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Post by Chase Connors on Jun 5, 2012 11:31:02 GMT
 Chase allowed himself to be pulled to his feet and he all but fell into his mothers arms in a hug that brought more comfort to him than he would have thought possible. Everything she'd been saying before was gone from his mind and all he could think about were the words he'd just uttered and the rush of emotions that had come with them.
He allowed himself to be steered away from the door and further into the room. The hug broke apart but Chase didn't move far away, still feeling a little unsteady on his feet at that moment. His mother was saying something to him but he just nodded, not even listening to the words that she spoke. His own seemed to be echoing through his mind without any sign of dimming.
What did this mean? Should he tell her? No way. He couldn't, could he? She probably didn't want to hear those words... Would she believe them coming from him? Would he even be able to say them again if he tried to? They scared him enough admitting them to his mother, but to Emily? He didn't know if he'd be able to if he tried. It was like a whole other step... a big jump or something... It would change things. In a way, it already had - for him at least.
The door clicked open behind him and he turned, expecting to see his dad. What he wasn't expecting was to see his sister bopping into the room and Emily standing frozen in the doorway behind her.
His eyes locked with hers and he could see the look that passed across his face when she saw his mother there. The only thing on his mind though: I love her...
"Emily..."
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Post by Emily Prescott on Jun 5, 2012 11:48:39 GMT
 Emily stopped in the doorway, having not expected to see not only Chase but his Mother stood there in the kitchen. An unpleasant feeling settled in the pit of her stomach as her eyes drifted from Chase who'd just said her name, to his Mum, back to Chase then down to Risa who still stood by her side, holding her hand. "I'm sorry we...I didn't...we didn't mean to interrupt." she said, cursing herself for stumbling over her words. Her eyes drifting back up to Chase's Mum then to her boy-friend.
She felt tense again, trying to remember when the last time had been she'd felt so out of place. Again she was left thinking why she'd agreed to come back here with Chase, the idea whilst pleasant had obviously not been a good one. Did she want to spend Christmas with him...well sure but this hadn't been how things were meant to have been. If she hadn't been here there'd be none of this upset, it was definitely not how she'd thought her first meeting with his parents would be. First impressions were everything after all, and she'd just been stood half naked in their sons room, not exactly the platform for a good first meeting.
Taking a step back she forced a smile on her face, already feeling the familiar burn in her cheeks as she waved back in the direction they'd just come from, over her shoulder, "Risa was just showing me her poster...I'll just go and get my things though, they're just back here..." she said, fighting the urge to roll her eyes and her complete inability to form a proper sentence.
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Post by Chase Connors on Jun 5, 2012 13:10:33 GMT
Risa pushed the kitchen door open with her free hand, the other still holding onto Emily's. She'd been right. Her mum and her brother were in the kitchen. Both turned to look at the door when it opened and behind her, Emily froze.
Risa looked between the three of them and frowned, wondering what was going on. Emily had said something about her parents seeing something they didn't like but... She couldn't understand what was going on here.
A weird kind of silence seemed to hover in the air and Risa didn't like it, and she was really confused when Emily stepped back and let go of her hand.
"Risa was just showing me her poster...I'll just go and get my things though, they're just back here..."
"Where are you going? You can stay..."
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Post by Chase Connors on Jun 5, 2012 13:55:18 GMT
 April was more than a little shocked to have heard what she had, but she had absolutely no reason to doubt that Chase meant what he'd said, and part of her hated herself for the way she'd been acting and the things she'd been saying. It wasn't right of her just to assume that every girl was the same when she didn't know that. If this girl - Emily - really had managed to win her son's heart, and if he said she wasn't 'like that', then April hoped he was right, and she wanted to give her a chance. She'd been too quick to judge based off what she'd seen.
After a few minutes she tried to move the two of them further into the room and away from the door. She doubted anyone would come in but just in case - behind a door really wasn't the best place to stand at the best of times.
