Stitches (MaryGold x Lxngdon)

l a u r e n
Lauren opened her eyes when Anderson entered the car. She was still trembling with tears, her face red, but she wasn't scared of him. She may have been scared of him in the moment, but that fear was gone now, and now she was just shaken. And her shoulder hurt, but that wasn't the problem.

"No, I - I'm sorry," she stuttered. She had made him feel bad because she was crying, even if he had done what he had done to defend her. He was the opposite of her father. "I f - freaked out -- it's just -- y - you just l - looked like my f - father."

Lauren hadn't meant to say it. She had been sworn to secrecy by her dad, but when the words left her lips, they were followed by another burst of uncontrollable sobs and she sunk back into the seat of the car. God, it felt so good to get that off her chest, so good that she couldn't hold it back anymore.

"H - He's so h - horrible to me," she whimpered. "H - He's hit me my wh - whole life. He b - broke my arm last year, h - he puts c - cigarettes out on my sk - skin. A - and he's always so angry -- h - he got into some t - trouble with some d - drug dealers in New Orleans, that's w - w - why we had to m - move. He's b - been worse s - since then."

Lauren used her shaky hands to reach down and tug out the bottom of her blouse, from where it was tucked into her skirt. She then lifted it up, revealing the splotchy bruises on her abdomen. They were in the process of healing, and it was evident that it had only happened recently. The skin spanning from the tops of her hips almost to her bra was covered in the bruises.

And she showed Anders all of it.

"H - H - He did that the n - night I c - came home with the dress," she whispered. Lauren wanted to close her eyes, but she forced them to stay open to watch Anderson's reaction.
 
A N D E R S O N
Anders was more than a little worried when she suddenly went broke down into sobs in her seat. And then she started to speak. It took him a moment to understand and comprehend all that she had said. Understand because she was crying and stuttering so much it was barely coherent. But he listened hard until hevwas able to put each of her words together so that it made sense.

But when it did, he paused. Processing, comprehending it all for at least a full minute. For a full minute he sat in silence, looking ahead out of his windshield, his hands still on the wheel. And then he finally grasped it, accepted it. Lauren's father was an abusive man, she was being abused. That hit a too close to home for him, considering his own horrid experiences.

It was so obvious too, that was the familiar atmosphere he felt, and the looks of her parents. He know, bit at the same time he didn't. And those bruises she had now were also because of him ... No they had got there because of Joshua fucking Winter. In that moment Anders had never hated a man note in his life before.

Never once had he thought he'd ever encounter human trash like that again. But here he was being told that he had met one, that his girlfriend's father was one. That he beat her while she was in his life. It sickened him.

He was angry, no, he was furious almost inconsolable so. He was angry for Lauren, for himself, for Jenna, for every person who had to endure being hurt and hurt again unrightfully so. When her father hit Lauren he had practically hit Anders himself. This was something he could not and would not let go.

He tightened his hands in the driving wheel, ignoring the immense pain through his hands and fingers, in fact he couldn't feel it. He couldn't feel anything except for his anger directed at Joshua Winter. He could break just about anything right now.

"I am going to kill him."
By the look on his face, he probably would.
 
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"Anders," Lauren whispered, her voice nowhere near as shaky as before, but still sad. "Don't say that. I don't want to think of you like that."

Lauren let her blouse fall to cover her bruised abdomen, and then she leaned forward and put a hand on his shoulder, gently, so she didn't disturb him. She was still unsure how to handle such an infuriated Anderson, but she knew he wouldn't hurt her. Even before, that had been an accident.

"You're better than that. I don't expect you to do anything about it, anyway. There's nothing you can do."


Lauren's voice trembled and she hid her face in his shoulder. There was nothing he could do. There was nothing anyone could do.

"I ... I was always just going to stick it out until I turned eighteen and then I could leave. But I don't think I'll live that long."
Her voice cracked. "He kicked me with steel-capped boots last time. I don't think he's going to change any time soon."
 
