Somebody's Supposed to Fall In Love
Chapter Thirty-Two: Nightly Terrors
** “I never liked birds!” Tinsley cackled as thing one and thing two took turns throwing me into trashcans and kicking me.
“Baby girl,” a sweet, melodic voice called in a whisper. All I could make out was a silhouette of a long haired woman standing in front of a taller man with a hat on. She had her hand stretched out to me and the man had a gentle grip on her shoulders.
“M-…Momma?”
Everything went black and the sound of metal grinding and bending screeched in my ears.
“Get out of the car!” my mother begged.
“Phoenix, hurry!” they cried in unison.
**
“Stop!” I screamed, Immediately sitting up with my hands covering my ears. My heart was beating in my ears and my hair stuck to my forehead. I couldn’t get my breathing to even out and I felt the burn of a panic attack arising.
“Phoenix calm down,” Vic ordered calmly. I hadn’t heard him enter the room over the sound of my own shallow breathing. Vic walked over slowly, his face creased in worry.
“No," I wept. “My…” I chocked. “My parents...”
Vic’s eyes widened and he went to hug me.
I tucked my head into his neck, weeping softly as flashes of the nightmare played over and over.
“What happened?” Vic asked softly, tracing a bruise on my leg.
“Nothing,” I lied, sniffling.
“I know you didn’t do this to yourself,” Vic sighed.
“If I did?” I challenged softly, making him look up at me.
“Then we’d need to get you professional help,” Vic entertained.
“I hear a voice too,” I admitted. Maybe it’d help with my whole ‘extreme crazineness’ and make Vic believe this was just a form of self harm; that I was actually mentally ill.
‘Don’t make my existence a part of your lie!’ Phe hissed.
Whatever works.
“That isn’t funny,” he frowned.
“I’m serious!”
Vic bit his lip before he finally spoke, “We’re taking you to my uncle. He’s a professional psychologist and would get you checked out for free as a favor for me.”
Dammit. I didn’t want it to go this far!
“I don’t think that’s necessary, Vic.”
“I think so,” he admitted, shifting a bit. “If you’re hearing a voice and beating yourself, you’re
endangering your life. Last time, you almost didn’t make it.”
I allowed a long stretch of silence to think.
I’d rather talk to a shrink than tell Vic about Tinsley and her posse of wan-to-be thugs.
“Well…if you think it will help or something I’ll--”
“I’ll go make the call!” Vic sang, jumping from me and heading for the house phone.
I rose from my bed and stretched. Certain gloominess surrounded me and reminded me of my
horrifying dream.
“Miss Riley,” I called down the hall as I pulled a robe over my boxers and one of Vic’s shrunken band tees.
“Yes dear?” she called back, poking her head out the toddlers’ room, cradling a baby in her arms.
I subconsciously rubbed on the scars on my arm, “I um... Vic is taking me to a psychologist.”
“Oh we can’t afford that sort of thing,” she frowned.
“Vic said that his uncle would do it for free,” I clarified. “But I’m not sure if I want to go.”
“You should go,” Zoey encouraged, leaning out of her room.
“Thanks, Miss. Riley,” I smirked.
Zoey rolled her eyes with a hint of a smile, “I say yes. Vic was making breakfast for you when we heard you screaming. He looked almost as shaken as you do right now. Jaime and I are pretty worried; all he would talk about last night is how you won’t open up.”
“Why aren’t you in school?” I inquired.
“I wanted to be here when you woke up. Vic told me you looked like you ran into a brick wall a thousand times. I guess I’ll just go since it seems you’ll be too busy to talk.”
‘Not like Nix would anyway,’ Phe mumbled.
Annoyed, I pursed my lips and kicked Phe to the back of my conscience.
‘Ow!’ she winced with a faint voice.
I nodded, “And you, Miss. Riley?”
“I agree with Zoey. You’re scaring me. You haven’t had nightmares since…”
Zoey looked at Miss. Riley, silently asking her to continue.
