Naomi finally snaps back from her racing thoughts, she hurries over to Bernice to try and help comfort her. Bernice is screaming and crying asking God "why?" And getting angry about the fact she didn't even get to know her. Naomi was softly crying, but the sentence her mother finished caused her to break down. As soon as she started to get to know her, shit as soon as Leah helped her get to know herself, she finds out that she's her sister, and then loses her? It just wasn't fair. What had she done to deserve any of this. Her life was really beginning to be her definition of "perfect" just some days ago, and now....
Her thought process is interrupted by Marcus, he walks up to her, eyes blood shot from crying, he seemed to have cried his eyes dry. He looks at her like he has something to say but doesn't know how, she tries her best to comfort him by putting her hand on his shoulder and gripping kind of tightly as if trying to let him know that she understood and everything was going to be ok.
It gave him the strength to finally say what he was trying so hard to get out: "I, I know you don't know me....and I have a lot...and I mean A LOT of explaining and catching up to do. But I want to be there for you, idk, I guess be that "dad" you never really had..."
Naomi throws herself into his arms, she knows that she doesn't technically know him, but something about the way he said what he said made her feel like he meant it, and even after all the betrayal she just felt within the past couple of weeks, she felt he was trustworthy.
As her emotions slowly started to turn into comfort, the officer who's reading his rights an explaining to Derrick why he's getting arrested voice is starting to fade back to her. She makes eye contact with Derrick and immediately feels guilty 😞 she really doesn't even understand why, she knew going to the cops was the right thing to do, in yet she still felt bad for him. When he finally got to sit down and have a paramedic look at him and bandage him up until he could go to the hospital, she took the opportunity to talk to him.
Naomi: "Derrick, I'm, I'm sooooo sorry,..."
Derrick: "what you apologizing for?"
Naomi: "everything that's happened to you I guess...and the fact I turned you in on something you confided in me about.."
Derrick: "Naomi, it's ME who's sorry! For EVERYTHING, you're a good...a GREAT girl. I should have never...did any of the stuff I did to you. You don't need to apologize, I've dated you for 2 & a half years, I knew what you would do when I told you, I was prepared for it. The system can't do anything worse to me than what the guilt of what I've done has been doing to me for these past few days."
She slightly smiled, kissed his cheek, then put her forehead against his for a second.
Another officer walks up to her and startles her, "excuse me ma'am?" She jumps a little and giggles it off. "Yes? How may I help you?"
Officer: "even though two of the perpetrators are deceased, we will need you and Derrick both to testify against them, and we will also need you to testify against Derrick, you're now our only witness."
She gives Derrick a look of sympathy and guilt, he replies with a "didn't I tell you I was prepared for it?" And a "everything's gonna be ok" smile. She lets the officer know she understands, and watches as they take Derrick away, never breaking eye contact. Funny, she thought to herself, this was the most eye contact and sincerity they have shown each other their whole relationship.
She walks back to Marcus and Bernice, they both embrace her, she thought she was going to break down, but to her suprise, she felt so at peace. They all did.
⚫️⚫️⚫️⚫️
Leah's funeral was first, it was small, but beautiful. Marcus and Bernice was slowly coming out to everyone about Leah being their daughter, they wanted to wait for Naomi to be ok with everyone finding out Marcus was also her father. Didn't take long for her to want it put out there tho, it was either everyone find out who her father was or let them think a man of power who ended up being a monster was her dad, and who wanted to live with that. The trial was the next day, so she couldn't really focus on anything anyone else was saying. She also couldn't stop the feeling of everyone knowing her and Leah's secret and judging her, even though she knew only she and her parents knew....that was enough to feel like the whole world did. It felt like everything was taking forever, as if time was moving in slow motion. She dazed off day dreaming about a different scenario of how everything in her life was unraveling. Eventually, it was time to say their goodbyes so she snapped back to her reality. She walked up to a mourning Bernice and Marcus and hugged them tightly. The both kissed her head and smiled, they seemed as if they weren't ready to say their goodbyes. With a cracked voice, Naomi asked for a few minutes alone. When she made sure they were far enough not to hear or see, she slowly grasped Leah's hand, she immediately released when she felt how cold and hard it was. "I'm so sorry" she said as a tear rolled off her cheek on to Leah's, "I wish I would have gotten to know you as my sister, and never as..." she started to feel a little sick. Bernice slightly startles her when she puts her hand on her shoulder and kisses her head. "Mom?" Naomi says with a jump. "It's ok." Bernice replies "everything is ok, YOU'RE going to be ok, and WE'RE going to get through this." She hugs her tightly and allows her to get all the crying she didn't do at the funeral out. "Mom, I'm so embarrassed, and I feel disgusting"
Bernice gives her a "what are you talking about?" Look and Naomi glances over at Leah's lifeless body.
"Ohhhhh" Bernice exclaims as she draws Naomi back in for another deep hug. "Honey,...it's, it's fine. Nothing you can't over come. I look at and love you no different than before. I mean lets be real, you only have given one boy a chance and that was only because that sick bastard manipulated you into doing it, and this was your first other experience, who's to say what or who you like yet? I think you should just keep focus on YOU and your FUTURE, and loving yourself. Come on, lets grab some dinner and get you home for some rest. You have a BIG day tomorrow."
Naomi wiped her face and smiled the best she could, her mom was right, like always. Bernice turned to Leah and gave her one last kiss on her forehead as Marcus cane behind her and wrapped his arms around her waste. "Bye butter cup" he says to Leah as he kisses her forehead for the last time as well. He turns to Naomi and asks if she's going to be ok, she shakes her head yes, grabs both their hands and says "I'm just ready to get tomorrow over with" with a big exhale. They all take one last glance at Leah as if saying a final goodbye, and walk through the doors to what is obviously a "farewell Leah"....forever