A N D E R S O N
It broke his heart to see her this way, to know she'd been treated in that way. No one deserved it and especially not her. Lauren was so sweet and good, why would anyone hurt her? Why would anyone hurt their own child? Parents were supposed to protect, love and care for their child but his man was doing the exact opposite. And it angered Anders so much. All he wanted to do was head straight there and kick his face in.

He could barely think straight, so instead he thought for Lauren. He had to solve this problem for her. He refused to ignore it. He would be fool to ignore it. He wasn't afraid of her father but he was afraid for her. The man killing his daughter was a possibility that could turn into s reality at any moment he was with her.

"Lauren, you know you can't stay in that house with him any longer. I won't let you, not if it means you'll get hurt or even killed."
He pulled back some to look her in the eyes and caress her face with his bruised hand. He used his thumb to brush away her tears and kissed her forehead. "Maybe I can't do anything but something has to be done. We could go to my parents, they would know what to do."

Anders knew this as the only option. They would help Lauren in any way possible because they were good people. And he knew this as the only way, the two of them reporting the situation to the authorities would not be as impacting as his parents. He didn't k ow what else to do besides that.

"Please?"
He was practically begging her.
 
l a u r e n
Anderson treated her with gentleness and care, and like she was the most precious and special thing in the world to him. And here he was, trying to take care of her like her parents never had. Showing her that he cherished her like a boyfriend should his girlfriend, and that he wanted to do nothing but help her.

Lauren broke. For years, she had wanted someone to help her, but had never had the courage to ask for that help. For years, she had lived in fear and uncertainty, not knowing whether or not she would live to see another day. For years, she had just wanted an escape. She had wanted to be free.

And now, she had Anders, who was a thousand times more than she had ever hoped for. Crying, she nodded fervently and buried her face in his shoulder.

"Okay," was all she managed to choke out.

Lauren receded into her seat and buckled up her seatbelt. Movie forgotten, she pushed a hand through her hair and looked over to Anders. "Thank you. Thank you so much."
 
A N D E R S O N
Anders was visibly relieved with her answer. Honestly, he would never had accepted a refusal anyway. He would have gotten her out of that house and helped her somehow. So, her cooperation was very much appreciated as well helpful. Because there was no easy way of doing anything without her actually trying to help herself. And frankly, Anders was quite proud of her. He knew how hard it was to tell anyone about it yet alone do something about it. She was braver then she and anyone else gave herself credit for.

"I'm barely doing anything."
He murmured and reached over to squeeze her hand as a comfort. He held on for a little longer before letting go, he would both hands to drive right now. With a press of the ignition button, they were off and made it to his house in no time.

Anders helped Lauren out of the car and after entering through the door, he balled his fist and stuffed them into his pockets. If his parents saw any sign that he had been in any sort of fight his mother would have a fit. After the Bridget incident there was no way they'd let him off the hook easily and he needed them to focus on Lauren and her situation anyway. She needed help more than anyone else right now.

"Mooom? Daaad?"
He called out for his folks.

"In here, love ..." He heard the voice of his mother call back.

The living room. Anders beckoned Lauren to follow and led them to the room where his mother sat reading, leaning against his father. They looked at peace. That wouldn't last long.

"I thought you were on a date with ... Lauren?" Alexander looked a bit surprised to see her present. Nina looked up for her book as well.

"Something entirely more important is at hand."
He looked to Lauren.
 
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Lauren looked up at Anders, visibly alarmed at the prospect of telling his parents what she had told him. She didn't know them as well, and she didn't know how they would react to the news. Besides, it wasn't like she had been planning to tell Anderson anyway -- it had just come out. The truth always came out eventually.

But, Anderson had assured her that Nina and Alexander would be able to help her. They would be able to help her get out of her horrible, toxic home situation. And she knew she needed to get out of there.

