Not Quite A Sleepover

The trip to the car was a short one. After passing by the bonfire entrance, we rounded a corner and arrived in front of the new football field where we saw a red car just in front of it.

Claire had calmed down after the hug but she was still leaning on me, her eyes weren't puffy anymore and there was a glimmer of determination in them.

The air was cold and the whole school was quiet and dark, the street lamps being the only source of illumination.

Claire and I stepped to the backseat of the car, waiting as Lisa took out her keys, opening the driver's seat of the car. She stepped into the car and in the next second, we heard a faint click sounding from the windows.

"Get in." She rolled the glass down and said.

I opened the door and gestured for Claire to go in first and when she did, I stepped inside also and closed the door with a minute thud. The insides of the car were neat and the seats were comfortable but it was dark, not that anyone minded.

Claire leaned on me, resting her head on my shoulder as Lisa sparked the car, the headlights shooting light at the road and then stepped on the pedal. The car started moving.

"We are we going?" Lisa asked as we came out of the school, through the opened gates, light was glinting out of the windows of the security post when we passed by it.

"Do you know where the suburbs are?" I asked in reply, unsure of what to say. I didn't know how the locals called the place or any notable landmark so I settled for this.

"Hmm, where the intersection leads to right? On the other side of the town?"

"Yeah, that's the place." I nodded at her and then looked down at Claire who was staring out of the window.

Lisa mouthed something and then increased the speed of the vehicle as we entered the highway. It was almost empty with only a few cars driving along it so she could afford to speed up.

The trip to the neighborhood was comfortable. No one spoke and no one made any noise, silence reigned throughout. But it was good, it gave all of us time to think, especially Claire.

The only time I spoke again was when she branched at the intersection in the direction of the neighborhood and I had to give her directions to Claire's house.

She whirled the wheel to the left as we passed by a street, with beautifully lit houses on its sides, and drove along another empty street.

"Stop right here." Claire rose her head from my shoulder and remarked as we reached the end of the street, two other streets lay on our right and left, and peeking through the window on my right, I could see Claire's house a few meters away.

"You sure?" Lisa looked at the rearview mirror and asked calmly. Claire simply nodded.

"Her house is just on our right. We'll take it from here since Claire probably doesn't want to alert her parents of her arrival." I explained to Lisa and she looked out of the right window as if searching for Claire's house.

"...Okay, then I guess this is it," She turned to look at us with a faint smile. "I guess I'll you guys at school tomorrow."

I flashed her a thankful smile and Claire did the same, looking at her with sorry eyes. She then shifted her eyes to stare at me meaningfully, her face serious. Right, I had to say something about Brody.

"Yeah, you bet. You don't need to worry about Brody, he won't be at school tomorrow if all goes as planned," I assured her confidently and I saw her eyes glimmer with emotion.

"I have some thoughts on how to deal with him without all this being a pain in our asses, if everything goes well, you won't even have to hear of him again.

"'I'm going to put him down but I'm gonna need your discretion for whatever comes next. Can I trust you on that Lisa?" I enunciated and questioned seriously.

Claire was staring at me but my gaze was on Lisa. She held my gaze for a few seconds and then nodded, I could see a glimmer of hope flashing across her eyes.

"I trust you, Xander," She smiled. "I'll trust you to do what you think is best, for all of us. Goodbye, guys."

I nodded at her and then used my hand to open the door, climbing out of the car. I held the door, thinking Claire would pass through it but she opened the other door and came out of it, her face expressionless and almost pensive.

The corner of my lips arched into a smile and I shut the door gently, she did the same, looking at me.

I saw Lisa turn to face her wheel and as Claire walked behind the car to get to me, the car curved anticlockwise and after flashing us a wave, Lisa stepped on the gas pedal and the car shot away, leaving me with Claire.

"Let's go," Claire said as we watched the car drive away, and nodding in agreement, both of us strode towards her house.

We got to the front lawn and I gazed up to admire the house. It was a regular two-story building, like the rest of the houses in the neighborhood, painted white with a blue roof.

