August 5th, Sunday.
Sitting quietly, poking at the plate of eggs and sausage before her, Sweet Pea examined her surroundings. They were different, strange, and she felt hollow. The only thing that seemed to ground her was when her citrine eyes glanced across the table and saw Lemon Tart, seemingly equally listless at the moment.
The event played over and over in her mind. Tart getting tossed aside, the slow, dark grin that seemed to spread on Tripwire’s face as he saw her. The run, the fall, his weight on her, the feel of his hand on her body again…. She winced to herself, and curled up as best she could in the chair. She’d slept fitfully, and the sound of the adults in the living room, just through a single door frame, didn’t help.
“I don’t see what this has to do with our daughter. Your sister gets attacked and so does our little girl! I’m surprised they’re okay!” The voice was that of Lemon Tart’s mother, Sequin Stone, and she was by no means pleased with the situation..
The somewhat gruffer voice of her father, Touring Abode, interjected. “It is an unusual situation, so you’re telling us…”
Buck Withers nodded, lifting the cup of coffee to his lips and taking a long sip. Next to him was Lemony Gems, who was clutching her purse to her chest like her life depended on holding it as tight as she could. She looked, for all the world, like she was lost at sea, clutching a life preserver.
“It’s like we said, Touring: We treat Pea as if she’s a kid sister, but the truth is that we’re her legal guardians. We took her in, because she needed some stability in her life after some incidents in her past, and it goes without saying that part of that instability was the man that attacked her and Lemon Tart yesterday,” Buck explained.. “The man’s name is Tripwire, and he’s Pea’s maternal uncle, as well as her first legal guardian after her parents died when she was a baby.” Buck let his gaze turn towards the doorway that lead into the dining room, and where Sweet Pea and Lemon Tart currently were.
“He was in jail, being held for his crimes against Sweet Pea. Needless to say, they were many… and not pleasant. He would’ve gotten way with it if she hadn’t found some evidence and ran away to Canterlot, which is where we got involved..” Sitting the cup down, Buck looked to the parents across from him, and shook his head. “I’m sorry this got your daughter involved, but you have my thanks. From what I understand, she saved my sister.”
Lemony Gems finally broke her silence, her voice on the verge of breaking. “She called us, I was at work, my phone on silent due to a meeting, out of habit!” she nearly broke down, it was only Buck’s arm sliding around her that grounded her back to the here and now. “Lemon Tart called, telling me what happened, and to come by… as soon as I got the voicemail I came over but I was so out of sorts. I....”
Sequin watched the mother figure of the girl in the other room and took a breath. Despite the fact her own daughter had been in danger, she was proud of Lemon for having protected her friend. “It’s just, I’m sorry Lemony, It’s hard for anyone to wrap their head around is all, and....” She fell silent, looking down at the cup of tea before her she bit her lower lip, trying to formulate what to say. “I’m, glad both girls are okay,” she finally settled upon.
“So are we.” Buck said with a smile. “But your daughter and my sister are close, from what I understand, and along with their mutual friend Sugarcoat, they are quite the little clique at school. And given this situation, we wanted to give you the full disclosure. The last thing Sweet Pea needs is to be put in a position where she feels like she doesn’t have anyone.” He shook his head. “She’s already been there, and it was really hard for her.”
Lemony picked up from there, glancing at Buck, then the parents across from her. “And we understand you have concerns. Just... we want everyone safe.” She deflated a bit, feeling like they would be anything but.
There was the sound of a chair in the other room moving, and all the gathered adults looked up to see Sweet Pea standing there, her eyes on the entire room. Just behind her was Lemon Tart, who reached out for Pea just as she moved forward into the room. “You want full disclosure? You want to know why he came after me?” she asks, her eyes looking to Sequin and Touring. The two adults gave the faintest of nods, and Pea’s eyes narrowed slightly, before she took a breath.
“It’s because I’m his... I’m his little ‘Sweet Poon.’” She reiterated the nickname he’d given her with venom, practically spitting the words from her mouth. “When I was nine was when it started… he fucked me… and no, I’m not going to apologize for the phrasing. He fucked me raw… he raped me at nine years old, and it didn’t stop – ever. From the day I first came to live with him, I was his plaything, and it wouldn’t surprise me if he tried anything before my earliest memories formed.” Her jaw set and she looked at those assembled, the horror on her sister and brother’s faces, as well as a similar look on the faces of her best friend.
“He taped a few of the times he did it, and I jacked the tape when I ran away. Kept it with me while I ran around, no matter where I went. It was my most important treasure, even when I was out in Canterlot whoring myself out…”
Sequin gasped. “You don’t mean…?”