So, she cast her eyes down to the ground and told them everything. How her dad had beaten her at least once a week since she was around seven years of age. How it had escalated from slaps across the face to punches to full-on physical attacks. How her mother had been powerless to stop it. How he had always tried to buy his daughter off with presents when he had been particularly bad.

How since he had gotten into some trouble with drug dealers in New Orleans, he had been a hundred times worse. How he had kicked her in the stomach with steel-capped boots not two weeks ago. At that point, Lauren lifted up her blouse with shaky fingers to show them the bruises she had shown Anderson. She was crying now, too.

"I -- I don't know what you can do, b - but I'm scared. I don't wanna go b - back there."
 
A N D E R S O N
"Oh and you won't!" At some point during her story, both Hickory parents had stood up from their seats. They were devastated and furious, to think that this had been going on right under their noses.

But they couldn't possibly as upset as Anders was, hearing her talk about it once more only angered him more than the first time he heard it. He was the one closest to her and yet he hadn't seen it. He met the man, felt something was off and still hadn't put it together. He should have known, he really should have. And now all he wanted to do was punch his disgusting face in. Sadly, that was not a possibility, but having him rot in a cell was and he would be damned if they didn't put him away.

"You didn't confront him, did you?" Alexander asked, Anders in particular. He knew his son all too well and frowned she took to long to answer.

"No,"
He grumbled.

"Good. We're going to report him, as horrible as it is, Lauren's injuries are enough to start an investigation." He pinched the bridge of his nose and pulled out his cellphone. "And once they start looking I'm sure they'll get the truth."

"And you need to be treated, I can take you to be checked out at the hospital." Nina told her, gingerly touching her shoulder.
 
l a u r e n
Alexander and Nina Hickory were the parents that Lauren had never had. Anderson was incredibly blessed to have them.

They seemed to actually care about her, which was something she wasn't very used to. The first person to actually care about her was Anderson, and now his parents were doing the same. What had Lauren done to deserve a group of such loving and caring people in her life? Whatever she had done, she was thankful.

"Okay," she squeaked when Nina offered to take her to the hospital. She was still crying, her little body trembling with emotion, and she brought her hands up to her face to wipe her tears from her cheeks. Her face was red and her eyes were puffy from all the crying she had done that day.

Since Nina had to go get ready for the trip to the hospital, Lauren turned to Anderson and wrapped her arms around his waist. She hid her face in his chest and closed her eyes for a moment. Lauren found great solace in his presence and his touch.

"Wh - what's going to happen to me?" she asked him, turning her head up to look at him with her big blue eyes.

Lauren knew that if the case worked, and if her father was put away, she would go into foster care. She didn't want that to happen. She didn't want to leave Anderson, the first person to ever care about her, when she had only just gotten him in her life.
 
A N D E R S O N
Anders remained silent. What was going to happen to her now? He wanted to say he wasn't sure but that would be a lie. He had pretty big and precise idea what would happen next, after all, he'd been through it too. The bigger differences was he was much younger than her when it happened, he wasn't alone and he didn't care what was left behind. However, whatever happened next he was almost certain everything would be okay for her afterward, it had to be.

So, that was what he told her. "You're going to be okay, Lauren, alright? Stay strong, it's important you do." He smiled a little, more for than for him. Because even if she did leave after this he knew she'd find others to care about her just as much and - damn, he was thinking about it way too much. She would most likely stay in town, there were plenty of foster homes in Charmaine, he thought.

Anders sighed and pulled a hand of his pocket just to rub her back or pet her hair, to comfort. His timing couldn't be anymore worse, though, his mother had entered the room again and immediately noticed his now swollen bruised knuckles. "Give me your hands." She commanded, startling him when she marched right up to him. He then groaned knowing what would come next. He showed her both hands.