There was a path extending from where we stood towards the garage entrance where a black SUV was parked in front. The house was lit and I could hear the sound of running water through one of the windows.

We were at her house and so it was time for me to leave, but before I could say anything, Claire gestured me to follow her with her eyes and then walked towards the right side of the house.

I rose an eyebrow at this and wordlessly followed behind her and we reached the front door. She looked through the window on top of it and then turned the doorknob carefully, opening the door. We entered the house.

The house was beautifully decorated with flower vases settling on the sides of the door, and the flooring was smooth and wooden with a doormat spread in front of the door.

The house was warm and smelled of dinner, and I could hear the sound of someone chopping vegetables just ahead, at the first corner of the lit hallway. And just a few steps on our right was a wooden staircase that led to the second floor.

Claire stepped to the stairs and started climbing it, I followed shortly after observing the interior of the house. As we climbed, we heard someone shouting, "Is that you Claire!?"

A familiar mature high pitched voice that belonged to a woman asked and Claire paused. It was her mother...

"Yes, it's me, Mom, I just came back." She said, straining her voice loud enough for the woman to hear.

"You're awfully early sweetie, did something happen at the bonfire?" She asked casually, the sound of the tap running mixing up with her voice.

I turned my head to look at Claire's face and saw her cringing, pursing her lips, her forehead creased as if she didn't want to remember something.

"...No Mom, just felt like coming back," She resumed her climb. "I'm not feeling too well so I'm going to sleep. You guys can have dinner without me."

"Alright, Claire. Sleep tight." Her mother replied loudly and after, all we could hear was the sound of the water running and the knife biting at the surface of a wooden board.

We reached the second floor and Claire opened the second white door and entered, I walked in after her. I closed the door behind me and found myself in a small pink and white bedroom.

The floor of the room was covered with a dark blue woolen carpet and there was a well-laid bed with clean pink sheets on my right, at the end of the wall.

There were two white wardrobes on my left, near the door, a bookshelf, and a white metallic desk separating the two in the middle with a large white mirror on it resting with its back against the wall and there were all sorts of cosmetics lying on top of it.

The room stank of perfume and all kinds of fragrances and I couldn't help but notice a group of plushies spread on top of the bed, right in front of the pillows. Posters of cheerleaders and pop bands were pasted on the walls.

A vertical slider window draped by a curtain, that also doubled as a door was situated on the wall in front of me, leading to a small balcony.

It was open, allowing the cold evening air to wander through the room, reducing the temperature to a chill

"Uhm, Claire isn't this my cue to leave?" I asked in confusion, stepping back as she opened one wardrobe to take two blankets from it.

It felt wrong being in her room after what just happened with Brody. She needed space to process what happened and she couldn't do that while I was here, intruding into her personal space. What did she have in mind, bringing me up here?...

She paused, the thick blankets resting on her arms, and then turned to face me.

"...Can you stay? Just for the night? I don't think I'd be able to sleep if you go." She asked softly, her eyes pleading with a mixture of sadness and fear plastered on her face.

I was taken aback, my eyebrows lifting slightly and my eyes widening as I looked at her intently. She surprised me by inviting me to stay overnight, and I could empathize with her reasoning.

In situations involving trauma, the brain often employs a defense mechanism to seek safety and support. Being present for her during her most vulnerable moments and shielding her from the source of her trauma led her to perceive me as her protector or guardian, at least until she fully healed.

While it was a natural response and not entirely unexpected given the circumstances, it still caught me off guard. Sigh, I guess I'd have to call my dad or send him a text, I didn't want him to stay up late just waiting for me...

"Sure Claire, whatever you need." I smiled widely at her and she managed to force a wistful smile.

She walked past me and crouched at the foot of her bed, spreading one of the thick blankets on the floor and layering the other ones on top of it to create something like a bed.

Leaning on the door, I took out my phone and sent a message to my dad, telling him I'd be sleeping over at a friend's place and apologizing for not informing him beforehand.