“Yes I do: I was a teenage whore.” Her voice was even, measured as she spoke, with a sense of near-detachment, as if it had happened almost to another person. But that distance vanished as she lifted the sleeves on the arms of her shirt, showing the pock marks on her arms from years of substance abuse. “I’ve done things that you could only dream of in your deepest nightmares, all because some clients wanted it that way. For a while, I was even addicted to heroin – black tar, the nasty stuff, not the white Hollywood crap.” She tugged her sleeves back down and looked at everyone present. “I have a fucked up past, and I know it, Lemon Tart knows it, Sugarcoat knows it… and now you all know it…. Not even my family know all the details, and there are some things I won’t go into, ever.” Her eyes narrowed as she added, “But that bastard, he’s out there somewhere and he’s after me, because I’m the little whore that put him behind bars. I snitched him out… and he’s not happy about that.” She looked at Tart and added, “And as far as he’s concerned...now I come with a playmate.”
She closed her eyes, warding off tears she promised herself she was done shedding. “I understand if you want me to stay away from Lemon Tart. I hope that’s not the case, but given my history, I’m not exactly the best role model and I may not be the safest girl to be around right now. All I can tell you is that I’m trying to be normal again, thanks to the chance offered to me by people who want me to be better than I think I am.” She looked at her adoptive siblings, giving them a smile with all the love she could.
She took a breath after letting it all out. “But thank you for letting me spend the night, despite the situation, and for breakfast.” she finished with, looking to the adults. “And my apologies for my bluntness, but you needed to know. Full disclosure and all that. And I had to tell it the only way I know how – there’s no way to clean it up.”
Lemon looked to her friend, and there were tears in her eyes. She wrapped her arms around Sweet Pea from behind, giving the slightly taller girl some support, and was rewarded when she felt Pea lean back against her, as if feeding off it, needing it. “Pea…” Lemon peeked out from behind her friend’s back, to the horrified look on the adult’s faces. Her parents seemed to be staring in a mix of disbelief, horror… and a bit of pride. She blinked a bit. “Please, we’re okay. A little banged up sure, but don’t keep her from hanging with me, please. She’s been a good friend.” Lemon looked down, and felt Pea’s hand on her own, squeezing, which made her look back up. Sweet Pea smiling to her caused her heart to jump in her chest.
“How could we?” Sequin asked. “I...I just want to protect you Lem, that’s all I want, but I can’t always be there. At least with a friend, you have some backup, and it’s not her fault her uncle’s an absolute dredge of humanity.”
Touring nodded in agreement. “Exactly: the man sounds absolutely terrible. If she’d been alone, I can only imagine what we’d be hearing about today, but she wasn’t. You saved her, and you both got out.” He smiled as he stood up, walking over to the pair of girls, he rested a hand on Sweet Pea’s shoulder. “Thank you for your honesty in all this, Sweet Pea. You’re stronger than you know if you’re pushing forward despite the past you have.” He looked to Lemon, who looked up at her father, then he took her warmly into his arms, hugging her. “We’re just glad you’re okay, Lem.”
Lemon couldn’t hold it back, and cried into her father’s shoulder, the emotions of the past day finally crashing down on her. Sweet Pea squeezed her shoulder before moving over to Buck and Lemony, both of whom were up in an instant and hugging her, the two families just happy that their youngest were fine.
It was Sweet Pea who broke the silence after a few minutes. “So...is it okay if Lemon comes over? I’m kinda not ready to be without a friend, but I could use a change of clothes.”
Finally back home, Sweet Pea had headed for the shower, and had spent a good, long time soaking in the heat of the water that poured down her body. Now, she stood in front of the fogged-up mirror, looking into it, as if searching her soul. She’d bared herself, again, to people who were strangers to her, and they had accepted her. Maybe been a bit wary, but they’d come around. “Maybe I’m not as messed up as I thought.”
“Or maybe you’re just a little whore everyone wants to fuck, so they take pity on you, who knows?” The voice was dark and mocking, and it made Sweet Pea wince as she saw the image in the mirror shift, and through the fog, she saw a darker version of herself, but a more perfect version, one unmarred by the scars that crisscrossed her body. “The poor little whore, who’s uncle fucked her silly before she was even a bleeder… boo hoo.” The image smirked. “You tell the story like you didn’t like it, like you didn’t crave that cock sliding in an…”
Swiping at the mirror, it did nothing but clearing the image, and leaving a cackling laugh in the back of her mind. As she gripped the sink, squeezing she whispered the words, “Fuck you.” Sweet Pea reached for her clothes—she didn’t have time for this shit. After all, she had a friend in her room.
