A Multi-ship Story **in Editing*

*The Truth*

After two days of monitoring, Lexi was discharged and allowed to go home. An inexplicable tention still hung between Lexi and Lily. Lily wouldn't look at her long, or stay in a room alone with her.

After another day at home of this treatment, Lexi confronted her at dinner. "Lily, what's going on?"

Lily stopped, mid-chew, and finally looked Lexi in the eyes. "What do you mean?"

"You won't hardly look at me. You don't stay in the same room as me. It's like you hate me! I need my friend right now. I'm so... confused."

Lily glanced at her parents. Jenny, who sat between them, tried to take Lexi's hand. "She's just under a lot of stress. She was worried for you, she doesnt know how to treat you now."

"How to treat me!?" Lexi nearly laughed. "What does that even mean? You're my best friend, how else would you treat me?"

"It's just different!" Lily yelled. "I can't just go back to normal! Not after what you did!"

Everything stopped, went silent. Lexi swallowed once, twice, before she responded. "What I did? What... what do you mean?"

Lily stabbed her fork into her dinner. "Nothing." She stood and left the room.

Lexi stared at the fork for a moment, before looking to Gibbs. "What did she mean, Gibbs?"

Jenny began covering, "she just meant-"

"I didn't ask you!" Lexi cut her off. "You're just going to lie again." She turned back to Gibbs. "You'll tell the truth... what did that mean?"

Gibbs looked at Lexi and sighed. "We caught Peterson... and his son... we caught them and interrogated them. But by the time we found them... they'd already gotten rid of you."

Lexi stared intensely at him. Foggy memories clawed at her mind. The smell of cleaning alcohol. Restraints on her arms and legs. Pain. So much pain.

Gibbs continued. "When we asked where they took you... he said they took you to the highest bidder. We lost track of you from there... but we didn't stop looking. Not until you showed up on our doorstep a little over a week ago. You were different. You didn't stay long. Then you ran. We got a call a few days later from the hospital."

"But.. why does that hurt Lily? Why can't she be near me?"

Gibbs sighed. "It was hard on her... you weren't you. And, it's gonna take a while for her to get comfortable around you again. Give her some space. She's been scared."

Lexi huffed. "She's been scared..."

Jenny met Gibbs eyes, and they traded a look... a secret...

~~~

Lexi jolted awake, breathing rapidly, heart racing. She turned on the lamp beside her bed and rubbed her neck as she sat up. She put her feet on the floor and put her head in her hands, her elbows on her knees.

Staring at the floor, she tried to recall the details of this nightmare... although, it seemed more real... like a memory.

She was somewhere else entirely. Somewhere she'd never seen before, but she was exhausted. Her body ached, and her mind was running.

Thundering footsteps sounded through the hallway outside the dimly lit room she was in. Terror. No other word could describe the fear that ran through that memory.

When the figure entered the room, she didn't recognize him, but she recognized that she was afraid of him. He took a needle full of some drug and injected it into her, talking into her ear and shoving a picture into her vision. Right before she blacked out, her eyes focused on the picture of Gibbs.

~~~

Lexi yawned again, trying to force her hand to move the spoonful of cereal to her mouth. She was just... so... tired. Sleep was restless. She was riddled with nightmare upon nightmare like the one she'd had last night.

"Lexi," Lily interrupted her thoughts. "I'm.. sorry about last night. I didn't mean to yell or anything. I know it's not your fault that you're different now... it's just-"

"It's okay, Lily.. I'll see you after school." Lexi tried to give her most sincere smile possible as Lily nodded softly and left the room.

Gibbs and Jenny emerged eventually, each getting coffee and breakfast, then sitting at the table.

Jenny spoke first, "Lexi... how are you doing? We heard you up last night... are you having nightmares?"

Lexi swallowed hard and nodded. "More like... memories, I think."

"Oh! You're remembering things?" The look Jenny gave Gibbs was less hopeful, more worried.

Gibbs looked at Lexi. "What are you remembering?"

She shrugged, pretending not to notice Jenny's worry. "Just a bunch of situations of people I dont know giving me... some type of medicine or something... oh, and..."

"And what?"

"And.. you, Gibbs. They're always telling me horrible things, and it's always about you..."

Gibbs leaned back and then nodded to Jenny. She sighed and looked, concerned, at Lexi.

"I think it's time we told you The Truth..."

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