11 - Everybody Talks

Opening the door, Robin planted a fake smile as she faced the trio.

Ms Collins's hand clamped on her shoulder; Robin forced herself not to flinch. "Hon, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Nodding obediently, Robin slipped past the adults and Erin. Her hands trembled and her palms sweated.

"Should we go see the doctor?"

"No, I'm fine. Really, Ms Collins, I am."

"Robin?" Erin scuttled to her side. No one spoke. "Why are you shaking?"

"I'm not." Robin protested as her hands clasped together.

"Yeah, 'ya are!" She tugged at her hands.

"I'm fine, Erin."

"But-"

"Erin," a soft request came from Ms Collins. "Can you and Daddy go downstairs, please?"

Erin nodded. Taking Mr Bishop's hand, they walked together.

Ms Collins wore a plaintive smile. "You want to tell me what happened?"

"Nothing happened. I'm perfectly fine."

The woman sighed and her head nodded toward the girls' bedroom.

"Ms Collins, thank you for your concern. But, I promise you, I'm-"

"Fine? Robin, everything doesn't always need to be 'fine'." She air quoted."

"I-I know that."

"That's the kind of crap I talked and where did it get me?"

Robin's head bowed as they crossed the door frame.

"I know that you're afraid of something - someone." Sitting on the extra bed, her hand smoothed the neatly made cover.

"I-I. I'm not."

"I can see it in your eyes. I saw it when you fought to flinch when I put my hand on your shoulder. Erin saw it. You're hands"-Ms Collins's hands sandwiched Robin's-"they're still shaking."

Biting her lip, Robin swallowed. "Please, I'm okay," she said.

"I get that you've only known me for a few days and you don't want to admit it. Trust me, I more than understand." Her gaze turned to the window. "But holding it in... Robin, it doesn't do anything but hurt you in the end."

"What do you mean?"

Ms Collins patted the empty bed space. "I lost Erin because I couldn't deal with his temper. I stayed when I should have gone. I made decisions that could have been prevented. I didn't deal with the problems when they existed, and it gobbled me whole. You don't need to be like me. I can't promise that the nightmares will go away, but I know they're eating you right this very minute. They won't go until you admit that you're not fine." She finished, her glossy eyes found Robin's.

Robin's head shook. "With all due respect, Ms Collins, you don't know me. Nothing bad happened except the crash. That's it."

Her face fell in dismay. Ms Collins stood and side-stepped Robin on her way to the door. "Come on, Robin. Let's go." Her voice was broken and quiet as she held the knob's handle.

"What do you mean? Where are we going?"

"To the hospital."

"I don't need to go. I told you I'm fine. There's nothing wrong with me."

"I'm not going to argue, Robin. Now, let's go."

Grumbling, she stormed past Ms Collins, leaving behind her maturity. Stopping at the staircase, she whipped around her head. "Why can't you just get I'm fine! I don't know what kind of hell you've been through, and frankly, I don't care right now! Maybe you should go preach this speech to a group of women who actually care, or go talk to a shrink! Just leave me alone!" She ran down the stairs. To her relief, Ms Collins wasn't on her heels, but her words struck nipped at her heels.

There was noise in the kitchen, so Robin searched for an empty space. With blurred vision, she zoomed past the dining table. Who the hell was she? First it was Ms Hartman, now Ms Collins! Everyone wanted to tear her down, make her talk. Couldn't they understand the walls they hammered at were the exact one supporting her? Of course not! They were too selfish to see, to care about the damaging trail they left behind after their forays.

She flew out the back door. The breeze whispered in her ear. Run! Run away, Robin! Leave them! Her hair flapped in her face as she trotted. The peebles dug into her soles but she cared not. There were woods across the Bishop's yard, just behind house number 22.

The forest was her sanctuary. Actually, all the innocent creatures hidden in the trees or sleeping beneath the mud were. With a lopsided grin she stared at the beckoning evergreen trees. They were beautiful.

Running around to the front, Robin stopped at the sidewalk.

Robin! Robin! Come here! The woods called. She almost swore she saw them wave. Staring ahead, her gaze glazed.

One foot stepped into the asphalt. The other was about to join until something yanked her away.

Honk!

Straight away, Robin blinked. Her eyes widened as her jaw dropped.

The car zoomed past her, dragging a few dead leaves with it. Still, Robin's breath huffed. Every moment played again like a disk looping.

She swore she saw the man who hit her parent's car. Alas, the man wore no tattoos or a hard jaw.

Even so, the trauma brought on warped memories.

"What the fuck is wrong with you!" Mr Bishop spit as he spun Robin around. His eyebrows were creased with anger but also with concern. Concern of a father.

"I-"

"Don't ever do that again! You could have died, Robin! Are you trying to kill yourself?" His face contorted the more he spoke.

"No, Sir. I just-just I..."

"What the hell are you doing out here? And, didn't your parents ever teach you to look both ways?"

Squeezing her eyes shut, she ripped out of his hold and ran to the house. The door left open behind her.

Sobs wracked her body as she blindly searched for solace. "Fuck!" Stubbing her toe, she clutched it and limped the rest of the way into the downstairs powder room.

Listening to her ears and temples pound, feeling her heart swell in pain and sadness, slumping to meet the cool tile on her bum. Her forehead leant against the wooden cabinets as her shoulders rolled.