“I think you should go with Vic,” she finished curtly. “And I’ll be taking a look at your cuts and bruises when you get back and clean yourself up,” she said firmly, heading back into the toddlers’ room. I was thankful for her not asking about my injuries right now. She probably already knew I wouldn’t talk about it.
Zoey shrugged off her curiosity and winked at me before heading back into her room. Defeated, I limped all the way to my bathroom, stripped and entered the shower. I gently scrubbed away the blood that caked bits of my hair, hands and face.
I must have looked like a total nightmare this morning, I thought as I watched the reddened water flow down the drain.
‘You sounded like a total nightmare too,’ Phe coughed.
I chose to ignore her and gently scrubbed at my bruised body. The injuries literally made me sick. I could tell you exactly what they did to me to cause each and every mark and that doesn’t help with forgetting.
‘Maybe they activated the nightmares,’ Phe muttered.
I looked up from the cut I added to my arm yesterday, What do you mean activated?
Phe remained silent, increasing my worry and anxiety. Refreshed, I jumped out the shower and patted myself dry. I exited the bathroom, my hair dripping and body slightly damp to look for something simple to wear.
The door unlatched, “I scored you a free appoint—Oh my god.”
I whipped around and clutched the towel even closer to myself, “Vic?! Get out!”
He gawked for a few seconds before my orders registered, “Um, r-right.” The door closed behind him, leaving the beating organ in my chest crazed.
‘It was bound to happen with all the time he spends here to take care of you,’ Phe quipped.
Oh, so now you want to speak?
“Are you decent?” Vic called nervously through the door.
Once I slid on my undergarments, I fetched a short black satin robe and tied it around myself,
“Yeah, you can come in.”
He slowly opened the door and walked in. Vic plopped down on the bed with a small notepad.
“Okay, so my uncle gave me the address, the time to come and the office number,” he informed, flipping through the page of the notepad.
“Okay, what time?” I asked while rubbing lotion onto my legs and arms.
I heard him gulp, making me look up. The moment I caught his gaze, he looked away with a reddening face. The corners of my lips twitched upwards at his sheepish behavior.
“We’ll leave at 12-ish since the appointment is at 12:30.”
Grimacing, I nodded and trotted to my closet.
“Say, what sort of thing do you wear to go see whether you’re crazy or not?” I quipped with a bit of sass.
Vic chuckled and put his arms around me from behind me, “How about those jean skinnies you always look amazing in?”
I pulled out the very pair he was talking about, “And what top Mr. Fashionista?”
“How about…The grey poncho looking thing?”
I laughed, “I have just the boots to match.”
I pulled on the jeans and made Vic turn around so I could shrug on the top.
“So can I get a pass from your uncle to be excused from school for today?” I asked as I stomped on my boots.
”Definitely,” Vic answered, throwing a v-neck on. He was already wearing black skinny jeans and vans.
Grudgingly, I marched over to my vanity to inspect the damage.
It’s going to take a shit-load of make-up to cover this up…
I powdered my face and did as much as I could to cover the discoloration without looking like a
clown. I couldn’t do anything for my lip; I didn’t want to put lipstick or gloss on it because it’d only draw attention to it so I left it alone. My eye, however, was almost completely covered. If you peered closely, you could spot a slight purple tint but overall it was a successful cover-up. Vic looked at me through the mirror with a slight frown. I stared back at him before closing everything and turning to him.
“Ready to go?”
“Yep,” he sighed, grabbing his keys.
I slowly walked over to him and grabbed his hand, allowing him to lead me out the house.
“Baby girl,” a sweet, melodic voice called in a whisper. All I could make out was a silhouette of a long haired woman standing in front of a taller man with a hat on. She had her hand stretched out to me and the man had a gentle grip on her shoulders.
“M-…Momma?”
Everything went black and the sound of metal grinding and bending screeched in my ears.
“Get out of the car!” my mother begged.
“Phoenix, hurry!” they cried in unison.
**
“Stop!” I screamed, Immediately sitting up with my hands covering my ears. My heart was beating in my ears and my hair stuck to my forehead. I couldn’t get my breathing to even out and I felt the burn of a panic attack arising.
