Remembrance

"Mom, please, I just want to see Ray again!" I yelled at my mother as she threw me over her shoulder and brought me to the elevator of the hotel.

"If he calls, then he can come see you. Maybe even bring Gerard, okay honey? I know you like those two like your uncles, but your aunt it really difficult right now. I'm sorry." She said, trying to calm me down.

"I want Ray now." I crossed my arms over my chest and let my long dark brown hair be a shade for my face.

"Skylar, don't bring it up again." She said sternly, putting me down and takin my hand.

"At least they appreciate my drawings." I mumbled as I stared at the best pair of converse that were holding my feet.

There was a sharp pain across my face as my mother slapped my face hard. I held my cheek as I looked up at her with tears in my eyes. "You need to shut up. Shut up. I said shut up." She yelled. The elevator door opened and she dragged me to the room as I just went limp behind her. She threw me into the extra room that locks from the outside.

"You can stay in there until you get your fucking attitude in check." She screamed. I layed on the ground, clutching my shoulder as my face burned. I cried silently on the ground for hours. Hours. Soon, I found the courage to get up and look around the room. I found the spare key my aunt was supposed to have, but wouldn't be back to get I guess.

I put my ear to the door and heard snoring from my mom. I jiggled the key in the door, unlocking it like my dad had always showed me. I silently walked through the room, finding mom's phone beside her bedside table by her usual bottle of beer. I grabbed it, locked the door from the outside and shut my door quietly again. I jumped up on the bed and opened the phone. I quickly found Ray's number and dialled it as the continuing shooting pain ensued in my left arm. I'm just happy that she grabbed my left arm and not my right.

"Hello?" Ray asked into the phone.

"R-Ray?" I asked quietly, my voice still strained from crying.

"Skylar? Are you okay? Why are you crying?" He asked all at once.

"I-I don't think I'm okay. Ray, mommy hurt me. Can you come get me? Please?" I stuttered into the phone, nerves flying around my body and the pain in my shoulder making me shake.

"Okay, Gerard, your aunt, my friend and me will be there as soon as possible." He said quickly. I heard car keys jangling in the background.

"No, please. I don't want Aunty." I said, my eyes starting to leak again.

"O-Okay." He said. I heard a door shut behind him and a car start up.

"Skylar, we'll be there soon." I heard Gerard say in the back.

"Please, don't knock on the door. Mommy is sleeping. She drank a lot and probably won't wake up, but I don't want mommy knowing I called. She'll hurt me again." I cried into the phone. I grabbed the key with my other arm, anticipating on unlocking my door again, but I dropped it from the pain in my shoulder and cried out. I held my mouth shut, but heard another snore and let go of my breath.

"Skylar, are you okay?" Ray said. I could tell that had out it on speaker somewhere in the car.

"N-No, I-I can't move m-my arm." I sobbed quietly into the phone.

"Okay, babe, we are almost there." Gerard said. "What's the room number?"

"I-It's 116." I cried. "Please be as quiet as possible for a second?" I asked.

"of course." Ray said. I put the phone on speaker and late it on the table beside the door and ran back to the card that was on the floor, picking it up with my good arm. I quickly unlocked the door again and put the card down, grabbing the phone. I stuffed it under my arm gently and shut and locked the door again, going over by the front door of the room.

"Honey, we are here." Gerard said into the phone and I looked under the door and saw two pairs of feet in black shoes. I quickly shut off the phone and carefully placed it where it had been before I took it and ran to the door again. I opened it up carefully and closed it with the same gingerness.

I jumped into whoever's arms came first and sobbed into their shoulder, pinky able to wrap my right arm around them.

"Holy shit." Someone I had never seen before looked at my face as he held me in his arms. I screamed and jumped out, falling on my bum and really hurting my tailbone. I just collapsed, my whole body going limp from the pain.

"Wow! It's okay!" Ray said, picking me up. "It's just Frank, sh, sh."

"S-Sorry. St-Stranger d-danger." I seethed through my pain.

"What happened to you face?" Gerard asked, putting his hand on the cheek mommy slapped me.

"W-We were in the elevator and she was m-mad at me and I said at least you guys like my drawings and she slapped me a-across the face and d-dragged me down the hallway b-by my arm and through me in the spare room and locked me in." I sobbed into Ray's shoulder.

"How did you get out?" Frank asked, picking up my arm. I yelped in pain as he touched where mom had gripped while dragging me down the hallway. "Shit, sorry."

"I-It's okay. And I jacked the lock." I reported.

"You were able to unlock the door?" Gerard asked in amazement.

"Mhm." I mumbled. The pain had only increased since I escaped and I was anticipating leaving this place now.

"And she's only five?" Frank asked, just as surprised and impressed as Gee.

"Four." Ray corrected, kissing my forehead as walking to the elevator. We were soon in the car.

"Shit, I don't have a car seat." Ray cursed.

