Daydream || Rick Tyler [DC's Stargirl]

• Chapter 29

Molly could hardly breathe. Mainly because she was sprinting as fast as she could to get to Courtney's. She hadn't even bothered to call Beth again to ask her what was going on. However, if Beth had to call and text her fifteen times, it must've been serious. She let out a sigh of relief when she reached the Duganmore house. Mainly because she was completely out of breath from running, but she already missed enough. She needed to get there as soon as possible.

When she ran up the front steps of their porch, Molly didn't even bother knocking before running inside. However, she quickly stopped when she saw everyone standing right in front of the entrance. Pat, Barbara, and Mike were breaking out of their tight embrace, tears streaming down Barbara and Mike's faces. Molly's lips parted in shock as she looked over and saw Beth, who was also crying with her goggles on. And there was also Jennie, who surprised Molly the most. She noticed she was holding Courtney's staff and a bookbag over her shoulders while holding Beth's hand quietly. Molly's heart dropped to the floor as she looked between all of them. She didn't even want to ask.

"What's going on?" She managed to get out.

Everyone looked at her sadly, causing her worst nightmare to become true. Eclipso. He got Courtney. And she wasn't even here to help.

———

Just like the rest of the people in the house, Molly sat in Courtney's bedroom crying quietly to herself. Courtney was gone. The last time she had seen her friend was when she was comforting her the night Rick got arrested. And Molly hadn't even known it would be the last night she would get to see her.

Beth also filled Molly in on everything she missed. How The Shade came here after Molly kicked him out of her house, which Beth didn't know that last bit. He told them that in order to defeat Eclipso, they had to put the Diamond back together. Since the staff wasn't strong enough, they had to find Jennie in order for her to use the ring on the Diamond. However, The Shade lied. Putting the Diamond back together connected their world back to the Shadowlands, which allowed The Shade to access his powers and heal. Fixing the Diamond also summoned Eclipso to its location, leading to how he was able to get to Courtney.

Molly couldn't help, but feel like it was her fault. If she would've just been able to keep her emotions in check, she probably wouldn't have kicked The Shade out of the house. She could've helped him without him having to lie to the Duganmores. Maybe Courtney would still be here if she would've just handled the situation maturely. She wasn't ready to tell anybody about what happened at her house though. She informed them that Eclipso came to her, but not about The Shade. There was only one person she wanted to tell. But she couldn't.

As Beth walked around Courtney's room and observed all of her decorations, Molly could hear her quietly sniffing as she cried. Molly reached up and wiped the tears off her cheeks quickly as she tried to not cry even harder. She had cried so much the past few days. Things felt like they were getting worse and worse. Yolanda quit. Rick is in jail. And Courtney is... she couldn't even bring herself to say it.

There was a quiet knock on the door, causing Molly to look up. Jennie, who was peaking her head in through the crack of the door, sent her a small smile. However, Molly could tell she was just as upset. Beth, who finally slowly turned around, looked between the two girls sadly while grasping her hands in front of her.

"My goggles are filled with tears," She spoke quietly without making direct eye contact with either of them. Her voice cracked as she quietly confessed, "But I'm too scared to take them off."

Molly could practically feel her heart crack as she looked up sadly at Beth. Then, Jennie quietly spoke, "If I wasn't afraid... the ring would've saved Courtney from Eclipso. It's my fault... again."