“Phoenix calm down,” Vic ordered calmly. I hadn’t heard him enter the room over the sound of my own shallow breathing. Vic walked over slowly, his face creased in worry.
“No," I wept. “My…” I chocked. “My parents...”
Vic’s eyes widened and he went to hug me.
I tucked my head into his neck, weeping softly as flashes of the nightmare played over and over.
“What happened?” Vic asked softly, tracing a bruise on my leg.
“Nothing,” I lied, sniffling.
“I know you didn’t do this to yourself,” Vic sighed.
“If I did?” I challenged softly, making him look up at me.
“Then we’d need to get you professional help,” Vic entertained.
“I hear a voice too,” I admitted. Maybe it’d help with my whole ‘extreme crazineness’ and make Vic believe this was just a form of self harm; that I was actually mentally ill.
‘Don’t make my existence a part of your lie!’ Phe hissed.
Whatever works.
“That isn’t funny,” he frowned.
“I’m serious!”
Vic bit his lip before he finally spoke, “We’re taking you to my uncle. He’s a professional psychologist and would get you checked out for free as a favor for me.”
Dammit. I didn’t want it to go this far!
“I don’t think that’s necessary, Vic.”
“I think so,” he admitted, shifting a bit. “If you’re hearing a voice and beating yourself, you’re
endangering your life. Last time, you almost didn’t make it.”
I allowed a long stretch of silence to think.
I’d rather talk to a shrink than tell Vic about Tinsley and her posse of wan-to-be thugs.
“Well…if you think it will help or something I’ll--”
“I’ll go make the call!” Vic sang, jumping from me and heading for the house phone.
I rose from my bed and stretched. Certain gloominess surrounded me and reminded me of my
horrifying dream.
“Miss Riley,” I called down the hall as I pulled a robe over my boxers and one of Vic’s shrunken band tees.
“Yes dear?” she called back, poking her head out the toddlers’ room, cradling a baby in her arms.
I subconsciously rubbed on the scars on my arm, “I um... Vic is taking me to a psychologist.”
“Oh we can’t afford that sort of thing,” she frowned.
“Vic said that his uncle would do it for free,” I clarified. “But I’m not sure if I want to go.”
“You should go,” Zoey encouraged, leaning out of her room.
“Thanks, Miss. Riley,” I smirked.
Zoey rolled her eyes with a hint of a smile, “I say yes. Vic was making breakfast for you when we heard you screaming. He looked almost as shaken as you do right now. Jaime and I are pretty worried; all he would talk about last night is how you won’t open up.”
“Why aren’t you in school?” I inquired.
“I wanted to be here when you woke up. Vic told me you looked like you ran into a brick wall a thousand times. I guess I’ll just go since it seems you’ll be too busy to talk.”
‘Not like Nix would anyway,’ Phe mumbled.
Annoyed, I pursed my lips and kicked Phe to the back of my conscience.
‘Ow!’ she winced with a faint voice.
I nodded, “And you, Miss. Riley?”
“I agree with Zoey. You’re scaring me. You haven’t had nightmares since…”
Zoey looked at Miss. Riley, silently asking her to continue.
“I think you should go with Vic,” she finished curtly. “And I’ll be taking a look at your cuts and bruises when you get back and clean yourself up,” she said firmly, heading back into the toddlers’ room. I was thankful for her not asking about my injuries right now. She probably already knew I wouldn’t talk about it.
Zoey shrugged off her curiosity and winked at me before heading back into her room. Defeated, I limped all the way to my bathroom, stripped and entered the shower. I gently scrubbed away the blood that caked bits of my hair, hands and face.
I must have looked like a total nightmare this morning, I thought as I watched the reddened water flow down the drain.
‘You sounded like a total nightmare too,’ Phe coughed.
I chose to ignore her and gently scrubbed at my bruised body. The injuries literally made me sick. I could tell you exactly what they did to me to cause each and every mark and that doesn’t help with forgetting.