It was quite clear that Chase wasn't paying the slightest bit of attention to what she was saying to him so she just stopped saying anything. How long would it take him to allow the words to sink in? He needed to fully accept them before he saw her again otherwise, if Emily saw him standing and staring at nothing in this stunned way, she'd know something was up, and April had a slight feeling that Chase wasn't ready to share this new revelation with the girl in question quite yet.
The kitchen door opened and April took in a deep breath. Risa and Emily...
The young girl froze in the doorway and her gaze jumped between April and Chase who currently stood staring at her. Knowing what he'd just said, April knew exactly what was going through his mind at that moment.
"I'm sorry we...I didn't...we didn't mean to interrupt."
Still Emily didn't seem to know where to look and her gaze jumped between the two of them. April didn't know what to say... There was something in the way the girl kept looking at her... was there an element of fear there? Was it... shame? There was something, and it wasn't a good something. Had April really been that harsh with the things she'd said upstairs?
April watched as color flushed Emily's cheeks again, though not quite as bad as what it had been upstairs. She didn't realize that she still hadn't said anything yet and took a minute just too look at her. She didn't remind April of some of the girls that she knew Chase had known over the years - this one... there was something different about her. She looked like she had a bit more modesty than some girls at least.
The smile that crossed over Emily's face looked forced as she stepped backwards and waved in the direction she'd come from.
"Risa was just showing me her poster...I'll just go and get my things though, they're just back here..."
"Where are you going? You can stay..."
April still hadn't said anything since the two girls walked in the room, had she? Oh gods she was making a mess of things.
Stepping around Chase she moved closer to the door. "No, no." She looked as if she was about to say something then stopped. What was she about to say? She had no idea. "Risa's right... Come on in, Emily. Stay."
For Chase's sake, if nothing else, April needed to try and make things right with this girl. She just didn't know where to start.
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Post by Emily Prescott on Jun 5, 2012 14:20:47 GMT
"Where are you going? You can stay..."
Emily looked down at Risa and smiled slightly before looking back up at Chase who had yet to say anything. Something was up with him though she could see it in his expression and it worried her, which was just another thing on top of everything else she was feeling. The look on his face was a strange one and she couldn't help but wonder what had been said before her and Risa got here, though she didn't dare ask.
The silence in the kitchen seemed to linger slightly more longer than was comfortable and her worry increased ten fold, what was up with Chase? Her eyes flickered from him to Risa and then to April, sure there was surprise in her expression when the other woman moved forward. Only now could she really appreciate how pretty she was, and young, Emily felt a small burst of curiosity, knowing she must have had Chase at a young age, she looked incredibly young.
"Risa's right... Come on in, Emily. Stay."
Emily stopped biting down on her lip her eyes drifting from April to Chase, then back to the other woman when her boy-friend continued to remain silent. Seriously what had been said? Smiling softly shook her head, she could't stay, not with all the upset she'd obviously been the main cause of, maybe by going away she could come back another time and try and salvage what had been ruined. "I don't want to be a bother, Mrs Connor's, more than I already have...I really don't mind going back to school, it's where I was originally meant to be anyhow..." she said respectively, her fingers idly playing with the bracelet hanging around her wrist. "I just...I'm sorry...this wasn't how I imagined meeting you." she said quietly, tucking her hair back as she looked down at Risa, giving the small girl a smile.
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Post by Chase Connors on Jun 5, 2012 18:48:34 GMT
It was quite clear that her words hadn't been the ones that Emily expected to hear, and the brief shock on the girls face had been impossible to miss. Emily's eyes had jumped between her and Chase and back again. Chase still stood in silence. April looked at him briefly and squeezed his hand, before moving closer to Emily as she spoke. She really did need to fix the error she'd made.
"I don't want to be a bother, Mrs Connor's, more than I already have...I really don't mind going back to school, it's where I was originally meant to be anyhow... I just...I'm sorry...this wasn't how I imagined meeting you."