"Anderson!" She cried at the sight, her voice cracked."You got into a fight!" He expected more yelling, but she just started crying which ultimately made him feel worse. With all that was going on with Lauren and now his own miniscule trouble it shouldn't have been a surprise to see her burst into tears. His mother had a soft heart which also meant it was vulnerable.

Anders began to apologize but she just ushered them both to the car and the hospital.
 
l a u r e n
Lauren didn't like seeing Nina cry. She was a good woman, a great person, and Lauren believed she deserved the best. She was kind and helpful and willing to help her son's girlfriend. And now she was crying, and Lauren couldn't help but feel that it was her fault.

Indirectly, she had caused Nina to cry. Anders had gotten into that fight because of her. Anders had beaten up that guy because he had touched her. Of course, it wasn't her fault, but still, she felt guilty. All she did was cause problems.

When they arrived at the hospital, Lauren and the two Hickorys were shown to the emergency room, where a nurse inspected her abdomen and then applied a salve that was intended to help the pain. She also bandaged up her stomach. The same kind nurse noticed Anderson's knuckles and treated them as well.

Some time had passed. A doctor had come in to assess Lauren and declared her well enough to go home, and once he left, Lauren leaned against Anderson, a hand over her sore belly. The peace didn't last long, however, because a small outbreak of shouts resulted in the door of the emergency room being flung open and Katrina Winter coming in.

Lauren sat up, her eyes wide. Katrina looked frantic -- her hair was a mess and her mascara and eyeliner were smudged, indicating that she had been crying. She looked around until she found Lauren, and when she did, she stormed over, stood in front of her daughter and slapped her so hard across the face that Lauren's cheek was cut on her teeth and a little bit of blood flew onto the sheets.

Immediately, a nurse fled the room to call an orderly.

"Lauren, what the fuck did you do?" Katrina screeched. "The police came and arrested your father! He's going to JAIL! Do you have any idea what is going to happen to us now?! You stupid, stupid bitch!"

Lauren burst into tears.
 
A N D E R S O N
How dare she!

Anders couldn't believe she had the audacity to come here and slap Lauren. And in front of him, no less. It made him sick with anger. Hadn't Lauren had enough pain inflicted on her from her bastard of a father and now her standbyer of a mother too? It was disgusting, the worst, his stomach churned but him feeling ill wasn't nearly enough to stop him from jumping out of his seat and jabbing a finger at the woman.

"Then, hopefully they'll take you with him!"
He shouted back. Nina was quick to force back into his seat before he caused an even bigger seen.

Anders never wanted to hit a woman more in his life before. But he would never actually do it. It was a disgusting act and to think of it only made him angrier and nauseated rather than satisfying. Even if she was a horrid person he could never bring himself to hit her. Ever. It would be disgraceful and unforgivable.

Now. If it was her father on the other hand ... He wouldn't hesitate jumping the man

"Get out of here! Leave her alone, she's gone through enough."


Most of all, at this point, he wanted Lauren to stop crying, to stop feeling scared or sad. More than anything, right now, he wanted her to feel safe, protected, secured, that everything would be alright. And it would.
 
l a u r e n
Katrina stopped abruptly when Anderson yelled at her. She might have been angry, she might have been furious at her daughter, but that didn't change the fact that she was a battered woman, and that Anders was a much bigger man. Lauren knew Anders wouldn't ever hurt a woman, but Katrina didn't know that.

So, she backed down.

When Anders was seated, Lauren hid her face in his shoulder and continued to cry. An orderly came and immediately went to Katrina. He took her by the arm and pulled her away.

"Ma'am --"

"I hate you," Katrina hissed at Lauren. "I've always hated you. I never wanted you. You came along and fucked everything up and now you've ruined my life all over again and I hope I never fucking see you again."

And with that, the orderly escorted her out.

Lauren pulled away only when she knew it was safe. Her face ached and had a bruise now. She looked at Anders and her lip trembled. "I ... I thought she would side with me."
 