I looked up from my phone as I waited for a reply and saw Claire putting one of her white fluffy pillows on the face of the makeshift bed.

The phone vibrated in my hand as she stood up and I placed my attention on it, pressing the front button when the cursor fell on the messaging app icon.

Dad: Alright bud. Have a good time but don't forget to come home early for school.

Me: Sure Dad. Thank you.

I switched off the phone and slipped it into my left pocket.

"...I'm turning off the lights." She informed me the moment I looked up, standing at the head of her bed near a light switch on the wall. I nodded in agreement with a smile and then slipped my feet out of my shoes, pushing them under her bed.

She flicked the switch, drenching the room in darkness, light coming through the door, the under, from the lit corridor outside the room, and the streetlight behind her room.

I moved to my 'bed' and bent to lie on it, feeling the cold hard ground on my stomach as I poisoned my body, and head, to face the window, wrapping the blanket at the side around me.

As I made myself comfortable on the layers of fabric, Claire walked past me to the door and locked it with a click. Then, I heard the sound of her stripping out of her clothes, whether her skirt, her shell, or both, I didn't know and didn't care.

She walked up to her bed and fell on it, slipping her body into one of the sheets. The room became drenched in silence...

"...Xander are you there?" She whispered.

"I'm right here Claire," I responded calmly as I turned my body to lie on my back, my face pointing at the low white ceiling, a cold breeze filling the room.

"...I didn't let him touch me you know," She started after a brief pause. "Even though I didn't fully believe what you said about Brody, I took your words to heart and became cautious around him when he came to my side at the bonfire." She paused again and continued, her soft voice getting weak.

"We talked and laughed together but anytime he wanted to get close or touch me, I either brushed his hands off politely or shifted myself, despite the growing need to let him do what he wants.

"He noticed what I was doing and asked sweetly, so I told him I just wasn't in the right mood. He smiled in understanding and then told me with that charming smile of his that he wanted to show me something that would cheer me up. God, I'm such a fool for believing him and that disgusting smile of his." Another pause, and as I listened to her voice attentively, I could hear it starting to break.

"I was skeptical but he was the only one to keep me company since Jackie was behaving like a bitchy self and I was kinda angry at you for ignoring me so I shrugged and followed him, thinking I could use it as a chance to prove you wrong. Make you eat your words for misjudging him.

"When we got to the bleachers, he started finding excuses to touch me, saying he can make me feel better. Surprised, I lashed out at him and took a step back since I didn't expect him to do that.

"I was just about to leave in anger when he grabbed my hand, pulled me back to him, and tried to kiss me. I slapped him and I think that was when he snapped and punched me to the ground, calling me names and...then h-he—"

"Shssh, it's okay Claire, you don't need to continue, I get it. It wasn't your fault," I interrupted her when I heard her about to cry and told her in an assuring tone that made her silent.

"Some people are just scumbags who think the world revolves around them. Most evil people are clever and very deceptive so don't beat yourself up for not trusting me or your choices.

"The most important thing right now is that you're safe and back home with your family with your dignity intact. He'll be punished for all the pain he's caused.

"You're strong Claire, you know it, I know it and your family does as well, so trust me when I say you'll be alright when you sleep and that you'll come out this stronger than ever," I spoke confidently, almost about to raise my body to look at her but I decided against that and relaxed on the fabrics.

The room became silent, and after a few seconds, I heard Claire sniffling as she took a deep breath and exhaled. She let out another quiet breath and then I heard her body shifting to the side on her mattress.

"...Thanks again Xander, I really needed to hear that, especially from a friend. Becoming your friend is turning out to be one of the best decisions of my life, my gamble paid off." She snickered softly and this brought a smile to my face as I turned to the side as well, my body shifting to a fetal position.

"Good night Claire," I whispered as I closed my eyes, the cold air blanketing my body, making me cool and relaxed.

"...Good night Xander..." She whispered back softly, and then silence reigned in the room once again.