When the hell did life get so complicated? Ms Collins? Mr Bishop? Ms Hartman? The crash?

No.

Deep down, Robin knew the answer clear as day.

~

She heard the mummers from behind the divider. With her eyebrows knit together, she sighed.

They were talking about her. All of them were. She shouldn't have been listening, but she couldn't help her ears picking up when they said her name.

Annoyed. She was annoyed. They blatantly disregarded her needs. Glancing to the side, a photo hung on the wall. Dreadful were the colours slobbered on the canvas. Baltic blue, sea sick green, and some golden flecks drooled from the top to bottom. It reminded her of long raindrops from the jowls Teddy would drip. A five year old could do better, she criticised. They called it art? Squinting, she scanned the black print underneath. Job Quincy. What an unusual name.

"So, I'd just keep watching over her." The doctor's voice crescendoed as he peeked into her privacy. "Hello, Robin."

"Hi," Robin said. A smile didn't twitch. The sternness in her glare sparkled. "When can I leave?"

"Uh, the nurses are getting the release forms. As far as I can tell, she's just a teenager going through her moody faze." The senior tried not to hide the irritation in his voice. "It'll pass. Until then, young lady, treat your parents-"

"Foster parents," she interjected.

Pausing, he took a heavy sigh as his tongue clucked. "Treat your foster parents with respect. They've given their homes and put food on the table for you. The least you could act is respectful."

Sighing, she looked down. She didn't need a lecture but she also knew he was right. "Okay."

"Alright, you're all good to go. Have a good evening, Mr Bishop, Ms Collins, and you as well Robin." With that, the man in the white coat stepped out.

Swinging her legs around, Robin scooped up her clothes and shoved through to the changing curtain. Before divesting, she poked her head out. "A little privacy, please?" Her tone wasn't smart-mouthed, but it wasn't purely polite either.

Nodding, the pair exited, and Robin closed the hanging curtain. It was the size of an eye wash station in a chemistry classroom. As clean as it was, there were still stains embedded in the plastic.

She hated looking at herself. Every time she peered at the fading scars, she was reminded of the screwed up mistakes she made.

On her seventh rib was a jagged scar. Her father beat her so bad she couldn't walk without shooting pain in her side, but it was her fault. A small grin twitched at her lip. But, it had been worth it.

"Hey! Hey, wait!"

Despite his calls, she ignored him, keeping her stare planted on the cracks on the sidewalk. His feet still pursued her. Walking faster, she broke a brisk, beginning to trot. Whatever he had to say, she wasn't interested.

Besides, she'd already be in trouble for visiting Sodino's.

"Wait!" A hand clasped on her shoulder, and she jumped around to give the guy a nice pound to the nose. But, she stopped. In his palm was a necklace strapped on a gold chain.

Dabbing her collar, it was void of its usual accessory. Narrowing her eyes, she stood firm. "Where the hell did you get this?" Her eyes were steel and her tone as iced as the Arctic hail.

"I found it on the ground nearby the bonsai tree in my family's bakery. I noticed you were wearing it in our shop, but you weren't wearing it when you checked out." Handing it to her, he returned a smile. "I guess it got caught and slipped off."

A blush crossed her cheeks as she averted her eyes. "Sorry, I was rude. Thanks for giving it back." It meant a lot to her. The necklace was a memory of the good days.

"It's no problem. I'm Jonas, by the way." He stuck out his hand.

Clutching the chain in her other palm, she tentatively shook the teen's hand. "Robin." Her eyes shifted to his Nike sneakers.

"You playing hookie?" His hands were now in his pockets.

"Pardon?"

"Playing hookie."

Shaking her head, Robin's brows dipped. "I don't know what that means."

"It means skipping school. It's barely one, and you're out shopping in my bakery."

She paused, thinking. "Uh, yeah. My mother isn't feeling well, and a treat always makes her feel better." The lie tore at her conscience, making her heart sink. But, she couldn't just say, "My father was so drunk last night that I had to clean up his puke, and I think I deserve a treat after a straight week of cleaning duty." Even that in itself wasn't the whole truth.

"That's a shame. I hope she feels better." The black rimmed glasses slid down his nose so he pushed them back up. He was lanky, hardly any meat to his bones, like her.

"What about you?"

His face contorted as tilted.

"Why aren't you in school?"

"My father's bakery was getting in a big order, and they needed all the help they could find. My father checked me out early."

"Right. Hey, uh, I need to go. My mother needs me."

"Uh, yeah. No problem. See you around sometime?"

"Yeah, I guess." It needed to be an empty promise. For her sake she could never see Jonas again, not if she wanted a beating. So putting on a brave face, she waved. "Bye, Jonas."

"See ya, Robin. Your next treat's on me, just tell them Jonas said so." With a wink, they parted ways.

Robin couldn't help the blush that spread under her eyes as she hooked on the necklace.

Despite her apprehensions, Jonas had been all worth it. Having a fling, as short as it had lasted, had been. Her first kiss from a male who cared had been all worth it.

The month of agonising steps from the blade that sliced into her seventh rib before her father's fists had, had been all worth it.

Word Count: 2034

I'm dedicating this chapter to ReillyDunn31 and her story Heart of a Dreamer! It's a #NoMoreBullying story!