A N D E R S O N
The woman left a bitter taste in his mouth. Even when the authorities not only took away his first mother's filthy husband but her children too, she never uttered such horrid and unforgivable words to him and Jenna. Though, she was much different than Katrina and similar in some ways he could still understand completely. No matter how it looked at the end of the day, the facts still remained. When they had even the tiniest risky power to do something to say something, they did not.

Standing by and watching was all that women like her were good at.

Anders took Lauren's small hands into his bandaged two. Naturally, his knuckles and fingers were bruised and cut, but the swelling had went down. The only damaged he minded was his broken pinky, which had been casted, and sprained wrist. But the pain was nothing compared to what she was going through. He could feel as much as he could, it opened old wounds and dampened his heart.

"She was never on your side,"
It pained him to say it but it was true nonetheless. How could she be on his side when she allowed every awful thing that Joshua did to her? She couldn't.

"But I am, I'll always be on your side."
He squeezed her hands affectionately and briefly. "We all are."
His eyes darted to his mother and even his father who had just arrived. And, though, it was unspoken he meant their friends as well.

"I'm sorry what for what you're going through," Anders swallowed, feeling beyond awful. He only wished he had the power to make it better for her. But how? "You don't deserve this."

He leaned in and kissed the corned of her mouth and then her cheek. Then he pulled her in for a hug enveloping her in his arms. Tenderly, he rubbed her back, wanting her to consoled and loved as much as possible.
 
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Lauren inhaled shakily and nodded, pressing her forehead to Anderson's shoulder. She knew he was right. She knew her mother had never been on her side, and really, she had known that forever. She had just never been able to admit it to herself. And that was really sad.

And she knew she didn't deserve it, just like Anderson said. She knew she had never done anything to her parents to warrant their treatment of her. She had not ruined their lives like her mother claimed -- she had not chosen to be born. But still, like any child, it hurt when her parents rejected her. But she had given up on trying to bond with them a long time ago.

A police officer arrived to take their statements. Lauren told him everything, and answered his questions to the best of her ability. She wanted to provide sufficient evidence to jail her father, so she went into details she normally wouldn't reveal to a stranger. She trusted the police officer; he had kind eyes. Her parents didn't have kind eyes.

After the officer questioned Anderson and his parents, he put away his notepad and looked up at Lauren.

"Where will you be staying?"

"I ..."

Lauren trailed off, her hand clenching around Anderson's. She had no idea where she would stay. She had no other family in the world.
 
A N D E R S O N
The last thing Anderson wanted was to be in the same room with the police officers. Not that he held anything against them but he wasn't very popular with the authorities. He has more than one run in with them and not on very pleasant accounts eithet. It didn't help that one of the officers he was quite familiar with. The man glanced at him more than once throughout Lauren's questioning.

More than anything he wanted to wait outside the room for them to be finish. But that was impossible to do with Lauren hanging on to his hand so tightly. So, be stayed silent, Bowes his head, allowing her to hide his eyes and his bandaged hands from sight. There was no way he would be getting into anymore trouble today.

He bit the corner of his lip and waited for Lauren to supply a sufficient answer for the man but when she fell short he knew she didn't have anywy to go. He remained quiet still. There was no reason for him to interject because his mother did so on her behalf.

"Until CPS figure out where to place her, she'll be staying with us." Nina confidently told the officers as if it was obvious, crossing her arms over her chest.

With that, it was barely ten more minutes before they wrapped it up much to Anders relief. He was glad to be rid of them and even happier to know they were free to leave. He wasn't find of hospitals, he had been and out of them note than a boy of his age should be.

"We should be heading home now, Jenna is probably wondering where we all are." Alexander said just as Anders hopped off the bed and helped Lauren down.
 
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Lauren had not a clue where she would be going, but yet it was still a surprise when Nina said they would take her in. She looked up at the woman with nothing but gratitude in her eyes. She knew she would not have been able to handle living in a foster home full of strangers.