April smiled softly and shook her head. "Oh, Sweetie... That's nonsense." She watched the way Emily smiled at Risa and it was quite clear to her that Risa had found a friend in the older girl already. She stopped in front of her, part of her wanting to reach out and pull her into a hug, the other unsure of whether such a gesture would be appreciated. "You shouldn't be at school on your own for Christmas, you should be with family... And, well, you're welcome to stay with ours."
Risa made a comment and April gave her a look. She couldn't keep her face serious and ended up smiling before her attention returned to Emily. "Oh, Sweetie, I'm sorry I shouldn't have judged so quickly..." She reached out a hand and lightly pushed Emily's hair back from her face, smiling down at her reassuringly before she looked to Risa. "Risa... why don't you take Chase to the living room. I think your dad wants to speak with him..."
She had no idea if that was true or not, but she thought that Rio would appreciate a little explanation as well. And besides, if anyone could get Chase to snap out of this silence then his father was the one.
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Post by Chase Connors on Jun 5, 2012 19:05:05 GMT
 Risa didn't know why Emily suddenly though she couldn't stay, or why Chase wasn't saying anything to keep her here, but she was glad that her mum agreed with her and told Emily she could stay.
Again, Emily insisted that she should go and smiled down at her. Risa tried hard not to frown at her but she didn't think she succeeded very well. What could have happened that was that bad?
"You shouldn't be at school on your own for Christmas, you should be with family... And, well, you're welcome to stay with ours."
Risa grinned then and looked up at Emily. "See! I told you mum would let you stay. She loves lots of people here for Christmas."
Her mother gave her a look but it didn't last, just like Risa knew it wouldn't. Her mum loved having people here for Christmas no matter who they were really, and there was no way that she could turn away Chase's girlfriend, was there?
Her mother looked to her again. "Risa... why don't you take Chase to the living room. I think your dad wants to speak with him..."
Risa sighed but grinned too. What was with Chase anyway? He hadn't said anything... But, it was clear that her mum wanted to talk to Emily alone, and hopefully that meant that she was going to try and convince her to stay for Christmas.
Risa skipped over to Chase and grabbed his hand, sticking her tongue out at him. Something popped to mind and she dodged past her brother to the fridge, pulling out two beer bottles like the ones that her dad had been drinking when she'd passed there earlier. Tucking them safely in the crook of her arm, she took Chase's hand again and headed for the door, eager to get out of there so that her mum could convice Emily to stay...
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Post by Chase Connors on Jun 5, 2012 19:14:37 GMT
Chase could do nothing but stare at Emily with the same three words etching a mantra into his brain. I love her. I love her. I love her. I love her. They circled repeatedly through his brain, screaming so loudly that he heard none of the conversation that was going on around him, and he paid no attention to what was happening either. All he could think of was why didn't I notice before? The words screamed so loudly through every part of his being... how hadn't he known before now that he loved her? It was impossibly to miss.
"Risa... why don't you take Chase to the living room. I think your dad wants to speak with him..."
Chase looked to his mother quickly, snapped back to reality a little. "Hm?"
Risa appeared in front of him with a grin then vanished again, reappearing a few seconds later with two bottles tucked safely in her arms. She took his hands and started pulling him towards the door and he went easily. That is, until he came level with his mum and Emily. He looked quickly between the two of them then stopped on Em. "Are you okay?"
Risa still tugged at him and he moved slowly after her, looking back and waiting for a response before nodding slowly and letting himself be dragged back along the corridor and into the living room.
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Post by Emily Prescott on Jun 5, 2012 19:48:25 GMT
All Emily could do when April spoke was smile slightly, surprised that this woman still wanted her to stay after everything, and she was being rather insistent on the matter. When she commented that she shouldn't have judged so quickly Emily shook her head, shrugging ever so slightly, "Who can blame you, I don't..." she said not commenting that she'd been judging herself as well. Though it had happened now and there was nothing she could do to change it, all she could do was to try and make things right now.