Lemon Tart laid back on Pea’s bed and smiled a bit. The room was not what she’d expected, way more girly, but it had the scent of the girl she loved. She just closed her eyes and relaxed, feeling surrounded by Sweet Pea here.
She’d texted Sugarcoat, giving her the details of what had happened the day before. Of course, the white haired teen was on her way to Pea’s house to help support the pair against “that fuckface”.
Chuckling, she glanced over as Pea entered the room. This time the teen was wearing a simple T-shirt and shorts, and her hair—still a bit wet from the shower—was quite spiky, going this way and that. “Hey girl, you look ten times better than you did earlier.”
Sweet Pea nodded, and tossed the towel she’d been using on her hair into the basket. “Yeah, I feel it.” she slumped back onto the bed herself, sliding up against the headboard. She pulled a small pony plush in against herself, one of those Filly Funtasia designs, and nuzzled up with it, looking at Lemon Tart. “Hey, did you mean it?” she asked, citrine eyes glancing up from the pony she was cuddling.
Lemon glanced from her phone, having been going through her social media. Eyes meeting her friend’s own, she saw the questioning look, and sighed again. “Yeah.” she grinned. “Can’t help who you fall for and all that, ya know, so yeah. I meant it.”
Sweet Pea settled back against the headboard again, as if considering the girl for a moment. She had to admit, Lemon Tart was attractive, so far as that went, the girl flaunted it at times too, like yesterday. She blushed as she thought about how awesome Lemon had looked, tossing away that stray board she’d used to knock out Tripwire, and reaching out to her…
She blinked the image away, she didn’t need a relationship based on hero worship… but she did respect the girl across from her quite a bit, and the events of the day before had only exacerbated her feelings. Was it attraction, or even love? Pea wasn’t sure, she’d never been in love, she’d found lust a couple of times; pure, physical attraction to the occasional client… she’d even convinced herself she loved one of her pimps once, when she was thirteen…. Of course, he was the one that sold her out hardest.
“Hey, Lem…” with that, she leaned forward, and pressed a quick, but firm kiss to the other girl’s lips.
Lemon Tart’s eyes went wide open, the feeling of warm, sweet lips on hers came as a not-unwelcome surprise, and she responded in kind, pressing back into the kiss for a moment. Her eyes slowly drifting to half closed, savoring the experience. Her heart felt like it was going to pound through her chest as she kissed Sweet Pea.
Then, the sound of the door opening hit their ears. “Hey I just got here and woah! Uh, you girls need a few more minutes here?” Sugarcoat’s wry voice met the ears of the two kissing teens, who immediately scooted to opposite ends of the bed from one another.
Sweet Pea’s eyes shot open, as the water in the tub splashed around her. The warm water felt amazing against her body, though she found the redness in her skin due to the flushing indicated time for her to get out. She rubbed her eyes, blinking owlishly a few times. This was the first time she’d ever fantasized about anyone, let alone a friend. She thought about the slightly younger girl, and found herself blushing yet again. Sighing she slid from the bath, grabbing her towel and beginning the process of drying off. May as well get back out there.
By the time Sweet Pea had slipped back into her room, Sugarcoat has arrived, having been called on by Lemon Tart, the white haired teen smirked as she dropped the bag of goodies she was holding on the bed. “Figured we could eat and chat,” Coat commented, and inside the bag were a delightful assortment of sweets, and various other treats that would fuel the girls for the rest of the day.
“Ohh, Thin Mints!” Pea dove for the box, grabbing it up and pulling it to her, “My Precious…”
Sugarcoat smirked ear to ear. “Thought that was Lem over there.”
For her part, Lemon Tart, blushed a pink that would rival even Pinkie Pie’s hair. “H-HEY!” she gasped.
Pea smirked. “Maybe, but these are my second precious,” she announced, taking a bite of one of the thin, chocolate deliciousness.
Sugarcoat chuckled. “Good. So spill, the fuck happened? I get a text from Lem saying that you two were attacked yesterday outside of the Pier?”
Pea sat the box aside, open for the rest of the girls to have some as she nodded. “Tripwire. Bastard found me, not sure how.” She shook her head. “He tossed Lem aside like she was a doll, then came after me. If it wasn’t for Lem knocking his ass out with a board in an alleyway, I might be dead.”
Lemon Tart smirked. “I hit him good too, felt it reverb up the board, just a solid crack.” She smirked, though she winced and shifted on her ankle. “He did kinda screw up my ankle though when he threw me.” She shivered. “I was totally scared, Coat. Like, insanely so, but I had to help Pea, right?”