"Thank you," she mumbled when they began to walk out of the room, her hand still tightly wrapped in Anderson's. "Thank you so much."

She would be forever grateful to the Hickorys. They were a blessing.

Lauren leaned against Anderson for the entire car ride and allowed him to lead her inside when they reached the house. The house was not empty. Jenna sat in the living room, with Claudia, Lucas and Eden accompanying her.

"Hey, guys, we ..." Claudia trailed off when she noticed the mood of the two teenagers.

"What happened?" Eden demanded, his eyes zeroed in on Anderson's knuckles.

Lauren looked up at her boyfriend and silently asked him to explain, before she made her way to the couch and sat down.
 
A N D E R S O N
"Oh ..." Anders mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck as he stood in front of his friends and stared back at their expectant eyes. He licked his lips lightly before launching into an explanation of that had transpired the past few hours. However, he made sure to stick to the point.

It felt strange relaying the story, maybe even a little uncomfortable having gone through a similar situation. But because of that he knew that Lauren would have a harder time than him. And he would do anything to help and comfort her. Frankly, he'd do anything for her at all.

"Lauren will be staying with us." He finished and waited.

Jenna barely hesitated to hug Lauren, her eyes watered but not a tear fell.
"I'm so sorry." She whispered, her voice was hardly audible but heavy with emotion. "We should have known."

Anders sat on the arm of the couch beside Lauren. He knew exactly what his twin was feeling because he felt the same. They should have known, the two of them at least should have seen the signs. And he actually met her parents, he should have known.

He swallowed and place a tender hand on the blonde's back
 
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Lauren stayed quiet the entire time Anders was explaining the situation. She didn't look at any of them but Anderson, but she could feel their eyes on her. Hearing Anders actually tell them what she had been through, hearing someone other than herself affirm the horrors she had experienced, made it seem all more real.

When Jenna hugged her, Lauren hugged her back. She pressed her forehead to Jenna's shoulder and quietly trembled with tears. "It's not your fault," she murmured, feeling the hand placed on her back. She knew it was Anderson. She recognised his touch better than anyone's.

Claudia sniffled, rose to her feet and also came over to give Lauren a hug. Lauren didn't pull away from Jenna but she still appreciated the touch. She turned her head and smiled at Claudia a little. "Thank you," she said to her. These people were all so lovely.

Meanwhile, Eden had stood up but not to console Lauren. He had given her a little rub on the back but his main focus had been Anderson. Eden stood beside his best friend, put a hand on his shoulder, leaned his chin onto that hand and muttered, "Are you okay?" Because Eden knew what Anderson had been through and how similar it was to Lauren's experiences.
 
A N D E R S O N
Anders watched the huddled girls and Lucas who moved to sit on the back of the couch and gave Lauren a brief squeeze on the shoulder. He couldn't have been luckier to have such caring and understanding friends as the ones in his living room. He could tell their comfort and presence had helped raised Lauren's spirits if only by a little and he couldn't ask for anything more.

"Huh?"
Eden's voice brought him back from his thoughts. A weak smile painted his face. He swallowed."I'll be okay. I just feel awful for Lauren." The word "awful" didn't even begin how to describe how he felt for her right now.

He tightly clenched his free fist but the pain he felt in his hand reminded him not to do anything of the sort. He was completely frustrated and sad, but his anger overshadowed his deeply melancholic feelings. The worst part that there was nothing he could do with those feelings. So, he stomped down that anger and focused on what was most important and that was caring for his girlfriend.

He looked up to see his mother passing by with her hands full. No doubt she and his father was preparing a room for Lauren. He inhaled deeply and exhaled.

"Should we ... "
He paused, thinking of something to say. Something cheerful, helpful. "Should we just have a sleepover?" He inquires, asking Lauren in particular.

"We have lots of junk food and dumb movies to make fun of or good movies."
He rubbed circles into her back with his thumb.