"Once, when we went camping and forgot our car seat at home, my uncle just let me sit on his lap and put the seat belt over both of us." I smiled.

"Well, he's smart isn't he?" Ray laughed. "I'll have to meet him sometime."

"No, he's in jail." I smiled.

There was a long silence for a second. "For what?" Frank eventually interrupted.

"He, um, he tried to touch me inappropriately." I sighed. I looked at my shoes when I said this, not wanting them to think I was just being bad like Mom did. I looked up after a second and they were all looking at me in shock. "I'm sorry."

Frank pulled me into his arms and hugged me tightly. "I'm so sorry."

"It's okay. " I laughed.

He pulled me onto his lap and did up the seat belt around us both. I laughed and raised my right hand in the air. "I'm ready to go!"

"Woo!" Frank laughed. We sped away from the hotel and back to Ray's house. I took one of Frank's hands in mine and leaned my head back onto his chest. He rested his chin on my head and sighed. I giggled before falling asleep.

Soon, I was half awake, looking up at Frank.

"F-Frankie?" I sighed in a sleepy voice.

"Shh, it's okay, go back to sleep." He smiled and kissed my cheek. I smiled before my eyes fluttered back closed.

I woke up in the morning and looked over to see Gerard's peaceful face across the room on a different couch. I pushed the covers off of me and sat up, looking around the room. I panicked a little when I didn't see Ray. Frank was sleeping in a reclining chair beside the love seat I was sleeping on but Ray was nowhere in sight.

I jumped off of the love seat and ran over to Gerard. I kneeled in front of his face, his mouth slightly open. I giggled as I sat cross-cross-applesauce and just smiled at his face, waiting for him to wake up.

after about an hour, I got bored, so I stood up and walked over to the backpack I had left yesterday and got my sharpie. I walked over to Frank, think about what tattoo would look good on him. I laughed and soon I was drawing a scorpion on the side of his neck. I giggled when I finished.

"Good morning." I giggled, slumping beside him in the chair.

"You drew on me, didn't you." He laughed. I laughed too and we ended up laughing harder when we figured that Frank had the same laugh as his 4 year old friend.

"Frank, am I your friend?" I asked after we had stopped laughing.

"My bestest friend." He smiled. I giggled and kissed his cheek, jumping off of his chair and walking into the kitchen.

I jumped up on the counter and searched the cabinets for coffee, soon finding some in just a plastic bag. I pulled the coffee maker out more and put a filter of coffee in, filling it with water before turning it on. I jumped off the counter and found the cream cheese and bagels. I made two as quick as I could and smiled when I saw the coffee was done too. I put the bagels on one big plate, grabbed three packets of sugar and the cream and brought out a cup of coffee.

"Breakfast." I smiled at Frank. I walked over carefully and handed him his cup of coffee and the cream and sugar before offering him a bagel.

"Is Ray up and already in there?" He asked, looking a bit confused a I walked back into the kitchen.

"No." I replied before shutting the door to the kitchen and grabbing another cup of coffee for Gerard and grabbing myself a cup of juice from the fridge.

"Skylar, did you make all this yourself?" Frank asked, surprised.

"Yeah, why?" I smiled as I set down Gee's coffee and my juice.

"I can't believe it!" He giggled.

I laughed at him. "I make this for mom and dad every morning. Didn't you do that for your mommy and daddy?" I asked, confused.

"Never." He smiled a small sad smile. I walked over to him and looked him right in the eyes.

"Don't be sad. I don't want a sad smile, I want real smiles." I said, pulling his face into a real smile. He laughed and I smiled at his real smile before kissing him quickly and jumping off his lap and over to Gerard.

"Gewawd." I said in a baby voice, making Frank laugh. After Gerard didn't respond I leaned in and kissed his forehead. "For real, Gee, I have coffee, wake up."

"Hm?" His eyes fluttered open and stared right into mine for a second. I exaggerated a smile and he laughed before rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. I walked over to the table and grabbed his coffee and his bagel.

"Anything in your coffee?" I asked.

He looked over to Frank, who laughed, then back to me. "No thanks."

"Okay." I smiled. I grabbed my juice from the table and Quickly drank it all. I walked over to the love seat and sat down, smiling as Gerard took his first sip of coffee.

"This is the best coffee I have ever tasted. What the actual fuck." He commented looking at the coffee in his hands.

"I'm glad you like it!" I beamed.

"What?" He looked over at me.

"I made the coffee for you. And the bagel." I giggled. Frank giggled at me and Gerard just looked at me, dumbfounded.

"Can I please just keep you?" He laughed. I smiled at his comment and actually considered it.

"Sure." I smiled.

"No, Skylar, I can't take you from your mother." He sighed.

"She doesn't love me anyways. You'd love me more." I sighed into my legs as I brought them to my chest in the fetal position.

"Oh, honey, that's not true. " he sighed.

I didn't feel like arguing about my mother's lack of feeling towards me, so I just said okay.

Notes

Sorry I take so long.