‘Maybe they activated the nightmares,’ Phe muttered.
I looked up from the cut I added to my arm yesterday, What do you mean activated?
Phe remained silent, increasing my worry and anxiety. Refreshed, I jumped out the shower and patted myself dry. I exited the bathroom, my hair dripping and body slightly damp to look for something simple to wear.
The door unlatched, “I scored you a free appoint—Oh my god.”
I whipped around and clutched the towel even closer to myself, “Vic?! Get out!”
He gawked for a few seconds before my orders registered, “Um, r-right.” The door closed behind him, leaving the beating organ in my chest crazed.
‘It was bound to happen with all the time he spends here to take care of you,’ Phe quipped.
Oh, so now you want to speak?
“Are you decent?” Vic called nervously through the door.
Once I slid on my undergarments, I fetched a short black satin robe and tied it around myself,
“Yeah, you can come in.”
He slowly opened the door and walked in. Vic plopped down on the bed with a small notepad.
“Okay, so my uncle gave me the address, the time to come and the office number,” he informed, flipping through the page of the notepad.
“Okay, what time?” I asked while rubbing lotion onto my legs and arms.
I heard him gulp, making me look up. The moment I caught his gaze, he looked away with a reddening face. The corners of my lips twitched upwards at his sheepish behavior.
“We’ll leave at 12-ish since the appointment is at 12:30.”
Grimacing, I nodded and trotted to my closet.
“Say, what sort of thing do you wear to go see whether you’re crazy or not?” I quipped with a bit of sass.
Vic chuckled and put his arms around me from behind me, “How about those jean skinnies you always look amazing in?”
I pulled out the very pair he was talking about, “And what top Mr. Fashionista?”
“How about…The grey poncho looking thing?”
I laughed, “I have just the boots to match.”
I pulled on the jeans and made Vic turn around so I could shrug on the top.
“So can I get a pass from your uncle to be excused from school for today?” I asked as I stomped on my boots.
”Definitely,” Vic answered, throwing a v-neck on. He was already wearing black skinny jeans and vans.
Grudgingly, I marched over to my vanity to inspect the damage.
It’s going to take a shit-load of make-up to cover this up…
I powdered my face and did as much as I could to cover the discoloration without looking like a
clown. I couldn’t do anything for my lip; I didn’t want to put lipstick or gloss on it because it’d only draw attention to it so I left it alone. My eye, however, was almost completely covered. If you peered closely, you could spot a slight purple tint but overall it was a successful cover-up. Vic looked at me through the mirror with a slight frown. I stared back at him before closing everything and turning to him.
“Ready to go?”
“Yep,” he sighed, grabbing his keys.
I slowly walked over to him and grabbed his hand, allowing him to lead me out the house.
Notes
Sorry for any errors, you don't know struggle until you try to write and adjust to time zone changes on a ten hour flight. I loved ALL THE COMMENTS! :D You guys are AH-MAY-ZANG. You're predictions inspired me and I love that you guys agreed with the relapse and understood the charecter development c: The similarity was when Nix said everything would be okay on the phone. That was her first words when she woke up the first time :3
Topic of the Day: Will the shrink help? Should Vic even take her? Thoughts on the nightmare? Comment :D
Hey guys its me, R.W. I broke my laptop (yes the new one I just freaking got) and got it back 2 days ago. I've tried signing in with my google account and its not allowing me to! So I made a new one with my tumblr in hopes of getting some help. Is there anyway I can get my account back? Or transfer my story? I'd be devastated if I lost access to everything.
If I do, have to start over I will rewrite this story. I read through it before I broke my computer and I feel that there is a difference in "skill" when you read chapter 1 vs. chapter 41. It's very cringy actually.SO, IF THERE'S NO SOLUTION, I may just make serious revisions via copy+paste ==> microsoft word, edit and post it on the account I am currently posting this comment with. Thanks for reading through this and I'd appreciate help if you know anything! Comment or message me with tips and suggestions please!
6/4/15