We Know What You Did

10: Rough Night

Amanda opened the door to her apartment and she and Chelsea went inside. Amanda showed Chelsea to the guest room and let the girl settle. Chelsea dropped her bag onto the floor, sat on the bed, and started crying. She just wanted to go home. Not back home with Tyler today, but to a different time. When her mom was alive and they were a happy family, or at least when her mom made it seem that way. Chelsea pulled pajamas out of her bag and changed into them. She wiped her eyes but when she went into the living room, it was clear to Amanda that the teen had been crying.
"You okay?" Amanda grimaced when she saw Chelsea. Chelsea nodded and bit her lip. "Do you want something to eat or drink?" Amanda knew Chelsea wasn't ok but she didn't want to force the girl to talk.
"No thank you" Chelsea shook her head. "I'm just going to go to sleep. Thank you, Amanda."
Amanda smiled kindly. "You're welcome, honey. If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask or wake me up. Get some rest." Chelsea said goodnight and headed to bed. Amanda made herself a cup of tea and curled up on the couch. Amanda's cellphone buzzed and she saw Sonny's name pop up. It was as if he knew the perfect time to call. "Hey, Carisi" she said.
"How is she?" Sonny asked anxiously.
"She's upset. She went to sleep, the poor kid's exhausted." Amanda told him.
"Has she said anything about it? About him?"
Amanda shook her head even though he couldn't see her. "No. She's been real quiet but you can tell she's deep in thought about it."
"Please take care of her, Manda" Sonny sighed. "Call me if anything happens." Amanda reassured her friend that she would take good care of his niece before hanging up the phone. After watching an episode of Heart's Desire, Amanda went to sleep.
———
Amanda was woken up by screaming. She quickly got out of bed and went into the guest bedroom.
"Chelsea, Chelsea" she sat on the edge of the bed and placed a hand on the girl's shoulder. "Wake up, you're ok." Chelsea woke up and sat up. She wrapped her arms around Amanda. "It's ok sweetheart, it was just a dream." Chelsea breathed heavily and eventually calmed down. "You okay?"
Chelsea nodded and pulled back. "Sorry." She mumbled. "I didn't mean to wake you."
"That's alright" Amanda reassured her. "Nightmare?" Chelsea nodded. "Do you want to talk about it?"
Chelsea shook her head. "I'm just going to get a glass of water." Amanda offered to get it but Chelsea wanted to get up and Amanda retreated back to her room.

Sonny couldn't sleep. His phone buzzed and he quickly picked it up. He skimmed the message from Amanda in which she told him Chelsea had woken up from a nightmare. After a few messages back and forth, Amanda was able to reassure Sonny that Chelsea was okay and Sonny relaxed a little. However, this didn't last long. A few minutes after putting down his phone from texting Amanda, his phone rang and this time it was Chelsea.
"Hey, Seabug. Everything okay?" Sonny asked.
There was a long pause before Chelsea spoke. "No"
"What's wrong?" Sonny sat up in bed, growing very concerned.
"I'm not okay. I don't know what to do. I lost everyone. I'm all alone" Chelsea sounded defeated and desperate.
"Chels, you have me." Sonny tried to comfort her.
"You don't get it. First mom dies and now my dad... my dad did this to me. How do I go back to normal?" Chelsea asked.
"Look, Chelsea, you've gotten through the hardest part. You survived the rape, you will survive the recovery." Sonny told her.
"What if I don't want to?" Chelsea sounded scared. "I have nothing to go back to. What if I want it to stop?"
Sonny began to get dressed. He didn't like the way his niece was talking and he needed to get over there as fast as he could. "Hey, don't say that. You're a smart, kind person who has her whole life ahead of her."
Chelsea sighed. "Yeah, whatever. I'm sorry for bothering you so late."
"I'm coming over, ok?" Sonny slipped on his shirt. Chelsea seemed indifferent to his statement. "Try to get some sleep, but I'll be there when you wake up. I love you, Chelsea." Chelsea reciprocated the sentiment and they hung up the phone. Sonny wasted no time in calling Amanda. "I need you to keep an eye on Chelsea" he said once she answered.
Amanda rolled her eyes "Carisi, we've been through this, I'm taking care of-"
"I mean a literal eye" Sonny cut her off. "I just got off the phone with her and she didn't sound right. I... I'm worried she might try to hurt herself. Can you just sit with her till I get there. I'll be there in fifteen minutes." Now understanding the situation, Amanda agreed and went to find Chelsea.
Chelsea was sitting at the counter, staring into space. "Hey," Amanda spoke, not wanting to sneak up on and startle Chelsea. However, the teen still jumped at Amanda's voice. "Couldn't sleep?" Chelsea nodded and stared at her lap as Amanda took a seat next to her. "I know it's hard right now. If you want to talk, we can."
Chelsea burst into tears, catching Amanda off guard. "I want my mom back. I miss her so much." Chelsea sobbed. "I want my dad back. Why'd he do this to me?" Chelsea buried her head in her hands. Amanda put her hand on Chelsea's shoulder.
Amanda tried to reassure Chelsea but nothing she said seemed to comfort the girl. "Chels, you've got to calm down or you're going to make yourself sick." As soon as the words left her mouth, Chelsea hopped up and ran to the bathroom. Amanda followed behind her and winced at the sound of retching. She knelt beside Chelsea and used one hand to hold her hair out of the way and the other to gently rub the teen's back. "It's okay, baby." Amanda soothed. Chelsea, still sobbing, leaned forward to throw up again.