Clothed in our grief

Chapter Thirty Seven

a/n: This chapter is suppose to be uncomfortable to read, it goes into Lea's past and explains part of why she's doing what she's doing now. Also, more information on Detective Laura Morris (Laura Constantine from the Injustice universe) comes into this chapter.

"Daddy no, stop it that hurts! I don't w-wanna do this anymore!" She's shrieking, long black hair being pulled and yanked to keep her still. She's only thirteen, but the makeup on her face seems to keep smearing. Wiping her palms over her cheeks to get rid of the pink blush, the older man she calls her father behind her only tugs harder on her thick black strands.

"Lea, you need to stay still. Please it''ll be over in a minute." An arm wrapping around her torso from behind, while his other hand keeps clutching her hair. White knuckles, right to her scalp. He's begging her, tears in his eyes. His job hasn't been enough money to keep his wife on life support, and food on the table? Exploiting his daughter has been his last attempt at trying to keep his family together.

"Let me g-go!" Screaming and wailing, kicking her bare feet out and shoving them against the wall and pushing back. Shutting her eyes closed tightly, feeling wet mascara leave black streaks down her eyes. Shrieking loudly and throwing her head back, digging her nails into his arms.

The back of her head collides with his nose, a loud cracking sound emitting indicating that she's broken his nose. He's holding her up, an arm still wrapped around her torso. She has her feet to the wall, and she's still pushing back even now. Blood begins to gush from her father's now broken nose, onto the back of her head and down her back. Staining the white dress.

"Lea we have a good thing going, don't-" "Let me go! I don't wanna go up there!" She shrieks, screaming until her lungs beg for more air. Screaming until her throat feels horse and raw. Growing tighter as tears continue streaming down her bloodshot eyes. The bright blue looks more grey, and it's shadowed over by dark circles and red raw edges of flesh around her eyes.

Reaching her arms behind her, grabbing her father by the back of his head and moving both of her thumbs to where she can manage to find his eyes. He's crying, begging her to just keep going. She's never fought back like this before. She screams, she throws things, she bites, she threatens. But she's never broken any bones yet.

"Lea-aHHH!" She shoves her right thumb into his eye, squirming it around just as much as she herself was struggling. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" She keeps repeating, screaming it loudly. Squirming and doing so. Removing her thumb from his eye only when he yanks his head back. Blood now dripping from her long thumb nail, all the way to her elbow.

"Please don't be more mad at me I didn't mean-" An open palm across her face, a loud slap that sends heart topping shattered through the shady one bedroom place. Instantly, she's tossed up over his shoulder, while she only screams even louder. Pounding on his back, kicking her feet.

He walks past the living room, where her bed is. All her colorful toys, she's kicking around so much she makes him stumble and knock over her dresser. Sending dolls and trolls with colorful hair to sprawl all over the floor.

"Look what you did!" He yells, sounding more angry by the second. Gripping his daughter by her sides, her below average sized body easily thrown from his arms onto the ground. She lands flat on her back, suddenly the wind knocking out of her lungs is what finally silences her. Eyes widening in pain as her arms helplessly lay out around her body. Like a ragdoll tossed to the ground from a bored child. One of her knees is bent, leg to the side. Her other leg is straight, and she can feel the ends of her hair brush against her fingertips.

"It's the easiest thing to do, yet you pitch a fit about it every time! Please Lea, I love you. You're my daughter. Do you think I like putting you out there?!" He yells at her, face growing red from anger as he bends down, grabs her face and forces his young teenage daughter to look at him.