Chapter Text
Just go inside. You can’t stay out here all night. Not again.
Darcy Olsson is sat against the wall in her front garden. Well, her mother’s front garden. She’ll never understand how it blooms when it gets tended to by Amanda Olsson’s hands. It’s started to get dark, and the warm embrace of summer has left long ago, leaving clouded skies and unforgiving wind through the suburban streets of Truham.
You’re shivering. Don’t worry, if you can just make it upstairs they won’t bother you. Maybe you can just slip in, and they won’t even realize you’ve come home.
Darcy Olsson closes her eyes, takes a deep breath, and stands up. She quietly puts her key in the lock and twists slowly, begging the front door to not make that horrible squeak on the top hinge when she opens it. It doesn’t, mercifully.
You’re almost there. Get upstairs, now. Go go go go
Darcy Olsson pulls off her school shoes, and goes. She launches herself up the stairs, and into her bedroom, softly shutting the door and placing her desk chair underneath the knob. She remembers to breathe. She’s okay. She’ll be fine.
She falls into a familiar, self-imposed routine. Change out of the Higgs uniform, let Tara know that she got home okay, throw on some music (this week it’s a Tegan and Sara album on repeat), find a spot in the nest of throw blankets, and try to get a head start on revision for whichever GCSE exam is next (chemistry, was it?). She was just about to settle in with a chapter on atomic groupings when the whole routine was interrupted by a rattling at her door.
“Darcy, are you in there? This blasted door handle is stuck again,” her mother calls from the hallway. Quickly, her laptop slams shut, cutting off the music, and she makes sure her phone is on silent before running over to move the chair away and swinging open the door.
“Sorry, mum,” Darcy said, looking off into the middle distance, trying not to make eye contact.
“I don’t like not being able to open this door. I’ll have your father take the knob off until we can replace it.” Darcy had managed to convince her parents that her door had taken to getting stuck from the outside for the past few weeks, but the lie had clearly run its course.
“I can try to fix it, mum. I think we have some degreaser in the shed, could I borrow it?” she asked, trying to lean into being helpful.
Amanda lips set in a thin line. “No, that’s quite alright. Fix your hair before dinner, it’s nearly ready,” she remarked before turning and heading downstairs.
“Sure, mum,” Darcy whispered, mostly to herself.
Better grab a comb. She probably won’t try to get rid of the whole doorknob, right? No, she wouldn’t. It’ll be okay. You’ll be okay.
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darcy_the_egg (11:37pm)
hi miss u
tara_jones_xo (11:38pm)
You literally saw me 8 hours ago haha
darcy_the_egg (11:38pm)
i’m allowed to miss my girlfriend!!!!!
tara_jones_xo (11:39pm)
I guess that’s true <3 You okay?
darcy_the_egg (11:40pm)
yeah just can’t sleep lol
tara_jones_xo (11:41pm)
Huge mood
darcy_the_egg (11:42pm)
i’m so not ready for this chem exam tm
tara_jones_xo (11:42pm)
Chem exam?? You mean the English exam?
darcy_the_egg (11:42pm)
um
what
tara_jones_xo (11:43pm)
Oh my god DARCY
darcy_the_egg (11:44pm)
no surely not
tara_jones_xo (11:45pm)
Okay don’t worry I have a plan
darcy_the_egg (11:45pm)
oh this should be good
tara_jones_xo (11:46pm)
We both go to sleep RIGHT NOW and then I’ll come over for super early breakfast and we’ll revise together and it’ll be fine!!!
darcy_the_egg (11:46pm)
no that’s ok you don’t have to come over
i’ll just wing it
or go to the library early
or something
tara_jones_xo (11:47pm)
Are you sure? I can meet you at the library if you want
darcy_the_egg (11:48pm)
sure, let’s do that :) i’ll meet you at school
tara_jones_xo (11:49pm)
You’re so good at English anyway, I’m sure you’ll be fine <3
I’m gonna try to sleep now but text me in the morning!!
darcy_the_egg (11:50pm)
ok sleep well <3
tara_jones_xo (11:50pm)
<3
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When Darcy drifts off to sleep, she dreams of a large castle. Its spires are tall and the walls are thick stone. Her hair is cropped short, and she wears a set of shining armor. In the distance, she hears the chime of bells. Alarm bells.
She’ll be coming soon.
Darcy quickly looks behind her to find her fingers laced in another’s: a scrawny girl with long brown hair, thick black eyebrows, and hazel eyes which currently seem to be rimmed red.
You have to get her out of here.
She tugs the girl down the corridor. Turning left. And then right. And then right again. Endless corridors full of artifacts she fears to touch and portraits of people she doesn’t recognize. The girl is small, and struggles to keep up. The bells keep ringing. The halls are endless. They run for hours, for days, for weeks. The bells keep ringing.
There’s no way out.
There’s no way out.
There’s no way out.
---
And then she wakes up.