When April told Risa to take Chase through to his Father, Emily bit down on her lip, her eyes drifting to her boy-friend as he continued to stare at her strangely. She smiled down at Risa before the girl skipped over to her brother, taking his hand before second thinking something. Emily watched in mild amusement as the little girl grabbed two beers from the fridge before returning back to Chase, the bottles tucked safely in to the crook of her arm. Shaking her head Emily laughed ever so softly not even making a sound before her gaze returned to Chase.
Risa began pulling him towards the door and he obediently followed, though when he reached Emily and his Mum he stopped, his eyes drifting between them before his eyes landed back on Emily. "Are you okay?" he asked, his question making Emily smile a little. "I was going to ask you the same thing..." she said softly, wanting to reach out to him but knowing she couldn't, at least not yet, in front of his Mum after what had happened upstairs, "I'll be fine...you go..." she said, returning the small nod as Risa finally succeeded in pulling him from the kitchen.
Emily let her eyes drift to Chase's Mum, now they were alone and Emily felt slightly nervous once again wishing she could erase this woman's first impression of her from her mind. "Mrs Connor's I need you to know how sorry I am, I never intended...I mean...I'm really sorry..." she finished lamely not sure of what else she could say.
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Post by Chase Connors on Jun 6, 2012 16:02:51 GMT
April waited till Risa had grabbed her brother and started to drag him out of the room. She wanted to speak to Emily alone and try to salvage what she’d risked ruining for good. She had no idea what Emily though of her right now after what had happened upstairs, she was just glad that Emily hadn’t heard some of the awful things that she’d said to Chase.
Chase seemed to snap out of his daze enough to ask Emily is she was alright as Risa dragged him out. April got the feeling that Emily was trying very hard not to reach out for Chase, and to keep herself to herself. Because April was standing there… She didn’t want thing to be so awkward for her, but knowing what to say or do now..? It couldn’t be easy for the teenager to be caught in the way that she was, and some of Rio’s comments really hadn’t helped any… neither had hers.
Risa and Chase vanished down the hallway and April looked back at Emily, who was clearly feeling nervous. April didn’t want to be someone that this girl feared… if her and Chase were together she wanted to be someone this girl could talk to – someone who she liked and maybe even trusted… or something. But how to get to that point now?
"Mrs Connor's I need you to know how sorry I am, I never intended...I mean...I'm really sorry..."
April smiled at Emily and reached up to brush her hair back from her face again, letting her fingers rest under Emily’s chin and lifting she that she could look her in the face. Emily was a very pretty girl, that was clear, but it was natural beauty, not makeup made beauty like some girl. April couldn’t tell whether Emily wore any make up at all right now. And her dress was a very modest one too. She was covered – no flashes of bare thigh or too much cleavage – she was dressed like a respectable girl should be, but stylish at the same time. Yes, April could get used to this girl. She just couldn’t believe that it had taken so long for her to get into her head that not every girl her son knew was the same. It wasn’t fair of her to say some of the things she had to Chase, she was just so, so relieved that Emily hadn’t heard them too.
”No, no, dear. There’s nothing to be sorry about. If anyone here should be sorry it’s me. I judged you far too quickly darling and I’m sorry for that.”
April reached for the younger girls’ hand and gave her an encouraging smile and took a step backwards into the kitchen. While they did have a proper dining room in their house, they also had a small table and chairs set in their kitchen for when they didn’t need fancy meals or when there was just two or three of them or something, and she headed that way now. She wanted to speak with Emily and standing in the doorway probably wasn’t the best place to do that.
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Post by Emily Prescott on Jun 6, 2012 20:13:08 GMT
To her amazement Mrs Connors was smiling at her as she reached up to brush her hair back from her face, for the second time. Emily was sure the surprise on her face was clear as Mrs Connors lifted her head with her fingers, leaving her no choice but to look at her. Again she was struck with how pretty this woman in front of her was, the Mother of two children and she looked barely old enough to have one, at least not one Chase's age. Seriously, she now knew that the beauty was obviously a genetic thing, Chase and Risa were gorgeous to...made you feel somewhat humble.