Sugarcoat nodded, “I’m glad you’re both ok, and from now on we move together, the three of us, ok?” she looked between the other two, who nodded in agreement. “Good, because if I see him, I’m going to make sure I break his kneecap.” she said simply before taking up a thin mint for herself.
“Vodka, check; Advil, check….” Popping open the pill bottle, Tripwire downed around double the recommended dose of the painkiller, chasing it with a long pull from the bottle of vodka as he groaned. That bitch had nearly caved his head in, but thankfully she wasn’t that strong. Still, the hit had hurt, and he likely had a concussion, but that wasn’t going to stop him. No, he had a mission.
The image of Sweet Pea, under him, powerless, trapped against that dumpster, it was getting him excited already, to the point he had to adjust his sitting position to account for it. “Yeah, bitch was mine… so close, so Goddamned close I’m getting a hard-on just thinking about it.” He grit his teeth against the pain his anger caused him, every time he spoke, the pain echoed. He’d been close to a grenade back in the war that had gone off, it’s what gave him the scar on his face, yet this pain was worse, because it was inflicted by that little bitch who was protecting what was his!
“I’ll track her down, then I’ll teach her a lesson, school’s in, and they won’t know what hit em.”
He pulled the laptop forward, a small netbook he’d grabbed for cheap, and began his research. He’d move soon; they wouldn’t expect him to strike again so quickly, and he knew he needed that element of surprise.
Sweet Pea and her little cunt of a friend were going to be all his, ripe for the plucking. Then, when he was done...well, they’d never find the pieces. And even if they did? Good thing some psychopath over in Canterlot was all but openly inviting the blame be put on him. Tripwire may have had some...unique kinks, but at least he wasn’t a sloppy Jack the Ripper wannabe.
Night was falling, and San Francisco was covered in a dull, orange light. The girls had spent the day together catching up on what had happened, and comforting one another. Pea and Tart having finally come to terms with it, and Sugarcoat playing the middle ground for them to work through the issues.
Now, Pea and Tart were settled on the small couch in Pea’s room, while Coat settled in on the bed, the three watching some random drama they’d found on Netflix.
“Oh come on, it’s not like she even likes him!” Coat stuck her tongue out at the screen. “They are totally incompatible, Jesus who’s writing this?”
Sweet Pea laughed, “It’s a trashy drama, like it matters, Coat.”
Coat huffed. “Well, excuse me for having higher standards for media. Just because they can take shortcuts with the story doesn’t mean they should, you know!”
Lemon giggled. “She’s got a point, but yeah, this isn’t very good.” she shrugged, “Still, way more fun with friends.”
Lemony Gems slowly opened the door, peeking in on the three. “You girls okay? It’s getting late, and tomorrow is a school day.”
Sugarcoat blinked, then winced. “Yeah tomorrow is Monday, isn’t it?”
Lemon Tart removed her arm from around Pea, and nodded, “Yeah, should probably head back. Would you mind taking me home, Coat?”
Sugarcoat nodded, “Yeah I gotcha.” She looked to Sweet Pea, who for her part, was looking a bit sad at the prospect of her friends heading off at this rate. “You gonna be alright?”
Sweet Pea nodded, “Yeah, yeah I think so. I mean, things are both good and bad.” She smiled to Tart, who returned the grin… she had someone to lean on, and that meant the world to her, but right now, she really wished the other girls didn’t have to go.
“Look, let’s plan for something this coming weekend, and we’ll still see each other at school.” Tart said, smiling up to Lemony Gems who nodded in return.
“I’m sure we can host a sleepover or something in a week. But school comes first.” she looked at Sugarcoat. “Drive safe, okay? And call if something happens.”
Coat nodded, “You got it, Mrs. Gems. You take care as well, Pea. We’ll catch you in the morning, okay?” The pale teen hugged Sweet Pea, who returned the gesture.
“Thanks Coat, Tart… both of you, thank you so much.” She hugged Lemon Tart tight, who returned the hug with equal warmth.
“Yeah it won’t be but a few hours before we’re together again, we got each other’s backs.” The smaller teen smiled brightly before moving with Sugarcoat, heading for her car.
Lemony smiled warmly to Sweet Pea. “Come here.” she said, opening her arms… to which Sweet Pea slid into them, hugging her sister tight.
“I have friends, I have family… now, I just need to be rid of him.” She squeezed Lemony before pulling back. “Thanks for being here for me, Lemony.”
Lemony for her part waved it off. “We’re family Pea, and I like to think that the family we choose is stronger than the family we’re given in some cases.”