Authors Note:
Inspired by a story that I read years ago when I was twelve called Seven
Daughters and Seven Sons. Although
the stories are far from similar the idea of a girl disguising herself has always
interested me and I enjoy writing and reading about such stories.
Disclaimer: I
don’t own Nsync or anyone affiliated with them but the characters you don’t
recognize like Alex and Kat are mine so please don’t steal them.
Rating:
PG-13
Genre: General
(incl. Romance/Humour/Drama)
Created: October 29/01
“It hasn’t come yet, Kat,” Alexandria Greene groaned to her
sister on the phone.
“That’s really weird. It should have been there by now. Well
we’ll just have to wait it out for another few days.” Kat sighed.
“I don’t think I can wait another few days. Every day
he gets worse Kat. Every single day.”
“I’m sorry Alex. I know it must be hell.”
Alex laughed, but it was a bittersweet sound to her sister’s ears. There was pain in that laugh and she knew it had everything to do with living with their father.
Their mother had died when they had been quite young, Kat 12
and Alex 11, leaving them in the hands of there domineering and aggressive
father. The girls had obtained more than their fair share of hits, slaps and
beatings throughout the years.
When Kat had graduated from high school three years before
she had decided to leave home and break all ties with the abusive man that was
her father. With the scholarship she had obtained and the money she had at the
job she had kept secret from her father, she was able to break all ties and
leave “home”.
She had wanted to take Alex with her but was unable due to
legalities. So she had left the state and gone off to school, leaving Alex
vulnerable and very alone.
When Kat had left, their father had gotten even stricter. He
never let Alex out of his sight and was never pleased by anything she did. She
did her best to pacify him. She never argued with him, she was always passive, she
rarely asked him for anything even though there were always things that she
needed. It had not been easy for her to be silent but Alex knew it was the only
thing she could do.
It had been three years since Kat had left home. And since
then Alex had learned how to endure her father’s painful fists and even more
his painful words. The two sisters kept in touch and talked every week. Making
it a little easier for Alex to get through it all.
By now Alex had graduated from high school but her father
would not allow Alex to get any kind of job or attend college. His reasons? He
didn’t want to use his hard earned money so that Alex could get a silly piece
of paper. As for the job, he didn’t want her to make any money because he was
perverse enough to want her dependent on him for life.
She might have been able to keep living the way she was
living, if she had been a more passive person. But that wasn’t Alex’s way.
There was a streak of independence, and a quiet passion in her that she knew
wouldn’t let her stay with her father much longer. She could not be quiet any
longer. She wouldn’t dance to his tune anymore. She had to leave.
And that’s exactly what she told Kat. Kat had also come to
the conclusion that she had to get Alex out of the house. So the two devised a
plan. Kat would send Alex, the hundred and fifty dollars she would have to pay
to take the Greyhound to where Kat lived. After she got the money, all she
would have to do was sneak out of the house at night and make it to the bus
terminal. She would never have to look back. She would live with Kat, find a
job and hopefully start school.
Alex would have been long gone by now…had the money come.
But the money hadn’t come, and it had already been two weeks. Two whole weeks
had passed by and living with her father was becoming almost excruciating. She
was less tolerant now that she knew she was leaving. He was always drunk,
always irate about one thing or the other and he was always looking for an
outlet.
“Just wait a little longer Alex and if it still doesn’t come
we’ll figure something out ok?” Kat said finally in the silence. She really
didn’t know what they were going to do if the money didn’t arrive. Kat didn’t
have much money. School, her rent and groceries took most of her money. She had
just managed to scrape together the hundred and fifty for Alex’s trip. But she
didn’t know when she’d be able to get together another hundred and fifty.
Alex rubbed her temple. “Ok, Kat,” she said wearily.
Suddenly she heard a loud slam come from downstairs. “Dad’s
home. I gotta go,” she sighed, getting off her bed.
“Ok, but call me soon Alex,” Kat said with worry in her
voice.