”No, no, dear. There’s nothing to be sorry about. If anyone here should be sorry it’s me. I judged you far too quickly darling and I’m sorry for that.”
Emily shook her head as Mr Connors took her hand, smiling at her as they moved further into the kitchen. "You had every right to Mrs Connors...you shouldn't have to apologize to me." she said surprised this woman felt the need to apologize to her, wasn't Emily the one who'd been caught half naked? They were moving towards a table, and it was obvious Mrs Connors wanted them to sit and talk some more. Emily wanted that as well, she wanted to clear the air and get to know this woman some without this hanging over their heads.
"I just want you to know..." she started, coming to a stop at the table her eyes on Mrs Connors determined to get this out there, ...I'm not the kind of girl who does things like that...I mean I've never...I really lo...care about Chase, I've never been with anyone else I'm not like that..." she blushed slightly as she explained, doing her best to ignore the almost slip up on her feelings. She wasn't quite ready to admit them out loud to anyone just yet, after all, she was still insecure when it came to Chase, no matter how much she tried not to be. She couldn't help but feel one day soon she'd no longer be enough for him.
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Post by Chase Connors on Jun 7, 2012 15:10:05 GMT
 April led Emily over to the table with every intention of sitting them down to chat a bit, but Emily stopped before then, determination in her voice as she said what she did. It was clear she wanted to get the words she was saying out in the open, and it was just as clear to her that these words weren't easy ones for Emily to say.
"...I'm not the kind of girl who does things like that...I mean I've never...I really lo...care about Chase, I've never been with anyone else I'm not like that..."
April didn't miss the near slip up in her words, and she couldn't help but smile softly. This whole thing appeared to be a lot more serious than she though. How long had this been going on for, anyway? It could only have been since school started and... between September and now? This was a lot to have happened in such a short space of time, but April wasn't about to complain.
"I can see that, sweetie." April reached out to stroke Emily's hair back for the third time and offered her a smile. "I can see you're not like that. You don't need to explain it to me."
April guided Emily to sit down at the table before heading herself over to the fridge, pulling out a carton of juice and holding it up with a questioning look, before grabbing two glasses from the cupboard.
"So... when did you and Chase get together?" Now she'd started to think about it she couldn't get it off her mind. It could only have been a few months at the most.
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Post by Emily Prescott on Jun 7, 2012 16:17:37 GMT
Emily found herself returning the smile shining her way, feeling herself relax considerably when Mrs Connors seemed to accept what she was saying, telling her she didn't need to explain. Maybe she hadn't screwed up as much as she thought she had. Maybe she was just worrying over nothing, Mrs Connors seemed like she wanted to give her a second chance, wanted to move on as much as Emily did and the younger girl was only too willing now.
She settled down at the table as Mrs Connors guided her to, and neatly folded her hands together on her lap, as she crossed her legs. Her eyes followed the other woman curiously, the darkness in her cheeks having lessened considerably now she was feeling more at ease. At Mrs Connors silent question about whether she wanted a drink or not, Emily smiled softly and nodded her head, "Yes please..." she said, tucking her hair behind her ear as she moved to sit more comfortably on her chair.
"So... when did you and Chase get together?"
At the question Emily found herself smiling, the memory of hers and Chase's first, somewhat disastrous meeting flooding her mind, she really had been too hard on him. Looking down at her hands for a moment she took a breath before looking back up at his Mum, the smile still on her lips, "We met...for the first time properly in September in the Astronomy Tower, but we didn't actually go out till a few weeks later after...after the attack in the Forbidden Forest. Erm...so I guess it was October. It's not been too long..." talking about the attack was still hard for her, but again she couldn't help the smile when she spoke of when her and Chase had gotten together. There was no doubt in her mind they'd moved incredibly fast but Emily felt somehow it worked for them...
