
Clara smiled and patted (y/n)’s head. “Well, darling, why don’t you pick next week’s special meal, hm? I’m sure Elizabeth won’t mind waiting an extra week to choose her meal.”
(y/n) smiled and nodded. Choose a meal? That was something they were never able to do at home! What’s next, they can snack whenever they want to?!
Just as Clara finished setting the snacks at the table, the kids came running through the door. A girl with long red hair who (y/n) assumed to be Elizabeth immediately came running towards her mother.
“Mummy! Look what I drew today!”
Clara placed Elizabeth’s drawing on the fridge with a magnet. “How wonderful, Lizzy! You’ve got such talent!”
“Mum, who’s this…?” A little boy asked, keeping a distance from (y/n). The tears in his eyes were very noticeable.
“Ooh, there’s a new person here! Mummy, is this another one of our cousins?” Elizabeth asked.
“No, darling. This is (y/n) and this is her mother Victoria! They will be staying with us for a while.”
Elizabeth tugged on (y/n)’s shirt. “Hey, do you wanna play dolls with me? Please please please!”
“I-I uh…” (y/n) muttered, a bit overwhelmed by everything.
Evan was crying, Clara was trying to shush him, and Elizabeth kept tugging on their shirt.
“God, Evan, Lizzy, you’re so annoying!” A voice shouted from the living room. “Mum, whose car is in the driveway?! It’s blocking my path for my skateboard-”
A tall boy with brown hair and blue eyes walked into the kitchen, stopping in his tracks once he saw (y/n).
“And who the hell are you?” He asked.
“Michael, language!” Clara said, glaring at her son.
Michael had to be at least five foot ten. He wasn’t exactly ripped but he wasn’t delicate either. He seemed to be growing out a mullet as well.
“I just wanna know who’s in my house, mum, geez…”
“I’m (y/n)...” (y/n) said quietly, still having their shirt tugged on by Elizabeth.
“I have no idea who you are.”
“Well, (y/n) and their mother will be staying with us for a while,” Clara explained once again, finally succeeding in calming Evan down.
Michael stepped a bit closer to (y/n). “Hm… How old are you?”
“Sixteen… Almost Seventeen.”
“Same age, shit-”
Clara gasped. “Michael!”
“Sorry! Ugh… Why haven’t I seen you at school, (y/n)?”
“Because I’m new…?” (y/n) muttered. “That was fairly well established…”
Michael blinked a few times, not processing the fact that someone had just talked back to him. He already didn’t like this person.
“Yeah… Don’t expect to make many friends there. You’ll get bullied looking like that.”
And with those words, Michael was off. Clara profusely apologized for her son's behavior. (y/n) didn’t seem to care that much. They eventually gave in to Elizabeth’s begging and began playing dolls with them upstairs.
(y/n) had been in this city for only three hours, and everything already felt chaotic. Hopefully, by tomorrow, things will have calmed down more.