“I will. Later!” She hung up before her father caught her
talking on the phone with Kat. Her father didn’t talk about Kat ever.
She was never mentioned in the house and if her father found out that the two
had kept talking, he would be furious.
Alex walked quietly to her bedroom door and cracked it open
silently. The various crashes and the annoyed curses that were coming from
below stairs meant one thing, her father was utterly and completely drunk.
“Alexa! Where the hell are you, girl?” She went cold as he
called her name. An icy prickle of fear crawled down her spine. He was angry.
Very angry.
She drew in a deep breath trying to calm herself. The best
thing for her to do was just go downstairs and try to calm him, if possible.
But before she could even get out of her room her father came crashing in.
He stood before her, a mass of bulk emanating rage; his body
tense as if at any moment he would snap. As Alex looked at him, trying to
repress her fear, she realized that although he was drunk it had been anger
that had caused him to crash into the house.
He glared at her. “What the fuck is this Alexa?” he asked, flinging
an envelope addressed to her and filled with a wad of money, at her. She
flinched both at the anger in his voice and his use of her mother’s pet name
for her.
Comprehension filled her when the envelope smacked her flat
on her chest. Oh God he had gotten to the money before she had. Shit! What was
he thinking?
She soon found out. “Where did that come from?” he asked
pointing accusingly at the packet.
What could she really say? She couldn’t possibly tell him
that it was from Kat, nor could she tell him why it was given.
He saved her from answering. He moved up to her
threateningly and snarled. “How could you get your hands on this kind of money?
Are you selling your body? Is that what you’re doing?”
She gasped. How could he think that about her? Didn’t he
know her at all?
Apparently not.
He stared accusingly at her, his fists balled up and his
face distorted in anger. “You little slut! That’s what you’ve been doing, isn’t
it?” He grabbed her and shoved her, sending her reeling towards the wall.
Her eyes welled up with tears. Don’t cry, she told herself.
Just don’t cry. She didn’t want him to know how much he was hurting her. But he
saw the tears and they only angered him more.
“Why are you crying?” he jeered “Didn’t think I’d find out
your little secret, did you?” He shoved his face in front of hers
threateningly. “Well it looks like it’s out of the bag now!”
Alex blinked back her tears. It was unfair she had done
nothing wrong. She didn’t deserve any of this but she wasn’t going to plead her
case to him. She had her pride.
He gripped her shoulders. “Don’t you have any respect for
me?” He raged, moving his hands so they rested lightly on her throat. “Your
mother never had respect for me; your sister never had respect for me and now
you, you little slut.”
Alex looked on at him with a mixture of dread and sadness.
He had never loved any of them. Not even her mother. Her eyes widened as his
hands suddenly tightened around her neck. “Is this the thanks I get Alexa for
clothing and feeding you and taking care of you? Is this your thanks?”
He began to press harder, his eyes flashing. “You’re all
sluts! All of you. You make me sick,” he spat out.
Anger and fear rose in Alex as her father continued to press
harder. He was going to kill her. She could feel herself losing air. She could
barely breathe. Out of self-preservation she began to claw at the hands around
her throat. And as his hands started to loosen, all the anger, sadness, pain
and fear he had put her through all these years started to build in her and she
began to lash out at him.
She kicked at him and tried to hit
him with her fists. Unexpectedly one of her flailing hands made direct contact
with his nose and they both flinched when they heard the sickening crunch. He
cringed back in genuine surprise as he felt the blood flow from his own nose.
Alex gasped, covering her mouth with her hand. She had never
hit him back before. He was really going to kill her now.
“You
little bitch,” he growled. He brought his hand back and hit her fiercely. The
hit was so hard that it sent her careening back onto her dressing table,
spilling most of it’s contents on the floor. She looked up dazed and terrified
as he grabbed her and slammed her against her wall. Her head knocked against it
and suddenly the world was pooled in darkness.