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Post by Chase Connors on Jun 8, 2012 11:10:16 GMT
It was a good when April could see that Emily was starting relax around her, and the red blush that had been returning to her cheeks began fading again. April had to take it as a good sign. She wanted to get to know this girl now that she new what she did, and she didn't want Emily to feel like what had happened was going to linger in the air from now on. If anything, April just wanted to forget what she'd seen as much as she was sure Emily did.
As she began to pour two drinks, April's curiosity got the better of her and she asked how long the two of them had been together. Glancing over, April could see a smile on the young girls' face as she thought it over.
"We met...for the first time properly in September in the Astronomy Tower, but we didn't actually go out till a few weeks later after...after the attack in the Forbidden Forest. Erm...so I guess it was October. It's not been too long..."
April had headed towards the table and placed a glass down in front of Emily as she spoke, before settling herself into the seat opposite. April found herself smiling at she listened and watched the slightly dreamy look cross Emily's face, but she frowned a little at mention of the attacks.
Of course they'd been in the daily prophet, but it was strange to use them as a reference point in their relationship, so to speak. To include it in their 'timeline' or whatever one might call it seemed a little strange. April hadn't missed the pause in her voice as Emily spoke about them either. "Was someone you know involved? In those attacks?" Maybe a close friend or something? She knew her sons friend had been involved in it, the poor boy. Lachlan, wasn't it? The Prophet hadn't said names, just that it was a couple of muggle borns, and some pureblood students who consorted with muggle borns...
She'd been right though. From October to December? That wasn't very long at all, and yet she believed that Chase really did love this girl - it had been clear in the way he'd reacted to saying those words, and the ferocity with which he'd said them in the first place. But she couldn't talk there, could she? She'd been fifteen when she'd first started dating Rio, and she knew within only a few months that he was the one for her, and that they were going to last. She hadn't expected the same to happen with Chase based off the attitude he always seemed to have towards girls and relationships, but maybe there was hope after all.
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Post by Emily Prescott on Jun 8, 2012 21:45:14 GMT
"Was someone you know involved? In those attacks?"
Emily looked at Mrs Connors and frowned ever so slightly, before looking down to her drink on the table. She wondered how much she'd read in the Daily Prophet's, thankfully for Emily none of their names had really been used but everyone at school knew who'd been hurt, after all they still whispered about it. There were still the looks that went along with having been part of it, the sniggers from the Slytherins and worst of all the nightmares and the constant fear of being alone in the darkness. For Emily though it was much more, since she knew the face of one of her attackers and had also witnessed another kidnapping Dawlish. Her attackers were at the school and she was helpless to do anything or even prove it for fear of consequences.
Looking back up Emily nodded her head, her eyes on the woman in front of her, "I'm sure you know Lachlan, he's my best friend, there was also Marlene a girl in Gryffindor and...me...I was the third one, third student attacked." she explained, swallowing away the lump in her throat. "Marlene was the first down, then Lachie, and then after they taunted me for a while, used the Cruciatus curse and beat me, I passed out...thankkfully. Professor Flitwick found us." she said quietly, it was rare she spoke of that night.
There was a slight tremble in her hands as she clasped them tightly together on her lap. As expected she still suffered with PTSD, though Emily was confident she had a grasp on it. "I never saw myself falling for someone like Chase but after the attack, after finding out how much trouble he went to just to come see Lachie and I in the hospital, I got to see a completely different side to him. He makes me feel safe and protected...I mean, there are times when I still get so scared, terrified even, but Chase...he's like this wonderful light and he just...he makes everything better."
Emily looked down at her hands and smiled softly. Perhaps she'd gone on a little but she'd been nothing but honest, for some reason she found herself needing Mrs Connors to understand how much she cared for Chase, though she found herself now feeling ever so slightly overwhelmed with what she was admitting, "I love you son very much Mrs Connors...not that I'd dare tell him yet." she laughed ever so softly, blinking back her emotions, when had this day turned so intense. What had started out as a little fun had now escalated into her admitting more to his Mum than she ever dare would to her boy-friend.
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